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                                        Vol. 11, No. 5  May 7, 2010
GREEN STAR E-News

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In This Issue
Shining Stars
Events & Reminders
Bike to Work
Ozone: Nature's Sanitizer and Laundry Revolution
Spring Break-up On The Road
Thank You to our Sponsors
Special thanks to our recent sponsors and grantors:

Alaska Department of Conservation

Oasis Environmental Inc.

Odom Corporation

Pike's Waterfront Lodge

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 10

Visit Our Sponsor List
This Month's Hot Links

 
Kayak Adventures in Seward became a certified Green Star business in May 2009.  The company offers environmentally friendly and educationally based sea kayaking trips.

Green Star
Member Discount
 
10% off kayak trips within Resurrection Bay for employees of Green Star certified organizations.

Green Star Staff

Kim Kovol
Executive Director

Lilly Capell
Technical Assistance
Coordinator

Megan Pool
Membership
Coordinator

Jeanne Carlson
Outreach
Contractor
Join Our Mailing List
SHINING STARS
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Congratulations to our latest Green Star Award Certified organizations:
  • Alaska Building Science Network
  • Denali Commission
Welcome to our newest enrolled members:
  • Automated Laundry Systems
  • Beacon Occupational Health & Safety Services
  • JL Properties, Inc.
 
Come out to support recent Award-certified organizations as they receive their awards:
  • Lynden Transport (Anchorage, Fairbanks and Kenai locations) - Anchorage Chamber of Commerce "Make It Monday" presentation scheduled for May 10
  • MACTEC Consulting & Engineering -- Green Star Member Mixer, May 11

  • Alaska Building Science Network -- Green Star Member Mixer, May 11
Thank you to all who participated in the
Bike to Work Fashion Show & Festival

BTW fashionVendors included:
Simply Spoken, Sunshine Sports, Downtown Bike Rentals, Coastal Trail Rentals, Alaska-Bike-Chain Jewelry, People Mover, and Alaska Injury Prevention.

Volunteers included:
Ty Hardt, KIMO Superstation Channel 13; Brian Ross, Magic 98.9; students from UAA and Holy Rosary Academy; Boys & Girls Club of Mountain View staff and teens; Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage; and MOA staff.

About 100 attendees saw great fashions from chic to functional, new bicycles and gear, a safety presentation and crafts from local bicycling folks.

EVENTS & REMINDERS

Green Star Member Mixer -- Tuesday, May 11
The event will be from 3:00 to 5:00pm at Midnight Sun Brewery in the Loft, 8111 Dimond Hook Drive. Free food and soft drinks will be provided by The Loft and, of course, you can enjoy an array of fresh brews from the Midnight Sun bar (no-host). This event is to encourage Green Star members (new and old, enrollees and awardees) to network and get to know one another.  Any prospective members also are invited to the event! We will have some fun give-a-ways. Please RSVP to [email protected]. We hope to see everybody there!

Renewable Energy Alaska Project Forum: How to Bump Up Your Bottom Line and Cut Your Business' Energy Use -- Wednesday, May 12
Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP) is hosting a FREE forum from 6pm to 8pm on May 12 at the Anchorage Museum Auditorium. Hear from local businesses like Arctic Wire Rope & Supply and the Performing Arts Center to find out how they have cut their energy use by up to 40%. Also, hear state energy efficiency experts from the Alaska Energy Authority discuss what resources are available for your business.  Visit the REAP website for more details.

The Economics of LEED-EB: Beyond Sustainability to True Cost Savings -- Tuesday, May 18

Building Operating Management presents a FREE webcast on Tuesday, May 18, 2010, at 9am (Alaska time). In less than six years, the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED-EB (existing building) rating system has emerged as a significant tool in increasing sustainability and energy efficiency in existing commercial buildings. If you're a facility professional charged with demonstrating the real economic benefits of attaining LEED status, this webinar can help.  Visit http://www.facilitiesnet.com/webinar/LEED-EB/default.asp for more information or to register.

Bike to Work Day -- Friday, May 21
Sign up at www.muni.org/biketowork as an individual or as part of a team to participate in Bike to Work Day. See BIKE TO WORK DAY article below for more information about the event.

Position Available at Green Star -- Technical Assistance Coordinator
Green Star is seeking a full-time coordinator for its technical assistance programs, which includes site assessments for businesses and planning educational events.  Full Job Description.  Interviews begin May 14 and continue until position is filled.

Spring/Summer A to Z Guide (Anchorage to Zero Waste)
If you didn't receive a copy in the mail last month, download it at  www.muni.org/sws. The Guide contains drop-off and curbside recycling information, as well as spring and summer travel and energy efficiency tips and organics management strategies.

Recycling & Renewables Rap BLOG
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Don't forget that you have a daily online recycling resource at the Anchorage Daily News. Visit the Recycling Blog to see what's happening in the recycling world or to ask questions.


Recycled Paper Still Available!
Contact Valerie at Alaska Center for the Environment or Heather at National Wildlife Federation to purchase 100% post-consumer recycled, processed chlorine free, acid-free, copy paper at just $5.50/ream or $55/case.

BIKE TO WORK DAY -- MAY 21

Quiz: What's wrong with this picture?
(see answer at bottom of this article)






Come ride with us on Friday, May 21, for Anchorage's 6th Annual Bike to Work Day! Last year was a record-breaking year with 198 business teams signing up and more than 2,300 registered riders. So far for 2010, about 35 teams and 250 riders have registered. Leading the charge is Jacobs Engineering with 29 team members.

Don't have a workplace team? Be a captain to help form a team or be a team of one. Teams registering by close of business May 10th will be entered in a drawing to win Bike to Work Day t-shirts. Register yourself or your team at www.muni.org/biketowork today!

If you are new to biking or you and your bike are a little rusty, biking to work can be intimidating. Planning and practicing your route can help you become a more confident rider. Bike trail maps are available for download at www.trailsofanchorage.com. Use the buddy system or find a friend to ride with. It will get easier and you can now "like" Bike to Work Anchorage on Facebook!

Green Star is now accepting prize donations for the post-Bike to Work Day survey.  Bike to Work participants who take the survey are eligible for prizes.  Contact Lilly at [email protected] or 278-7859 for more information.


Answer:  The riders are not wearing helmets for safety!! Always wear a helmet when biking, whether you're commuting or riding for fun.

BIKE TO WORK: THE CONTINUING CHALLENGE
AIA Alaska
A Chapter of
the American Institute of Architects
AIA

AIA Alaska, a chapter of the American Institute of Architects, is challenging you to bike to work for the rest of the summer. The AIA Summer Bike Challenge invites teams of 5 to 10 riders to record and report their commuter miles throughout the summer. AIA Alaska will report monthly on miles logged and gas not burned, and celebrate our accomplishments on September 24th. This is a grassroots advocacy event, so please share it with your community and get people thinking about alternate transit methods.

The competition begins May 21, and ends September 21. Commuting miles logged by participants will be updated monthly at the AIA Bike Challenge webpage. Any miles you use your own power rather than a car to get to your destination can be logged. While the focus is bike commuting, the challenge welcomes walkers, skate boarders, roller skiers - any people powered commuter mileage. Recreational mileage (hiking, racing, mountain biking) is not part of this competition. Sponsors and prize donors also are welcome. Partners and contributors will be recognized on the AIA Bike Challenge webpage.


For more information, see the AIA Summer Bike Challenge flyer or download the registration form.   


REI BIKE CLINICS IN MAY

REI storeBasic Bike Maintenance
* Date: Tuesday, May 11
* Location: Anchorage REI
* Event Fee: Free
* Time: 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. 
* Presenter: REI Specialist
* Group Size: 30
* Description: Learn the day-to-day maintenance that will keep your bike running, as well as basic repairs that you are likely to experience whether you commute daily or ride for enjoyment on the weekend. These tips will help you keep your steed in good shape and at the ready all year around.

Bike to Work Day Clinic
* Date: Wednesday, May 12
* Location: Anchorage REI
* Event Fee: Free
* Time: 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. 
* Presenter: Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage
* Group Size: 45
* Description: Are you ready for Bike To Work Day on May 21st? Are you geared up for the summer commuting season? Do you know the Rules of the Road? Do you know what the most common danger zones are and the simple things you can do to stay safe during your commute? If you answered "No" to any of these questions, join Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage (BCA) at REI for this Bike To Work Day Clinic. We'll give you all the information and tips you need so that you can look forward to Bike To Work Day and a great summer of biking!

Visit REI for a full clinic schedule.

INTRODUCING GREEN STAR'S SUMMER INTERN

laura photoLaura Boone is Green Star's current intern assisting with Air Quality programs, including Bike to Work Day activities. 

Laura graduated from Alaska Pacific University with a Bachelors degree in Environmental Science. Her interest in enhancing the biking community brought her to Green Star. She currently works full time at Midnight Sun Brewing Co. with her husband, and her spare time is filled with beer, cooking, bikes, and her new baby. Laura is looking forward to a summer filled with family bike rides.
 
GREEN YOUR HOSPITALITY AT PIKE'S WATERFRONT LODGE

Pike's Waterfront Lodge hosted the "Green Your Hospitality" luncheon this week, featuring speakers Joe Carr, from ServiceMaster Quality Cleaners, and Dick Wells, from Automated Laundry Systems, as well as Pike's owner, Rep. Jay Ramras. 

About 25 attendees enjoyed a Cinco de Mayo themed lunch and learned about some cutting edge initiatives to green the hospitality industry.

Rep. Ramras encouraged attendees to look at their green business practices and create a "monument" that people could connect to. He commented that when visitors arrive at the Fairbanks airport and head into town, his hotel, with its solar panels, is one of the first things they see.  The solar panels act as a monument indicating that Fairbanks is an eco-friendly town.

Ramras encouraged others in the hospitality industry to create their own monument that leaves a positive impression with visitors.  As with the solar panels at Pike's, your "monument" might not offer the biggest return on investment of everything you are doing but it leaves the biggest impression and represents all the other small, less glamorous initiatives that are underway that are saving money and creating a more efficient workplace.  

Dick Wells, with Automated Laundry Systems, provided a detailed explanation of how ozone can be used safely and effectively in laundry systems.  He described what ozone is and why it works so well for cleaning and sanitizing.  It works especially well in cold water, making it an ideal technology for Alaska.  Currently, almost 30 facilities in Alaska are using ozone technology for laundry.

Visit Green Star's Hospitality Sector page for more information about Ozone Laundry Systems and their success in Alaska.

Joe Carr, from ServiceMaster Quality Cleaning, provided details on the benefits of green cleaning. SeviceMaster is certified by Green Seal and is busting the myths daily that green cleaning is inferior. Green cleaning helps the environment, reduces workers' compensation claims and sick time, and reduces the severity of personal protective equipment needed.

Green cleaning is about having the right equipment too. Joe introduced participants to the microfiber cleaning cloth. The microfiber cloth is a synthetic-based cloth that holds up to 60% more water than cotton. The microfibers attract dust molecules instead of pushing them around like cotton. The cloths can be reused up to seven days before being washed and do not produce any lint. Green cleaning has come a long way.  As Carr put it, what was once the typewriter is now the super computer and is surpassing non-green cleaning chemicals in performance and price.



RECYCLING EDUCATION IN THE SCHOOLS
recycling relay

In celebration of Earth Day, Green Star teamed up with the Anchorage School District's recycling coordinator, Andre Camara, to provide educational and fun programs for about 120 6th graders at Mirror Lake Middle School in Chugiak and 125 K-5th graders at Susitna Elementary in Anchorage. Students learned about pollution prevention, waste reduction and energy efficiency from Green Star and about recycling from Camara.

Each day's presentation wrapped up with the fast and furious hands-on Recycling Relay game. Students cheered on their classmates as they raced to deposit items in either a recycle bin or trash bin before dashing back to tag the next team member in line. 

The object of the game is to put the most items in the correct bin in the shortest amount of time.  The game gets students fully involved in the decision-making of recycling versus trash disposal. The relay follow-up also offers an opportunity to explain why some items are recyclable and some are not, how to properly prepare each item, and how to reuse some of the items instead of putting them in the trash or recycling bin. 

At the end of the day, staff and students walked away learning valuable lessons in how to "recycle it right," reduce waste and be more energy efficient.

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