Hattiesburg officials are looking to make the Hub City a little greener – and improve the standard of living for residents – with the addition of a new Sustainability Commission headed up by Nkrumah Frazier, the city’s Sustainability Officer.
The main priority of the commission, which was established last week through a 5-0 vote by Hattiesburg City Council members, will be to advise Mayor Toby Barker and council members on sustainable best practices for endeavors such as alternative energy, community education, recycling and waste management, water resources and transportation and mobility. To aid in that task, the commission will develop a Sustainability Action Plan with recommendations for those strategies that are consistent with local, state and federal guidelines and regulations.
“We’ve been active in trying to identify areas that the city can work on to kind of be a little more sustainable, if you will,” Frazier said. “That’s things like alternative transportation, or maybe the introduction of some more solar (initiatives) in the city.
“We’d like to work on being more energy-efficient, and we’re looking at how to increase the number of charging stations in the area to hopefully affect more electric and hybrid vehicles. So it’s things of that nature.”
The Sustainability Commission, which will hold public meetings and presentations at least once every three months, will be made up of seven members. Each member must be a resident of Hattiesburg and have a passion for improving the city’s environmental footprint.
Four members of the commission will serve terms that expire June 30, 2021, while three members will serve terms that expire June 30, 2022. All members, who will serve without pay, will be appointed by Barker and ratified by council members.
“We have altered our focus for now to include finding the right individuals to fill those seven positions,” Frazier said. “There will likely be sub-committees within the commission to focus on certain things, like maybe a sub-committee on alternative transportation or a sub-committee on energy efficiency.
“None of that’s been decided as of yet, but that’s just the way I foresee the commission eventually being set up.”
The city previously had a three-year contract with Waste Pro USA for a curbside recycling program, in which small blue totes were used for recycling. That contract was not renewed after officials found the program was costing the city too much money, which eventually led to the idea of forming the new Sustainability Commission.
“I am completely ecstatic that we’ve taken this step,” Frazier said. “Honestly, how effective or helpful this will be for the city really depends on the individuals that we have (on the commission).
“In my opinion, we want to set some rather lofty goals, but at the same time, those goals need to be something that we can actually achieve or obtain. I don’t want to set the bar so high that we’ll never get there, but we do want to set some lofty goals and try to ensure that Hattiesburg has a very sustainable future.”
