Fresh AIRE

Gearing up for that last vacation before the kids go back to school?

Reduce your carbon foot print and travel green.  How can I do that you ask?  Well check out the Carbon Calculator from CNN to calculate how much your flight is worth.  This article at Tree Hugger  gives you a few options to buy Carbon Offsets. 

 

Going on a road trip?  Here are some

tips to make your road trip a green one. 

 

Sticking around town?  There are plenty of things you can do around here!  The 45 mile long Washington and Old Dominion Bike Trail starts in Shirlington and goes all the way out to Purcellville; that’s a long way round trip so make sure to bring lots of water and snacks.  There are also plenty of other bike trails and parks to enjoy in Arlington.  My favorite is Glen Carlyn Park and it happens to be the biggest at 96 acres.  From there when you need to cool off and want to see some cool animals, stop in and check out Long Branch Nature Center it is just a short walk from the 4^th Street side. 

Virginia Tech and Solar Houses

As a Park Ranger for Arlington on a temporary assignment with the AIRE team, I have been exploring the in and outs of AIRE during my first week here.  In these explorations, I have read about climate change, reducing emissions, sustainability and renewable energy just to name a few.  The thing which fascinates me the most is converting sunlight into electricity.  Maybe it’s because we are in the midst of summer or that I am a sun worshipper and not a fan of the cold.  I’d like to think that one day the use of solar energy technology will be available to people of all walks of life.

  

While thinking about solar energy I get an email from my alumni association at Virginia Tech, low and behold it has a link about VT and sustainable living.  This leads me to check out VT’s website for the sustainability article.  Now where is she going you ask?  In just one click and a scroll of the mouse I hit upon an article about a new solar powered home designed by my fellow Hokies for the 2009 U.S. DOE Solar Decathlon.  The contest is held during October right on the Mall in D.C.  This is a zero energy house that’s high tech and very space agey; you can even control it from your iPhone.   I think it is worth checking out to see what future generations are doing around the world.  Good luck Hokies. You can check out the article at WAVY-TV 10  about Virginia Tech’s solar house or view the interactive house at the LUMENHAUS website. But wait there’s more in the near future you will be able to recharge your iPhone or Blackberry using solar power without added bulk.  Check it out at Motion Touch.

It's County Fair Time Again!

Tonight the County Fair begins so come on down for some food, fun, games, rides, and vendors! 

 It is going to be a hot one out there so don't forget your reusable water bottle.  In keeping with the County Board ban on water bottles (link), please bring your own bottle and use one of the FREE water filling stations.

If you send us a picture of you filling your water bottle at one of these stations we will post it here on our blog!

Send photo to:  climate@arlingtonva.us

See you at the fair!

For more information about the County Fair or water bottle ban please visit the links below:

http://www.arlingtoncountyfair.org/

http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/Communications/PressReleases/page70877.aspx

FREE Online Research Portal, Research Sustainability & Environment

GREENR, that is the name of the newest tool in the Arlington County Library system.  It stands for Global Reference on the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources.  Yeesh, another mondo acronym.  Nevertheless the online tool is a "one-stop" online research portal focused on the study of sustainability and the environment. 

Arlington is the first U.S. library to purchase it, and GREENR is now available via the Library's Research Portal website. Anyone can access it with a valid Arlington Public Library card.  That's right, access is FREE!

Visit the link below to learn more about this terrific new tool.  Share it with your friends, coworkers, community groups, schools, etc. 

 Try it out and let us know what you think in our comments section!

http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/Libraries/ref/Databases/GREENR.aspx

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Extra Extra Read All About It - New Arlington County Case Studies Released

Arlington County staff have been working hard behind the scenes to reduce carbon emissions.  As we learn lessons and have successes to celebrate we are trying to get the word out to the broader community.

Chech out these new case studies to learn about specific actions that have been taken in Arlington County buildings to reduce energy use, carbon emissions, and operating expenses.

Fresh AIRE Case Study Spotlights

Arlington County Fire Station #10

Arlington Central Library

Have you taken steps to reduce your energy use?  If so let us know and we will feature you on our blog.  Just contact climate@arlingtonva.us