WHITE LAKE, NY — The Town of Bethel will host an environmental open house forum on Sunday, June 15 at the Duggan School gym from noon to 3 p.m. Residents and businesses can learn how to save energy and money, and reduce the community’s greenhouse gas emissions and climate footprint.

The theme is “Each of us can make a difference. Working together, we will make a huge difference.”

The open house is open to all residents, not just those from Bethel.

Homes and cars make up 77 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions from Bethel, based on the town’s greenhouse gas emissions inventory. Additionally, residents consistently identify water quality issues as critical to their interests. 

The open house forum will concentrate on helping residents: 

• improve the heating and cooling systems in their homes and businesses; 
• learn about electric and hybrid vehicles; 
• learn about community solar;
• provide landscaping pointers for native plants, and explain how to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers;
• provide information on how to maintain private septic tanks;
• learn how to improve the quality of surface water and groundwater;
• participate in composting; and more.

Sustainable Bethel, a town board-appointed committee, is sponsoring the event. A press release noted that through its efforts, Sustainable Bethel has significantly reduced the town government’s greenhouse gas emissions and recently secured $150,000 of NYSERDA grant funding for heating and cooling systems for its new highway barn, an electric riding mower and other battery-powered landscaping equipment.

Bethel is a twice-certified Bronze Level community in the NYS Climate Smart Community program.

For more information, visit www.townofbethelny.us/sustainable-bethel.