The Department of General Services Sustainability Division integrates sustainable practices throughout the department’s programs and operations with the goal to reduce energy use, waste, and greenhouse gas emissions. The Division works to educate Metro employees, visitors to our facilities, and the citizens of Nashville about our achievements and how to work and live sustainably in five core areas: design/ build, energy, waste, mobility, and water. Learn more about the Sustainability Team.
Department of General Services efforts are award-winning. In 2021, its work to build green, ramp up electric vehicle infrastructure, and increase renewable energy won the Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Award for Pursuit of Excellence.
Sustainability at Metro
Sustainability is important to Metro Government because preserving the environment and conserving natural resources improves quality of life now and in the future. Making Nashville one of the most sustainable cities in the Southeast sets the city apart as a regional leader.
In 2019, the City of Nashville passed three legislative items considered the “Green New Deal” for city operations: BL2019-1598 Fleet Electrification, BL2019-1599 Building Retrofits and LEED requirements, and BL2019-1600 Renewable Portfolio Standard. The Sustainability Division is working diligently to meet these mandates.
For example, Department of General Services has built 29 LEED® certified buildings and currently manages 24 of those. LEED® certified facilities include 15 LEED® Silver, 13 LEED® Gold and 1 LEED® Platinum. You can learn much more about these facilities on our Design/ Build page. See how they are performing in these reports comparing LEED® certified buildings to non-LEED® buildings.
In February 2022, Metro Nashville Council passed a resolution committing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% from 2014 levels by 2050. In 2023, the city passed a resolution supporting both a Metropolitan Government and community-wide target of a 50% reduction in food waste from 2017 levels by 2030. Also in 2023, Nashville enshrined a Sustainability Advisory Committee as a permanent fixture to increase sustainability and resilience.
The Sustainability team implements sustainable practices for all aspects of the Department of General Services including operations and maintenance in new and existing buildings, fleet, print services, and facility and grounds maintenance.
Stay informed about the Division's work via this website and through our newsletter and social media: Socket on Facebook, Socket on Twitter, and Socket on Instagram.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The city of Nashville took bold action in 2015 by joining more than one hundred American cities and more than one thousand cities globally in agreeing to take climate action by joining the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy. In support of this commitment, the Division of Sustainability works with the Office of the Mayor and other city departments to conduct regular greenhouse gas emissions inventories for both Metro Government and the Nashville community. For results of the most recent inventory (completed in 2022 based on 2019 data), visit pages 5-12 of the July 2022 presentation to the Sustainability Advisory Committee.
In order for Metro Government and the city of Nashville to reduce emissions 80% by 2050, greenhouse gas emissions must continue to decrease and further decouple from population and economic growth. In 2019, the Division of Sustainability published its Metro Nashville Greenhouse Gas Emissions Wedge Analysis, a roadmap to do just that.