Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC)
An overview of the ESC program and activities is provided here. For specific information about dates of current programs, consult the calendar on this website.
Membership and Meetings
The Environmental Stewardship Committee has a minimum of seven and up to twelve members appointed by Council for a two-year term with one representative each from Council, and the Planning Commission. However, beyond the appointed members, the Committee welcomes all who share an interest in gardens, trees, streetscapes, preserving the environment, and Village beautification generally, regardless of previous experience. This is a great opportunity to meet other residents and get involved in the community!
Meetings are held on every fourth Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Room on the lower level of the Amberley Village Municipal Building (back entrance). There are generally about eight meetings each year. They are announced on this website. Click here to subscribe to meeting notifications via email.
Current appointed members are:
Susan Cohen
Roger Toennis
Colin Driscoll
Pete Duffy
Kathie Kraemer
Rob Schmuelling
Jim Kelly
Chuck Grossman
Susan Rissover, Planning Commission rep.
Tom Muething, Council rep.
Merrie Stillpass, Chair
Tree City USA
When the Amberley Village ESC was established in 2004, meeting the standards to become a Tree City USA community was a priority and provided a framework for initiating the ESC role in the Village. Since first earning the Tree City USA designation in 2005, Amberley has continuously maintained this status and gone beyond the minimum requirements to earn Growth Awards several times since 2007. On April 23, 2017, Amberley Village received its 13th straight Tree City USA award. The Tree City USA program is sponsored by the National Arbor Day Foundation to encourage and recognize the importance of trees in our communities, through urban and community forestry programs in towns and cities across the country. The ESC and the Village Administration is committed to maintain its status as a Tree City community and will always strive to go the extra steps not for the sake of awards but because it is one of the keys that makes Amberley a great place to live.
For more information, visit arborday.org and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Arbor Day
An annual Arbor Day observance is held in the Village each spring as part of being a Tree City USA. During this event, we celebrate Arbor Day and Earth Day and the program is always focused on providing information to our residents, and a tree is generally planted. A list of trees planted in recent years can be found at
Heritage Tree Program
The Amberley Village Heritage Tree Program promotes the identification and preservation of significant trees in the Village. It’s a way to celebrate the natural beauty we enjoy in Amberley.
A “Heritage Tree” is defined as a tree or stand of trees that, due to age, size, species, quality or historic association, is of landmark importance and whose retention as such will not unreasonably interfere with the use of the property it is located on. The Heritage Tree Program is a voluntary program that focuses only on education and awareness. It does not in any way affect ownership.
Village residents are invited to nominate a tree or stand of trees for designation as a Village of Amberley Heritage Tree (with the permission of the homeowner). Click on the link below to access a nomination form and read more about the program in detail.
Heritage Tree Program Nomination Form
A Ginkgo biloba tree located at the north end of the Village Hall property, near the upper playground, was named as the Village’s first Heritage Tree in the summer of 2010. It was nominated by Ruth Fishman, a resident of Ontario, Canada. As a child, she spent summers in Amberley with her grandparents, Dr. Abraham M. Wigser and Rachel Wigser, whose property at Ridge and Section Roads is now the site of the Amberley Village Municipal Building.
Visiting the Village in 2009, Ruth Fishman of Toronto, Ontario, located the Ginkgo tree, which grew in what was once her grandparents’ front yard. In a letter describing her trip to Amberley Village, Fishman writes, “I jumped out of the car, spotted the Ginkgo tree and walked right up to hug it!” Fishman said the tree was planted around 1935 “when Amberley was farmland” and the Village was “way out of town.”
“This tree stands for a time of wonder and discovery of the outdoors, living the land, and growing food in your own backyard,” she said.
A Green Clearing
A group of ESC volunteers convene last spring through early fall months one evening a month, usually the first Thursday, to tend the trees on the Amberley Green property. The trees, their beauty and contributions to the environment, are an important asset, and the Village budget only provides grass mowing on the property. The group prunes, clears out undergrowth, and removes vines and weeds. The group focuses on the mature trees on the property so that these are hopefully preserved even when the property is developed. No sign-up is required, and all are welcome. Volunteers can also assist with tasks that do not involve physical labor. It’s a great opportunity to meet other residents and enjoy sunsets at Amberley Green. Specific dates are announced on the Village calendar.
Recycling, Waste Management and Composting
The ESC has been focusing on helping Amberley residents handle their waste in an environmentally friendly way. The more residents recycle the Village benefits financially. Education programs on recycling and composting were held in 2015 and 2016. The ESC has hosted an annual recycling event in April each year beginning in 2013. At each of these events, there has been safe paper shredding and electronics recycling. We have also offered the opportunity to recycle used art supplies and fabrics. For details, consult the Amberley Village website early in the calendar year. In addition, the police officer safe disposal of unused medications on a periodic basis. For more information on where to recycle anything, visit http://www.hamiltoncountyrecycles.org and to learn more about composting, click here.
Hamilton County WeThrive! Program
Amberley Village became engaged with Hamilton County Public Health (HCPH) in 2011 as part of the Communities Putting Prevention to Work grant. The ESC has been working with the HCPH since 2015 focusing on the Environmental pathway in the WeThrive! program. This work has been instrumental in creating an action plan that helps to drive the ESC’s work program. For more information and work programs, visit Amberley’s WeThrive! webpage.
The ESC periodically hosts informative lectures on environmental topics for Amberley residents. Past presentations have addressed coyotes and geese in residential areas and biodiversity in backyard gardens. For a full list of past programs, see the ESC Program history below.
Useful Resource Information
The following websites offer helpful information on various topics including plants and trees.