Tag Archives: green

Indiana Ave Green Waste Fire

Late last night a pile of green waste (tree branches, grass, etc.) ignited, possibly due to a lightening strike. A quick response from the Salt Lake City Fire Department and separation of the pile by Salt Lake City Public Services limited the scope of the fire. FOX13 media story.

SLCgreen was onsite this morning to survey the area. 

Enjoy a Green 4th of July!

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The Fourth of July is just around the corner, and SLCgreen staff have a few tips for residents who want to make their celebrations a little greener.

  1. Use durable goods instead of disposable. Please, just say “no” to disposable plates, cups and utensils. Instead, bring out the readily available dishes from your very own kitchen! Sure, they require more cleanup, but you’ll be saving money and reducing waste. If you need to use disposables:
    • Consider reusing disposable goods for another summer get-together to reduce your impact.
    • Please note that compostable plates and utensils are currently not accepted through Salt Lake City’s Curbside Compost Program (i.e. your tan can), so steer clear.
  2. Provide drinks in large dispensers. It’s going to be a steamy Fourth of July this year, but instead of offering bottled water (and all of the plastic waste that comes along with it), put out drink dispensers that can be used to fill up your guests reusable water bottles or recyclable cups. This concept can also apply to any other beverages offered at your celebration – fewer bottles means less waste!
  3. Skip the personal fireworks. A controversial suggestion, we know. But the air pollution from fireworks can be tough on our valley’s air quality. Even sparklers have high concentrations of air pollution (read the scientific study). Consider air-friendly decorations that can be stored and reused next year instead. Need inspiration? The Daily Green has some great ideas.
  4. Choose air-friendly transportation. Can you bike or walk to your 4th of July celebration, or your yearly neighborhood fireworks show? Many homes in Salt Lake City offer a nice view from the convenience of your very own roof! We suggest that you skip the headache of parking and help reduce air pollution on a holiday that is especially prone to it. At the very least – carpool!
  5. Use a gas grill instead of charcoal. Propane gas grills heat up faster and have a whole lot less polluting emissions than charcoal grills. Read on to learn more at Earth911.com.
  6. Recycle, of course!  When the party is over, be sure to recycle plastics, cardboard, cans and glass in the appropriate containers. Salt Lake City residents can put most recyclable materials into their blue curbside bin, and residents that subscribe to curbside glass service have an easy way to get the job done. Glass dropoff sites are also located throughout Salt Lake City.

More Resources

The Daily Green has a very comprehensive Fourth of July Green Guide available on their website. We particularly love:

While you are there, also take a look at their Declare Your Independence piece.

SLCgreen in the Community

Every spring through fall, SLCgreen takes advantage of event season to engage with the community and spread the word about all things green in Salt Lake City.

Here are a few shots of where the SLCgreen booth has landed so far — keep your eyes peeled for our logo at your next community event. Do you have one we should know about? Email us!

Our Guide to Home Composting

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Composting is nature’s way of recycling. Just think about it — you can turn fruit, vegetables and yard waste into dark, crumbly, sweet-smelling soil amendment. Compost helps your garden and plants, saves water and saves landfill space. That’s what we call a win-win-win. Read on to learn about the benefits and basics of home composting.

The Benefits

Here they are:

  1. Saves you money by lowering garbage bills and replacing your need for commercial fertilizers and compost.
  2. Helps your garden and your plants thrive. Compost has also been shown to decrease pest infestations.
  3. Saves water by helping the soil hold moisture and reducing water runoff.
  4. Benefits the environment by recycling valuable organic material and extending the life of our landfill.

There are many methods of composting, just as there are many ways to cook. Your compost bins will be filled with the leftovers from what you eat and what you grow in your yard.

The Basics

SLCgreen tip: A balance of brown and green material, air and water is needed to make compost.

flowersBrown Material — Brown, dry yard and garden materials provide the carbon needed for your pile. Chop or shred large pieces. The smaller the pieces, the faster the compost. Examples include dried grass clippings, leaves, flowers and/or shrub prunings, twigs, hay, sawdust, shredded paper, pine needles* and weeds that have not gone to seed**. Woody branches should be chipped.

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Green Material — Green materials provide the nitrogen for your pile. When adding food scraps, cover with brown material to avoid potential odors or pest problems. Examples include peels, rinds, vegetable and fruit waste, coffee grounds w/filter, tea bags, egg shells, hair, fresh grass clippings, chicken/horse/rabbit/cow manures.

* 10% Rule. If you are unsure about a material such as pine needles or eucalyptus, only add 10% to your mix.
** SLCgreen tip: If there is a weed that you do not want in your yard, DO NOT add it to your compost pile.

Do Not Compost — Meat, bones, dairy products, greasy foods, diseased plants, treated lumber, pesticide treated leaves and grass, weeds spread by runners (i.e. morning glory), weeds gone to seed and NEVER add cat or dog waste. Trust us on that one.

Air — Your compost pile needs air for materials to break down. Aerating can by done using a garden fork or broomstick to turn or poke holes in the pile.

SLCgreen tip: Bacteria, fungus and insects that live in your compost need oxygen to work. Sufficient oxygen keeps your pile sweet smelling.

Water — Use liquids to dampen layers when building your pile. Keep your pile as damp as a wrung out sponge. Remember, in addition to water, you can add moisture by tossing in old juice, tea, coffee (w/o dairy), flat soda and other beverages.

How Does it Work?  Believe it or not, bugs, worms and microorganism play a crucial role in helping your compost pile break down quickly. They create tunnels that aerate your pile and digest organic materials, adding nutrients to your compost. A compost pile may not appear to be active, but most of this is happening inside the center while the outer layers are acting as insulation.

SLCGreen_compostIs it Done Yet? Compost may be finished if it looks dark and crumbly and smells earthy instead of moldy or rotten. Depending on the method you use and how much maintenance you put into it, you could have compost in as little as 3 months or as long as a year.

SLCgreen tip: The more you fuss with and turn the pile, the faster your compost will happen!

The Bins

Wire hoop bins are easy and fairly inexpensive to build and keep your yard waste compost pile tidy. Here is a simple how-to.

Wood frame bins are low-cost containers for yard waste and easy to build. The bins can be made rodent proof by adding a lid so you can add food waste. Recycled fences or old pallets work well. How-to build your own from reclaimed wood.

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Three bin or turning units allow waste to be turned on a regular schedule. They are good for gardeners with a large volume of yard waste. This method produces a high-quality compost in a short time if you work at it.

Manufactured bins. Go to CompostBins.com for current models. Most bins are made from recycled plastic, are smaller than 1 cubic yard, and have been designed for backyard use.

Tumblers are barrel-shaped units which can be rotated easily with very little effort. It is the most active way to compost and can yield product within a month.

Worm bins are an incredibly efficient way to convert kitchen scraps into nutrient-rich compost for your garden, flower boxes or landscape. In a healthy worm bin, one pound of worms will never leave your bin if you feed them one pound of food a day.

Or Not (Otherwise Known as No Bin Methods)

Pile composting can be done with or without support like fencing. Piles generally take longer to decompose and need more space.

Pits are 18 to 36 inches deep and 3 ft square. Be sure to cover. Consider two pits: fill one with new waste and harvest from the one you filled last year.

Sheet composting. Layer grass and leaves and let sit for the winter. Organic material will break down and add nutrients back into your soil.

Common Problems

Strong Odors
Cause: Not enough air.
Solution: Aerate compost weekly.

Too Wet & Soggy
Cause: Too much water.
Solution: Add dried grass or straw and aerate compost weekly.

Wet & Not Composting
Cause: Not enough nitrogen-rich green material.
Solution: Add fresh grass clippings and aerate compost weekly.

Dry & Not Composting
Cause: Not enough water.
Solution: Add water and green material.

Ammonia Smell
Cause: Too much nitrogen.
Solution: Add dry leaves, straw or sawdust and aerate compost weekly.

Too Many Grass Clippings
Solution: Start grass recycling by leaving clippings on the lawn after each mowing.

Too Much Yard Waste & Large Limbs
Solution: Use your curbside compost bin, provided at no additional charge for all Salt Lake City residents.

Green Guide to the Utah Arts Festival

It’s that time of year again! The 2013 Utah Arts Festival kicks off today, Thursday, June 20th and runs through Sunday, June 24th.

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We love this annual gathering in the heart of Salt Lake City that celebrates art in its many forms – from paintings to pottery, music to performance art, delicious food and drink and much much more!

The Utah Arts Festival places a priority on reducing its impact on the environment, with their eARTh Team spearheading this effort.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Last year the Festival recycled more than 18 tons of plastic and cardboard and 2 tons of glass! When you visit the Festival this weekend, be sure to look for the Waste Wise Stations located throughout the venue and dispose of your waste accordingly.

Getting There

We recommend leaving your car at home, or at the very least carpooling, to this wonderful event. Skip the traffic altogether with our favorite air-friendly options:

Public Transit: Use the Library Station on the TRAX Red Line or the Courthouse Station on the Blue and Green TRAX lines. The 2, 205 and 228 also access Library Square.

Bike: Ride your bike to the Festival and enjoy free bike valet parking and $2 off admission! The bike valet is located on 400 South next to the City-County Building, mid-block between State Street and 200 East. During the 2012 Festival, over 1,566 bikes were parked at the valet lot. That’s a lot of cars that stayed home!

Powering the Festival

This year Rocky Mountain Power and its Blue Sky customers will help “green” the Utah Arts Festival even more by supporting renewable energy equal to the energy used to power the event. Support from Blue Sky customers is making it possible for the Festival to avoid 87,398 pounds of CO2 emissions. That’s like planting 1,027 trees or taking seven cars off the road for a whole year.

Other Green Tidbits

  • The Festival sends vegetable oil used at their food booths to a local business that converts it into bio-diesel.
  • Compostable food waste is also captured from food booths, diverting 700 pounds from the landfill last year alone.
  • Electric plug ins on Washington Square make gas generators a thing of the past.

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Stop by to say “hello!”

SLCgreen will be at the Arts Festival, so keep an eye out for our booth and be sure to stop by. We will have a wide variety of helpful information about all things green in SLC!

Travel Green This Summer

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School is out and the weather is heating up — it’s summertime in Salt Lake City!

Summer heralds a season travel, whether it is a day trip up into the mountains, a family road trip, a flight across the country or even an international adventure. Whatever your plans, we’ve put together some tips to help you green your travels.

  • Just say “no” to bottled water. Bring a reusable bottle, we recommend stainless steel. If you are traveling by plane, leave it empty through airport security and fill up once you are through. Lots of airports, including Salt Lake International, now have easy-to-use water filling stations.
  • Leave no trace. When visiting natural areas, including state and national parks, leave nothing but your footprints. Pack out your trash and resist the urge to take any natural “souvenirs” — accept from the gift shop of course!

Hotels

  • Stay at a green hotel, if there is one available. Or choose to support a locally-owned business, which generally keeps more money in the community. A simple Google search is a great place to start.
  • Reuse your towels and linens when staying at a hotel. Just like you would at home – hang up wet towels to air dry and then use them again! Your small action will help add up to some big water and energy savings.
  • Know your hotel’s recycling policy and be sure to sort your trash accordingly.
  • When you leave your room for a day full of adventure, turn off the air conditioning, lights and any electronic devices.

Eat Green

  • Eat at a local restaurant when traveling. The same theory applies here as to staying at a local hotel. Many local restaurants also source local, and more sustainable, ingredients for their meals.

Alternative Transit

  • Choose a nonstop flight if you can. More airtime equals more fuel consumed and a larger carbon footprint.
  • Skip the rental car and rent bikes. Check out America’s top 50 most bike-friendly cities.
  • If you are headed to a larger city, explore available public transportation. You’ll be traveling like a local!
  • If you do need to rent a car, consider carsharing options (available in most large cities) or rent the smallest, most fuel efficient vehicle possible.

Save Big, Stay Put!

  • Embrace the simplicity of the staycation. There are some great ideas on Pinterest and family blogs, including spending the day at a city pool or creating a picnic adventure at a favorite park.

Do you have any tips of your own? Share them here!

SmartTrips Rolls into SLC’s Fairpark Neighborhood

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A new program has rolled into the Fairpark neighborhood, offering free transit passes, pedometers, bike lights and more in an effort to convince residents to leave their cars at home in favor of walking, biking or taking public transit.

“One of the biggest barriers to adopting alternative transportation is feeling confident and comfortable enough to navigate the change in lifestyle, and that’s where SmartTrips comes in,” says Sara Rose Tannenbaum, SmartTrips program manager.

The aim of SmartTrips, a free Salt Lake City Green Program, is to provide educational materials and incentives to residents so that they explore ways to commute, run errands or get exercise in Salt Lake City without a car.

All Fairpark residents are eligible to sign up for SmartTrips kits. The idea behind these kits is to empower residents with the knowledge they need to embrace existing biking, walking and public transportation options.

SmartTrips_IconBesides offering helpful Fairpark-specific maps, schedules and tips, kits include a free bike light, pedometer, and 7-day unlimited UTA Tap-on-Tap-off pass, and coupon book to local businesses. Residents may also request custom bike and transit commute routes, or step-by-step guides including details such as transfer points, bus frequency and desirable bike lanes.

The Smart Trips program was launched last year in the East Liberty Park neighborhood and showed a 26% decrease in miles and trips driven by car with an 18% increase in environmentally preferable trips. Success has been similarly achieved in neighborhoods in Oregon, and Tennessee, Washington, as well as in Australia.

“With over 40% of trips in the US less than 2 miles, and 68% of these trips are driven in cars, there is a lot of potential to make changes close to home,” says Tannenbaum. “Any reduction in the amount of drive-alone car trips, especially in the Salt Lake Valley, helps to alleviate our impact on air quality and protect the health of our community.”

SmartTrips collaborates with local organizations to coordinate events that celebrate community and public/active transportation. On May 12th SmartTrips hosted a group bike ride to the opening day of the People’s Market at the International Peace Gardens. Neighbors joined Councilmember Kyle LaMalfa, and representatives from the Day-Riverside Library, SmartTrips and local bike shop Saturday Cycles. Of the fifteen participants, 10 visited the People’s Market for the first time, and 8 traveled on stretches of the Jordan River Trail that were new to them.

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Next month, SmartTrips will join the Jordan River Commission when they host a weed pull to remove the infamous bike tire-popping goatheads on Saturday July 13th from 9-11 a.m. Though only Fairpark residents can sign up for SmartTrips kits, all are invited to attend the community events.

“By choosing alternative transportation we become closer to our community, our city, and the people, businesses and resources that are a part of it,” says Tannenbaum. “We don’t get to know our neighbors behind a steering wheel. We meet them in our community gardens, at a local business, a local park, or even in passing on the sidewalk. When we get out of our cars, and start walking or biking, we begin to discover our surroundings and neighborhood in a whole new way.”

Do you live in Fairpark? Sign up for SmartTrips when you receive a SmartTrips postcard in the mail or register online.

Earth Day in SLC

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With Earth Day right around the corner (Monday, April 22nd) we wanted to share a few tips and events to help our residents green their lifestyle and commemorate this special day in Salt Lake City!

15 Earth Day Tips that Really Make a Difference

We spotted this excellent article on The Daily Green, and thought we would share their 15 tips to a greener lifestyle. We love how simple their recommendations are, and the fact that each of them can have an impact! Get the full scoop on The Daily Green.

  1. Avoid waste: recycle. Salt Lake City makes it easy to recycle common household waste with curbside mixed recycling and curbside glass.
  2. Give up plastic (and paper) bags. Bring your own reusable grocery bags and save money, energy and natural resources.
  3. Stop buying bottled water. Buy one reusable water bottle and save some serious cash. We recommend aluminum or stainless steel.
  4. Stop receiving unwanted catalogs. We have tips on stopping unwanted junk mail on our website.
  5. Give up conventional detergents. Natural cleaners have less chemicals and work effectively at cooler temperatures.
  6. Give up hot water (at least in the clothes washer). About 90% of the energy used during a wash cycle is to heat the water.
  7. Give up the clothes dryer. Or optimize your dryer loads.
  8. Check for leaks in your toilet. Save water and money with a simple test.
  9. Use recycled toilet paper. It costs about the same as regular toilet paper.
  10. Give up paper towels. Invest in some reusable microfiber towels, which can be easily washed and reused again.
  11. Run a fully loaded dishwasher. Save energy and water when you skip partial loads.
  12. Lower the temp in your fridge. The fridge accounts for 10 to 15 percent of the average home energy bill each month!
  13. Give up 2 degrees. Set your thermostat to 78 degrees or more during the summer months.
  14. Give up dry cleaning. Check the labels when you purchase new clothes.
  15. Stop wasting gas! Be idle free, avoid jack rabbit starts and stops and check your tire pressure.

Earth Week @ The U

The University of Utah is celebrating Earth Week with a variety of events. View the Earth Week schedule. 

Get Involved in SLC

Service in the City has created an excellent handout that outlines a variety of events and other opportunities in conjunction with Earth Day 2013. Check it out and get involved! (PDF)

Earth-Day-2013

Live Green Returns to SLC May 4

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Photo courtesy of Live Green SLC: http://livegreenslc.com

Mark your calendar to join us at next month’s Live Green SLC! Festival on Saturday, May 4th at the beautiful downtown Library Square!

Admission is completely free to this outdoor event, which showcases ideas for sustainable living. From cutting edge renewable energy to backyard food production – you’ll be able to explore everyday solutions that can be implemented in your own home!

There will be free green goodies to first 1,000 attendees, plus live bands, an Eco-Chic fashion show, kids’ activities, green auctions, interactive exhibits, a solar powered food and beer pavilion and much, much more!

Join the Online Super Green Contest for your chance to walk away with some super green prizes. More than $1,000 in prizes will be given away.

The festival is looking for volunteers, please let them know if you are interested.

Be sure to stop by the SLCGreen booth to say hello and get information on our programs, services and living green in Salt Lake City. We’ll see you there!

Open Streets

Enjoy 1.5 miles of downtown streets opened exclusively to walking, biking, and other activities on Saturday, May 4th from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on 300 South/Broadway.

Open Streets events temporarily open a series of city streets exclusively to walking, jogging, bicycling, rollerblading, and more. These events encourage new people to try walking and bicycling in a comfortable and fun environment. Supporting activities regularly include exercise classes, dance classes, yoga, aerobics, sports, and family-friendly games and activities.

Get the scoop at the Open Streets SLC Facebook page.

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