Not Just for Superheroes

With so many different materials we use, recycling can sometimes be confusing. South Carolina's Recycling web site has some great information. This has resources for residents, teachers, students, and businesses.

Teachers have lessons, materials, presentations, and grant funding information available. If students want help for a science fair, it provides a guidebook for creating projects that focus on recycling, energy, and water conservation. We got a kick out of their cool posters, like this one at left. You can print one, or call 1-800-768-7348 to get printed posters by mail. See if there is something new that you can use!

Grown at Home, Made by Hand

For those of us charmed by local treasures in our gift-hunting, check out the goodies in the Homegrown Handmade Art Roads and Farm Trails of North Carolina.

"Travel along back roads to sample fresh goat cheese and scuppernong wine, artists' studios and sidewalk cafés," entices the site. The alliance between arts and agriculture in the Foothills, Piedmont, and Coastal areas has created trails to find local treats. Buying local, food and arts, exploring different areas of the map--that's a siren song to me!

The self-directed driving trails have art galleries, horse farms, you-pick farms, locally owned restaurants that feature local food products, and bed-and-breakfast inns. They also include events and activities; from music at harvest festivals to food and crafts at local fairs.

You can also get a printed guide to all the trails in this book of the same title. Very useful for adventuring...

Farm to Fork

Welcome to Reverend Sara Morgan's stand at the Health Department Market! The Department wants to make it easy for everyone to get their fruits and vegetables. This is in Wayne County, in eastern North Carolina. It's the site of a community that is working to build a sound food system for its people.

The Wayne Food Initiative (WFI) has developed an ambitious program. They envision healthy, knowledgeable and engaged citizens, with nutritious and affordable food accessible to all. The natural world will be protected by sound environmental practices; local farming and businesses, strong. The young people will learn and grow to become the future leaders.

The seed grant for this project was provided by the Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS). It's a partnership of NC State University, NC A&T University, and the NC Department of Agriculture. They work closely with various agencies, organizations, and citizens like those in Wayne Couny. Now CEFS is looking at the whole state and asking: "What will it take to build a sustainable local food economy in North Carolina?"

Tell them what you think! Come to a regional meeting and help out. If you are involved in any aspect of the food industry or would like to be, bring your information and ideas to this working session. Meetings have been held in Raleigh, Burgaw, and Asheville. This month's schedule includes the regions around Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Greenville. You can get more information about the regional meetings and about this initiative at Farm to Fork. Choose one of the many ways to get involved in "Building a Sustainable, Local Food Economy."

Here is the meeting schedule:

Charlotte area - Monday, Dec. 8th, 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Cabarrus Arena and Event Center, 4751 Highway 49 North, Concord.

Winston-Salem/Greensboro/Highpoint - Wednesday, Dec. 10th, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. SciWorks, 400 W Hanes Mill Rd, Winston Salem, (336) 767-6734. Directions at SciWorks.

Greenville - Monday, Dec. 15, 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. St. Timothy’s, 107 Louis St., Greenville, (252) 355-2125.

Cheers to Beidler Forest

Have you seen Beidler Forest? Audubon South Carolina operates two wonderful centers: Francis Beidler Forest, and Silver Bluff along the Savannah River. The centers have educational and visitor programs to add to their natural resources.

Francis Beidler Forest, in Four Holes Swamp, is a 16,000-acre wildlife sanctuary. It features a boardwalk that is almost two miles long, through an old-growth cypress-tupelo swamp. South Carolina's Governor Mark Sanford proclaimed the week of November 30-December 6th to be Beidler Forest Week. This recognizes the Francis Beidler Forest, and applauds Audubon's efforts to preserve wetlands in the Palmetto State. Here's a tip of the hat - or, a raise of the binoculars to them! Let's put it on our must-visit list.

Catawba River Film Festival

Join me at the movies! On Thursday, December 4th, at 6:30 p.m., the Catawba River Film Festival will present an evening of short films.

In Birthplace of the Winds, you can watch a National Geographic expedition in remote Alaska - explorers kayaking in waters among volcanic islands, following the routes of the native Aleuts. Other settings include Malawi and Hawaii. All four showings focus on important issues concerning our world's water.

After the movie, Catawba Riverkeeper David Merryman will lead a panel discussion. Senator Dan Clodfelter of North Carolina and Bruce Henderson of the Charlotte Observer will participate. The Film Festival will be in the Pease Auditorium at Central Piedmont Community College's main campus. General admission tickets are $5, children under 12 are free, at CarolinaTix or by phone at (704) 372-1000.

Before the film program, a reception will be held in the student art gallery, beginning at 5:30. The gallery is showing student work created from recycled materials for the series, America Recycles. This event, catered by Earth Fare, will honor donors who support the work of the Riverkeepers. Guests may purchase tickets for the reception separately, at Reservations.

You can also contact Erica Geppi for more information at (704) 679-9494.

Dig It Saturday

Can you help plant trees? On Saturday, volunteers are needed to plant thousands of them on the western side of Mountain Island Lake. This tree project, sponsored by the North Carolina Sierra Club and the Central Piedmont Group, helps filter groundwater and creates a buffer to keep our drinking water clean.

The participants will meet at the Henderson Park Swim Club on November 22nd, work from 9:00 a.m. to 1 p.m, and be treated to a thank-you luncheon and celebration, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.

If you can help, the NC Sierra Club asks you to visit their registration site, which also provides a map to the Swim Club. Tools will be supplied, but it will be helpful if you can bring a shovel or gardening tools. If it rains, bring rain gear; if it storms, sponsors will notify you and reschedule. For more information, please contact Jennifer Keech, jkkeech@aol.com, of the Central Piedmont Group, or call Kara Craig, of the NC Sierra Club, at (919) 833-8467.

Fair Oil

Last month, the North Carolina State Fair opened a day earlier, and the attendance on Sunday was a record for the last day. We especially applaud an exciting project at this year's event: around 8,000 gallons of used cooking oil was collected. The used vegetable oil will be converted into biodiesel fuel, to be used by the NC Department of Agriculture at their research stations. It's great to see our "waste" being recycled!

River Stories Contest

There are only a few more days left to enter this contest. Tom's of Maine is offering a car to those who are caring for their rivers and keeping them healthy. Send a video by October 31st to enter this River Stories Contest and win a Toyota Prius! It's nice that this company is working to offer environmentally-friendly products, and is also sponsoring the Rivers Awareness Partnership, providing the winner with a cool car for a thank-you gift.

Some of the videos already entered are really interesting, too. I was charmed by the riverkeeper of "The Living Blackwater and Nottoway Rivers" and moved by "49 Megawatts" (in photo at right). We know some of you have been working hard to protect the Catawba, Eno, Pee Dee, Saluda, and other Carolina rivers. Enter the contest and let everyone know about it!

Low-Flow Landscaping

With the recent rains, my grass is luxuriant, an emerald carpet! I have neither aerated it nor fertilized it, just watched the free water coming down. But I will not be lulled into complacency. I remember the summers: when my grass was brown and so dry that it crackled when I stepped on it. So I am getting down to business, planning for next year. In my research, I'll look for plants that are native to the Carolinas and drought-resistant. I would like to go for indestructible, if that's not aiming too high.

Here's an attractive North Carolina front yard, shown by H2Ouse Water Saver Homes. Some plants in the picture are clickable, leading us to a larger picture of the plant, along with its identification. You don't have to dig very deeply to find the word "xeriscaping," sometimes spelled "zeriscaping." It combines "xeri," the Greek word for dry, and landscaping. It includes common sense ideas for conserving water, such as mulching, and grouping plants that have similar water needs together.

I am envisioning beds of perennial wild flowers that need very little water. I would like a rock garden, or maybe a path paved with field stones, through the tiny lawn that remains. Something like this - shown in H2Ouse's back yard - with blue star creeper between the stones, would be nice. I have already learned that paving should be done with permeable bricks or paving stones, so that water can soak into the ground, instead of running off.

NC's Division of Water Resources gives a brief summary of xeriscaping. The topic is also included in Clemson University's thorough coverage of Low-Maintenance Landscape Ideas. Like they say, wait till next year!

Solar and Green Building Tour Continuing

Nearly a thousand people attended the Green Building and Solar Tour in six communities in North Carolina last Saturday. The event continues this weekend in other cities. Check out the tours and activities to be held this Saturday, October 11th, in Asheville, Boone/High Country, Chatham County, Fayetteville, Hendersonville, and Raleigh.

The NC Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) sponsors the self-guided tours to show a wide variety of green building solutions installed, in homes and offices in the state. Participants may see ways to implement these practices in their own buildings, both new and renovated.

The Boone tour will begin at the Watauga County Agriculture Conference Center, shown at left, and run from 8 a.m to 4 p.m. For information about the tour in your city, and to purchase tickets, see NCSEA Events. Ticket prices are $5 for members of NCSEA; $5 for students and teachers; $10 for non-members; and $15 for a carload. Children under 16 are free. You might get some great ideas!

Green Building and Solar Tour

We've been exploring the wild areas, and the Green Building and Solar Tour has slipped up on us! This Saturday, October 4th, you can tour a range of commercial and residential buildings that have installed sustainable energy systems. Chapel Hill/Orange County, Charlotte, Durham, Greenville, Wilmington, and Winston-Salem will have tours available this weekend. This photo shows the solar hot water panels on the roof of the home of Darrell and Jo Kay Edgley of Durham, from last year's tour brochure.

The NC Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) sets up open-house tours where we can see the systems working, and see how they fit into the building's energy plan. Last year, we saw some interesting examples of passive solar design, where a house had been designed to capture the sun's warmth in winter, and keep it cooler in the summer. Also, we saw a lovely older home which had been renovated to include rainwater harvesting and many other green energy features.

This is a way to explore options for your own home or business, whether you'd like to improve your existing home, or would like to plan a new design. It's really interesting to see the different systems in action. They have planned the tours to be as gas-efficient (and friendly) as possible. For example, in the Charlotte Tour, the site registration at the Government Center, 600 E. 4th St., offers educational literature and local green building experts for questions and answers, shuttle tours to the Discovery Place Green Roof, free parking, and refreshments.

Their self-guided tours run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. They include vegetative green roofs at the Federal Reserve and Discovery Place, solar photovoltaics (electric), solar hot water, and more. Six residential sites include features like solar electric, hot water, and pool heating; Energy Star, LEED, EarthCraft and HealthyBuilt Homes; and many other green building technologies.

Purchase tickets online at North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association. Ticket prices are $5 for members of NCSEA; $5 for students and teachers; $10 for non-members; and $15 for a carload. Children under 16 are free. For more information, contact Shannon Lingo, Charlotte Tour Volunteer Coordinator, slingo@energywisesolutions.net, or call 704-302-5926.

North Inlet-Winyah Bay Estuary

The recent tropical storm brought us rain, rain, rain! Rivers must have filled this past weekend. The Winyah Bay watershed is about 18,000 square miles, fed by four major rivers that drain into it. Most of the flow is from the Pee Dee-Yadkin river system, beginning in the Blue Ridge Mountains and streaming through the Piedmont to the sea.

In Georgetown County, SC, between Myrtle Beach and Charleston, the water flows into the North Inlet-Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The satellite map view of this at left, with its blue and green colors, makes it easy to see how the rivers, salt marshes, and tidal creeks come together. The North Inlet-Winyah Bay Reserve boundary is encircled by a yellow line. This Reserve actually combines two estuaries: the North Inlet and the Winyah Bay estuary.

North Inlet, a barrier beach estuary, is washed by the tides, and about half of its water returns to the ocean twice a day. Most of its watershed is in its natural forested state. Winyah Bay is a salt wedge estuary, as heavier salt water moves up-estuary along the bottom with the flooding tide, with fresh water on top flowing toward the ocean.

The brackish waters and marshes provide habitat to many threatened and endangered species, including sea turtles, sturgeons, least terns and wood storks. Pumpkinseed Island is an important rookery for white ibis, great and snowy egrets, and herons. The USC Baruch Marine Field Laboratory conducts research at this Reserve, which also offers a link to a Discovery Kit, describing an estuarine environment using an interactive tutorial.

The North Inlet-Winyah Bay NERR offers interesting public programs and activities. How about a free boat tour? On its Appreciation Day, Saturday, November 1st, you can explore the Winyah Bay Estuary aboard the SCDNR Education Vessel Discovery. Learn about the biology of plants and animals that live there, and see animals collected in the trawls. This guided tour is free, but space is limited, so call quickly to register for it; (843) 546-6219.

North Carolina Reserve Estuaries

We are exploring our local treasures for National Estuaries Day this Saturday. This is amazing!

Miles of ocean beaches in North Carolina: 320
Miles of estuarine shoreline in the state: more than 8,000

This estuarine system is the third largest in the country, with great economic importance to the coastal area. Ninety percent of commercial seafood species live at some time in an estuary. This is where freshwater, carrying silt and organic matter, mixes with mineral-rich saltwater. Much of the fish and shellfish harvested each year depend on these areas, as do many birds and other animals.

The North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve helps to preserve these fragile natural areas and the variety of life they support. The North Carolina Reserve covers two biogeographic regions, located north and south of Cape Hatteras. This reserve is made from four sites: Currituck Banks, Rachel Carson, Masonboro Island, and Zeke’s Island. It's about 10,000 acres! Let's investigate one of these places.

The Rachel Carson site, accessible only by boat, is a center of marine research and education. There, they study everything from fiddler crabs to feral horses (see photos). It's named in honor of the scientist and author who conducted research there during the 1940's. It is in a tidal river and sound, where the Newport and North rivers meet the Atlantic Ocean. The chain of islands are made of salt marshes, tidal mud and sand flats, eelgrass beds and upland islands.

The marine laboratories of Duke University, University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University are located there. A regional office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries is at the site as well. The Web-based reserve tour, Estuary Live, originated from the Rachel Carson Reserve in Beaufort in September 2001. More than 20,000 people in 31 states and four foreign countries logged on for the broadcast.

In addition to the four national areas, the North Carolina Coastal Reserve Program also protects six state reserves: Kitty Hawk Woods, Emily and Richardson Preyer Buckridge, Buxton Woods, Permuda Island, Bald Head Woods, and Bird Island. The ten Reserves are more than 41,000 acres conserved to operate as living laboratories for long-term research, education, and stewardship.

If you are interested in supporting the North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve, you can also join the non-profit group, the Carolina Estaurine Reserve Foundation (CERF). Keep on exploring!

Estuaries Day this Saturday!

"Where freshwater systems and rivers meet, and mix with a salty ocean."

Be a part of the National Estuaries Day this Saturday, September 27th. The nationwide event offers a multitude of activities for the entire family. Check out the Research Reserves: some will offer guided walks, boat tours, live animal presentations, touch tanks, and kayak tours. Look for nature crafts for kids of all ages, estuary games and activities, live music, fish printing and more!

The web site is a wonderful resource. This interesting guide includes the EstuaryLive, presenting videos, live broadcasts, virtual field-trips, dynamic presentations, and other exciting events in estuarine reserves across the country.

Many people do not realize how much we depend on estuaries, and how our actions can have an effect on those places that might seem far from home. What each of us does can affect an estuary's health and even people’s health. The flow of water through rivers, lakes, and wetlands eventually meets the sea. The air we breathe and water we drink come back to us from there, in oxygen produced by ocean plants and moisture evaporated from the sea.

The estuary reserves are protected for long-term research, water-quality monitoring, education and coastal stewardship of the 1.3 million acres of coastal land and waters, from Alaska to Puerto Rico. The reserve sites make up the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS), a partnership program between National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) and the coastal states.

They are doing an impressive job. Thirty years ago, the Rookery Bay Reserve near Naples, Florida was established as a 3,700-acre national sanctuary. Its boundary has now been expanded to 110,000 acres, and it is one of the nation’s last relatively untouched mangrove-forested estuaries.

The Carolinas are home to three of the twenty-seven reserves in the United States. One is the third largest in the country. Do you know them? In the next posts, we will take a closer look at these natural treasures, exploring the places where rivers meet the sea. Join us and plan your own event, visit a Research Reserve, or plan on taking a kid outdoors!

Healthy Kids and a Healthy Planet

Beginning this Friday, a three-day workshop will explore how to raise healthy children in a toxic world, while helping our environment. The conference, Saving Our Kids, Healing Our Planet, will be held from September 26th to 28th in the Charlotte Convention Center.

Highlights include renowned pediatricians, authors and environmentalists discussing children’s health and treatment for their ills, from asthma to autism. They say that the wellbeing of children may depend on reducing the pollution in our world. Presenters and vendors feature safe and effective household products, alternative vaccines, organic clothing, whole foods, and many other topics. And the Planet Kids area is the place where kids can have fun with activities such as puppet shows, story-telling, Environmental Hip Hop, recycled craft projects and games, along with healthy snacks.

The registration fee for adults is $12.00 per day at the door, discounted if you register in advance online. Children under 18 are free. To register, see http://registration.sokhop.com/

A Just, Green Economy for North Carolina

We need workers who have good jobs, helping improve our air and water and protecting the environment for all of us. You are invited to learn how North Carolina can have this, at the day-long conference, "Growing a Just, Green Economy." It will be held on Saturday, September 20th, on the campus of North Carolina Central University in Durham, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. NCCU and over 20 other organizations are sponsoring this event.

Majora Carter, the founder of Sustainable South Bronx, will be a keynote speaker. In the CNN photo at left, she discusses a green roof project. TED calls her an inspiring speaker, a "visionary voice in city planning." Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, who has a distinguished record of community development in North Carolina, is also a keynote speaker.

Attendees will be able to discuss steps toward a green economy that can produce affordable energy and increase prosperity in our local communities. The registration fee, including lunch, is $30, $10 for students. A limited number of community member or student work scholarships may be available. To learn more or to register, please see the Conference site. Questions? Contact Alice Loyd at BBGAlliance@gmail.com or at 919-828-6501.

Catawba River Events

The Catawba River flows from the Blue Ridge Mountains and continues west of Charlotte into South Carolina, where it becomes the Wateree River. This weekend, we can learn how to help protect the river and its watershed. The Central Piedmont Group of the NC Sierra Club and Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC), are sponsoring a meeting Saturday, September 13th to learn, "What Local Citizens can do to Preserve and Protect the Catawba.” The gathering will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the main campus of CPCC, in Room 131 of the Criminal Justice Building.

Speakers will give us specific information on what volunteers can do to help the Catawba watershed. Rick Roti of American Forests will be there, along with David Kroening of Mecklenburg’s Land Use and Environmental Services Department, and Cassie Moore, from CPCC’s Service Learning Department. The Muddy Water Watch coordinator of the Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation will also attend. Around noon, the meeting will conclude with a guided tour of the campus rain gardens and a tree planting.

Everyone is invited to join in other cool events coming up. Mountain Island Lake, in NC Sierra Club's photo at left, is part of the Catawba River system. On Saturday, October 4th, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., groups will be cleaning up the lake's shoreline as part of the annual Big Sweep event. The Central Piedmont Group and CPCC students will work on the McDowell Creek watershed portion.

On Saturday, November 22, we can meet the groups and help plant a large number of trees from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The trees help filter groundwater and protect the watershed. There will be an after-work picnic lunch.

For more information, contact Kara Craig, Conservation Coordinator of the NC Sierra Club, at (919) 833-8467 or Kara.craig@sierraclub.org

Counting Spots

Volunteers are needed to help count salamanders. The marbled and spotted salamanders give clues about the health of their environment and the impact of nearby development. This research project of the Catawba Lands Conservancy studies the salamanders (photo at left) by catching them in buckets. Each day volunteers need to check the buckets, record the number and species of salamanders caught, and release them. The salamanders must be released daily or they will die. Each volunteer can help the project for one day a week.

They collect the data in an upland swamp in the Whitehall Nature Preserve, a permanently protected area located off I-485 at the South Tryon/Hwy 49 exit. Volunteers can participate beginning in mid-September and continuing through early April. For more information, please contact Sharon Wilson at 704-342-3330, ext. 209, or sharon@catawbalands.org for more information.

Cleaner Air

Union County and Rowan-Salisbury Schools are reducing harmful tailpipe emissions from their school buses. Thanks to NC State University's Clean Fuel Advanced Technology (CFAT) project!

The CFAT grant is used for reducing vehicle emissions in North Carolina counties that do not meet federal air quality standards. Now in its third and final year, the program is funding a variety of projects, such as the purchase of Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs). They have zero tailpipe emissions, can be operated on city streets at speeds up to 35 mph, and are recharged through household-type electrical outlets. The Town of Stallings bought an NEV for its parks and downtown area, and Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation purchased three NEVs to replace their gas-powered vehicles in nature preserves.

A cool new installation at Big Boys Truck Stop on I-95 will provide 24 electric power pedestals for truckers. They will be able to plug in and shut off their engines during overnight stays, reducing toxic air pollution and fuel costs. The truck stop electrification (TSE) project, to be installed by Shorepower Technologies, will be the first of its kind in the southeast.

And the City of Monroe is purchasing two Segways for its police department, to replace the use of patrol cars. Collectively, the 2008 projects will reduce over 1 million kg of pollutants annually, according to Steve Kalland, Director of the NC Solar Center. More information can be found at Clean Transportation.

Naturalist Art

Catch the The Naturalist's World, an exhibition of paintings, photographs, and ceramics of natural beauty by artists from eight states. Showing at the Elder Gallery in Charlotte through August 30, it includes pieces from Ceramist Warner Hyde, of North Carolina, presenting a body of work that originated from Carolina elements.

Elder Gallery, located at 1427 South Boulevard, will donate twenty percent of the proceeds to the Catawba Lands Conservancy, the nonprofit land trust that works to permanently protects land, water and wildlife habitat.

SEE Expo August 22

Make plans to check out the Southern Energy and Environment Expo on August 22-24th at the Western NC Agricultural Center even if you need to travel to it. The annual event of renewable energy technologies also provides responsible environmental stewardship. They have so much to offer this year, it's worth a carpool and effort to go. The event offers exhibits and presentations on a range of interesting topics like these.

• Backyard Sustainability
• Biofuels, Ethanol Fuel, Farm Bill Bio-energy
• Caring for Creation
• Clean Transportation Open Forum
• Commercial Applications of Renewable Energy
• Green Building, Healthy Built Homes
• N.C. Solar Tax Credits
• Natural Building Methods, Advanced Building Techniques
• Opportunities in a Clean Energy Economy
• Practical Photovoltaics
• Radiant Floor Heating
• Rain Water
• Solar Green Gardening, Solar Water Pumping
• Solar Electric Systems
• Solar Hot Water and Space-Heating Systems
• Sustainable Forestry
• Wind Powered Energy

Our friends Mike and Paula Moore of Ampmobile Conversions will be also presenting electric car conversions, and putting the 'EV' smile on people who realize the gas savings. Other sessions offer information on water in energy use, like Independent Conservation Utilities, presented by Hope Taylor of Clean Water for NC.

"Our current energy systems require over 9 billion gallons of water each day. Six states have shown an independent state energy efficiency program is cost-effective, speeds up renewable development and savings stay in the pockets of customers!"

A summer weekend in the mountains is always great and the SEE Expo brings us an invitation to enjoy one, with more ways we can sustain our beautiful Carolinas.

Happy Birthday, R. Dees

Image found at Art Renewal Center. Hope your day is filled with beauty!

Sustainable Events

The Charlotte Convention Center was the first one in North Carolina to “go green.” For about 2 years, the Center has gone the extra mile, according to Mariel Littrell, the green representative for the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority. For some time, recycling receptacles have been provided, along with highly visible arrows, to encourage the recycling of bottles and cans. All cardboard is bound and recycled. Now the facility has added environmentally-friendly cleaning products, an expanded recycling program, and energy-saving initiatives.

A group deciding to hold an expo or meeting is connected to an events manager, who coordinates the group's needs with the Center's procedures, including the green initiatives. The Charlotte Green Team won an award in April from the Charlotte Business Journal for their green building meetings. Attendees at meetings may ride to the meeting on the LYNX Blue Line, the only light rail system in the United States that runs through a Convention Center, as shown in the photo at right from LYNX Facts.

The Center's Green Team is especially active behind the scenes. Their Food Service buys local food and bundles purchases to decrease travel time. All cooking oil is recycled. Extra food is donated to the United House of Prayer or local food banks, and the waste food is sent to composting. Paper boxes are used for box lunches; napkins are made from recycled paper or cloth. For large meetings, bulk water and teas are provided; beverage cups and coffee cups are made of biodegradable materials.

Many energy-efficient features of the Center, including the meeting rooms and buildings, can be found at Charlotte Convention Center - Green Initiatives. Congratulations to the Center, for its efforts to ensure sustainability in their events!

Green Roof Design 101

What can you do with a green roof? The photo at right is an example shown at Live Roof where the city of Grand Haven, Michigan, planted their garbage container covers. These roofing systems provide storm water management, cooling effects and insulation that decrease energy costs, wildlife habitat for insects and birds, and they improve air quality by absorbing pollutants.

There are already a number of lovely installations in the Carolinas, and it will be growing, as more people learn about the benefits of green roofs, walls, and other forms of living architecture. A not-for-profit industry association offers a Green Roof Design 101 Introductory Course on Thursday, September 18, in the Hampton Inn at Charlotte, NC. This is part of an accredited program that works with diverse professions. You can get a discount on the course if you become a member of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities.

If you prefer to hire a professional rather than become one, you might find a company like Living Roofs, Inc., the first in North Carolina specializing in green roof services. They work with landscape architects, architects, artists, and structural engineers. Their site shows existing projects, including many local buildings. They also have interesting before-and-after views of our cities to give us more ideas.

Sea Turtle Walk

There is still time to see a turtle make a nest this week. Through this last week of July, a special guided walk at Edisto Beach State Park offers an informative program and hike down the beach, in search of nesting loggerhead sea turtles. The South Carolina location is a high-density nesting site with 60-90 nests laid annually within a small area. The park rangers protect the nests and educate people about turtle conservation efforts.

The nesting loggerhead sea turtle program is designed for ages 11 and older, and requires walking several miles. Advanced registration is required for a maximum of thirty people. Call (843) 869-4430 to make reservations. The remaining walks are Monday, July 28, from 9:30-11:50 p.m., and on Tuesday, July 29, and Thursday, July 31, from 9:00-11:45 p.m.

These marine reptiles are migratory, and can travel long distances before they return to their birthplace to lay their eggs. The loggerhead image above is from a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration site. Turtle Time provides a nice video presentation about marine turtles, too.

Happy Thyme

With more hot, dry weather still ahead, we are replacing some of our flowers or part of our lawns with less thirsty plants. Here's some advice for our area.

Water-wise suggestions from Southern Gardens include this tip: for a dry garden, look for foliage that has gray or silvery leaves. Tiny hairs on the leaves and stems reduce the need for added water. Succulent plants like yuccas, sedum, and agaves are examples. Ornamental grasses are also recommended.

Another reference I looked at was Best Garden Plants for North Carolina. There weren't special listings for "drought-resistant" plants. In browsing, however, I found an herb collection. Herbs, they said, all like well-drained soil. "Well-drained" was in bold. In case you might have too much water, they advise grading the bed so that rainfall will run off.

I can do well-drained. In fact, one of the herbs I found described was a great friend of mine -- thyme. It's a bright green mass, about 3 to 4 inches tall. It tolerates being ignored, winters over, and looks great in the heat. It fills in to make a thick mat and does not travel too fast. At left is a view from the top, this photo from VeggieHarvest.com. I have received so many compliments about how lush it looks, while the flowers beside it droop, that I decided to find out more about it.

There are over 400 varieties of thyme. They don't need much watering or care, and don't do well in soil that is too rich. Creeping thyme plants, like mine, are low growing and don't require mowing, so they are very suitable for ground covers. This plant is often placed between the stones or bricks in garden paths. Ed Hume Seeds gives us many reasons why creeping thyme, Thymus serpyllum, is one of their favorite plants. First, it is low maintenance and can take a lot of abuse. It can even be walked on. I don't think I would want to walk on their pretty example, in the photo at right. But I can see it as a lovely edging in my garden.

Worldometers and Energy

Worldometers provides real-time, constant updating of some fascinating statistics about the world. Amazing to see a whole-world view in numbers, zooming by.

Among the surprising are the energy numbers. The figures are measured in metric tons. No matter what energy is produced or consumed, the amount of solar energy striking the Earth's surface is three digits larger. Wow! I hope we can find better, more efficient ways to harness that.

Weekend Watermelon Festival

Yes, we love a festival that celebrates our area's beauty, natural resources, and culture. We like to celebrate, and we like watermelon! Let's go to the 100th anniversary of Pageland, SC, at the 2008 Pageland Watermelon Festival this weekend. Starting Friday evening, July 18, and offering events through Sunday, the festival brings live music, and entertainment, amusement rides, a pageant and a parade, crafts and classic cars, and fun foods. Yum!

Catch A Fox

How is your wild life? We have been recently visited by two small box turtles, and found it interesting that their species name is Terrapene carolina. Deer visit the yard, and munch on whatever is convenient. A red-tailed hawk with a nest nearby perched on my bird feeder, looking for an easy meal. A crow family has also been nesting here.

The Carolina Wrens are funny in choosing nest sites. This year, they made a nest on the porch between the wall and two folding chairs which were leaning there, waiting for the boys of summer (in baseball games). I'd think they could pick a sturdier place! They have already hatched the eggs and flown, leaving only a few feathers behind in the nest, at left.

A fox has also appeared a number of times, venturing to the yard in the evenings. They are shy, but if you catch a glimpse of the fluffy red tail, you can't mistake it for any other animal. We'll sign up for the August fox class at McDowell Nature Center to learn more about them.

Thinking about the fox reminded me to ask a friend if she was viewing this blog in a newer browser. She was reading this in Explorer. If you are, there's a lot you are missing, too! Mozilla Firefox is a better and faster web browser, with higher security features. You can download it free. Try it out and see how much better the web (and this site) looks.

A Beer in the Breeze

Aubrey Davis of the Outer Banks Brewing Station says that America’s first wind-powered brew pub is breezing along with the 10kw wind turbine in their backyard. Installed and started on April 22, the Bergey Windpower turbine is saving the restaurant and brewery about $250 to $300 per month on its electricity bill. Because they make their own brews there, they need a good bit of power for refrigeration.

Davis plans to attach a computer and weather station in the fall to the wind turbine. Then we will be able to go online and see the wind speed and the energy the turbine is producing. Cheers to the crew at the Brewing Station for their persistence in promoting a healthy, sustainable environment. Now, that's a cool one! I can't wait to sample it...

HD Recycles CFLs

If you've been using compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), you have probably been saving some money. The average household using them reduces its energy bill by $12 to $20 a month, according to estimates. But they contain a very small amount of mercury, so they need to be recycled when they're worn out.

Now it's easier to find a place to recycle them. All 1,973 Home Depot stores are accepting used CFLs for recycling, no matter where you bought them. Signs going up in the stores, left, will promote the new recycling program. Home Depot saw the need when their sales climbed to 75 million CFLs last year. If a compact fluorescent bulb breaks in your home, though, a safe clean up procedure is given by the Environmental Protection Agency. Many other businesses are starting recycling programs for CFLs as well. Check with your local hardware store for more information.

Festival for the Eno River

The July 4th weekend is a party on the beautiful Eno River. The Festival for the Eno on July 4-6 in Durham will have 100 music performers on five stages. There will be 85 craft artist displays and many other fun activities (including wading) at the river.

The Eno River Association, which organizes the event, works for the preservation of the nature, culture, and history of the Eno River basin. It's a great place to cool off in the summer. The photo here was taken at Bobbit Hole, by Dave Cook.

This year’s 29th annual event will feature an expanded Sustainable Home and Garden Expo located on the Festival site, around the historic West Point Mill. We must also applaud this Association for offering a "Trash-Free" Festival for the Eno since 1992. Great work in community fun and environmental awareness!

So Much to Save

Going to see the Dave Matthews Band? Appearing tonight in Charlotte at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre and tomorrow night at Raleigh's Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek.

These North Carolina venues are the first to participate in the DMB's new "So Much to Save" Recycling Program. Every person that recycles at the special Bama Green recycling stations will be eligible to vote for the songs to be included in a live album to be released at the end of the summer. The program, named after the DMB hit single, "So Much to Save," rolls out tonight, according to Lucy August-Perna, a volunteer coordinator.

The "Greening of the DMB Tours" is an element of the Bama Green Project. Check out the many ways that the DMB is taking it on the road. See you tonight!

Creative Stewardship

You have a great idea for improving the environment in your community, and just the group to get it going. How could you get it funded? Healthy Community Grants up to $10,000 are available to community-based groups that offer solutions for local environmental problems -- the more creative and out-of-the-box, the better. The awards are intended to inspire people in selected counties in coastal South Carolina and Georgia to get involved.

Ward Edwards, an engineering company with offices in Bluffton and Port Royal, SC, is offering the grants for the second year. The company wants to encourage innovation and has doubled the target area. "We want to make as many people as possible aware that these funds are available," according to Kimberly Seipel-Parks, Project Director. "We are looking for projects that promote environmental sustainability."

St. Peter’s Catholic School of Beaufort was a 2007 winner, with a water quality study in a high salinity estuary. As a result of the rapid growth in their county, the Beaufort River had high surges of fresh water from storm water runoff. Their Environmental Science Program wanted to investigate the impact of the fresh water on organisms, including anemones, sea squirts, and sponges.

Another winner was the Marshview Organic Community Farm in St. Helena. Their goal was to educate youth in the community about how they could become change agents for improving their environment. The students were to receive hands-on training in the operation of an organic farm. The Town of Bluffton used its award to build a demonstration rain garden, as shown in the photo at left, for collecting and filtering rain that falls on impervious surfaces.

What if your local school could be more energy efficient with a 'green roof,' used to grow vegetables for the students?

The list of eligible counties, application forms, and further information about the grants are available on their website. Interested groups must submit an initial one-page Project Summary by September 10, 2008. Grant recipients will be announced in February, 2009. Check it out; your idea may be a winner!

Less Beetles!

Dear June Bugs,
We are glad you are not here.

Almost the end of the month, and we have seen far less of those June bugs chomping on our plants this year. We're not sure if it helped, but last year we did establish a few wild geranium plants. My sister told us last year about this plant, native to Missouri, which is toxic to the Japanese beetles. She found it while reading in a gardening book.

In Eat More Dirt, Ellen Sandbeck states that when the beetles eat it, it's the last bite they take. She says, "Japanese Beetles can not resist eating Geranium maculatum (a wild perennial geranium with tiny pink flowers), though it invariably proves to be their last meal. Other geraniums are also attractive to Japanese beetles, but they only knock the beetles out of 8 hours at a time, not permanently. If you have Japanese beetle trouble, these pretty little wildflowers should look doubly attractive."

We really haven't seen them eat it much, but it does have pretty little flowers. The leaves of the plant are nice too; although they change color to orange and get a bit brown by the end of the summer. Becoming familiar with the leaves, I thought I recognized it growing in bed plantings at the Cradle of Forestry Museum, even when it was not flowering.

I got the plants from one of the sources listed at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Japanese beetles are not present in Missouri, which is a good sign! Whether it's due to the plant, or to other efforts, we are glad there seem to be far less of them here this year. Or did they just shift to someone else's place?

Local Food - Good for You?

We've been saying that fresh, locally grown food tastes better, contains more nutrients, and saves gasoline. In buying locally as much as possible, we believe that we are helping family farmers and the rural communities where they live. Through supporting family farms, such as the one on the left, from UNC News, we are moving toward sustainable agriculture.

Some people have committed to eating a "100-mile diet," choosing food that has traveled no more than 100 miles to reach their table. Among these are a few who admit making exceptions -- for coffee, for example. We don't grow coffee in the Carolinas, but we look for the small "Fair Trade" symbol on the package. It indicates that the grower supports the small farmers in the country where the coffee is grown.

Does it really help? Public officials and others sometimes question whether these efforts really make a difference in improving our health or affecting the ideals we promote. Now the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has received a two-year grant to study such questions in our state. A team of faculty and staff from UNC's of School of Public Health and other North Carolina universities will investigate agriculture and our system of food buying.

The loss of farmland and livelihood among farmers who previously grew tobacco is one concern, according to Dr. Alice Ammerman of the UNC School of Public Health. Rural communities are also affected by local manufacturing layoffs and plant closures, she said. Non-profit organizations such as the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association and the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Program will be helping on these issues.

The NC Department of Health and Human Services will be helping to gather statistics, along with county and regional partners. For further information, see the website of the UNC School of Public Health.

SC Festival of Flowers

A gift for us, and for the bees! This weekend continues the 41st South Carolina Festival of Flowers in Greenwood, South Carolina. A celebration going on through the month of June, it offers many activities this weekend, including Flower Day, June 21st at the Park Seed Company’s Trial Gardens. These nine-acre gardens feature over 1000 varieties of annuals, perennials, and vegetables. They will be open to the public. Professional horticulturists will give guided tours of their many varieties of beautiful plants at their peak. Park Seed (and Greenwood) is also headquarters to Wayside Gardens, a source for new, unusual, and hard-to-find plants in the mail-order gardening business.

The Festival of Flowers also gives us beach music, jazz, bluegrass performances and much more. You might enjoy the day strolling through one of the beautiful gardens on tour. Interesting topiaries are all around...I love the lion! Check out all the other attractions of the Festival of Flowers.

Mulch Matters

We've collected the water we used to rinse fruits and vegetables. As we go out into our yard with a full bucket, we have to decide where to offer it. In these hot and dry days, which of our ornamental plants should get the water?

Our trees are beautiful and provide needed shade and oxygen; their roots have to look for water far down in the ground. Azaleas and other bushes and shrubs also take time and effort to establish. We appreciate the perennial flowers and grasses that come back every year, without much effort on our part. All need water, but drought conditions are especially difficult for the colorful annuals that are so hard to resist in the spring.

No matter which plants seem thirstiest at the moment, we're seeing a big difference using more mulch right now. It's helping our plants to retain the water they get by protecting the soil around them. In the forest, nature forms a protective layer over the soil with fallen leaves, needles, twigs, pieces of bark, spent flower blossoms, fallen fruit and other organic material. We are giving the same assistance to the plants in our landscapes by mulching.

You may not have to make a trip to the store to buy bags of mulch. The Clemson Extension Office Home and Garden Information Center has a Mulch fact sheet that tells how to use materials you may have available.

Electric Car Conversions

Sweet car! Oh, it's electric?

Mike Moore of AmpMobile Conversions adapted this 1979 Fiat Spider to run on electric batteries instead of gasoline.

The Lake Wylie, SC auto expert is converting small cars and trucks to electric power. The process recycles vehicles which have a useable body. It uses parts made in America, and gives new life to an otherwise non-running car.

Let's see what's under the hood. A clean engine, in more ways than one! Moore teaches people how to convert vehicles to this system in four-day workshops. He's already converted about 16 vehicles, and his workshops spread the knowledge he has gathered in his research. He is an engaging instructor, and will not resist an opportunity to share what he has learned, even to the smallest student (below). His wife Paula is also very knowledgeable about the process, helping with purchasing, planning, trade shows, and development in their mission to put cleaner cars on the roads.

The system is customized to each vehicle, considering power requirements, available space, center of gravity, and body structure. For a pickup, the truck bed is equipped with a hydraulic lift, making it easy to access the batteries stored below it.

Moore points out that the electric cars are so quiet that people don't really look out for them. It's amazing to ride in them, or watch them slide by; practically all you hear is the tires on the roadway. Ah, also there is no noxious exhaust! They are more efficient in their use of energy, comparing them to gasoline engines; ask Paula to tell you how much.

For more information check out their website, or call: 803-831-1082, or toll free 1-866-831-1082. You can write the Moores at info@ampmobiles.com.

Wind Energy Forum

Last month, a public forum on wind energy was held in Surf City, NC. Royal Builders of Topsail Island worked with the NC Solar Center, the State Energy Office and the North Carolina Wind Working Group to bring a discussion on this renewable energy to the area. They invited people to learn about the benefits of wind energy, voice their concerns, and ask questions of environmental and technical experts.

Chris Hunter of Royal Builders said the presentation was very successful. Attended by 60-70 people, the forum answered questions from builders, officials from towns and power companies, homeowner's associations, wildlife watchers, and homeowners seeking better power options. Primary concerns were noise, views, threat to birds, and power capacity.

The panelists said that wind turbines were not noisy; the sound levels of a small turbine is lower than the sound of most living rooms. Regarding danger to wildlife, Hunter said, "Of all the birds killed by man-made objects, less than one percent are caused by windmills. Cats are much more deadly to birds."

Hunter said the panel stated that North Carolina does have renewable energy in solar systems and in biomass sources, but not wind. "Most states have some wind turbines producing electricity to supply their power. North Carolina has none." That's really surprising, considering that the state is famous for launching the birth of flight because of its consistent wind. Although wind turbines would not work everywhere, surely some installations could add to our energy supply in a safe and renewable manner.

Hunter also suggested more information could be found at a web site produced by the North Carolina Solar Center and the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC). This Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) contains information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency.

The North Carolina Wind Working Group is a coalition of agencies collaborating on wind energy issues here. The NC Solar Center is one partner, providing more information on their Coastal Wind Initiative page. Another Public Wind Energy Forum will be from 7-9 p.m., on June 19, 2008, in Nags Head, Outer Banks, NC in the Jockey's Ridge State Park Auditorium. If you'd like to join the conversation, you can get the poster here, TownMeetingPoster_OBX.pdf or on the NC Solar Center web site.

Energized by the Fair

"The Green Energy Fair last Saturday was a great success," reports Dennis Robison of the Chowan/Edenton Environmental Group. "While we haven't received the final count, we believe there were between 250 and 300 attendees."

The group served 175 lunches provided by the Town of Edenton, North Carolina. The Fair had 20 exhibitors, ranging from high-end solar panels to vermiculture. The exhibitors were pleased with the attendance, and many people commented that they appreciated the information. The Green Energy Fair offered several short classes, on topics such as weatherization and landscaping with drought-resistant plants. In the photo here, a local science teacher shows people how to compost with worms.

The group gave out a number of door prizes, and energy saving light bulbs were given to everyone as they left the hall. "This was the first major effort of the Chowan/Edenton Environmental Group. We'll probably make this an annual event," says Robison. Congratulations on your efforts to help the community be more energy-efficient!

Got to Be NC

The first "Got to be NC Festival," celebrating local farm products, will be held June 5th through the 8th at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. The Food Expo will feature tasty foods to sample and buy. The official NC Barbecue Cooking Championship will begin there on Friday.

The festival will present a display of antique tractors, draft horse and antique tractor pulls, carnival rides, live music, a petting zoo, pig races, and nightly fireworks. The scheduled flea market, boat show, cattle show, horse show, and a roller derby match will be held as usual.

Gates open Thursday and Friday, 3 p.m. to midnight; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to midnight. General admission is free, and grandstand events are $5. The Festival is produced by the Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. Other sponsors include the NC Pork Council and Kids Green Earth. For more information, see Got to Be NC Festival.

Biofarm Internships

The Piedmont Biofuels Cooperative is now offering the only biodiesel internship program of its kind in the world on their organic biofarm. They are accepting applications for their first internships at their pilot biodiesel plant, one to be held this year from June through August and another from September through December.

"Prospective candidates for the internships should want to leave a legacy," according to Matt Rudolf, the Cooperative's Executive Director. Past projects have included fuel making, a blog aggregator, a constructed wetland, a presence at the farmer’s market, and a wood management center. The interns selected will receive a small stipend and free housing at the co-op's site in Pittsboro, NC. There are many other benefits, including class credits, nearby hiking and mountain biking trails, and a unique resume entry.

Piedmont Biofuels, a cooperative started by some continuing education students at Central Carolina Community College, has grown substantially over the years. In addition to researching and producing diesel fuel from waste vegetable oil, they have implemented a variety of green building strategies and deployed passive solar, active solar and solar thermal. An active agritourism program welcomes thousands of visitors each year to see their organic farm, composting program, and oilseed experiments, and an information-packed Web site describes their ongoing projects and results.

Intern Power was used in the construction of this off grid, straw bale, passive solar biodiesel distribution point, at left, at their Industrial facility. Interns will have ample opportunities for participation in the co-op's extensive education and outreach, so strong communications skills and public speaking experience are preferred. Also, Rudolf says that preference will be given to those individuals without vehicles, or who arrive in diesel vehicles. Interested applicants can learn more at The Cooperative Internship Program.

Edenton Energy Fair

The Green Energy Fair for the Town of Edenton and Chowan County is Saturday, May 31st. This coastal community is located on the Albemarle Sound in Northeastern North Carolina. The event is hosted by the Chowan/Edenton Environmental Group. They want to help residents save money and energy at home. The Green Energy Fair offers exhibits, vendor displays, free lunches, door prizes, and free energy audits. Exhibit booths are also free of charge to vendors. It will be held at the D. F. Walker Gym on North Oakum Street from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, contact Vero Brentjens at vaamb@yahoo.com. Chowan County is also rewarding its citizens with a $100 weekly prize in their recycling program. Great work, folks. Edenton is on our must-see list!

BYOB

Kids are learning the three R's: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Our guest contributor today is H. Sheafor, a 13-year-old Carolina home-schooler. "Did you know that making plastic bags requires the energy equivalent to 4 million barrels of oil a year? Paper bags use 14 million trees annually."

Reducing the use of these bags is a good start. Milk gallons and bottles of washing detergent are easier to carry by their own handles; no bag needed. If you do need to use paper or plastic bags, you could fold them and put them back in your car right away, for the next shopping trip. You can use them over and over again; when they are worn out, recycle them in bins at your grocery store.

Sheafor says that another solution is to make or buy reusable bags. Trader Joes, Whole Foods and Earthfare have been selling their own shopping bags. Now the major grocery chains are participating, too. Harris Teeter was the first; over a year ago, they began refunding 5 cents for each bag you brought in to reuse. Then they started selling their own large shopping bag, our favorite. Lowes now sells a bag and gives 50 green points for each bag you reuse. Food Lion and Bi-Lo offer their own grocery bags, too; all are around a dollar.

Sheafor suggests: "If you go to Reusable Bags you can find many choices.
Shop around -- find some bags that fit your needs, select the style and buy a few. Make a difference today!" We checked out Reusable Bags; they offer an interesting heavy-duty bag, made from 98% recycled plastic bottles and containers. Acme says that the fabric used to produce one bag contains about 10 recycled plastic bottles or containers. The bag has long and short handles, to carry over the shoulder or by hand, $10. Reusable Bags also carries the neat bags that invert into a small attached pouch that make it easy to stuff in a purse or pocket. Those are really useful.

Thank you for giving us more options, Miss Sheafor. Musicians are also encouraging us, creating videos like "I don't need a bag." by The Abraham Lincoln Story. Cashiers and baggers are now getting in the groove, too. We have noticed recently that they are more agreeable about it, whatever bag we use. After shopping, I hang the empty bags on the doorknob, so I am sure to take them to the car the next time I go out. So tell us how you Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB). What's your favorite way to keep your bags handy?

Land Conservation Celebration

Here's a fun event for the whole family! On Saturday, May 31, the Land Conservation Celebration will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Redlair Farm & Forest, 144 Redlair Lane, Gastonia, NC. It presents activities for young and old, hikes through pristine woods, and opportunities to see incredible natural wonders found in the Piedmont. Look for live music, local artisans, community groups, antique tractors, renewable energy displays, scavenger hunts and geo-caching. The event also offers archeology digs, hayrides, storytellers and singers, and live animals from the Schiele Museum. Kids' activities include a bouncer, arts and crafts, games, and face painting.

The celebration is brought to us by the Catawba Lands Conservancy. Their Annual Meeting will be held there at 11 a.m. This nonprofit land trust permanently protects land, water, and wildlife habitat in North Carolina's Southern Piedmont and Lower Catawba River Basin.

Feeding Families

The Fields to Families organization provides an impressive harvest for the hungry. Their volunteers have already worked to pick 10,700 pounds of food this year. In Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester Counties of South Carolina, the non-profit group coordinates these donations of fresh produce from local gardens and farms. Last year, they distributed more than 43,000 pounds of food to area agencies that help families in need.

Fields to Families volunteers collect crops remaining in fields after they have been commercially harvested. They are gleaning at Boone Hall Farms in Mount Pleasant through the end of May. Some teens are volunteering daily to pick for the hungry. More volunteers come as groups on weekends. They always need people to pick vegetables and fruit at farms, help in farmer’s market booths, or transport produce.

"We're not a business, we're a mission," says Director Jacki Baer. Agencies that provide food to the hungry can take as much as they need of the produce. The donations are given to food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, churches, and outreach programs who distribute it through their food programs to the hungry. South Carolina has 250,000 residents at high risk of going hungry. These children, families with single mothers, and seniors live in poverty and rely on food pantries. Baer says, "The only requirement for food donations... is that there is hunger."

Check out their Spring Newsletter and volunteer opportunities at their website or call them at (843) 881-6798. Baer encourages people to plant a little extra in their gardens to donate at their farmer’s market booth or to be picked up. Let's plant a few more seeds right away.

In Hot Water

We've found a new, comfortable way to conserve water in our area. When you turn on the hot water faucet, the water is warm immediately. A company called Today's Hot Water offers us a hot water recirculation system, already widely used in California and Colorado. The system uses a pump with a thermostatic valve. It sends the cooler water in the hot supply line back into the cold supply line, replacing it with hot water. The cold water returns for your use instead of running down the drain.

"How long do you wait for hot water? Until someone asks, people don't realize how many gallons are lost," says owner Larry Rouch. In the one-to-three minutes it takes for the shower to get warm, fresh water goes straight down the drain. An example on their site shows that in a minute and a half, almost 4 gallons are wasted. It is significant, considering how it adds up for every time we turn on the tap. The company estimates that a family of four people loses 12,000 gallons of water per year waiting for the flow to warm. As water conservation is such a big issue for us, and the prices for it go up, consider the cost of your water.

The company offers installation of the recirculation system for about $600. That seems like a big ticket price initially. However, Rouch says residential water supply in Charlotte is $1.57 per 100 cubic feet, and the sewage intake cost is $3.82 for the same water going out. At a total of $5.39/100CF for water just uselessly flowing through the pipes, it seems expensive to do without a system that could save $100-300 per year on utilities alone. When we really think about our precious water resources, it makes even more sense. Want to know more about it? Call Today's Hot Water at 704-405-2499 or 866-488-5332.

Carolina Paperboard

The fibers from the cereal box and newspaper that you put into the recycling container may come back to you as paperboard -- in a shoe box, the back of your composition book, or the tube that holds Christmas wrapping paper.

This area is home to some longtime recycling professionals. Carolina Paperboard was founded in Charlotte in 1938, and is still manufacturing 100% recycled paperboard in 2008. I toured the plant with Jennifer Woracheck, a process engineer and the Safety Coordinator. They move mountains of mixed paper, shown in the photo above. They process it in the original brick building, with the same machinery, producing around 170 tons of paperboard per day.

Carolina Paperboard is now a member of Caraustar Industries. With over 60 plants, 12 of them in the Carolinas, Caraustar is one of America's largest manufacturers of recycled paperboard and packaging solutions. Various plants produce tubes and packing cartons. Others make packaging for ink cartridges, crackers, or tissues, such as these, right.

The company is socially responsible, committed to environmentally sound practices. For twenty years, the Charlotte plant has had a closed water system; no water from the manufacturing process is discharged outdoors or into the sewage system. Carolina Paperboard has a friendly atmosphere, with low employee turnover. A highlight of my tour was this mural, left, painted on a shop wall by an employee. The map was a fitting background for the company's vision statement. We give a green thumbs up to Carolina Paperboard!