Tuesday, June 08, 2010

NY State Go Green program seeking to change an industry?

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is announcing a “Be Green Organic Yards NY” program that will reward businesses that do not use synthetic pesticide and other materials prohibited by organic conditions in an agreement that the DEC is crafting.

The reward?

It’s the right to use the “Be Green” service mark and to be listed as a green service provider on its website. The thinking is that consumers will access the website and hire lawn care or landscape service providers who agree to use products allowed by the program.

The program was just announced and it looks like the DEC has a lot of work to do before it is ready for launch, although apparently it intends to begin offering training for the program this fall.

There’s something about a state agency promoting a program whose aim is to bend an industry, in this case the lawn care industry, to its particular mindset that I find disturbing. It looks to me like bureaucrats looking for something else to meddle with.

But I’m not in the lawn care business in New York, and nobody from any government agency ever calls seeking my opinion, so I’ll leave it up to each and every one of you to decide for yourself if this Go Green program is a good idea.

Check out the details of the program on the DEC website by clicking here and shout out what you think. — Ron Hall

1 comment:

Jesse Cash said...

The green movement is unstoppable. It is the way of the future. The faster we all get on board the better we will all be. I truly believe that a great way to build the green movement is to recognize those who are leading the way.
Best Wishes