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Politics & Government

Environmental Commission Questions Car Sharing Program

Environmental Commission discusses car sharing program, buying locally and recycling.

 The Environmental Commission discussed strategies that would promote a more sustainable and "green" Summit at its meeting on Wednesday night.

Among these strategies was a car sharing program, led by Mint Cars-on-Demand. The company would supply approximately two cars for the residents to share, hopefully taking approximately 12 to 17 cars off the road, estimated Amy Cairns Harrison, chair of the commission. Residents would pay by the hour through an online system, said Richard Ull, chief executive officer of Mint Cars-on-Demand. 

"The system works very well," Ull said. "There are economic benefits as well as the obvious green advantages," he added.

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The program is still in the early stages, however.  Some commission members questioned who would use the car sharing program. 

"There are some people who don't want to buy a second car for whatever reason," Harrison said.

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The commission decided they would continue to discuss the program with the city as well as with Mount Vernon, which implemented this same program three months ago. 

Another strategy for promoting sustainability discussed was buying local food.  After earning 605 Sustainability Jersey Points, Summit is expecting a grant that would help promote buying locally.  The program has an educational component that focuses on teaching why buying locally is good as well as a component that focuses on marketing and implementation, Harrison said.

Next, the commission discussed recycling in the town, emphasizing the importance of placing the right material in the right bin.  There have been problems with bins being contaminated with incorrect materials.  The members questioned if the problem was the lack of differentiating colors on the bins or a lack of motivation.

Still, there have been positive recycling strides made in Summit. Custodians at the Lawton C. Johnson Summit Middle School have started recycling the cardboard lunch trays, said Christine Lijoi, commission member and science teacher at the school. 

"They have reduced their trash from six bags a day to two bags a day," she said.

The commission will continue to discuss these projects with the city and at their next meeting on October 18 at 8 p.m. 

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