Cold Spring also certified by state program
Five years after its Legislature voted to join the state’s Climate Smart Community program, Putnam County finally achieved certification, the state Department of Environmental Conservation announced on June 27.
Cold Spring joined Putnam County in achieving “bronze” certification for the first time under the state program, which gives participating communities priority for millions in grants if they implement programs to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases, which are driving climate change.
Communities join the program by ratifying a pledge to reduce greenhouse gases and creating a task force, and can then become certified by accumulating enough points for their environmental initiatives, such as installing solar systems and LED lighting at their facilities.
Of the 422 municipalities that have taken the pledge, just 140 have earned enough points to be certified bronze, including Philipstown. Beacon is one of only 14 that have completed enough projects to earn the highest certification, silver. Dutchess County, which received bronze certification in 2019, had its status renewed in June for another five years.
Cold Spring has earned Climate Smart points for projects that included completing an inventory of the greenhouse gases emitted by its activities, incorporating sustainability and “smart-growth” principles into its updated zoning code, installing LED street lights and launching a yard-waste pickup program.
Village trustees also joined Hudson Valley Community Power, a community-choice-aggregation program in which 10 municipalities (including Philipstown) buy electricity at a fixed rate for their residents and businesses.
Putnam County also completed a greenhouse-gas inventory and has conducted energy audits of its buildings, upgraded more than 430,000 square feet of building lighting and installed solar panels on five buildings that generate a combined 371 kilowatts of electricity.
A new $100,000 grant will allow the county to install a carport with solar panels and three to four EV charging stations at its Donald B. Smith building in Carmel.
Some of the steps leading to certification were completed years ago but not recognized by the state under previous County Executive MaryEllen Odell, who appointed her Capital Projects Committee as the county’s Climate Smart task force.
In December, County Executive Kevin Byrne issued a memorandum rescinding that appointment, writing that “there is no evidence that the previous administration filled the needed paperwork with the state to demonstrate its creation or that it fulfilled its state-mandated commitments.”
Byrne appointed members of a new task force and named Illona Campo, a planning assistant in the Department of Planning, Development and Public Transportation, as the county’s Climate Smart coordinator. An initial meeting took place on Dec. 15.
Nancy Montgomery, who represents Philipstown and part of Putnam Valley on the Legislature, for years pressed Odell’s administration on the inactivity of the county’s Climate Smart program. She said on Wednesday (July 3) that she is “thrilled” by the designation “after an unnecessary and costly six-year delay caused by the former county executive and the Republican-led Legislature.”
“Putnam County can finally access the financial and technical resources provided by the Department of Environmental Conservation,” she said.
Those financial resources include significant amounts of funding to climate-smart municipalities.
Cold Spring adopted the pledge in December and in January appointed Trustee Laura Bozzi as Climate Smart coordinator.
Bozzi said in January that participation in the Climate Smart Community program “makes Cold Spring more competitive for state environmental grants, including support in addressing the significant flooding we’ve been experiencing and to repair our high-hazard dams.”
Grants totaling $35,000 have been awarded to the village for initiatives such as installing LED lighting at the water treatment plant, four electric-vehicle charging stations, an energy audit of Village Hall and planting trees.
The approvals for those projects earned the village 6,100 points under the state Clean Energy Communities Program, Bozzi said in January. By surpassing 5,000 points, Cold Spring qualified for a $100,000 grant to spend on projects.
If the village reaches 7,000 points, it will be eligible for another $175,000 grant; at 9,000 points, the prize is a $250,000 grant.
“This is an opportunity for transformative funding and statewide recognition,” Bozzi reported in January. “Our challenge is to move quickly to access the funds before they’re exhausted, but we’re well on our way.”
Congratulations to the Village of Cold Spring board, especially Trustee Laura Bozzi, in gaining bronze status and obtaining the funds to help cut the municipality’s energy expenditure while reducing our impact on the environment.
How nice to see Putnam County joining those of us on the west to support the state’s Climate Smart program. It has been evident for many years that we all must take steps at the local level to protect our land. We can’t wait for “someone” to take the initiative. In Philipstown, we work tirelessly to support Nancy Montgomery, our representative in the Putnam Legislature. It would behoove her colleagues to pay more heed to Nancy’s efforts. The state grants available are precious.