Sullivan County officials take a green ride

Road to sustainability is the destination

By FRITZ MAYER

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — With the election behind them, about a dozen county and town officials took to the road on November 14 to get an introductory lesson in renewable energy technology at facilities in Sullivan County.

Alternative energy advocate Dick Riseling, who is also a member of Sullivan Alliance for Sustainable Development, organized the outing, and his farm was the first stop. He briefly explained the different systems on his property, which include an array of photovoltaic panels on his barn, a windmill in his pasture and a newly installed boiler in his basement that will burn recycled vegetable oil this winter.

Riseling has long advocated that renewable energy is not only a good way to go for small operations such as private farms, but that municipal governments at the town and county level should also get into the alternative-energy-generation business.

After the stop at the farm, the bus traveled from Callicoon Center to Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake, and along the way some of the officials discussed their interest in renewable energy. As the supervisor of the Town of Fremont, James Greier has been working with supervisors from the towns of Rockland, Delaware and Callicoon to create a municipal wind operation that would be wholly owned by the four towns. According to Riseling, a 40-turbine operation, with windmills like the ones in Waymart, PA, could generate a profit of up to $7 million per year for the towns.

The towns have been pursuing the goal since early spring, and Greier is a bit disappointed that progress is taking so long. So far, they’ve been talking primarily with Empire State Wind Energy, a company headed by billionaire Tom Golisano. Now, the towns will also be meeting with three other companies, so Greier speculated that the wait may pay off.

However, one obstacle that will not be easily overcome is the availability of the most reliable wind turbines, the kind made by General Electric. According to Riseling, there is a backlog of orders for the turbines stretching into 2010.

Another supervisor on the bus was James Galligan. His town, Forestburgh, recently passed a resolution to promote green technology. Galligan said the town is currently not looking at establishing its own energy generating facility, but, instead, officials are mulling over the option of requiring builders to include a certain amount of green technology in any new construction in the town.

The second stop on the tour was Sullivan County Community College, with its large geothermal heating and cooling system that went online in 2001. The substantial energy-cost savings of some $74,000 per year has led college officials to expand it. Work is currently underway to include the Paul Gerry Fieldhouse into the system.

The final tour stop was the Center For Discovery in Harris. The largest employer in the county, the center made a commitment early on to controlling not only the temperature in the building with sustainable technology, but also to controlling other environmental variables. Because the center’s occupants are likely more sensitive to their environment than the general population, officials saw to it that potentially harmful substances, such as vinyl, were kept out of the main building, the Patrick H. Dollard Discovery Health Center. When the building achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification in 2004, it was only the second healthcare facility in the United States to do so.

These two facilities were of special interest to lawmakers Kathy LaBuda and Leni Binder because, in the wake of the “green resolution” passed by the county, all new county building projects must include green technologies, and that includes the new county jail, which is set to begin construction in 2009. LaBuda and Binder are on the committee that will help steer the construction of the jail.

The lawmakers also got a look at the site of the new green tech park, which will be constructed on acreage adjacent to the college.

Other officials on the bus included county treasurer Ira Cohen, legislator Frank Armstrong, legislator-elect Alan Sorensen and legislative aide Alexis Eggleston.