Mitchell to lead US Conference of Mayors' on energy
NEW BEDFORD — New Bedford has gained a national platform to tout its renewable energy efforts and lead other cities in the push toward energy efficiency.
Mayor Jon Mitchell has been appointed to chair the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Energy Committee by Conference president Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, mayor of Baltimore. More than 260 mayors from cities across the country are slated to attend the 84th Winter Meeting of the conference in Washington, D.C. next week. The three-day meeting will feature discussions around infrastructure investment, community policing, job creation, economic development, education and other issues, a news release said.
The USCM is a nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more.
As chair, Mitchell will be responsible for taking the lead on energy issues, focusing on policies and programs that address increasing energy efficiency and conservation, expanding renewable energy and energy technology, and finding cleaner and safer energy solutions that lead to job growth in cities and metropolitan areas, organizers said.
"The leadership New Bedford has displayed in renewable energy and energy efficiency has gained national attention," said Mitchell. "This is a platform to elevate New Bedford as a community that is forward leaning on major challenges and is a place where big challenges get tackled."
"As an effective manager who modernized his city’s trash recycling system and retrofitted nearly 10,000 street-lights with LED bulbs, Mayor Mitchell brings a wealth of experience to the policy discussion on energy efficiency. We look forward to his leadership as mayors around the country lead the charge to make cities more efficient and create Main Street jobs," said USCM CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran in the news release.
Mitchell said one of his major focuses will be the development of offshore wind energy and restoration of energy block grants, which had originally been part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
He said he will also seek "to help other cities do what New Bedford has done — save taxpayers funds and combat climate change."
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