Re-opening Pandora's Trash Box

Yes folks, it's time to re-open Pandora's dirty box, AKA the dreaded Gwinnett County trash plan. I'm sure some of you were hoping that the last year's plan would just get swept under the rug and forgotten like yesterday's garbage, however, that's simply not going to happen. (And if you didn't follow all the high drama from last fall/winter, click here to read my very opinionated view of the whole saga).

Gwinnett County has been told by the state that we are producing too much trash, and we must come up with a more efficient waste management plan. Period. To operate business as usual is not an option. So, the powers that be are again (yes, again, public forums were held the first time around as well) holding meetings to gain citizen input. Technically, I am still on my "restful vacation" from the sustainability scene, but since I got my panties all up in a wad over the judge's injunction halting the new trash program last winter, I just may have to make an appearance.

Yet, I'm feeling my blood pressure rise as I write, so those of you who are in favor of greatly expanded curbside recycling services, fewer garbage trucks coming through your neighborhoods, and less trash entering our local landfills, please attend one of these meetings.

And, since the state mandated an improvement over what the county is currently doing, change is a comin' eventually, sooner than later, whether people like it or not. So, if you have ideas or input, I would encourage you to attend one of these forums and have your voice heard.

The public forums are scheduled as follows:

• Thursday, July 9 6:30pm to 8:00pm. George Pierce Community Center 55 Buford Highway, Suwanee 770.831.4173. Once you enter park, the community building is located on left.
• Saturday, July 11 10:00am to 11:30am. Pinckneyville Park Community Center 4650 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, Norcross. 770.417.2200. Located inside park. This is the only building in area; first room on right.
• Wednesday, July 15 6:30pm to 8:00pm. Dacula Park Activity Building 2735 Auburn Avenue, Dacula. 770.822.5414. The Activity Building is not located inside the park. It sits behind the park next to Dacula Middle School
• Saturday, July 18 10:00am to 11:30am. Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center Auditorium 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville. 770.822.8000. Enter building at main entrance, make first right. Auditorium is on right.
• Saturday, July 25 10:00am to 11:30am. George Pierce Community Center 55 Buford Highway, Suwanee. 770.831.4173. Once you enter the park, the community building is located on left.

~Robin

Rest

My friend Jennie recently returned from an amazing trip out west with her family, and posted many pictures of their travels on Facebook for viewing.

After buzzing through all of her scenic shots, it's this picture, the one of her three year old twins sleeping, that caught my eye, captured my heart, and brought a smile to my face. It just might be the cutest picture I've ever seen of children, and trust me, I've got a million adorable pics of my own kids!

Since she posted her album the other day, I just could not stop thinking about this particular picture- the way her son is tenderly holding his sister's face as if to say, "I'm here. Everything is okay with the world. You can rest now."

I saw Jennie on Tuesday night at the Whistle Stop Farmer's Market with her children and again today at the Peachtree Corners CSA pick-up. I asked her permission to use this picture for a story I was concocting in my head. She said yes and I'm sure she was left wondering how the heck I was going to tie in a post about sustainable living with the picture of her adorable children sleeping together in one sleeping bag, heads touching.

Well, my friends, the tie in is easy. This picture brings me a sense of peace, feelings of serenity and of balance. The image reminds me of simpler times, of a slower pace, and of taking care of those you love, including yourself.

Although the progress and activities of our group over the last year have been amazing and much greater than expected, I've got to be honest. I'm pooped. I'm ready to lie down right next to them, cuddle up and give my mind and body a much-needed siesta.

So, that's just what I'm going to do. I'm taking some time off- away from the farmer's market, the CSA, and the community garden. Away from writing, from teaching sustainability classes at the YMCA, from swim team commitments, and away from my beloved Peachtree Corners.

Make some room for me in that sleeping bag...it's time for rest.
~Robin

PS-There are now Sustainable Peachtree Corners updates via Twitter (you can view updates on the right, upper hand side of the web site). If I do get an itch to write over the next couple of weeks while I'm out, I'll most likely provide updates via Twitter. I'll be back, rested and rejuvenated...promise!

My Jolly Green Giant

My Dad grew up in the 50's and 60's on a potato farm in rural southeast Michigan. Along with his three brothers and two sisters, they helped their parents take care of the farm by doing everything from planting, working the machinery, hoeing the fields, harvesting the crop, and taking it to market. The kids worked very hard, what would surely be considered too hard by today's standards, yet I've never once heard my Dad, or any of his siblings for that matter, complain about life on the farm.

Instead, our family events are filled with glorious stories about the kids running on the rafters of the barn, feet practically permanently stained with dirt after working barefoot for days on end, and meals anchored with local produce that was hand-picked hours before.

Fast forward to life as an adult, as a father, raising his own family. My Dad, who towers over most people at around 6'4", had a backyard garden that was the size of most yards here in suburban Atlanta. We grew everything under the sun (pardon the pun!), ate what was in season, canned what we couldn't eat for winter meals and shared/swapped produce with neighbors and friends. We had a raspberry and strawberry patch, fruit trees of many varieties and grape vines.

I remember one year, my younger brother Ryan and I asked if we could plant pumpkins. Our parents cautiously agreed, and by fall, our pumpkins had literally taken over our entire garden. Ryan and I set up a small stand in our yard, selling pumpkins for 50 cents a piece, thinking we were millionaires at the end of the day because we had more money in our pockets than we'd ever had. Really, the lessons we learned that season about abundance combined with the spirit of entrepreneurship where what was worth the million.

My Mom and Dad divorced when I was eight. We stayed in the house with the garden and the berry patches and fruit trees and my Dad moved into a small, one bedroom apartment. Although I was too young to realize it at the time, my Dad was wilting not only because of the change going on in his personal life, but also because he didn't have any land to call his own, to plant his seeds, to start his life again.

He soon joined a community garden, where I have vivid memories of helping him roll out the hose to water his plot. I remember thinking how trusting people must be to have faith that no one else would pick their produce, and how wonderful it was to run into other gardeners, chatting about what was growing, sharing bites of the season's first juicy red tomato.

Dad has been composting his whole life, has never sprayed the yard with pesticides and now in his 60's, continues gardening and, along with his wife Brenda, has a thriving vegetable and flower garden. In my book, he is the God of Urban Homesteading, the original micro-farmer.

Sometimes people ask me when I became interested in green living. The thing is, it's not a question of when. It's just how I was raised; this is my normal. One of the best gifts my father ever gave to me was a love, understanding and respect of living a sustainable lifestyle before living green even became a popular buzzword. His father gave him the same gift, which was effortlessly passed to me, which now I'm hoping to pass to my children.

At a recent play date a Mom overheard my five-year-old daughter tell her friend,

"My grandpa is so tall he can reach the clouds. When he picks me up I can reach the clouds, and the whole outer space!"

So, this Father's Day, I want to say thank you Dad for teaching me without knowing, sharing your knowledge without forcing, thus shaping me into the person I am today. And thank you for being larger than life to my children. You're more than just Dad or Grandpa to us. You're our Jolly Green Giant.

Happy Father's Day Dad!

~Your Robbie

(BTW- professionally, my brother is an environmental consultant to large corporations. Coincidence? I don't think so!)

A Video Tour of the Garden

My friend Pattie (the amazing eco-writer and local sustainability goddess) recently toured the new Jones Bridge Community Garden in Peachtree Corners (AKA, the Lushes Garden). Check out her story and the must-see short video tour here. That is me screaming "YES!!" at the end of the video. And, yes, I picked that football sized zucchini, and three more since then, and could practically feed a pool-full of people with it! So, *that's* why it's called a community garden!

With the incredible rise in home gardening, partially due to the state of the economy and hopefully because people are becoming more aware of where their food is coming from, what is sprayed or not sprayed on it, etc., the crew at Sustainable Peachtree Corners wants to start featuring stories and pictures on our web site of gardens in our community. If you have a garden, no matter what the shape or size, we want to know about it! Please send a picture or two, along with a brief write-up to sustainablepeach@comcast.net.

Also, the Peachtree Corners CSA summer season is right around the corner, with the subscription deadline this week. The produce from Riverview Farms has been phenomenal this year, likely due to the heavy spring rains. For more information, click here.
~Robin


Sustainable Peachtree Corners: Positively promoting green, sustainable living for those who live, work and play in the Peachtree Corners community.

Rain, Rain, DON'T Go Away!

We can all agree we've had a very wet spring, right? So wet, in fact, that Wednesday, Georgia officials from the Environmental Protection Division lifted the stringent outdoor watering restrictions, allowing homeowners to pretty much freely water their lawns and wash their cars.

We’ve owned our Toyota Sienna for almost six years. And in those six years, guess how many times we have washed the van- none. Zippo. Nada. There is absolutely no need to wash the van, because with a good rain, it looks just fine. Even in the height of last summer’s drought, we still never felt the need to wash the car, or, for that matter, water our lawn, even though the home owners prior to us installed a pricey sprinkler system.

Now we are getting enough rain that our lawns are a deep shade of green and our gardens are thriving. Just when citizens seemed to fully adjust their habits to the water conservation-laded rules that have been in place for almost three years, we are opening the “flood gates” (pardon the pun). Why?

Effective immediately, outdoor watering is allowed every day but Friday; homeowners with even-numbered and un-numbered addresses can water on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday and watering at odd-numbered addresses is permitted on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

The 30-day exemption for commercially installed sod and landscapes remains; homeowners can water daily during this time, but after the 30 days pass, the three-day a week restrictions apply.
There are no restrictions to the hours of the day that watering is allowed (BIG mistake), but the EPD is asking people to abstain between the hours of 10 am and 4 pm. During the heat of the day, water evaporates quickly anyway.

Carol Couch, Georgia director of the EPD said, “The drought has ended. Our drinking water supplies are not at risk; therefore the management of the drought has ended.”

So, that’s what all this has been about? Drought management? And I thought it was about Georgia finally getting smart about water conservation and educating people about wise water usage. We’ve come so far, made so much progress that usage was cut by 15 percent (the goal was 10%); why change now?

Just because the restrictions have been lifted, I implore you not to change your new-found habits. Instead, continue on your path of water conservation and challenge yourself to find even more ways to reduce consumption, reuse water, reduce your lawn and rethink your habits.

Here are a few easy tips:

• Your lawn and garden only need one inch of water a week to thrive. A good rain once a week is adequate, and therefore additional watering is not necessary. Get a good rain gage or an automatic sensor on your watering system.


• Do not wash your car. Unlike you, your car is not going to stink up the joint if it doesn’t get a good washing. If you just can’t kick the habit, at least go to Avril’s Car Wash (on the corner of Holcomb Bridge and Spalding in Peachtree Corners). They are a green operation, reusing water and such. While you are there, visit the new Farmer D’s Organics store (both businesses share space), now fully stocked and operational.


• Reduce the size of your lawn. If you feel the need to spend money and time watering your yard, why not remove grass and plant something edible in its place? At least you’re getting a solid (and tasty!) return on your investment.


• Install rain barrels and appropriate irrigation systems. Rain is free, and apparently, recently abundant. A full rain barrel or two can easily supply enough water for a small residential lawn and garden.


• Adjust your indoor water usage. Wash dishes and clothes only with full capacity loads, water indoor plants with grey water when possible, turn off water when brushing teeth, and take short showers (no baths).
• Go to www.conservationmart.com, a fabulous company based right here in Norcross for all of your water conservation product needs (low flow shower heads, faucet aerators, toilet tank banks and much, much more).

Georgia’s population is growing by leaps and bounds, especially here in Gwinnett County (which remains one of the fastest growing counties in the nation). We need to treat our watersheds with the level of respect they deserve for the number of people it supports. Although Lake Lanier, which serves much of metro Atlanta, is less than four feet below full pool, we are only one or two dry seasons away from full-blown drought again.

Water conservation needs to be a way of life whether we’re in a drought emergency or if it’s raining cats and dogs for a month straight.

~Robin