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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

Minority women in New York’s South Bronx are turning three acres of “scruffy marginal land” into an herb and vegetable paradise. According to Treehugger.com, La Finca Del Sur, the “Farm of the South,” is an urban farmer cooperative with a goal of providing affordable, fresh produce to the community, while encouraging healthy living and educating the public about the environment and social equity. continue

Think your town is too small to go big into sustainability? Think it takes too much money to make a real statement? Think again. Ashton Hayes, a village in Northwest England, is becoming a global model for how to live sustainably. And it’s doing so in ways that any town, no matter how small, can emulate.

The village has made becoming the country’s first zero carbon emissions community its goal, according to a piece by Sarah Mukherjee, environment correspondent for BBC News. continue

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.

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by Elizabeth Johnson

Long before fuel prices commanded the attention they do now, planners in Arlington County, Virginia, created a well-organized transit system which dramatically reduces vehicle miles traveled today. This tradition of innovation continues with effective programs, impressive results, national awards and a broad view toward even greater results. With abundant cheap power, the cost of energy has never been a major concern for the state of Virginia. The state government has not taken a strong role in energy conservation, and there has been little incentive for local governments to do so. Yet while much of the nation is just beginning to grapple with the effects of peak oil and other associated environmental challenges, Arlington County is emerging as a regional and national leader in sustainable energy-conservation policies. How did it happen that Arlington County acted with such intelligent foresight and innovation, especially with some of the lowest energy costs in the nation? And what can other local governments learn from the Arlington County experience? Read the full article in the September 2008 issue of CitiesGoGreen magazine