The San Francisco Board of Supervisors this week overwhelmingly passed what is likely the country’s most comprehensive recycling and composting ordinance. The Board voted 9-2 to require residents and business owners to sort recyclables, food waste and trash for weekly collection, in an effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions and, ultimately, make the city landfill- and incinerator-free by 2020.
The ordinance, which will take effect this fall, provides fines for failure to comply with the recycling/composting regulations. continue

The World Car Free network www.worldcarfree.net is urging people around the world take the heat off the planet by giving up their cars for one day. International Car Free Day is September 22, and the organization, which promotes green transportation alternatives, is hoping that one day can turn into a week, then a month, and, eventually, a smaller carbon footprint for everyone.

According to the Environmental Defense Fund www.edf.org, the U.S. has 30 percent of the world’s cars but emits 45 percent of the world’s global automotive CO2 emissions; an estimated 450 million tons are emitted by personal vehicles alone.

So, on the 22nd, give your car the day off. Hop a subway or ride a bike. The planet will be grateful.

Guest writer Phil Pitchford, CQ Media Group, LLC

Riverside, California is planning to convert a former landfill into a photovoltaic (PV) farm that produces solar energy. But city officials were concerned that some residents might oppose the project, so they held a community meeting and erected E-Z Up tents so residents could see just where the solar panels would be. continue

To learn how your city compares to other cities your size check out Smarter Cities , a project of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The mission of Smarter Cities is to nudge cities towards friendly competition about sustainability. The website has a wealth of information about best practices and ideas cities are employing to become greener. You can even take a quiz to see how city smart you are about urban rehabilitation, sprawl, green space, green building, renewable energy, energy conservation, water, transportation, food, recycling and air.
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If you live in Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Kansas City, St. Louis, Louisville, Milwaukee or Minneapolis/St. Paul, you just got one step closer to a high-speed rail system that would link those cities in what will be called the Chicago Hub High Speed Rail (or Midwest) Corridor.
According to Environment News Service , a meeting of Midwest governors and rail executives, hosted by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Chicago Mayor Richard Dailey, has resulted in an agreement that establishes a Midwest steering group to coordinate each state’s individual applications and to lobby the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for funding under the Obama Administration’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. President Obama has targeted $8 billion to jump-start a high-speed passenger rail system, along with five years’ worth of $1 billion budget requests.
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If your city is looking for ways to reduce vehicle emissions, the Urban Land Institute has published Moving Cooler: An Analysis of Transportation Strategies for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions,  a look at the importance of sustainable land development in mitigating climate change.
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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.

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]