November 13, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 11 Wyckoff Officials go for gold on Sustainable Jersey certificate by John Koster Members of the Wyckoff Township Committee have set their sights on achieving the gold certification from Sustainable Jersey program, and are researching what it will take to attain that goal. Launched in 2009, Sustainable Jersey is a certification program for New Jersey municipalities that want to “go green, save money, and take steps to sustain their quality of life over the long term,” according to the program’s website. That site also notes that Sustainable Jersey is “a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that provides tools, training, and financial incentives to support and reward communities as they pursue sustainability programs.” “We look forward to gold whenever the criteria are established,” said Deputy Mayor Douglas Christie. He reported that Wyckoff recently qualified for the silver certification, becoming one of only 20 New Jersey com- munities to reach that level this year. “That puts us in the top five percent, and that is phe- nomenal,” Christie said. Christie, whose speech highlighted last week’s Wyckoff Township Committee meeting, noted that about half of the towns in New Jersey are registered Sustain- able Jersey program participants. He noted that Wyckoff first received the bronze certificate in 2011. To date, 20 Bergen County communities, including Franklin Lakes, Glen Rock, and Ramsey, are also certified at the bronze level. The bronze level is said to require 150 points for a variety of activities. The silver certificates now being awarded require a minimum of 350 points with regard to recycling, conser- vation of resources, and publicity in favor of sustainable resources. The Wyckoff Green Team formed five specific task forces and the activities included the construction of a rain garden at the public library to promote plantings that do not normally require watering, pledges to bring reusable beverage containers to public events to prevent littering with discarded plastic bottles, and participation of the public schools in internal recycling operations. An energy audit inventory and upgrade for public buildings and a fleet management inventory and policy to discour- age light pollution were also included. Deputy Mayor Christie thanked Wyckoff Township Administrator Robert Shannon, committee meeting reg- ular and environmental volunteer Jim Savage, and the members of the Wyckoff Environmental Commission, including Chair Harriet Shugarman, Randy Hooger- hyde, Peter Wiederhold, Cathy Runge, former mayor Christopher De Phillips, Janice Reynen, and Richard Bonsignore. “This does not bring us a check, but it does bring us an opportunity to go after grants,” said Christie, refer- ring to state funding for future environmental and land conservation projects. America Recycles Day announced In related news, the Wyckoff Township Committee adopted a resolution proclaiming Nov. 15, 2013 as Amer- ica Recycles Day. The township committee encourages all Wyckoff residents and business owners to join in Wyckoff’s Nifty-Fifty Program, which encourages citi- zens to reduce the amount of trash placed at the curb by 50 percent by diverting recyclable materials from the waste stream to the recycling stream. There are many ways residents and businesses can participate. Small changes in everyone’s recycling habits can help the township avoid up to $100,000 in garbage disposal fees by diverting the following items from the garbage to recycling. Wyckoff officials urge residents, “Don’t treat your recyclables like trash.” They recommend the following: • Increase household recyclables by using the single stream recycling collections every other week. Place in one container all paper, plastic items numbered 1-7, cans, glass bottles, jars, and wax coated food cartons. (No Styrofoam items can be collected.) • Every Wednesday, the DPW picks up household appliances/metal bulk items such as residential room air conditioners, residential refrigerators/freezers, (with doors removed), and stoves. Please note that this collec- tion is suspended during the annual leaf collection. Call (201) 891-7000, extension 101 to request curbside collec- tion. Removing heavy items avoids higher costs because the township pays by weight. • Recycle electronics such as TVs, computers, print- ers, and DVD players. Bring them to the Recycling Con- servation Center at 476 West Main Street. • Put a lid on garbage containers to keep the rain and snow out. Wet garbage weighs more, so it costs more to haul. • Count garbage containers. Those who are putting out two containers of garbage per week may be able to reduce the amount of garbage through better recycling. • Make it a family affair. Getting children involved early will help the township achieve its Nifty-Fifty goal. • Those who are having new carpet installed are urged to ask the installer to take away the old carpet. • Stop by Wyckoff Town Hall and pick up a Nifty- Fifty sticker for your recycling containers. • Donate your appliances and used furniture.