Gainesville residents made it clear Monday night that they want cleaner energy.
The Suwannee-St. Johns Sierra Club, a non profit organizational group, hosted its campaign kickoff at 7 p.m. Monday at the Civic Media Center, at 433 Main St. The hour-and-a-half event promoted the “Ready for 100” resolution, which was passed in October, and aims for 100 percent renewable energy in Gainesville by 2045.
Patrick Gilmartin, a 19-year-old UF finance sophomore, debuted his 15-minute film to a room of about 30 on how using renewable energy will help Gainesville. An open discussion followed the movie on topics such as renewable energy, renters’ rights and public transportation. The open discussion was lively and civil with no disagreements.
“This community is precious, and it needs all the help it can get,” Gilmartin said.
People are eager to know how the city plans to conserve energy and deal with the climate crisis, said Gainesville City Commissioner David Arreola. Irreversible changes have already been made to our environment, so it’s vital that people alter the way they deal with energy.
“This is not a debate,” Arreola said. “We’re at the brink and if we don’t do something to turn this around immediately, life as we know it will end.”
The Utility Advisory Board, an advisor to the Gainesville City Commission on utility service policy, was asked by the City Commission to write an energy policy in the next six weeks, said Mary Alford, a chairwoman of the board. It will be a guide for future city commissions to base their decisions on rental efficiency standards, utility bill management and Gainesville Regional Utilities.
“The No. 1 thing we have to do is address conservation,” Alford said. “The policy can’t be written by the UAB or the commission but by the citizens of Gainesville.”
Having UF become free of fossil fuels should be a goal when it comes to being waste free by 2045, said Alyssa Guariniello, a 19-year-old UF environmental engineering sophomore and a member of DivestUF, an environmental organization.
“Climate change is real, it’s happening quickly and we’re running out of time,” Guariniello said. “It’s up to everybody. It’s human responsibility.”
Roberta Gastmeyer, the treasurer for the Sierra Club, said that she felt the video presentation was the highlight of the night and that it generated interest from new people. The turnout exceeded her expectations.
The biggest goal is to get the Alachua County Commission to get on board with the Ready for 100 plan, Gastmeyer said. Their second goal is to work with UF students and faculty to get the university involved with energy provided by Gainesville Regional Utilities in the future.
There are no more events scheduled for the 2019 Clean Energy Campaign as of right now, Gastmeyer said. There will potentially be more events later this year.
“We need to nail down our 2019 goals,” she said. “I’m looking forward to raising more awareness for the Ready 100 plan.”
Gainesville City Commissioner David Arreola speaking about public transportation and energy conservation during the Clean Energy Campaign kickoff event Monday night. Made Spector / Contributing Writer
