Green Team members from more than 20 municipalities gathered at the Monmouth County agricultural building in Freehold Township on March 21 to listen to speakers discuss ways to reduce energy costs, decrease greenhouse emissions and create a climate plan for their towns.
Monmouth County Freeholder Director Barbara J. McMorrow welcomed the audience of about 60 team members that included elected officials, town supervisors, business owners, civic organization representatives and concerned citizens. She praised their dedication to their communities and offered the services of Monmouth County to assist municipal projects, saying that “we are all in this [energy conservation and cutting costs] together and together we can make a difference.”
The Board of Freeholders, the Urban Coast Institute (UCI), an environmental coastal community organization based at Monmouth University, West Long Branch, and the Monmouth County Cool Cities Partnership sponsored the training program titled “Creating a Climate Action Plan for Your Town.”
Patrick Hossay, author and associate professor of environmental studies and political science at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Pomona, was the keynote speaker. A consultant to municipal and environmental initiatives in the state, he addressed issues in creating a climate plan, stressing that each plan requires many facets uniquely suited to each individual town.
“The climate action plan itself is not the end product,” said Hossay. “It’s the process of putting it together. You have to know what you have before you can fix it. Saying that wind turbines or solar panels are what are needed is not the answer. It involves more.”
Hossay said the leadership of the climate plan should be composed of a core group of committed individuals who are dedicated to the project for the long haul and to clarify aims of the plan with definite timetables.
“A broad approach is needed to define the stakeholders and the overall impact of the plan,” he said. “Reach out to diverse members of the community to be part of the process, even those opposed. Sustainability of energy-cost savings and the decrease of greenhouse gases has no enemies, just converts and those who need to be convinced.”
While wind turbines and solar panels may be energy efficient and very visible energy savings methods, Hossay said, less obvious methods may be even better.
“You can get more bang for your buck and greater energy efficiency by many smaller projects,” he said. “A municipal energy audit is an excellent tool to highlight areas and can be done in-house or professionally virtually cost free.”
The state Board of Public Utilities (BPU) will pay 75 percent of an energy audit, Hos- say said, and if the municipality implements any recommendations of the audit the BPU will pay the remaining 25 percent.
“There’s money available for energy efficiency,” he said. “Coming in the future, there are regulations that will tax the carbon emissions (a component of greenhouse gases) of a municipality and targets to reach to decrease carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It’s better to deal now with energy efficiency when it’s less expensive than face higher costs in the future.”
Hossay ended his presentation by offering his help and the available resources of Richard Stockton College to the Green Team members.
Two speakers addressed student involvement in a town’s climate action activities. Virginia Krzyzanowski, the environmental liaison for the Monmouth County 4-H, offered a brief introduction to the resources available to municipalities to form a youth green team. She also provided information on programs, including the Student Stewardship, Climate Ambassadors and a national campaign titled “Get Outdoors, It’s Yours.”
Helder Cristavao from Green Market Fundraising, which is sponsored by New Jersey’s Clean Energy program and the BPU, spoke about involving students in fundraising efforts to reduce energy prices and reduce greenhouse gases, including the sale and the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs in homes and businesses.
John Batinsey, a member of the Eatontown Environmental Commission and a light pollution control advocate, continued the presentation by speaking on “Let There Be (Efficient) Light.” He urged municipal officials to adopt an outdoor lighting ordinance similar to Eatontown’s ordinance adopted in1993 to achieve security and energy efficiency.
Marie Savoia, chair of the Monmouth County Cool Cities Partnership, said the partnership includes members from organizations such as the Environmental Committee of St. Mary’s Parish, Colts Neck, the Jersey Shore Sierra Club, the League of Women Voters, the Red Bank Environmental Commission and the Unitarian Universalist Church, Lincroft.
“Many organizations and people have pooled their resources to make the Green Team training programs possible,” said Savoia. “The more people who are trained, the greater will be the effect on energy savings, decreasing greenhouse gases and controlling global climate warming.”
The next Green Team training program will discuss how to take a carbon inventory of a municipality or of a community.
For more information about the Green Team, contact Marie Savoia at [email protected] or click on www.coolcities.us. For information about the Urban Coast Institute, contact Jennifer DiLorenzo at www.monmouth,edu/ and search for UCI.