Cutting Emissions: 'As Long as We Both Shall Live'

In September, Lorrie and Carl Lisek celebrated 28 years of wedded bliss and hundreds of thousands of gallons’ worth of petroleum-use reduction in Indiana and Wisconsin.

Between the two of them, the Liseks oversee the operations of two Clean Cities coalitions, through which they speed the deployment of alternative fuels, fueling infrastructure, and electric vehicles.

"We just love what we do," Lorrie said. "It’s so exciting to be part of the success stories, working toward energy independence. And the fact that we do it together makes it all the more fun."

The Liseks’ foray into sustainable transportation began more than eight years ago when they founded their own environmental consulting company. Lorrie had experience in sales and marketing, and Carl’s background was in environmental protection and clean-up. In 2006, the company was awarded the contract to run northern Indiana’s South Shore Clean Cities.

In March 2011, Lorrie took the helm of Milwaukee-based Wisconsin Clean Cities, where she is overseeing public education and outreach for a $32 million project to deploy 280 alternative-fuel and electric-drive vehicles and associated fueling and charging infrastructure.

The four-year project, managed by the Wisconsin State Energy Office, includes 31 partners from the public and private sectors. Among the project’s participants is the City of Milwaukee, which is incorporating 25 heavy-duty natural gas vehicles into its fleet and developing two publicly accessible natural gas fueling stations.

"Overall, the partners are very proud of their vehicles. They’ve been in parades and on display in the state capital," Lorrie said. "Best of all, the new fuels have been very successful from an operational standpoint, and now people want to add more vehicles and additional infrastructure."

Get Involved With Clean Cities

Through the work of nearly 100
local coalitions, Clean Cities works to reduce petroleum use in U.S. transportation. Clean Cities is an initiative of the U.S. Department of Energy. Find out more at www.cleancities.energy.gov.

For more information about Wisconsin Clean Cities and South Shore Clean Cities, visit www.wicleancities.org and www.southshorecleancities.org