Babylon Village has formed a Green Committee, which will be charged with developing programs and policies that will protect the environment, reduce energy and help the Village to work more efficiently.

"This is certainly going to be interesting and I am looking forward to the challenge," said one of the committee members, Richard Rotzman, a former Babylon Village Fire Chief. Other committee members include Bob Carley and Joe Martinez.

"We have been doing a lot of these projects already," explained Babylon Village Mayor Ralph Scordino. "But this is an opportunity for us to look at these issues more broadly, and come up with even more ideas."

Already the Village has taken the lead in Suffolk by placing Smart Sponges in the Village's drainage system, leading to the Great South Bay. These sponges, which were designed by the manufacturer to meet Babylon's specifications, reduce more than 90 percent of the contaminants from rainwater run off. The program is currently being reviewed at the County level for use throughout Suffolk.

Additionally, the Village is in the process of changing all of its fluorescent lighting in Village Hall to more efficient lighting systems that use less energy and provide a whiter light.

In other Village business, the Department of Transportation has notified the Village that it plans to dredge two canals, Araca Road and Pamequa, as part of a ten-year maintenance program. Scordino said he was pleasantly surprised to receive the letter and to note that the state has a program of regular maintenance in place for local canals.

Recently, the County announced that it is moving forward with plans to dredge Fredrick Canal and to look into a more permanent solution, eliminating the trapping of eel grass that builds up and causes severe odors.