Disneyland has picked up California’s highest and most prestigious environmental honor… thanks in part to biodiesel.
This press release posted at Reuters.com says the resort has won the 2009 Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA), recognizing “individuals, organizations and businesses that have demonstrated exceptional leadership for voluntary achievements in conserving California’s resources, protecting and enhancing the environment and building public-private
partnerships.”:
“I applaud the Disneyland Resort for their wonderful commitment to our state’s commerce and environment. They are an inspiration to many and I thank them for their outstanding leadership,” said Governor Schwarzenegger.
“This honor recognizes Disneyland Resort’s ongoing commitment to developing socially responsible and environmentally friendly practices that promote environmental protection and economic growth,” said Frank Dela Vara, director of environmental affairs and conservation at Disneyland Resort. “We are proud of our commitment to exploring and implementing new technologies and practices that further the environmental legacy left by Walt Disney.”
In a move that allows the Resort to save approximately 200,000 gallons of petroleum diesel per year, Disneyland Railroad’s steam boilers are being fueled by a special biodiesel made from the processed cooking oil used in restaurants throughout the Resort.
“We have been recycling our used kitchen grease for years, but this innovation took recycling to another level,” said Dela Vara. Disneyland Railroad’s five trains had been using a soy-based biodiesel to fuel their steam boilers since April 2007. The cooking oil-based biodiesel continues to reduce emissions by up to 80 percent. Disneyland Resort’s Mark Twain Riverboat also uses the
special cooking oil biodiesel.
More information is available on the GEELA Web site.