San Diego honours ‘green’ tenants

The tenants are participants in the port’s Green Business Network, a voluntary programme implemented in 2010 that encourage businesses to incorporate energy efficiency and sustainability into their daily operations, including reducing their consumption of water and energy, as well as reducing waste on tidelands.

“The Port of San Diego is proud of its waterfront businesses for their commitment to improving the environment of San Diego Bay and the tidelands,” said Bob Nelson, chairman of the Board of Port Commissioners.

In 2013, the port’s tenants earned around US$253,000 in energy and natural gas rebate incentives. They also saved nearly 2.5 million kilowatt hours and more than 137,000 therms – the equivalent to powering 154 homes for a year.

“The success of our Green Business Network is documented in real results that represent significant energy savings and valuable rebates,” he added.

Some of the environmental success from 2013 include the San Diego Marriott Marquis and Marine which recently joined the City of San Diego’s Large Generator Composting programme that accepts food waste from hotels, restaurants and other businesses.

The Coronado Island Marriott Reserve is another successful tenant that reported a notable decrease in waste by discontinuing the use of paper cups in its cafeteria.

Continental Maritime, one of the port’s ship repair tenants, upgraded its exterior lighting. Switching to LEDs helped it reduce energy use by 59%. It also saved 89,000 kilowatt hours and US$19,000 in reduced energy costs.

The port is continuing the programme during 2014.