Oklahoma Local Foods Week 2009

Sustainable Green Country and a host of other groups are encouraging their fellow Oklahomans to join them in celebrating "Local Foods Week" during the week of June 14-21, 2009, pronouncing that local food is a valuable economic asset for the state of Oklahoma. Gov. Brad Henry has made the event official this year by means of a proclamation.

Created by Sustainable Green Country's Buy Fresh Buy Local initiative, Local Foods Week festivities will highlight local family farms and farmers' markets hosting a variety of events, including community garden tours, a farm table dinner, cooking demonstrations, a scavenger hunt for children, a salsa making contest, canning classes, on-the-farm cheese making class with tour, and more. In addition, there will be a special screening of the film "FRESH". FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system.

Buying local strengthens the local food and farm economy, improves health and revitalizes rural and urban communities. Tulsa metro-area residents spent $2.2 billion on food in 2004. If just five percent of those dollars were redirected to buying local food, this would mean an additional $110 million dollars stays in the Oklahoma economy. For more information on Local Foods Week, visit http://www.buyfreshbuylocalok.com/.

Sustainable Shawnee and Allied Waste help SYAA Recycle at the Ball fields

With the assistance of Allied Waste, Buford White Lumber, and Sustainable Shawnee, SYAA is now recycling plastic bottles at the ball fields north of the YMCA. “We noticed the huge volumes of plastic bottles going into the trash during the baseball season and really wanted to do something about it this year so we contacted Sustainable Shawnee.” says Sarah Oliver with SYAA.

Thanks to Allied Waste and Buford White several of the recycling bins and the recycling service have been provided free of charge. “Allied Waste agreed to locate a large container for plastic at the ball fields to make it easier on the kids and parents to recycle.” says Shawna Turner, President of Sustainable Shawnee. “We’re very pleased with the project and hope to repeat it again next year.”
Sustainable Shawnee has recently received a grant from the Junior Service League to conduct Event Recycling in our community. Sustainable Shawnee’s first activity will be Jazz in June on June 13th downtown. If you are planning an event or are responsible for sporting activities in Shawnee and would like to recycle, contact Sustainable Shawnee at http://www.sustainableshawnee.org/ and we’ll be happy to help!

Sustainable Shawnee Gets Trashy!

Sustainable Shawnee visited Greenstar Recycling in Oklahoma City in April. Greenstar, formerly known as Midland Recycling, accepts most of the recyclables collected from the Shawnee recycling program. We had a great visit and learned a lot about what items can be recycled as well as how they should be prepared before dropping them off at the Homeland center. With the new information, we're finalizing a 'How-to Recycle in Shawnee' that should be ready soon. Cody has posted her photos from the trip online. Use the user name: recycling and the password: trash for access.

Post your comments and questions about the visit below. We'll get back to you!

Sustainable Shawnee in the News!

On April 24th, Sustainable Shawnee was presented by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board with a check for $4,450 to conduct water education in Shawnee. Several Sustainable Shawnee members were on hand at the City Hall to enjoy the moment along with Rep. Kris Steele, Sen. Charlie Laster and Mayor Linda Peterson. Thanks to everyone for a job well done!

Shawnee's Water Conservation Program would focus on three areas: Public Awareness, Youth Education, and Low-Water Landscaping. The grant will support elementary school field trips, a college-level seminar, a native plant park and drip irrigation project, and public water conservation education. Sustainable Shawnee will collaborate with several partners including the City of Shawnee, the Oklahoma Dept. of Environmental Quality, the Shawnee Council of Garden Clubs and local schools to carry out the Campaign this spring and fall called, "Water: Use it Wisely." The Shawnee Council of Garden Clubs has already begun work on the native plants and drip irrigation garden on the corner of Broadway and Main St. We'll keep you posted!

Fight Water Pollution in Your Own Backyard!

Union of Concerned Scientists
Greentips: April 2009

When rain falls faster than the ground can absorb it, it runs off into storm drains along with any contaminants in its path, such as oil and grease, de-icing salts, heavy metals, pesticides, and bacteria from trash and animal waste. The Environmental Protection Agency reports that urban runoff—in which 77 of 127 key pollutants have been detected—is one of the largest sources of water contamination nationwide.

We can all help minimize the problem of storm water runoff by planting rain gardens—6- to 12-inch-deep depressions filled with native plants. Rain gardens can capture hundreds of gallons of rainwater, filtering out up to 90 percent of pollutants while allowing the water to drain deep enough into the soil to help recharge groundwater supplies.

Whether you undertake this project on your own or with a landscaper, here are some factors to consider when planning a rain garden:

• Location. Site your rain garden where rain and snowmelt collect or run off—near downspouts or gutters, below a slope, or along sidewalks and driveways. However, avoid planting a rain garden within 10 feet of your home’s foundation, within a septic system’s drainage field, or above buried utility lines.


• Size. The square footage of your rain garden should generally be about 20 percent that of the area draining into it. For example, if your roof covers 800 square feet, a rain garden designed to collect all of the roof’s runoff should cover 160 square feet. To capture runoff most efficiently, a rain garden should be longer than it is wide, and aligned perpendicular to the slope.


• Materials. Rain gardens use layers of different materials to help maximize drainage. The bottom layer typically features an “underdrain” (e.g., a piece of perforated PVC pipe) pointed toward an existing storm drain and covered with gravel. The next layer is the planting medium, which should be a mix of about 20 percent compost, 50 percent sand, and 30 percent topsoil. A final layer of mulch helps prevent weeds and removes metals from runoff.


• Plant choice. Native plants are best because they establish deeper roots (which help the soil hold water), can withstand the local climate, need minimal care, and attract local butterfly and bird populations. See the Related Resources for a list of plants native to your region. And, if your rain garden is near a street treated with salt in the winter, ask your local nursery for salt-tolerant plants.

For more information on how to make your own rain garden, visit http://www.ucsusa.org/publications/greentips/

On Earth Day and Every Day of the Year...

Earth Day is a great opportunity to celebrate environmental progress and cultivate new strategies to continue protecting the Earth. On Earth Day and the other 364 days of the year, we can all help to foster a healthier environment through our actions, including:

• Saving energy
• Reducing, reusing, and recycling
• Conserving water
• Planting trees
• Teaching kids to respect the environment

State's carbon dioxide output up
It tops a list of gainers as the U.S. overall drops.
By SUSAN HYLTON World Staff Writer
Published: 4/9/2009 2:30 AM

Oklahoma has topped a list for having the biggest increase of carbon dioxide emissions while the rest of the country's total output actually shows a 3.1 percent drop in 2008. Oklahoma released 3.1 million tons of carbon dioxide from 2007 to 2008, according to the Environmental Integrity Project, which released the report this week. EIP described Oklahoma's increase as "massive" and attributed it directly to increased generation at OG&E's coal units in Muskogee and the Sooner units at Red Rock, as well as AEP-PSO's coal and natural gas units in Oologah. OG&E Electric Services spokesman Brian Alford said the increase in 2008 was created by a number of unit outages at coal facilities in 2007. A return to more historic levels was seen in 2008, he said. Alford said there are three reasons why less energy was used in 2007:

• It was a milder, wet summer and less air-conditioning was needed.


• A severe ice storm in eastern Oklahoma that left thousands without power for more than a week.


• No off-system export of coal-fire generation. The overall reduction in carbon dioxide in the rest of the country has been attributed to the economic downturn and mild

For the complete article, visit the Tulsa World .

Join Us for Sustainable OKC's Recycle, Rethink, Redesign Art Exhibit

Fundraiser for Sustainable OKC on Sat., April 18, 2009, at 7 p.m., IAO Gallery, 811 N. Broadway, Oklahoma City. Organized in collaboration with IAO in honor of Earth Day. Local art, local foods, local music, silent auction! Purchase tickets at www.rethinkrecycleredesign.org. For more information, www.sustainableokc.org or www.iaogallery.org.

Oklahoma Legislative Update and Action Alert

OSN is collaborating with the Sierra Club to educate the public on the legislative process. There are several high profile bills of interest in this year's session, including nuclear and alternative energy, green jobs, solar and wind tax credits, among others. Bud Scott, lobbyist for the Sierra Club, has compiled a brief report on the most important bills to help keep people informed and engaged. I encourage you to read the report but more valuable still, contact your legislators about the bills you think would or would not be in the best interest of our state and your families. Phone calls are best but don't wait to contact your Senator and Representative today because important votes take place every week at this time of year.

Contact Your Legislator:

Senator Charlie Laster- 521-5539 or laster@oksenate.gov
Representative Kris Steele- 557-7345 or krissteele@okhouse.gov
Representative Shane Jett- 557-7349 or shanejett@okhouse.gov

If you would like to receive Sierra Club Action Alerts by email, visit http://oklahoma.sierraclub.org/legislative/legs_signup.html to sign-up and recieve timely information on key issues.

Sustainable Shawnee Awarded Water Conservation Grant!

Sustainable Shawnee along with several other schools, groups and communities has been awarded a grant from the Oklahoma Water Resource Board. Shawnee's Water Conservation Program would focus on three areas: Public Awareness, Youth Education, and Low-Water Landscaping. The grant request for $4,450 will support elementary school field trips, a college-level seminar, a native plant park and drip irrigation project, and public water conservation education. Sustainable Shawnee will collaborate with several partners including the City of Shawnee, the Oklahoma Dept. of Environmental Quality, the Shawnee Council of Garden Clubs and local schools to carry out the Campaign this spring and fall called, "Water: Use it Wisely." The Shawnee Council of Garden Clubs has already begun work on the native plants and drip irrigation garden on the corner of Broadway and Main St.

Thanks to everyone that made this grant possible! I look forward to working with all of you to make this program successful.