Results tagged “green”

                                   

Last Sunday the backlot of CBS Radford Studios in Studio City was filled with some of the biggest names...in food. The 23rd Annual Great Chefs of LA was indeed the promised food and drink filled afternoon of music, swag bags, and auctions, all to benefit the National Kidney Foundation of Southern California. Hosted by comedian and TV star George Lopez, the event drew some celebs (so we hear!) from entertainment and lots of food talent (so we ate!).

From compost at Griffith Park to Silver Lake Salvage to amazing raw desserts at Cru, Your Daily Thread has put together a nice Neighborhood Green Guide "to navigate what is green, local, sustainable, organic and/or handmade in the areas of Atwater Village, Echo Park, Los Feliz and Silver Lake." The daily local green e-mail newsletter says more neighborhood guides are on the way. We hope they do downtown or the Southeast Valley next.

Park[ing] Day LA returns for its third year, when on September 18th metered parking spaces all over the city will be taken over by temporary on-the-fly green spaces where anyone is invited to sit down, relax, play, grab a bite, or chill out. With the aim of promoting the value--and in turn, the lack of--safe, accessible, and plentiful green spaces in Los Angeles, the event is an opportunity to break with convention and bring communities together.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced today that they are fining a container company nearly $50,000 for environmental violations. APM Terminals Pacific Limited-- one of the world’s largest container terminal companies--reportedly discharged industrial-activity storm water at its marine shipping container terminal facility, a violation of Clean Water Act and the California National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, according to the agency.

The poshest gas station in Los Angeles--directly abut the Beverly Hills border at Olympic and Robertson--just recently changed its branding from BP to the company-owned and consumer friendly ARCO. Usually, the brand is cheaper or seems so without the 45-cent charge to use a card. But that's clearly not the case here. Catty-corner in Beverly Hills, the listed prices are same, sans credit charge.

There hasn't been much rain these days, but that's not stopping the city from trying to maximize the usefulness of rain when it comes. A new rain water harvesting pilot project will start in Mar Vista and a nearby neighborhood in mid July, thanks to a $1 million grant. Gray water, as it's called, is one part of greening ones property and is often used for water gardens and lawns. The project's goal is to enlist 600 properties--whether they be residential or commercial--to take part in the program. Those who take part might receive a free rain barrel (usually costs $200) or have experts re-route gutter downspouts off impermeable surfaces like sidewalks and onto permeable ones like gardens. All the details are not set yet, but more are to come in next month.

On April 4th, two LA residents, Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins, set off an a 2,000-mile bike ride, the JUNKride, from Vancouver to Tijuana, to raise awareness and educate children and adults about the damage plastic is causing to our oceans.

The city of Burbank is ready to make their energy a whole lot greener, the Leader is reporting. There, "construction crews are set to break ground on a $14.9-million Burbank Water and Power project as part of what officials called an aggressive plan to serve as a model of sustainability."

Plans to build a $1 billion power plant in Carson--touted by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as the "cleanest and greenest" in the nation when it was announced in 2006--have just recently been "quietly abandoned," the Contra Costa Times reports, citing "inhospitable" ecological conditions at the proposed site, and "resistance from local environmentalists."

Just what we all need: One more social networking site to sign up for, one more profile to make, quirky picture of ourselves to upload, badge to import to our blog. Except Irvine-based Greenwala is a social networking site that gives something important back to the world with each new member.

Today is Earth Day, but many of us are pledging to continue, or take on endeavors and habits that will make every day more green. If you're curious about solar power, and if it's the right step for you to take for your home or business, the LA County SolarMap and website can help you make your decision.

Now that San Francisco Mayor Twitter Master Gavin Newsom is officially running for Governor, he's heading South to Los Angeles and San Diego today for visits to two green companies (it's Earth Day, after all). At noon, he'll be in West LA with Marmol Radziner and Associates, an architecture firm that builds "green" prefab homes. Newsom will tour their design spaces and one of their "cutting edge" homes. Later, he'll be in San Diego touring a a renewable energy's laboratory.

At first California officials were pushing a proposal that would force ships to use cleaner fuels and emission-control measures when 230 miles from the coast. The shipping industry said such a law would have to be mandated federally, not by a state. Courts sided with the shipping industry. Now the Environmental Protection Agency is on board, reports the Press Telegram: "EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson believes the proposed rule could prevent the premature deaths of at least 8,000 U.S. and Canadian residents - primarily those in urban areas near busy ports. U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, who battled the Bush administration for years on efforts to tighten environmental standards around the nation's seaports, called the proposal 'music to my ears.'" Even if the federal government approves it, the final ruling has to come from the International Maritime Organization. Random Fact: Did you know that our state's coast is basically a national monument? Meet the very unique California Coastal National Monument that is managed by the Bureau of Land Management under the Department of the Interior.

Can a transit agency be considered "green" if they aren't meeting their emission level standards? The state Air Resources Board thinks not, and have hit Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus line with a $21,000 fine "for failing to conduct required diesel emissions testing and maintaining appropriate records, among other violations," according to LA Now. Per the regulator, the popular fleet of around 200 buses "also failed to keep emission levels at no more than 60% of 2005 levels as required." Recently, the Big Blue Bus announced they'd be further greening their fleet by purchasing hybrid buses from a SoCal company with federal stimulus funds. This fine stems from "a legal case settlement," that also stipulates the transit agency school their employees on being "green" and requiring their drivers spend less time idling.

Los Angeles is one of the many global cities participating in Earth Hour tonight. The annual event, which seems to be gaining popularity with each year, calls for everyone to turn off any non-essential lights for just one hour, and that hour is tonight from 8:30-9:30 local time.

Hollywood's Cherokee Studios is poised to re-emerge as an innovative LEED-certified work/live space this year. The site itself is steeped in local music history; recording artists ranging from Frank Sinatra to David Bowie laid down tracks inside the walls, and before that it was home to movie's Republic Studios. After over 30 years of proprietorship, the Robb brothers closed the doors to the legendary studios in 2007, but now the REthink Development team is finalizing work on the space, which will now be called the Cherokee Lofts and will hopefully be legendary in its own time.

Orange County's Laguna Beach could be another Californian city to ban the use of plastic bags. Last night the City Council unanimously passed a motion that moves the discussion to the next level, reports the OC Register. Their environmental committee will now look further into the ban, which many believe "will help save both the environment and retailers' bottom lines." Council members want to be certain that local businesses have ample warning time, but also acknowledge the potential for area stores to absorb costs of the ban by selling reusable bags.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced today that Los Angeles is the US city with "the most Energy Star-certified buildings," according to the Daily News. We have 262 Engery Star buildings, which means they "use one-third less electricity than traditional buildings." The count is current as of the end of '08, and occupants of the buildings "saved $87.2 million over the course of the year and conserved enough energy to power 35,800 households." The list includes buildings all over the city, with many located on major thoroughfares like Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards. Is your building green, or a potential Energy Star? Use the tools offered by the EPA to find out what it takes.

90 miles east of Los Angeles sits this billboard telling Mayor Villaraigosa to cut it out. But why do people far away from LA care? It's the controversial Green Path Power Project, a plan that would bring geothermal, solar, wind and other renewable energy from the Salton Sea area of Imperial Valley to Los Angeles via a new yet-to-built electrical transmission line.

Early this morning, NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) attempted to launch into space from Vandenberg Air Force Base in Santa Barbara County, but as it took off, the payload fairing failed to separate from the vehicle during ascent. sending it flying back to earth into the ocean near Antarctica. The $270 million two-year project, headed by the folks at the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, would have studied the entire planet's atmospheric carbon dioxide, looking to find where green house gases are released into and pulled from the air.

As part of his Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), former President Bill Clinton will join Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa at City Hall today to "unveil what is being billed as the largest light-emitting diode street light program undertaken by a city," according to the Daily News.

It might be raining today, but Southern California is still drier than we need to be. This is why Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has a "20-year water strategy" he is implementing in response to our water shortage. Today he is going to "call for restricting outdoor irrigation to two days a week, on Mondays and Thursdays only," reports abc7.com. He is also going to "ask the Department of Water and Power to double its number of water conservation teams and to add enforcement hours." You can be a good citizen by being a water narc; if you bust your neighbor watering his lawn on an off-day, or watering his sidewalk, you can give the DWP a call (1-800-DIAL DWP ) or an email and turn their water-wasting asses in.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is going on a quick trip tonight to Washington D.C. to lobby the Obama administration to make sure Los Angeles gets a good slice of the federal stimulus package that's making its way through the Senate today, according to the LA Times. He hopes to get funding for the Subway to the Sea and the solar energy plan, which the controversial Measure B on the March 3rd ballot is part of. Also, he wants the money to go directly to cities and not the state, who still hasn't come up with a budget solution forcing them to give IOUs to residents on their tax refunds.

On the heels of President Obama asking the EPA to reverse Bush's clamp-down on state-level fuel efficiency standards comes word that not all job-related news in California is bad news--yes, it's part of that silver lining.

Today President Obama is asking the EPA to reverse a previous Bush-era move that "stopped California and more than a dozen other states from setting their own stricter limits on auto emissions," reports the LA Times.

      

LAist stopped by the Go Green Expo today, which has been going on all weekend at the LA Convention Center in Downtown. The Go Green Expo is an opportunity for both business buyers and everyday consumers seeking eco-friendly products & services for their companies, homes, schools and children to see what kind of eco-friendly consumer goods are for sale, or will be soon, and to meet with the many exhibitors showcasing their products. LAist's News Editor Andy Sternberg sent over some pics from the convention floor to share; looks like there's some exiting stuff on the market, and many Los Angeles-based companies who can help steer us towards a greener future.

Spotted yesterday at Green & Greener in Valley Village, the only general store dedicated to environmentally friendly products in Los Angeles (see our photo tour here). We've always hated going to grocery stores with our reusable bags only to have to use plastic ones for broccoli and lettuce. Problem solved, thank you BYO Bags. Three come in a package and they sell for $10.99.

Plans to make all of Griffith Park a Cultural Historical Monument got an unopposed green light yesterday and heads next to City Council for approval. This could be a potentially big thing--at least in terms of size, since, according to the Daily News, "at more than 4,200 acres, it would be the largest cultural landmark in the city." It's also just a pretty cool thing to have happen, because Griffith Park plays an important--and interesting--role in our local history; the land was willed to the City after the death of the eccentric Col. Griffith J. Griffith in 1919.

It's a Christmas Tree, a Hanukkah Bush, or a Kwanzaa Shrub. Call it what you will, but the bottom line is, it's a chopped down tree you hauled home on the roof of your car sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve and it's now a brittle fire hazard taking up space in the house you resolved on January 1st to "Keep More Clean!" You may have also resolved to "Be More Green!" so let's start with recycling that Christmas Tree.

Hey President Bush, you're not off the hook yet. Jerry Brown is back suing President Bush over green issues, this time over new rules pertaining to the Endangered Species Act. "The Bush Administration is seeking to gut the Endangered Species Act on its way out the door," Attorney General Brown said in a statement today. "This is an audacious attempt to circumvent a time-tested statute that for 35 years has required scientific review of proposed federal agency decisions that affect wildlife."