The Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) and Boston 2004, Inc., the host committee for the 2004 Democratic National Convention, announced their plans to make the Democratic National Convention the greenest political convention in American history.
To reach this goal, the DNCC and Boston 2004, Inc., have worked extensively with the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Conventions (CERC), and have collaborated with other organizations to design a multi-faceted plan to ensure an environmentally friendly Convention. Said Bruce Hamilton, National Conservation Director for the Sierra Club, "Democrats have regularly promoted renewable energy, recycling, mass transportation, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It is encouraging to see a major national convention that reflects these environmental values."
Convention organizers have launched the following environmental initiatives:
* organizers will purchase Green Tags in the amount of the energy needed to supply energy for the convention.
* Fuel Cell Energy Inc (Nasdaq: FCEL) will supply a 250-kilowatt fuel cell power plant which will provide power for events at the FleetCenter. The unit can supply enough power to provide the base load electricity requirements of a 300-room hotel, will directly convert natural gas, supplied by Keyspan Energy, through a patented internal reforming process into the hydrogen needed to electrochemically produce electricity.
The fuel cell will produce 99.9% less harmful air pollution and 59% less carbon dioxide than traditional combustion-based fossil fuel power plants, and will use half as much fuel per kilowatt hour of electricity than conventional power plants.
* the convention will offset CO2 greenhouse gas emissions by acquiring greenhouse gas reduction credits, generated from a variety of CO2 reduction projects. The greenhouse gas emissions attributable to the Convention were estimated by CERC and include fossil-fuel combustion emissions from all forms of transportation used to bring delegates to and from the Convention (buses, cars, and trains).
* The convention will have a comprehensive recycling plan. Bins for the recycling of mixed paper, cans, and bottles will be conveniently located throughout the FleetCenter and media work stations, including the press pavilion and workspace located on Causeway and North Washington streets. In addition, Convention organizers have adopted a policy of using recycled white paper throughout all of their office operations and in all media work stations.
The DNCC, partnering with Scanlon Associates, will also launch the Recycled Paper Poster Project, which will take wastepaper generated by the first day of the Convention and, within twenty-four hours, transform it into posters that are given to Convention attendees.
After the first night of the Convention, the wastepaper will be shipped from the FleetCenter to the Haverhill Paperboard Mill in Haverhill, Massachusetts. The wastepaper will be fed onto the mills intake conveyor system and deposited directly into the hydro-pulper. The recycled paper will be manufactured into paperboard, cut into sheets, wrapped, and palletized for shipment. The sheets of paperboard will then be transported to the Journeyman Press in Newburyport, Massachusetts. They will print the posters, cut them to size, and place them on pallets. After the posters are printed, they will be shipped back to Boston and distributed to Convention attendees. The poster will note that it was made from 100% recycled materials from the first day of the Convention and will serve as a reminder of the Democratic Party's commitment to the environment.
The DNCC and Boston 2004 are working with Shawmut Design and Construction to ensure that Convention-related construction is as environmentally-friendly as possible. Shawmut, in conjunction with CERC and greenGoat, a provider of resource conservation strategies for construction companies, plans to divert all reusable construction materials from the Convention to two Boston reuse organizations, ReStore and Boston Materials Resource Center.
These reuse organizations will make the construction materials available to local non-profits and low-income homeowners in the Boston area. Shawmut has estimated that 500 sheets of masonite, 250 sheets of plywood, and 700 sheets of homosote board will be donated to the reuse organizations. Also, thousands of feet of telephone/data cabling will be recycled. In addition, Shawmut has undertaken efforts to separate at the jobsite and recycle 1,500 sheets of unpainted sheetrock.
* To prevent the waste of paper, the convention will use online operations as much as possible. Passkey, an online hotel reservation system, has allowed convention-goers to make and change reservations on the internet, involving some 109,000 hotel rooms at 63 hotels and 3 universities. This system previously required the use of more than 100,000 individual sheets of paper. The DNCC also saves paper by using a sophisticated Intranet that allows staff to communicate electronically rather than through paper-based systems.
* A number of initiatives will promote environmentally-friendly transportation during the Convention. General Motors will provide hybrid pickup trucks and buses. To limit emissions during the Convention, the Convention's bus contractor has held trainings for drivers on Massachusetts' anti-idling law. Also, CERC and WalkBoston have adopted an initiative to encourage delegates to walk from their hotels to the FleetCenter during the Convention.
* a partnership with The Greater Boston Food Bank's Second Helping program will "rescue" unused food from the Convention and Convention-related venues and provide it to community hunger-relief agencies.
* Two events have agreed to use food grown on Massachusetts farms – the 15,000-person media party and the Massachusetts delegation party. In addition to supporting state farmers and local economies, choosing locally-grown food contributes to environmental sustainability by avoiding the pollution associated with shipping and transporting food over long distances.
* Food waste from the media reception will be transported to a licensed composting facility that will convert it into a valuable soil fertilizer.
* Recognizing that even the smallest decisions related to the Convention can effect the environment, the convention will use confetti made from recycled paper and biodegradable balloons in their celebrations during the Convention.
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