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Environmental Stewardship
Committee Chairs

Gerry Falco

Committee Members

David Mendenhall
Susan Molnar

Marianne Dietrich

Ragnhild Holmquist

Environmental Stewardship
We as God’s people are not the owners of this planet but merely the stewards for future generations. It has become increasingly clear through many scientific studies that the health of our planet is greatly imperiled. The threats of pollution and global warming will undoubtedly have significant and possible irreversible effects on the many generations still to come. We must act today to assure the healthy future of all of God’s creations. The Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) stands ready to guide the Emanuel congregation and the community at large to understand the effects of global warming, pollution and the depletion of the earth’s natural resources. As a member of New York Interfaith Power and Light (NYIPL) we join congregations of all faiths in protecting the sacredness of the earth in our own small way by taking practical steps to make our own church facilities environmentally friendly and energy efficient.
Our solar panel array, completed in June of 2010, is a thing of beauty and synchronicity. Despite occasional days of clouds, rain and snow, the array has proven to be a consistent and copious source of electrical energy year after year. A perfect reflection of our planet’s annual sojourn around the sun. Each year the array produces approximately 27 million watt hours of electricity from the sun’s natural energy while keeping 14 tons of fossil fuel made carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. We essentially have no electric bill so that the money saved can be used in other ministries of our church!
 
 
SOME OLDIES BUT GOODIES...
  •  Run the dishwasher and washing machine with full loads.
  •  Use a ceiling fan instead of an air conditioner, if you use an air conditioner make sure the filter is clean.
  •  Clean that lint trap on your dryer after every load, clothes will dry more quickly, and clean the outside exhaust periodically.
  •  Use the moisture sensor on your clothes dryer, the dryer will automatically shut off when the clothes are dry.
  •  Now that the warm weather is here dry things outside on a clothes line.
Thoughts? Suggestions?

A resolution passed by the ELCA’S New York Metro Synod in May of 2010 asks all congregations to become more energy efficient and reduce their carbon-footprints by 25% to 40% by the year 2020. Our next stage at Emanuel will be to look into the energy usage in our parsonage. The first step in this process will be to conduct an energy audit through NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and Development Administration). This cost-free audit will calculate our present energy usage and make recommendations on how we can improve insulation and make sensible upgrades to energy systems.