2nd Green Revolution - Part 139

Brad Pitt Helps Rebuild a Greener New Orleans

by Eric Wilson on August 24th, 2009

Brad Pitt appeared on NBC’s The Today Show earlier this month showcasing the work his organization, Make It Right New Orleans, has done to help rebuild neighborhoods in New Orleans that were hardest hit after Hurricane Katrina nearly four years ago. Several of the parishes in the city remain devastated and have not benefited from investment and continued support. During his interview with The Today Show’s Ann Curry, the 15 home projects (with a goal of 150 by the end of 2010) already stands as the largest neighborhood of green homes in the nation. Furthermore, Pitt has teamed up with William McDonough + Partners to bring Cradle to Cradle design features to the homes being build.

Following up on a story from last week (on urban infill in Denver), Pitt’s project goes one step beyond the Denver development. In addition to building in the city with environmentally conscious products, the Make It Right New Orleans provides housing for those who cannot afford to rebuild after the storm. A few months ago, 2nd Green Revolution carried a story about toxic drywall, which was imported following the shortage that resulted from a post-Katrina building boom. Projects like Pitt’s help to ensure the health and well-being of the occupants by using products that do not leach chemicals into the ambient air.

In addition to Pitt’s efforts, Global Green, founded in 1994 by activist and philanthropist Diane Meyer Simon, has contributed to rebuilding New Orleans with a focus on sustainability. Global Green is “the American Arm of Green Cross International (GCI), which was created by President Mikhail S. Gorbachev to foster a global value shift toward a sustainable and secure future by reconnecting humanity with the environment.” Their mission is “to address some of the greatest challenges facing humanity. In the United States our work is primarily focused on stemming global climate change by creating green buildings and cities.” In New Orleans, they have worked to build the Holy Cross project, which includes 5 single family homes, an 18-unit apartment building, and a community center.

By working together, private and public organizations can rebuild cities in a more sustainable fashion. What happened in New Orleans was (and still is) a tragedy on many levels. However, repeating the same design flaws and energy intensive behaviors do not help to ameliorate the situation. Now is the time for the time to implement bold, sustainable practices for the future.

- Eric Wilson

[image source: GlobalGreen.org]

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Xcel Energy Eyes 2nd Solar Rebate Reduction in Less Than a Year

by Eric Wilson on August 22nd, 2009

The website “Environmental Leader” reported that Xcel Energy cut their per watt rebate by one dollar – 22% – to $3.50 (US) last October. At the time, the reduction was most noteworthy not for the dollar value, but the swiftness with which Xcel made the cut. According to the website’s report, the reduction occurred just 30 hours after it was announced. Now news comes that Xcel is considering another cut in the rebate.

REC Solar reported that “Xcel plans to reduce the rebate amount for the SolarRewards program in the next 30, 60, or 90 days.” According to the story, the reason for the three options was to avoid the onslaught of applications that Xcel received when they announced the short turn around in cutting their rebate back in October.

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Five Friday Facts

by Justin Manger on August 21st, 2009
  • h2_49.59.1Each person in America generates approximately 4.4 pounds (2kg) of municipal solid waste per day (and Coloradoans generate more than a third more than this amount averaging 6.88 pounds per day per person. (Colorado Association For Recycling, 2003).
  • Between 1990 and 1996 the recycling of steel food containers resulted in a costs savings of nearly 19 million BTU’s of energy and produced $57 million worth of material. (Office for the Federal Environmental Executive, 1998)
  • Recycling aluminum uses 95% less energy than producing aluminum from raw material. (Office for the Federal Environmental Executive, 1998).
    • Recycling old paper instead of using new timber to produce paper uses 60% less energy.
    • The energy saved from recycling steel each year alone is enough to power the City of Los Angeles for eight years.

    - 2nd Green Revolution

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Biodegradable Hotel Key Cards

by Justin Manger on August 20th, 2009

bioMost real keys to doors on hotel rooms have long since disappeared, replaced in large part by those plastic card keys we all know well. They’re light, easy to replace, cheap, fit nicely in your wallet and are an all around convenience. Plus, the hotel can safely and quickly issue a new card if it is lost or stolen, providing a security benefit.

Can they be improved upon? USFI, a company based in Dallas, TX, thinks they can. Green Earth bioPVC Key Card is a 100% biodegradable key card that “will begin to biodegrade in a landfill or compost in 18 months to 5 years” as it says on the back of the card. While 5 years may seem like a long time, many plastics can hang around for hundreds of years before really breaking down.

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The Glenarm: Green Homes on the Edge of Downtown Denver

by Eric Wilson on August 19th, 2009

The GlenarmDevelopments across the country are working to attain green status, but the best of these projects take into account materials as well as location. In Denver, The Glenarm (a development just off the downtown corridor) recently reduced its prices from $419,000 to $393,000, making the base unit more affordable. Last year, Denver Infill, which covers projects in the metro Denver area that fill in vacant lots (whether abandoned or underutilized) wrote about the project last year.

One of the unique features of The Glenarm is its location right off the light rail line and its easy accessibility to downtown. The development is situated between 21st Street and 22nd Street, a block behind The Queen Anne Bed and Breakfast (written about previously on 2nd Green Revolution).

The development will have numerous eco-conscious features, including:

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Japan’s “Mottainai” Culture Embraces Reusable Chopsticks

by Justin Manger on August 18th, 2009

img01Having spent two years in Japan teaching English with the JET Program, I can attest to the broad range of unusual, weird, and mostly delicious (especially when one gets used to the food) dining experiences that the country has to offer. The number and variety of restaurants is astounding. Unfortunately, the number of wooden disposable chopsticks, or “waribashi” (割り箸; literally “split chopsticks”) is also astounding. Japan consumes a massive 25 billion sets of them every year – about 200 pairs per person – in hoisting and consuming everything from ramen noodles to sashimi to “natto” fermented soy beans and the ubiquitous sticky rice. This could be equal to over 20 million trees.

Now, in a modern expression of the “mottainai” (roughly translated as “waste not”) culture of Japan, a movement is growing among consumers to bring their own chopsticks to restaurants. The My Hashi (official site in Japanese; English write up here), or My Chopsticks movement, has boomed recently. Environmental benefits of decreasing the number of disposable chopsticks needed to be imported from China, the overwhelming source of the wooden throw-away eating utensils, include reduced energy used and less pollution caused by producing, shipping, and then incinerating billions of chopsticks. The fad has caught on so much that some restaurants now give discounts, free drinks, or point cards to customers who bring their dining utensils with them to the restaurant.

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Door to Door Recycling: Who Should Foot the Bill?

by Eric Wilson on August 17th, 2009

A few weeks ago 2nd Green Revolution carried a story about a lawsuit opposing a New York Law that would have mandated free electronics recycling. This got us thinking about who should be responsible for the cost of recycling. Who do you think should pay for door-to-door recycling? Participate in our poll and share your thoughts.


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Book Review: Donella Meadows’ Thinking in Systems

by Eric Wilson on August 15th, 2009

Roughly 15 years ago Donella H. Meadows, founder of the Sustainability Institute and professor in the Environmental Studies Program of Dartmouth College, wrote an introduction to systems thinking titled Thinking in Systems: A Primer. Last year the book was edited by Diana Wright of the Sustainability Institute and published (by Chelsea Green Publishing), seven years after her death (the eulogy for which was mentioned here in a previous post). Meadows, along with Peter Senge, author of Necessary Revolution, is a seminal figure in systems thinking, which “is a critical tool in addressing the many environmental, political, social, and economic challenges we face around the world. Systems, big or small, can behave in similar ways, and understanding those ways is perhaps our best hope for making lasting change on many levels.”

One of the main implications for sustainability relates to what is often referred to as the tragedy of the commons. Meadows explains that “tragedy of the commons comes about when there is escalation, or just simple growth, in a commonly shared, erodable (sic) environment.” The tragedy ensues when “a resource that is commonly shared” is “not only limited, but erodable (sic) when overused.”

Meadows presents three options to prevent the tragedy of the commons:

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