The City of Grand Junction is once again participating in the National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation from April 1 – 30, 2023. Mayor Anna Stout and the city join this national pledge campaign each year asking residents to be water wise and reduce hazardous waste from entering the watershed. This is a competitive challenge across the country and standings are available throughout the month of April at mywaterpledge.com. Take the pledge
Mayor Stout is challenging all Grand Junction residents to take the pledge to make small changes to use water more efficiently, reduce pollution, and save energy. To participate, residents go to mywaterpledge.com and click “take the pledge.” Enter “Grand Junction, CO” as the city and check boxes for all the ways they pledge to save water. For more tips to conserve water follow Grand Junction social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and NextDoor.
During the entire month of April, mayors across the country ask residents to pledge to conserve water as well as make a long-term commitment to reduce pollution and manage water resources more wisely throughout the rest of the year. Grand Junction will be competing again this year with other cities in the same population category. Cities with the highest percentage of residents taking the pledge in their population category qualify for participants to win more than $50,000 in eco-friendly prizes, including $3,000 toward their home utility bills, water saving fixtures, and hundreds of other prizes. Plus, this year students from thousands of schools across the country can make water conservation commitments that directly support their city’s standings. In addition, one school from each winning city will receive 100 pairs of Zenni Remakes™ eyeglasses that help reduce damage to eyes from prolonged exposure to blue light. Each pair is made from recycled plastics equal to three discarded single-use plastic water bottles.
Last year, residents from more than 2,000 cities in all 50 U.S. states pledged to reduce their annual consumption of freshwater by more than 1 billion gallons, reduce waste sent to landfills by 35 million pounds, and prevent nearly 100,000 pounds of hazardous waste from entering our watersheds. Last year, Grand Junction residents secured fourth place with 6,894 pledges for a total savings of 27,587,834 gallons of water. Residents pledged to reduce their use of single-use plastic water bottles by 65,740 and eliminate 1,660 pounds of hazardous waste from entering watersheds. By altering daily lifestyle choices, residents also pledged to put 734,681 fewer pounds of waste in landfills. Potential savings of 10.4 million pounds of carbon dioxide, 1.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity, and $347,270 in consumer cost savings rounded out the final pledge results.
The National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation is presented by the Wyland Foundation, with support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency WaterSense, The Toro Company, Zenni Optical, and National League of Cities. Founded in 1993, the Wyland Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to promoting, protecting, and preserving the world’s ocean, waterways, and marine life. www.wylandfoundation.org