(Credit: Pixabay)The Balboa Park Cultural Partnership recently announced that San Diego's Balboa Park has achieved a LEED for Cities and Communities certification. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, was created by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and is the world's most widely used green building rating system. The certification of Balboa Park marks the first time a cultural district and historic landmark has achieved such a designation. The park joins a network of more than 115 LEED certified cities and communities worldwide.
The achievement is the culmination of more than a decade of collaboration between the City of San Diego, nonprofit venues in Balboa Park, and partners such as San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) that led to a number of major improvements including reduced energy use, water conservation, and waste diversion park-wide.
Among the park's collaborators, SDG&E in particular has made a significant impact as both the founding partner for the park's Sustainability Program, as well as the primary financial sponsor. The generosity of SDG&E enabled the creation of a small team in the park to identify and guide infrastructure and process improvement projects that helped Balboa Park become as green as possible.
From the perspective of the nonprofits in Balboa Park, beyond being good for the environment projects such as conversions to LED lighting, installation of solar arrays, updating heating and cooling systems, and retrofitting bathrooms to low-flow fixtures ensure important savings in utility costs that will continue over time.
