(Memphis) It may be the last place you’d think would “go green,” but the Shelby County Correction Center held a forum Wednesday to find out how it can conserve energy.
It wants to become an example for other county facilities.
With more than 2,000 inmates, hundreds of workers, and sitting on 110 acres of land, the correction center needs plenty of power to keep the place pumping.
The forum, held across the street, shed light on how the prison can save some pennies.
“We are willing and welcoming the opportunity to be the pilot program,” said James Coleman, the director of the Department of Corrections for Shelby County.
Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell asked all directors to look at ways to be more energy efficient.
Coleman says its taking the lead and has even sent staff to Indiana to find out what changes have been made there.
“We brought the Indiana Department of Corrections down to talk about some of the savings they were able to realize.”
From lights to water heating to cooking food for all the inmates, Coleman hopes by June the prison’s operations and facility will start to be re-vamped with the goal of conservation.
“We are new into it and that is what we are trying to learn by holding the forum.”
Coleman says it costs about $100,000 a month to provide utilities to the Shelby County Correction Center and if that cost could be cut down at all, it would save not just money for the County, but tax payers.
“Also, when you are talking about sustainability, you are talking about saving things for our children`s children,” said Coleman.
If the plan works for the prison, the energy saving strategy may soon come to a county government building near you.
