DAY IN THE BEE YARD

The Florida State Beekeepers Association is hosting a "Day in the Bee Yard" at the Green Industries Institute Monticello on November 7 from 8:30AM to 3:30PM. More information at Green Calendar.

This event is an opportunity to learn about honeybees and the basics of beekeeping. Apairy inspectors and master beekeepers will be on hand to answer questions. Interest in beekeeping is at an all time high, learning to help the honeybee population that is now in crisis.

Beekeeping suppliers will have equipment for purchase.

Contact: Tony Hogg at capthogg@earthlink.net or GarnerP@nfcc.edu

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GREEN WEEKEND!

350 at Lake Ella, Farm Tours, Greek Fest! Autumn in Tallahassee is awesome.

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GREEN TALLAHASSEE, CLIMATE CHANGE AND BLOG ACTION DAY

In September 2006, Green Tallahassee published its first posts on a biodeisel speed boat and carbon emissions. Over the past three years, have things significantly changed in Tallahassee to reduce the impact of climate change?

The green energy certificates no longer exist, but the City of Tallahassee utilities has committed to an home energy audit and insulation program that residents, both home owners and renters should by now have utilized. We have solar credit, solar tours, solar panels on churches, banks and Habitat homes as well as a solar working group through Sustainable Tallahassee.

The jury is still out on Smart Meters and recent concerns over privacy as well as the spike in electric bills following the meters installation continue to raise questions about their adoption. We can now receive our City utilitiy bill electronically and pay our bills online.

Our area has constructed a number of varying levels of LEED certified homes and commercial buildings, including ones for state and local governments. Commissioners in both local governments and our state government talk about energy conservation, but then, we site approve and build new Department of Revenue offices and refuse to consider permeable surfaces for its massive parking lots off Capital Circle Southeast. Will the temperature surrounding this land be consistently higher as a result of the heat permeating off its asphalt surfaces?

Our City is a designated GOLD green city and was the first city in Florida to receive this designation from the Florida Green Building Coalition. Yet, it appears the City of Gainesville and its early adoption of feed tariffs continues to surpass Tallahasssee in its commitment to making a difference in reducing energy consumption and lowering its citizens' carbon footprint.

Leon County was an early member of ICLEI, the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives and held two climate change forums.

Preceding November's election the Big Bend Environmental Forum and our local governments hosted a well-attended candidates' forum. The Village Square hosted some civilized conversations about energy production and the future of nuclear power. We've had two fantastically educational energy expos in Wakulla the past two years, each attended by hundreds of people from around the region eager to learn more about all things green.

Our eat-local efforts have been furthered by the amazing work of Dr. Jennifer Taylor of Florida A&M University's Cooperative Extension Service's StateWide Small Farm Programs. Her successful establishment of not one, but eight (!) sites for grower's markets in the Big Bend area has connected an eager market with small farmers. Slow Foods Tallahassee continues to provide a network and support for us to learn more about eating naturally and locally. The emerging Bread and Roses Food Cooperative will open this month and local gardening programs continue to flourish.

October 24 will see the International Day of Climate Change partner with the 350.org local movement to raise awareness in the Tallahassee community about the impact of climate change and the importance of reducing emissions below the 350 number.

Our friends at Green Drinks Tallahassee bring a variety of speakers and resources monthly to our community. The number of people coming out for this event continues to grow and every presentation has been informative and inspirational. The networking opportunities at this event are unlimited. It is, by far, the easiest way to get connected into what's happening in the area. If you haven't attended, put the last Wednesday of the month on your green calendar!

Most importantly, have we as citizens dramatically reduced our carbon footprint over these past three years? Over 1,000 households signed up for CONA's energy challenge which ends October 31. Neighborhoods from across Leon County pledged to reduce their energy consumption. The City has given away hundreds of CFL bulbs. If every household served by city utilities replaced just one conventional light bulb with a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL), the reduction in harmful greenhouse gas emissions over the life of the CFL, would be equivalent to taking 10,000 cars off of our roads for a week.

Thanks to Blog Action Day, for providing a moment to think back over the past three years of maintaining the three green blogs: Green Tallahassee, Green Food Tallahassee and the Green Calendar. We'll raise our cup of fair trade organic coffee this morning and plan for our future year together with green readers and further committing to move climate change from a problem to its solution.

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FLORIDIANS WOULD DISAGREE?

Recently, the Cobb County Water System in Marietta, Georgia won an award for water conservation from the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Because Cobb County teamed up with Kohler, Lowe’s Home Improvement stores and others, to promote Georgia’s tax holiday for WaterSense products, which include low-flow shower heads and faucets, and toilets that use less water, and water sensors for sprinkler systems to stop needless watering, they were named 'WaterSense partners'.

And while we think low-flow shower heads and faucets are an important component of energy conservation, sprinkler systems of any kind cannot be considered a part of water conservation, no matter their level of efficiency. As long as the State of Georgia continues its 'any growth is good growth policies', they will continue to create larger and larger burdens on the aquifer that provides not only Georgia, but Florida and Alabama with clean drinking water.


. WaterSense products include such things as water sensors for sprinkler systems to stop needless watering; lve won government recognition for their water-conserving ways.obb County water a., and Kohler, maker of water faucets and other plumbing supplies, haofficials

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SUSTAINABLE CAMPUSES

Florida State University raised its grade up to B- in the annual report card on sustainability issued by the Sustainable Endowments Institute, a special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. You can read the complete report card here.

Rivals over at University of Florida earned a grade of B. It rated A's in green building, student involvement, transportation and investor priorities, while FSU rated a B in these categories. FSU rated higher than the Gators only in the area of endowment transparency. Click here for the full comparison. FAMU did not participate.

The College Sustainability Report Card 2010 evaluates environmental sustainability efforts at 332 schools in the United States and Canada.

• Data collection was collected from June through August 2009, for the College Sustainability Report Card 2010. The research process included sending surveys to administrators and students at all 332 institutions. Researchers also gathered information from publicly available sources.
• A school's overall grade is calculated from the grades received in nine equally-weighted categories. A total of 48 indicators are used to evaluate performance within the categories.

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NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS AND CRACKS IN THE WALL

The Public Service Commission is holding a public meeting on approving cost recovery now by utility corporations for the cost of investing to build nuclear power plants in the future. Information on the meeting and the agenda is at Green Calendar.

Link to the Gainesville Sun news article on the crack found in the reactor in Crystal River is here.

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OCTOBER IS MY FAVORITE SOLAR MONTH

It's true. October is a great month--not just the cooler air, the glint of pumpkins or the crunch of pine cones and acorns in the yard.

October is the amazing month of the Solar Decathlon! Sponsored by the US Department of Energy, this annual event on the Mall in Washington, DC, shows the ingenuity of teams from around the world. Twenty college and university teams compete to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house from now until October 18th. . The aim is to build a Zero Energy Home, which produces as much energy from renewable sources, as it consumes.

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PRIUS ENVY?

This s CR-Z hybrid by Honda is due to hit the streets in 2010. This and more at Prius Chat.

photo courtesy Honda

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'GREEN' HOUSE OPENING

Rainbow Rehab will unveil its LEED certified remodeled 'green' home this Wednesday, October 7 from 10:00 - 11:00 AM. The home, located at 303 Putnam Drive, will be a rental property for a low income family. Rehabbed in collaboration with Sustainable Tallahassee, energy efficient
materials and systems were installed and materials removed from the home will be recycled to the extent possible.

Rainbow Rehab, Inc. purchased the home on Putnam Drive late in 2008 and began renovation. Built in 1936, it has three bedrooms, one bath, with 800 square feet. Renovations included a new roof, new wiring, plumbing and HVAC system, new floor coverings, new sheet rock, new bath and updated kitchen.

Rainbow Rehab is a long time non-profit in Tallahassee serving disadvantaged families by providing renovated homes and repairs.

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SOLAR HOME TODAY AT THE COAST

Recent winner of the Aurora Award, the Discover House, 713 Mill Pond Road in Carrabelle, will be open today from 1:00 - 4:00 PM. The project of Simpler Solar Systems and the Cedar Bay Construction Company, was recognized in the energy efficient single family detached home category.

The Aurora Awards, administered by the Florida Home Builders Association, recognizes builders in the 12-state Southeast region for innovative new home construction and design. Considerations were given to homes that incorporated energy efficiency, water conservation, natural gas, solar energy, and green building practices into their new home construction projects.

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