Lexington takes steps
to smaller carbon footprint
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| Garbage cans may be emptier if residents work to reduce the community's carbon footprint, recycle more and waste less. (STEPHANIE HARDIMAN/The Rockbridge Report) |
Lexington has something called a carbon footprint, and a committee appointed by City Council wants to make it smaller.
As communities nationwide take steps to protect the environment and conserve energy, the Go Green Lexington committee is unveiling a resolution to help residents and the city become -- and have -- more green.
“This is something that is a must—it’s something that affects our future, “ Mayor Mimi Elrod said. “It’s not a frivolous idea.”
A carbon footprint refers to the level of emissions of environmentally threatening greenhouse gases that a city, company or even families or individuals are responsible for. The Go-Green committee will present a resolution to City Council on Feb. 5 that will urge the city to commit to goals including education and outreach to the community; constructing a baseline study of the city’s carbon footprint , with an energy audit of city properties; increasing the tree canopy, and creating an anti-idling ordinance governing vehicles.
Committee chair Val Cushman said the committee was established by City Council last fall in response to local interest in reducing the area’s carbon footprint, and also in acknowledgment of calls to action from authorities including Gov. Tim Kaine, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama, the Virginia Municipal League and the United States Conference of Mayors.
Cushman said it was important for Lexington to do its part to make a difference when it comes to the environment. She said analyzing the city’s carbon footprint would involve assessing the city’s energy consumption, recycling and waste as “credits and liabilities.”
Credits and liabilities reflect positive and negative actions such as recycling or wasting energy . The analysis would create a baseline of greenhouse gas emissions for the city and develop a strategic plan for reducing emissions.
Elrod said analyzing the city’s carbon footprint can be costly. But Cushman, who is executive assistant to Washington and Lee University President Ken Ruscio, said it might be possible to establish the baseline and enact the entire resolution at no cost to the city.
Cushman said Washington and Lee’s Student Consulting, a student organization that provides consulting services to businesses and community organizations, will work with a Virginia Military Institute research assistant, and possibly one from W&L, to cut costs and establish that baseline.
The two colleges are among major constituencies in the outreach, which is also targeting businesses, other schools, residents at-large and the city itself.
Elrod said education is essential to the success of the initiative. If green education starts at the elementary school level, children will see how important green practices are and take those ideas home to their parents, she said. Community outreach through a newsletter and articles in the local newspapers will also help educate local residents.
“There are a lot of people who just don’t think [recycling] is that important,” said Elrod, citing one example of areas the green initiative will address.
Besides benefiting the environment, she said, the Go Green initiative can save the city money. For example, she said, because recyclables are sold, the city breaks even on its recycling program. The city might also save by cutting back on air conditioning and heating or better insulating buildings to make them more energy- efficient, Elrod said.
In addition to the current recycling program, Elrod said, the committee hopes the city will pair with Boxerwood Gardens to recycle organic materials such as lawn clippings.
Another item in the resolution, the anti-idling ordinance, would prohibit vehicles from excessive idling, a source of carbon-based emissions.
And Elrod said the committee would recommend expanding the city’s tree canopy by planting more than 6,000 new trees — one for every Lexington citizen. But that could be expensive. Lexington Arborist Betty Besal said it could cost about $250 to purchase and maintain each tree, which would give the project a price tag of about $1.5 million.
But, to save money, a tree sapling garden would be established in which the community could grow its own trees from the root up instead of paying for mature ones.
Lexington is already a Tree City USA Community, recognized by the National Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters. The city observes Arbor Day and has a Tree Board that enforces ordinances regarding care and removal of trees. The city must also spend at least $2 per resident on a forestry program.
“We’re part of the global community that we’re trying to sustain,” Cushman said.
Produced by
Washington and Lee
journalism students.
Lead Supervisors:
Prof. Brian
Richardson
Prof. Indira Somani
Editing supervisor:
Prof. Lisa Tracy
Technical supervisor: Michael Todd