Expo aims to make it easy to be green

Advocates of environmentally safe practices are ready to bring green living front and center at the Shelter Island Green Options Advisory Committee’s Sixth Annual Green Expo.

The event will coincide with the Fire Department’s Annual Country Fair on Saturday, August 22, and run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Green Options Chairman Tim Purtell hopes to attract attention to protect the Island from the ravages of pollutants he says threaten the Island’s future.

For Mr. Purtell and the members of the committee, it’s not simply a once a year focus. Members are involved in many activities aimed at decreasing the use of pesticides, protecting water resources, eliminating invasive plant species and taking action that can be restorative to the environment.

Weather permitting, this year’s Green Expo will be on the lawn outside the American Legion Post.

EXHIBITORS
This year’s Expo will feature representatives from three solar power companies — Level Solar, Green Logic Energy and Solar Universe — to spur more people to install panels on their houses and businesses.

The Perfect Earth Project will offer solutions to create a toxin-free lawn. The organization encourages the use of products and practices that don’t create health problems for people and pets. It provides education for landscapers and homeowners on how to achieve green lawns in an environmentally safe way at no additional cost or bother.

The Long Island Native Plant Initiative will be educating people about plants to use in place of invasive species. Seedlings and plants will be on sale during the Expo. The all-volunteer cooperative of more than 30 nonprofit organizations, governmental agencies, nursery professionals and area residents works, it says “to protect the genetic integrity and heritage of Long Island native plant populations … by establishing commercial sources of genetically appropriate local plant materials for use in nursery, landscaping and habitat restoration activities.”

Since 1993, when the Peconic Estuary became the 20th in the nation to receive the designation as an “Estuary of National Significance” by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Peconic Estuary Program has been working to develop a comprehensive management plan to protect waterways from pollution.

“Estuaries are the most productive ecosystems on earth, containing more life per square inch than the lushest rainforest canopy,” according to the organization’s website.

But despite its efforts, there have been incidents of brown tides and pollutants threatening once pristine waterways.

Peconic Estuary Program representatives want people to learn what they can do to improve the health of waterways.

Friends of Trees, volunteers who plant new trees around the Island, will be part of the Expo along with Vine Busters, volunteers who clear invasives so natural plants can thrive.

Vine Busters is spreading the word that the Japanese Barberry bushes promoted as a means of protecting growth from deer damage are not a good alternative. According to Mr. Purtell, they are dense and create high temperatures that serve as an incubator for ticks.

The Group for the East End volunteers dub themselves “watchdogs” protecting water quality and working toward “sensible community planning.” The group last year provided a $4,000 grant for a summer intern on the Island to map aged septic systems, which are a threat to wells and waterways.

One of the most popular returning people and organizations this year will be Sarah Shepherd from the Hippy Hive HoneyBee Cooperative. She will be selling jars of honey again this weekend as well as distributing information about the importance of bees to the environment.

Mashomack Preserve representatives will be on site to promote the many nature-based programs it offers on its nearly 2,100 acres of land. So, too, will representatives of Sylvester Manor Educational Farm to speak about the wide ranging activities there, including its farmstand-related efforts and animal husbandry.

Don D’Amato, a member of the Green Options Advisory Committee, will be promoting the Great Peconic Race. The “Paddle for Ted” event slated for September 20 and named for Ted Baldwin, who was an advocate of keeping waterways clean, is paddleboard race circumnavigating Shelter Island for recreational and professional athletes.

Proceeds benefit the Peconic Baykeeper organization.

Look for John Hallman of John’s Gas Service promoting on-demand water heaters; members of the town’s Water Advisory Committee providing information on methods to protect the Island’s fragile aquifer; the Shelter Island Recycling Center promoting proper methods of recycling materials to benefit the environment; Turtle

Rescue of the Hamptons; and the Green Options Advisory Committee, promoting reusable instead of plastic bags for shopping.

Green Advisory Committee members will also explain how to create pollination gardens, vital to the ecology of the Island. They attract bees and butterflies, important to ongoing pollination, Mr. Purtell said.

“It’s going to be a pretty nice group of exhibitors this year,” he added.