El Cerrito Attains LEED Certified​ Status

EL CERRITO, CA — El Cerrito has become a LEED Certified city, one of 75 cities and communities that are now recognized as LEED Certified, according to the city. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. The program from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) advances healthy, green, and economically strong cities and communities.

“Our certification has provided a great foundation for future work with the USGBC, and we look forward to openly tracking and communicating our continued social, economic, and environmental performance so that the people of El Cerrito can see our progress,”Mayor Gabriel Quinto said when the certification was announced in November.

El Cerrito is “among the vanguard cities in the world who are leading buildings and places toward the highest standards of sustainability and ensuring a higher standard of living,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, President and CEO of USGBC. “El Cerrito is to be congratulated for its commitment to ensuring a place where people, nature and businesses can all thrive.”

As a participant in the LEED for Cities program, “El Cerrito will reach an even higher level of leadership where they will continue to demonstrate a commitment to sustainability, human health and economic prosperity,” added Ramanujam.

The LEED for Cities certification follows a natural progression for El Cerrito, which has received several environmental awards including three Beacon Spotlight Awards in 2018, which “recognize an agency’s holistic approach to addressing climate change.” The Beacon Spotlight awards included:

• Gold Level award for community greenhouse gas reductions
• Platinum Level award for energy savings
• Platinum Level award for natural gas savings

The City also received an Honorable Mention from the National Waste & Recycling Association in its 2018 Recycling Facility of the Year Award program, providing national recognition to the El Cerrito Recycling + Environmental Resource Center for its state-of-the-art design and the comprehensive array of services it provides.

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