Bayfield Declared Greenest Community in Wisconsin

With more Travel Green-certified businesses than any other community in Wisconsin, Bayfield has been declared the state’s greenest community. Wisconsin Tourism Secretary Kelli Trumble presented the “Wisconsin’s Greenest Community” declaration on May 11 along with a special commendation from Gov. Jim Doyle.

Resolving to become an eco-municipality in 2006 was one of the first steps to becoming a more sustainable and global climate-friendly community. In 2004 both the city and town of Bayfield worked with Pike’s Bay Sanitary District to build a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment facility with zero percent discharge into Lake Superior. In 2008 the city of Bayfield adopted Gov. Doyle’s “25 by 25″ resolution to generate 25% of Bayfield’s electricity and 25% of Bayfield’s transportation fuels from renewable resources by 2025.

The Bayfield Chamber and Visitor Bureau hosted the area’s first Chequamegon Bay Energy and Environmental Fair on May 14. More than 30 vendors and exhibitors at the Bayfield Pavilion shared their expertise on sustainable practices.

The Bayfield Chamber has set a goal to double the number of Travel Green-certified businesses by the end of 2009. (www.travelgreenwisconsin.com)

For more information on these efforts or on Bayfield, contact the Bayfield Chamber and Visitor Bureau at 715-779-3335, www.bayfield.org.