|
ABOUT GREENNOTES
GreenNotes covers environmental news, programs and events from Hennepin County.
Please take a few moments to read our stories. Share your feedback and ideas for protecting the environment. Please forward this email to interested individuals and encourage them to sign up.
|
 Nearly 80 percent of school waste is recyclable or compostable! School recycling programs also educate future generations about the importance of waste reduction, recycling and environmental stewardship. To help make school recycling programs successful, Hennepin County has free recycling signs and labels available that we are aiming to get into every classroom in the county. County staff is also available to help schools set up and improve their recycling programs.
Order signs and labels through our online order form, and email Andre Xiong or call 612-543-1316 for more information and to request assistance.
|
On January 29, the Hennepin County Board awarded 10 grants totaling $1.2 million for the evaluation and cleanup of contaminated sites through the Environmental Response Fund (ERF).
Grants were awarded for eight projects in Minneapolis, one project in Hopkins and one to address brownfields gap financing throughout the county. The grants will fund a variety of cleanup measures, including soil and groundwater evaluation, contaminated soil cleanup, and asbestos and lead-based paint abatement, at a variety of projects, including Surly Brewing’s new brewery, affordable housing developments, office and retail complexes and a veterans’ memorial park. Find out more about the projects awarded in this grant round.
ERF is funded by a county mortgage registry and deed tax. The state statute that provides the authority to collect funds for this program expired on January 1, 2013, and Hennepin County is seeking reinstatement of the authority to collect funds for ERF in the 2013 legislative session. The county will hold a spring 2013 grant round, but will not be able to continue this successful cleanup program if funding is not reinstated.
ERF grants spur economic growth by creating jobs, increasing property values, generating tax income, revitalizing neighborhoods and communities, and leveraging private and public investment. Since ERF was established in November 2001, a total of $43.4 million has been awarded for 298 grants. Learn more about the benefits and future of ERF.
For more information, email Dave Jaeger or call 612-348-5714.
Funding is available through the Community POWER (Partners on Waste Education and Reduction) for innovative projects that educate and actively engage residents in reducing waste, reusing, and properly disposing of hazardous waste. Community POWER is a program of the six-county Twin Cities metro area Solid Waste Management Coordinating Board (SWMCB). Grants of up to $5,000 and $12,000 are available. Apply online at RethinkRecycling.com/grants by April 1, 2013.
Learn more by attending an informational meeting on Tuesday, February 26 from noon to 1:00 p.m. at the Roseville Public Library.
For more information, contact Laurie Gustafson at CommunityPOWER@RethinkRecycling.com or 651-252-1487.
 In 2012, Hennepin County and the Minnesota Tree Trust installed a series of check dams on a drainage that flows into a rare Tamarack bog on the Camp Kingswood property in Minnetrista. This ecosystem, which is permanently protected by a conservation easement, was being impacted by a culvert, put in place during road construction, that was draining sediment directly into the bog. The check dams were installed with funding from the county’s Natural Resources Incentive for Critical Habitat Program (NRICH) to slow down stormwater flow and trap sediment before it drains into the bog.
|
 Also in 2012, Hennepin County partnered with the Three Rivers Park District and the Minnesota Conservation Corps to install native shrubs along permanently protected wetlands in Minnetrista and Independence. The shrubs will act as a buffer to reduce water quality impacts from the surrounding agricultural land and provide a food source and critical habitat for a variety of wildlife species.
For more information, email Dave Thill or call 612-348-0124.
|
In the News
At Hennepin County Fix-It Clinics, residents can learn from skilled volunteers how to disassemble, troubleshoot and fix their broken household items. Fix-It Clinics have given new life to many items that may have otherwise ended up in the trash or been recycled, including broken electronics, small appliances, sewing machines, lamps, clothing and toys. Learn more in the Star Tribune and on MPR.
 On December 20, the Three Rivers Park District Board of Commissioners approved the purchase of the 127-acre Camp Kingswood property in Minnetrista. The property includes old-growth forests and a floating tamarack bog, borders one of the cleanest lakes in Hennepin County and provides habitat for a variety of wildlife. Hennepin County natural resources specialists have worked to improve the camp’s natural resources for 15 years, and the county and the Minnesota Land Trust co-hold a 44-acre conservation easement on the property, which places restrictions on development to preserve natural resources. Potential future outdoor recreation activities on the property include paved and non-paved trails, a water resources learning center, and small campground to support service learning activities. Read more in the Star Tribune.
|
Starting in February, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will begin enforcing a law that only allows waste haulers to deliver waste to landfills once facilities that process waste to generate energy are operating at capacity. The Hennepin Energy Recovery Facility (HERC), a waste-to-energy facility in downtown Minneapolis, is one of four waste processing facilities in the metro area. Each year, HERC generates enough electricity to power 25,000 homes and produces steam for space heating, domestic hot water, humidification and air conditioning to buildings in downtown Minneapolis and Target Field. Processing waste at facilities like HERC is environmentally preferable to landfilling waste that cannot be recycled. Read more in the Star Tribune.
Events
Sewing machine won’t sew? Toaster won’t toast? Toy helicopter won’t fly? Don’t throw it out! Come to a Hennepin County Fix-It Clinics and get free, guided assistance from a volunteer with repair skills who will help you disassemble, troubleshoot and fix your item. |
|
 |
Fix-It Clinics are scheduled for the following dates and locations:
- Saturday, February 9, 2013, noon to 4 p.m. at the Brookdale Library in Brooklyn Center
- Saturday, March 9, 2013, from noon to 4 p.m. at the TC Maker Hack Factory in Minneapolis
- Saturday, April 13, 2013 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the South Minneapolis Housing Fair, inside the Minneapolis YWCA
- Saturday, May 11, 2013, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Plymouth Library
- Saturday, June 15, 2013, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Bloomington Center for the Arts
Volunteer fixers who have skills in soldering, electronics repair, electrical repair, sewing, wood working, and general tinkering are needed to make this initiative a success.
For more information or to volunteer, email Nancy Lo or call 612-348-9195.
The next Green Partners Quarterly Networking Meeting is February 27 from 2 to 4 p.m. (optional networking starts at 1 p.m.) at the Brookdale Library, 6125 Shingle Creek Parkway in Brooklyn Center.
The meeting will be an opportunity to:
- Learn about energy education and engagement. Hear from community partners working on energy issues and how they are motivating behavior change and action.
- Explore the Green Partners Learning Trunks. Share new ideas and your expert advice to improve these important hands-on learning tools.
- Collaborate and network with fellow environmental educators.
Light refreshments will be provided. Networking meetings are free and open to the public. Please RSVP by February 25 to Patience Caso at patience.caso@co.hennepin.mn.us or 612-348-9352.
Green Tip
Through March, dispose of a mercury-containing item at a Hennepin County Drop-off Facility and receive a $5 Menards gift certificate from Covanta Energy as a thank you for helping to keep mercury out of the environment. Mercury is a neurotoxin that damages or destroys nerve tissue at high concentrations, and mercury in the environment can be harmful to both humans and wildlife.
 Mercury was once widely used in manufacturing, agriculture and other industries, and mercury is found in a wide variety of antique items. Mercury-containing items we’ve recently received at the drop-off facilities include jars of elemental mercury, an electric organ and numerous old thermostats.
|
Clean out your basement or garage and bring in any of the following mercury-containing items and receive a gift card for your effort:
- Thermostats
- Thermometers
- Jars of mercury
- Blood-pressure cuffs
- Antique clocks, barometers and mirrors
- Vintage toys and games, including chemistry sets and maze games
- Vintage sport and recreational items, including archery bows, fishing lures, golf balls
- Certain religious items, Parad figurines and jewelry (parad beads)
- Skin-lightening creams
Learn more about these mercury containing items.
|
