Lestini discusses Freeholder Gibbs recent efforts to get the county recycling.
I would like to ask Freeholder Kate Gibbs to please stop using her public office for self-promotion. While I have seen many examples of late, as a voter who is concerned about environmental issues, I found her most recent public relations campaign on recycling to be particularly inappropriate. Undoubtedly proper recycling is one important part of an overall conservation strategy.
However, in her brief time as director, Gibbs has shown herself to be no friend of the environment. She rubber-stamped the re-appointment of Sean Earlen, chief architect of the Pinelands Commission’s unnecessary and damaging approval of the SRL pipeline. Her 2018 budget cut revenues for open space and farmland preservation by almost $7 million.
She has made no meaningful efforts to grow Burlington County’s clean energy economy, create green jobs, or electrify the County vehicle fleet. To now put herself forward as the “face” of Burlington County recycling is shameless exploitation.
If she is a serious environmental defender and leader, why did she not advocate for a PR campaign that highlights the many hard-working county employees who actually administer our recycling program? Unfortunately, the answer is simple. It’s an election year for Ms. Gibbs, and so any opportunity for some free press is a good one.
As for the media editors who feel justified in running such thinly masked political ads during an election cycle — including my own Moorestown Sun which ran a front-page, full-color feature on Gibbs — all I can say is: you should know better.
Brian Lestini
