Green Parent Chicago™

Celebrate Chicagoland Carfree Day with a Playdate in the Park

Celebrate World Car free Day and join Green Parent Chicago for a car free play date at one of the city's most easily accessible and beautiful parks: Seneca Playlot Park. Enjoy the fall day with free outdoor fun and come burn off that extra energy. We at Green Parent Chicago are partnering with the Active Transportation Alliance and organizing a family get together to help moms, dads and caregivers try out other travel options with kids for the day.

The park has a sandbox, train and truck climbing structures, equipment for young kids and big kids and best of all, is only a a few short steps from the Chicago Avenue Red Line stop, elevators from the subway platform to the street make this stop accessible to parents with strollers.

Here are the details:

Date: Sept. 22, 2009
Time: 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Location: Seneca Playlot Park, 228 E Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL

What is Chicagoland Car free Day?

On Tuesday Sept. 22, Active Transportation Alliance will partner with RTA, Pace, Metra, CTA and communities around the region for Chicagoland Car-free Day. The event is part of World Car-free Day, the one moment when people around the world pledge to go sans auto.

Don't forget to take the pledge to go car free on The Chicagoland Car free Day website (www.chicagolandcarfree.org) The more people we get to pledge to go car-free, the more fun the day will be! Plus, when you take the pledge on our website, you get a coupon for $1 off a large drink at Caribou Coffee on Sept. 22!

Book Review: A Guide To Carefree, Car-Free Living Chicago Style

Why would anyone in their right mind do away with the American dream of owning their own car in a modern city like Chicago, only to contend with potentially crowded trains and late buses?

If you no longer bought into the idea that auto ownership equals achievement and status, grew frustrated with the associated costs and obligation, or tired of the fuel burning emissions your car adds to the environment, then it’s easy to see how going carless could make perfect sense.

In Chicago, where on the average weekday 1.7 million rides are taken on the CTA, an increasing number of city residents currently live an entirely car free life, relying foremost on bike travel, public transit and occasional car sharing. In addition, the majority of city buses and trains are often not as crowded or as late as some may lead you to believe.

Jason Rothstein, author of the new book, "Carless in Chicago", (September 2009 Lake Claremont Press), went car-free 4 years ago. He's written the very first guide to navigating Chicago and the suburbs without a car.

Rothstein pondered the idea of going car free for about a year before making the switch in 2005. He now believes that not only can you easily survive in Chicago without a car, your life may actually improve without one.

Outstandingly comprehensive, "Carless in Chicago" offers an insider's analysis of living car free while serving as the absolute reference for information on public transit options and car sharing around town from Metra to I-Go and everything in between.

Rothstein begins the book by helping readers determine the true costs of auto ownership, while weighing the pros and cons of ditching the hunk of junk based on your lifestyle. Subsequent chapters include details on city biking, planning travel times, and physical considerations when commuting by bike or on foot. He even breaks down the complex system of CTA, Pace, and Metra fare options available to all ages. 

Answering every non-native's wish, Rothstein demystifies the city's grid system of addresses and touches on safety concerns that anyone car free or not could benefit from when traveling the city.

In the second half of the book, Rothstein lists every CTA train line and stop, including notable sights and places near each stop (not an easy task, but one well suited to the Chicago native.) Rothstein also notes special situations that pedestrians should consider, like having to navigate Chicago's deep snow in winter.

Whether you are looking to reduce your driving time, are already living car free, or looking for an excellent guide for traversing the city and suburbs the more healthy and environmentally friendly way, Carless in Chicago is an indispensable read for Chicago travelers.

-Christine

EarthTalk: Install Your Own Renewable Energy or Buy It?

Dear EarthTalk: I’d like to know the relative electricity cost of utility scale solar and wind plants versus rooftop residential solar. In other words, how can I know whether to subsidize my utility’s alternative energy plant or renovate my own home? -- Randy Wilson, Flagstaff, AZ

Making such a determination is complex, but you could start with “In My Backyard,” a new online tool by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). You first need to know your electricity usage and what size solar photovoltaic (PV) system or wind turbine you could install. Then, using Google Earth maps and data on the amounts of sunshine and wind at your location, the tool will estimate the electricity you could get from a certain size wind turbine or PV array installed on your property.

The costs to install renewable energy systems vary greatly by location, warn researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, which is supported by the Department of Energy (DOE). And kilowatt hour (kWh) costs vary by utility, as do state and local financial incentives. One piece of good news: The federal Investment Tax Credit was expanded and extended this year. It allows for 30 percent of the cost of your system to be deducted from your federal tax bill, and is good through 2016.

Comparing the cost of going it alone to that of simply buying green power through your utility is not a simple equation, either. You can support your utility’s renewable power infrastructure by paying a premium on your electric bill, or you can buy renewable energy certificates—also known as green tags—even if your utility does not offer green power (green tags inject renewable energies into the grid even if they don’t come back to you via your own utility). To decide which equation is better for you, compare the costs of those programs over the same time period with the cost of building and maintaining your own system (minus any installation credits and/or revenues from selling your excess electricity back to the utility). That would give you the relative costs and return-on-investment.

But that’s still not the whole picture: Another question is whether your home system can continue to produce energy more cost-effectively than your utility, as it brings more and more green energy sources into its mix. Lawrence Berkeley says no, essentially. A February 2009 report summarizing the costs of PV from 1998 to 2007 concluded that larger systems averaged a 25 percent lower cost than the smallest ones.

The same is true for wind power, says the American Wind Energy Association. The group’s February 2005 report calculates that a large wind farm can deliver electricity at a nearly 40 percent lower cost than a small one. It also can take advantage of economies of scale in lower operational and maintenance costs.

The bottom line is this: Decades ago, when widespread use of alternative energy was still only a dream, building one’s own private source of home power was the only way to get off the carbon-intense grid and ensure that your own energy needs left little footprint. But today, with considerably more renewable energy sources coming online or about to do so in quantum leap measures—and at much greater efficiencies than can be achieved privately—the best bet may well be to forego the go-it alone path and support your utility’s efforts to generate green power not just for your own household but for everyone.

CONTACTS: NREL’s “In My Backyard” Tool, www.nrel.gov/eis/imby; DOE Green Power Network, http://apps3.eere.energy.gov/greenpower.

SEND YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS TO: EarthTalk, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; earthtalk@emagazine.com. Read past columns at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/archives.php. EarthTalk is now a book! Details and order information at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalkbook.

"Eat-In" To Call Attention to Child Nutrition

An 'Eat In" will be held Wednesday August 26 at Daley Plaza to address the re-authorization of the Child Nutrition Act, a federal law that determines the national school lunch program and school nutrition resources.

The event, which takes place from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., is organized by the food advocacy group, Slow Food Chicago, a chapter of the national organization, Slow Food USA. Within the next several weeks, 241 similar "Eat In" events will take place in cities and towns across the U.S.

Several local speakers and food advocates are scheduled to appear at the Chicago rally to discuss Illinois food policy and how better school nutrition can help combat the growing problems of obesity and chronic disease in children.

The event is organized as a potluck and all attending are welcome to bring their own bag lunch. Food will also be available for purchase on site from local vendors.

Organizers hope to gather signatures for their petition to legislators. Slow Food's platform specifies  that the re-authorization of the Child Nutrition Act (set to be resigned into law next month) include funding for healthier, fresher, local food to ensure that children who depend on school lunches for their meals eat less highly processed foods.

Growing Beans? Show and Tell with your Chicago Neighbors

One Seed Chicago, an ongoing project of community managed garden advocates Neighbor Space, each year invites participants to grow a selected plant and share the fun and satisfaction of gardening in and around Chicago with their community.

Last year's plant was the sunflower, and this year, the selected plant is the Blue Lake pole bean. However, if you were unable to request seeds for this season's event, you may participate by growing any type of bean. Teachers and families may participate in One Seed Chicago and may want to download the accompanying resource sheet with more info and ideas for bean activities.

Currently, the project organizers are looking for images of bean plants in Chicagoland gardens, and continue to request stories, favorite bean recipes, gardening tips, funny gardening stories, and photos of bean art.

(See more images of the beans growing in our Green Parent Chicago test garden here.)

Green Family Fun at City's First Ever "Green Music Fest"

Pairing rock with recycling, the first ever Green Music Fest will take place this weekend at Eckhart Park in Chicago's burgeoning West Town neighborhood.

West Town Chamber of Commerce organizers say the new and innovative green technology-themed event, running noon to 10 p.m. August 15 and 16 "aims to reflect our eco-friendly city by fusing environmentally-conscious bands with all green vendors, services and activities".

Vendors in the Eco-Friendly Vendor Village will be exclusively green and eco-friendly, featuring everything from crafts made from recycled materials to solar-powered techie devices.

The Green Family Fun Fest, held each day from noon to 5 p.m., will provide children's entertainment and green activities, with all donations directly funding improvements to the Eckhart Park playground.

The City of Chicago’s Center for Green Technology is a major partner and sponsor of the event, as well as the Active Transportation Alliance.  Over 60 green vendors and sponsors will participate in this inaugural event. Chicago-based Green Planet Bottling will be the festival’s official bottled water vendor, using bottles made from 100% renewable resources.

The fest is being produced in the most eco-friendly way possible, with bio-diesel fueled generators, biodegradable cups and plates, numerous recycling and composting options and free bike valet parking. Verizon is also hosting a program on-site to collect old cell phones.

Advance tickets for the Green Music Fest are available through Ticket Web for each day for $11.50 or $20 for a 2-day pass. At the door, tickets are $15 or $25 for a 2-day pass. Kids 12 and under are free with adult admission. There is a $5 suggested donation for the Green Family Fun Fest, accompanying adults are free.

The event's full line up of performers can be found here: http://greenmusicfestchicago.com/music.html

(Green Parent Chicago is a partner & organizer of the Green Music Fest's Green Family Fun Fest) 

Earth Talk: Creating A Green Roof, the How and Why

Dear EarthTalk: I’m sure there are many good environmental reasons to build a rooftop garden. Can you enlighten? And also I’d like to know how to go about creating one and whether or not some municipalities might offer incentives to do so. -- Linda, via e-mail

Indeed there are many good reasons to build a rooftop garden, or a so-called “green roof”—whereby layers of soil and plants on top of homes and buildings provide a host of environmental “services” for the living space below as well as for the surrounding ecosystem. Unlike traditional roofs, green roofs thrive on (and filter) precipitation, decreasing the amount of pollution-laden stormwater run-off draining into our waterways. And thanks to the process of photosynthesis, the plantings create oxygen, cleanse the air and absorb carbon dioxide before it gets into the atmosphere and adds to our global warming woes.

Green roofs also provide insulation: All those layers of organic material help keep a structure warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and help cut energy use and costs. Migrating birds and other wildlife have been known to take a shine to green roofs, especially in urban areas where natural habitat options are limited. Likewise, homeowners and building residents tend to view their green roofs as oases of peace and tranquility within otherwise noisy and concrete-laden urban environments.

According to Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, a nonprofit industry association, green roofs are gaining popularity. North Americans added some 3.1 million square feet of them to their buildings in 2008 alone—up 35 percent from 2007. Part of the uptick can be attributed to increasing awareness of the benefits of green roofs among urban planners, building owners and managers, and homeowners, all who have pressured policymakers to ease the burden of zoning and permitting for such beneficial projects.

Chicago now sports some 535,000 square feet of green roofs—the most in North America. Other leading lights in the green roofs movement include Washington, DC, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Montreal, and Vancouver, British Columbia. Dozens of smaller cities have also embraced green roofs. Grand Rapids. Michigan sports some 75,000 square feet of them, and Princeton, New Jersey and Newtown Square, Pennsylvania each play host to 50,000 square feet citywide. Inquiring at city hall is the best way to see if your city or town offers incentives for creating a green roof or greening an existing one.

Relief for the costs of installing a green roof might be on the way from the federal government. As part of the Clean Energy Stimulus and Investment Assurance Act she authored earlier this year, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) is calling for residential and commercial property owners who install green roofs or retrofit existing roofs to recoup 30 percent of their costs in the form of a federal tax credit.

Do-it-yourselfers will find a treasure trove of information on how to create and install a green roof at the website Greenroofs.com. The site’s keyword-searchable directory offers links to manufacturers of kits to make installing your own green roof that much simpler, as well as to professional installers across North America and groups working on urban greening issues.

CONTACTS: Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, www.greenroofs.org; Clean Energy Stimulus and Investment Assurance Act, www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-320; Greenroofs.com, www.greenroofs.com.

SEND YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS TO: EarthTalk, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; earthtalk@emagazine.com. Read past columns at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/archives.php. EarthTalk is now a book! Details and order information at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalkbook.

-photo credit: Ruth Rogers, flickr

Recycle More, Earn Stuff: Incentive Based Recycling Comes to Chicago

Mayor Richard Daley announced Saturday the start of a new initiative aimed at increasing recycling efforts through the city's Blue Cart recycling program.

Under the RecycleBank program, households will be encouraged to increase their recycling to receive rewards based on the amount of recyclables they generate. RecycleBank will measure the amount of recycling through the city's Blue Carts and then convert that amount into RecycleBank Points that can be redeemed for rewards, gift cards, groceries, and products at several local and national reward partners. 

RecycleBank incentive partners include retailers such as Coca-Cola, Kraft Foods, Target, Ruby Tuesday and CVS pharmacy, as well as local Chicago businesses, such as Leona’s, Moo and Oink, Carson Pirie Scott, County Fair, Treasure Island, and the Chicago Childrens Museum. There will also be an option to donate RecycleBank Points to local school environmental programs and non-profit organizations. 

Some of the incentives that participating households can earn include:

• Discounts (ex. 20% off)
• Dollars off (ex. $10 off purchase of $50 or more)
• Gift cards
• Online gift codes
• Gift certificates
• Products (t-shirts, cookbooks, movie tickets or toys)

The city selected 10,000 households for the first field test of the RecycleBank rewards program. The areas were selected "because they have the longest data collection from the Blue Cart recycling program and they have a good mix of single family homes and multi-unit buildings", according to a press release on the new program. These routes were also said to be producing smaller quantities of recyclables.

Each Blue Cart in the pilot area will be retrofitted with an ID tag that matches the Blue Cart to the household address and account number, while tracking recycling activity. Upon activating their account with RecycleBank, either online or by phone, the household will begin to earn RecycleBank points.

If the field tests display positive results, the city plans to roll out the program fully to 38,000 households in the city.

-photo credit: City of Chicago