Ready to Go Green?

From the May 2008 AARP Bulletin:

Power of 50 by Mike Klesius

Ready to Go Green

At least 50% of Americans who are boomers or older say they buy environmentally safe products.  The AARP Bulletin reaches 39 million members in 24 million households.  While battling climate change, here’s how much money each household could save a year and collectively how much greenhouse gas could be reduced. 

Use a more energy-efficient 2008 model refrigerator instead of a 2001 model or older.  Annual savings per household: $63; Collective CO2 reduction: 11.8 million tons

Turn down your gas hot water heater from 140 degrees to 120 degrees.  Annual savings per household: $60; Collective CO2 Reduction: 4.1 million tons

Eat ¼ less meat. Annual savings per household: $169; Collective CO2 reduction: 1.9 million tons

Switch from 75-watt incandescent bulbs to 19-watt Compact Fluorescent bulbs.  Annual savings per household: $68; Collective CO2 reduction: 11.4 million tons

Lower your thermostat by a degree in the winter and raise it by a degree in the summer.  Annual savings per household: $55; Collective CO2 reduction: 7.5 million tons

Drive a car that gets 35 MPG instead of the national average of 25 MPG.  Annual savings per member: $482 (or more at current costs); Collective CO2 reduction: 71.2 million tons  (remember this the next time you are ready to replace your car, but remember the “greenest” car is the one you have right now, just take steps to improve the gas mileage of it)

TOTAL GREENHOUSE GAS REDUCTION: 116.6

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-

GDempsey@fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!

Fix Water Leaks, Save $20

Don't ignore the little things.

By The Daily Green Staff

Fix that leaky pipe or faucet, and you'll be amazed at how much water you can save.

Let's face it. We've all ignored those small, slow drips from a bathroom faucet or kitchen sink at one time or other. After all, how much water does it really waste?

When you factor in the steady, 24/7 dripping over any length of time, plenty. Then think about all the faucets dripping elsewhere in your neighborhood, the country, the world. Leaks really do matter.

If you use the Drip Accumulator calculator on the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Website, you'll see that a single slow leaky faucet dripping 30 drops per minute wastes 3 gallons per day, or the equivalent of 27 baths per year. The USGS also estimates that many of our toilets leak approximately 22 gallons of water per day.

If you tally the cost of water embodied by those leaks, the cost per year for one toilet leak and one faucet drip equals about $20.

So one easy eco-friendly thing to do: fix that leak.

Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/going-green/tips/water-leak-repair#ixzz25V7bfHqD

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-4745

GDempsey@  fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!

Switch to Solar NIght Lights

Harness the sun's free energy to brighten up your driveway, paths, steps and decks. No wiring required!

By The Daily Green Staff

Now you can harness the sun to illuminate your driveway, paths, steps and decks with easy-to-install solar lights that recharge (for free) during the day.

Let the light of the day brighten up your night. Powered by a built-in photocell, solar night-lights require no wiring and no electricity, and they turn on automatically at night.

Designed to look great whether you like traditional or modern, these energy-savers are available both in-store and online. They are becoming increasingly popular, particularly since they are so much easier to install than traditional wired systems. If you decide you don't like where you put them, or simply want to expand or mix things up, they are also much easier to move than wired units.

Also check out the forthcoming book Green Lighting!

Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/going-green/tips/solar-night-lights#ixzz25V8HQRER

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-4745

GDempsey@fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!

Friday Funny

http://protoplasm.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/global-warming-jokes-are-not-a-joke.jpg

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-4745

GDempsey@fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!

Tree Thursday - Paradise Tree

Paradise Tree

Simarouba glauca

An under-used South Florida native, Paradise Tree is found naturally in coastal hammocks throughout South Florida, the Keys, the Caribbean and Tropical America.  Relatively fast growing, it is a common component of the upper canopy, effortlessly reaching heights of greater than 40 feet.  The Paradise Tree can make a beautiful shade or street tree in the right areas.  Many have been planted in the South Middle River area of Fort Lauderdale and seem to be doing fine.  The Paradise Tree seems to thrive in a sandy soil.
The Paradise Tree has a smooth reddish brown and gray bark and compound leaves that emerge colored red and gold.  The tree has an open canopy that grows into a rounded top as it gets older.  It does get a fruit that is about 1” long and ripens to a black color.  Most times the fruit is eaten by birds before it gets a chance to ripen fully.  In the past, the Paradise Tree has been a source of resins, oils and pharmaceutical compounds.  Some studies have shown that the oil from the seed can be used as an edible oil and possibly a source of bio-diesel (http://www.jatrophabiodiesel.org/simarouba/simarouba.php).
Growth Rate: Medium
Drought Tolerance: High
Salt Tolerance: High
  
For more information:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/st590
http://www.plantcreations.com/Simarouba%20glauca.htm

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-4745

GDempsey@fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!

Broward County Urges Residents to Report Smoking Vehicles

Broward County Urges Residents to Report Smoking Vehicles

DATE: August 28, 2012 MEDIA CONTACT: Maribel Feliciano Broward County Air Quality Program PHONE: 954-519-1260, 954-290-6753, 954-290-3940 EMAIL: mfeliciano@broward.orgHow often do you find yourself driving behind a smoking vehicle? You roll the windows up, close the vents and can still smell the fumes. In an effort to alleviate this problem, the Broward County Air Quality Program created the Smoking Vehicle Program. One of the main goals of this voluntary program is to educate the public about the effects of smoking vehicles and what actions they can take to help resolve this problem. A smoking vehicle is any car, bus or truck that generates smoke from the exhaust pipe continuously for more than five seconds. This smoke is made up of tiny particles that can lodge in your lungs and is a major contributor to respiratory diseases such as asthma and emphysema. To report a smoking vehicle, call the Smoking Vehicles Complaint Line at 954-519-1499, or visit broward.org/air and click REPORT SMOKING VEHICLES to complete an online complaint form. Reports can be anonymous and should include the following: Vehicle's Florida license plate number Make/type and color of vehicle Date and time of observing the smoking vehicle Location (i.e. I-95 Northbound at Oakland Park Blvd.) Residents can do their part to keep Broward County’s air clean by reporting smoking vehicles and keeping them off the road. Interesting facts about motor vehicles: About 30 percent of Broward County’s greenhouse gas emissions come from passenger cars and light duty trucks. Smoking vehicles generate 10 to 15 times more pollution than well-tuned vehicles. Smoking vehicles contribute 20 to 30 percent of the soot and particles in the air. Motor vehicles account for more than 50 percent of the air pollution in Broward County. Between 2002 and 2011, more than 3,000 smoking vehicle complaints were reported in Broward County.

Plant Street Trees to Clean the Air

Plant Street Trees to Clean the Air

By Dan Shapley

Planting trees is good for the environment, good for the soul, good for the local economy... and, it turns out, even better for our health than previously thought.

A recent study published in Environmental Science & Technology found that trees and other green plants can reduce two key air pollutants eight times more than previously known.

Nitrogen dioxide and fine particulates are two key components of smog and soot, which can damage lungs, make outdoor exercise unsafe and send asthmatics running to the emergency room at high rates. Both pollutants, however, can be reduced by as much as 40% (nitrogen dioxide) to 60% (fine particulates) if trees, shrubs, ivy and even grass are planted in so-called "urban street canyons." Trees, in fact, may be less effective than smaller greenery, since pollutants may be trapped beneath the tree canopy in some cases.

While city dwellers, particularly renters, often don't have the right to plant trees or other greenery outside their buildings, we can all urge neighborhood associations, co-op boards and local governments to invest in plantings that beautify the streetscape and cleanse the air. Outside of cities, homeowners should take note of local codes before planting street trees, too.

Trees, of course, have many benefits, in urban, suburban or rural environments. Strategically planted, trees can also reduce home energy use by as much as 30%, according to the Arbor Day Foundation, and street trees may boost home values in the neighborhood by more than $10,000, according to a 2010 Forest Service study.

Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/going-green/tips/street-trees-pollution-1209#ixzz25V4w2JuU

Gene Dempsey, City Forester

Environmental Services

Office - (954) 828-5785  Fax - (954) 828-4745

GDempsey@fortlauderdale.gov

Think before you print!