Lake Co. forest board to formalize a green policy

You'd have to be Kermit the Frog to be greener than Lake County Forest Preserve District officials.

The district staff, administration and board have led the way in Lake County when it comes to being earth-friendly. The district has had an employee green committee since 1993, long before being environmentally conscious was in vogue; it prints publications on recycled paper with soy inks; it sells rain barrels to local residents in an effort to recycle water; its even adopted a mosquito management policy that aims to minimize negative ecological impact of pest control.

District officials have never formally organized those strategies, however. But the forest board now plans to rectify that by adopting its first-ever environmental sustainability policy.

The guidelines would allow the forest board to develop a comprehensive plan for future green initiatives.

The forest board's finance committee approved the policy following a brief discussion Thursday. The plan goes to the full board Tuesday, Feb. 10.

The proposed policy is based on a model developed by the Illinois Park and Recreation Association, said Andy Kimmel, the forest district's deputy executive director. It's been modified to address forest-preserve needs and concerns, rather than parks issues, he said.

The three-page document works in broad strokes to cover several green goals, such as purchasing environmentally safe products, conserving energy and educating the public.

"We're being as responsible as possible," Kimmel said.

Specific programs will be developed later as part of those goals, Kimmel said.

Projects won't automatically be approved just because they're environmentally friendly, however, officials said during Thursday's committee discussion. The cost of any green initiative will be weighed against the benefit to the environment.

"There's definitely a judgment factor," said forest commissioner Stevenson Mountsier, a Lake Barrington Republican who leads the finance committee.

More and more government agencies are thinking green these days.

Lake County government, which is separate from the forest district, doesn't have an environmental policy but has a green committee, County Administrator Barry Burton said. It has enacted green strategies through the years, however, such as adding energy-efficient windows and insulation to existing and new buildings.

Tuesday's forest board meeting is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Lake County government center in Waukegan.