Red Bank Council Aims For 100% Renewable Energy Use By 2030

RED BANK, NJ – The Red Bank Borough Council recently adopted an ordinance to transition its residents and businesses to 100 percent renewable electricity sources by 2030.

The ordinance, adopted at an Oct. 14 council meeting, will establish a new municipal energy aggregation program, providing residents with a “bulk buying” discount on their electricity bill. The program will also establish guidelines regarding sources of electricity in hopes of reaching a100 percent renewable energy goal by 2030.

“The cost of providing basic public services such as water treatment and snow removal can increase with climate change,” the ordinance reads. “Resources for first responders can be strained when climate change related extreme weather events arise ... it is less expensive to plan for and mitigate the impacts of climate change, rather than respond to emergencies when they happen”.

Washington D.C.-based nonprofit Food and Water Watch worked alongside the borough council to propagate the ordinance, according to a news release. The organization is currently working in 15 municipalities to enact similar 100 percent renewable energy programs.

The group also helped to establish programs in New Brunswick and Piscataway. Earlier this year, the Edison Township Council, the fifth largest township in the state, adopted a similar ordinance.

According to the release, Red Bank will serve as the lead municipality in the Sustainable Monmouth Alliance once the group is established.

“The Borough is interested that the energy provided by CEA entirely come from renewable energy sources as soon as practicable, and the CEA will therefore include provisions requiring the inclusion of renewable energy in the request for proposals for electric generation services and energy aggregation services,” the ordinance continues.

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