ST. THOMAS \u2013 Three individuals and organizations from across the territory were honored for their achievements in protecting the public health and the environment, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).<\/p>\n
Caribbean Solar Company in St. John, Mario A. Francis in St. Thomas and The Nature Conservancy in St. Croix were all given the Environmental Champion Award by officials from the EPA in New York City this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe EPA is thrilled to honor the work of these environmental trailblazers,\u201d said Judith Enck, the EPA regional administrator. \u201cThese Virgin Islanders work tirelessly to protect human health and the environment, inspiring us all to strive for a more sustainable future.\u201d<\/p>\n
Enck was joined by Donovan Richards, chair of the New York City Council’s Committee on Environmental Protection, to present the awards to this year\u2019s recipients at a ceremony at the EPA\u2019s offices in Manhattan.<\/p>\n
The Environmental Champion Award winners from the U.S. Virgin Islands are:<\/p>\n
* Caribbean Solar Company, St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands<\/p>\n
Since its founding in 2012, Caribbean Solar Company has installed over 500,000 watts of solar energy and helped offset 576 tons of CO2. The company built a reputation as a high quality solar installer in the Virgin Islands. The Islands have one of the highest electricity rates in the world and alternatives, such as solar energy, can make the utility considerably more affordable. Caribbean Solar Company provides financing options that offer the possibility of going solar to a broad base of island residents.<\/p>\n
* Mario A. Francis U.S. Virgin Islands Urban & Community Forestry Council, Inc. St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands<\/p>\n
Mario A. Francis is Chairman of the Urban and Community Forestry Council in the U.S. Virgin Islands\u00a0for the past two decades. He created the Council\u2019s newsletter, The Tree Speaker, and has represented the Council at many local, regional and national conferences. More than 20 years ago he founded the Junior Gardening and Ecology Academy, an eight-week annual summer course that teaches children ages 6-15 about the environment and sustainability. Campers do everything from kayaking to dolphin watching to gardening.<\/p>\n
*The Nature Conservancy St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands<\/p>\n
Since 1995, the Nature Conservancy\u2019s USVI Program, has worked to protect and restore priority conservation areas, helped recover important native species, and provided scientific assessments and training to islanders. Most recently, the Conservancy has grown thousands of endangered staghorn and elkhorn coral in USVI nurseries and is placing 20,000 coral back onto coral reefs this year. The Conservancy also helped launch the USVI Reef Responsible Sustainable Seafood Initiative and certified over a dozen local restaurants to date.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ST. THOMAS \u2013 Three individuals and organizations from across the territory were honored for their achievements in protecting the public health and the environment, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Caribbean Solar Company in St. John, Mario A. Francis in St. Thomas and The Nature Conservancy in St. Croix were all given the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":237,"featured_media":21367,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[191,147],"tags":[1772],"yoast_head":"\n