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Crying the blues leads to nurturing the green
Crying the blues leads to nurturing the greenBy Joe Gumino
Green means money, but it has taken on a second meaning lately — environmentally friendly.
Time was, the two ideas were mutually exclusive. Not anymore.
I didn’t have to look far to find leaders in this two-fisted movement. They’re evident just traveling down Main Street (Route 55) in Marshall.
The Marshall Fire and Rescue Squad led by co-sponsoring a Commuter Fair with the Rappahannock Rapidan Regional Commission (RRRC) on June 24.
RRRC offers a free commuter ride-matching service (www.rrcommute.org) — helpful leadership to the Marshall community when we’re all singing the $4 gas blues.
Across the street at Owen’s Chevron, owner Jack Owen saw an opportunity to remove eyesores — old tractors and abandoned cars — from fields to sell as scrap. His three-week-old scrap business is not only environmentally green, but also profitably green. He’s making money dealing scrap, a new business clearly leading the way.
Barrel Oak Winery (www.barreloak.com) spent an extra $180,000 to install a geothermal HVAC system — very green.
Hardcore environmental leaders? Not exactly.
Brian and Sharon Roeder’s property is right in the path of the proposed Dominion power line, which got them thinking about their own energy usage. Installing geothermal was not only the right thing to do, but they estimate electricity savings of $3,000 to $5,000 per month — and break even on the investment in less than five years.
That’s a lot of green. Both kinds.
Owner Bill Jackson wanted Tri-County Feed Etc.’s (www.tricountyfeeds.com) new building to be the most environmentally friendly in the equine trade industry. The entrance tells you that “You are about to enter a Green Building.” Making your green customers feel good before they even enter can only help at the cash register.
Marshall IGA promotes locally grown food. That not only helps Fauquier farmers, but also helps local consumers. Along with the Piedmont Environmental Council's “Buy Fresh, Buy Local” campaign (www.buylocalvirginia.org), IGA’s leadership is evident.
Lots of leadership, and all of it on one street in one small corner of Fauquier. And these people and businesses all lead with different objectives, some altruistic, others environmental, but most with the economic incentive of saving money or generating profit — or both.
There’s clearly a leadership vacuum in Washington D.C. on these matters, and Richmond can’t even solve a transportation funding issue despite years of wrangling.
So as a county we have to lead ourselves, hopefully with the entire business community firmly engaged.
Early leaders have emerged. George Fitch’s rather audacious garbage-to-power plan is just the right kind of out-of-the-box leadership we need.
But it doesn’t require a multi-million project to lead in this effort. Everyone in the county has a role.
Whether it's supporting green businesses, hiring a local contractor to help with an insulation project, or encouraging a restaurant to offer a locally grown special, each helps the local economy to prosper.
Who knows? Maybe as suggested in the Times-Democrat's editorial of June 3, Fauquier can realistically re-brands itself as “America’s Green County” — and build a new, vibrant economic foundation in the process.
Gumino is a independent direct-marketing consultant residing in Marshall. joe@fauquiergreen.com
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