Current Projects

On August 17, 2022, Mayor Lee Harris signed an executive order establishing a green fleet policy. The policy calls for the replacement of nonessential light duty vehicles with more fuel-efficient passenger cars and trucks. The executive order includes an incremental schedule for transitioning the Mayor’s Administration’s fleet to green vehicles by setting a goal to convert 5 percent by 2027. Thereafter, 20 percent of passenger vehicles procured will be green vehicles. Heavy-duty, off-road, and emergency response vehicles are exempt from this policy; however, if Shelby County procures a green vehicle in these exempt categories, it shall be considered as a passenger vehicle for the purpose of this policy. 

As of August 2022, the Mayor’s Administration’s fleet has a total of 964 units. The total number light-duty passenger vehicles subject to the green fleet policy is 458. Thirteen, or 2.8 percent, of the vehicles under the policy are currently low or zero emissions. In order for five percent of the fleet to be low or zero emissions to meet the goal set by Mayor Harris, ten additional electric or hybrid vehicles (for a total of 23) will need to be procured. In 2020, Shelby County received a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to purchase up to 5 electric vehicles for use by the Department of Roads, Bridges, and Engineering. The project team expects these vehicles to be procured before 2024. When accounting for these vehicles, the Mayor’s Administration will need to procure five additional vehicles prior to 2027 to meet the goal in the executive order. 

In the analysis of the Shelby County fleet, it was determined that 53 of the 458 applicable vehicles under the green fleet policy would be eligible for replacement within the next two years. There are, additionally, some vehicles already within the fleet that would contribute to the goal, many of which have been procured within the past two years and would not need to be replaced soon. In order to meet the goal to convert five percent of the fleet to green vehicles by 2027, a minimum of five of the 53 applicable vehicles would need to be replaced. 

After running a life-cycle analysis of the vehicles that would be most appropriate for replacement, there are two lists of candidate vehicles for replacement with hybrid or electric models: one scenario describes the most cost-efficient replacement that will meet the requirements of the executive order, and the other describes the greenest available replacement for the proposed vehicles. To allow for flexibility in selecting vehicles for replacement, ten vehicles have been identified as potentials for replacement in each scenario so that additional candidates for replacement are ready if one of the top candidates needs to be eliminated for any reason.

In accordance with objectives from the Memphis Area Climate Action Plan, our office plans to expand equitable urban tree canopy cover in disadvantaged communities experiencing low canopy cover, extreme urban heat, and risk of flooding. Our office will encourage long-term forest planning, assessment, and monitoring through the establishment of an urban tree canopy assessment coupled with multi-year software subscriptions. Software will be used to monitor urban forests and plan best practices for tree plantings. In addition to monitoring changes in canopy cover and forest health, the software will be used to plan appropriate tree species plantings in locations where they will not negatively impact surrounding power line infrastructure. A county-wide urban tree canopy assessment will be used to accurately determine priority planting areas based on vulnerable populations susceptible to climate related impacts as well as improve resilience in both our urban forests and underserved communities. 

The Memphis Area Climate  Action  Plan  is  a  framework  for  achieving  significant  reductions  in  our  community’s  greenhouse  gas  (GHG)  emissions and fostering a more equitable, healthy, and prosperous community. The plan provides information on existing emissions, sets short-, mid-, and long-term targets for reducing emissions, and outlines specific actions in three sectors - energy, transportation, and waste - to achieve these goals. The Annual Report tracks progress toward the goals and targets in the Plan and includes the most recent community wide GHG Emissions Inventory.

This Sustainable Workforce Initiative focuses on addressing the needs of energy-burdened residents, improving the local government's capacity to serve those residents, and enhancing the local workforce's skillset and capability to improve housing stock and make energy-efficiency repairs. Awarded through the Southeast Sustainable Communities Fund in late 2019, support for this initiative is provided by a partnership between the Kendeda Foundation and the Southeast Sustainability Directors Network (SSDN).     
Over a two-year period (2020-2021), the Memphis and Shelby County Office of Sustainability and Resilience and local partners will carry out project activities that address two major issues:  

1. Alleviating bottlenecks in existing energy efficiency programs by focusing on job training and workforce development efforts for individuals already in the weatherization or contracting fields as well as upcoming students and young professionals; and
2. Supporting grassroots community groups to provide outreach and engagement to residents by connecting them to programming and resources, both for safe and healthy homes issues as well as for workforce training. 

Sustainable Workforce project partners include: 

• BLDG Memphis 
• City of Memphis, Office of Business Diversity and Compliance 
• City of Memphis, Division of Housing and Community Development 
• Green & Healthy Homes Initiative 
• Innovate Memphis 
• Memphis Area Minority Contractors Association 
• Moore Tech  
• United Housing Inc.    
  For additional information on helping connect residents and contractors with these opportunities, please visit https://www.bldgmemphis.org/sustainable_workforce_initiative   
   

On January 21, 2016, the federal department of Housing and Urban Development announced that Shelby County was the recipient of a $60 million federal grant to increase its resiliency over the next three years. The funds are currently being used in local areas with recovery needs from the 2011 flooding in addition to developing a Mid-South Regional Resilience Plan.  The three main resilience projects that aim to reduce flood risk include Big Creek Millington, Wolf River Memphis, and South Cypress Creek Memphis.

We are working on a roadmap to more inclusive opportunities for Memphis and Shelby County.  How do we better use, develop, and share information to create more economic opportunity and inclusivity? Using our What Works Cities certification to keep the momentum going, we are working as a data-driven government to improve quality of life and information access. 

Our office supports the integration of low-impact designs and improved stormwater management practices. Learn more about these practices in Section 2.3 of the Mid-South Regional Resilience Master Plan.

The Office of Sustainability and Resilience works to implement the recommendations of the Climate Action Plan and Regional Resilience Master Plan in several ways.  One such area of work centers around reducing waste, including decreasing the amount of residential and commercial waste heading to our municipal landfills, improving recycling habits, and looking for circular economy opportunities for waste diversion.  We are currently working closely with Clean Memphis and the Division of Solid Waste to reduce the amount of food waste generated by Memphians and look for opportunities to improve resident and government practices surrounding food waste. The Memphis Food Waste Project will work to prevent food waste, improve food recovery system(s), increase public awareness, and expand composting efforts. Wasted food means wasted water, labor, energy, time, and money. In December of 2020, Mayor Strickland issued a proclamation that commits the City of Memphis to work to develop a more sustainable approach to food systems, improve food access and raise awareness to encourage better food waste practices. This will align Memphis with national goals of reducing food waste by 50% by 2030. “Memphis is dedicated to investing in our neighborhoods with innovative solutions. We are excited to see this community-led partnership with Clean Memphis flourish as this project takes off,” said Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. Check out the proclamation here . The Memphis Food Waste Project has also put together several resources to raise awareness and share information on food waste strategies with everyone in our community. Take the Food Waste Quiz and test your knowledge of food waste and changes you can make to reduce waste in your home. Also, take the pledge to become a Food Waste Warrior and be part of the solution to food waste in our community! For Earth Month (April 2021), the Office of Sustainability and Resilience and the City of Memphis Solid Waste Management Division collaborated to send out weekly messages to the City of Memphis employees with information on food waste impacts and resources for reducing food waste at home. You can check out the newsletter series below. Most of the information was adapted from www.savethefood.com, so be sure to check that site out as well!

• Week 1 – Shopping and Meal Prep
• Week 2 – Food Storage
• Week 3 – Leftovers and Soon-to-Expire Foods
• Week 4 – Food Composting

Our corrections facilities serve as a sustainability leaders and role models in Shelby County. Shelby County Corrections is reducing energy consumption, improving waste practices, and providing healthier conditions onsite. Learn more about these efforts here:

• Seeing the Light and 
• Going Green Gets the Shelby County Correctional Center National Recognition.

As a member of the Urban Sustainability Directors Network, our office works to improve energy efficiency in buildings and encourage clean, renewable energy in our power supply. Many of these initiatives are connected to our Climate Action Plan and address strategies to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.