Pick Up Free Trees at Locations in Brooklyn From MillionTreesNYC

MillionTreesNYC will be giving away free trees at six Brooklyn locations now through June. Residents can attend any of the giveaways to pick up one free trees per household. Simple tree planting and caring instructions come with every tree, you just need a place to plant, a shovel and access to water.

Trees can be planted on private properties such as front and back yards, community gardens and faith-based centers throughout New York City with permission of the property owner. Trees must be planted in the ground, rather than in a planter or a container, and all MillionTreesNYC trees must be planted within the five boroughs of New York City.

Emily Laskodi, who works for MillionTreesNYC and will be staffing the first Brooklyn giveaway this Saturday, said that the trees weigh about 30 lbs and are about 7-8 feet tall. “We suggest people bring either a cart to transport them or a car, or a strong back!” she noted in an email message. “Generally the events are very successful — sometimes there will be a line of people waiting before the event starts — no trees will be given away before start time — and other times there will be a steady flow throughout the 2 hours. Any leftover trees after 12 p.m. will be given to people who want additional trees or the community partner will be responsible for distributing them.”

Here is a list of the Brooklyn giveaways:

March

Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill and FAB Alliance Tree Giveaway

March 26, 10:00 a.m. to noon

Putnam Triangle, Putnam Ave. and Fulton St.

300 trees — cherry trees and dogwoods

April

Green-Wood Cemetery Tree Giveaway

April 16, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

500 25th St.

100 trees — redbud, carolina silverbell, cherry and bur oak

Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation Tree Giveaway

April 23, 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton St

130 trees — redbud, magnolia and pear trees

May

Grand Street Campus Tree Giveaway

May 1, 10:00 a.m. – noon

850 Grand St.

300 trees — eastern redbud, kastura, dogwood, magnolia and pear trees

Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush Tree Giveaway

May 7, noon – 2:00 p.m.

Holy Cross Church School Yard, 2530 Church Ave.

200 trees — serviceberry, katsura, dogwood, magnolia, pear, bur oak and littleleaf linden trees

June

Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation Tree Giveaway

June 4, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Blessed Sacrament Church, 198 Euclid Ave.

250 trees — eastern redbud, cherry and callery pear trees

The giveaways are sponsored by American Express and JetBlue.

Launched in 2007 by the New York Restoration Project (NYRP) and the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, MillionTreesNYC is one of the goals set forth under Mayor Bloomberg’s PlaNYC, the city’s long-term sustainability blueprint. MillionTreesNYC is a public-private initiative with an ambitious goal — to plant and care for one million new trees across the city’s five boroughs by 2017.

Tonight: Brooklyn Green Team Party in Gowanus

Local environmental superheroes the Brooklyn Green Team will be hosting a party tonight with Brooklyn Green Drinks benefiting environmental non-profit GrowNYC. At 7 p.m. at Lowlands bar in Gowanus, the event will feature a silent auction, a DJ, organic wine and beer specials and a special cocktail in honor of the celebration.

City’s First Electric Vehicle Charging Station at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Here are some pictures of the recently-installed solar-powered electric vehicle charging station at Brooklyn Bridge Park's Pier 1. It was donated to the park by Brooklyn-based renewable energy developer Beautiful Earth Group (BE) and is constructed of two recycled steel shipping containers stacked on top of each other — acquired from a New York vendor. 

 

The charging station is completely powered by 24 photovoltaic panels on the roof. The panels catch solar rays throughout the day and store them in 40 battery packs inside so there is a constant energy supply for park vehicles. BBP will use the station to charge four of its electric service vehicles — two GEM cars (battery-operated Global Electric Motorcars) and two Toros. 

This will result in more than $200,000 in savings from gasoline costs and tens of thousands of dollars in savings from electricity costs over 25 years (25 years is the warranty for the photovoltaic panels, according to BE Manager of Sustainability Amanda Cleary, although they will probably last much longer). In that period of time, the charging station will have saved more than 530 tons of CO2 from being emitted into the atmosphere.

“The charging station dovetails perfectly with the park’s sustainability ethos, and helps us to extend the ways in which the park has conserved finite resources and limited its carbon emissions,” said Regina Myer, President of Brooklyn Bridge Park in an e-mail message, “While allowing us to use vehicles that are efficient for park maintenance and help us to keep the park in terrific condition for visitors.”

Read my full story here. 

Composting Pilot Program Introduced at Greenmarkets in Brooklyn, City

If you're like me, every time you throw out food scraps or egg shells, you feel a little guilty. But I don't have a worm bin, and to be honest, it grosses me out a little (yeah, I read and saw No Impact Man, I know about all the bugs you get when you compost in your apartment. Otherwise I'd jump on that bandwagon). So I'm super happy about GrowNYC's new composting program.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and GrowNYC, joined by Ron Bergamini of Action Carting, announced the launch of a pilot program to provide composting services to NYC residents at six new Greenmarket locations, 10 in total. The pilot was developed by GrowNYC’s Greenmarket and Office of Recycling Outreach and Education programs.

In Brooklyn, composting services will now be available at the McCarren Park Greenmarket (Union Ave between Driggs and N 12th St) on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Fort Greene Greenmarket (Washington Park at DeKalb) on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the Borough Hall Greenmarket on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Composting drop-off sites were already in place at the Fort Greene Greenmarket (conducted by the Fort Greene Compost Project), the Union Square Greenmarket (held by GrowNYC and the Lower East Side Ecology Center) and two Greemarkets in Queens (conducted by the Western Queens Compost Initiative).

Accepted materials include fruit and vegetable scraps, non-greasy food scraps (rice, pasta, bread, cereal etc.), coffee grounds and filters, tea bags, egg and nut shells, pits, cut or dried flowers, houseplants and potting soil. Unacceptable materials: meat, chicken, fish, greasy food scraps, fat, oil, dairy, dog or cat waste, kitty litter, coal or charcoal, coconuts, diseased and/or insect-infested houseplants/soil or biodegradable/compostable plastics.

Food scraps can be collected in large yogurt containers or other covered plastic containers, plastic bags, milk cartons or in commercially-available compost pails. To reduce odors at home and at the Greenmarket, store items in the freezer or refrigerator. A layer of shredded newspaper at the bottom of your storage container also helps.

Food comprises about 17 percent of NYC’s waste stream. When this material is sent to a landfill it contributes to NYC’s disposal costs and creates greenhouse gas emissions. When composted, food scraps and other organic waste become a useful product that adds nutrients and improves the quality of soil for street trees, gardens and more.

“Last year in my Food Works speech one of our goals was to get more people to compost their scraps. You could throw a banana peel or apple core in the garbage but that’s just wasting valuable energy,” said Quinn. “I’m  thrilled to be able to support the opening of these new compost drop-off sites, and what better place to offer them than at the Greenmarkets, where many of the fruits and vegetables sold benefit from the rich, nutrient-filled compost NYC residents will be contributing to every time they drop their food scraps.”

“We’re thrilled that Speaker Quinn and the New York City Council is helping us offer residents a tangible resource that will shrink their trash pile-up and create a precious resource that will benefit local gardens and farms,” said GrowNYC Executive Director Marcel Van Ooyen. “Compost collection complements other services GrowNYC offers city dwellers looking to lower their environmental impact, including Greenmarkets, textile collections, cell phone and battery recycling, environmental education and technical and material assistance we provide community and school gardens.”

Based on the success of the pilot, GrowNYC will explore running the 6 new collection sites on a permanent basis.

Chase Away the Winter Blues at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden

It’s been a long, rough winter, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden (BBG) is offering a “Chase Away the Winter Blues” tour this coming Sunday, March 6 at 1 p.m. From BBG’s web site:

Science has developed some understanding of what causes the “winter blues” — and more important, what helps keep them at bay. Exposure to daylight, even on a cloudy day, can help restore energy, alertness, and contentment.

Over a dozen different kinds of flowers grace the grounds of BBG in late winter. Celebrate the transition from winter to spring by admiring petite, colorful and sturdy blooms that are undeterred by the frosts and snows of March.

Join licensed psychotherapist and veteran BBG tour guide Lynne Spevack, LCSW, for this hour-long, outdoor narrated walk designed to relieve the winter doldrums. Learn what you can do to maintain a sunny outlook through the dark, cold days of winter while discovering the plants and animals that enliven the garden landscape in the depths of winter. This walk is held rain, snow, or shine; dress warmly and wear comfortable walking shoes.

The tour is free with Garden admission, there is no reservation required. Meet in front of the Visitor Center.

BBG also offers free winter weekdays, which last until March 13. As always, admission on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon is free (except during special events). For more information visit www.bbg.org.