UUFF Environmental Action Plan
Draft of April 1, 2007
The Green Sanctuary Task
Force has been meeting since October 2006 for the purpose of conducting an
environmental audit of our Fellowship and developing an Environmental Action Plan. We are now presenting this draft plan for
discussion by the congregation and vote at the June 30, 2007 Annual
Meeting. If the congregation decides to
apply for official UUA recognition as a Green Sanctuary, we would present our
action plan to the UUA as part of the application. Members of the task force are John Crusius,
David Dow, Donna Jewett, Cy Kano, Jessica Mark Welch (chair), Bob Murphy,
Christine Prevost, Jack Pierce, John Schlee, and Dave Shaw. Other frequent participants in our
discussions include Buildings and Grounds Committee members Marvin Grosslein,
David Jewett, and Phil Zimmerman.
We hope you will read this
action plan, discuss it in committee or small group meetings, and offer us your
thoughts, comments, and suggestions as we draft the final document for vote on
June 30. Thank you!
Introduction:
As religious liberals, we
have pledged ourselves to respect the interdependent web of all existence, and
to respect the people and other living beings who depend on a healthy
environment. We want to live in
accordance with our principles, so we feel we must respond to the threat of
climate change and environmental degradation, and respond with direct, local,
effective action. We want to undertake
this work in the context of our religious principles, with collective action
decided upon through democratic means, with thoughtful education of ourselves
and our children, and in mindfulness of
environmental inequality and environmental justice.
We applaud the many good
environmental works that are already a part of life in this congregation. These include:
- Two Sunday services per
year focusing on environmental issues (Harvest in October and Earth Day in
April). An active CUUPS group, with
religious gatherings practicing earth-centered spirituality. The New Year’s Day walk in Woods Hole with a
focus on the environment and
environmental justice.
- A curriculum developed by
our Director of Religious Education, and being used this year for the first
time, to help our children in grades 1-6 become familiar with earth-centered
traditions, earth-based spirituality, and religious ideas about the
seasons. Also part of our routine RE
program for children is celebration of Arbor Day and Earth Day, and teaching
about caring for the earth.
- An energy-efficient
building, with abundant natural light, five separate heating zones, and
generally good insulation.
- Ongoing work by the
Buildings and Grounds Committee to improve the energy efficiency of the
building, including, this year, improvements to the insulation in the ceiling,
installation of run-time clocks on our five furnaces to determine where the
most heating energy is used, and analysis of how we use electricity, resulting
in the identification of the parking lot lights as a major factor in our
electricity use.
- Environmentally friendly
landscaping policies and practices, with use of native plants and minimizing
use of water and fertilizer. (See 2005
statement of “UUFF Landscaping Principles”).
- Use of reusable mugs for
coffee hour, and reusable plates, flatware, and tablecloths for dinners. Installation of a restaurant-quality
dishwasher, which allows rapid (several minutes) and practical cleaning of
reusable mugs, plates, and flatware. Use
of non-toxic, phosphate-free cleaning supplies.
- A major annual festival of
waste reduction, reuse, and recycling, a.k.a. the Yard Sale. Ongoing collection of deposit bottles and
cans for recycling.
- Weekly “walkabouts” and
kayaking trips, which provide good fellowship and encourage familiarity with
our natural environment.
- Monthly cleanups of litter
on Sandwich Road, as an environmental service to the community.
- The annual Rachel Carson
dinner, focusing on sustainable living and raising money for local food
pantries.
- Donations from our Social
Action Committee to the Silent Spring Institute's Cape Cod Breast Cancer &
Environment Study. These donations are
made possible by our Grocery Certificate program, which also allows us to make
regular donations to local food pantries.
- Organic gardening, with
produce sold at a farm stand to benefit the Falmouth Service Center, as an
environmental justice project and one that encourages familiarity with the soil
and the cycles of the seasons.
- Work on the issue of fuel
poverty, and help for low-income people who need to make energy-saving
improvements to their homes, as an environmental justice issue and a special
area of interest for our minister, Bob Murphy.
Building on this solid
foundation, we recommend the adoption of the following goals:
1. In the next 6 to 12 months, reduce the
production of greenhouse gases by electricity generation for our Fellowship
building by 30% below current levels and reduce energy use from driving to
church functions by 5 to 10%.
2. Over the next 10 years, reduce the production
of greenhouse gases from energy use (electricity plus heat) in our Fellowship
building by 50% below current levels.
3. Educate ourselves on environmentally friendly
living, and encourage each other to find more environmentally friendly ways of
living our lives. Monitor our progress
(on the energy usage component) through regular, voluntary, household energy
audits. Maintain an awareness of the
current scientific consensus on the causes and effects of climate change. Educate ourselves on the relationship between
environmental issues and social problems, and engage with the wider community
on issues of environmental justice.
Action Plan:
Sustainable living:
1. Investigate, and implement at the discretion
of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, energy conservation measures including:
- operate interior parking
lot lights via motion detectors rather than timers; we anticipate this may save
6 to 7% of our total electricity bill.
- install timers on
thermostats, to turn heat down automatically at night
- continued improvements to
insulation
Time
line: Motion detectors and timers within
6 months; other efficiency measures and evaluation of total energy usage at the
Fellowship ongoing.
2. Install a small, energy-efficient hot water
heater for the dishwasher, allowing the main hot water heater to be kept at 120
degrees (as a safety issue as well as an environmental one).
Time
line: Within 6 months.
3. Develop a program to encourage carpooling to
UUFF events. John Crusius will convene a
small committee to determine the most feasible way to encourage carpools.
Time
line: Develop program within 6 months;
operation and evaluation of its success ongoing.
4. Install a solar photovoltaic system on the
lower south-facing area of the UUFF roof.
The system would provide ~
4300 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, 22% of our current usage, and
would initially cost ~ $35,520; of this initial cost, ~ $12,600 would be
returned to us in state-sponsored rebates after the first ~ 6 months of operation. The net cost of the array after rebates would
be ~ $22,920. (These cost estimates are
from the price quote from Clean Energy Design.)
It would save us ~ $908 per year in electricity costs, at current rates,
and would prevent the generation of 5700 pounds of carbon dioxide per year
(That is, it would prevent generation of about 22% of the CO2 we create for
electricity, or about 11% of the CO2 we create for electricity plus heat, or
about 7% of the CO2 we create via electricity, heat, and driving to Fellowship
events.)
Time
line: Installation within 6 months;
reports to congregation on electricity generated, money and carbon dioxide
saved, and any maintenance issues: ongoing.
5. For longer-term planning: Consider the installation of a solar hot
water system for heating of an eventual extension to the building, or
installation of an air-to-air heat pump when our existing furnaces reach the
end of their useful life. Consider
installation of composting toilets.
Conduct investigative research and preliminary discussions on possible
installation of a windmill as a joint project between us and the Falmouth
Jewish Congregation. (A windmill could
generate up to $40,000 worth of electricity per year, approximately 10 times
the current annual usage at our meetinghouse, with attendant major reductions
in emissions of greenhouse gases.)
Time
line: As opportunities arise.
6. Discuss, and implement as appropriate,
policies and/or procedures for the following measures: Purchase “green”
electricity. Purchase coffee produced in
an environmentally friendly and socially responsible way. Purchase recycled paper products (paper
towels, napkins, toilet paper). Create
a compost heap (or use the existing plastic bin) and use it for lawn trimmings
and kitchen scraps. Expand the recycling
program at the UUFF.
Time
line: Within 1 year.
Religious Education:
7. Encourage all members and friends to complete
an energy audit of their own homes and driving patterns. Repeat this audit annually to monitor our
progress, and report to the congregation on the findings. Provide education and inspiration to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions. Bill Jackson
and the members of the Men’s Breakfast group have carried out a pilot energy
audit; we will seek to expand that effort to include the entire
congregation. Marv Grosslein has agreed
to organize a long-underwear fashion show, to assist and encourage our efforts
to conserve heating fuel in our homes and at the Fellowship.
Time
line: First audit within 3 months;
follow-up audits ongoing. Fashion Show
in fall 2007?
8. Food and the Environment: Organize a book discussion group to read one
or more books such as Michael Pollen’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma. Distribute information within the
congregation about local farms, locally available produce, pasture-raised
meats, and sustainably harvested or sustainably farmed seafoods. Increase awareness of sustainable eating
patterns and help people gain access to sustainable foods.
Time
line: First book group and information
distribution within 1 year; further discussion ongoing.
9. Write a monthly column for the church
newsletter with environment-related information and practical ideas.
Time
line: Ongoing.
10. For children: Support the DRE in further
refinement of her new curriculum on earth-centered religion. Encourage and continue existing efforts to
teach children about environmental responsibility.
Time
line: Refinement of curriculum within
next 1 to 2 years; teaching ongoing.
Sunday Services:
11. Continue to have several Sunday services per
year with environmental stewardship themes.
e.g.: The ethics of food. Do we
have a religious obligation to reduce our net carbon output? What is environmental justice? How can we work for environmental protection
while helping to solve problems like racism and poverty? What is the ethical and theological grounding
of our respect for the environment?
Time
line: Ongoing.
12. Work with the minister to find ways to
incorporate environmental ideas into many services (not just a few each year).
Time
line: Generation of ideas within 1 year;
implementation ongoing.
Environmental Justice:
13. Our minister is a leader on environmental
justice issues, and several other members of the congregation are also carrying
out this work. e.g., fuel assistance and
home energy conservation programs for the poor.
Find ways to offer them help and support (more awareness, more
volunteers).
Time
line: Consciousness-raising within 6
months; work in the community ongoing.
14. Members of the congregation are involved in
organic gardening that supports the Falmouth Service Center. Offer them help and support (more awareness,
more volunteers).
Time
line: Ongoing.