UPDATE: MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - Hundreds of thousands of individuals have been working together since the founding of Meridian Township to develop policies, programs, and initiatives that keep this community green and foster economic development, according to Recycling and Transfer manager LeRoy Harvey. This year the Michigan Green Communities has awarded the township for their performance in these areas.

From small strides such as improving windows, heating installation, lighting, and recycling to large ones such as adopting a GreenSpace Plan, Lands Preservation Program and Pathway Mileages, Meridian Township has shown their concern for improvements and innovations in the community.

Meridian Township is apart of the Michigan Green Communities Challenge, which is a rating system designed for local governments in Michigan, according to LeRoy Harvey. The Michigan Green Awards recognizes excellence in local governments in Michigan. Through the Challenge, communities report on their performance in adopting policies and implementing programs that conserve energy and other resources.

There were six major categories on the checklist including built environment, natural resources, economic development, and metric indicators such as how we are measuring consumption, and administration and planning. This award is targeted towards government and what they can do to foster development.

Residents also play apart in this assisting the government in improvements and efforts. A lot of process in sustainability is the choices you make on a day-to-day basis such as how you get to work, where you should, and live said Harvey. Michigan Green Communities provides a tool to show governments a broad number of ways to better government and govern positive change in the sustainability in the community.

To learn more about subscribe to the "Green Gazette" visit http://recycle.meridian.mi.us. On a regional level you can also share your ideas and hear what others think about a sustainable community at http://ideas.midmichigansustainability.org.



ORIGINAL STORY: MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - Meridian Township was recently awarded for the efforts in making the community more sustainable and fostering development in the township.