OCEAN CITY – An Ocean City committee is seeking respondents to a new environmental survey.
The Ocean City Coastal Resources Legislative Committee, also known as the Green Team, has released a survey for both residents and visitors to gauge the community’s environmental interests, behaviors and needs.
Ocean City Environmental Engineer Gail Blazer, a Green Team member, said information gathered through the community survey will allow the committee to develop a three-year action plan, which will ensure the community’s wants are addressed in the goals that are set.
The survey also helps Ocean City to become recertified by Sustainable Maryland, a state program that helps the town and its members save money, protect the environment and be recognized for its environmentally friendly actions.
“We are required to create a Green Team Action Plan for the Sustainable Maryland application,” she explained. “This plan should consider community input. Thus, the survey. We need to know where we want to focus our effort in for the next three years.”
Blazer noted initiatives such as pollinator gardens were included in the town’s latest action plan. She said the town was now looking to the community to develop new initiatives.
“This survey will help us understand the direction the community would like us to go with environmental initiatives,” she said, “enabling people to be part of developing the focus.”
Since 2011, Sustainable Maryland has supported the state’s 157 municipalities as they look for cost-effective and strategic ways to protect their natural assets and revitalize their communities. Using best practices in areas such as water resources, energy, planning, health, food and economy, municipalities including Ocean City worked to earn points toward sustainability.
In 2016, Ocean City was recognized as one of 14 Sustainable Maryland Certified Award winners for its efforts in developing sustainable programs such as Adopt Your Beach and Adopt Your Street. And since it is a three-year program, the town will need to recertify in 2022.
To that end, the Green Team has established a community survey ahead of the application deadline.
Officials are asking residents and visitors to visit https://arcg.is/0XOCXm and complete the brief Green Team Action Plan Survey. Questions on environmental practices, composting, communications and Green Team focus are among the list of topics.
“I need this data by May 15, so I can put it in our Sustainable Maryland application that is due in June,” Blazer said.
For more information, contact Gail Blazer at [email protected].
