Did You Know...? Earth Day was founded by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. The first Earth Day event was on April 22nd, 1970, and an estimated 20 million people took part in this event. In New York
City, Fifth Avenue was closed to traffic as people marched through the
streets.
Source: www.earthday.net
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Great Forest Gives Back
Great Forest is a proud supporter of the nonprofit Blacksmith Institute, which works to solve life-threatening pollution problems in the world's worst polluted places. Blacksmith is currently engaged in over 40 cleanup projects in 19 countries.
Read the 2009 World's Worst Polluted Places report: 12 Cases of Cleanup and Success.
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About Great Forest
Great Forest provides sustainability consulting and project management expertise
To date Great Forest has worked with more than half of all commercial office space and hotels in Manhattan and over 1,500 buildings across the country, covering approximately 350 million sq. ft. Services include: Contact Us Great Forest, Inc.
2014 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10035
Ph: (212) 779-4757
Fax: (212) 779-8044
www.greatforest.com
Improve Environmental Performance, Reduce Costs
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GET YOUR FREE HANDY GUIDE TO
NYC ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS
With a gamut of new legislation facing NYC buildings, you might need help remembering all those deadlines and requirements.
Great Forest has created a handy 3.5" x 8.5" (slightly larger than a bookmark) timeline and summary card of everything you need to know. Carry it with you so that you have information at your fingertips when when you need it.
If you have not received your copy, email us with "SEND ME A GREAT FOREST GUIDE" in the subject line. Don't forget to include your address and contact information.
--The Great Forest Team
P.S.: Do you need help to become an ENERGY STAR? Over 150 NYC properties have already turned to us for help. Learn More.
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Cardboard Tower Illustrates Height of Waste, Promotes Recycling
 This attention-grabbing towering display made a big statement about
recycling and waste in the lobby of 480 Washington Boulevard.
Built using over 640 discarded cardboard cafeteria trays, the visual impact of the tower
spoke louder than words to building tenants, who were
encouraged to reuse and recycle their trays.
"We wanted to make sure everyone knew about and made full use of the building's comprehensive recycling program, and this definitely did the job," says Anna Dengler, Great Forest's director of sustainability. Dengler conceived of the project and completed it with the support of Cushman and Wakefield, the manager of the building, and tenant and leaseholder UBS.
Click here to see photos of the tower construction.
Cardboard trays are used in cafeterias all over the country. Each week, the number of trays discarded from the building equals four times the height of this structure. Each year 135,200 cardboard trays are discarded, of which only about half are separated for recycling. This means that 6 tons of recyclable material go into the landfill annually from disposable cafeteria trays alone.
Recycling 6 tons of cardboard would save:- 102 mature trees
- 42,000 gallons of water
- 18 cubic yards of landfill space
- 12 barrels of oil
- 24,600 kilowatt-hours of electricity
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Expanded Recycling Program in New York City
 Christine C. Quinn, the City Council speaker, introduced sweeping expansion of New York City's recycling laws that will increase plastics recycling, put more bins in public areas and create periodic drop-off locations for hazardous household waste.
The legislation ushers in the first major changes to the city's recycling laws since 1989. "Now, more than 20 years later, we're finally about to give New York City's recycling laws a 21st-century upgrade," said Ms. Quinn.
The new legislation requires the Department of Sanitation to recycle all rigid plastic containers, like those used to hold laundry detergent, motor oil and yogurt. More than 300 recycling bins will be placed in public areas in the next three years and 700 within a decade.
Ms. Quinn said the new laws will keep more than 8,000 tons of plastic out of landfills annually, roughly the equivalent of 10,000 residents' trash.
The new law will create a tiered system of fines for landlords whose buildings violate the law. The fines for small buildings will start at $25 for the first citation, then rise to $75 for the second and $100 for the third. Fines for residential and commercial buildings will be $100 for the first violation, $200 for the second and $400 for the third. Current fines are $25, $50 and $100 across the board.
"The fine structures are more fair for small property owners," Ms. Quinn said. "We want to get people to recycle, not make money off of them."
The new legislation will also require the Department of Sanitation to annually collect household hazardous waste, like bleach, paint and turpentine, at a city-owned location in each of the five boroughs. And under a pilot program, residents will be allowed to take unused house paint back to manufacturers.
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EARTH DAY REPORT
Green Buildings to the Rescue
Earth Day is 40 years old. Back when it began in 1970, "green buildings" referred to their color. Today, they stand for energy efficiency, reduced waste and cost savings. But above all, green buildings can save the world!
OK, maybe that claim is a little exaggerated, but the impact buildings have on the environment is undeniable because they generate some of the biggest carbon footprints in this country.
Do you know your building's carbon footprint?
So this Earth Day, we salute all building owners, facilities managers and tenants across the country who have committed to turning green. They have the power to move all of us to a greener, greater world. You might even say they have the power to save the world?
Here is one example:
Deutsche Bank's Global Earth Week
Great Forest recently assisted Jones Lang LaSalle with the development and execution of Deutsche Bank's first annual Global Earth Week event from March 22-27. The employee outreach event combined World Water Day, Earth Day and Earth Hour into a weeklong event, demonstrating the Bank's commitment to environmental sustainability in the areas of water, paper, carbon and waste management.
The Americas portion of the event was held in six primary locations including New York City, Chicago, Jacksonville, and San Paulo, Brazil.
More than 40 service providers, business partners and nonprofit organizations participated in the Earth Week trade show to educate employees on sustainable activities in the workplace and at home.
In addition, several sustainability initiatives were launched including a Reusable Cafe Tote Program for office cafeterias, expansion of the Bank's Reusable Mug Program and speaking panels on green buildings and water conservation.
A 30-foot long mural, "Acting Sustainably," was installed outside the cafe entrance at 60 Wall Street. The mural highlights more than 40 "Did you Know?" sustainability facts and tips.
"Deutsche Bank has taken a progressive leadership position in terms of executing their global carbon reduction commitments," said Koley MacKay, Jones Lang LaSalle Energy and Sustainability Manager for Deutsche Bank Americas.
"Employee engagement is a major factor in the success of sustainability related initiatives and Earth Week provides a great opportunity to inform and educate the employees on the benefits of the Bank's programs."
Did you see Great Forest at your Earth Day event?
 Vijay Jesrani and Shira Siegel at Time Warner Center's "Live Green Every Day" event
Olivia Percy and Nathaniel Kimball at 900 Third Avenue
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 GREAT FOREST Q&A
Q: What water-saving measures are musts for any commercial property? What's the best way to tackle water management outdoors?
 A: Last month's Q&A on green restrooms offered some ideas for saving water indoors such as faucet aerators, waterless urinals and automatic faucets. Since buildings in the U.S. account for 14 percent of potable water consumption, it is important to consider all water-saving options. Here are some ideas for saving water outside your property.
If designing landscaping from scratch, using plants, shrubs and trees that require little or no water is considered the best way to go for most commercial properties.
For existing properties, consider transitioning to adaptive, drought-tolerant or native plants when the vegetation that's already there needs to be replaced, rather than ripping out swaths of live growth.
Other water savings opportunities may exist through green roof and other rainwater capture initiatives, drip irrigation systems, as well as retrofits to the water heating/cooling systems.
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