PCE Superfund Community Meeting on October 26, 6:30 pm

pce-plume-cag-meeting

On October 26, the EPA and Veterans Administration will be speaking at a community meeting to update residents about the PCE Superfund plume at 700 South 1600 East.

Background is available here: http://pceplume-700s1600e.net/
A Map of the plume site is available here: http://www.slcdocs.com/ced/plume.pdf

At this time, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the site’s potentially responsible party, is headed into a critical step of the Superfund process called the Remedial Investigation Report. Two critical assessments for the community—a Public Health Assessment (PHA) and Risk Assessment (RA)—will be included in this report. Attend the Wednesday, October 26th PCE Plume meeting to become informed and engaged at this critical juncture. Learn, recommend and have questions answered about:

• What is a Superfund Public Health Assessment and Risk Assessment?
• Why is a public health assessment required?
• When the Public Health Assessment will be conducted
• Site specific information on Risk Assessment
• How Risk Assessment factors into project decisions and,
• Differences between the Public Health Assessment and Risk Assessment

Project Presenters
Mr. David Dorian – Environmental Health Scientist – Regional Representative for Region 8
Mr. Mike Novak – Senior Technologist at CH2M

HOSTED BY: Advocates for VA Groundwater Plume Resolution – a COMMUNITY ADVISORY GROUP (CAG) for 700 South 1600 East Federal Superfund Site. Barbara Jones, Chair.

Questions? Contact Robin Carbaugh, 801.870.1428

“Leave your Leaves!” This Fall, try mulching your leaves at home

shred-leaves

Recycling? Check!

Bringing your reusable bag?  Double-check!

Proudly displaying your idle-free sticker? Yup!

Mulching at home?  Huh??

Did you know that one of sustainability’s best practices is to “leave leaves alone”?   

In the fall, when autumn brings a chill to the air, and Salt Lake’s oaks and elms and other deciduous trees drop their leaves, many of us turn on the blowers, haul out the rakes, and get ready for some serious work.

But—have you considered an alternative?  Using some or all of your leaves to mulch your yard or garden?

We’d like to invite you to do just that.

Feeding leaves back into your soil is a cost-effective and natural way to enrich your yard, as well as to protect fall plants and vegetables from the cold.

Curious?  Here are some tips for making the most of our autumnal deluge:

Continue reading →

Glass Recycling: Providing Possibility

by Tera Clausen

There is no such thing as away when it comes to waste. It is out of sight out of mind, but it is never truly gone. When things are thrown away, they go to a landfill to pile up in a heap. Some of the items will eventually break down, while many others will not. The reality of the trash heap can be summed up in a word: hopelessness. It is the end of the road, and the possibilities of re-creation and re-purposing are gone. However, recycling brings back possibility.

As the newest intern at SLC Green, my first official order of business was to tour some of the recycling facilities for Salt Lake City. This tour was a front row seat to possibility. One of the stops for the SLCgreen crew was Momentum Recycling. Momentum was founded in 2008, and in 2012 became the exclusive glass recycler for Salt Lake City.

In 2012, Momentum was bringing in about 200 tons of recycled glass. In the past four years, since expanding their curbside services, they now bring in approximately 1,000 tons per month! I will be honest, it was overwhelming to see how many glass bottles were waiting to be sorted and recycled, but the beauty of possibilities also struck me. Instead of hopelessly ending in a landfill, these items could become something new and useful.

Continue reading →

Salt Lake City and Rocky Mountain Power reach agreement on ambitious clean energy goals for city

Today, Mayor Jackie Biskupski sent to the Salt Lake City Council for their consideration the franchise agreement between Salt Lake City and Rocky Mountain Power, the City’s electricity provider. The franchise agreement has been under negotiation for more than a year, and complements a Clean Energy Cooperation Statement that the Administration and utility signed a few weeks ago.

The Clean Energy Cooperation Statement between Rocky Mountain Power and Salt Lake City lays out how the utility and the City will work together to reach ambitious clean energy goals, and pave the way for the adoption of the new five-year Franchise Agreement between Salt Lake City and Rocky Mountain Power. The previous 25-year Franchise Agreement expired in January 2016. Continue reading →

Salt Lake City Community Members Launch U Drive Electric

 

In a joint press conference, the University of Utah and Salt Lake City today announced the launch of an electric vehicle purchase program extending discounts on multiple makes and models of vehicles. The second round of U Drive Electric offers U community members and Salt Lake City community members the opportunity to purchase or lease electric and plug-in-hybrid vehicles at discounted prices through Oct. 31, 2016.

This joint program is aimed at improving air quality and community health both today and for future generations. With almost 50 percent of Utah’s urban air pollution coming from tailpipe emissions, electric vehicles represent an important tool for improving air quality along the Wasatch Front.
Continue reading →

A Visit to Rocky Mountain Recycling

Written by Lancee Whetman

 

Soda bottles, boxes, and aluminum cans…oh my!  What you throw in your blue bin actually matters and will likely end up at facilities like Rocky Mountain Recycling (RMR) to be processed, sorted, and sent to companies for reuse.

With locations spanning across 11 states, RMR has a reputation for excellence in their field, as they recycle tens of thousands of tons each month and have continually achieved awards for Best of State in Utah.  They provide innovative recycling services to commercial and industrial companies all over the United States as well as curbside recycling for Salt Lake City Residents.

As an intern with Salt Lake’s Department of Sustainability, I had the opportunity to visit and tour RMR’s facility in Salt Lake and inquire about what occurs behind the scenes in our city’s day-to-day recycling operations.  RMR does not usually give tours due to safety concerns, so with my closed-toed shoes, neon colored vest, and protective eyewear, I was ready to get my sneak peak of where the city’s recycling goes. 

Continue reading →

Mayor Biskupski and local gardeners celebrate Liberty Wells Community Garden’s first harvest

liberty_wells

Photo by Kyle Strayer

Mayor Jackie Biskupski commemorated the first season of the new Liberty Wells Community Garden on 1700 South and 700 East in a press conference with Wasatch Community Gardens and local gardeners on Tuesday, August 30th.

As the latest addition to Salt Lake City’s Green City Growers program, the Liberty Wells Garden is run by the non-profit Wasatch Community Gardens on city-owned land and provides plots for 44 gardeners to grow vegetables.

“Liberty Wells neighbors, including some of our newest resident refugee families, have come together to share knowledge and friendship, which produced this beautiful and sustainable garden,” Mayor Biskupski said. “We have put vacant land to good use while improving the community and good will at the same time.”

The Liberty Wells Garden broke ground in April, after site selection and approval from the city. The plot now has 44 gardeners, with a wait list of 29.

“We’ve been amazed to see the enthusiasm and positive energy put forth by the gardeners who make up our new Liberty Wells Community Garden,” said Ashley Patterson, Executive Director of Wasatch Community Gardens.

Britt Vanderhoof spends hours at the Liberty Wells garden each week.  “As an avid gardener, I’ve enjoyed the health benefits of eating fresh, organic, locally grown food. But as much as I love the taste of food fresh from the garden, I have enjoyed even more seeing the community around the Liberty Wells Community Garden come together to help grow this amazing garden into what it is today.”

Salt Lake City’s Green City Growers Program began in 2013 to support local food production on city property.  The city continues to evaluate parcels for potential garden sites as demand increases.

News stories:

Salt Lake Tribune

Deseret News

For more information please visit:

www.slcgreen.com/communitygardens

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jH-pp1RhPvM&w=560&h=315]

 

 

A Visit to the Urban Greens Market

Words and photos by Kyle Strayer

“We Grow Gardeners” is painted inside the vividly decorated and modified school bus that houses the mobile Urban Greens Market part of the time. This slogan is apt for the market, considering the intentions of the organizations which have allowed it to prosper.

I took a visit to the Market last week, to learn more about the organizations that run it and where all this great food is coming from.  (Reminder, you can find the weekly schedule here),

The Urban Greens Market is program overseen by Salt Lake City’s Sustainability Department in partnership with the local non-profits Green Urban Lunch Box, Real Food Rising, (a project of Utah Community Action), and Utahns Against Hunger.

Its goal is to provide affordable, fresh produce in areas along the west side of Salt Lake City, which are classified as food deserts by the USDA.

Each of the non-profit partners have slightly different missions but are coming together to rejuvenate farming for the next generation, and provide access to healthy food for more people.

For The Green Urban Lunch Box, the issue is our dwindling supply of farmers. With only 9 percent of farmers in Utah under the age of 35, the need for new farmers is greater than ever. Continue reading →

U.S. Senator Visits SLC to Discuss Climate Change Action

 

This week, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, visited with SLCgreen staff, Mayor Jackie Biskupski and community members to discuss collective action on climate change.

Senator Whitehouse is a leading advocate for climate action in the Senate.  As a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and co-founder of the Senate Climate Action Task Force, he is at the heart of the policy discussions being had on this issue at our nation’s capital.  He’s also promoting solutions.

He introduced legislation to put a fee on carbon, establishing a market incentive to reduce emissions while generating substantial revenue to be returned to the American people.

This week, Sen. Whitehouse came to Utah to see how climate change is affecting our environment and economy, impacting everything from our water supply to our $1 billion ski industry. At a round table on Tuesday, he met with City  leaders to learn more, as well as to discuss SLC’s recent Climate Positive initiative and Joint Resolution which was introduced on July 12, 2016.

Sen. Whitehouse talks with Salt Lake City Sustainability Director Vicki Bennett

Sen. Whitehouse meets with Salt Lake City Sustainability Director Vicki Bennett. Photo credit: Jeri Gravlin

“Salt Lake City’s leaders get that climate change is real and already having an effect on their city,” said Sen. Whitehouse. 

Continue reading →