July 24, 2008

Raindrops Keep Falling in My Tank

MY rainwater collection tour started one morning last week with a cup plant, Silphium perfoliatum, in Lenny Librizzi's front garden on Staten Island. This prairie plant's daisy-like flowers bloomed way over our heads, and its oval leaves joined at the stem like big hands, cupping about half an inch of the rain that had fallen the night before.

"The insects and birds know they can go there for water," said Mr. Librizzi, who is a bit obsessed with this precious resource.

As assistant director of the open space greening programs at the Council on the Environment of New York City, he designs rainwater harvesting systems for community gardens. He and Lars Chellberg, who also works for the council, started building them in 2002, after the severe drought the year before.

This summer, while much of the Southeast, Texas and areas across the country are suffering from drought, the Northeast is enjoying regular rains. You won't save a lot of money harvesting rainwater - as Mr. Librizzi said: "city water is dirt cheap; you pay about a penny a gallon" - but you'll save water.

"My tank has probably been emptied and filled three or four times since I put it in this spring," Mr. Librizzi said. "That's 600 gallons that's not going into the sewer," he added, and it saves the water in the reservoirs for drinking, which is important because "only 3 percent of the world's water is fresh water."

Read more here > 

July 13, 2008

In Search of Better (and Greener) Building Blocks

IN 1999, fresh out of architecture graduate school, Blaine Brownell was put in charge of researching materials for a high-profile renovation of Jones Plaza in Houston's theater district. He quickly became frustrated with the lack of information about new materials and the scant knowledge that some design and building professionals had about anything beyond the conventional bricks, mortar and steel of their trade.

Thus began what he calls "a very humble project" to collect and share information on innovative new materials.

Today, Mr. Brownell's Web site, transmaterial.net, has become a clearinghouse of sorts for information on the latest innovations. He has cataloged more than 1,000 products on the site as well as in a companion book, "Transmaterial," the second volume of which was published this year by Princeton Architectural Press. More than 3,000 people have signed up for his "product of the week" e-mail message, which spotlights materials like smog-eating concrete.

Read more here >  

 

July 10, 2008

Cutting Out the Middlemen, Shoppers Buy Slices of Farms

In an environmentally conscious tweak on the typical way of getting food to the table, growing numbers of people are skipping out on grocery stores and even farmers markets and instead going right to the source by buying shares of farms.

On one of the farms, here about 35 miles west of Chicago, Steve Trisko was weeding beets the other day and cutting back a shade tree so baby tomatoes could get sunlight. Mr. Trisko is a retired computer consultant who owns shares in the four-acre Erehwon Farm.

"We decided that it's in our interest to have a small farm succeed, and have them be able to have a sustainable farm producing good food," Mr. Trisko said.

Part of a loose but growing network mostly mobilized on the Internet, Erehwon is participating in what is known as community-supported agriculture. About 150 people have bought shares in Erehwon - in essence, hiring personal farmers and turning the old notion of sharecropping on its head.

Read more here > 

 

July 1, 2008

Milk jug gets a makeover for carbon savings

Wal-Mart and Costco have adopted a version of the one-gallon milk jug designed with efficiency in mind. The boxier containers stack better, eliminating the need for milk crates and conserving space in trucks and on refrigerated store shelves.

The company estimates this kind of shipping has cut labor by half and water use by 60 to 70 percent. More gallons fit on a truck and in Sam's Club coolers, and no empty crates need to be picked up, reducing trips to each Sam's Club store to two a week, from five - a big fuel savings. Also, Sam's Club can now store 224 gallons of milk in its coolers, in the same space that used to hold 80.

The new jugs probably reduce the environmental impact of milk in other important ways. Greater efficiency means less spoilage, which will help to shave down the large carbon footprint associated with dairy farming. Further, the "cold supply chain" is notoriously responsible for leaked refrigerants, which are powerful global warming agents. In addition to reduced energy use, less refrigeration means fewer such pollutants.

Read more here >

June 26, 2008

Michael Pollan on What's Wrong with Environmentalism

In an interview with Yale Environment 360, best-selling author Michael Pollan talks about biofuels and the food crisis, the glories of grass-fed beef, and why environmentalists must look beyond wilderness to sustainability.

It's easy to think of Michael Pollan as a food writer. After all, his most successful books - including his most recent, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto - focus on food and the implications of the choices we make about what we eat. But Pollan's work also delves deeply into the environmental effects of those choices - from the impact of America's corn-based agriculture on its ecosystems to the carbon impact of industrial-scale farming. And Pollan, who serves as Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at the University of California at Berkeley, has emerged as a staunch advocate of buying local food, growing one's own produce, and generally making the kind of individual lifestyle choices that could lead to society-wide change in consumption habits.

San Francisco-based journalist Kate Cheney Davidson recently interviewed Pollan for Yale Environment 360 at his home in Berkeley, California. In a wide-ranging discussion, Pollan talked about the need to cut back U.S. ethanol subsidies, why victory gardens worked, and why environmentalism needs to shift its focus from preserving wilderness to creating sustainability.

Read more here > 

June 24, 2008

Is Your City Going to Be Bottled Water-Free?

It started with San Francisco's Mayor Gavin Newsom, but now the rest of the country is getting on board. Last summer Newsom issued an executive order canceling San Francisco's bottled water contracts. Now, at the U.S. Conference of Mayors, which represents more than 1,100 mayors nationwide, a resolution was passed to encourage all mayors to phase out their cities' spending on bottled water and to promote tap water.

"Cities are sending the wrong message about the quality of public water when we spend taxpayer dollars on water in disposable containers from a private corporation," said Newsom. "Our public water systems are among the best in the world and demand significant and ongoing investment."

The resolution was spurred by not just Newsom, but the more than 60 other mayors who have been canceling bottled water contracts to help their cities save money and protect the environment. The most recent to join the tide were San Jose, Miami and Orlando. But the resolution is supported by other major cities like Philadelphia, New York, Chicago and Boston.

Read more here >

June 20, 2008

Plug-In Cars

California utility company Pacific Gas and Electric is investing billions of dollars in infrastructure to support plug-in electric cars, which are expected to be available in 2010. Jill Egbert is manager of PG&E's clean air transportation program and talks with Living on Earth host Bruce Gellerman.

Listen to the interview here> 

June 18, 2008

Rain gardens capture storm water, clean it up

It's a bit odd that "green" roofs have become popular here sooner than rain gardens. A green roof certainly does a lot to compensate for the footprint of a building in terms of microclimate heat, maybe habitat loss and certainly rain runoff - the last of which carries with it the prospects of overtaxed sewage systems, flooding, erosion and the pollution of streams and the bay.

Look at those admonishments stenciled over storm drains for clues: Runoff from paving and other hard surfaces carries particulates and pesticides, petroleum and fertilizers, and other nasties into the water in small bits that accumulate to toxic levels.

Roof gardens require attention to engineering, weight, leakage potential and access for maintenance. Hauling the lawn mower up the chimney is the stuff of sitcoms, but even the toughest plants need attention unless you decide to cultivate a garden of weeds and whatever else chance might deliver. It's fun until chance delivers an acacia and its roots creep up on you with ill intent.

Rain gardens are easier. A rain garden is a planting designed to soften the destructive force of rainstorm water and reduce runoff by slowing it enough to allow more to soak into the ground. It might use plants, swales (shallow channels), rocks of various sizes, and/or temporary ponds to do this. Depending on the plants used, it might or might not need irrigation in the dry season.

Read more here > 

June 8, 2008

In Toronto, cyclists form a first-of-its-kind union

Believed to be the first of its kind, the Toronto Cyclists Union plans to offer insurance, roadside assistance, advocacy, and even an online dating service

Kathy Marks cocks her head, listening for the din of a thousand bicycle bells. For the Toronto grandmother, it's a cue to hop on her three-speed bicycle and join a riding protest for more bike lanes in Canada's largest city.

But after several years of participating in this annual demonstration, she's considering joining a new group of rabble-rousers to show her dissatisfaction with cycling conditions here: the Toronto Cyclists Union.

"I've been riding my bike for nearly 40 years in the city, and it's high time we have something like a union," Ms. Marks explained last weekend. "I don't fly around like the youngsters. But if we were able to have better bike lanes and benefits like a union, you'd see more people out here who are my age."

Believed to be a global first, the union already has enrolled hundreds of card-carrying members since it formed in May. Modeled on auto programs like AAA, the union plans to offer members insurance, roadside assistance, and advocacy on their behalf - all for a $24 annual fee.

Read more here > 

May 29, 2008

Workers shifting to 4-day week to save gasoline

When Ohio's Kent State University offered custodial staff the option of working four days a week instead of five to cut commuting costs, most jumped at the chance, part of a U.S. trend aimed at combating soaring gasoline prices.

"We offered it to 94 employees and 78 have taken us up on it," said university spokesman Scott Rainone.

The reason is simple: rising gas prices and a desire to retain good workers. And while so far only the university's custodians are eligible, Rainone hopes the option will be offered to all departments -- including his own.

"In our office, we have people who travel anywhere from five or six miles to a couple who are on the road 45 to 50 minutes," Rainone said. "As the price of gas rises, the level of grumbling rises."

Regular gasoline averages $3.94 a gallon in the United States, up 33 cents in the past month and 88 cents since the beginning of the year, the Energy Information Administration said this week.

Read more here >  

May 20, 2008

San Francisco Flimsy Bags Out at Big Drug Stores

Walgreens and Rite Aid stores may no longer hand out those ubiquitous flimsy plastic bags to customers in San Francisco as a groundbreaking city law banning plastic sacks at some major retailers expands today to include chain pharmacies.

The new restrictions come six months after the ordinance banning plastic bags at large supermarkets went into effect, a law hailed by city leaders and environmentalists. Other cities - as close as Oakland and as far away as Paris - have passed bans of their own since then, and industry-friendly China will bar stores from handing out free plastic bags come June 1. Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who sponsored the ordinance, has even garnered a bit of celebrity for his work on the issue, including a recent spread in People Magazine.

Mirkarimi and officials at the Department of the Environment, the city agency charged with enforcing the ban, say the ordinance has been such a success that they are fielding inquiries on a daily basis from other cities considering similar laws.

"I have rarely seen an idea that has traveled with such velocity throughout the country and abroad," said Mirkarimi, who admits surprise at its popularity. "I am hearing from cities in red states as much as blue states. It's very exciting. It transcends partisanship and borders."

Read more here > 

May 15, 2008

As food prices shoot up, so do backyard gardens

With gasoline prices soaring and food costs not far behind, the number of Americans planning to grow their own backyard vegetables this year is up sharply.

Gardening organizations, seed wholesalers, and local nurseries are all reporting hikes in the number of people buying vegetable seeds and starter plants.

It's a trend that started slowly several years ago, spurred by concerns about food safety, food quality, and global warming, say garden mavens. But this year's gasoline and food price spikes have had what could be called a "Miracle-Gro" effect on the backyard garden movement. This year, 39 percent of people with backyards told the Garden Writers Association they planned to grow vegetables this year. That's up 5 percent from last year, after remaining relatively stable with only small increases for much of the past decade.

Read more here > 

May 10, 2008

Gas Prices Send Surge of Riders to Mass Transit

With the price of gas approaching $4 a gallon, more commuters are abandoning their cars and taking the train or bus instead.  Mass transit systems around the country are seeing standing-room-only crowds on bus lines where seats were once easy to come by. Parking lots at many bus and light rail stations are suddenly overflowing, with commuters in some towns risking a ticket or tow by parking on nearby grassy areas and in vacant lots.

"In almost every transit system I talk to, we're seeing very high rates of growth the last few months," said William W. Millar, president of the American Public Transportation Association.

"It's very clear that a significant portion of the increase in transit use is directly caused by people who are looking for alternatives to paying $3.50 a gallon for gas."

Read more here > 

May 1, 2008

It’s the meat not the miles

Buying local certainly reduces the miles food goes before we eat. But consumers aiming to shrink their ecological footprint will get more bang for their environmental buck by eating less red meat and dairy, reports a new study. The analysis finds that transporting food to the consumer accounts for only 4 percent of food-associated greenhouse gas emissions, while production contributes a hefty 83 percent.

"There are many good reasons for going local," comments Rich Pirog, associate director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University in Ames. "But this study is important. Food miles alone are not a reliable indicator of environmental impact."

Read more here >