Politics & Government

Fanwood Seeks 'Sustainable Jersey' Certification

The borough will have to complete

The borough of Fanwood is taking the first steps toward becoming a part of the "Sustainable Jersey" program, an initiative that aims to spur municipalities to make more decisions in the best interest of the environment.

The council announced Tuesday night that the borough will create a "green team," made up of about 12 to 15 residents, as part of the effort to steer Fanwood in the right direction.

"This is a holistic approach for the community, including municipal government, to go green," said Council President Donna Dolce.

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According to the program's Web site: "Sustainable Jersey is a certification and incentive program for municipalities in New Jersey that want to go green, save money, and take steps to sustain their quality of life over the long term.  Sustainable Jersey will have required and elective 'actions' that municipalities can implement to receive the certification."

Achieving the certification does not mean a municipality is "sustainable," the site says. Rather, it connotes that the municipality has taken the first significant step on a long journey towards sustainability.

Find out what's happening in Scotch Plains-Fanwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The certification would present the town with the chance to trumpet its environmental credentials, while also placing the town at the front of the line for certain environmental grants should the need arise.

Patricia Ruby, a project coordinator for the New Jersey Sustainable State Institute, which is administering the program on behalf of a group of partners, said towns that complete the certification process would reap several benefits, the first being the public relations aspect of being able to say they have been certified as being sustainable. Ruby said the public relations aspect will help the town with applying for other grants in the environmental field.

In addition to assisting with grants from outside groups, Ruby noted the towns registered with the program will receive priority with state related grants. She said the state Board of Public Utilities, which founded the program with several other groups, has a program which would offset the cost of a municipal energy audit. Currently, the BPU funds all towns, which request the money, but the registration could help in the event the regulatory agency changes the rules.

The program bases itself on a point structure. A town needs to gather 100 points in order to qualify for certification from the Sustainable Jersey organization.

The certification comes from various items on a check list provided by the Sustainable Jersey organization. Below is the complete check list and the assigned point values for each item.

Community Partnership and Outreach

Create Green Team - 10 points

Community Education and Outreach - 10 points

School Programs and Partnerships - 10 points

Green Challenges and Community Programs - 10 points for each action

Green Fairs - 10 to 20 points

Diversity and Equity

Diversity on Boards and Commissions - 10 points

Incorporate Environmental Justice in Planning and Zoning - 10 points

Energy Efficiency

Energy Audits for Municipal Facilities - 30 points

Energy Star Buildings - 10 to 30 points

Green House Gas

Municipal Carbon Footprint - 10 points

Community Carbon Footprint - 10 points

Climate Action Plan - 10 to 30 points

Green Design

Green Design Commercial and Residential Buildings - 10 to 30 points

Upgrade and Retrofit Municipal Building - 10 to 30 points

Health and Wellness

Mayors Wellness Campaign - 10 to 20 points

Anti-Idling Education and Environment Program - 10 to 20 points

Land Use and Transportation

Sustainable Land Use Pledge - 10 points

Sustainability Master Plan Element - 10 to 20 points

Complete Streets Program - 10 points

Local Economies

Local Food Production and Gardens - 10 points for each action

Buy Local Programs - 10 points

Green Business Recognition Program - 10 points

Green Jobs and Economic Development - 10 points

Natural Resources

Natural Resource Inventory - 10 to 20 points

Natural Resource Protection Ordinances - 10 points for each action

Water Conservation Ordinance - 10 points

Environmental Commission - 10 points

Tree and Woodlands Management - 10 to 20 points

Operations and Maintenance

Green Purchasing Program - 10 to 20 points

Grounds and Maintenance - 10 to 20 points

Green Fleets - 10 to 30 points

Sustainability Planning

Community Asset Mapping - 10 points

Community Visioning - 10 points

Sustainable Community Plan - 10 to 40 points

Water Reduction and Recycling

Recycling - 10 points for each action

Waste Reduction - 10 points for each action

Innovation Demonstration Projects

Alternative Energy - 10 to 30 points

Water Infiltration Techniques - 10 to 20 points

Other - 10 to 20 points

The first step is for the mayor and council to pass a resolution to register for the program. Mahr said she would like to see the "green team" appointed by January.

Editor's Note: Westfield Patch Editor John Celock contributed to this report.


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