Contact: Elenor Hodges, Executive Director
Telephone: (703) 228-6427
E-mail: elenor@arlingtonenvironment.org

Arlington residents Allen Muchnick and Michael Murtha discuss transportation issues with ACE board chair Miles Grant

Arlington, Va., March 30, 2006 On Sunday, March 19, Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment (ACE) held a town hall meeting, “Taking Action to Protect Arlington’s Environment” with discussions on sprawl; clean air and water; walking and biking; and green purchasing. At the event, ACE presented results of a survey of residents on their concerns with Arlington conservation issues.

The survey was completed by close to 200 residents. Some of the results include:

• 69.9% believe Arlington is living up to its reputation as a walkable city but 54.5% believe Arlington could become more walkable by repairing/expanding existing sidewalks.
• 52.8% believe Arlington should encourage building in already developed areas and discourage paving new areas.
• 41.3% like to buy green products but aren’t satisfied with Arlington businesses’ selection.
• In areas that are being considered for redevelopment, 55.6% support mixed use development and 23.0% support expanding Metro rail.

Full survey results are available at www.arlingtonenvironment.org.

“The survey really demonstrated the importance Arlingtonians place on protecting the environment,” said Miles Grant, ACE Board chair. “Some of the results surprised us a bit. For example, more than a third of the respondents would back a ban on new development in existing open space, hoping to protect our land, water, and air.”

ACE will present a report on the survey results to the Arlington County Board. They are also planning on developing new programs to address some of the issues raised in the survey.

ACE is a non-profit educational and service organization serving the residents of Arlington and funded primarily by the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services. For more information about ACE please call 703-228-6427, check the website at www.arlingtonenvironment.org, or e-mail ACE at office@arlingtonenvironment.org.