EcoEKY: Green News from Eastern Kentucky

from WYMT News:

24 Hour Recycling Center

Reporter: Matt Barbour
Email Address: matt.barbour@wymtnews.com

The city of London and Laurel County now has a new 24 hour recycling center.

The public works director says it will save the city thousands of dollars.

People using the new recycling center in Laurel County say it's easy and convenient.

“It's just one of them things if I don't I have to pay for the garbage truck when I can bring it here on the trip to town,” Bennie Smith said.

The city of London opened the new regional recycling center Monday and the city's public works director says it's a big improvement from the county's old center.

“It can only help them, with the roadside litter and with the way they had to process it, it was labor intensive,” Steve Edge said.

Edge says in the first year alone he expects the facility to process about 3,600 tons of material that would normally be going to a landfill and that will save the city about $75,000.

Robby Blair is the center's supervisor and says everyone should make an effort to recycle.

“What happens, ten years from now? You know, there's not going to be many landfills left,” Blair said.

He says they've designed this center to be more user friendly.

The old one had dispensers that were much higher off the ground.

Just ask Zelma Rice, “Well, if you've got a bag of papers, they're heavy. They get heavy. and it's harder for older people especially, or short people to reach up and put those in there.”

She says hopefully the convenience will encourage others to make a difference in their community.

Blair says curbside recycling service could be provided within the next two years.

From the London Sentinel Echo:

Memorial, family trees bring much-needed Releaf

By Tara Kaprowy
Staff Writer
Published: April 29, 2008 10:22 pm

Skip Little has his own green space in London now. On Wednesday, Little’s family members, friends and members of the new Releaf London committee gathered at A.R. Dyche Cemetery to plant a yellow wood tree in honor of the former attorney, who died 10 years ago.

Getting more leaves growing in a meaningful way in Laurel County is the goal of the new committee, a subset of the London Downtown organization. Ultimately, they want to expand London’s urban forests.

People can donate $150 to the committee and get a tree planted in memory of a loved one or even as a family tree.

The tree — which will be hand-selected according to the habitat where it will be planted — will be marked with a permanent hang tag.

“The plaque will identify the tree and the name of the family,” committee member Chris Robinson said.

The donation will pay for the cost of the tree, the cost to plant it and guarantees the tree’s survival.

The idea for the committee was spawned thanks to feedback given to London Downtown by America in Bloom, a nationwide beautification program that judged the city last year.

“Urban forestry and environmental awareness were our two lowest scores,” Robinson said. “Releaf London is a way of developing an urban forestry plan.”

Robinson said committee members are in the process of assembling a recommended tree list.

“We want to make sure the trees are in a proper location for the growing conditions they need and the space they need,” Robinson said.

Robinson expects trees like yellow wood, kousa dogwood, pin oak and flowering cherries to be on the list.

“These are good, easy to love trees,” Robinson said.

Staff writer Tara Kaprowy can be reached by e-mail at tkaprowy@sentinel-echo.com.

from the Corbin Times Tribune:

Farmer's Market opens Saturday

Published: May 01, 2008 11:46 am

Spring has sprung and Laurel County farmer’s are kicking off another growing season this weekend.

The farmer’s market located in downtown London will open for the season Saturday at 7 a.m. The market is located on the corner of Dixie and Main streets, across from the London Community Center.

The London-Laurel County Farmers Market is proud to promote local farmers and the products they produce. Selections range from fruits and vegetables to jams and jellies and live plants.

The London-Laurel County Farmer’s Market is open at 10 a.m. to sell-out Tuesdays and Thursdays and at 7 a.m. to sell-out Saturdays through October.

For more information call (606) 864-4167.

from the London Sentinel-Echo:

Mayor backs curbside recycling

By Tara Kaprowy
Staff Writer

Published: April 22, 2008 06:54 pm

Mayor Troy Rudder told London Downtown members about his plans for the future of recycling in London — and they’re big.

“If we’re going green, we’re going all the way,” he said.

If Rudder has his way, curbside recycling in London will be a reality in two to three years’ time. He also wants to see the amount of garbage going into the landfill reduced by 75 percent in the coming years. In the first year, he wants to cut the amount down by 25 percent.

“It’s the right thing to do,” he said. “All towns need to be looking at this right now because that’s the future.”

For Rudder, recycling boils down to a question of economics.

Right now, the city dumps 150 tons per day at a cost of $22.50 per ton.

“We spend about $522,000 a year to dispose of just dumping garbage at the landfill,” Rudder said. “Every pound we can keep from the landfill saves us money and, in turn, saves the households and businesses in town.”

Moreover, Rudder expects the cost to dump in the landfill to rise exponentially.

“We known in four years what is going to happen to our dumping fees,” he said. “It’s going to skyrocket.”

“We can look at doubling our tipping fees,” he added, estimating that that in four years, the price to dump at the landfill will likely jump to $40 or $42.

To make the recycling goals a reality, the city and county have applied for a $310,000 grant to expand the program. In the grant application, the city proposed taking over the program.

London Public Works Director Steve Edge, who is to be in charge of the program, said he is “80 to 90 percent” sure the grant will be awarded to the area. Even if it isn’t, plans are still moving forward.

“We’re getting the facilities ready to implement it,” Edge said. “It will be another 60 to 75 days.”

Edge said the city plans to recycle “everything from e-waste down,” meaning electronics will be recycled, along with paper, plastic, cans, cardboard and all types of paper.

Edge said the grant will be used to buy recycling equipment — a compacter, can densifier, glass pulverizer, shredder — that would make the program less labor intensive.

Laurel County has had a recycling program since 2001. Though it was considered to be one of the most progressive centers in southeastern Kentucky, lay-offs made in July 2007 ground the program to a halt.

Laurel County Solid Waste Coordinator Jim Ed McDaniel said the county no longer has the manpower to distribute the recycling bins to various locations in the county, and is having trouble keeping up with the products dropped off at the McWhorter Street center.

“It will be a godsend for us,” McDaniel said of the city taking over the program. “Me and my other two employees will go back to our solid waste part. We’ll be able to pick up the appliances as they come in and do the road litter pickup.”

To encourage Londoners to recycle, Edge said the city plans to charge residents who recycle less for garbage pickup than those who don’t.

“For example, we would charge them a rate of $10 if they do recycle and $15 if you don’t,” Edge explained. “We’re going to let you save yourself money.”

Neither Rudder nor Edge anticipate the recycling center will actually make the city money.

“We’re hoping it can break even,” Rudder said.

“We’ve got to make it pay for itself,” Edge added.

from the London Sentinel-Echo:

City may take over recycling

By Tara Kaprowy
Staff Writer

Published: April 03, 2008 10:05 pm

Laurel County’s recycling center is facing major changes, ones that would greatly expand the program and put it in the hands of the city.

The city and county are jointly applying for a grant in the amount of more than $300,000. That money would be used to buy recycling equipment — a compacter, can densifier, glass pulverizer, shredder — that would make the program far less labor intensive.

London Public Works Director Steve Edge would be at the helm of the program. He is passionate about recycling and improving the system.

“This is something that’s good to do and in the future it’s something we’re going to need to do,” he said.

Edge has big goals for the program.

“We’re shooting for a 20 to 25 percent reduction of what people bring to the landfill in the first year,” he said.

Edge’s ultimate goal is to cut the amount of trash that goes to the landfill by 75 percent.

“My long-term goal is to recycle anything that can be recycled,” he said. “It can happen. It’s already being done in other cities.”

Edge also sees curbside recycling — meaning it would be picked up at people’s homes — in London’s future.

“Within three to five years, you’ll see curbside recycling in London,” he said.

If the grant is awarded, the recycling center will be moved from its McWhorter Street location to the transfer station on KY 192 near TLC Lane. In terms of expanding the program, Edge would eventually like to be able to recycle electronics, such as computers and TVs, as well as batteries and paint.

Edge also plans to get Laurel County schools recycling, and have trailers parked on-site.

Under the terms of the agreement, the city would “do the recycling and offer recycling countywide,” Edge explained. The grant application had to be submitted to the Kentucky Division of Solid Waste April 1. Edge estimated he would hear if it had been awarded to Laurel County in 30 to 45 days.

Edge feels London and Laurel County have a good chance of getting the grant. He said the city and county applied for the grant separately last year and were both denied.

“We were denied because it wasn’t a joint venture,” he said.

Now the city and county are both on board, and Rockcastle County has agreed to bring their recyclables to Laurel County to have them processed.

Getting more counties on board is Edge’s goal.

“We’d like to make this a regional center,” he said. “We’ve talked to Clay and Jackson counties as well. We’re looking to help the region instead of just this immediate area.”



Staff writer Tara Kaprowy can be reached by e-mail at tkaprowy@sentinel-echo.com.

Speaking about the growing trend of people moving into downtown areas of cities (including London, KY), Becky Shipp states: "It’s also an environmental movement as well — making use of existing resources.”

Read the rest of the article from the London Sentinel-Echo below:

Simple Living

By Tara Kaprowy
Staff Writer


Published: March 11, 2008 08:15 pm


When Warren Scoville bought the old building next to his Main Street law office in 1996, he only had convenience for his clients in mind. His goal was to raze the dilapidated two-story to create seven sparkling parking spaces.

“It was in such horrible shape,” he said of the building. “The ceiling tiles were pea green and had those old-fashioned wires with a light bulb at the end. The roof leaked like a sieve and when I took the windows out all the plaster came off.”

But upon closer inspection, Scoville realized the building was structurally sound and had one aesthetically-pleasing characteristic. Underneath the dropped ceiling, he found tin tiles stamped with Art Deco designs.

“I liked that ceiling so much I said, ‘You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to make me an apartment up here,’” he said.

At the time, Scoville was living in Lexington, returning to London to run his practice during the week.

He got to work on the project immediately and, six months later, had his home away from home.

Ten years after Scoville carved his apartment out of the rundown building, converting downtown edifices into stylish living spaces has gotten popular.

“It is happening everywhere — east, west, south, Midwest, small towns, big cities and everything in between,” said Donovan Rypkema, principal of PlaceEconomics, at a recent Kentucky Heritage Council seminar. “Today it is rare that I ever go into a downtown where there isn’t at least talk about a downtown housing initiative.”

To prove the point, Rypkema cited a study put together by the Brookings Institution, Fannie Mae Foundation and the University of Pennsylvania, which looked at the demographics of 24 American cities.

“In six cities, the overall population of the city declined but the downtown population increased,” he said. “In 12 of the cities, there were population increases both in the downtown and the city overall. But in 75 percent of those cases, the downtown grew faster than did the city.”

The reason for the growth?

Rypkema credited three population demographics: baby boomers, 20-somethings and singles.

Rypkema said people who are single own one-third of the households in the United States and are “strong components of the downtown market.”

Of the 20-somethings, Rypkema said the hip factor is what attracts them.

“They want the ‘urban cool’ even if their urbanity is a town of 5,000 people,” he said. “And urban cool, at whatever scale, happens downtown.”

Baby boomers are often using their downtown living spaces in the same way Scoville did — as a second home, Rypkema said.

“(They are) the relatively affluent older couple, who maybe want to spend their summers on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, but keep their home in their hometown Kentucky,” he said.

And “hometown Kentucky” is seeing changes just like the rest of the country.

“In Covington, Lexington, Louisville, there is already lots of loft living in adaptive use facilities and even new facilities being built,” said Becky Shipp, program manager with the Kentucky Heritage Council.

Shipp credits Kentucky’s downtown housing growth to several factors.

“It may be an affordability issue, it may be a boomer issue,” she said. “We’re seeing it as the younger professional interested in something avant-garde. Baby boomers, empty nesters may not necessarily want to mow grass anymore. Some would be very interested in the historical character of the buildings. It’s also an environmental movement as well — making use of existing resources.”

Whatever the reasons, the Heritage Council would like to see more growth. This year it has asked its Main Street towns to do an assessment of their downtown living spaces.

“We’re collecting current data,” Shipp explained. “It’s an assessment of what kind of residential space there is, if it’s upper floor or stand alone, if it’s an after use building, what is the rent, what is the cost of the building.”

In addition, the Heritage Council is focusing its training sessions on downtown living, with tours of downtown living spaces planned in various regions of the state. One such tour will be in London, whose Renaissance District encompasses about 30 homes and six upper story apartments.

London Downtown Executive Director Sherri Mosley said the city was chosen to represent its region because of the availability and potential of upper story living.

“I’m excited,” she said. “We have a lot to show off.”

Scoville’s apartment will be part of the tour, and he is happy to endorse his downtown living experience.

“I loved it,” he said. “I was right beside work. I didn’t have to get up so early. Parking downtown at night is a breeze. And it’s extremely quiet. I just loved it down here.”

And while Scoville has since moved to the suburbs and reluctantly put the apartment up for sale, he feels people living downtown is a necessity for its revitalization.

“You can only build downtown if people live downtown,” he said.

Rypkema wholeheartedly agreed.

“If you asked me for a 100 indicators of a healthy downtown I could probably come up with them,” he said. “But if I were limited to one it would be this — people on the street. Independent of any other variable, if there are people on the street a downtown is successful and if there are not it is not. And while we love having the bank and the law firm and the real estate office downtown, they don’t put people on the street. Four things do: retailing, food and beverage, entertainment and housing. And I have come to strongly believe that the first among equals is housing.”

From the Corbin Times Tribune website:

London offers locals recycling alternative

Published: April 02, 2008 10:33 am

By Brad Hicks / Staff Writer

Laurel County residents who are looking to unload some old electronic devices they may have discovered after spring cleaning are encouraged to recycle them instead of tossing them out.

London Downtown Director Sherri Mosley said Laurel County residents can drop off cellular phones, laptop computers and used printer cartridges at her office in the London Community Center.

“We can only take those three items,” she said.

Last year, London Downtown joined with the America in Bloom Program, which assists towns looking to become “garden cities.”

“Since that’s what we’re trying to become, we figured we’d join that,” Mosley said.

America in Bloom sent two judges who advised London Downtown of the areas that needed work in the town. The judges mentioned that more environmental needs should be addressed.

The electronic items have to be sent off to companies for recycling, however these companies pay for the items sent. Funds raised from the recycling efforts would go toward funding a London Downtown environmental committee.

Currently, the recycling center located in London is not able to take electronic devices, referred to as “e-waste,” for recycling, but Mosley said Laurel Countians should look for that to change soon.

“In the near future, e-waste will be part of our recycling program,” she said.

She also said within a couple of weeks, 10 businesses in London would be named as pilot recycling businesses. Mosley said these are businesses looking to “go green.” Once the representatives of these businesses are educated on the recycling process and are set up, their progress will be monitored for one year.

The prospect of recycling, Mosley said, can be overwhelming, but she feels more people are looking to recycle, and continued education efforts will assist with that.

“People in general want to recycle, they really do,” she said. “They just don’t know how to go about it. We’re here to educate them on the first steps.”

A report on the London stop of the Energy Roadshow in the Corbin Times-Tribune. (Link to article.)

KY Green Energy Roadshow

Published: March 31, 2008 11:55 am


Series of state workshops in rural Kentucky areas aim at encouraging state leaders to think green

A unique green “roadshow” of sorts pulled into London last Saturday. At this roadshow there was talk of anaerobic digesters, green building, and all sorts of new ways to live. Not sure what the heck an anaerobic digester is? The roadshow was meant to help you figure out what exactly one was.

The Kentucky Green Energy Roadshow made it’s first stop on Saturday in London. The roadshow was presented by the Kentucky Solar Partnership.

Kentucky Solar Partnership Coordinator Andy McDonald said the roadshow was meant to teach people more about renewable energy, energy efficiency and green building.

“Kentucky Solar Partnership and some other organizations were thinking of ways of encouraging the state to save energy and become more green,” McDonald said of the event’s genesis. “And we thought if we had a series of workshops in places where these types of workshops don’t normally happen — rural areas, we could help encourage state leaders,”

The event ran from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and featured 10 speakers, and informational booths from sponsors.

One of the booths had bright colored lights underneath a domed piece of glass — something that resembled a model of a UFO.

Jason Streit of Kentucky Solar Living, one of the event’s major sponsors, said that the bright lights were compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). CFLs use approximately 75 percent less energy that normal light bulbs.

“I brought the colored ones, because I wanted to show that compact fluorescent lights can be used for anything—we have even installed them at bars and things like that,” Streit said.

The dome shaped glass was an example of a window that can be put in the roof of a house or building to provide daylight lighting instead of using electric lights. Streit said that this part of the display was to show people that there are a lot of options for daytime lighting.

Among the speakers at the event, was Talina Mathews, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Energy Policy (GOEP). The mission of the GOEP is to maintain Kentucky’s low-cost energy, while responsibly developing energy resources, all the while preserving Kentucky’s commitment to environmental quality.

Mathews said that the energy problem in Kentucky, and the world as a whole won’t be solved simply.

“People say we need a silver bullet. I’m almost tired of this cliche, but we need a silver shotgun—there is no, one solution for the country’s energy problems,” Mathews said.

Mathews brought up examples of schools that participated in energy saving programs.

“These schools saved $30-50,000 just in energy costs. That could be enough to a hire another teacher,” Mathews said.

Mathews added that it would be necessary for Kentuckians, and the public as a whole to become more efficient.

“We need to produce everything more efficiently. We have to get people to think differently. We need people to know that no matter what happens, there are going to be carbon limits [enforced by the government] in the next 5 years. And if there are not, I’ll come back here and say I was wrong,” Mathews said.

The roadshow will be making it’s way to Owensboro, Northern Kentucky University and then to Morehead on April 26. McDonald said he hopes if people missed this first stop that they would consider coming to one of the upcoming stops. More information can be found at Kysolar.org

And if you are still wondering what anaerobic digester is, Scott Maas of USDA Rural Development explained that it is an up and coming green source of energy. Anaerobic digesters use microorganisms to break down organic biomass. Biomass in this case, according to Maas, is organic waste, in other words, animal droppings, wastewater and the like. As this waste biodegrades it creates gas that can be used to create power.

Maas says that the Maker’s Mark distillery is currently using a methane digester that breaks down whiskey waste. Maas said the distillery has cut it’s natural gas use in half.