Sustainable Jersey representatives have announced that Lawrence Township has met the requirements to achieve Sustainable Jersey certification. Lawrence is one of only 25 New Jersey municipalities that have attained certification at the silver-level in 2016.
The township was honored at the Sustainable Jersey Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, Nov. 15 in Atlantic City.
“We are excited to receive this honor and look forward to continuing as a sustainable community at the silver level,” Mayor David Maffei said. “We are grateful for the assistance of the Rider University Sustainability Studies Capstone Seminar students and Professor Brooke Hunter, as well as the Lawrence Township Environmental Resources and Sustainability Green Advisory Committee, in making this possible.”
To become Sustainable Jersey certified at the silver-level, Lawrence submitted documentation to show it had completed a balance of the required sustainability actions, meeting a minimum of 350 action points.
In addition to reaching 350 points, each community had to create a green team and select at least three out of eleven priority action options. Lawrence did four of the eleven priority actions by completing an inventory and upgrade of all buildings, a sustainable land use pledge, a natural resource inventory and a prescription drug safety and disposal program.
“Sustainable Jersey is incredibly proud of the 74 New Jersey towns that achieved certification this year,” Donna Drewes, co-director of Sustainable Jersey, said. “The 198 Sustainable Jersey certified towns demonstrate leadership and are a testament to how much we can accomplish toward the long-term goal of a sustainable New Jersey.”
Certified towns excelled in areas such as improving energy efficiency and health and wellness, reducing waste, sustaining local economies, protecting natural resources and advancing the arts.
“Collectively the 440 participating Sustainable Jersey towns are a powerful force in New Jersey,” Randall Solomon, co-director of Sustainable Jersey, said.
