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In the News
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Advocacy News (Includes how to reach your legislators) DEP Enforcement Actions In The Berkshire return to top |
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PROJECT NATIVE growing nature's garden The sale you've all been waiting for begins October 1st! 10/10/10% Cut it out to benefit project Native On October 10th, Janice Shields, artist and owner of Cut It Out Designs, will display her full line of unique rustic garden art and home furnishings at Project Native. Janice generously offered to donate 10% of all sales to Project Native. As an artist passionate about the environment Janice’s creations are made from responsibly harvested Eastern Red Cedar. These rustic pieces beautifully compliment any garden or landscape. Saturday, October 10th from 9am - 5pm |
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New Water Quality Standards Academy "NPDES Permit Program" Module Online |
| EPA Releases Draft WaterSense Specification for Showerheads On September 24, 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a draft WaterSense specification for showerheads for public comment. Once this specification is finalized, consumers will be able to renovate their bathrooms with a full suite of WaterSense labeled products – toilets, faucets, and showerheads. The WaterSense draft specification for showerheads sets the maximum flow rate at 2.0 gallons per minute (gpm) at a flowing pressure of 80 pounds per square inch (psi). As with all WaterSense specifications, the draft showerhead specification includes performance criteria to ensure that consumers will not have to sacrifice water coverage or spray intensity in order to achieve water savings. As one of the leading uses of water in the home, showering accounts for nearly 17 percent of residential indoor water consumption. For most households, that’s nearly 30 gallons a day! In fact, by installing high-efficiency showerheads, the average household could save more than 2,300 gallons of water and enough electricity to power their television use for about a year. These reductions could add up to as much as $50 per year in water and energy bill savings. Comments on the draft specification are being accepted through November 9, 2009. For more information on the WaterSense program or the draft specification for showerheads, please visit www.epa.gov/watersense return to top |
| EPA Releases List of Priority Drinking Water Contaminants for Regulatory Consideration (from Water Headlines for the week of September 28, 2009, a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water) Selections based upon extensive external input EPA has released its third list of drinking water contaminants that are known or anticipated to occur in public water systems and may require regulation. EPA will continue to evaluate and collect data on the contaminants, and determine by 2013 for some of them whether or not to propose drinking water regulations. The contaminant candidate list (CCL 3) includes 104 chemical contaminants or groups and 12 microbes. Among them are contaminants, pesticides, disinfection byproducts, pharmaceuticals, chemicals used in commerce, waterborne pathogens and algal toxins. The agency’s selection of the contaminants builds upon evaluations used for previous lists and is based on substantial expert input and recommendations from different groups including stakeholders, the National Research Council and the National Drinking Water Advisory Council. EPA will make regulatory determinations for at least five contaminants in accordance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. For those CCL 3 contaminants that lack sufficient information for a regulatory determination by 2013, EPA will encourage research to provide the information needed. The agency evaluated approximately 7,500 chemicals and microbes and selected 116 candidates for the final list based on their potential to pose health risks through drinking water exposure. The agency considered the best available health effects and occurrence data and information to evaluate unregulated contaminants. A draft CCL 3 was published for review and comment on February 21, 2008. EPA reviewed and analyzed the information provided in the comments in developing the final CCL 3. More information on the contaminant candidate list: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/ccl return to top |
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BerkShares Turns Three! BerkShares, the Berkshires’ very own local currency, is turning three, which means we’ve had our Melvilles, Rockwells, and Van Ens commingling with the fed’s greenbacks for three years and running. In that time, nearly 2.5 million BerkShares have been circulated through our community. Roughly 400 businesses have officially signed up to accept them, and many more do so informally. Thirteen branches of five local banks exchange them. What the New York Times called our “great economic experiment” is stronger than ever as we enter the fourth year of BerkShares. |
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WGBY PRESENTS DAVID BRANCACCIO AND HIS FILM “ON THIN ICE” The screenings will take place on Monday, October 5 at 7:00 pm at the Triplex Cinema, Great Barrington, and on Tuesday, October 6 at 7:00 pm at the Academy of Music in Northampton. A ticketed reception at Castle Street Café will follow the October 5th screening. The event on October 5th is sponsored by the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) and is the second collaboration between NOW on PBS, MCLA, and WGBY. The screening at the Triplex Cinema marks the first community engagement partnership between WGBY and the Berkshire International Film Festival. The event on October 6th is sponsored by Smith College and marks the second collaboration between Smith College and NOW on PBS. WGBY members and viewers are welcome to join us at these events to support WGBY’s commitment to a sustainable western Massachusetts and a green economy by attending the event and adding local perspective and solutions to the post-film discussions. For the last year and a half WGBY has engaged in a series of community conversations exploring responses to the sustainability of the region. This has resulted in new focuses for our local programs, including a new series, Eco-Exchange, which debuted in the summer of 2009. By joining the post-screening discussions you can contribute to the journalistic conversation on the national level and inform us on local and regional perspectives. On Thin Ice is part of NOW on PBS’s Planet Watch, a series of ten special broadcast features to air in 2010 and 2011. The programs will explore real strategies and real solutions to the climate crisis. “Planet Watch looks at the root causes of the crisis [and also] explores innovative solutions that are accessible, do-able and productive.” In On Thin Ice we follow David Brancaccio and top climber Conrad Anker to Gangotri Glacier in India and, closer to home, to Glacier National Park in Montana. They show us the existing state of our fast-disappearing glaciers and explore answers to the question, what to do next? Space reservations are strongly recommended. Some events are ticketed and have limited space. Supporters of the Great Barrington screening may join us at the post-film reception hosted by the Castle Street Café. To reserve space or tickets, please visit www.wgby.org or call at 413 781-2801. The Great Barrington event is sponsored by MCLA and the Berkshire International Film Festival, and presented by WGBY and Triplex Cinema. |
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Bird Seed for Sale to Benefit Friends of the Dyken Pond Center Grafton –Bird Seed is being offered at reduced rates by the Friends of the Dyken Pond Center this fall as a fundraiser to support programs and activities held at the Dyken Pond Center. This is a one-time sale and bird seed must be pre-ordered by October 9th. There will be a pick-up day on Saturday, October17th at Capital Agway in Brunswick from 9am until 12 noon. Everyone picking up their orders at Capital Agway will receive a 10% discount coupon good for all bird related items. Can’t make it on October 9th? No problem, just call the Center to make alternate arrangements for pick-up either in Troy or Grafton. Order forms can be downloaded from our website at www.dykenpond.org or by calling the Center at 658-2055. Attracting pleasing, colorful birds depends upon the food offered to them. We have high quality bird seed in an assortment of blends to attract the birds you desire. 50lb. Black Oil Sunflower $21 50lb. Cracked Corn $10 Please consider supporting environmental education for people of all ages by buying bird seed this fall. Dyken Pond Center is a Rensselaer County Park open daily during daylight hours for hiking, fishing and non-motor boating. The Friends of Dyken Pond was created in 1991 to enhance the education, research and appreciation of our natural resources. |
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Nature Photography Show Opening October 3 |
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From the Regional Farm & Food Project Just a reminder that our Kitchen Culture Workshop Series starts this weekend and we have 3 spaces left for Beth’s Farm Kitchen this Sunday. Also Mushroomology is filling up quickly and we will need a head count to make sure that we have enough fresh cut hardwood logs for everyone. The Cheese Making and Baking classes are also quite popular. If you have a special skill that you would like to share with others, please contact me about the possibility of including it in the Spring Series. Next harvest season we would like do a weekly cooking and preservation class with different CSA’s throughout the region (Hudson/Mohawk Valley and Berkshire County) built around the amounts and items of that week’s share. If you are a CSA and would like to participate in that, please let me know. Thanks very much and I hope to see many of you in class! Best, Kitchen Culture Workshop Series We are very pleased to be able to invite you to our Fall 2009 Kitchen Culture Workshop Series. The goal is to put culture backing the kitchen where it belongs! While giving consumers the homestead skills they need to become producers, creating greater food security in every pantry, and to just have some plain old fun together making good, clean and fair food. You can find the entire schedule with locations at: http://www.eventbrite.com/org/300403205. If you sign up for the RSS feed you will automatically be apprised of any changes or additions made to the series, http://www.eventbrite.com/rss/user_list_events/2128499928. These workshops are deliberately designed to be low tech and home-scale and emphasize hands-on-learning so that you can easily incorporate these kitchen arts into your daily or weekly routines. All food demonstrations will send you home with lots of information and samples, when possible. Please peruse the entire schedule - you may want to take more than one! Your current annual RFFP membership will discount all upcoming events and classes. Discounts are offered for farmers, students and seniors, please use the info email to inquire, please put “Kitchen Culture/Chicken Love” (example) in the subject line. We are trying to keep these events as affordable as possible without compromising our teaching staff or materials. Classes are intentionally small and they will be filled on a first come, first served basis. We would like everyone to be able to take these workshops, so if you have special circumstances or any questions, please contact me. Also, we haven’t used this service before, if there are any problems please let me know, gianni@gianniortiz.com. Let's have some fun! We are delighted (and hope you will be too) with the caliber of teachers that will be leading the workshops. 1.) Fruit & Veggie Preservation In Beth’s Farm Kitchen |
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CISA (Community Involved in Supporting Agriculture): Calling Volunteers 1- Eat the View is a tremendously ambitious undertaking that is an annual benefit for CISA. The Tri-county Fairgrounds will be transformed into a fabulous showcase for our local farms on October 2. CISA needs lots of volunteer help to bring this event to fruition. Tasks include getting produce from various farms, helping with food prep at Blue Heron restaurant, serving food at the event, picking up auction items, not to mention removing everything. We probably need help from Monday, 9/28 through Saturday, 10/3. Contact Tracie Butler-Kurth at Tracie@buylocalfood.org or 413-665-7100. She is coordinating volunteers for this effort. BEAT NOTE: In case you’re wondering, this event is sold out. Be sure to bookmark CISA’s website (http://buylocalfood.org/) to check out future events! 2- WinterFare: CISA is working on organizing a Winter Fare market this year in Northampton, and needs help! For the last two years, there has been a vibrant, diverse, and very crowded farmers' market in Greenfield on the first Saturday in February. A dedicated group of volunteers, including CISA staff, organizes this annual event, which includes workshops on eating and growing locally, a barter fair and educational displays. The market kicks off a week of local food potlucks, film screenings, and skill-sharing workshops all in the darkest days of winter. There will be a meeting on Tuesday, October 6th at 6:30pm in the second-floor meeting room at River Valley Market. The goal is to form a volunteer committee to help with planning the market, but coming to the meeting doesn't commit you to anything. Anyone with an interest in the market or ideas for making it great is welcome to attend- please tell your friends and spread the word! If you can't attend the meeting but would like to stay in the loop, please let Claire Morenon of CISA know. (claire@buylocalfood.org) If you're interested in supporting the effort in Greenfield, you can email Claire and she'll add you to an already established committee that could definitely use some more help. For more information about the Greenfield market, visit www.winterfare.org. |
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Market Forces Devoting additional resources to the purchase of environmentally preferable or "green" products might seem like a difficult challenge given the current economic climate and consequent belt tightening across the country. Fortunately, with a strategy that stresses improvements in staff efficiency, businesses can drastically ameliorate the environmental repercussions of their purchasing while also lowering the overall cost of their operations. Unfortunately, paper with more recycled content is more expensive than conventional virgin paper. Based on a 2004 Responsible Purchasing Network (RPN) survey, 30% post-consumer waste (PCW) paper and 100% PCW paper have an increased cost of 8 percent and 36 percent respectively, per ream than paper from virgin sources. To overcome the price difference, businesses can shift toward more efficient practices to reduce the overall amount of paper used. The first step is switching the default setting on all printers, copiers and fax machines to double-sided (duplex) printing, which reduces paper use up to 40 percent. Prioritizing electronic over print communications should also be encouraged. A sharing station utilizing discarded paper that has been previously printed on one side should be set up next to each printer and copier. Personnel should reuse this one-sided paper for drafts and/or internal documents. Successful green purchasing programs follow a set of "best practices." These begin by forming a committee which gathers baseline data and sets goals for paper reduction and increased socially and environmentally preferable purchasing. Next, an organization should adopt a policy, evaluate standards and specifications, implement improved practices and monitor and report its progress. If an organization is shifting from conventional paper that exclusively uses pulp from virgin sources to 100% PCW or 30% PCW paper, it would need to reduce its paper consumption by 26 percent or 7.5 percent, respectively, to make up for the added cost of recycled paper. When combined with additional cost-saving practices such as buying in bulk to reduce shipping costs or purchasing from a cooperative contract or group purchasing organization, the end result can produce a net savings over baseline costs.
The switch to environmentally preferable paper has a price premium that can be easily offset by utilizing quick and simple efficiency procedures. This allows organizations to make a meaningful contribution to sustainability goals without doing any damage to balance sheets. To learn more about how institutions can save money from incorporating environmentally preferable purchasing, visit RPN at: www.responsiblepurchasing.org. BEAT NOTE: Local consumers can purchase recycled copy paper by the case from the Center for Ecological Technology. For more information contact: Jamie Cahillane |
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work-life balance / Utah's 4-day week What do Utah and Takoma Park, Maryland have in common? Workers at both Utah state government and Center for a New American Dream in Takoma Park spend just four days a week in the office. After a one-year experiment with a 4-day, 40 hour week, 82% of the participating employees want to keep the new schedule. While workers benefit from the longer weekend, fewer hours spent behind the wheel commuting, and a $6 million collective savings in gasoline costs. The environment stands to gain from a 4-day work week: after just one year, the plan resulted in a 13% reduction in energy use and reduced Utah' greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 12,000 metric tons a year. While other government offices like El Paso, Texas, and Melbourne Beach, Florida have already made the switch, the four-day movement is slowly catching on elsewhere. At New Dream, where the practice is integral to our mission, we also feel that giving our all four days a week is a win-win situation. |
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