Have a Sustainable Summer ☀

City of Sunnyvale, California sent this bulletin at 08/02/2024 09:18 AM PDT

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

Sustainable Sunnyvale Newsletter - Aug. 2024

Adoption of Climate Action Playbook Updates and Game Plan 2028

Sunnyvale's City Council reaffirms its priority "Accelerating Climate Action." On June 25, City Council adopted Climate Action Playbook Updates and Game Plan 2028. The Playbook Updates increases our carbon neutrality target to 85% below 1990 levels by 2045. Game Plan 2028 is our five-year plan to keep Sunnyvale on track to reach its targets.

Learn how you can help build a healthy and sustainable community by visiting the City of Sunnyvale's website.

Protecting Your Water Supply

As the climate changes, more severe droughts will likely occur in California. Considering this, it is important that we act now and conserve our precious water supply. Although we experienced a lot of rain over the past two winters, we must continue to treat water conservation as a way of life.

It is up to each one of us to ensure that we continue to have a fresh and sustainable flow of water in our community. Below are tips to conserve water:

Save water indoors:

Turn off the faucet when you are scrubbing dishes. Better yet, use a dishwasher.
Rinse fruits and vegetables in a bowl of water instead of running water.
Take shorter showers. You will save 2.5 gallons of water each minute.

Save water outdoors:

Water your lawn only when needed. If the grass springs back up after stepping on it, it does not need watering.
Use a broom to sweep off the pavement. Using a hose to wash sidewalks, driveways and patios wastes money and water.
Plant native or drought-tolerant plants that require less watering.

Want to learn more? Visit the City of Sunnyvale’s website for more water savings tips and rebates.

Refill and Refuel Your Fun

During these long summer days, many residents go camping or tailgating. Some opt for a single-use 1 lb. gas cylinder as their fuel source. Although they seem small and harmless, these cylinders cause massive problems with disposal.

Gas cylinders often end up in a regular recycling or garbage bin when people are done with them. Even when they seem "empty", cylinders can contain a trace amount of gas. This highly explosive gas causes fires at waste processing facilities and puts sanitation workers at risk. This added danger makes collecting and properly disposing of single-use cylinders expensive.

Fortunately there is an easy solution: reusable, refillable gas cylinders. Their sturdy construction helps them last up to ten years, and they can be refilled hundreds of times. This not only reduces risk of danger and landfilled waste, but cost over time. You can easily find a retailer that sells and refills reusable gas cylinders. Visit RefuelYourFun.org for more information.

If you have any old disposable cylinders, you can drop them off at the SMaRT Station Recycling Center for free every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Stay Cool This Summer

Stay cool this summer! Here are a few ways to cool down and prevent power outages during upcoming heat waves.

As the weather warms up and we use more appliances to stay cool, the grid can get overloaded. When the grid gets overloaded power outages can occur. Sign up for Flex Alerts to be notified when you need to lower your energy use, to help prevent outages.

Have you noticed how hot gas stoves can make your kitchen when you are cooking? We recommend trying induction cooktops. Induction cooktops have no open flame or hot coils! Keep your kitchen cool by borrowing an induction cooktop from the Sunnyvale Public Library.

Looking for a cool place? The Sunnyvale Public Library acts as a cooling center! They are open longer on extra hot days to provide air conditioning to the community. Follow Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety to stay up to date.