You may have already heard about NYC Summer Streets, the car-free celebration coming up in August. On the 16th we will be hosting a “feeder” ride from Flatbush to join the party, stay tuned for details! For now, enjoy this promo video courtesy of our friends at Streetfilms:
More wisdom from my favorite Soho street vendor:
Barrel of Oil vs. Bubble Gun
Yes folks, the bubble is about to burst!
Barrel of Oil = $142
Bubble Gun = $5
On a hot summer day, which sounds like more fun??
Check out last winter’s version, with oil at $90/barrel…
For those of you who are interested in following New York State environmental politics, a great online resource is Environmental Advocates of New York. I also receive their email alerts, and was pleased to learn that my State Senator, Kevin Parker, supported all four Environmental Super Bills that were being considered in the state legislature this year:
Dear Anne,
Your New York State Senator is one of 18 legislators who showed exceptional leadership when it came to protecting the health of the environment this year by supporting all four of the environmental community’s priority Super Bills.
The Super Bills include:
*The Wetlands Protection Act
*The Bigger Better Bottle Bill
*The Global Warming Pollution Cap/Greenhouse Gas Pollution Control Act
*Net Metering Reforms
Please thank your New York State Senators for supporting these critical measures. Without his or her leadership, these bills may never have gotten as far as they did in the Senate. By taking the time to recognize your Senator’s support of the Super Bills, you’re telling our lawmakers that the environment is an important issue to you and to thousands of New Yorkers across the state. Click here to thank your Senator.
I believe I will! It is important to note that only one of these four Super Bills actually became law (the Net Metering Reforms) so we have a long way to go. More details on the bills, including their Assembly supporters, are available here.
Wondering if you can convert your house to solar?
Come to the…
Neighborhood Solar Forum
for single family homes
sponsored by Sustainable Flatbush
July 16th @ 8pm
Ditmas Workspace
535 East 17th Street (corner of Ditmas)
http://www.ditmasworkspace.com/
Peter Landy will speak about his experience converting his house to solar power.
Chris Neidl of Solar One will speak about current legislation and initiatives to make residential solar power affordable.
RSVP requested (but not required) to anne@sustainableflatbush.org
Special Thanks to Liena Zagare and Ditmas Workspace
*Spread the word to friends and neighbors!
**The next Solar Forum will focus on multi-family apartment buildings, including co-ops.
Lots going on (or trying to!) in Albany and beyond on environmental issues. Here are just a few links to support important legislation being considered:
Solar Energy
This week the State legislature approved new tax incentives to encourage the installation of more solar electric (photovoltaic) panels in New York. This is great news, but the lack of opportunity for net metering (selling excess power back to the grid) remains been one of the biggest impediments to the growth of solar in New York State. Under current laws, home solar systems have limited net metering abilities and commercial installations have NONE. This is a huge lost opportunity to ease strain on our electrical grid and prevent power outages during the summer, since the peak demand for power (particularly in NYC) occurs at the time when solar panels are at their most effective: in the middle of the day. What can you do?
Send a message to Albany to loosen restrictions on net metering!
UPDATE from Vote Solar: New York is on a roll. The state also just passed legislation to update its net metering standard, from a claustrophobic 10 kW cap for solar installations, limited to residential only, up to a gold-standard 2 MW, open to all customer classes. This significantly opens the market for large scale solar in New York, and is a critical step towards building a major solar market in the Empire State.
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
Under the RGGI, New York will make dirty power plants clean up their act by requiring them to cut carbon dioxide emissions and pay a price for any remaining pollution. Polluter Pays… what a concept!
Tell the Department of Environmental Conservation that you support the RGGI
Bigger Better Bottle Bill
A favorite at Sustainable Flatbush (see here and here), this bill passed the State Assembly on June 11th, and must now pass the Republican-controlled Senate. The bill would add 5-cent deposits to non-carbonated beverages such as bottled water, iced tea, and sports drinks, whose market share was nonexistent when our current bottle bill was enacted in 1982. According to NYPIRG, “nearly 3 billion non-carbonated beverage bottles and cans end up in the trash or polluting our state’s rivers, beaches, and neighborhoods each year because they don’t have a deposit”… so the bill’s potential to reduce litter and increase recycling is huge. I don’t have a link to email your Senator, but will update the post if I find one.
Okay, this one is federal, but also very important:
Green Jobs Act and “Green Block Grant” Program
Activist Van Jones (if you don’t know him yet, check him out!) has this to say about the legislation:
A fully funded Green Jobs Act will distribute $125 million per year to identify needed skills, develop training programs, and train workers for jobs in a range of green industries. That’s enough money to train 30,000 people in green trades - every year. It targets a broad range of populations for eligibility, but it has a special focus on creating “green pathways out of poverty.” In other words, this Act can connect the people who MOST need work - to the work that MOST needs to get done.
A fully funded Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program will distribute $2 billion per year to cities and local governments for energy conservation, energy audits, fuel conservation programs, and the use of renewable energy. These “Green” block grants could create tens of thousands of green-collar jobs - accessible to low-income city residents who most need opportunities and careers.
Urge your Congressperson and Senators to support these programs!
Now go have a beer!
Some months ago Sustainable Flatbush was approached by New York City Streets Renaissance to sponsor a Livable Streets Block Party here in the neighborhood (this request was likely inspired by our success with last year’s Park(ing) Day event). Two weeks from tomorrow, Saturday June 21st, the party is on! We will have live music and DJs all day long, courtesy of Make Music New York, plus traditional NYC Street games, and environmental activities and info. Our fantastic local co-sponsor is Flatbush Development Corporation.
Flier design by Keka
Here’s the concept:
Block Party NYC is a new program by the New York City Streets Renaissance which is helping neighborhoods around NYC come together and enjoy their street for a day, free from the usual hazards and distractions of automobiles. This summer alone, we’re providing mini-grants to over 30 block parties throughout the 5 boroughs. Each of these parties also gets the services of a professional urban planner for a day, who will help find community solutions to community problems like traffic, speeding, and noise and air pollution. They will also talk to residents about what they like and dislike about their street, what they want to preserve, and what needs to change.
Yes, we will discuss all of these serious issues with our neighbors, but we will also hang out and have a great time! Here are all the details:
Newkirk Avenue Block Party, a Livable Streets celebration co-sponsored by Flatbush Development Corporation, New York City Streets Renaissance, and Make Music New York, with participation of Solar One, Brooklyn Compost Project, Council on the Environment of NYC, Transportation Alternatives, Alive Structures, Midwood Martial Arts, and Newkirk Area merchants. Join us for:
Live Music and DJ’s all day!
Traditional NYC Street Games:
Handball, Skully, Hopscotch, Double Dutch, Jacks, and more!
Food Vendors!
Environmental Info and Activities:
Solar Power, Composting, Green Roof/Garden Design, Cell Phone Recycling, etc.,
plus Recycling Games and Art Projects just for kids!
WHEN: Saturday, June 21st, 11am - 6pm, Rain or Shine!
WHERE: Newkirk Avenue between East 16th and East 17th Streets
See you there!
Last night was the first meeting to brainstorm and plan for the new Flatbush Community Garden, renamed the Flatbush Unity Garden. A group of 20+ people met at P.S. 217 to share their ideas of what they’d like this community resource to become. In addition to growing vegetables and fruits and flowers, what many of us expressed was the desire for a place where we can meet our neighbors, form ties to our community, and enjoy a peaceful outdoor environment. New York City has many examples of gardens that serve as hubs of neighborhood cultural and social interaction as well as providing beautiful green spaces (and in some cases food as well). Clearly there is a longing for such a place here in Flatbush, and our goal is to create one.
East 4th Street Community Garden, Kensington, Brooklyn, photo by Flatbush Gardener
Campus Road Garden at Brooklyn College
East Village community garden, Manhattan
There was also talk of composting, rainwater harvesting, permaculture, urban agriculture, and many of the other sustainability concepts that I for one have been hoping for a location to demonstrate and educate the community about (myself included!). It’s great to learn that other folks in the neighborhood share the same goals.
A tour of the site is scheduled for this Sunday afternoon… stay tuned for details.
