Sustainable Flatbush to Host Energy Forum

Sustainable Flatbush and its partners will host a Neighborhood Energy Forum on Saturday, March 20, 2010, at the Brooklyn College Student Center, 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. At this event homeowners, tenant organizations, landlords, and building managers will learn what they need to get started with major energy efficiency projects — from energy audits to weatherization to solar-electric, for both large multi-family buildings and one- to four-family homes.

“Inefficiency drives up energy costs, contributes to air pollution — almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse gas emissions are produced by buildings — and hurts everybody, especially low-income people. That is why Sustainable Flatbush is organizing this event, to help residential building stakeholders raise the money they need for major energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy projects, and for neighbors to share resources and best practices,” said Anne Pope, executive director of Sustainable Flatbush.

Event partners so far include National Grid, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), ConEd, and Flatbush Development Corporation.

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Coney Island Wonder Wheel Is Going Solar

This summer the Coney Island Wonder Wheel will be getting 32 solar panels, reports the Daily News. The panels will generate enough power to light bulbs on the ride’s 16 cars, which were removed for safety reasons in the 1980s. A battery will store energy for not-so-sunny days, according to the News, which also reports that if all goes well this summer, more solar panels could be installed the following year, powering the entire ride off solar energy.

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Green Mountain Energy Offers Alternative for Brooklyn Customers

A grassroots approach isn’t generally something you would associate with big companies or with an energy provider.

But since Green Mountain Energy company — the leading provider of clean energy in the nation — launched in New York last summer, its employees have been using exactly such an approach, visiting greenmarkets and fairs, and educating potential customers.

Through a partnership with Con Edison, Green Mountain opened its New York service territory last August, becoming the only energy services company dedicated to clean power in the region, said John Holtz, director of East Region Markets. Started in Vermont, the company, is now headquartered in and serves Texas, as well as Oregon and New Jersey.

Holtz and Green Mountain’s other New York employees visit greenmarkets throughout the city, introducing the company to residents, and also educating them about the fact that they have a choice of who they can buy their electricity from. Many people don’t know they have a choice, Holtz noted.

Con Edison customers can simply visit www.greenmountain.com/newyork or call toll free, (877) 216-GMEC (4632) to switch energy services companies. The bill will still come from Con Edison, but the electricity will come from Green Mountain.

In Brooklyn, Green Mountain has had a regular presence in the greenmarkets at Borough Hall, Grand Army Plaza and Fort Greene.

Greenmarkets “are a perfect place for us to be,” Holtz said, “because we’re selling a product, we’re selling a service, but we’re also selling a movement.”

Representatives — including a “Super Earth” mascot (pictured above) — set up a booth at September’s “Green Brooklyn … Green City” fair, hosted by the Council on the Environment of New York City, and Green Mountain will also co-sponsor this fall’s Atlantic Antic.

He explained that residential customers have the option between two electricity products: “Pollution Free” and “100% Wind.” The difference between the two is that the Pollution Free product delivers electricity made from local sources — 10 percent wind power from turbines upstate and 90 percent hydropower from small local dams. The 100% Wind product comes from wind turbines across the country: in Pennsylvania, Texas, Oklahoma and Oregon.

Purchasing Green Mountain Energy can have a substantial impact on the environment. According to data supplied by the company, an average New York City household using 100% Wind for one year can offset nearly 8,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. This is the equivalent of not taking 2,000-plus cab rides, or recycling almost 20,000 aluminum cans.

Holtz says that though purchasing electricity through Green Mountain is slightly more expensive than through an energy service company producing power from coal (approximately $10 more a month), he hasn’t encountered resistance. “I’m very pleased with the reception we’ve gotten here.”

Brooklyn has been especially enthusiastic: Green Mountain’s very first New York customer was a Park Slope resident. Convivium Osteria Restaurant in Park Slope purchased electricity through Green Mountain, as did the Sephardic Home for the Aged in Bensonhurst. Archstone, a leading developer of multi-family housing, purchased electricity for its 12 New York City properties, one in Brooklyn Heights.

“We wish we had started earlier,” said Michelle Pulixi, owner of Convivium Osteria. She said she started purchasing electricity from Green Mountain about a month ago. “We are an environmentally conscious business … we’re just doing it to have a clear conscience.”

“We have big hopes for New York,” said Holtz. “New Yorkers are very conscious of the environmental issue.”

Photo by Mary Frost

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Park Slope's 3r Living Closing its Doors

Green home goods store 3r Living on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope will be closing its doors at the end of the month. A few weeks ago, owners Samantha Delman-Caserta and Mark Caserta posted a sign on their door, that said,

"When we opened this store in April of 2004, it was a dream come true. Over the past five years we have been honored to provide the community with greener, healthier and safer options, as well as a much-needed community recycling center. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to all of the customers and friends we have made over the years."

Some inventory is still left, for sale between 20 to 75 percent off, and the store's fixtures are now for sale. Though this store will close, the husband-wife team will continue to operate a store in Maplewood, NJ and an online store at www.3rliving.com.

Last year, Delman-Caserta told the Eagle that her store has not been immune to the current economic climate.

"We’re not asking you to come out and spend money that’s going to put you in jeopardy," she said at the time. “What we’re saying is, if you’re going to go out and buy, think about what you’re buying and think about where you’re buying it and what it does for you. Buying from a major retailer, the money doesn’t come directly back to your community.

"Buying from a brick and mortar or a mom and pop shop in your neighborhood, I believe it’s close to 50 percent of the money that you spend stays within your community, if not more," she noted.

"A lot of small businesses are just not going to be able to make it through the long haul. We just have to count on our neighborhood and hope that they all understand that shopping locally really does make a difference,” Delman-Caserta continued. "Even if it’s ten dollars it makes a difference."

The Casertas continue to urge their customers to shop locally. The final paragraph of the store closing sign on their door states:

"Also, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE help us to make sure that this does not happen to other businesses in the area. Eat, drink and shop local! Supporting restaurants, boutiques and bars on 5th Avenue, even just a little, can go a very long way."

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Jeff Garlin to Speak About Carbon Footprint at BookCourt

On Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 7 p.m., comedian Jeff Garlin (best known for the role of Jeff Greene on the HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm") will visit BookCourt to read from his new book, My Footprint: Carrying The Weight of the World, a humorous account of his attempts to lessen both his physical and carbon footprint. BookCourt is at 163 Court St. For more information and other readings, visit www.bookcourt.org. You can purchase his book on amazon.com.

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New York's Appliance Swap Out

The  New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) is instituting a new rebate program for New Yorkers who want to replace their current appliances with new Energy Star qualified appliances or High Efficiency Energy Star appliances.

NYSERDA will offer a rebate for those who want to replace existing appliances, but a larger rebate will be granted to those who recycle the old appliances. Appliances must be purchased between Feb. 12 through 21. to qualify.

Visit www.nyapplianceswapout.com for eligibility guidelines and the online rebate application.

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NYU-Poly Prof Given Fulbright Study Psychology of Sustainable Design

Richard Elliot Wener, Professor of Environmental Psychology at Polytechnic Institute of New York University (NYU-Poly) was awarded a four-month Fulbright grant to lecture and conduct research on the psychology of sustainable design.

Dr. Wener’s research focuses on how to improve design so as to encourage sustainability. Will easily accessible and highly visible recycling bins remind tenants not just to recycle but also to act responsibly and use less water in the shower, for example?

For his grant, he will travel to Europe to examine sustainable buildings in Germany and Austria and lecture at the Vienna University of Technology.  

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