Boston Water to Receive a Green Upgrade

According to boston.com, water and sewer pipes in our New England state are about to get a big boost. Turns out, Massachusetts is slated to become the proud recipient of $185 million dollars in federal stimulus money and they are planning to use it to update and upgrade long suffering water and sewer infrastructures throughout the state. These are projects that are ready to go right now (about 127 of them in fact) and the designation of funds is going to help create jobs not only in the standard sense but also there is stipulation that 20% of the funds must go toward Green infrastructure projects!

For the complete article please check out Monday’s The Green Blog on boston.com.

Photo taken by Jenn Shon September 2007

It Is Amazing What One Sees On the Road

This morning while on the way to work I got behind a white van and normally this would not be a special occasion however this truck had the words “Sustainable Wastewater Treatment” emblazoned on the back. As we both pulled up to a light I quickly jotted down the website in my day planner and made a mental note to do some research upon returning home. The name of the company is Clivus New England, they are based out of North Andover, MA and upon reviewing their website I found that not only do they handle residential but commercial wastewater solutions as well.

Clivus offers services in the way of design, permitting and installation, as well as maintenance of both self-contained composting toilets and separate greywater systems. One of their claims on the website is that a client can eliminate nitrogen pollution as well as sewage altogether. Through their greywater system, waste water from sinks, bath tubs, dishwashers and washing machines is captured in a PVC piping system, cycled through a filtration unit and fed into a recycling system outside the home; much like a septic system but without the addition of sewage. Their composting toilet system resides in the basement of the home and all toilets can be attached to the composter through PVC piping. A non-invasive pipe allows for ventilation out through the roof of the home.

The website offers limited information on the exact specifications of each system but it is apparent that this is due in part to the company’s ability to go with the flow of each individual installation (no pun intended). There are sectional diagrams available to get a feel for how the systems work and a contact page to get in touch when the client is ready for their install. They have serviced residences in wooded areas as well as big boys like McDonalds and it appears a good number of clients in between. Although Clivus is located here in Massachusetts I would wager that companies such as this will be springing up nationwide so for those in the market of a new wastewater system, or those looking to renovate an old home with a septic system, I strongly encourage looking into this or another similar company because as we all know, every little bit helps.

Brew Ha Ha!

Over the past six months I have done an extensive level of research into artists, products and companies that dub themselves eco-friendly. Many of the discoveries I have made were through the sharing of links from family, friends and bloggy friends and all of the shared information both surprised and delighted me. One of the companies that my favorite Vegan With a Purpose, Ginger shared with me was for a beer brewery based out of Fort Collins, Colorado. Could this be true? Could I have finally achieved the perfect storm of awesomeness where consumption of finely brewed beer could be an environmentally friendly activity? I pulled up their website and began the research into this unique concept immediately.

New Belgium impressed me right off the bat as the photo on their homepage shows the outside of their building and about twenty five bicycles parked in the parking lot instead of cars. They brew eight styles year round, four seasonal and one on a limited release. Right on the homepage they proclaim sustainability as a core value and they truly mean it. The company: utilizes recycled bike rims for stools in their bar, use a heat exchanger to recycle the steam created from boiling to assist in boiling the next brew, use both active and passive solar for lighting, upcycled beetle kill pine trees to line their walls, employ evaporative coolers in place of air conditioning units, they create electricity through wind power and via collection of their own methane (created during wastewater treatment), provide an employee ownership program and participate in countless philanthropic events. Talk about a fantastic company model! After discovering this wondrous company I looked for the beer in some of my local package stores but to no avail.

It occurred to me that was not necessarily a bad thing because it got me thinking if there was such a company in Colorado, ready to serve a feast of barley, malt and hopps, perhaps a similar brew house existed right here in my own state.

Of course the first company that came to mind was Samuel “Sam” Adams, brewed by The Boston Beer Company right here in Massachusetts, but because they have grown into a household name and ship both nationally and internationally they have expanded operations to their additional brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio as well. They are fervently committed to many charitable organizations (notably the Boys and Girls Clubs, Boston Urban Gardens, Cam Neely Foundation, the Dennis Leary Firefighter Foundation and Share Our Strength) and additional philanthropic pursuits. It made me happy to see such a large company (there are seventeen brews in their standard rotation, some seasonal) giving back to their local and national communities.

The next local brew master I thought of is the Harpoon Brewery who provide their beers internationally but brew in their two New England locations Boston, Massachusetts and Windsor, Vermont. This company creates just six standard beers, four seasonal and three limited edition brews but their community reach extends far further than their thirteen beers would indicate. Their own humanitarian branch is called Harpoon Helps and this division donates through beer, merchandise, monetary contribution and time of volunteers to a myriad of organizations and events throughout New England (such as soup kitchens, Greater Boston Food Bank and American Red Cross) and have just expanded their reach to include the Spread Holiday Cheer event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Washington DC and Albany, New York as well.

Both Sam Adams and Harpoon display a commitment to their communities, as well as the people who live in them through their humanitarian and charitable efforts, but I will definitely enjoy spending some time researching smaller local brew houses doing their part to provide yummy libations without sacrificing an environmentally friendly approach, just like New Belgium Brewing.

Due to their true commitment to all things Earth and environment it is my proud honor, without ever sampling the wares, to bestow a Five Green Leaf rating to New Belgium Brewing. Hooray to them for thinking both locally and globally! Spread the word to your beer brewing friends how easy it is to be green.