CRANBERRY TWP — How many cows does it take to light a light bulb? The answer is seven, and there's no punch line involved here.

That's the number of cows the Schrack Family Farm in central Pennsylvania uses to produce twice the amount of electricity it can use in a day, said George Hoguet of Native Energy.

Hoguet was among a host of speakers at a seminar aimed toward tackling issues of environmental sustainability held Thursday at the Four Points Sheraton North. More than 30 local and national business representatives were in attendance.

The 12th-generation Schrack farm is completely powered by methane derived from its cows' waste. By using alternative fuel methods, the farm keeps more than 630 tons of carbon dioxide out of the air annually.

The Schrack farm is a leader in environmental sustainability, or the process of creating environmentally friendly structures and business practices that will cut down on energy consumption and pollution.

"Most people think that sustainability is associated with environmental causes, but it is so much more than that," said Matthew Mehalik of Sustainable Pittsburgh, who helped organize the event. "It includes issues of community and business and their interactions with government regulations. We're just here to help navigate those issues, put a thumb on the pulse of the community and collect input on new innovations."

The seminar said innovations are necessary in a world where climate change and global warming are very real issues. The current focus is on cutting pollution through energy reduction and, through the process, saving millions of dollars.

The Schrack farm is only one example of a business that's generating excitement among conservationists and business executives alike.

"These companies need to take new ideas and perspectives and get them down into the grassroots level and get the employees excited for these changes," Hoguet, director of marketing for Native Energy, said.

"It's a function of thinking outside the box, and fortunes can be saved in the process. And Pennsylvania is a state with much at stake in this issue because there is a whole host of legislative initiatives on the horizon."

There are several other sustainable practices being implemented by big names in big business.

Ben and Jerry's is currently working with Penn State to create a refrigerator that operates entirely on sound instead of gas. Several cities also are replacing traffic light bulbs with LED bulbs, which are more efficient and cut down on energy bills for the cities. Other initiatives concerning wind, water and solar power also are being discussed to cut down on conventional energy usage.

Mehalik and Sustainable Pittsburgh work every day to see some of these changes come to our region.

It's an issue that isn't going away, Mehalik said, and it's one of the utmost importance. That's why he's working with people like Jason McBride, another organizer of the event and employee of Environmental and Water Resources Institute.

"It's an issue that is crucial to this area," Mehalik said. "Monroeville didn't include sustainable growth practices, and now they have an aging infrastructure, something we learned from. Cranberry has adopted some new sustainability proposals, and the area is starting to become very forward thinking in that sense."

The all-day conference reiterated that climate change uncertainties can lead to business innovations for a cleaner and greener landscape. That's why organizations like Sustainable Pittsburgh and EWRI are "looking ahead and adapting," and that's why local business professionals like R. Lennie Scott attended the conference.

"It was an across-the-board discussion with very knowledgeable speakers," said Scott, a Cranberry resident and representative of Bayer Medical Science. "But this was so important because of the regional aspect.

"This sort of thing wouldn't work as well in Harrisburg. This way we get to meet local folks and see what they're doing and brainstorming for the future."