Self-Haul v. Franchise Haul

The County Council is currently considering eliminating the self-haul option from the SJI transfer station. Reasons for doing so include reducing operating costs and facility expansion costs. Seems good on the financial side, right?

It is.

On the environmental side, we'll see real benefits from 1 packer truck servicing the same waste as 100 self-haulers. This means much-reduced carbon emissions from vehicles driving to and from the transfer station. Also, island-wide curbside recycling would run earlier than expected, because the local franchise hauler would be able to introduce this service with the expanded and more frequent vehicle routes.

Write your local councilmember to let him or her know what you think about eliminating the self-haul option. And even better, ask you neighbor or friend what they think of it!

Sustainability Defined

I'm sure out there some where is an agreed-upon definition of sustainability. I'll put down, then, the general idea of what it means to me:

Sustainability: Meeting both environmental and financial needs.

Too often environmental ideas become stalled because they don't make business cents.

Too often businesses or their ideas don't get support because the don't make environmental sense.

Sustainability is the idea that brings these two parts together into a cohesive solution, a balance between the two. We must be careful not to throw too much onto either the environmental or the financial for risk of unbalancing the equation.

Recycling at Roche Harbor

Here's an update on the recycling project at Roche Harbor:

Our recycling provider had trouble making it up the hill with one-week's recyclables in-tow.

Wow.

Best estimates put the 20-yard packer truck with 700 pounds and 90% full at over 6 tons of recyclables. That's phenomenal! We diverted more than 12,000 pounds of waste from the landfill through our efforts. That's pretty darn good.

I'll post y'all on the savings soon!

Laundry

I love laundry.  

We've introduced a new extraction system at RH this month called Formula One, an EcoLab solution.  The switch-over will save us about 25% in water usage per load, or 25 gallons per cycle. 

Plus the solution uses low phosphate solutions and comes in containers that minimize plastic usage.

What is your supplier doing for you to save your company resources?

Solid Waste Matters

Bam!  Back again...

It's been a while, I know, but it's not because I'm not doing Good work out there, folks.  Oh no...I've been quite busy, actually.

So my next idea has to do with carrying on a community conversation regarding garbage.  I like to call it Solid Waste Matters.  The intention is to get people to share ideas and start to come together on solid waste ideas before it gets heated and people entrench themselves.  The forum would be open to anyone and facilitated by SWAC.  

Any one have any thoughts?

Sustainable San Juans Event

Sustainable San Juans greening your business discussion today went over some of the activities we’ve engaged in at Roche Harbor, especially in the Lodging Division.  Here’s a brief summary of what I mentioned:

 

Three simple steps:

 

1)    Awareness—involve your guests, customers, clients, employees, managers, vendors, partners, collaborators, and community groups when letting people know what’s going on with the business activities you are engaging.  Also, don’t forget to create awareness  in yourself, by educating yourself on the many opportunities out there in this community.

2)    Action—Programs must be simple, systems-based and make sense/cents.  Do not make things too complex, too grandiose.  Stick to low-hanging fruit.  Don’t create a program around one person, even if it’s you.  You must create a value-based approach that will carry into everything the company plans and decides.  And remember that if it doesn’t pan out financially in the long run or is just too difficult to implement, don’t even start it.

3)    Assessment—You must create baseline data and then measure against that at regular and frequent intervals.  You need to see where improvements/successes/failures have been made or found.  React to data, not emotions.

 

And the bottom line, find ways to TURN OFF THE SWITCHES!!!!

Update to the Climate Change Resolution

Well, we got word back from the county on what kind of progress they've made in the past 13 months on the climate change resolution.

The general tone of the presentation was hurried, joking and non-specific.  The information was not very detailed and lacked few benchmarks to measure against past or future numbers.  Nearly a third of the action items had not been addressed, and we reported to be too difficult or expensive to do in the foreseeable future.  

All in all, disappointing.  I do feel that the Green Team that will be created soon by the administrator is going to be a good, grass-roots effort for the county to see what can really be done by committed individuals.  This is the only hopeful item from the presentation.

I'll keep everyone posted next year when I ask for the update, again.

Family Gardening

Maybe you missed it, but the Obamas have recently converted some of their South Lawn into a vegetable garden.  The hope is to inform and excite the kids' hands with the process of gardening and therefore motivate them to explore a fresher menu of food choices.

What a wonderful idea and, even better, action!

Do you have a place for a garden this spring??

WasteWise

The EPA has a wonderful program called WasteWise that offers partnerships to businesses, communities and institutions that want to aggressively decrease waste generation.  The program takes 5 minutes to sign up for, costs nothing, and requires only one, two-page form completed each year.

The goal of the program is to offer support and resources to groups willing to take action on them.  I've only recently become involved in this program, but so far the breadth and depth of the information, suggestions, and resources is tremendous.  

Find more information at www.epa.gov/wastewise/about/index.htm

What's stopping you from joining up and giving it a shot?

Solid Waste

Here's some interesting thing to note about solid waste in the San Juans or elsewhere:

National recycling rate: 35%

San Juan recycling rate: 21%

The San Juan recycling rate has actually fallen since the inception of the Solid Waste Management Plan.

In Portland Metro, 70% of the trips to transfer stations are made by self-haulers.  Only 20% of the waste deposited is from these self-haulers.  

Portland claims the reasons for their 60% recycling rate is curbside pick up in free recycling containers every time the garbage is picked up.  

The San Juan Solid Waste budget is so far the only solid waste budget that I have found solely funded by tipping fees.  Nearly all are funded by some kind of special tax assessment or portion of property taxes collected by the region.

We, as a country, do not charge people for the opportunity to pollute our ground with solid waste.  We only cover the costs of burying it.

The Nantucket Diversion Rate is close to 80%.

San Juan County pays more 10% of its Solid Waste budget on debt and landfill closure costs.

San Juan County has no ordinances banning solid waste materials like recyclables in its waste stream, mandating a recycling rate from business or residents, or franchise curbside recycling requirement.

Compost Happens! on San Juan Island

So I ventured off to a workshop this afternoon on composting.  SJC Public Works and WSU Extension put on a wonderful show today for about 50 people.

We learned about the "art" of composting and a bit of the science, too.  Fascinating, really.  Our instructor discussed several methods and resources, everything from big piles you rotate to garbage cans in the ground that use the natural worms to compost the waste scraps.

If you're anything like me, the whole thing seems pretty simple, mystical and useful.

I bought two stand alone units for composting for $27/each.  One of them for the home, the other for the office at work.  And we're going to try the Homemade Food Scrap Digester, as well, at home.

If you want a great summary of the opportunities for home composting, check out: www.seattle.gov/util/services/yard.  Doing this at home is such a great way to keep hundreds of pounds of your own waste out of the flow to landfills.

Compost Happens!

I'm in!

Solid Waste Conversation

If you haven't paid attention to the solid waste conversation going on around the island, you should check out the past week's stories at www.sanjuanislander.com.  Plug in solid waste transfer station, and you should get what you're looking for.

Ultimate Paint

I'm watching this new (to me) show on Planet Green channel called "Eco-tech" that showcases up-and-coming technologies advancing sustainable practices.  Real interesting.

One of the new innovations it showcased was this product touted as "the ultimate paint."  It is zero waste, lasts 1000 years, repels spray-paint graffiti,  repairs concrete, resists mold, and absorbs greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

I'm serious.

Check it out at www.forcedgreen.com/2008/06/ultimate-paint/

Unique Amenities

RH lodging just found some killer new amenities for our guest rooms.  The company is called Unique Amenities and they are full-bore eco-friendly.  

The line features 100% natural (no petrochemicals), biodegradable, GE-free detergents in the soaps and shampoos, etc; uses recycled plastic for packaging; uses smaller-than-average sizes for single-use packaging; and offers a rebate on all returned, used containers.

The 2nd-best part of all this is that they're 50% less expensive than what we were using before!

What?

I know.  It's exciting.  At least if you're in the hotel business and work toward sustaining your accommodations operations.

Island Paper & Supply

A big kudos to Gerard, at Island Paper & Supply for pointing me in the direction of really good sustainable products for our resort.  

For those of you who don't know Gerard and his (award-winning) efforts you could do no wrong than by chatting him up some time.  RH Lodging and Marina use him for our regular supplies like TP, soaps, office paper, etc.  Although he can get just about anything we need him to, he's been directing us these last few months on a full-bore sustainable product search.  

In the past few weeks, we've moved over all our office paper, paper towels, hand towels and toilet paper to 100% post-consumer recycled; we've moved to GE-free cleaning chemicals for our housekeeping department; and we're switching to a new line of eco-friendly guest amenities for in-room soaps, shampoos and moisturizers.  

We couldn't have done all this without Gerard and his wonderful company.

Thank you!

Green Lodging News

So I spent some time looking at www.greenlodgingnews.com this afternoon.  They are a wonderful resource for us hoteliers.  I hit their blog, which I hadn't seen before, and I noticed that the blog's only getting about a comment every other post--and his is national.  

I don't feel so bad, now, for shouting and not knowing if anyone's listening.

If you haven't been to the website www.greenlodingnews.com you should go.  It's got a ton of useful information that can be applied to any large scale office or building.

Calendar for Events

Trying out a new calendar format.  Since you all have been so vocal in your comments (ZERO so far since this blog started!!!), I thought it would be a good idea to ask you what you thought??

Solid Waste

Nantucket, Mass. is a very comparable island community two hours off the coast, a two-hour drive from a major metropolitan community of several million people.  The island is highly seasonal in nature, relies on a tourist economy, and runs into the same isolation conditions we do with regards to shipping everything on or off the island.

Here's something interesting to know: 

San Juan County Solid Waste budget: $3.8 million

Nantucket Solid Waste budget: $8.2 million

SJC population: 15,000

Nantucket population: 10,000

SJC solid waste spending per person: $253

Nantucket solid waste spending per person: $820

SJC diversion rate for reusables, recyclables and compostables: less than 25%

Nantucket diversion rate for reusables, recyclables and compostables: more than 75%

So they spend three times as much money as we do, and the result is three times as much diversion.  

If we're really going to have a change in our solid waste programs here on the island, it's going to have to be a paradigm shift...

Are you willing to sacrifice an extra $500 to sustain our solid waste systems? 

 

County Council Update

Okay.  Meeting has been rescheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 11am.  

Hope to see you there!

County Council Update

I'm pleased to update y'all on the county council's follow-up to my query on the resolution no. 8: Climate Change.  The council plans to address the topic on Tuesday, March 10 at 10:20am.  I will be there to listen to what they have to tell us about the progress they've made so far.  Exciting stuff, right?!?!

I propose that we pack the meeting with as many people as we can to show the council (with our physical presence) how important this topic is to our community.  If you can make the time, please show up at the legislative office across the street from the courthouse on Monday, March 10 at 10:00am.  And please bring anyone and everyone you can think of that is interested in sustaining our island's environment, economy, and culture.

Remember: decisions are made by those who show up.

Bottled Water in Guest Rooms

For anyone who's been following, I've struggled to find an appropriate solution to the bottled water problem at Roche Harbor. The water tastes uniquely of Roche Harbor and we need to offer guests who pay $400/night for a room something more attune to the common palette. I don't like the bottled water approach for obvious reasons: it is entirely unsustainable, environmentally and economically. And, at its most basic reasoning, it's downright silly to drink water consistently out of a throwaway container--it demonstrates lack of planning on the drinkers part and I have little sympathy.

So: we have come up with an idea that will work to meet my sustainability goals, as well as the guests' needs: provide a 5-gallon cooler in a good-feeling way in each hallway in the building, and place simple 1-qt. pitcher in each guest room to use as a vessel to hold the water and keep cold in a personal refrigerator. (The idea was a collaboration...thanks, Janine!)

I'm stoked about this resolution and pleased that it seems so logical. Let's hope it plays well with the guests!

Bioplastics

I just keep going back and forth on the PLA thing!  I'm still liking the focus on reducing, and not using the bottles at all is, of course, the best thing.  And PLA is certainly not the answer because of the corn and CO2 issues.  But until the answer is given/created/produced, might there be some Good in using PLA?

Bioplastics do have some redeeming qualities, one of which I hadn't thought of until I did some research on bottled water for work: the more we focus on compostable "plastics" the more demand will grow for composting, the more compost facilities will be put at the center of discussion for solid waste.  I can think of no more important conversation to have when discussing MSW reduction/treatment, and if PLA helps move that agenda forward then all the better.

Now I've got to find some way to work through my disdain for the American corn system and how it's integrated into the American economic culture!

One thing at a time, though...

Sustaining Sustainability

So here's an important question that needs a good answer: why aren't more people buying into sustainability?  I'm not even going as far as to ask why don't they live sustainable, or engage more often in sustainable practices.  I'm just asking the most basic question: Why don't they buy it?

I ask this because a mere four months ago, even knowing a lot about it and having friends who were involved in it, I didn't buy it.  What sold me on it was the inefficiency of not living sustainable; thinking of the life that my daughter will live in the coming years; and finding a place to channel my effervescent energies.  

What are your reasons?

(Bio)plastics

So I'm going through the catalogues and vendor lists to find a product that we can give to our guests at RH that offers them good tasting water, while staying true to sustainability.  

Currently we use Earth H2O, which I now think is a bit of an oxymoron.  I first thought we should move to some sort of bioplastic to replace these bottles; but then I realized that that wasn't going to work because the water breaks down the corn-based plastic too quickly.  In the course of my basic learning about these kinds of plastics, though, it was pointed out that all the corn that goes into these plastics requires a high level of processing, which requires a high amount of resources, which means that there's a large carbon footprint left during the entire process.  

Two things: A friend told me that it's important not to get on board too fast with faddish ideas, no matter if it's green or not.  And secondly, another friend reminded me of that the reduce, reuse, recycle motto is a hierarchy, not just randomly ordered.  

Both are good to keep in mind, right?

More Savings at Roche Harbor

More good news at Roche Harbor Lodging in our effort to conserve energy: We just got our January OPALCO bill, and we saved 47% over the same period last year.  In December, we saved 34%--and that was with the longest cold spell in 18 years going on during the month.  

If there are any business managers/owners out there that are reading this, think of the savings you can make to your company during these tough economic times.  Controlling costs is the most important thing you can do when you have a hard time generating revenue.  

What better way than to combine controlling costs and energy?

Grass-Fed in Argentina

Been a while, I know--weather, holidays, sickness and...travel!

I am down in Argentina--and struggling a bit with the keyboard--reading about some sustainable practices I see down here in the beatiful city of Buenos Aires.

Not a lot of recycling in the wastestream. Good use of CFLs. Lots of public transportation for 10,000,000 people. I will learn more about what´s going on here in the coming weeks.

What is really good to know, though, is that the Argentines approach their agriculture in a sustainable way...and one that produces some of the best produce and proteins in the world.

I´m reading The Omnivore´s Dilemma, learning all about the military-industrial agricultural economy in the US. I have never been a vegetarian, nor an organic guy, because, as my wife says, I am avenida contra mana--meaning that I go against the grain for the sake of it. But there is some really interesting stuff going on that is important and needs to change.

Here is the thing that I wanted to write, today, because I don´t yet really have an opinion or action on how this all effects us in the islands...but I do want to say this: There is something NOT RIGHT about the way agriculture and eating is approached in our country. For me, that is the thing with sustainability. The alternative is acting inefficiently, illogically and downright stupidly. There is a better way to do this (whatever the practice is) and we should search out the best answers.

Does anyone have any good information to share on the Best Practice farming on the island???