Middletown Township Green Iniative

MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR

Middletown’s Road To A Greener Future
By Mayor Gerard P. Scharfenberger, Ph.D

One of the truly hot-button issues permeating the public consciousness at present is energy and its effects on the environment, the economy and national security.  Although it may seem that many of the problems and prospective solutions associated with energy can only be addressed at the federal level as part of an international debate, it is becoming more and more evident that meaningful action can be taken at the local level.  To that end I am pleased to announce the introduction of the Middletown Township Green Initiative.  

With the growing impact of energy, its cost and tenuous availability, I feel that it is imperative that the township explore ways to reduce costs through improved energy efficiency, while doing our part to lessen the nation’s dependence on foreign oil and gas. 

The Middletown Township Green Initiative is actually the culmination of a year’s worth of research conducted by the township committee and the department heads.  The genesis for it came after I attended a forum on global warming at Monmouth University early last year.  I was inspired to take action after meeting with a number of mayors from coastal towns and the presentations of several environmental scientists.  While the debate may rage if global warming is part of a naturally occurring cycle, or the result of fossil fuels, it is clear that any action taken to decrease the money spent on energy, curb pollution, and break the stranglehold of foreign energy producers over the world economy will pay dividends to every American now and in the future.  

The Middletown Township Green Initiative will provide a host of energy and cost-saving proposals ranging from replacing older, less fuel-efficient vehicles to mandated energy-saving heating and cooling systems for municipal buildings among dozens of others.   This initial document will be a working draft, which will be modified and expanded as new ideas and technologies become available.  The benefits will be threefold: it will save the township money, it will help preserve the environment and it will help to decrease our dependency on foreign oil. 

One of the major components of the initiative is the Dock & Roll Shuttle Bus Service program that will be introduced this spring.  This is a free service with scheduled connections between trains, ferries, buses and local schools, shopping and employment centers.  The township hopes that with several hundred people utilizing a single vehicle rather than personal vehicles, we can significantly cut down on traffic, congestion and auto emissions.  Less reliance on automobiles by the traveling public will hopefully lead to reduced energy costs and the conservation of natural resources.

Solar energy is another important part of the green initiative.  The township is currently looking into the feasibility of retrofitting existing buildings with solar power, and also including solar energy in the design of new or expanded municipal buildings.  One of the proposals I feel strongly about is the use of hybrid vehicles or vehicles that use alternative fuels in the municipal fleet.  As the owner of a hybrid vehicle, I can personally attest to the enormous cost savings of a vehicle that averages 48-50 MPG, while emitting significantly fewer emissions.  There is perhaps, no other line item in a municipality’s budget as volatile as gas or oil from a cost perspective.  After Hurricane Katrina, we witnessed the price of gas soar to over $3 a gallon – an increase that had to be absorbed in a budget that had little room for such a staggering increase.  As a result, gas and oil projections for the township must be calculated at much higher rates. 

The green initiative also calls for the township to pursue an energy audit from the Board of Public Utilities to assess our energy usage and spotlight conservation projects.  This will help us to identify areas for cost and energy savings that are not included in the initial document.  Input gathered from consultation from such entities as the Sierra Club, the League of Municipalities, the Municipal Land Use Center, the Middletown Environmental Commission and Dr. Patrick Hossay of Stockton University, among others, will allow the township to remain on the cutting edge of the latest energy saving techniques as they become available, all at no cost the township.

Other more immediate measures will be to mandate the purchase to the extent possible and appropriate Energy Star equipment and appliances for municipal city use.  This will enable the township to ensure cost savings on an annual basis through the normal, day-to-day functioning of the township infrastructure.  Another simple, but effective approach will be to emphasize and educate Township staff to turn off the lights, computers, and other equipment when not in use.  Energy saving suggestions and links to relevant websites will be posted on the newly-revamped township website to encourage and enable residents to participate in their own homes and businesses.

From a purely environmental standpoint, the green initiative will mandate the use to the extent possible and appropriate, green cleaning products in municipal buildings to reduce levels of volatile organic chemical emission through evaporation.  Similarly, we will work with the Environmental Commission and the Planning Department to increase the planting of trees and indigenous species. 

Overall, the Middletown Township Green Initiative will be a profitable endeavor on so many levels: financially, environmentally and from a national security perspective.  The township has already been recognized by the Sierra Club for its efforts to implement a green initiative, and we hope that Middletown will inspire other municipalities to follow suit.  The benefits for all of us are simply too great to ignore.