By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
WEST WINDSOR — With its proposed Climate Action Plan in hand, the township Environmental Commission is setting up a booth at the West Windsor Community Farmers’ Market Saturday morning to get feedback from residents on it.
The Environmental Commission also will have a booth at the farmers’ market on Aug. 29 to get input from anyone who may have missed the Aug. 15 farmers’ market, or who may have more questions about it. The plan has been posted on the West Windsor Township website at www.westwindsornj.org, for review and comment.
The West Windsor Community Farmers’ Market is held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Vaughn Drive parking lot at the Princeton Junction train station.
The proposed Climate Action Plan was prepared for the township Environmental Commission by the Spiezle Architectural Group and Terra Neutral Consulting, and paid for through a Sustainable Jersey grant. It was unveiled before Township Council last month.
“Climate change is a clear and present danger. Climate change is here, we’re causing it, it’s bad and it’s getting worse,” said Michael Hornsby, who chairs the Environmental Commission. He pointed to Hurricane Irene and Halloween snowstorm of 2011, and Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
The township’s Climate Action Plan, meanwhile, summarizes the science of climate change and the risks that it imposes. It provides an estimate of the quantity of greenhouse gas emissions — the carbon footprint — within the township, due to municipal government operations and community sources at large.
The plan establishes a greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal, and proposes actions to meet it. The plan also initiates a discussion on how township residents should plan for — and adapt — to climate change.
According to the Climate Action Plan, West Windsor Township residents produced about 340,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents of greenhouse gas emissions in 2012. Of that amount, municipal government accounted for 1 percent, or about 3,500 metric tons.
Most of the greenhouse gases in West Windsor Township are produced by transportation, at 54 percent. Heating fuels account for 24.5 percent, and electricity usage makes up 18.5 percent. Greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere, contributing to global warming.
Greenhouse gas reductions by township residents are voluntary, not mandated. Overall, the township would need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 96,000 metric tons between now and 2020 to meet the state’s goal. Business-as-usual emissions reductions should total 50,000 metric tons, leaving an additional 46,000 metric tons for which the township must implement actions in order to achieve the 2020 goals.
While the Climate Action Plan points out the issues, it also offers suggestions and strategies to meet greenhouse gas reduction goals.
The municipal government can educate its employees about energy conservation measures, such as turning out the lights when they leave a room. A policy mandating that newly purchased equipment should meet Energy Star standards could be adopted.
Additional recommendations include requiring the owners of large commercial buildings to track their energy usage, as well as requiring all new residential and commercial construction to meet Energy Star standards.
The plan also suggests that steps should be taken to encourage “better and increased public transportation options,” and to work with surrounding municipalities and the state to provide better access to public transportation so that residents would reduce their reliance on personal vehicles.
