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Events

Smart Growth Business Council - SWPA

Sustainable Pittsburgh is in good company with the growing numbers of business leaders nationally who recognize that regional growth and development patterns -- guided by principles of smart growth and sustainability -- improve quality of life, lessen the cost of doing business, increase long-term profitability, help reduce tax and infrastructure costs, and contribute to recruitment and retention of employees. We recognize however, that the growing trend of business leaders engaged in regional smart growth has yet to really take hold here in the Pittsburgh region.

Last Fall's 10th annual SWPA Smart Growth Conference, with over 400 attendees, signaled that we are reaching a critical mass. It also illustrated need for greater private sector participation. Business leaders we've spoken with recently feel that the sector is now ready to be catalyzed.

In the post G-20 Pittsburgh upswing, time is ripe for forming a business partnership that is focused on rationalizing our region's patterns of development to more successfully spur economic prosperity and extend this region's signature livability to more persons. The bottom line business case of smart growth is increasingly apparent.

Sustainable Pittsburgh is looking for private sector leaders who seek ways to connect with their peers to identify:
- leverage points for channeling the pattern and character of growth and development to hasten regional sustainability that protects and enhances business investments
- policies and practices to ensure economic growth occurs without the impacts and inefficiencies of unchecked sprawl
- regional and local scale actions businesses can take to promote sustainable communities
- opportunities to have a seat at the table in regional, county, city planning and programming
- incentives to level the field for development and redevelopment to revitalize our older urban centers
- plans and policies at the new economics nexus of land use, transportation, housing, and development
- ways to engage business leaders in helping make smart growth the way of doing business in SWPA

This is an open invitation to the region's business community. Drop us a line if you are interested in establishing the Smart Growth Business Council - SWPA. Its launch will be the focus of the 11th annual Smart Growth Conference in October. Contact: cgould@sustainablepittsburgh.org

Resources

Sustainable Pittsburgh and Regional Healthcare Partners Launch New Series on Sustainability and Healthcare

Kickoff Event: "Sustainability and Healthcare: Making the Business Case"
Thursday, June 2
7:30 am – 11:30 am
Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
Cost: $45 for Sustainable Pittsburgh/C4S Members
$65 Nonmembers
Students: Special Rate
Breakfast Provided
Registration and more information

SW PA is a leader in both healthcare and sustainability. The region’s hospitals and health care institutions can benefit from sustainability-related resources on the cutting edge of leading healthcare organizations.

Sustainable Pittsburgh’s sustainable business network, Champions for Sustainability (C4S), in collaboration with the region’s healthcare partners, has launched a series of workshops that advance the mutually reinforcing agendas of sustainability and healthcare. This series is designed to build social capital and capacity in sustainability. The emphasis for each event involves articulating the health outcomes, healthcare benefits, and business case, as well as best practices, resources, examples, and how to get started.

Designed for executive leadership in mind, this event on June 21 presents how healthcare organizations can tap into opportunities for producing better health outcomes, reducing costs and finding new sources of revenue by pursuing a sustainable approach to healthcare operations.

Speakers include Dr. Eli Avila, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Keynote by David Hearn, VP IT and NFS Procurement, Procurement & Supply, Kaiser Permanente. Panelists will also be featured, in an open discussion, moderated format.

Preservation Month Celebration: “Celebrate Historic Treasures in Southwestern Pennsylvania”

Friday, May 6
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Paramount Pictures Film Exchange - The Paramount building is located at 1727 Boulevard of the Allies (at Miltenberger Street) in the Uptown neighborhood (near Duquesne University).
Advance Tickets: $20 (regular) or $10 for YPA Members
After April 30, prices increase and can only be purchased at the door: $25 (regular) or $15 for YPA Members
Tickets are $5.00 for students, who can pay at the door.
More information

At the event, the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh will release its annual list of the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area. Find out which historic sites will be on the list! The event will also include a walking tour of the former Fifth Avenue High School, which is being rehabilitated into apartments! Food and refreshments will be served.

Safely drop off household chemicals, paints and stains

Saturday, May 7
9:00 am – 1:00 pm
North Park Swimming Pool parking lot
www.zerowastepgh.org

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, an average home can easily accumulate 100 pounds of common chemicals referred to as “household hazardous waste.” These household chemicals include cleaners, paints, stains and varnishes, car batteries, automotive fluids, pesticides, pool chemicals and other products containing potentially hazardous ingredients.

The seven collection events in 2011 are held in conjunction with PRC’s Zero Waste Pittsburgh project in partnership with Allegheny County Health Department, UPMC, NewsRadio 1020 KDKA, the HHW Task Force and other private and public sector partners.

Individuals dropping off waste materials at the collection events will pay a fee of $2 per gallon. Payment will be cash only (no checks or credit cards accepted).

The following materials will be accepted: aerosol cans; automotive fluids (motor oil, transmission fluid, antifreeze, brake fluid); batteries; chemistry sets; gasoline and kerosene; household cleaners (ammonia, drain openers, acid cleaners, oven cleaners); mercury; paint products (latex, oil based, alkyd based, arts/crafts chemicals, rust preservatives, creosote, water sealers, paint thinners, furniture strippers); pesticides/herbicides (rodent killers, insecticides, weed killers, mothballs, fertilizer); photo chemicals; and pool chemicals.

A certified contractor will process the hazardous wastes collected for proper disposal. Materials may be recycled, incinerated or safely buried in special landfills.

The following materials will not be accepted: ammunition; appliances; bulk waste; commercial and industrial waste; compressed gas cylinders (including propane tanks); drugs; electronics; explosives; flares; fluorescent tubes; leaking containers; medical waste (including needles); PCBs and dioxin; radioactive materials (including smoke detectors); and tires.

For more information concerning the household chemical collection events – and other opportunities to reduce, reuse and recycle – visit www.zerowastepgh.org or call the Pennsylvania Resources Council at (412) 488-7452.

Feeding the Earth - A Workshop

Tuesday, May 10
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Phipps Garden Center, Shady Ave, just South of Fifth Avenue
$10 per session ($15 for couples). Includes hand-outs and refreshments.
For more information, email Nick Shorr by clicking his name, or call him at: (412) 488-7490 ext. 232.
Register at http://www.zerowastepgh.org/ZW-PRC-feedingearth.html

Most of PA Resources Council's Greening Our Lives workshops teach a new practice, a new habit, one that improves the impact of one's life on personal health, and the health of the larger world. Feeding the Earth is a little different. It invites one to step back a bit, and look at the bigger picture.

Feeding the Earth presents composting within the history of consumer-farming relations, and the landscape of current environmental and social challenges. When composting is viewed in these larger fields, it takes on a heightened importance and value--and urgency. Believe it or not, there is growing competition for compostable waste! And these options have very different impacts; several do not produce any soil amendment whatsoever.

What are the options for compostable waste? How can people, together, build a composting infrastructure in this region that maximizes the environmental and social benefits of this critical frontier?

This workshop is a slide-show/lecture, rich in beautiful and interesting images, followed by ample time for Q&A and discussion. The instructor, Program Manager of Regional Composting Initiatives at PA Resources Council, has taught the history and ecology of agriculture for 20 years; managed farmers’ markets; assisted community gardens; worked on composting facilities, and on farms in five US states. Cider, cheese and crackers will be served.

"How Economic Indicators Affect American Identity and Values" - Andrew Yarrow, Sr. Policy Analyst Independent Sector

Thursday, May 12
9:00 am - 10:30 am
3800 Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh
Please call (412) 648-1336 or email gspiaji@pitt.edu to RSVP.

The Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership in conjunction with the Forbes Funds will host Andrew Yarrow, former VP and Director of the Public Agenda’s Washington, D.C. office and author of forgive Us Our Debts: The Intergenerational Dangers of Fiscal Irresponsibility. He will speak about his new book Measuring America: How Economic Growth Came to Define American Greatness in the Late Twentieth Century.

Today it is taken as a given that economic growth provides the chief measure of America’s well-being and standing in the world. But why? Why do Americans place so much importance on economic indicators in evaluating their country? And how have Americans’ values been shaped by economic statistics and concepts during the last seventy years? These are the central questions that Andrew L. Yarrow addresses in his book, Measuring America: How Economic Growth Came to Define American Greatness in the Late Twentieth Century.

In Measuring America, Yarrow explores this history, telling two parallel, interlocking stories—of how economic ideas came to have vastly greater influence on American culture after World War II, and how those ideas dovetailed with a growing belief that the meaning and value of the United States resided in its measurable economic performance output.

Volunteers Needed! Celebrate the 10th Annual Great Outdoors Week

May 13-22, 2011
Various times and locations throughout Southwestern PA
More information available at www.wallsarebad.com
Volunteers are needed for Walls are Bad/Great Outdoors Week Fluid Station at the Pittsburgh Marathon on May 15. See below for details.

With warm, sunny weather just around the corner, residents will soon have the opportunity to experience all the fun, relaxation, and adventure the great outdoors has to offer right here in southwestern Pennsylvania. Great Outdoors Week (GOW) provides the public with opportunities to participate in a variety of nature-related activities and highlights the many outdoor amenities available: parks, trails, waterways, etc. Outdoors groups throughout the region are planning numerous activities that feature bike rides, paddling, orienteering, running, sailing, and much more.

Five signature events are part of GOW this year, beginning with the Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon on Sunday, May 15. Rounding out the rest of the week are the following signature events:
• Friday, May 20 - National Bike to Work Day/Car Free Fridays
• Friday, May 20 - Learn to Row and Paddle
• Saturday, May 21 - Venture Outdoors Festival
• Sunday, May 22 - Pedal Pittsburgh
GOW is a perfect time to discover a new trail with a loved one, try kayaking with the kids, or explore birding in your own backyard! Over 60 GOW activities for all ages and skill levels are scheduled each year.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Please join the Walls are Bad/Great Outdoors Week team in volunteering at a fluid station during the Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon on Sunday, May 15, 2011. Free t-shirts, thank you party, ticket to a Pirates game and more are all included to show our appreciation! Contact Ted King-Smith at info@wallsarebad.com or (412) 258-6647.

Anna Lappé: “Firing-Up Food Activism, Cooling-Down the Planet”

Saturday, May 14
5:00 pm
Eddy Theatre, Chatham University, Shadyside Campus
Admission is free. >
Contact: (412) 365-2473 or email ajulier@chatham.edu.
Directions and parking information are located at www.chatham.edu/campusmap.

Following a cancelled appearance in January, Chatham University will welcome author and activist Anna Lappé for a free lecture on Saturday, May 14 at 5:00 p.m. in the Eddy Theatre on the University’s Shadyside Campus. Her lecture, “Firing-Up Food Activism, Cooling-Down the Planet,” promises to be an inspiring talk about sustaining communities and encouraging innovative and democratic solutions to hunger, inequality, and environmental degradation. Ms. Lappé’s journey through the global food system shows us where the problems reside and what people across the globe are doing in everyday actions to challenge and change our world. Her most recent books include “Diet for a Hot Planet” and “Hope’s Edge.”

Anna and her mother, Frances Moore Lappé founded the Small Planet Institute in 2001 to help pursue examples of democracy as a rewarding way of life: a culture in which citizens infuse the values of inclusion, fairness, and mutual accountability into all dimensions of public life. The Institute supports people and projects around the world who work to remake societal rules into shared values, focusing on collaborative public education, media programs, and outreach campaigns.

“Firing-Up Food Activism, Cooling-Down the Planet” is co-sponsored by the following community partners: The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, Grow Pittsburgh, Slow Food Pittsburgh, Just Harvest, The East End Co-op, and the Pittsburgh Food Forest. The event is sponsored by the Master of Arts in Food Studies Program, the School of Sustainability and the Environment, and the Rachel Carson Institute, along with Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture.

1st Allegheny Mountain Green Fest

Saturday, May 14
10:00 am to 6:00 pm
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown's Living Learning Center
Tickets: Range from $0-$15
Purchase advanced tickets by Friday, May 6th to receive $5 off the gate ticket price.
Discounts are also available to Natural Biodiversity members, kids under 5, students of all ages, AmeriCorps members, senior citizens and veterans.
To order advanced tickets, lodging or lunch, and for more information, visit http://www.ohmonth.com/greenfest.shtml or contact the Natural Biodiversity office at (814) 534-0204.
Free on-site parking is available.

Want to Green Your Routine? Wish to learn more about local food, energy conservation, backyard wildlife habitat, gardening and other ways to live green? Then come to the Allegheny Mountain Green Fest for a fun, affordable, all-day event! Keynote speaker Mike McGrath, host of National Public Radio show You Bet Your Garden, will present The Seven Secrets of Successful Organic Gardeners and a workshop on growing tomatoes. The Eco Expo will feature businesses offering products and services that will help you green your routine, and in many cases, save you some green! You can purchase products such as rain barrels, local foods, natural health supplements, solar & other green building supplies, and native landscape plants. Green Fest will also include hands-on workshops, engaging speakers, and Kids' Patch activities. Workshops will incorporate helpful how-to’s on subjects such as canning, home energy audits, kitchen remedies, wine making, composting, and much more.

Natural Biodiversity is devising a contest to reward those who refer the most attendees, so let your friends know about the event. Green prizes will be awarded to contest winners.

Building One Pennsylvania
Organizational and Leadership Training

Saturday, May 21
10:00 am to 2:00 pm
Hebron Church, 10460 Frankstown Road, Penn Hills (Directions
Cost: $25/person (group discounts are available). Make checks payable to GoodSchoolsPA
For further information or to register please contact Mary_Jo@goodschoolspa.org

Building One Pennsylvania will hold a half-day training to prepare leaders in how to conduct a one-to-one outreach campaign to build community and identify concerns, interests and issues that may become priorities for collective action.

The training will be conducted by Paul Scully, the Executive Director of the New Jersey Regional Coalition and the National Organizing Director for Building One America, a national network for organizing, training and leadership development. Mr. Scully has over 20 years experience organizing with labor unions, community organizations and religious institutions. He spent four years with the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and two years organizing in Washington, DC with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). He spent ten years as the director and founder of a regional community organization in Northwest Indiana affiliated with the Gamaliel Foundation of Chicago. Mr. Scully was a member of the senior staff of the Gamaliel Foundation from 1996 through 2001 where he directed organizing activities in Indiana and later throughout the Northeast. In 2001 he returned to SEIU where he was the organizing director for SEIU Local 36 in Philadelphia.

The attendees of this training will be invited to participate in Building One Pennsylvania’s Issues Forum (August 5, 2011) where common concerns and issues will be prioritized and then addressed through collective action in Fall 2011.

Building One Pennsylvania is an emerging coalition of municipal, school, faith, civic and other institutions that are mobilizing to advance an agenda of social inclusion, sustainability and economic growth.

CityLIVE! Equity in Urban Education

Wednesday, May 25
6:30 pm
New Hazlett Theater, North Side
Click to RSVP

Pittsburgh’s public school system is changing rapidly. Over the past few years the system has downsized and collaborations have emerged. Reform efforts are underway that focus on the challenges in providing an equitable education for all students. Discussions are heated and sometimes polarized and problems persist. Do all students have equal access to educational opportunities? Is the Pittsburgh Promise reaching the students who need it most? Are efforts to reduce the achievement gap working?

At the May 25 cityLIVE!, panelists will address these issues and other goals for equitable education in the Pittsburgh Public School system. Panelists will include Robert Parris Moses who founded the Algebra Project, which uses mathematics as an organizing tool to guarantee quality public school education for all students, and Carey Harris who is the Executive Director of A+ Schools, an independent advocate for improvement in public education. The event will be moderated by Mark Lewis, President and CEO of the POISE Foundation, which funds organizations that provide services to Pittsburgh’s African American community. Additional panelists TBD.

PCRG Community Development Summit

Wednesday, May 25
8:00 am - 8:00 pm
Omni William Penn Hotel, Downtown Pittsburgh 15219
Agenda

The Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group (PCRG) hosts an Annual Meeting and Awards Ceremony to celebrate the hard work of its membership and to thank its partners for their continued commitment to neighborhoods. PCRG's May 2010 reception at the August Wilson Center attracted more than 270 community leaders and raised substantial funds for neighborhood initiatives. Building on the Annual Meeting, this year, PCRG has partnered with the Urban Land Institute to host the First Annual Community Development Summit on May 25, 2011 at the Omni William Penn Hotel.

The Community Development Summit will feature:

- Nationally renowned, dynamic keynote speakers at both breakfast and lunch
- Workshops and panels on such topics as organizational development, community planning, real estate development, regulatory reform, fundraising, and more
- Built-in networking time with more than 300 community development professionals, lenders, public officials, developers, architects, planners, and researchers from more than 5 states
- A closing reception in the newly renovated Grand Ballroom of the historic Omni William Penn Hotel featuring hors d'oeuvres, drinks, musical entertainment, and an awards ceremony honoring neighborhood leaders.

Who Should Attend? Community groups, financial institutions, nonprofits, and government agencies, investors, development professionals, lenders, public officials, developers, architects, planners, researchers with an interest in revitalizing communities throughout the United States.

Resources

Smart Growth is Smart Business: Boosting The Bottom Line and Community Prosperity

- Quality of Life Is Still Critical to Business - Business leaders continue to emphasize that quality of life directly affects their bottom line and that sprawl undercuts their employees' quality of life.
- Reinvestment in Established Communities Makes Business Sense – Businesses are promoting reinvestment in established communities and existing infrastructure over the costly approaches of providing new infrastructure to new growth areas. These investments are reducing costs and boosting profits over the short- and long-term.
- Smart Growth Is an Emerging Market Opportunity – Retailers, developers, and other businesses are pursuing emerging smart growth market opportunities to gain competitive advantage, tap new customer demand, and increase profits.
- Leading Businesses Seek to Improve Growth Management in Their Regions – Business leaders are joining with localities, states, and grass roots organizations to encourage smart growth planning and management.
- Smart Growth Sells in Both Up and Down Economies – Businesses are making long-term investments in smart growth because smart growth makes economic sense in both growing and slowing economies. Smart growth projects are often stable investments, smart growth services sell, and smart growth public policies help avoid the costs and inefficiencies of sprawl.

Fight against blight: new law attacks neglectful owners of property

Landlords' assets now on the line if they fail to upgrade properties - The Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Act allows cities and towns across Pennsylvania to go after the personal assets of people who own investment properties and do little to prevent them from becoming eyesores and health and safety hazards.

More

Regional Insights: Why supporting black-owned businesses is a good idea

Hidden behind the many positive rankings of the Pittsburgh region is the poor economic condition of the region's African-American population. Census data for 2009 show that southwestern Pennsylvania has the highest rate of poverty for working-age African Americans of any major region in the country. More than one of every three African Americans (37 percent) in our region is poor. That's nearly quadruple the 10 percent poverty rate among the white population in Pittsburgh, and double the 19 to 20 percent poverty rates among African Americans in regions such as Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, and Charlotte.

PPTA Funding Principles

In response to the funding crisis confronting the Commonwealth’s Transportation System, the Pennsylvania Public Transportation Association recommends the following principles as the basis for a funding solution.

America's transport infrastructure: Life in the slow lane

Americans are gloomy about their economy’s ability to produce. Are they right to be? We look at two areas of concern, transport infrastructure and innovation. . .But modern America is stingier. Total public spending on transport and water infrastructure has fallen steadily since the 1960s and now stands at 2.4% of GDP. Europe, by contrast, invests 5% of GDP in its infrastructure, while China is racing into the future at 9%. America’s spending as a share of GDP has not come close to European levels for over 50 years. Over that time funds for both capital investments and operations and maintenance have steadily dropped

Groups seek impact statement on effects of Marcellus Shale drilling

"The cumulative effects of this drilling, we feel, have not been adequately addressed. And we want these incorporated in the TMDL," said Matt Ehrhart, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Pennsylvania director. "It's fundamentally inequitable for us to continue to not understand these impacts and shift the responsibility to other sectors."

Building on Innovation: The Significance of Anchor Institutions in a New Era of City Building

The report maintains that in the current environment of extremely limited public funds, being competitive means being able to create new economic engines, new marketplace synergies, and new corporate enterprise offshoots. The difference between the winners and losers, Murphy says, is a shared goal by both the public and private sector to create a climate for progress.

No more state forest leasing for Marcellus drilling
By REP. GREG VITALI

There are much better sources of revenue to balance our budget such as a drilling tax. Every other major natural gas producing state imposes one. A recent poll showed that 70 percent of voters support such a tax while 65 percent were against leasing more state forests for drilling. Yet the governor and some legislators steadfastly refuse to consider a drilling tax while promoting additional state forest leasing. They should begin listening to the people they represent.

At CNU 18, Donovan Announces a Federal First —HUD Will Use Location-Efficiency, LEED-ND Criteria to Score its Grant Applications

Donovan said lessons of the dangers of looking at housing independently from transportation have been readily apparent in the fallout from the current crisis in housing foreclosures. "Lenders bought into the “Drive to Qualify” myth as well — giving easy credit to homebuyers without accounting for how much it might cost families to live in these areas or the risk they could pose to the market," said Donovan. "It’s no coincidence that neighborhoods and families facing the brunt of the crisis — with the highest foreclosure rates and the deepest job losses--are often those with the least access to transportation, the most troubled schools, and the least economic opportunity. . .We’ve learned from foreclosure patterns that hidden costs like transportation can put families over the edge into increased financial vulnerability — and that tying the quality and location of housing to broader opportunities like access to good jobs, quality schools, and safe streets is essential to building sustainable communities.

DOE Finds Silica That Can Remove Petrochemicals From Fracking Water

Scientists at the Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory announced late last week that "an absorbent form of silica can remove nearly all petro-chemicals from the water produced by hydraulic fracturing in shale-gas wells." The lab confirmed after testing the silica, called Osorb, that "confirmed it can remove more than 99 percent of oil and grease from water, and more than 90 percent of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes-also known as BTEX-the volatile compounds that can poison drinking water." In a statement, DOE spokeswoman Jenny Hakun highlighted the importance of the "breakthrough technology," saying, "Approximately 21 billion barrels of produced water, containing a wide variety of hydrocarbons and other chemicals, are generated each year in the United States from nearly one million wells."

Sign up as a community partner as Pittsburgh competes for the Talent Dividend Prize!

The Talent Dividend Prize is a $1 million prize to be awarded by the national organization, CEOs for Cities, to the city that exhibits the greatest increase in the number of post secondary degrees granted per one thousand population over a four-year period and achieves its Talent Dividend. This $1 million prize will be used to launch a national promotional campaign centered on talent development for the winning city. The Pittsburgh Region is preparing nomination materials which will include information about partner organizations.

Sign up to be a partner organization at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/GXPYZ3F

It takes only a few minutes to complete. Share information about your organizations’ work and how you support the efforts to create talent in Pittsburgh. Please share this invitation with friends, nonprofits, schools, corporations and other community members that care about higher education in Pittsburgh.

For more information about the CEOs Talent Dividend Prize, go to http://www.ceosforcities.org/TalentDividendPrize

If you have any questions about the local efforts to compete for the Talent Dividend Prize, please contact Lauren Mikus at mikusl@pghfdn.org or (412) 394-2612.

PennFuture Facts: Many happy returns

While Pennsylvania’s families were faithfully paying their taxes this month, the same can’t be said for the drillers. In fact, a report this week from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center shows that the drillers are paying little or no taxes, making tax day one of many very happy returns for the industry. . .So what this all means is that the drillers are not paying their fair share, but they are using all the services that other Pennsylvanians pay for. And they really use a lot of these services. When a massive spill like the one last week in Bradford County happens, local emergency response is there first. In fact, the emergency response team paid for by Chesapeake, the Bradford County wells’ owner, had to come from Texas. As ProPublica reported this week, “By the time the team arrived more than 13 hours later, brine water and hydraulic fracturing fluids from the well had spewed across nearby fields and into a creek.”

HealthLine sees a healthy climb in riders; 10 millionth to be honored this week

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- RTA will greet its 10 millionth rider on the HealthLine Thursday or Friday. It's an impressive number. But even more impressive is the growing development along the streamlined, bus-centric street, officials say. . . That's why O'Brien thought the line would fail. Research showed that light-rail lines have a dramatic impact on real estate, O'Brien said. "I would not have imagined the same about a bus system," O'Brien said. "But the HealthLine wasn't a bus system. It was an urban-revitalization project, a landscaping. And it happened to have buses involved."

Local Renewable Green Energy for Sale

Iberdrola Energy is constructing a new wind farm located in the Laurel Highlands. They are offering local companies in the Pittsburgh area the first opportunity to purchase the power. It is one thing to purchase green power, but it is an added benefit to say that it is produced locally. It helps connect our region together, build self reliance and sustainability while enhancing our image as a progressive area. It would be great to have 100% of the power used here in southwestern Pennsylvania. Depending upon the size of the user, the rate could be below 7 cents/kwhr, and fixed for up to 10 years, which is less than many customers are paying now. With rising energy costs, it gives companies a good way to hedge part of their energy costs from potential large price increases in the future. Linked below is a promotional flyer on the wind project and the opportunity. If you are interested in supporting SWPA's region’s efforts to go green, please visit the website www.crwindenergy.com to learn more about this first time opportunity.

For information on becoming a Member of Sustainable Pittsburgh, please visit our website.

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Sustainable Pittsburgh affects decision-making in the Pittsburgh Region to integrate economic prosperity, social equity and environmental quality bringing sustainable solutions to communities and businesses.

Sustainable Pittsburgh benefits from support ($1,000 and up) in 2011 from:

Allegheny County - Dan Onorato, County Executive
Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
BNY Mellon
Dollar Bank
FedEx Ground
The Heinz Endowments
Highmark
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
Richard King Mellon Foundation
Pashek Associates LTD
Pittsburgh Quarterly
PNC Financial Services Group
Port Authority of Allegheny County
UPMC


Special thanks to the SP Members

Sustainable Pittsburgh
425 Sixth Avenue, Suite 1335
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
(412) 258-6642
fax (412) 258-6645
E-mail SP