There seems to be a renewed awareness about our environment lately. Not just the global warming syndrome, but sustainability as a concept is beginning to get wider acceptance.
The environmentalists have been working hard for decades to get us focused on the issue of preserving the globe. Lately, however, it seems that a momentum has begun to permeate business in particular.
For decades, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce has had an environmental and economic committee exploring the ways chamber members could help preserve the environment while growing the economy.
Last month, the chamber announced a new committee , a sustainability committee , to begin the process of making as many member companies as “green” as possible.
Certifying an interested company as green is one of the first goals of the volunteer group.
Goals and milestones are being drafted that will allow member companies to fill out an application stipulating how they qualify.
Once the committee certifies them, they will be issued a decal for their company window and permission to use the chamber’s green company logo on their stationery.
To kick off the campaign, the chamber has installed nine Solatube systems in its office, with 21 coming. The lighting was first put into offices without windows, then restrooms and the Small Business Success Center.
The product was donated by John Hanley, chief executive officer of Solatube Global Marketing Inc. The 30 systems would sell for $35,000 to $40,000. The installation costs were provided by Carlton Lund, co-owner of The Lund Team, a residential real estate broker.
By the end of 2009, all 30 of the Solatubes will be installed and it is anticipated that the monthly electricity bill will be reduced by nearly 75 percent.
A savings of $12,000 a year is a nice way to sustain the bottom line.
Carlsbad also is in the environmental limelight with a new revolutionary automobile designed here.
Aptera Motors Inc.’s Aptera is a Space Age looking car that comes in two versions. One is a battery and small engine that will get 300 miles per gallon and the other is only a battery with 120 miles per gallon.
The cars will be priced at around $30,000 when offered for sale. The company has a waiting list fast approaching 5,000.
The other project is Poseidon Resources’ desalination water plant, which hopefully will be up and running by 2011, providing guaranteed water to all of Carlsbad while also supplying water to eight other water districts in the county.
In other North County news:
– & #8201;San Marcos-based Submarina is not letting high gasoline prices stop its growth. The company already has 65 restaurant franchises and is planning to build a new facility once a month across the nation. Florida, Michigan and Tennessee have new stores. The business is shopping around Houston and Washington, D.C. The plans call for more than 2,000 stores. The first opened in Poway in 1977.
– & #8201;Vista planners finally voted to approve the construction of the city’s first national hotel chain facility July 1. The 93-room Marriott, at the corner of Melrose Drive and Sycamore Avenue, will also have 20,000 square feet of shops and restaurants.
– & #8201;The Carlsbad Convention & Visitors Bureau is offering scholarships to three deserving high school graduates to help pay for college. The bureau is offering one $2,000 and two $1,000 scholarships. The application deadline is July 15. Winners will be picked in August and a recognition luncheon will be held in October. Applicants don’t have to live in Carlsbad, but must reside in county Supervisor Bill Horn’s district, which stretches from Oceanside to Borrego Springs. The goal is to encourage students to consider careers in tourism or hospitality. For more information, call 800-227-5223 or go to visitcarlsbad.com.
Ted Owen is the president and CEO of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce.
