Dorchester County will host a public hearing prior to their September 2007 County Council meeting for CARTA to receive public input regarding interest and support for a Summerville Express Route.

Monday September 17, 6-7 p.m.
Dorchester County Council Chambers, 500 North Main Street, Summerville

Public transportation can help reduce carbon emissions by putting dozens of drivers into one vehicle. If you’re passionate about public transportation’s role in affecting climate change, get out and let the Dorchester County Council hear your voice.

Then today I read in the P&C that Mount Pleasant might raise their annual stormwater fee from $18 to $22. That’s four bucks, big deal. Well Prentiss Findlay thinks this is baaaaaad. S/he cites that half of the increase will go to pay for a full-time staffer to manage the program. Why is having someone paying attention to water pollutants a problem? We live in the middle of a beautiful natural marsh, and we should try to keep it that way.

The federally mandated program asks local municipalities to monitor water quality, map the storm drain system, identify and eliminate pollution, and educate the public about reducing residential pollutants. The town council is calling this a nightmare, and insists the project is just too big in scope. I’m just surprised they weren’t already doing this stuff. This is worth $4 to me – what am I missing here?

Over at No Impact Man, Colin offers a great set of questions you can use to open a dialog with local officials that will help you gauge where they stand on the issue of global climate change:

• Do you support an 80 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050?
• Are you willing to support a moratorium on building coal burning electricity plants to support that goal?
• Do you support a 40 miles per gallon standard for cars in the near future?
• Would you fund alternative energy projects?
• How else do you see our moving toward the 80 percent cut?

So next time you’ve got the attention of a council member, mayor, or congressional representative, fire away. In the mean time, do any of you eco-vets have any good advice for speaking to politicians?

The Go Green candidates faired pretty well, although we didn’t run the table. In District 4, Mike Dawson was reelected and in District 6, our challenger Bob Jackson beat out two-term incumbent Chris Sieber. Unfortunately, our choice in District 2, Diane Frankenberger, lost a close contest to controversial incumbent Ricky Waring. The winner was decided by only 69 votes.

The results are good news for those of us who care about accountability and transparency in government as we retained Mike Dawson and gained Bob Jackson. The people have spoken and progress is being made.

Mike Dawson is one of the few current council members who acts with our best interests in mind, not those of real estate developers. He’s up for reelection in District 4 and deserves to stay. In District 2, Diane Frankenberger is a first-time candidate running against long-time council member and custom homebuilder Ricky Waring. Bob Jackson is another first-time candidate in the mix running against Chris Seiber in District 6. Both Frankenberger and Jackson have displayed a willingness to make Summerville’s town council a more responsible group who acts consistently with the best interests of the community in mind.

Many of the candidates will be on hand tonight, May 2nd, at the Perkins on Trolley Rd to meet voters and answer questions. The meeting starts at 7p.m. So get involved, make a difference and vote! If you plan to vote, you must be a registered voter living in a district that is contested in this election and you must bring proof of residency. Also, each district has a different polling place, which is not your normal voting spot so make sure you know where to vote before heading out on May 8th. Here’s a current list of council members along with contact information. I’m sure you can contact any of them for further information about where to vote in your district. This is important to the future of Summerville… spread the word!

Here are the members of the committee:

Phillip Dustan, College of Charleston biology professor; Ross Nelson, Tidewater Environmental Services; Brian Collins, Sandlapper Water Tours; Jerome Clemons, South Carolina National Heritage Corridor; Elizabeth Hagood, South Carolina Coastal Conservation League; Christine von Kolonitz, sustainability manager, MUSC and Sierra Club; Ian Sanchez, alternative energy meet-up group; Joe Fersner, Woolpert; Paulette Myers, Thomas & Denzinger Architects; Nina Fair, Fair Consulting LLC; Stephen Johnston, Charleston Classic Homes, Earthcraft Homes; Dean Johnson, Eco Development LLC; Montez Martin, Charleston County Housing Authority; and Dick Della Mura, past director, Center for Sustainable Living.

If you know any of them, or are a patron of any of their businesses and organizations, please tell them that you support what they are doing, and ask what you can do to help. We need everyone in the Charleston-area to work together on this!