Georgia's business-friendly Republican governor is going green in a big way.

On Thursday, Gov. Sonny Perdue declared a new "culture of conservation" in a fast-growing state where every day the net loss of trees totals more than 100 acres, electric usage is among the top in the nation, and — until recently — water is generously lavished on lawns.

On a three-stop state tour to launch Conserve Georgia, a marketing and public relations campaign aimed at rallying residents and businesses to conserve water, energy and land, Perdue ordered state government to reduce energy use 15 percent by 2020.

"I like to conserve money, but the way we do that is by conserving all over," said Perdue, wearing jeans and work boots at his first stop at the Pratt Industries recycling plant in East Point. "We want to make 'conservation' not a sacrificial word but a badge of honor."

Perdue likened his campaign to changing attitudes toward smoking and seat belt use. He said states that conserve "will be the proactive and progressive states of the future."

In a statement released later from a middle school in Warner Robins, the governor said reducing the state's energy use will "lessen Georgia's dependence on traditional energy sources, support the economy, and improve the environment. ... Undertaking this challenge to conserve energy will help ensure that Georgia's natural resources are protected for future generations to use and to enjoy."

The state Environmental Protection Division recently permitted a new coal-fired power plant in South Georgia, now being challenged in court by the Sierra Club. Most of Georgia's electricity is made by burning coal, the most environmentally destructive form of electrical power generation by nearly all measures.

Perdue made no mention of global warming in his speeches Thursday and generally steers clear of the topic. He has been slow to act on his energy advisory panel's recommendations from December 2006 defining strategies the state could adopt to encourage alternative energy use and energy efficiency.

Jason Rooks, a clean energy lobbyist who sat on the governor's advisory panel, said he was encouraged by the governor's commitment Thursday.

"I think it's very important for the state to lead by example," Rooks said. "It will demonstrate the real savings that can be found by businesses in energy efficiency."

At his third stop, a new state wildlife management area in southwest Georgia, Perdue announced the state is purchasing the second piece of the mature longleaf pine forest around Silver Lake, near Bainbridge.

He's pledged a total of $15 million in state money to help buy 8,430 acres from the Conservation Fund. The $38 million property, formerly owned by International Paper, will be open to the public Aug. 1 for fishing, hunting, hiking and bird watching.

Since Perdue took office, the state has spent $61 million toward purchase of more than 64,000 acres of green space, parks and wildlife management areas. The state funds were matched by land and monetary donations worth more than $250 million, according to Curt Soper, director of the Georgia Land Conservation Program.