Sustainability Initiative Meeting
May 15th, 2008
4:30pm GCI
In attendance: Courtney Chaplin, Hugh Smallwood, Phil Whitney, Karin Whitney, Eric Dyer, Rebecca Litwin, Cythia Lief, Phelippe Donald, Jeff Cramer, Bruce Komusin, Dan Lief, Ruth Westphal, Barbara Stainton, Bill Dowling, and Amanda Ravenhill
Amanda – Today we will begin by discussing the renewably energy study, the energy audit workshop to be held on the 28th, and the Memorial Day weekend event on Islesford. We’ll try to get through those quickly so we can move on to a more free discussion. The initiative started in October with the idea to work together to reduce our negative impact on the environment – climate change and peak oil are two driving factors. We meet once a month to brainstorm ideas and think of ways to move toward action.
Jeff – The May 1st Selectman’s meetings agreed to get the Renewable Energy Study project running. How can we come together as a community and become more self-sufficient? Over the next couple months the study will look into finding more resources of renewable energy. We want to take conventional wisdom and ideas and turn it into hard knowledge. What’s possible as a project here, what’s not? The study gives the information to the community and allows them to assess and set a goal. We turn hard research into what our resource potential is. Next Tuesday there will be an advisory meeting open to the public on Islesford to give updates on where we are on the research and the best way to present the information to the community. A newsletter that will set out agenda for Tuesday’s meeting and a have a brief overview will be posted at a few locations. We’re looking mainly into biomass, wind, solar, and tidal/wave energy. It’s much easier to know where and how to reduce when we know what our energy footprint is on the island. Not only is this study environmentally, economically, and a security smart project but it’s also a community building project.
Dan – Pellet stoves are a smart alternative. They run at 90% efficiency. A committee of volunteers should be formed to get pellet stoves more commonly used on the islands.
Courtney – The pellet stove technology is taking off. It’s cheaper than propane so it’s an economic winner as well as an environmental one.
Bill Dowling – Shifting over to a new technology should be thought through completely – ethanol wasn’t too successful.
Jeff – Renewable energy can be looked at in a romantic way but needs to be looked at holistically. You need to look at what you can do and then compare it to other options before you spring into action.
Ruth – The woods are reaching their maximum.
Bill – We’re at peak spruce!
Courtney – We need to think about the impact of the actions we take.
Cynthia – The energy audit study: Months ago we talked about looking at buildings on Islesford and looking to get more information on how we could look at a building and know what actions should be taken. Unity and COA are in a little bit of competition of who is “greener.” Mick Womersley, from Unity College, will come out do a one day workshop on Islesford then come back later in the summer to do another day on GCI. He’ll come out, do a walkthrough on several different kinds of housings and talk about his findings. At the workshop people can raise any questions they may have. He’s proposed to come out on May 28th and spend the whole day. We’re currently in the process of figuring out the details of the day. He will come for free. The discussion with Mr. Womersley can be taped for those who cannot attend. It will be valuable to build a relationship between the islands and Unity and COA. We’re interested in looking into the islands’ fuel usage, how we are getting our fuel, etc. The second thing we’re doing is getting inventory of summer and winter homes, cars, businesses, gasoline gallon usage, etc. and also trying to figure out our electrical use. Other things we’d like to do is make up a questionnaire to better understand our carbon footprint, our recycling information, our composting information, how many people use clotheslines, etc. There are a lot of good things already going on but we should figure these things other things out to get even more going. Volunteers would be appreciated in helping to get this information gathered. Looking into our energy usage is what we would like to get information on next. Let Cyn know if you would like to help! (Ruth and Hugh said they would help)
Dan – “Reduce and reuse” is what we need to be doing, not just putting in a wind turbine. We should set a goal and get everyone to participate in achieving that goal. We need to really know what we’re doing before we try to reduce and reuse.
Jeff – It’s important to find variants between energy usage houses and understand why that variant exists.
Amanda – We are planning a Memorial Day weekend event (on the Saturday.) There’s a beach clean up at 1pm and a BBQ at 5:30. The 5-8 graders will give the keynote presentation on climate change. How would GCI like to be involved?
Barbara – Information we have already gathered and typed up can be handed out to summer people to explain what’s been going on on each island. We should explain the website, etc. and work to get the summer people excited about what we’ve been doing and to get involved.
Dan – Sharing, cooperating, and helping each other are major concepts that need to be put into action. Can someone talk for even 5 min at the GCI BBQ to discuss what has been going on with the initiative so the summer people know the deal?
Amanda – We’re planning to video tape presentation of the school and post on the website in case you can’t be at the presentation.
Bill – We need to work to get summer people involved.
Amanda – We will be posting updates from Jeff’s research on the website as well as holding meetings throughout the summer to keep everyone informed.
Dan – Thank you Amanda and Lindsey for the food buying club!
Amanda – The club continues to function well and it works on a volunteer basis. Maybe GCI wants to do it too? The food is well priced for being local organic food and the club saves us money from boat trips, cuts down on trips off the island, etc. It’s good for the environment and it’s also a community building activity.
Jeff – If the island produce production were to increase, then we could add that produce to the buying club.
Amanda – A warrant was proposed to eliminate all the streetlights on the islands. A conference call will be held on Monday with Bangor Hydro to discuss different solutions other than completely eliminating the streetlights but still decreasing our energy output.
Karen – There are safety issues to be considered. What about the older summer people?
Cyn – We need to discuss why we would be going without them before we just take them away.
Bill – It’s another way to reduce our carbon footprint.
Phillipe – Can we try a trial run this summer and have the electric company shut off the lights for a little and see how it goes?
Amanda – There’s a special town meeting on Tuesday and this is where the vote will be held. We could possibly eliminate the current streetlights and put up solar lampposts.
Phillipe – Food is an incredibly important part to any community. We should grow more food ourselves; therefore increasing both island food production and community building. We have all the building blocks we just need some labor and some seeds and we’d have all the food we would ever need. This project would be environmentally and economically positive as well as a community building activity. Even just backyard gardens would be a great step forward. We should tie all these individual gardens together and help each other. Eventually we could completely eliminate ordering garden foods from off island. It’s grown here – the food stays here, the money stays here, the nutrition stays here. Good food is part of a good life. We should have some gardens in visible space in big empty fields. It would draw many people in and give the project momentum. There won’t be a lack of support.
Amanda – Thank you!
