Go Green!

Environmental enthusiasts, families and students are being encouraged to volunteer for Delaware’s annual beach grass planting event from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 20, at beach locations along the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean.

Gallery One in Ocean View this announced their new show, “Going Green,” the first show for 2010, which features 16 local artists displaying their interpretation of the show’s title.

Gallery One in Ocean View this announced their new show, “Going Green,” the first show for 2010, which features 16 local artists displaying their interpretation of the show’s title.

The Delaware Forest Service is inviting schoolchildren in grades K-5 to join its 2010 Arbor Day Poster Contest. This year’s theme is “Trees Are Terrific... and Energy Wise,” and this year’s deadline has been extended to March 22 because of February’s inclement weather.

Although Delmarva is known for its chicken industry, the days of having backyard hens seemed to have gone the way of the dodo for a while. With the fast-paced life of ample development and grocery stores on every corner, rural Delmarva seemed to be taking a back seat. But a new trend on the peninsula is green living in the form of going back to basics. And, for some, that means once again having backyard hens that are free to roam, and enjoying the “fruits” of labor in the form of fresh eggs.

In the world of all things green, everybody’s an expert. Well, not everybody. As “green” has gotten more popular in the past few years, it has become increasingly hard to tell who really knows their stuff and who’s just jumping on a bandwagon. So, for cautious homeowners, the best bet could be going with a company that has been around for a while.

The Mid-Atlantic Green Business Forum will be held March 26, 2010, in Baltimore, Md. Sessions include Moving Your Business Toward Sustainability, Energy Trends Now and for the Future, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Clean Technology and Green Business, Marketing and Business Development, and Green Building.

U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) came to Ocean View on Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, to discuss his three-pollutant, or “3P,” legislation, in an exclusive interview with the Coastal Point.

“Going green” is no longer a trend. For many, it’s here to stay. With gas prices still volatile at best, and the money state government has provided for grants and rebates for energy-efficiency projects not expected to last forever, if there is something that needs to be greened at home or at work, why wait?

For Fenwick Island Town Councilwoman Vicki Carmean and her husband, Wayne, getting solar panels has been something they have thought long and hard about, and in the end, as with many decisions, money was the deciding factor.

“Produced with child labor,” “toxic,” “laced with pesticides and herbicides that have been banned in the U.S.”

For those that have been waiting for just the right incentive to not chuck those water bottles and soda cans straight into the trash, how about trash haulers picking up your recyclables at the door for free?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded more than $3.2 million to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to improve water quality in Delaware.

Growing up in upstate New York, Collin O’Mara, now Secretary of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), saw firsthand what environmental and economic degradation can do to a community.

There are always a top five or 10 things people resolve to do each January: lose weight, eat right, stop smoking, get out of debt…Whether they get accomplished or not is another story.

Celebrants can start the new year right by recycling Christmas trees at a DNREC Community Yard Waste Site until Jan. 18. After removing all ornaments, wire and tinsel, Delaware residents can drop off their trees and other greens at any one of the yard waste sites. To help defray costs, the state parks will accept donations of $2.

After an almost year-long power struggle between the Center for the Inland Bays Board and the CIB Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) – one of its standing committees – regarding a proposed diversity plan for members, things came to a head at last week’s board meeting.

When the going gets tough, the tough get green.

The health of the flat wetlands in Sussex County have been graded at a fair B+, but the health of the area’s riverine wetlands and tidal wetlands came in at a less-than-satisfactory D and D+, respectively, according to a new report card on the health of the state’s wetlands.

Since the adoption of a renewable-energy ordinance in Fenwick Island, there have been three permits issued for solar energy systems – one commercial and two residential – and there are two more permits for such systems pending, according to building official Pat Schuchman. One is a geothermal heat and photovoltaic energy system (with 18 solar panels and two water collectors) at Councilwoman Vicki Carmean’s house.

The Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) of the Center for the Inland Bays heard from Wendy Baker of the Sussex County Land Trust and Bill Rohrer of the state’s Nutrient Management Program at their December meeting.

One of the newest trends in “green” is buying local, but how exactly is buying local considered “green?”

What do you get when you take away the sand in a standard concrete mixture? Pervious concrete!

For anyone driving near the intersection of Parker House and Beaver Dam roads near Ocean View, the two solar arrays with 12 panels each in the common area of the Forest Reach community, near the pool, may look pretty impressive, but they are only a third of the system as it was originally designed. The process has been about a year in the making – time spent learning about solar panels, rebates and incentives. Finally, the home owners had hoped even to produce more energy than needed, to offset some costs. But they have hit a snag.

In the second of their roundtable discussions on “green” technology, Bethany Beach Planning Commission members this week met with area experts on solar power installations, getting advice on how the town should regulate the industry as the renewable energy systems become increasingly popular and affordable.

The Bethany Beach Nature Center offered the first of several planned interactive educational youth activity days at the center on Saturday, Oct. 31. The Nature Center is now open on Friday, Saturdays and Sundays until the first of the year and will then re-open in the spring for more activities.

When Carole and Ron Patton of Selbyville installed their solar panels, they didn’t think they would become celebrities, but that’s what happened.

• Stay close to home, or take the train – Thanksgiving is traditionally a time when airports and highways are jam-packed with travelers trying to make it to Grandma’s house. Why not skip the headaches and save some carbon by sticking close to home? Make a new tradition with your friends and family that live in your area.

Bird rescue isn’t exactly what the Center for Inland Bays staff specializes in – but, hey, when somebody is in need, who can say no?

Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) Collin O’Mara had a message for the attendees of this year’s Today and Tomorrow Conference at Del Tech: Environmental responsibility and a sustainable economy do not have to be mutually exclusive.