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SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Rutgers’ EARTH center in the ‘Spotlight’

By Jennifer Larkin, Special Writer
   County Freeholders are in their 20th year taking turns in the spotlight as the “Spotlight on Middlesex County” cable television show has been presenting topics since 1994, according to the Director of Administration at the Middlesex County Improvement Authority, Jane Leal.
   Appearing on a community channel broadcast by both the Comcast and Cablevision companies, Spotlight can also be viewed on most Middlesex County municipal channels, Ms. Leal said.
   The show features a variety of topics, such as ongoing and upcoming research, educational programs, as well as outreach to residents of the community, according to Ms. Leal.
   The most recent installment was filmed in South Brunswick, according to the authority.
   ”In a joint-effort, we are featuring a particular department of extraordinary outreach,” Ms. Leal said. “Rutgers’ Co-op Extension’s mission and research is not only practical, but very helpful, also.”
   According to a press release by the authority, the Rutgers’ Cooperative Extension EARTH Center in South Brunswick is conducting trending research on its 400-acre campus with respect to the need for lead testing in urban gardens, the benefits of bio-energy crops and the economic downturn’s role in expanding interest in new trades, especially landscaping.
   ”People will be most interested in the landscaping segment (of the show) and the organic approach to yard work,” said Ms. Leal. “It should raise awareness into the greener way of gardening.”
   The Rutgers’ Co-op Extension EARTH Center is a master gardener program running on its own energy of solar panels, according to Leal, “and it even includes its very own interactive Butterfly House.”
   Hosted by Middlesex County Freeholder Charles E. Tomaro, guests include Agricultural and Resource Management Agent Bill Hlubik, Environmental Agent Michele Bakacs and County 4-H Agent Laura Bovitz, according to the Improvement Authority.
   For more information on the Spotlight on Middlesex County’s viewing times and channels, visit the authority’s website at www.mciauth.com.