Loose Leaf Notes

Members of Preserve Floyd (PF) recently urged the Floyd Board of Supervisors (BOS) to adopt a Community Choice Resolution, committing to renewable energy development that would shift the county’s energy sources to 80% renewable by 2030 and 100% by 2050.

“After the Great Depression, FDR initiated the New Deal,” said PF speaker Mary Freday, during Tuesday’s public comment period at the BOS meeting. “This allowed, among other things, rural communities without electricity to form energy cooperatives.  We need another New Deal … We need a community solar option in Floyd.”  Freday spoke about power purchasing and budget saving energy agreements that other counties have embraced, and outlined the effects of global warming and permafrost melting, which is happening faster than scientists predicted.

 Explaining that atmospheric carbon concentrations (aka parts per million—ppm) has been recommended to be below 350, in order to maintain climate as we know it, Fredey stated. “In 2016 carbon went above 400 parts per billion for the first time in several million years causing increased flooding, droughts, super storms, wildfires and coral bleaching.”

“This is why the governors of 12 states (including Virginia) have joined the United States Climate Alliance,” she continued. “This is why 1,219 governors, mayors, universities, and businesses have joined the “We Are Still In” coalition to pursue ambitious emission reduction targets.  This is why approximately over 300 mayors (the number keeps rising) have signed the Mayors’ National Climate Action Agenda, including the mayors of Alexandria, Blacksburg, Charlottesville, Falls Church, and Richmond,” Freday said.

Addressing the supervisors and quoting a statement made by Floyd Mayor Griffith when he signed the Mayor’s Climate Change Agreement that was presented to him by PF, PF director Mara Robbins said, “The greatest resources we have in Floyd County are our people and our land. Considering that, how can preserving our climate ever be a partisan issue.  Like all things, it should never be about more than right or wrong.  Doing what we can to preserve our quality of life should be the goal for all of us, and we can’t put it off on future generations.”

Twelve-year-old Archer Berzins also addressed the supervisors, asking them to support replacing coal furnaces at Floyd County Schools with solar power. He spoke of the large black dust cloud that smells of sulphur and burning iron that students are exposed to at school.  “It’s generally agreed that pollution is not a good thing and non-renewable resources will not last forever,” he stated, adding that “by 2020 solar energy will be cheaper than coal.”

Community preparedness was an issue that several speakers mentioned.  SustainFloyd board president Billy Weizenfeld and member Jane Cundiff each voiced their support and endorsement for PF and for reducing carbon emissions and promoting renewable energy.  Weizenfeld spoke of the common ground we share, saying, “It’s going to take a lot of work.  The only way it will work is if we work together.”

Cundiff stated, “It’s the duty of government to first and foremost protect the lives and health of our citizens.”  She proposed that the county develop a tax system that would reward those who are preserving old forests, streams and marshes, while heavily taxing that which damages them.

PF co-chair J.L. Fogo became emotional when he spoke of a recent family reunion where his family members touted bottled water and couldn’t “wrap their heads around” the fact that we can drink water from our taps in Floyd.  “I came here from the Great Plains region of the country.   The soil and the food grown are so contaminated with herbicides and pesticides that it has leached into the drinking water to the point that it is unhealthy, and the soil is so depleted from big ag that without an annual infusion of toxic industrial fertilizers, they can’t even grow a crop on the land,” Fogo said during his presentation.

“Personally, I am very grateful that I stumbled upon this piece of heaven on earth, and I have a deep respect for all the people who helped make Floyd so much unlike so much of the rest of the country,” Fogo continued.   “I believe we can be a courageous example of moving well into the 21^st century in a way that will help to preserve the way of life that we all hold so close to our hearts — good friends, good neighbors, safe for children, and a continued draw as a “wonderful destination” for our tourism industry.”

PF member Erika Largen began her presentation by recalling the 1968 Christmas Eve Apollo 8 live broadcast from lunar orbit, when people were first able to see planet Earth from space. “Even the astronauts were amazed,” Largen said, quoting Astronaut Jim Lovell’s remark ‘It makes you realize just what you have back there on Earth.’

“Everyone here loves Floyd County. Adopting this resolution and creating a climate action plan to reach these targets shows that love.” Largen described Blacksburg’s Climate Action Plan, which is divided into six chapters “covering the major sectors of the community that substantially contribute to Blacksburg’s greenhouse gas emissions. These include: Residential, Transportation, Commercial/Industrial, Food, Waste & Recycling, Land Use, and Renewable Energy. The plan spells out goals, measurable objectives, and implementation strategies across each of these sectors.

“I applaud you all for being here. I want to continue this dialogue and I hope you do too,” said Supervisor Linda DeVito at the close of public comments and presentations.  She stressed that working for change was not just about the five people on the board or coming to a meeting, but more about forming committees, going after grants and being open to all forms of renewable energy, such as windmills, which she noted another roomful of citizens said they didn’t want. “This will require us all to work together, working together in public, in government and in private partnerships,” DeVito said.  She concluded by saying that she wanted to re-read and study the proposal over the next couple of weeks and would respond further after that.