CT Green Scene

April 27 Summit on Creating Bike-Friendly, Walk-Friendly Places

April 27th

9:00 AM-2:30 PM

Yale, Linsley, Chittenden Hall

New Haven, CT

Registration Required

Summit participants will hear from Bill Nesper, Vice President, League of American Bicyclists, about the Bike Friendly America program and from Keynote Speaker Jeff Olson, Principal, Alta Planning & Design, author "The Third Mode: Towards a Green Society."

 The summit will include breakout sessions on "Attacking the Application Process for Bike Friendly Communities, Businesses and Universities;" "Complete Streets Engineering - A Key Component to Bike and Walk Friendly Communities;" and "How to Get Your Project Funded."  The program will conclude with optional bike or walk tours of New Haven courtesy of Elm City Cycling, followed by a networking and social hour at O'Toole's.  Copies of The Third Mode will be available for purchase at the conference. Attendees who join Bike Walk CT will be awarded $10 off of their individual registration, registration ends April 15th.

Members, Full-time Students & Yale Employees:

Early BIrd, until April 15: $25

General Registration: $30  

Non-Members:

Early Bird:  $35

General Registraion: $45 

*Continental breakfast and lunch included.

Register Here: https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?llr=5vvygggab&oeidk=a07e74qzm1z79b79281

For More Information: http://www.bikewalkct.org/summit-2013.html

Re:Create CT Thursday, May 4th

4 May 2013

10:00 AM-4:00 PM

Elizabeth Park

West Hartford, CT

Free And Open to the Public!

The CT Holistic Chamber of Commerce presents Re:Create CT; an up-cycle, and green living event that will take place on Saturday May 4th, from 10am-4pm in Elizabeth Park, West Hartford. It will be the destination event of the year for like-minded people, both business and consumers whose commitment and purpose is to foster a healthier community. Free to the public. It’s evident that this “going green” trend is on the rise and Connecticut seems to be taking notice. But with so many businesses and practitioners are offering alternative methods to health and wellness, they still struggle with accessibility to the masses. The CT Holistic Chamber of Commerce has created this event with a mission to change all that. Re:Create CT will have three distinct elements, all tied together by the “green” theme. An artisan marketplace will provide a fun and unique shopping experience with artists who specialize in up-cycling, re-purposing, and using eco-friendly materials. Think about those old vinyl records you have in the basement… ever think about turning them into party bowls? ........ The Opportunities are endless!!

 

April 2, 2013 NERC Textile Recovery Workshop

2 April 2013

8:30 AM-4:30 PM

Registration Fee Depends on Status

Nathan Hale Inn & Conference Center

Storrs, CT

    The Northeast Recylcing Council is hosting Collecting Textiles: Make it Work for Your Community at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, CT. This event will offer municipalities, recycling coordinators, schools, colleges, universities, and civic groups an opportunity to learn key information about key players in the textile reuse and recycling industry. The even will also include practical information on how community leaders can set up textile reuse/recycling programs that can work for them. For a full schedule of the day, feel free to check out the agenda here.

*Registration Ends March 19, 2013: So Register Now

Registration

NERC Member (Board or Advisory Member): $285

Non-Member: $385

Students, Nonprofits, Municipal Employees: $100

For More Information: http://www.nerc.org/ 

To Register: http://www.nerc.org/registration/indexSpg13.php

 

Save the Date! Riverfront Earth Day

                                                                             SAVE THE DATE!
Sunday, April 21st 2013
                                                                         1:00pm - 4:00p
Mortensen Riverfront Plaza, Hartford CT

This event will bring together families and communities from all over central Connecticut who are looking for answers on how to reduce their own carbon footprint.  It will be THE Earth Day event in downtown Hartford. Come enjoy speakers, vendors, non-profit environmental groups, along with street and folk artists.  We anticipate the participation of local schools from elementary to college.  It will be a fun, inspiring, and informational day for the whole family!

CT NOFA's 31st Annual Winter Conference

2 March 2013

8:30 AM-5:00 PM

Registration Fee Depends on Status

Wilton High School

Wilton, CT

Join the Connecticut Northeast Organic Farming Association as they celebrate 31 years of growing better together! There will be over fifty vendors providing fresh local food, crafts, and books as well as a raffle that includes offerings such as a basket of gardening supplies. Lunch will be Included for an extra fee, but it is worth the price. During the lunch break, attendees have the opportunity to taste delicious local flavors concocted by chefs involved in Fairfield County's farm-to-restaurant program. The New Connecticut Farming alliance will also meet during this time to discuss news and share information. 

    Guests may select from a wide variety of workshops to attend. There is no need to register for your desired workshop, you may simply show up at the allotted classroom. A program will be handed out to you upon registration that looks exactly like the link provided above. Parents and families are welcome to participate in children's workshops as well. There will also be a screenings of the GMO documentary "Genetic Roulette" throughout the afternoon, where Elaine Titus of GMO Free CT and GMO Free Moms will be available to answer any questions. 

Schedule for the Day                                                               Registration Fees

8:30-9:30 : Registration (pre-register at this link)                  Non-Member:      $60
9:30-10:45: Workshop I                                                          Member:           $50
11:00-12:30: Opening announcements and Keynote               Student/Senior:    $35
12:30-2:00: Lunch                                                                  Children:           FREE
2:15: 3:30: Workshop II                                                      *Lunch is optional: an extra $15 for adults
3:45 to 5:00 ~ Workshop II                                                  and $8 for children

2013 Conference Program: http://www.ctnofa.org/winterconference/2013%20WC%20programOPT.pdf

Register at: http://www.ctnofa.org/winterconference/2013WC_registration.html

If you forget to register for lunch: http://www.ctnofa.org/winterconference/winterconference_lunch_registration.html

For more Information: http://www.ctnofa.org/winterconference/index.html

6th Annual Global Environmental Sustainability Symposium: Transportation, Human Mobility, and Sustainability at CCSU

April 4th, 2013

9:45 AM-7:15 PM 

FREE, Registration Required

Central Connecticut State University

New Britain, Connecticut

The CCSU Global Environmental Sustainability Action Coalition invites the public to learn and to teach one another about the actions that we, as human beings, must take to ensure that we live in such a way that we are able to satisfy our needs while ensuring that our children and grandchildren will be able to satisfy their own. The symposium will offer 3 classes, two performances, a panel discussion, a tour, and an optional attendance at the town meeting, as well as opening and closing notes from distinguished professionals in sustainability. This event is FREE: anyone can register online to show up. *Exhibitor tables are still open.

Schedule

9:45-10:00 AM: Symposium opening and welcome with Dr. Charles Button and Dr. Jack Miller (tentative) at Alumni Hall

10:00-10:45: Transportation, Migration, and Sustainability in Four Worlds Alumni Hall

Dr. John Kelmelis expands upon a possibility raised by the United States National Intelligence Council when they published Global Trends 2030: Alternative World. This work explores four very possible future worlds. Dr. Kelmelis will explain what each of these worlds might mean for our future as well as what strategies we might use to make the most of each circumstance at the local, regional, national, and global levels. 

11:00-11:45: Panel Discussion: Electric Cars and Alternative Vehicles Alumni Hall

The president of the New England Electric Auto Association (Dave Oliveria), an environmental writer and speaker (Jim Motavalli), the Senior Associates Autos Editor for Consumer Reports (Eric Evarts), and a natural gas car owner (Joe Booth) all come together in one place to talk about the real value that hybrid, extended hybrid, and electric vehicles hold. This is a special opportunity to discover what users and reviewers genuinely think about these alternative vehicles.

12:00-1:45 (*with second free registration): Water Wars Performance and Lunch Alumni Hall

While you enjoy your lunch, the Sonia Plumb Dance Company will be performing Water Wars. This is an emotionally charged piece of art that exposes the very important and very tenuous relationship that human beings have with one of our primary sources of life: water.

Climate Summer

by Eileen Weber

A little over a week ago, five college-aged bikers whisked through New Haven. Why, you ask? They’ve been on a more than 900-mile journey as a statement of solidarity against the burning of fossil fuels, of course.

In a day and age in which the tangible signs of environmental damage—from climate change to air pollution and everything in between—the danger of fossil fuels is all too real. And these students are trying to make that point on two wheels instead of four with an exhaust pipe.

Some of the riders are from the Northeast region; some are from as far away as Singapore. But like any self-respecting environmentalist, they are all united on the concept that we must change the way we live in order to preserve our planet for future generations.

“Instead of being dependent on fossil fuels, we should be dependent on each other and rely on renewable resources,” said team member Tara Escudero in a recent press release.

Fairfield Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Interactive Public Forum

Thursday, April 14th
6:30 p.m.
Informal Reception
7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Presentations and Break-out Sessions
 
Osborn Hill School
760 Stillson Road, Fairfield
 
Featured Speakers
Ken Flatto, First Selectman
Kirstin Etela, Fairfield Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
Chris Lyddy, Deputy Chief of Police
Joe Devonshuk, Director of Planning & Zoning
Bill Hurley, Town Engineer
Sarah Levy, Public Health Educator
Mark Nielsen, Greater Bridgeport Regional Planning Agency
 
Learn about:
The 2010 Fairfield Bicycle/Pedestrian Survey
Fairfield’s sidewalk inventory and accident data
Bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure
 
Help the Advisory Committee identify:
Streets and areas of special concern
Possible bike routes, bike lanes and sidewalks
Bike racks and other bicycle/pedestrian facilities in town
 
 
For more information, contact:
Lauren Lanham, Assistant to the First Selectman
203-256-3030
llanham@town.fairfield.ct.us
 
Brian Bidolli, Executive Director, GBRPA
203-366-5405 X25
bbidolli@gbrpa.org

Green Food Tips for Earth Day

by Analiese Paik, Founder and Editor of the Fairfield Green Food Guide

One of the easiest ways to make Earth Day every day is to green your kitchen. Here are some delicious and fun ways to reduce your family's "foodprint" while eating well. Click here to view the video from this segment on News Channel 8’s Good Morning Connecticut Show.

Buy locally grown food from a farmers' market and learn to cook with the seasons.
 
Best-selling author, restaurateur and Wholesome Wave Foundation founder Michel Nischan's new cookbook, Sustainably Delicious, presents over 100 recipes for home cooks looking for delicious and nutritious ways to prepare seasonal food that is good for the environment, for animals, for farm workers, and for our tables. Michel advises us to "Eat what's available in season, celebrate variety, respect the land and eschew waste." His mission is to show that choosing local and sustainably grown food offers innumerable rewards, including some of the very best flavors Mother Nature has to offer. Who thought a humble parsnip could be this delicious?

Help Save Clean Energy Rate Payer Funds - Again!

Breaking News from Connecticut Fund for the Environment : The Appropriations Committee will hold a public hearing on the Governor's latest deficit mitigation package on Thursday, March 11, at 3:00pm.

This important hearing will impact the future of the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund and the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund, ratepayer-funded programs that save money for homeowners and small businesses while cutting carbon emissions and supporting the state's growing clean energy industry. Contact Tisha Ferguson Outreach Director, CFE 203-787-0646 x108 tferguson@cfenv.org for more information.

Westporters Take Stand on Global Warming

by Monique Bosch

Westport residents ignored torrential rain and headed for Compo beach at dawn Saturday, October 24th, to participate in the International Day of Climate Action. It marked the largest day of environmental action in history. Westport was only one in over 5,000 events that took place in 181 countries around the world. A sudden unexpected clearing of the skies rewarded those who braved the weather.

Local musicians serenaded the group over coffee and donuts as beach towels forming 3-5-0 were arranged on the sand.  The number, 350 parts per million (ppm), signifies the level scientists say is the safe upper limit of CO2 in the atmosphere. We are currently at 390 ppm.

As 350.org organizer Bill McKibben explained, we now have a tangible goal, a number to strive for. “This number is attainable, but it will take a global effort to get there,” he said. McKibben is an author, educator and environmentalist spearheading the effort to bring the world together to solve the climate crisis.

All around Connecticut: 350.ORG

by Heather Burns-DeMelo

It was difficult to ignore the collective buzz around the state Saturday, as groups of all sizes and compositions gathered together to express their creative vision and commitment to spreading the word that 350 ppm is the safe upper limit of CO2 in the atmosphere. Why is that the number? Click here to find out.

Politicians, world leaders, scientists and environmental groups will meet in Copenhagen in a mere six weeks to agree (we hope) on a climate policy that is clear, fair and binding. As it stands, 350 ppm is the number that is in the draft agreement. Today, our ppm is 386 and rising. This is a number we share with the entire planet -- that is, the United States, China, and Micronesia all must work together on a collective goal. It's no longer a case of pointing fingers or being able to seek out reprieve while others suffer: it's everyone's problem.

For many people, a random number that counts a gas we can't see is a bit of a stretch. But to thousands of people living and working in Connecticut, it represents the fact that climate change isn't just something we need to do something about in 25 or 50 years, it's something we must tackle TODAY. 

Thanks to all of you who submitted photos of your creative, bold and inspiring events. 

Shop Dava, New Haven

Photo: Coleen Campbell

 

Yale Forestry School students created this 350 Noah's ark from mostly
salvaged materials in front of Kroon Hall. Animals represented included
everything from the humble ant to the mighty giraffe to the beautiful
capybaras of South America and the polar bears made out of used Styrofoam
containers. Although 35 people are pictured here, the previous night, at
least 90 people turned up to help build the ark and the animals. We chose
this action in part because synagogues around the world happened to be
reading the Noah's Ark story in the Torah on Oct 24th, and in part because
climate change puts 15-37% of all known plant and animal species at the risk
of extinction by 2050. Photo: Grady O'Shaughnessy and Gabriel Mejias

 

Hundreds of people donning Bridgeport Sound Tigers/350.org t-shirts
walked onto the ice during the game's second intermission to make the
number in support of preserving this favorite winter sport.  Photo: Rick Stieglitz

"350.org activists brave rain and heavy winds on the historic New Haven Green to form a human 350, with the historic downtown churches and Yale College Old Campus in the background." Photo: Vladimir Jankovic, New Haven Independent. Background information: http://www.350.org/newhaven

 

David Bedell, Cristian Aldana, Natalie Johnson, Ted Hanser, Jane Weston, and Richard Duffee.
Ferguson Library, downtown Stamford. For more information, contact Hector Lopez lopez_hector_l@sbcglobal.net

 

Whole Foods Market, West Hartford

 A giant 350 on the roof of the Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University was part of a larger project entitled "The Bird's Eye View," which built a network of similar installations, globally. Photo credit goes to the Fairfield Fire Department, who got up on a truck ladder to get our "bird's eye view" shot, and Fairfield U students who put the installation together. For more information, click here.

None Became Law

by Eileen Weber

Brendan Hanrahan thinks more should be done for the environment in Connecticut. He feels so strongly about it, CT EarthNet, an interactive, web-based network for environmental groups Hanrahan founded, has produced a summary of the 2009 legislation for environmental practices that were not passed this year. The summary also includes visualizations of the legislative session data such as issue heat maps, voting outcomes, and legislator similarity comparisons. The bills touched a variety of environmental topics from toxic chemicals to wetland management to energy efficiency and everything in between.

Thirty-six bills were presented about renewable, clean energy. None became law. Thirty-two bills were presented on various points of energy efficiency. None became law. With thirty-two bills on public transportation, only one became law. Out of the twenty-four bills presented for recycling and waste measures, two passed and became law.

And the list goes on. What this says, at least in Hanrahan’s eyes, is that Connecticut may give lip service to the environment. But when all is said and done, the state may actually fall a little short.

So are we just becoming a bit too complacent about the environment? Has “going green” become so mainstream that we’re not taking it as seriously as we should?

Reality Check

by Heather Burns-DeMelo

I started this blog two years ago when I was gripped by fear--the paralyzing sort that came as a result of being shaken awake by numbers spiking off charts in Al Gore's documentary.

It was as if a bucket of ice cold water was splashed in my face, and I felt in my bones that every day I was selling my children a lie.  A lie that our society can be run on fossil fuel indefinitely and without negative impact. A lie that they will always have clean water to drink and enough to spray on their children on hot summer days. A lie that the mattress and pillow they sleep on at night is safe to breathe. A lie that the food on the super market shelves is healthy and safe to eat.

All lies.

So, I've kept my nose so close to the grind stone that many days I'm afraid to look up. For when I do, what I see around me threatens the sense of hope I've worked so hard to instill and foster and grow in myself and those around me. Why hope? Because hope fuels courage and fights despair. It creates a space for creativity, innovation and compassion to blossom. And those, we need in spades.

In Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming, Barbara Kingsolver writes, "We abolished slavery, we granted universal suffrage. We have done hard things before. Each time it took a terrible fight between people who could not imagine changing the rules.  If we run out of hope at the end of the day, we'll rise in the morning and put it on again with our shoes. Hope is the only reason we won't burn what's left of the ship and go down with it. If somebody says, "Your money or your life," you can say, "Life." And mean it."

Now that's perspective.

Next Move Is Rell's On Bill To Block Ash Dump

The Hartford Courant
By ALAINE GRIFFIN
June 18, 2009

FRANKLIN--Opponents of a plan to create an ash dump in Franklin are closely watching Gov. M. Jodi Rell's office this week, hoping she will sign legislation that blocks the project.

The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority says its plan to dump ash from its trash incinerators at the Franklin site is safe. But a group of residents have fought the project, taking their battle to the Capitol. Both the House and the Senate this session passed legislation barring the CRRA from buying land in either Windham or Franklin for an ash dump.

Rell spokesman Adam Liegeot said Wednesday that the governor has until Tuesday to act on the measure.

In a letter to Rell this week, Sen. Edith G. Prague, D-Columbia, said a veto by the governor "would show complete disregard for the well-being of those it would harm the most." An ash dump in Franklin would destroy "pristine" land there and pollute residents' drinking water, the letter states. Also signing the letter were Reps. Kevin Ryan, D- Montville, and Susan Johnson, D-Windham.

The letter follows recent allegations by environmentalists that the CRRA is using "last-minute scare tactics" to push for a veto, telling municipalities the legislation would mean the state would lose its ability to site landfills, forcing towns and cities to pay more to ship ash outside Connecticut.

For Worst Perfomance by a Recycling Committee

by Elizabeth G. Howard

So I live in Stratford, a smallish town of 50,000, here in our fair state, New England. Since I am not from this part of the country, I have discovered a curious quirk of the New English people -- they take political landscaping to an entirely different level than anywhere else I have ever lived.

In Connecticut there is no real county government, and the State government is mostly ignored. Instead, there are 169 “municipalities” that all have their own way of doing things. Actually, that is putting it lightly. Town governments in Connecticut are more like rivals on "Survivor", where the shared dialect across townline is usually "F--- you! We're the REAL Daughters of the Revolution and we're preserving our individual, municipal rights, even if we have to use canning jars and vinegar!"

For example, in the case of road maintenance, for example, the municipalities, in total, have 17,115 road miles that they are required to maintain… 4.5 times the number that the State maintains. As a result, the sheer cost of road maintenance (hmmm, every town has their own rules, storage sheds, equipment, crews, etc.) is enormous.

As far as I can see, the only thing consistent across the municipalities is enforced by the State law requiring that a very bored looking police officer be on every roadwork site, either sitting in his squad car reading a Harlequin Romance, or chatting with one or more of the otherwise-idle workers about the imminent threat of terrorism in Haddam Neck.

So, fast forward to this week, when I started to research the RECYCLING PROGRAM in Stratford...

Our first green president?

 

by Barry Katz

In five days we will inaugurate our first African American president. It's momentous. It's historic. And it's about time.

Back in the early days of the primary campaign some black leaders raised the question, is Obama black enough. My only question is this - is he green enough.

I think he just may be. I sure hope so. I have watched with pleasure and relief at the science/climate/energy/environment team he has put in place and each appointment raised my level of optimism. Could Barack Obama really be our first green president?

We are faced with an historic opportunity. At no other time would it have been possible to get Congress to approve the kind of spending that could really jump-start the new clean green economy we so desperately need. Only a financial melt-down of current proportions can shake that kind of money from the tree.

It will take bold action and a lot of very smart decisions to make this work, and I'm waiting with bated breath to see if Obama and his team can pull it off. Back in December I wrote a post for my blog, The Future is Green entitled "What we need now" in which I suggested that this administration should be judged primarily on the extent to which the next four to eight years is devoted to energy and climate policy. In my mind, nothing else matters. Nothing else matters because everything else hinges on this.

I'll be watching.

The Winner’s Cup Is Green

by Eileen Weber

For the month of January, three towns in Fairfield County are having a little friendly competition to see which one is the most energy conscious. According to an article dated January 2nd in The Hour, Westport, Wilton, and Weston have taken up the “Green Cup Challenge” initiated by the Wilton Energy Commission and sponsored by Connecticut Light and Power (CL&P). The point of the competition, which will end on January 31st, is to raise awareness of exactly how environmentally conscious their communities are.

The Wilton Energy Commission hosted an open meeting looking to kick start this initiative and a Wilton high school student came to the rescue. Shwetha Rahguraman along with fellow student Kathryn Saphire “took the bull by the horns” and got the ball rolling.

An 11-question survey was formed and sent out to homes and businesses. A few of the questions from the survey, which is also available online, were “Do you own vehicles that get over 30mpg?” and “Do more than a quarter of the lights in your household use compact fluorescent bulbs?”

Points are awarded to how these questions are answered. CL&P will judge the final responses and award a “green” cup to the winning town. As of today, there are 228 participants signed up to take part in the competition.

Mitchell Reichgut, a member of the energy commission, said it’s not about winning the cup. “All of us who are involved in it,” Reichgut was quoted in The Hour as saying, “really feel like it’s a really important project and an important issue.”

Lessons from a 6th Grader in Greenwich

Student writes her local newspaper with an important message for her town: Green Homes are Good for our Community

Staff Reports

To the editor:

As a sixth-grader at Eastern Middle School, I am concerned about the energy being carelessly wasted and the growing pollution around the town. To improve this, I support the modus operandi of "green building" and modifying homes to be more Earth friendly.

Increasing green homes will have remarkably positive effects.

The town's picturesque parks and landscapes are extremely valuable. The streets are lined with scenic houses and even some historical sites. If we don't put a stop to the constant release of fumes and greenhouse gases, the exquisite reputation of this community may collapse dramatically. Installing more energy-efficient and solar-powered homes will secure a prosperous and efficient status. Also, green homes are becoming quite luxurious, and such additions would be a notable avowal for Greenwich.

Standard houses have negative effects on the environment. Air pollution, water pollution, indoor pollution and stormwater runoff are all harmful to the Earth. Eco-friendly homes are designed for creating a healthy indoor air environment and adequate ventilation in a natural way, and use heavy insulation to reduce rising energy usage within the house.

These houses have very efficient appliances and construction. For instance, there are triple-pane windows, low-energy lighting, ground-source heat pumps, solar panels and de-chlorinating shower filters. These elements together guarantee a healthy lifestyle for the average Greenwich house.ecological house would be well adapted to the community and very beneficial to the economy. Those houses specialize in carefully making the best of all resources and avoiding waste. By switching to this type of houses, you're helping all parts of the world.

I've lived in Greenwich long enough to appreciate its outstanding reputation. I am certain that expanding the quantity of energy-efficient homes would be extremely advantageous to the economy, households and the dazzling image of Greenwich.

Eco-friendly homes are the way of a cleaner, greener future. So I urge the people of this town to use green building technology when building or renovating their homes.

Thank you for reading my letter.

Gianna DeMasi

Greenwich

Buyout Will Let Automakers off the (clean air) Hook!

Thanks to our friends at PACE for keeping us informed...

One of the most important issues concerning climate change is connected to the $34 billion bailout of the auto industry. You would think that giving them that much money should carry some conditions BUT one of most crucial ones is missing and that is to mandate the auto companies drop their lawsuits against three states of the thirteen (which includes Connecticut) who have passed a law (called "the Paveley Law") to adopt standards that would greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks.

So what can little ol' you DO? Thanks to the Law Offices of Matthew Pawa, it's as simple as filling in the blanks...

*NO PAVLEY-NO BAILOUT*!

Dear Congressman BLANK:

Thank you for telling the heads of General Motors, Chrysler and Ford last week that their lawsuits against state greenhouse gas laws are a "serious obstacle" to providing taxpayer loans to their companies. It is
now time to follow through on this statement. As a constituent, I am writing to demand that you */only /*vote "yes" on a Detroit bailout */IF/*the legislation includes a provision making clear that the federal
fuel economy law does not preempt the states' greenhouse gas laws.

I am outraged that Detroit may receive taxpayer money while continuing to push lawsuits against the states. These lawsuits seek to use the federal fuel economy law to strike down state greenhouse gas laws. Sixteen states have adopted or are in the process of adopting the "Pavley regulations," which would significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light trucks. Half the nation's population lives in these sixteen states. The Pavley law is a vital step in the fight to reduce the U.S. contribution to global warming. And since GM, Chrysler and Ford have now said repeatedly that rescuing their businesses requires that they significantly improve fuel economy, then under the logic of their own lawsuits in which they argue that fuel economy improvements are the same thing as reductions in greenhouse gases, the Pavley law is good for Detroit and its workers, too.

As your constituent, I am fully expecting you to stand up and fight on global warming. While there are many good reasons to avoid the collapse of a major company at this moment of economic peril, it is unfathomable to me how Congress could fail to grasp this moment by requiring a simple act of good corporate citizenship as a condition of any bailout, i.e., no lawsuits against the states. I am expecting you to vote "NO" on any Detroit bailout that fails to protect our planet by stamping out the GM-Chrysler lawsuits against the states. Any "YES" vote MUST include a "Save Pavley" provision.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

Keep reading for who to contact in your area...

Ode to the Transfer Station

By Krista Richards Mann

Having given up on my garbage collection service for both financial reasons and the early hour at which the cans were clattered and garbage compacted, I have begun making frequent trips to the transfer station.

I know now why it is called the transfer station.  I seem to transfer as much to my vehicle and back to my garage as I leave there.  While, the town for reasons of liability does not condone “scavenging”, how can one let three adorable retro-chic bicycles go to landfill?  The timing was perfect!  My daughter had just outgrown her bicycle and nearly everything else she possessed.  The difficulty would be in convincing her to accept a rusted and dented old bike. 

While still in my car, I took the bike to Westport Hardware begging a bit of advice.  Restoration would require a can of paint, another of WD40 and some sandpaper.  Before she arrived home from school the bike was painted green (representing the intention of conservation) and leaned against the garage.  I turned its front wheel in a beguiling manner and hoped for the best.

It worked!  With a promise of letting her further decorate it with peace signs and flowers, and attach a basket with zip-ties, she was beaming with contentment.  (It should be mentioned that the bike could also use some new brakes in the near future, but for now we’ll stop sparingly.)

My son has asked that I help him restore one of the other cycles now cluttering our garage, but they are a bit tall for him, and I am still scraping rust from my cuticles.

I’ve been to the Greenwich town dump.  (I know... I go to the nicest places!) 

5 Simple Things You Can Do To Green Your Wedding

By Kate Harrison

Are you looking for a few easy ways to green your wedding?  Here are five big picture ideas to get you on the right track.

1. Location, location, location

With friends and families so dispersed these days, it is important to pick a location that in convenient for the majority of your guests. Not only will it decrease their travel costs (which they will be grateful for), but it will also decrease the carbon footprint of your wedding. Also, because couples spend about half of their budget on the reception venue, choosing a place that gives back to the community makes a big difference. Good examples include community centers, museums, and public gardens.

Image:Stealth Settings

2.  Choose local seasonal flowers
Couples spend an average of $2,000 on flowers.  Flowers are one of the most heavily pesticided crops in the world and more than half of the  flowers available in the United States are imported from overseas (which uses fuel and contributes to global warming). By choosing seasonal flowers you not only decrease the cost of your wedding, but you decrease your impact on both the environment and human health.  You can see what's growing at nearby farms by checking the database at Local Harvest.

Image:The Meadow

3. Go organic

Ask your caterer about including a few seasonal, organic elements in your menu.  If you can't find a green baker, see which vendors are willing to substitute in organic flour, sugar, eggs and milk (all of which are easy to get at most large supermarkets).

Image: Better Health

Beware of Nukes!

PACE is a GREAT organization to get involved in Connecticut and a wonderful resource, should you have questions and/or want to organize an effort in your neighborhood!

EARTHPLACE To Host Candidate Forum On the Environment

Many of you have met John Hartwell at a GreenDrinks event or two. Well, thanks to EarthPlace, now is your chance to hear the candidate's views, ideas, and goals relating to the environment.

State Senate Candidates John Hartwell & Rep. Toni Boucher Guests

WESTPORT, Conn. , October 17, 2008 – Earthplace: The Nature Discovery Center will host a Candidate Forum on the Environment on Tuesday, October 28th at 7:30 p.m. at Earthplace, 10 Woodside Lane, Westport .

Democratic nominee John Hartwell and Republican nominee State Representative Toni Boucher will discuss their views, ideas and goals for the environment. The candidates are running for the 26th State Senate district seat being vacated by retiring Senator Judith Freedman.  The district includes Westport , Wilton , Bethel , Redding , Ridgefield , New Canaan and Weston.  The question and answer session will focus solely on environmental issues and will be moderated by Earthplace Trustee Matthew Mandell, who also serves as a representative to Westport ’s Representative Town Meeting.  Attendees can participate by submitting written questions to the moderator for possible inclusion during the forum.

“This is a great opportunity for voters to hear what these candidates have to say about issues such as open space, water quality, alternate energy and more,” Mandell said. 

Hats Off to Connecticut's Grassroots

People in the towns of Milford, Bridgeport, New Haven, Middletown, Montville and Norwalk are breathing easier thanks to a grassroots group, the Toxics Action Center, who stood up and demanded cleaner air when they found out that 97 percent of Connecticut residents were breathing "seriously unhealthy air".

According to an article in the Stratford Star, loop holes in the Clean Air Act allowed thousands of tons of sulfur dioxide to spew into the air. Today, the five plants have decreased their emissions between 72 and 99 percent.

 

Submit Comments for Healthy School Lunches by 10/15!

Read more posts on motherhood and the environment on Eco-Mamas.com

My last post, before the haze of a holiday weekend set in, focused on the reauthorization of The Child Nutrition Act in 2009. I asked readers to comment on the USDA's public comment website to make their voices heard. We want fresh fruits and vegetables! We want increased funding! We want standards for "snack line" foods! And, then I got to thinking. I asked all of you to comment, I commented, but then I stopped there.

Today, energized by a sunny holiday weekend spent with my children, I realized I could do more. Did you comment? Do you want to take it a step further? To quote someone very politically relevant - YES, I CAN! Today I wrote a letter to every member of the school board as well as my children's school principals and some powerful PTA women that I know that can really get the job done. It was so simple and so quick. Visit your school's website, scout out the email addresses and type a quick letter. No time to write the letter? Here - take mine! Just don't tell the kids how quick and easy plagiarism can be!

Dear Members of the Board,

My name is (your name here), a mother of x, y, z attending the (ABC) Consolidated Schools. I am writing you today to request your attention to an important matter:

The Child Nutrition Act - a major piece of federal legislation that helps determine school food policy and resources – will begin reauthorization in 2009. Amazingly, this act has been unchanged since the 1960's and besides being outdated, it doesn't address many issues facing students today, such as: obesity, diabetes, cholesterol levels, allergies, working parent households, religous beliefs and many other factors not present in the 1960's. In addition, the current act doesn't contain any standards for so-called "snack-line" foods such as brand name items, fast food chain selections, sodas and marketing gimmicks.

The good news is the USDA and the government are accepting the public's comments on the reauthorization of this act, but the comment period ends very soon - October 15, 2008. I understand this email is reaching you during the busiest time, right at the beginning of a new school year. However, I am only asking for a moment of your time to pass the word along to your fellow colleagues, the schools and their PTAs and the food service department.

For those who are limited on time, simply visit the website I provided below and enter your comments. The website address:

http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=SubmitComment&o=09000064805f47dd

A basic set of comments are as follows (please feel free to cut and paste these comments into the comments section if you wish!):

• Increase funding for school meals and provide incentives for schools to offer healthier foods.
• Increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables.
• Improve nutrition standards for school meals so they align with the most recent dietary guidelines.
• Establish standards for food sold in schools outside of the school meals programs such as that sold at snack bars and cafeteria a la carte lines.

350: The Magic Number

Ticking Off the Ice Cream Truck Man

I was at the park today with my kids when a diesel ice cream truck pulled in. The man, in his fifties, kept the fifteen year old truck spewing smoke as he passed out frozen treats packed with artificial colors and flavors and enough preservatives to outlive the kids who ate them.

I stood by silently, my  young ones knowing better than to ask, since for the past four years their mommy claims not to have any money, or rambles on about how unhealthy that ice cream is, convincing them to go to the New Morning to pick up some organic, lactose-free, all natural, frozen desserts.

Then it hit me: this must have been what the first proponents of banning second hand smoke must have felt like. Unsure, insecure, timid. I marched up to the truck and asked if he'd be staying long. "Nope."
"Good, I replied, because we can smell your truck all the way across the park."  "If you're so worried about it, why didn't you walk instead of drive here?" he spat back.

Tonight, I'll dream of electric powered ice cream trucks that sell organic, healthy frozen treats on sultry summer days.

Momentum Builds for Bike-Friendly Union Station

Via Design New Haven

The New Haven Register reports today that the city has received a $10,000 grant to improve bicycle access at Union Station, and also has submitted a federal funding request for $145,000 for on-street dedicated and shared bike lanes connecting Union Station to Downtown New Haven and neighborhoods to the south and north of the city, which themselves have bike routes planned to connect with other sections of New Haven. The funding requests and grants also contain provisions for improved bike storage (with something like the photo at left, from a small Swedish train station, as the eventual goal in terms of encouraging use). More specifics on a proposed route can be found in the article:

"The bike lane, signage and striping would take place along Orange and Humphrey streets, Whitney Avenue, Temple, George, Church and Crown streets and Union, Howard and Columbus avenues with $15,900 for bike racks and covered parking at the rail station."

Improved bicycle routes and parking at Union Station would not only provide improved efficiency for commuters, but would also potentially have a major impact on the city's economic development, public health and traffic safety, as bicycle lanes also tend to calm traffic, promote walkability, raise real estate values, increase bicycling use, help citizens save millions of dollars per year in commuting costs, and promote local retail districts. They could also have an impact on suburban areas, by making the land near train stations on Metro North, Shoreline East and the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield line more valuable.

Of course, to be truly effective and enable the majority of city residents to feel comfortable commuting via bicycle, designated bike routes must also be combined with traffic calming treatments that reduce vehicle speeds and create safer intersections. As the number of cyclists in Downtown New Haven continues to grow, transit ridership increases, and the potential citywide economic benefits of improved traffic safety are more widely understood, the political will for implementing these types of strategies -- which have been in use for decades in many other cities and countries -- will hopefully increase.

WTNH-8 also ran a video news segment on this story, with great images of overflowing bike racks at the train station and footage of Elm City Cycling's recent "Bike to Work Day/BTW Breakfast." Also see separate WTNH news coverage here. The $10,000 grant application was made possible based on the city's recent application to LAB for designation as a bicycle-friendly community. Click here for a thread summarizing previous DNH coverage of bicycle access on trains and at Union Station.

83 Trees Cut Down to Make Better View for Billboard

Via The Green Vibration

Action is needed to protect trees in our very own state! We need to stop companies like LAMAR not only littering our landscapes but destroying our trees to achieve their goals. Send letters of support to Blumenthal and please visit www.scenic.org to send a letter to Jodi Rell stating your support of her bill to ban new billboard contracts in CT, including digital billboards.

Article Written By
BY ROBYN ADAMS REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

WATERBURY-- Nancy Voghel grew up on a "little piece of heaven," but she said Friday that the land near her childhood home has been destroyed.

Last year, Lamar Advertising of Hartford got a permit from the state Department of Transportation to trim and remove undesirable growth on state land off Sidney Street to increase the visibility of one of its billboards.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal filed a lawsuit against the billboard company and Long Hill Tree and Lawn Care Services of East Hartford for cutting down 83 trees that included birch, maple, oak and white pine that were between 85 and 200 years old. Long Hill Tree was hired by Lamar to do the work.

Hal Kilshaw, vice president of governmental relations for Lamar, headquartered in Baton Rouge, La., said the attorney general got it wrong.

"We got permission from the landowner and a permit from the state. We hired Long Hill and met with the state's landscape person, who was on site and agreed to everything that was cut," Kilshaw said in a telephone interview.

Many of the trees that were planted on the land in question were planted by Margaret Casey's grandfather.

"In less than one day, less than an hour, Lamar Advertising came in and changed our lifestyle," said Casey, of 56 Sidney St. "The noise -- we cannot open the windows anymore. We cannot hear the television because of the noise. It is unbearable."

The trees provided a buffer to highway traffic and noise, and soaked up water that spilled down the hilly terrain.

"Last year, I had five feet of water in my basement," said Jerod Voghel, 30, who is Karen Voghel's son. He bought the house that his mother grew up in four years ago; she now lives in Wolcott.

With the open swath of land in the background, Blumenthal and Rep. Selim Noujaim, R-75th District, talked to residents about the lawsuit.

Blumenthal said Lamar "clearly and disgracefully broke the law" by cutting 83 trees that provided a buffer to I-84. The state is suing for unspecified monetary damages to replace the trees.

Biodegradable Dog Poop Bags

On What to with A Handful of Dog Poo

by Elizabeth Howard

After we got finished discussing wine, films, Sex and the City, Myanmar and the general state of the weather at our cozy Southport luncheon, we finally got around to chatting about poo.

It started innocently enough, with a conversation about weaning ourselves off of plastic grocery bags. 

It evolved from the full-fledged bags to finding a replacement for the produce bags, which I had recently found a solution for.

"But then, you know," Carol asked, "what do you do about picking up the dog poop?" Carol is nothing if not practical. And she has a Black Lab.

Not to worry: when we aren't slathering butter on a cob, or pumping it into our gas tank, corn apparently has another brilliant use: biodegradable dog poop bags!

NOTE: The instructions on this product say you can toss the pet waste in the compost heap. DON'T!! Pet feces should not be mixed with normal garden compost that may come in contact with food. For a better alternative, check out Sharon Slack's Pet Waste Composter.

Green Jobs, Green Jobs, Green Jobs

We've made a modest attempt at listing green jobs in Connecticut with that little widget on the right hand side bar, and from the number of email inqueries we receive, it's clear that lots of you are out there looking.

So...here's a wee roundup:

Vertrue, with offices located in Norwalk has at least a half dozen positions open.

The Stamford Nature Center needs a Head of Media Relations and Marketing. Contact Kate Combs, 203-977-6522. kcombs@stamfordmuseum.org.

Early Childhood Educators needed in totally green facility in Stamford.

Sustainable Business has the following positions listed:

-Solar Installer, Milford

-Green Building/Sustainability Consultants, Norwalk

-PV Sales, Milford

-Environmental Engineer, Farmington

Green Beyond their Years

Some of you may remember Jordan and Alex from the March GreenDrinks event at iPark...

By Brian Lockhart

Staff Writer

Stamford Advocate                

WINDSOR - Of the nearly dozen individuals, including Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy, the state honored yesterday for helping the environment, two were barely tall enough to peer over the podium to deliver acceptance speeches.

Two Wilton boys, Jordan Reichgut, 10, and Alex Scaperotta, who told the crowd he is almost 10, were presented with leadership awards by the Governor's Steering Committee on Climate Change.

The third annual ceremony was hosted at the Windsor offices of ING Financial Services, honored for its green architecture and conservation initiatives that include urging workers to use coffee mugs at work and recycle office supplies and paper.

When they were 8, Jordan and Alex and their parents founded Little People, Big Changes, a club that encouraged 120 Wilton households to sign up for the state's Clean Energy Options program.

The program allows customers of Connecticut Light & Power and United Illuminating to pay a voluntary clean energy surcharge to help fund wind, hydroelectric and landfill gas projects that contribute to the nation's electric grid.

Anne George, commissioner of the state Department of Public Utility Control, presented the boys with their award, saying the state has many programs to help residents conserve energy and it is important to spread the word.

George said state officials launched Clean Energy Options with trepidation, knowing Connecticut residents pay high utility costs.

"I can only hope my children start taking on some of the activities Alex and Jordan have," George said. "When I was 8 years old, I was just running around the neighborhood, playing."

The boys also launched a "no idling" campaign in Wilton to reduce auto emissions and have made several presentations to schoolchildren and officials.

Help the Planet and Our Students: Recycle Your Cellphones!

Image via TreeHugger

The average lifespan, in months, of a cell phone in the US, according to Earthworks' Recycle My Cell Phone. At that rate, 130 million cell phones are added to the waste stream in the US every year. Worldwide, according to CNN (and noted here on TreeHugger), global mobile phone use will top 3.25 billion users in 2007. Yikes.

Well, here in Connecticut...you can do something!

During the month of May (and year-round for those of you who are interested), The Metropolitan Learning Center Class of 2013 is sponsoring a collection of old and/or unused cell phones for recycling through Phoneraiser. 

Cell phones may be dropped off at MLC, located at 1551 Blue Hills Avenue, Bloomfield, CT.  Cell phones can also be given to any MLC student from Bloomfield, East Windsor, Enfield, Hartford, Windsor and Windsor Locks.  To arrange a collection box for your company/office or for pick-up of large quantity donations, call 7th grade parent representative Laurie Prouty at (860) 212-2383 or email MLCclassof2013@aol.com.

Student group at SCSU to be acknowledged for outstanding environmental activism

New Haven- The Environmental Futurists at Southern Connecticut State University are being recognized by State Representative Toni Walker and the Connecticut Legislature for their tireless efforts to protect the environment on the SCSU campus and beyond. The New Haven delegates will present the citation to members of the Environmental Futurists in the Deputy Speaker's Conference Room of the Capitol Building (listed as Capitol Room 103) on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 at 10:30am.

Will Connecticut Ban Plastic Bags?

It seems there's another battle being fought, though both sides appear to agree on one thing: plastic bags = bad news for the environment. Retail stores seem to favor incentives such as charging for using plastic, or rebates given for plastic bags that are returned to the store, but lots of people think an outright ban is the way to go.

What's most interesting is yet again, our youth in Connecticut is leading the charge!

According to this article in The Day...

On Monday, the growing movement to curtail the use of plastic bags by grocery stores and other retail outlets gained a foothold in Connecticut when the legislature's Environment Committee heard testimony on a bill that would ban the use of non-biodegradable bags by 2010. Americans use an estimated 50 billion to 80 billion plastic bags annually, only a small fraction of which get reused or recycled.

“Life will go on without plastic bags, as it did for thousands of years,” said Emily Rintoul, 15, of Portland, one of several youths who urged lawmakers to push Connecticut to become the first state to enact a law to ban or discourage their use. “Please don't pass this burden of these bags onto my generation.”

Eleven-year-old Malaika King of Hartford, who preceded Rintoul with similar testimony, concluded by handing out nylon reusable bags to each member of the committee. Her mother, Imani Zito, sells the bags in her store, The Green Vibrations Alchemy Café and Eco Boutique in Hartford.

Coffee to Go?

Committed to reducing their carbon footprint, bicyclists meet at JoJo’s Coffee Shop at 22 Pratt St. in Hartford on the last Friday between January and March before pedaling to work. And with the bike racks on the front of Hartford buses, they can hop a bus if the chill gets to be too much.

Commissioner Gina McCarthy says, “What could be crazier than a New Englander riding their bike to work in the cold, winter months? Not much. For an exhilarating, healthy adventure, join other bicyclists who share your enthusiasm, and have a great time meeting for coffee after your ride. I’ll meet up with you again in the spring.” 

The Capitol Region Ice-Bike to Work program is sponsored by Hartford-based law firm Murtha Cullina LLP, and encourages commuters to leave their cars at home and cycle to work to help to improve air quality and reduce traffic congestion. Commuters save money on fuel and enjoy health benefits.

I say HAT'S OFF to those committed, just like this guy I saw pedaling around my neighborhood last summer.

Contact:
The Central Connecticut Bicycle Alliance

Heartland Community Destroyed by Tornado Goes GREEN

By Sherwood Martinelli

If you do a couple of Internet searches, (Eco-Town and Greensburg) you'll see that a small town in America's Heartland, Greensburg Kansas, is getting a whole lot of attention. That's exactly what they need, since the tornado that strolled down Main Street, destroyed more than 80 percent of the city's infrastructure.

My own involvements with the community began some weeks ago when a close friend of mine, Bill Thomas of Green Home Solutions rang me up in the middle of the night and said, “I had a dream, and you and I are going to go spend a week in Kansas helping the people of Greensburg rebuild their town.” My first thought was, “Why Greensburg?” I mean any town or city devastated by a natural disaster deserves all the help we can give them--but too often there just does not seem to be enough help to go around, with the best known example being New Orleans, and the Ninth Ward--so why Greensburg?

CT and NY-based Involvement

All communities ravished by natural disasters deserve attention, and a growing group of us here on the East Coast have recently formed a new organization aimed at helping Greensburg, and other communities recovering from natural disasters to not only recover, but to re-build using green building materials, to rebuild a more eco-friendly sustainable community. Green Helping Hands will help get GreenTown what it needs.

The town and GreenTown want to build an eco village with six green homes cited in the village, another six built at other locations throughout the town, thus creating a real life model of sustainable green living that others can visit and study, which in turn will create eco-tourism for this small rural community.

So far, Green Helping Hands has the attention of GEM motorcars, manufactured by Chrysler, and McGraw Hill Publishing.  We are also raising donations of green building products, books for the new library, and more.

Many Hands, Many Minds

Green Helping Hands has proposed to have a competition wherein the best architectures in the world could compete to have their plan chosen for these green home builds. The idea has been well received, so stay tuned or better yet, come and join us!

   

The Graying Of The Greens

ERIN WALRATH and her fiancée, Peter Mariano, chat during Fairfield County Green Drinks, a cocktail party at the Westport Arts Center for people interested in environmental issues. (MICHAEL KODAS / February 13, 2008)

With Aging Memberships, Environmental Groups Reach Out To Younger Members

by STEVE GRANT |  The Hartford Courant

Something's happened to Connecticut's venerable environmental groups. They're aging, often dominated by members and leaders well into their 50s and beyond. Greens gone gray.

It has them worried. "The environmental community must make room for younger, more creative and less bureaucratic individuals who will stick their neck out on important issues and who will have the energy and expertise to galvanize the public into action," said Allan Williams of West Hartford, a longtime environmental activist and member of the Sierra Club.

Fearful of a loss of relevance, concerned they might lose influence in shaping state policy, long-established groups like the Connecticut Audubon, the Connecticut chapter of the Sierra Club and the Connecticut Forest & Park Association are now reaching out to attract younger members, employees and board members.

"We certainly do want to attract younger people," said Adam R. Moore, executive director of the forest and park group. "We've been working on that, just like every environmental group has been."

 

Get your fresh, local produce and support local commerce!

   

Over FOUR HUNDRED people showed up for this season's first farmers'
market! Don't miss out on getting those fresh fruits and veggies, while
mingling with the people who tend to the earth everyday to bring
them from the farm to your table!

The New York Times Covers Fairfield County GreenDrinks

An important omission has been made from this article in The New York Times--Remy Chevalier, whose name is not mentioned, has been instrumental in the creation and growth of Fairfield County GreenDrinks, particularly concerning the funky and fun event last month at Pirate.

The omission was unintentional, and not performed by the writer and photographer who covered the story.

Environmentalists

Hi. Buy You a Drink? Save the Planet?

By WENDY CARLSON
Published: January 20, 2008

NY TIMES - CT SECTION

Norwalk

IT was a typical pub scene at the Pirate Night Club and Restaurant in Norwalk on a recent evening, except that the banter around the bar was about bamboo, not baseball, and the drinks were green in the organic sense.

“The environment is on a lot of people’s minds,” said Heather Burns-DeMelo, 37, the founder of Fairfield County Green Drinks, a social networking group of eco-minded professionals, which held its fourth monthly meeting here on a recent Wednesday evening.

On this occasion, the mixer drew about 100 people, uniting a wide range of environmentalists, including business executives, members of the Green Party, carpenters, chefs, makeup artists, architects, fashion designers and schoolteachers.

Ms. Burns-DeMelo, the editor of the Hartford-based AllGreen Magazine and the Web site CTGreenScene.typepad.com, said she learned about Green Drinks International when she was working as a freelance writer covering environmental issues.

Wake Up. Work. Go to GreenDrinks.

Thanks to everyone for a GREAT January GreenDrinks at Pirate! We'll see you all next month at the Westport Arts Center. Renowned chef and author Michel Nischan will speak about sustainability in Connecticut. Enjoy tasty treats by The Mindful Chef. Admission: $15. Space is limited; please RSVP.

Companies and organizations represented at Fairfield County GreenDrinks:

AKF Engineers
AllGreen Magazine
Catch a Healthy Habit
CBIA
Center for Green Building
Connecticut Fund for the Environment
CT Coalition for Environmental Justice
CT Friends School
CT GreenScene
E Magazine
EarthPlace
Eco-chick
Energy Independence Now
Environmental Innovations Group
Fairfield Winter Market
Great Green Race
Green Home Solutions
Greenburbs
iPark
JRT Design
Kathleen Richards Makeup Artist
Letters from a Small State
Maritime Aquarium
Mercury Solar
Morgan Stanley
National R/E Sources
NaturalAwakenings
Natural Neighborhood
Organic Vintages
Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects
Pirate
RD Weis
Reforest the Tropics
Shape Construction and Design
Smith Barney
Solar Wrights
Sterling Planet
Steven Winters and Associates
The Daily Green
The Dressing Room
The Mindful Chef
The New York Times
Topline Marketing
Voltaic Systems
Walders Business Interiors
Wendy Carlson Photography
Westport Magazine
WSHU

Join the Yogurt Brigade!

It appears my plea for finding a use for yogurt cups was heard... once again by the innovative folks TerraCycle.

In conjunction with Stonyfield Farm, TerraCycle's Yogurt Brigade is collecting 6 and 32 oz yogurt containers from the Northeast part of the country and arranging to have them reused as disposal planting pots! Brilliant! You can get rid of all those pesky, lidless yogurt cups!

The second brilliant part of TerraCycle's scheme? For every pot you send, they'll donate 2 or 5 cents (more for the biggies!) to a charity of your choice! You just need the Tax ID number!

There are certain guidelines for the Yogurt Brigade so be sure to read their FAQs before signing up.  For any questions, send an email to info@terracycle.net or call 609-393-4252 x 36.

Be sure to read about TerraCycle's other brilliant brigades for Drink Pouches and Plastic Bottles.
 

The Seas Are A'Rising--Advcacy Group to Assist Flooded Residents

Spurred to action by 3 unprecedented floods within 7 months, flooded Darien residents met several times at the Darien Library to voice concerns and develop strategies.  Vanessa Wood and Laura Giobi, instrumental in organizing residents, announce that they have joined an established Darien environmental group, Save Darien's Wetlands, shifting the group to focus on flooding.

Save Darien's Wetlands, Inc. was formed in 2001 by the late Lee Fingar of Darien as a neighborhood advocacy group to address water concerns.   Mr. Fingar's death in July 2007 left the fate of the group uncertain. Flood residents met several times this year for public meetings demanding action and worked find flooding answers through their blog http://darienflooding.wordpress.com "We hope to expand the work that Lee began," stated Mrs. Wood.  "Our vision is to go forward as an advocacy group for the water concerns that are plaguing several neighborhoods in Darien. Town government has come under heavy scrutiny this year. Examination is healthy. Under the watchful eye of its citizens we expect Darien will meet the challenge of dealing with water issues to create a new standard as a modern town."

The restructured group announced their goals:
Increase public awareness of options to decrease water danger and damage.
Advocate flood control solutions that will protect homes, businesses, and the environment.
Inform residents and businesses on government activity that affects Darien's Wetlands.

For more information, visit our website www.SaveDariensWetlands.org.

Local Community Effort--WE Green Wesport

Westport's energy task force has raised the bar and is working to involve members of the community is a pledge to liver greener. You can take steps toward lessoning your impact on the planet, join in by signing a pledge card, and track the progress on their interactive map.

Well, Why Not?

How does a Connecticut goat farmer go from tending his herd to a lobbyist, new legislation creator, and biodiesel producer? One Connecticut man began by asking why not?

Christos Glynos and his partner, George Linardos, Sr. began the planning phase to build a biodiesel production facility on Mr. Glynos farm nearly four years ago. After the arduous task of locating a company willing and able to design and build such a unique project, they applied for a permit only to have Bethlehem, Connecticut, building officials turn them down.

"Anytime you want to start something new or foreign to people, road blocks pop up all over the place and people all around you say, You can't do that! I just looked at them and kept asking, "Why not?" Most of the time the people in government agencies admitted they didn't know why, so I set up round table discussions to make them tell me exactly what they needed me to do to make it happen," Glynos said.

That laundry list--changing legislation, rewritting building codes, creating tax incentives for schools who use biodiesel in their buses, and finding the funding for research and development and educational programs about alternative energy options--would chase many people off and back into a cushy job in corporate America.

But they had a dream and believed in an opportunity. "When we started thinking about BioPur, gasoline was $1.25 a gallon. People looked at me and said, Why would you bother, gas is only 1.25? I told them I didn't think it would stay that way and besides, we were too dependent on foreign oil."

So he and his partner set off to overcome every obstacle that appeared in their path and today, they're producing 400,000 gallons of locally manufactured biofuel with plans to double that amount in the next year.

Growing Green Businesses

More and more people are bringing their awareness of green living to their place of business. From large corporations like Walmart to small businesses like my neighborhood printer--a growing number of businesses are becoming more environmentally responsible.

According to an April 2007 Gallup survey, 47% of small business owners are taking steps to being more environmentally responsible. They're learning that eco-conscious choices not only help the planet and the people on it, but boost their bottom line as well. Lower maintenance and operating costs, and a growing market share of consumers who are supporting green business make environmentally sound business a wise choice. What's more, grants like those available from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund can refund up to half the cost of installing solar panels, which quickly decreases utility costs.

Want to learn more about recycling in your office?  Check out these resources.

Recycling: www.earth911.org (general office), www.eiae.org (electronics), www.dell.com/recycling, www.apple.comenvironment/recycling/program, www.hp.com/recycle (computers), www.greendisk.com (computer disks, CDs), www.rbrc.org/call2recycle (batteries and cell phones), www.lamprecycle.org (fluorescent lamps and bulbs (containing mercury), www.carpetrecovery.org, www.antron.net (carpet).

Source: Priority Magazine, September/October 2007

Kids Campaign: If You're Stopped for More Than 10 Seconds...

Alex Scaperotta and Jordan Reichgut noticed that many people in the school pick up lines idle their cars.  They learned through research that unnecessary idling wastes gasoline and releases CO² into the atmosphere, which accelerates global warming.  They thought that a good place to start would be to get parents of Cider Mill School students to commit to not idling their car in the pick up line or anywhere else. Their message is simple:  IF YOU IDLE YOUR CAR FOR TEN SECONDS OR MORE, YOU ARE USING MORE GAS THAN TURNING YOUR CAR OFF AND ON.  In addition, they learned that idling is unnecessary to “warm up” your car (the best way to warm it up is to drive it) and idling is in fact harmful to engines – causing more gasoline residue to build up in the engines, exhaust system rusting, and more.

Student Forms Environmental Group at West Conn

Twenty-one-year-old Mercedes DeMasi of Redding, Connecticut, has formed a group called Students for Environmental Action at West Connecticut State University. Top on her to-do list--a proposal detailing how the University can reduce its energy consumption by 10 percent within the next year by making small adjustments to day-to-day activities such as switching off lights, turning down thermostats and changing over to CFL bulbs. Her initiative and take-charge attitude also earned her a spot on the university energy council.

Students at Western Connecticut State University who want to join Students for Environmental Action can call Mercedes DeMasi at (203) 938-9016 or e-mail her at kobushihime@hotmail.com