Green Fair to Have Circus Act, Reptile Display

The  Chatham Borough Environmental Commission ironed out some of the details for the Third Annual Green Fair at their Wednesday night meeting.

The fair begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday at the borough gazebo and will be a venue for environmental education. Over thirty organizations, vendors and exhibitors contributing, including Whole Foods, Girl Scout Troops, Stanley Congregational Church and Tupperware.

"Its about bringing education and awareness to the community," said Commission chair Lee Byrd.

The commission will distribute literature on environmental education, and education will also come in the form of entertainment. The Grand Falloons will perform their Earth Science circus act from 11 to 11:45 a.m. and again from 1 to 1:45 p.m. The Grand Falloons honed their skills with over twenty years of experience in a New York based circus, but have incorporated K-6 Earth Science curriculum standards into the act. They have performed hundreds of shows in the past few years.

Rizzo's Reptiles will also put on an exhibition in the morning from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Children and adults can see different types of snakes, lizards, and reptiles, and learn more about the natural world. The Chatham Community Band will play at noon. Drew University will also be present to promote their Environmental Studies and Sustainability program.

"This is an opportunity for people to learn about environmental issues…for some people it's new. Just look at the community gardens," said commission member Dick Plambeck.

Commissioners also discussed their goal of getting Chatham certified through Sustainable Jersey. For a community to be certified, they must meet certain criteria with regard to sustainability, and if given certification there are tangible benefits, such as tools to help communities make progress and grants. The Planning Board last week approved an amendment to the Borough's Master Plan and the Environmental Resource Inventory Update, but they stipulated that many typos and factual errors needed correcting before the documents were submitted. Applications for Sustainable Jersey certification are due Sept. 15.

The next Chatham Borough Environmental Commission meeting will be held on Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. on the second floor of the Chatham Borough Town Hall.