Tag Archives: utah

Students Who Care About the Air Contest

 

Calling all Utah students who care about the air!

Share your ideas for ways to educate your friends and family about being idle free and be eligible for cash prizes. Students are encouraged to submit their essays, photos, videos or artwork.

Entries are due on or before March 5, 2014. More details and entry submissions are available at StudentsWhoCareAbouttheAir.com.

We love it! Get creative, kids…

air_contest 21

Are you ready to Ride with Hive?

HivePassBanner

The city is buzzing!

HivePassLogo_blue

The Hive Pass, Salt Lake City’s new annual UTA pass exclusively for city residents, launches on March 1, 2014.

The pilot program is the result of a partnership between Salt Lake City and UTA and will offer city residents an annual transit pass at a deep discount — just $360 a year!

There are two options for pass payment:

  • $350 full payment to cover the entire year ($10 discount for full payment)
  • $360 payable in $30 monthly installments

Stay tuned for details on purchasing locations. You can explore frequently asked questions about the Hive Pass at RidewithHive.com.

Be the first to know! If you are super excited to get your hands on this pass (and who isn’t?), sign up to receive email alerts.

Join the conversation — use the #ridewithhive hashtag on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Mayor to Host Community Conversation on Air Quality Issues

Mayor Ralph Becker invites residents to join him and a panel of local policymakers for an informal community conversation about air quality issues on Wednesday, Feb. 5 from 6-8 p.m. at Sorenson Unity Center, 1383 S. 900 West.

Mayor Becker reiterated his commitment to working toward addressing the region’s ongoing air quality issues in his recent State of the City Address and outlined air quality-focused work Salt Lake City has accomplished during his administration, City efforts planned for the year ahead and the critical areas that require action by Utah state leaders.

Attendees will have an active role in the discussion as Mayor Becker and panel members answer questions, outline what is happening at the local level to improve air quality and what community members can do to help make a difference.

Joining Mayor Becker will be Salt Lake City Councilman Kyle LaMalfa, Salt Lake City Councilwoman and Breathe Utah Executive Director Erin Mendenhall and Salt Lake City Sustainability Director Vicki Bennett.

“I look forward to this opportunity to explore air quality issues with our residents and brainstorm on ways we can work together toward positive change,” said Mayor Becker. “Improving our dreadful pollution problem is going to require a wide-ranging collaborative effort that includes definitive action by state government in addition to ongoing efforts by municipal entities and all of us who call Utah home.”

This event is the first in a series of monthly gatherings at Sorenson Unity Center focused on issues important to Salt Lake City residents.

EVENT: Community Conversations with Mayor Becker

WHO: Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker
Salt Lake City Councilman Kyle LaMalfa
Salt Lake City Councilwoman and Breathe Utah Executive Director Erin Mendenhall
Salt Lake City Sustainability Director Vicki Bennett

WHERE: Sorenson Unity Center
1383 S. 900 West

WHEN: Wednesday, Feb. 5
6-8 p.m.

20140204-153712.jpg

Open Letter from Mayor Becker on Air Quality

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

As you may know, air quality has been a major focus of my work as mayor. My administration has been working on bringing greater attention to the issue and I’ve been advocating for aggressive, meaningful steps to that can be taken by Salt Lake City, state government, industry and individuals to help clean our air.

This is a complex problem and the only way we’re going to solve it is with a comprehensive solution. Let’s come together and fix this problem right away-we can’t wait, the time for talk is over, we need to take action.

Mayor Becker delivers his State of the City address on air quality to a packed house.

Mayor Becker delivers his State of the City address on air quality to a packed house.

During my recent State of the City Address on solving the air quality problem, I proposed key actions that must be taken in order to accomplish this goal.

With clean air as our goal, Salt Lake City has adopted anti-idling ordinances, more than doubled our bike lanes and introduced the City’s first solar farm. For the upcoming year, we are launching the City’s first-ever multiple transit pass and are creating an incentive program to phase out wood burning stoves.

In addition to what Salt Lake City is doing, I’ve also outlined what the state ought to do. Those actions should include:

  • Allocating More Money for Public Transit
    • Increased funding for public transit in Salt Lake City would allow for buses and trains to run more frequently. We must make it more affordable and accessible for individuals to drive less and ride more.
  • Making Lower Sulfur Gasoline a Requirement
    • Tier 3 gasoline has lower levels of sulfur and therefore helps decrease emissions. It is widely available to us but is not required. Mandating that it be required would provide an immediate impact on our air quality.
  • Requiring Buildings to Use Power Efficiently
    • Utah’s energy code standards date back to 2006, lagging far behind many national and international standards. Adopting an updated building code for energy efficiency would help reduce energy use and improve air quality.
  • Making the True Cost of Driving Transparent at the Pump
    • Gas prices have a significant impact on how much people drive their cars. Raising the gas tax would help pay for better roads while also encouraging less driving and improving air quality.
  • Allowing Utah to set Utah-specific air quality standards
    • Setting air quality standards tailored to Utah’s needs is imperative if we are to improve our air quality. Generic national conditions will not work in Utah, and we need to set air quality standards that will work for us.

These are real solutions that will not only produce tangible differences, but produce them quickly. We have received a great response from the community, and are looking to turn that response into results.

If the state is unable to do these things for any reason, I’ve asked that they grant local governments the ability to make these changes because we will get it done at the local level. Enough is enough.

There are 2 things that I would ask of you in order to help improve our air quality.

  1. Lobby your legislators — Ask them to support these measures that I am bringing up and consider the other proposals that will clean up our air.
  2. If they do not support these measures, ask your legislators to grant authority to the local level, so that we can take care of our own problems. We can get this done on the local level if the state can’t or won’t.

I would also implore you to work with your legislators, and not against them. To be effective and to make real change, we need to work together in a respectful and civil manner. While it is important to let your voice be heard, it is equally important to do so in a manner which conveys respect and encourages cooperation.

One of the most memorable moments of my State of the City speech was when a class of 4th graders from Whittier Elementary School took the stage and sang a song they wrote about the inversion and what needs to be done. Our children are, at the end of the day, the most important reason we must strive to clean our air and these kids said it better than anyone could. Watch the video.

There has been enough talk, and it is time for action. A change must be made, and it is up to each and every one of us to make that change.
I hope you will join me in the fight to help improve the air quality of Salt Lake City.

Warm Regards,

Ralph Becker
Mayor
P.S. If you were unable to attend my State of the City address in person, the full text of the speech and some additional information about the issue can be found here.
Also the Salt Lake City Tribune ran a terrific op-ed that discusses the ideas I laid out in my air quality address and if you’re interested, you can read it here.

FruitShare’s Guide to Maintaining Your Trees

IMG_0772Salt Lake City’s FruitShare program is growing leaps and bounds! Last year the program collected over 10,000 pounds of fresh local fruit from residential trees and put it into the hands of individuals with low access to healthy produce.

Even though the temperatures are brisk and your trees are bare, now is the time to think about participating in FruitShare in 2014!

Register new trees or volunteer to harvest (& enjoy a share of the bounty!)

Here is a timeline of 2014 FruitShare events and opportunities:

February – March:
Fruit Tree Pruning — If you’re interested in having your tree(s) pruned/trimmed, please send an email by February 15th and you will be added to our trimming list. Please note, we may not be able to get to some trees due to resources and or eligibility. Adding your tree to our list does not guarantee trimming service. We will inform you whether or not you will receive trimming service. A suggested donation of $25 is requested for this service to help cover the cost of providing this service.

March:
Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop — March 29, 2014 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Join Wasatch Community Gardens and Tree Utah for a lesson on fruit tree care. In this hands-on workshop you will learn about how to use your pruning tools. And, you will learn all about pruning and caring for your fruit trees. Attending this workshop or another fruit tree pruning class will make your tree(s) a priority on our harvest list.

May – June:
Thinning — Larger healthier fruit comes from coaxing the tree to put more energy into fewer of them – and therefore pulling off good fruit when they are small. Fruit thinning channels more of a tree’s attention to the fruit that remains. Thinning lessens weight on branches and helps manage pests and diseases that prefer fruit bunched close together. Thin the crop when developing fruits are about an inch in diameter. We need volunteers to help thin fruit trees. If you are interested in volunteering, please send us an email.

June – October:
Harvest time!

IMG_2007

Special Event: The Air We Breathe

The-Air-We-Breathe

On Tuesday, February 4, KUED and a variety of community partners will come together for an evening to explore “The Air We Breathe.”

The free community event begins with a preview of “The Air We Breathe,” a locally-produced, 30 minute documentary that examines Utah’s air quality.

Attendees will also hear from Robert Grow, Executive Director of Envision Utah, and have a Q&A with University of Utah Program for Air Quality, Health & Society Director Dr. Robert Paine.

SLCgreen will be there, and we hope you will too!

The Air We Breathe Film Screening & Event
Tuesday, February 4
7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
University of Utah
Huntsman Cancer Institute, Auditorium (6th Floor)
RSVP to the Facebook event

SmartTrips Rolls into a New Neighborhood

Are you dreaming of warmer days and bluer skies? So are we!

SLCgreen was recently awarded a grant from the Utah Clean Air Partnership (UCAIR) to fund our SmartTrips 2014 neighborhood! Even though it is hazy and cold outside, we’re moving full speed ahead with some exciting plans for 2014.

The newly launched SmartTripsSLC Instagram is making a splashy debut, hosting a series of images from the new neighborhood. Take a peek and see if you can #guesswhere in SLC!

Stay tuned for the neighborhood announcement and a new SmartTrips SLC blog chock full of awesome content.

In the meantime, see if you can guess the new SmartTrips 2014 neighborhood from the images below!

New Incubator Farm Launches this Spring

FarmBanner

Ponder this:

For every one farmer and rancher under the age of 25, there are five who are 75 or older, according to the Department of Agriculture.  If we do not support new and beginning farmers, who will grow our food into the future?

The Green Urban Lunchbox project is starting a new incubator (or community) farm in Layton, Utah this spring. What was once an abandoned orchard will be brought back to life as a place for new farmers to have access to land, water, tools and training.

“This is a great chance for people to get into farming, without all the cost,” says Green Urban Lunchbox founder and director Shawn Peterson. “Our plots will run from $150-500 a year and range in size from 1/8th of an acre to 1 acre.” Continue reading →

Mayor Becker Takes on Air Quality

On Wednesday, January 8, Mayor Ralph Becker gathered with residents, students and stakeholders to deliver his 2014 State of the City Address.

But instead of following tradition and sharing the administration’s accomplishments, Mayor Becker focused his entire speech on air quality.

The Mayor began by focusing on what Salt Lake City has already accomplished to reduce emissions and help clear the air. Efforts include the City’s Idle Free Ordinance, bike share, electric vehicle charging stations, biking infrastructure and the new net zero Public Safety Building. Read the full summary.

Then he outlined Salt Lake City’s next steps on air quality issues, including discount transit pass for city residents, creating an incentive program to replace woodburning stoves and phasing out inefficient maintenance equipment like 2 stroke engines. Read the full summary.

In some of the most compelling moments of the address, Mayor Becker outlined five clear requests for state government. These requests specifically deal with limitations that local governments face when combating air pollution. Part of the plea included the message “If this can’t be accomplished at the state level, let us. We at the local level can get it done.”

  1. Allocate more money for public transit. “We have to make it easier for people to use transit as an alternative to driving. We need more coverage that runs more frequently and costs less. Recent polling and many anecdotes I hear reinforce how difficult it is for most people to use transit. It just takes too long and is too inconvenient. And the only way to improve transit service is to better fund it. I urge our State to raise the cap on sales tax for transit. It should be a no-brainer. Or, if you are unwilling to do so, let us do it. Give us local control to fund transit. We at the local level can get it done.”
  2. Make lower sulphur gasoline available. “Tier 3 gasoline, as it is called, has lower levels of sulphur and therefore decreased emissions. It is mandated in other states and should be required for use along the Wasatch Front. This technology exists today to significantly reduce tailpipe emissions. Interestingly, one of our local refineries, Chevron, already produces Tier 3 gasoline, but it is shipped to Washington State because it’s is required there. Even our Salt Lake County Council of Governments endorsed the shift to Tier 3. Or, once again, if you are not willing to do that, let us make that determination locally.”
  3. Change state law to allow for standards that are relevant to Utah. “Do you all know that we have a state law that says our air quality standards here in Utah cannot be more strict than federal standards? Are we really okay with a standard that represents a passing grade for most other cities and states, but still allows us to fail? Since when are we content with Federal officials in Washington determining what’s best for the people of Utah? If this can’t be accomplished at the state level, give us local control over air quality standards so we can make them fit our local needs.”
  4. Make the true cost of driving transparent at the pump. “Gas prices directly affect whether people drive their cars more or less. According to a recent statewide survey, about half of Utahns would reduce vehicle use if gas cost an additional 25 to 75 cents per gallon. And, at an additional $1 per gallon, nearly two thirds would reduce their vehicle use and find other ways to run errands, get to work, and live their lives. If this can’t be accomplished at the state level, let us. We at the local level can get it done, and in fact local governments are united around a proposal for a local option gas tax increase.
  5. Require buildings to use power efficiently. Utah’s energy code standards date back to 2006. Since then, national and international building codes have been upgraded and have been proven to achieve a 30% improvement in energy efficiency. Many other jurisdictions across America have done this already. If state entities cannot or will not, let us do it. We can get it done locally.”

The event closed with the 4th grade ELP students from Whittier Elementary singing an original song called “The Frightful Inversion.” Watch the video below!

Additional Resources

Read a full transcript of the 2014 State of the City Address.

View images on SLCgreen Instagram.

Join the conversation! Use the #clearupslc hashtag on Twitter and Instagram.