We ran across this awesome infographic (thanks to our friends at SustainableUtah) that helps you understand how much water you consume in your everyday life. So, you want to save water? Start by understanding just how much water goes into your cup of coffee or glass of milk. Then check out their creative suggestions to reduce your water usage!
Infographic from LochNess Water Gardens
Reduce and Reuse!
Did you know that over 1,300 tons of garbage is buried in the Salt Lake Valley Landfill every day?
Salt Lake City residents already have access to no less than four waste bins (garbage, mixed recycling, compost/yard waste and glass). Proper use of these bins is crucial to waste diversion, which is a technical term that basically means that the more waste we recycle in one form or another, the less garbage fills up the landfill.
But before recycling comes reduce and reuse. Everyone can reduce waste by incorporating some simple choices in their everyday shopping patterns.
Strategies include:
We have some great tips on reusable products like water bottles and tote bags, reducing junk mail and environmentally preferable purchasing on our SLCGreen website.
Do you have any questions? Let us know!
Salt Lake City has declared 2013 the “Year of the Bike” to recognize and promote the many bicycle events, programs, and infrastructure projects happening in the Salt Lake region in the coming year.
We caught up with Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, Salt Lake City Councilman Stan Penfold, UTA General Manager Mike Allegra, UDOT Deputy Director Carlos Braceras and several other community leaders at the Year of the Bike kick-off event to hear about what’s in store.
At the event, UTA shared two exciting announcements – buses will now have bike racks that accept three bikes at a time (expanded from two) and bike hooks will be added to TRAX trains across the valley!
So what else is on the schedule?
More information is available at BikeSLC.com.
Think spring!
Next Thursday, February 28th, hundreds of Utahns will flock to Ogden to take part in the 4th Annual Intermountain Sustainability Summit.
The Intermountain Sustainability Summit 2013 is a premier event providing exceptional educational programs, networking, and trade show opportunities for government representatives, sustainability, energy, and solid waste professionals, students, politicians and interested public.
Sessions will be broken out into three topic areas:
Keynote speaker is L. Hunter Lovins, president and founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions (NCS). NCS educates senior decision makers in business, government and civil society about the principles of sustainability, and shows how to restore and further enhance natural and human capital while increasing prosperity and quality of life.
Registration is still open for this fantastic local sustainability event. Don’t miss out on a great opportunity to learn, share and network with other Utahns working towards a more sustainable future.
Be social: RSVP to the Facebook event.
Seriously. We do.
The ability to take a large segment of Salt Lake City’s waste, prevent it from filling up our landfill, and then use it to make gardens thrive, is a miraculous thing in our eyes.
Composting is nature’s way of recycling. You can turn fruit, veggies, grass, branches and leaves into dark, crumbly and sweet-smelling soil amendment. It saves you money by lowering your garbage bill (switch to a smaller waste bin and save) and helps you avoid purchasing expensive commercial fertilizers.
Salt Lake City residents have two great options – curbside compost or home composting.
Curbside Compost: Also known as the yard waste program, or the tan can, curbside composting is made easy with a 90 gallon bin picked up weekly. Currently the tan can is “vegan” – meaning it only accepts green waste. The wheels are in motion to expand curbside composting to accept more forms of food waste, so stay tuned! In the meantime, maximize your curbside bin with tea bags and coffee grounds.
Home Compost: Enjoy the spoils of your composting efforts at home! Build your own composting bin and watch your garden thrive. More home composting tips.
With two easy ways to get the job done, we bet you will ♥ compost too!
With so much talk about Salt Lake City’s poor air quality, it might feel like everyone else is telling you what to do—drive less, walk more, don’t idle, stay inside, think green. While individual actions play a crucial role in reducing the pollutants that get trapped in our valleys, you’re not the only one who can and should make a difference.
At SLCGreen, we recognize that only through collective action at every level and in every sector can we see real change.
Here are just some of the things the City of Salt Lake has been doing to reduce its own emissions in an effort to clear the air:
LEED Silver Standards for all new city buildings and major renovations. Meeting these minimum standards reduces the impacts of construction, sources more sustainable materials, and improves water and energy consumption throughout the life of the building. The latest example is the new Public Safety building on 500 South, which will generate as much electricity as it consumes, making it the first public safety building of its kind in the nation.
City and County Building Efficiency Upgrades. Recognizing that much of our electricity comes from burning coal, we’ve been working over the last decade to reduce the electricity consumed by our existing buildings. The City-County building downtown, home to the Mayor’s office, has reduced its electricity consumption by 840,000 kilowatt hours per year thanks to upgraded lighting and building systems. This is a reduction equivalent to the electricity consumed by 89 homes in one year.
Solar installation on the top of The Leonardo, with a view of the Salt Lake City-County Building.
Fuel Efficient City Vehicles. The city has a lot of vehicles out on the streets that contribute green house gas emissions along with everyone else. To curb our carbon, we’ve introduced 16 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks to replace diesel sanitation trucks, added 5 hybrids and 2 rechargeable electric cars to the Police Department fleet, and changed over 25% of the Airport’s vehicles to CNG.
Thanks to the Sustainable SLC Plan 2015, this is just the beginning. Read more about doing your part.
Mark your calendars! The e2 Business program is excited to announce that it will be hosting this month’s Green Drinks event on February 25th.
Green Drinks is a local organization that coordinates monthly gatherings of Salt Lake City’s sustainability community, where guests can network, socialize, enjoy locally sourced beer and food and learn about the region’s newest sustainability initiatives and organizations.
For February’s event, the e2 program is excited to showcase its nearly 100 member businesses, discuss the program’s current successes and introduce new program initiatives for 2013. Food will be provided by Zest Kitchen & Bar, with beer from Unsacred Brewery.
This is a great opportunity to come and meet the people behind Salt Lake City’s green businesses, share some ideas and enjoy great food and drink. We hope to see you there!
Salt Lake City’s e2 Business program is dedicated to helping Salt Lake’s business community run in a more environmentally and economically sustainable manner. Nearing 100 members, the e2 Business program is an excellent way for like-minded businesses from all sectors to share ideas, make connections and receive advice from Salt Lake City’s staff experts. Learn more about the e2 Business program.
Yesterday, SLCGreen took a trip to the Utah State Capitol for a media event hosted by Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, Ogden City Mayor Mike Caldwell and the Salt Lake Chamber’s Ryan Evans. The purpose of the event was to voice their support for state and local actions to help improve air quality, and to present a list of recommendations that would result in less air pollution.
Among the actions recommended:
What are you thoughts on the recommendations listed above? What would you like to see from the Utah State Legislature this session?
Last fall, Salt Lake City unveiled a program that promised to be an instant hit with Salt Lake City residents: curbside glass recycling.
For a $6 monthly fee, residents receive a 35 gallon recycling bin exclusively for glass, eliminating the need to haul glass to drop off sites and making it easier for all residents to recycle their glass waste.
We are now three months into the program, and the response has been great! Over 1,400 residents have subscribed to the first phase of the project (State Street to 2200 East, city limits south and north, plus the Avenues and Capitol Hill).
The response has been so positive that the curbside program will go citywide this April! If you live west of State Street or east of 2200 East, make sure to sign up to receive your bin (you will need your water bill account number).
About 130 tons of glass is now being recycled per month in the city, a number that is expected to increase when phase two rolls out this spring.
Residents are impressed with the curbside service provided by Salt Lake City contractor Momentum Recycling. We heard from one subscriber who couldn’t believe that their glass bin was picked up, on time, during the height of the January snowstorms:
@dougums1979: Glass recycle bin stuck behind snowbank & not full so I didn’t place on curb. SLC picked it up anyway! Impressed!
What is your experience with the curbside glass program?
One of the most widely recommended actions to protect your health when the air quality takes a turn for the worse is to limit your outdoor activities.
Sensitive groups (children, seniors and people with heart and lung conditions) are recommended to reduce their outdoor activities when PM2.5 pollution levels reach 35.5 µg/m3. This winter those days have been frequent. Everyone receives the same recommendation when PM2.5 reaches 55.5 µg/m3. View current conditions.
The truth is that it is up to you when to decide to limit and avoid outdoor activities. But knowledge is very important, and we want to make sure you have the right tools to make this decision.
One of the latest blog posts on the U.S. EPA’s Greenversations blog pays special attention to the health effects of particulate matter (PM) pollution. In honor of Heart Health Month, EPA’s toxicologists are shining a light on the sound scientific proof that PM can impact heart health, particularly for those with existing cardiovascular disease (these people fall into the “sensitive groups” category).
Here is an excerpt:
“As EPA scientists, we make sure the most recent and scientifically sound research is used to protect the public’s health from the harmful effects of air pollution. Over the last 20 years, thousands of scientific studies have reported that breathing in fine PM can lead to harmful effects on the heart, blood, and blood vessels. These studies show that exposure to PM can cause premature death, strokes, heart attacks, and cardiac arrest for people who are already at risk.” Read more.
So, how can residents stay active when the air quality goes south? One solution is to escape the valley for the clean air (and often warmer temperatures and sunny skies) of the mountains. Another is to be active indoors.
Salt Lake City Sports Complex (courtesy of Salt Lake County Parks & Recreation)
In a recent decision, the Salt Lake County Council is making it easier for residents to maintain their healthy exercise routine when the air quality turns poor by offering reduced rec center fees on bad pollution days.
Effective immediately, on days deemed “unhealthy” by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, rec center fees at the nearly 20 facilities across the county will be discounted from $4.50 to $2.25. Find the rec center nearest you.
One last plea: consider taking public transportation or carpooling when you head to your nearest center to get some exercise!