Mention the city of Carmel, and the roundabouts may be the first thing that pops into the mind. That’s not a bad thing to be known for, says Mayor James C. Brainard, because those celebrated circular throughways are one of the city’s many green achievements. “Because they reduce idling, each roundabout saves an average of 24,000 gallons of gas per year,” he’s quick to point out.
Mention the city of Carmel, and the roundabouts may be the first thing that pops into the mind. That’s not a bad thing to be known for, says Mayor James C. Brainard, because those celebrated circular throughways are one of the city’s many green achievements. “Because they reduce idling, each roundabout saves an average of 24,000 gallons of gas per year,” he’s quick to point out.
His attitude and actions demonstrate that when it comes to the environment, Carmel’s green devotees have no reason to fight city hall. The Hoosier Environmental Council named Brainard its “Elected Official of the Year” for 2010. The U.S. Conference of Mayors awarded its “Climate Protection Award” to Carmel. And the Indiana Department of Environmental Management gave Carmel Utilities its Water Guardian Award in 2010.
City government has willing partners among school, business, and community groups, too. The Carmel Green Initiative, Carmel Clay Schools Green Team, the Chamber of Commerce, and private businesses are all working together to make the city a state—and national—leader on green issues.
Starting young: in the schools
Carmel Clay Schools recently totaled up the results of its environmental efforts over the past 15 years. According to Bob Yull, energy manager, the program has avoided costs of $10.3 billion. “Last year, we had seven buildings receive the Energy Star Award,” he says. The district-wide program has replaced light bulbs with energy-saving LED and induction lighting, closed buildings one day per week during the summer, and added biodiesel to the fuel mix for the school bus fleet.
The kids are getting into the act, too. “There are a lot of neat things going on in the schools,” says MaryEllen St. Angelo, chair of the Carmel Clay Schools Green Team, a group composed of school staff and administrators, students, and parents. “The kids really want to do this.”
The “Coolers are Cooler with Cups” program replaces bottled water with coolers and reusable cups. Students in the Cherry Tree Elementary Green Club drew up a proposal and received a grant to supply the coolers and cups to other schools. Since cafeteria manager Mary Sipes started the program last spring, Cherry Tree cut the number of bottles used to less than one case from three to four 24-bottle cases per day.
Each school has a Green Team, and they work together to incorporate successful ideas within the entire school system. This year, they introduced comingled recycling on a district-wide basis. Now, all the school system’s paper, cardboard, plastic bottles, and cans are picked up for recycling.
Creating a supportive web
When you speak with anyone in Carmel about green efforts, you’ll discover that each group is supported by other groups. For example, the Carmel Clay Schools Green Team won the Carmel Chamber of Commerce’s Green Award, and is fostered by the Carmel Green Initiative, a community group advocating green practices.
The chamber’s award program attests to the vitality of the green movement in Carmel, says Mo Merhoff, chamber president. “Since we began the award three years ago, the number of entries has grown,” she says, attributing Carmel’s green ethic to its high education level and family focus. “As a community, we have supported land for parks and recreation and sustaining our quality of life.”
Leslie Webb, president and one of the founders of Carmel Green Initiative, says her group’s approach has been informative, not confrontational. “Much of what we do is to raise issues, educate, support, encourage, inspire, and build consensus to go green,” she says. “Many of these activities might have happened eventually, but CGI helped make them happen sooner, rather than later. It’s really up to our schools, churches, businesses, and the city to adopt green practices. We’re their cheerleaders.”
From refuse to recycling
The group worked with the schools to start the CCS Green Team, and a current initiative, citywide trash pickup and recycling, has the full support of Mayor Brainard’s team, including Carmel Utilities.
The program has several benefits. In addition to saving residents money, it would reduce the number of garbage trucks driving through neighborhoods, saving fuel and reducing carbon emissions. Most importantly, perhaps, it would boost recycling by making pickup available to everyone.
At press time, an ordinance to make the change was expected to be introduced to the Carmel City Council.
Another government initiative is Carmel’s Class A Biosolids program, which reduces operating costs by eliminating chemical addition to the waste, recovering heat from the sludge, utilizing methane gas production, and reducing waste disposal costs. The process turns the biosolids into an easy-to-handle soil-like substance that can safely be used as a soil conditioner. Named Carmel Green, the product saves the city approximately $100,000 annually in landfill delivery charges and fees alone. Carmel was the first city in the United States to adopt the process developed in Denmark.
Businesses on board
As the number of entries in the Chamber’s Green Awards suggests, the business community is also active on
the green scene.
Delta Faucets Co. has been headquartered in Carmel for three decades. This spring, Delta partnered with Carmel Utilities to promote “Fix A Leak Week,” which is sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program. Homeowners were asked to identify and repair dripping faucets, running toilets, and leaky showerheads.
Delta is also working to develop water-saving technology that meets consumers’ needs. “The first toilets and other fixtures, they were horrible,” says Paul Patton, senior product developer. “Our new products deliver what the end user expects. You don’t have to take a crummy shower.”
Carmel is also home to one of the area’s largest farmers markets. “We have 40 to 50 vendors most Saturdays,” says Todd Jameson, owner of Balanced Harvest Farm & CSA and president of Slow Food Indy. “Next year, we have a new home, the only one built specifically for a market in Central Indiana. It’s right next to the Performing Arts Center, right in the center of it all. I think that’s a sign of the progressive nature of our community.”
A more walkable community
It all goes back to making the city a great place to live, Brainard says. “We want to have a city where people can walk, and when they have to drive, their drive is very short,” he says. The City Center project, which created a more walkable downtown, represents a big piece of that effort.
According to Brainard, the biggest challenge facing the city’s green efforts is sprawl. “We need to change how we design cities,” he says. “In Carmel, we have 450 miles of roads and 90,000 people. In England, there would be about 100 miles of roads for that population. If we continue the way we’re going now, the United States will be out of farmland east of the Mississippi by 2050.”
Going forward, Brainard, who has three hybrid vehicles at home, vows to keep up the city’s green policies. “When you’re in a position of leadership, you need to set an example,” he says. From business to schools to community groups, it’s clear that example has taken hold. 
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