A Sustainable Moorestown Is a Balanced Moorestown

Moorestown will attempt to join an exclusive club of municipalities by registering for certification with Sustainable Jersey.

Among its services, Sustainable Jersey offers guidance and “how to” tools for communities to become more green, provides access to grants, and identifies other funding opportunities.

Chet Dawson, chair of the township’s Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC), said between 60 to 70 municipalities are certified with Sustainable Jersey—a designation that provides access to all those services—and about 360 more that (like Moorestown soon will be) are registered to become certified.

“The money’s available,” Dawson said, “but it’s going to get competitive.”

Locally, only Cherry Hill and Haddonfield are certified, while a host of other communities are registered.

He outlined some of the monetary benefits to being certified, including financial aid for alternative energy projects (i.e. installation of solar panels, ), as well as an energy audit by the Board of Public Utilities.

Dawson and EAC are partnering with the township’s Economic Development Advisory Committee (EDAC) on the initiative.

EDAC chair Jacob DerHagopian said inclusion in Sustainable Jersey will strengthen the three crucial elements that make Moorestown a vibrant community: social, economic, and environmental.

Those are the legs of the stool (that is Moorestown), he said. “The seat of the stool is sustainability … When you look at a community, what you try to achieve is balance.”

In order to become certified, the township has to achieve 100 points on Sustainable Jersey’s checklist. Communities earn points in a variety of ways, Dawson said. For example, having a water conservation ordinance (which Moorestown does) is worth 10 points. Towns can also earn points by having green-energy buildings or partnering with schools to create “growing gardens” for students. Dawson said the created by Save The Environment of Moorestown is another example of how points can be earned.

Aside from the obvious financial benefits that come from certification, Dawson and DerHagopian said participation in Sustainable Jersey also provides an opportunity to tie all the different organizations and clubs and committees in Moorestown into the same cause.

“We have a lot of different groups in town,” said Dawson. “This would be kind of a focal point to bring them together in certain areas.”

For DerHagopian, the program represents forward progress, a chance to step forward into a new world where “sustainability” is the new buzzword for all communities.

“In any community, you have to be aware that the world is moving forward, and if we stand still and the world is moving forward, that means we’re falling behind,” he said. “We’re looking at this to be the first step.”