Construction | Energy Conservation | Environmental Stewardship & Messaging
Leadership | Transportation | Waste Reduction & Ewaste Disposal | Water Conservation
 
 Overview
To ensure a safe habitat for all species, Denver Zoo will champion positive action in support of the environment through the prevention of pollution, continual improvement of our organization’s sustainable practices and meeting or exceeding all environmental requirements.
As the first Zoo in the nation to have a certified Sustainable Management System for our entire operations, the Denver Zoo’s Work Place Conservation Team (“Green Team”) assembles an annual plan with new goals and initiatives for reducing the impacts of our operations on the environment.
“As an organization dedicated to wildlife conservation, Denver Zoo is trying to be as environmentally conscious as possible, in every facet of our organization. We’re encouraging others to do the same. It’s amazing how small changes can result in tremendous positive impact, especially when many people practice them over time,” says Denver Zoo President/CEO Craig Piper.
CONSTRUCTION:
Denver Zoo has registered Asian Tropics, a 10-acre redevelopment dedicated to elephant conservation, with the United States Green Building Council. The entire Asian Tropics site, which includes more than 15 buildings, has been registered to gain LEED certification. It is expected that the project will be certified at the platinum level.
 ENERGY CONSERVATION:
As part of the design for the upcoming Asian Tropics exhibit, Denver Zoo has made a commitment to finding ways to use its waste to generate energy for heat and power on site. Extensive physical testing of the system, utilizing samples of our waste and sophisticated computer simulation modeling, has demonstrated that this is a feasible alternative energy source and will reduce the amount of waste going to the landfill by as much as 1.5 million pounds per year. Denver Zoo’s biomass gasification system will be the first of its kind anywhere in the world to convert a complex and diverse waste stream into a uniform, stable fuel on a consistent basis. Once complete, this system will serve as a model for such systems at other campus-like settings, from business and amusement parks to resorts, schools and small communities.
2009 Accomplishments
- Successfully developed a functioning, portable demonstration gasification system. Unit sized at 10kW, consuming approximately 20-30 pounds/hour of biomass. Unit was developed to help Denver Zoo understand operation of gasification before building the larger scale unit associated with the Asian Tropics exhibit.
- Zoo Lights converted to 100 percent LED, saving 70-90 percent more energy than regular incandescent holiday lights
- An Energy Assessment was performed by Xcel Energy on more than 30 buildings and exhibits. This energy assessment is a first step toward Denver Zoo developing a long-term energy conservation plan.
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP AND MESSAGING:
Denver Zoo consistently educates the public about environmentally-friendly acts they can perform at home to help protect planet earth and all of its inhabitants. Denver Zoo utilizes on-site demonstrations, keeper talks and animal shows to focus on the importance of acting responsibly in support of the environment. From shade-grown coffee education at our Wildlife Show, to recycling demonstrations by our elephants, Denver Zoo utilizes many techniques to communicate to our 1.7 million-plus annual visitors about the importance of thinking and acting green to support animals worldwide.
LEADERSHIP:
Denver Zoo has hired a full-time permanent Sustainability Coordinator. This coordinator guides purchasing decisions, deciding which industries, vendors and products best support the Zoo’s mission. That includes being environmentally, socially and economically responsible. One of the most important job duties for the Sustainability Coordinator is guiding Denver Zoo’s Workplace Conservation Committee, a “green team” with representatives from every Zoo department charged with creating strategies to setting and applying conservation goals in every arena.
Denver Zoo was awarded acceptance into the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment’s Environmental Leadership Program (ELP) as a Gold Leader in August 2008. Upon becoming a member of the ELP, Denver Zoo, in coordination with the efforts taken on by the City and County of Denver, continued on the path of developing a certifiable ISO-14001 Environmental Management System. In December 2008, Denver Zoo’s Sustainable Management System (SMS), which covers all activities and operations for the entire zoo, received ISO 14001:2004 certification. Denver Zoo is the first Zoo in the country to achieve ISO certification for all operations. This international certification is the pinnacle in environmental leadership as it commits the Zoo to continuous improvement in an effort to minimize the environmental impacts of the Zoo’s operations while reducing costs and increasing regulatory compliance, employee awareness and overall efficiency. Although certification itself is a boon, it is the system’s ongoing environmental improvement that is making us the greenest zoo in the country.
2010 Accomplishments
- Denver Zoo’s Work Place Conservation Committee was selected as a 2010 Sustainability Champion team. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Sustainability Champion Award is sponsored by PAETEC and brought to you in partnership with ColoradoBiz magazine, Connected Organizations for a Responsible Economy (CORE), and the Colorado Environmental Partnership. The award acknowledges the accomplishments of individuals and teams who have gone above and beyond in their sustainability efforts.
TRANSPORTATION:
Denver Zoo has provided the Eco Pass as a benefit for all regular full- and part-time employees, promoting an ecologically sound option for commuting. In addition to already encouraging employees to walk, ride their bikes or carpool, the Eco Pass allows employees to ride public transportation for free, both for commuting to and from work as well as taking care of personal errands and travel. To track its usage the Zoo also implemented a transportation logging database to collect the usage of the Eco Pass to prove and continue to improve its usage.
2009 Accomplishments
- Denver Zoo employees logged a total of 146,000 commuter miles using alternative transportation (public bus, light rail, walk, bike, carpool).
- Implemented admission discount of $2 for guests who use RTD to get to Denver Zoo.
WASTE REDUCTION & EWASTE DISPOSAL:
Denver Zoo is actively working on monitoring the amount and types of waste generated through everyday operations of the facility. We are using this information to devise ways to reduce our waste stream as well as promote appropriate recycling efforts for both Zoo staff and visitors. In June 2008, Denver Zoo hosted its first zero-waste event at the annual Do At The Zoo. Partnering with our concessionaire, KM Concessions, we used only recyclable and compostable utensils and serving ware for our events and guests were educated on the available disposal methods. In addition, Denver Zoo utilizes compostable utensils and service ware at our restaurants and encourages guest recycling on a daily basis.
Denver Zoo is encouraging the public to recycle their e-waste, and partnered with Luminous Recycling to collect members’ used electronics for free! More than 8,657 pounds of recyclable electronics were collected from members and guests. This program also is open to employees as well as volunteers and serves as a disposal method for unwanted electronic equipment that is both ethically and environmentally sound.
2009 Accomplishments
- Diverted approximately 320 tons of compostable material from the landfill.
- 2,682 pounds of electronic waste was recycled with Luminous Recycling
- Denver Zoo guests have recycled more than 350 used ink jet cartridges. This effort helps preserve the orangutan population and their environment through our partnership with Empties4Cash who will pay up to $4 for each ink cartridge recycled!
- Denver Zoo guests have helped conservation efforts through Answer the Call of the Wild by recycling more than 415 cell phones.
- MOre than 1,000 CapriSun pouches have been collected and sorted for recycling with TerraCycle
- All Denver Zoo membership cards are made of 100 percent biodegradable material.
2010 Accomplishments
- Denver Zoo recycled 16,813 pounds of electronic waste through an employee recycling event and public recycling event with Luminous Recycling. 4,180 pounds of electronic waste were recycled during the employee event and 12,633 pounds were recycled during the public event.
WATER CONSERVATION:
Denver Zoo has implemented several water conservation projects over the past 10 years including renovations to the water filtration systems at Sea Lion and Polar Bear Exhibits, construction of water quality wetland and recirculation system at the Flamingo Pond and installation of circulation and filtration system at the Northern Shores Duck Ponds. These projects, as well as operational reductions, have reduced overall annual water usage from approximately 320 million gallons in 1999 to approximately 150 million gallons in 2007. Denver Zoo also is in the process of installing infrastructure to support the use of recycled water throughout our 80-acre campus. In 2004 the first segment of recycled water infrastructure was installed. This system supports landscape irrigation as well as cleaning of animal exhibits and is estimated upon full build out to replace as much as 75 percent of our current potable water demand with recycled water. Denver Zoo also has partnered with Denver Water to help communicate the need to use water wisely to our visitors.
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