Going Green: New Castle and Chappaqua School District honored with Green Star environmental award

Image from Pace, “April Earth Month”
April 2, 2010
by Laura Rossi-Ortiz

“Real change comes from the bottom up. That’s the fundamental concept behind our program. Towns, school systems and business communities can all take action right now to address the most critical issues of our time.”

So reads the introduction to “How Green is My Town,” a project that recently surveyed communities and school districts throughout Westchester to rate their achievements in addressing climate change, sustainability and environmental health. 

On March 24, after the final tallying was concluded, the greenest communities were awarded Green Star Awards. Both the town of New Castle and the Chappaqua School District received awards in recognition of steps taken toward sustainability and awareness about environmental issues. The other communities who received awards are Bronxville, Katonah, Yorktown, White Plains and Larchmont.

To view the full Green Star Award report, which includes an explanation of the very complicated ratings system used for the survey, click HERE.

Survey conducted by Pace University and Grassroots Environmental Education

The program, “http://www.HowGreenIsMyTown.org/westchester” title=“How Green Is My Town?”>How Green Is My Town?”, was created by Grassroots Environmental Education, a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate the public about environmental toxins and their impact on human health and empower individuals to act as catalysts for change within their communities. 

Grassroots Environmental Education was founded in 2000 by Patti and Doug Wood.  In 2006, the organization was awarded an Environmental Quality Award from the Environmental Protection Agency for its successful Healthy Lawn Program, first introduced in Westchester.  The Healthy Lawn Program promotes non-toxic lawn care through consumer outreach, landscaper training and retailer participation.

Grassroots Environmental Education partnered with Pace University Academy for Applied Environmental Studies to conduct the survey.  More than 100 Pace students interviewed municipal, school and business officials in 43 communities. They tabulated steps taken in eleven areas, all of which are geared toward reducing communities’ carbon footprints.  These areas include comprehensive environmental policies, energy use, green procurement, green cleaning, sustainable building and development, land management, grounds maintenance, water conservation, transportation, recycling, environmental toxins and communications. 

What we did to win a Green Star Award

The Green Star Award is well deserved.  Our town and our schools have been ahead of the curve in raising awareness and taking positive steps to reduce the community’s carbon footprint. 

The Chappaqua School District has taken numerous steps to help students with behavior change, establishing good habits for the next generation.  The entire district has an extensive recycling program.  At the high school, students and the administration have partnered to raise awareness about sustainability. 

For example, to reduce plastic water bottle usage, reusable water bottles were distributed to students.  To ensure that the students actually used them, water re-filling stations have been installed throughout the high school.  These small but specific actions are helping to make it easier for the student community to make the switch from plastic to reusable bottles.

This September, the school district will begin food composting.  “We wouldn’t have gotten this far without the interest and support of the students and the community,” explained Joe Gramando, the district’s director of facilities and operations.  And it’s fair to say the district is making great strides in sustainability under his management.

Did you know that New Castle was the first municipality to enroll in New York’s Climate Smart Community program?  The town has been true to its pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, taking numerous steps to becoming more sustainable, many of which have been on the cutting-edge of green technology. 

In addition to its comprehensive recycling and yard-waste composting programs, the town was one of the first in the county to conduct energy audits for all town-owned facilities; to purchase energy from renewable resources; and to switch to hybrid vehicles, to name just a few actions taken. Recently, the New Castle successfully applied for federal stimulus funds to install a solar wall on the Millwood Water Treatment Plant, a facility that was designed to be energy efficient. 

The Town has adopted a green purchasing policy, established preferential parking for hybrids at the train station, and energy star requirements for new construction.  The Town Advisory Boards and Regulatory Boards have incorporated environmental concepts into their deliberations, and actively engage Town staff in ways to reduce energy usage in daily operations.

Gerry Moerschell, the town’s deputy commissioner of public works, has been the town-wide coordinator for many of these efforts.  Over the past two years he has quietly and diligently been working to measure and reduce the town’s carbon footprint.  He credits the town’s success in its green endeavors to a comprehensive group effort on the part of the town supervisor, town board and town department heads who are committed to greening New Castle.

“Our Town won this award because we have a multifaceted, comprehensive approach to reducing our town’s impact on the environment,” said Moerschell.

The next time you see Mr. Gramando or Mr. Moerschell give them a thank you.  Both have done a lot to support and encourage the community’s efforts to go green. And thank you to all in our community who have supported the efforts of the town and the school district.  Many of you have actively supported these efforts, and many are helping to raise awareness about environmental issues. 

Ultimately, it takes everyone to make important lifestyle changes, by reducing waste and recycling more, by making our homes more energy efficient, by driving more efficiently and idling less and by removing toxins from our homes and lawns.

Laura Rossi-Ortiz is a member of the Town’s Sustainability Advisory Board.  To learn more about the New Castle’s commitment to reduce its carbon footprint, click HERE.

For the Town of New Castle’s Guide to Recycling, click HERE.

This week New Castle was recognized by Pace U’s “How Green Is My Town” program as a leader in sustainability. Pictured are Moerschell and Gerrard.