The Ewing Green Team announces that their 2018 Annual Sustainability Report is now available for viewing on the Green Team’s website www.ewinggreenteam.org.

The Ewing Green Team was established in 2009 to inspire and engage those in our community who are passionate about environmental issues with the goal of fostering sustainable behaviors for the benefit of ourselves and future generations.  The team also has the primary responsibility for pursuing Sustainable Jersey certification for Ewing Township.

This report reflects the accomplishments of the Team in building upon the successes of previous years in fulfilling the community mandates in our 2014/2015 Strategic Plan and working the Sustainable Jersey program.   Since our last Green Team report we have focused our efforts in five key areas:  Community Building, Education and Outreach, Energy Conservation, Natural Resources, and Waste Management (recycling).

In 2018 the Green Team continued its efforts to increase citizen engagement through the publication of its new Welcome Guide and community events promoting sustainability such as the annual Scarecrow Contest (recycled materials and the Arts) and Ewing Fall Spin (health, bike safety and trails).   Education and outreach on sustainability topics remains a high priority for the GT and we held numerous outreach events throughout the year, as well as conducting electronic outreach via regular and frequent updates via Facebook and the web.

Energy generation and consumption is perhaps the most crucial issue to be addressed regarding global climate change and the Green Team worked to assist local businesses in reducing energy consumption through educational programming about grant opportunities available to aid them in making needed energy improvements such as the Direct Install program.  In addition, we have continued our work in recognizing businesses in town that exemplify the best in sustainable business practices.

The Green Team has a particularly robust partnership with the Ewing Environmental Commission to affect changes to the natural environment.  We coordinate actions to protect and increase the tree canopy, promote sustainable landscaping practices to protect biodiversity and vanishing wildlife and beautify our community.  We also support the Ewing Community Gardens.  Finally, our last major area of concentration is Recycling Education.  The GT spent considerable resources in educating and outreach to residents.  Our Trash Toss events enabled one-on-one education.  Flyers, such as Trash Talk and the Recycle Right campaign on plastic bags and pizza boxes were aimed at the two biggest recycling mistakes.  We also continue to update our Ewing Recycles website

We extend our thanks to Mayor Steinmann and Business Administrator McManimon who have been key partners in helping us attain our goals, and Township Council for their support.  We look forward to continuing our work with our partners in the Township and regionally in the coming year and to including more individuals, businesses, and community-based organizations in our efforts and for the future.