CitiesGoGreen » Daimon

SF Okays Nation's Strictest Composting Law

Daimon — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 23:08:43 +0000

San Francisco has approved the strictest composting law in the US, aiming to increase recycling from today’s 72% to 90%, save landfill space and costs, reduce methane generation, and create compost to return to gardeners and others. According to SFGate, this is part of fulfilling the city’s aim to be sending nothing to landfills or incinerators by 2020.

Seeking Cities to Test Solar Streetlights

Daimon — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 21:27:12 +0000

Eco Alternative Solutions, LLC is looking for 25 large US cities to participate in a no-cost 90-day trial of its Integrated Solar Series (ISS). ISS is an innovative solar-powered street light system. The company says ISS lights have been “vigorously tested” over the last year and half and placing lights in 25 selected cities will provide data from different ambient conditions.

The solar unit replaces the city’s current lighting system on 30 foot utility poles commonly used on residential and busy streets. Solar power is stored in batteries, and at dusk the the unit powers up white or yellow LEDs for 8 to 12 hours of lighting.

CEO Shane Chapin has some cost projections: “In a town with 50,000 lights the current monthly expense is about $215,400 based on running the lights for 10 hours per day. Switching to ISS generates average savings of about $158,400. Cost savings depend on the available sunlight and we can assess the expected savings for each community.”

Eco Alternative Solutions expects to be able to ship “upwards of 500,000 units per month” from US manufacturers in different regions of the country by mid-2010. The company is also prepared to help cities comply with the American Recovery Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for funding assistance, and has financing options that keep payments at or below current energy expenses.

Cities wishing to participate in the trial program can contact Chapin at 217-381-8901.

Free Webinar June 5: How to Make School Buses Cleaner

Daimon — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 20:42:17 +0000

ICLEI Webinar: How to Make Your School Buses Cleaner

ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability USA has a free webinar for anyone in local government on How to Make Your School Buses Cleaner this Friday, June 5 at 1-2 p.m. Eastern

You can learn how to make your school buses cleaner, more efficient, and reduce harmful pollution associated with diesel exhaust. Get the tools and resources needed to start a program in your school district to:

Complete technology retrofits on school buses to burn diesel more efficiently;
Switch from petroleum diesel to a biodiesel blend; and
Reduce vehicle idling around school buildings.

The webinar will introduce three toolkits (click to get them immediately) designed to help your school district. Each toolkit contains a step-by-step guide, fact sheets, outreach materials, case studies, and more.

A few days before the event, participants will be sent an email with instructions on how to participate in the webinar. You will need a computer with internet access and a phone.

World's Greatest Threat: Sprawl

Daimon — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:02:52 +0000

The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) sponsored a video contest and the clever+profound winner is Built to Last

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGJt_YXIoJI&feature=player_embedded]

NLC Exec on Green Cities Conference

Daimon — Sat, 09 May 2009 00:29:31 +0000

Here’s an interview I did with Don Borut, Executive Director of the National League of Cities, at the Green Cities Conference in Portland, Oregon. Points of interest include rating the success of the conference as a “grand slam home run,” noting that sustainability is the new lens through which cities are starting to look at themselves, displacing economic growth and growth for its own sake, and Don’s statement that sustainability is fundamental to the NLC.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsU1Izmuig8&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00]

Green Workforce Curriculum?

Daimon — Fri, 08 May 2009 23:47:53 +0000

Patrick Konopnicki has a question:

As Director of Career and Technical training for Virginia Beach I am trying to help train a green workforce. Can anyone point me to curriculum in this arena as these seem to be 21st century skills for all students and adults i.e. sustainability etc.

Please put your suggestions as a comment so everyone can see them.

Franklin TN Seeks Sustainability Coordinator

Daimon — Tue, 05 May 2009 23:22:44 +0000

by Ken Moore, MD
Alderman at Large
Franklin, Tennessee

The City of Franklin, Tennessee has long been recognized as a desirable place to live because of its respect for history, its vibrant economy, and its educational excellence.

Just this year it was recognized by the National Historic Trust as a “top twelve” destination in America; Southern Living Magazine also rated Franklin one of the top ten in the nation for best small town, and Business Week Online named our city the best in Tennessee to start a small business.

However, with the associated rapid growth, issues of a lag in infrastructure and congestion have become more of an issue.

In 2006 when former Mayor Tom Miller signed the Mayor’s Climate Project Agreement, it went almost unnoticed until companies relocating in the area began to bring in green practices from other areas of the country and the question was raised why Franklin was not on the “top twenty-five” green cities list. Current Mayor John Schroer responded to this question by appointing Alderman Ken Moore to lead the effort for the City.

In the fall of 2008, a group of almost 250 citizens attended a series of workshops facilitated by Johnson Controls, Inc. The workshops focused on Franklin’s sustainability needs and practices for the City. Over two thousand comments came from these sessions to guide Franklin’s vision and a task force was created to develop a sustainability plan for the City that matched its vision for the future.

The Sustainability Task Force was convened early in 2009 and nine committees were established to write Franklin’s Sustainability Plan. The committees are made up of interested citizens and residents, many of whom are experts in their field. Each committee has enthusiastically accepted the challenge to develop three actionable items in their category, determine a metric to measure progress, a plan of implementation and timeline. Their energy and ideas have been inspirational to all involved. These nine committees are: Energy; Alternative Fuels and Energy; Environmental Health; Solid Waste; Transportation; Water; Urban Design; Urban Nature; and Public Education.

The City’s Sustainability Plan is now in its first draft and is being vetted by participants and experts across the country. This plan is a tool for the community of Franklin and its citizens, not just for city programs and policies. The City already has demonstrated leadership by the use of “gray water,” LED traffic signals; office recycling efforts, a soon to be completed LEED certified Police Headquarters and establishing its own Alternative Fuel and Energy Action Plan.

Since the inception of this effort, we have recognized that the City would need to create a sustainability coordinator position but were hesitant to proceed given the current economic times. Then officials read the CitiesGoGreen article “What’s a Sustainability Coordinator?” in the October 2008 issue. The fact that the position is funded by savings to the City made it a much easier sell. The article was used as supporting evidence and created momentum for the Board of Mayor and Aldermen to approve the position recently.

This article and others in the CitiesGoGreen have helped us understand the process and keeps us from having to reinvent the wheel while still being able to craft a plan and strategy unique to our City.

The position has now been posted and we are looking forward to the new hire and continuing the momentum to become a top 25 sustainable community and an example for others to follow as we implement our plan. The plan is currently in draft form and can be viewed on the City’s web site at www.franklintn.gov.

Photo courtesy VisitFranklin.com

Preventing 78% of Foreclosures in Philadelphia

Daimon — Tue, 05 May 2009 21:33:05 +0000

A program in Philadelphia is the most successful in the US at preventing foreclosures, according to Acorn’s description in its new report on the program, Road to Rescue: How the Philadelphia Model Can Reduce Foreclosures Across the Country

An excerpt: Almost a year into its existence, the Philadelphia Foreclosure Diversion Program, a pre-foreclosure mediation process that is preventing more than three in four owner-occupied foreclosures, has proven to be the best model in the nation. Other jurisdictions are following suit and adopting mediation programs, which are less successful because they are not mandatory, lack effective community outreach, are difficult for homeowners to access, or do not make effective use of housing counselors. As President Obama called for in his foreclosure speech in February, the federal government must invest in successful foreclosure prevention programs at the local and state level as a necessary complement to the Administration’s foreclosure plan.

This report provides a detailed review of the Philadelphia program and its successes, as well as other less effective mediation programs, and analyzes the positive impact on local economies of adopting successful mandatory mediation programs.

Van Jones Video on Green Roofs

Daimon — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 22:21:07 +0000

Here is Van Jones, Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation for the White House Council on Environmental Quality, with Sara Loveland of DC Greenworks, on the site of a green roof installation. They introduce green roofs and discuss the grant funding the work. If building owners along a corridor who already have to replace their roof membranes put up the money for that, the city will add on a green roof, cutting energy expenses some 30%, cooling the city, mitigating stormwater, and training people in how to do the work. Green roofs in this case mean green jobs, environmental, economic, engineering and energy-saving benefits, and a potential food source: one solution to many problems.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iYIY9XHOUg&feature=player_embedded]

City Council Green Resolution Query

Daimon — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:04:32 +0000

Don Voigt has a question:
Hi, I’m a resident of a city which is struggling to get a resolution passed at the city council level wherein the city states that it wants to be a “green” community. We attempted to get a resolution passed last week but it failed to get a majority on the basis that it was too general in nature and that it did not have any specific items or targets in it.

What do you find as the first level of “position statements” for communities who are going green?

Don Voigt,
Port Washington, WI

What’s your advice?