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Events

Resources

SP announces release of strategic report:

Southwestern Pennsylvania Blighted and Abandoned Properties Solutions Project

In advance of next week's 6th Annual Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Equitable Development Summit, "Going Regional on Addressing Blighted and Abandoned Properties" (12/15), Sustainable Pittsburgh is releasing the strategic report, Southwestern Pennsylvania Blighted and Abandoned Properties Solutions Project.

"Blight and abandonment is a decades old phenomena and a still growing problem in the region...The report substantiates that addressing blight and abandonment offers the chance to build assets in a community and deliver economic, environmental, and social equity benefits for both community and the region as a whole. However, at present, there exists no regional plan, decision-making table, nor coordinated regional effort to tackle the growing crisis of blight and abandonment in our communities. Southwestern Pennsylvania needs to begin now to develop a collaborative regional strategy and actions to prevent and address blight and abandonment...The figure of 67,886 abandoned housing units in Southwestern Pennsylvania commands attention, particularly when factoring that vacancy begets abandoned properties and the compounding associated costs to individuals, neighborhoods, social networks, the economy and region which is working so hard to reach its economic aspirations. Blight and abandonment affects all counties in the region. And it affects our regional economy...Blight remediation fosters an environment conducive to job creation (including jobs associated with remediation itself) and increase in property values... Given the regional impacts and nature of this issue, regional approaches are in order."

View both the Executive Summary and Report.

Register to attend the Summit.

Resources Continued

6th Annual Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Equitable Development Summit
"Going Regional on Addressing Blighted and Abandoned Properties"

Tuesday, December 15
8:30 am - 12:30 pm (8:00 am - Registration and Continental Breakfast)
Twentieth Century Club, 4201 Bigelow Blvd., Oakland
Fee: $10 Sustainable Pittsburgh members; $15 non-members
Registration and details
Contact: info@sustainablepittsburgh.org or Lori Butler at 412-258-6642
Keynote: John Kromer, Sr. Consultant at the Fels Institute, author of Fixing Broken Cities: The Implementation of Urban Development Strategies

*NEW* Featuring:

Opening Remarks, Laura Zinski, Executive Director, Mon Valley Initiative

Strategy Panel:
Moderator: Irene McLaughlin
- Joanna Deming, Director of Outreach and Engagement, Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania
- Michael Kohlman, Director, Beaver County Tax Claim Bureau
- Mark Minnerly, Director of Real Estate at The Mosites Company
- Jacqueline Parker, Deputy Secretary, Community Affairs and Development, PA Department of Community and Economic Development
- Kendall Pelling, Project Manager, East Liberty Development Inc. and Co-chair Vacant Property Working Group

Call to Action: Bracken Burns, Commissioner, Washington County

The presence of blighted and abandoned properties is among Southwestern Pennsylvania's most pressing threats undermining sustainable communities and regional equitable development. Blight and abandonment is a tip of the iceberg issue that undermines and potentially exacts a downward spiral sentence on quality of life and prosperity across social, economic and environmental essentials for a sustainable community. Without mitigation, this problem will continue to grow and be a drain on the region’s resources. It undercuts the ability of the region's communities to maintain their footing as places of choice. There are real costs. As the Statewide Blight Task Force noted in 2008, “Blight is an “economic crime” costing taxpayers and municipalities millions of dollars annually in lost property tax revenues, sewer and water fees, and increased municipal expenditures.”

Addressing blight and abandonment offers the chance to build assets in a community. It is a win-win strategy that pays in stabilizing neighborhoods, increased revenue, job creation, increase in property values and lower crime. Given the regional nature of this issue, regional approaches are in order. However, at present, there exists no regional plan, decision-making table, nor coordinated regional effort to tackle the growing crisis of abandonment and blight in our communities.

This year's Summit will present findings are recommendations from recent work, specific to our region, on how regional capacity can be developed to address blight and abandonment. Practical strategies and cooperative efforts will be highlighted as ripe for deployment to the benefit of individual communities and the regional as a whole. The Summit will be a key milestone in developing new structures and well-substantiated plans for raising capacity around the region to attack blight and return properties to community benefit and often local tax rolls.

Keynote, John Kromer is Senior Consultant at the Fels Institute of Government and is the author of Fixing Broken Cities: The Implementation of Urban Development Strategies. He is a serving as strategic consultant to Sustainable Pittsburgh's Regional Blighted and Abandoned Properties Solutions Project.

Presented by:
- Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania
- Sustainable Pittsburgh's Sustainable Community Development Network
- University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs: Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership

Sponsored by:
- The Buhl Foundation
- The Heinz Endowments
- Richard King Mellon Foundation

Green Chemistry Roundtable Series: Preventing Pollution by Design

Presented by: Sustainable Pittsburgh's Champions for Sustainability & Rachel Carson Homestead Association

Wednesday, January 13
7:30 am – 10:00 am
Alcoa Corporate Center, 201 Isabella St, North Side
Registration Fee: $30.00
More information and registration

Don't miss the first of the Green Chemistry Roundtables for 2010. Champions for Sustainability, Sustainable Pittsburgh sustainable business network, in collaboration with the Rachel Carson Homestead Association, will hold a series of roundtables that will convene leaders in the growing field of Green Chemistry to highlight the opportunities and challenges facing our region - and our country. The guest speaker for Session #1, Preventing Pollution by Design, will be John R. Ehrenfeld, author of Sustainability by Design. Click here for more information.

Reed Smith Spring 2010 Speaker Series: Diversity and its Discontents: Lessons from Higher Education

Thursday, January 21
Noon to 1:30 pm
School of Social Work Conference Center, 2017 Cathedral of Learning, Oakland
Lunch is provided.
Registration is not required.
www.crsp.pitt.edu

The Center on Race and Social Problems, School of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh announces the Reed Smith Spring 2010 Speaker Series. The January 21st lecture, Diversity and its Discontents: Lessons from Higher Education, features Marta Tienda, Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs, Princeton University. The mission of the center is to conduct applied social science research on race, color, and ethnicity and their influence on the quality of life for all Americans. The lecture series provides an opportunity for faculty, students, and community members to engage in race-related discussions of mutual interest. Additional dates and speakers are listed below:

Monday, February 15
Vincent Hutchings, Professor of Political Science, University of Michigan
Wedge Politics: The Structure and Function of Racial Group Cues in American Politics

Tuesday, March 16
Abby L. Ferber, Associate Professor of Women's and Ethnic Studies, University of Colorado
'There is more to me than white': Moving from Whiteness Studies to Privilege Studies

Wednesday, April 7
Jonathan M. Hurwitz, Professor of Political Science, University of Pittsburgh
Justice in America: The Separate Realities of Blacks and Whites

Pine Creek Watershed Conservation Plan Public Meeting Dates Scheduled

Thursday, January 28, 2010
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Rose Barn in North Park
Backup date is Thursday, February 4 if there is a meeting cancellation due to weather.

As reported in the October North Area Environmental Council (NAEC) Newsletter, NAEC and the Pine Creek Watershed Coalition (PCWC) are developing a Pine Creek Watershed Conservation Plan. The Pine Creek Watershed includes Bradford Woods, Etna, Franklin Park, Fox Chapel, Hampton, Indiana, Marshall, McCandless, O’Hara, Pine, Richland, Ross, Shaler, and Sharpsburg.

A Watershed Conservation Plan is a combination of watershed research and public opinion that works to restore, maintain, and enhance watershed resources. Local citizen participation in the planning effort is key to ensuring that the Watershed Conservation Plan responds to their community’s needs and concerns. Projects recommended in the plan will become eligible for future state and federal funding.

The first round of public meetings was held in June 2009 to provide input and identify issues and concerns related to the study. Using the information from these public meetings, public survey results, interviews with key watershed stakeholders, and the continued coordination with the plan’s study committee, draft management strategies and action plans are now being developed. The January 28 meeting is an additional opportunity for the public to provide input on the content of the management strategies and action plans and to prioritize them in a manner that will benefit not only the natural elements, but also the social fabric of the watershed. The meeting format will include an approximate 20-minute presentation of the watershed plan, management strategies, and action items. Following the presentation, several workshop areas will be set up, and the public will be invited to participate in a prioritization exercise and will discuss in small groups the strategies and action plans.

Sign up now: Permaculture Design Course

January 31, 2010 - Introduction Workshop
7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Lipp Homestead, West View
Cost: $30

Course Details:
75 hour Permaculture Certification Course (Weekends and 2 evenings)
February 20-21, 9-5 PM
February 15, 6-10 PM
February 27-28, 9-5PM
March 13-14, 9-5 PM
March 17, 6-10 PM
March 20-21, 9-5 PM
Cost: $1200; Early registration by Jan 1, 2010 $1000
To register contact Darrell Frey at defrey@bioshelter.com or call 724-376-2797

Permaculture design is an ecological design system that incorporates principles of ecology, sustainable technologies and earth care ethics. Completion of a Permaculture certificate course entitles the participant to offer goods and services as a Permaculture consultant.

Where: LIPP Homestead is a 1.3 acre site in West View, two miles from the City line and just off of 279N. A 5000 foot organic garden space, stream, and original 1898 farmhouse and dairy house are what remain of the Lipp family farm. Course participants will work to increase the sustainability of the site through the application of ecological design principles and practices. A day will be spent at Three Sisters Farm and Bioshelter. Course leader Darrell Frey has been practicing and teaching Permaculture since 1986. Other guest presenters will participate.

Resources

Bill would eliminate turnpike board

The commission, along with some top nonunion managers, would be eliminated to save money. A new deputy secretary at PennDOT would take over the job of turnpike construction and maintenance oversight. Unlike many turnpike directors, who have strong political ties to whoever is governor at the time, Mr. Vereb said this new deputy secretary would have to have a civil engineering degree and at least 10 years of experience on road maintenance and construction.

Soros: Finance gap could 'wreck' climate talks

In one key area, delegates are trying to agree on how much industrialized nations should reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and other global-warming gases after the 2012 expiration of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which covered 37 richer nations. . . The second key area involves climate change financing, money for poorer nations to build coastal protection, modify or shift crops threatened by drought, build water supplies and irrigation systems, preserve forests, improve health care to deal with diseases spread by warming, and move from fossil fuel to low-carbon energy systems, such as solar and wind power.

More

EPA is preparing to regulate emissions in Congress's stead

The Obama administration moved closer Monday to issuing regulations on greenhouse gases, a step that would enable it to limit emissions across the economy even if Congress does not pass climate legislation. The move, which coincided with the first day of the international climate summit in Copenhagen, seemed timed to reassure delegates there that the United States is committed to reducing its emissions even if domestic legislation remains bogged down.

Program To Speed Review Of Green Patents

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced Monday the launching of a test program to speed patent reviews for clean-energy technologies so they can be brought to market faster. The program would initially reduce by 12 months the processing time of 3,000 applications for inventions intended to improve the environment and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. The current processing time for such applications is 40 months. Locke said that he would like to see the 'final determination, yes or no,' ultimately reduced to a year, which will allow the US to compete more effectively against countries such as China and India in the development of technologies that cut emissions of greenhouse gases tied to climate change. In addition, Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced $100 million in economic stimulus spending to advance inventions in clean fuels, electricity storage and carbon capture and storage.

Will Big Business Save the Earth?

There is a widespread view, particularly among environmentalists and liberals, that big businesses are environmentally destructive, greedy, evil and driven by short-term profits. I know — because I used to share that view. But today I have more nuanced feelings. As part of my board work, I have been asked to assess the environments in oil fields, and have had frank discussions with oil company employees at all levels. I’ve also worked with executives of mining, retail, logging and financial services companies. I’ve discovered that while some businesses are indeed as destructive as many suspect, others are among the world’s strongest positive forces for environmental sustainability. The embrace of environmental concerns by chief executives has accelerated recently for several reasons. Lower consumption of environmental resources saves money in the short run. Maintaining sustainable resource levels and not polluting saves money in the long run. And a clean image — one attained by, say, avoiding oil spills and other environmental disasters — reduces criticism from employees, consumers and government. What’s my evidence for this? Here are a few examples involving three corporations — Wal-Mart, Coca-Cola and Chevron — that many critics of business love to hate, in my opinion, unjustly.

Solar panels, 'green roof' to generate rebate

The South Side company -- which advises homeowners and businesses on ways to make homes and facilities more sustainable -- took a step in that direction last month when it signed up for a Duquesne Light program that enables customers who install renewable energy systems such as windmills or solar panels to get year-end discounts on bills. . . Energy bills last year totaled about $850 per month, or 30 percent what companies in similar-sized buildings typically pay, CCI Executive Director Ann Gerace said.

Analysis Raises Concerns Over Lax Water Act Enforcement

Over 20% of the nation's water treatment systems have violated key provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Act over the last five years, noting that the law requires communities to deliver safe tap water to local residents. But since 2004, the water provided to more than 49 million people has contained illegal concentrations of chemicals like arsenic or radioactive substances like uranium, as well as dangerous bacteria often found in sewage. ...only 6% of reported violations -- some of which were long-term -- resulted in any punishment for municipal water systems, and notes the potential health risk associated with such contamination.

Tap Into Erie looks to trade on region's abundant water

Lake Erie is a giant game changer -- capable of luring tourists to its sunny shores or burying us with lake-effect snow. Now, some wonder if it might prove to be a magnet that could bring jobs to the region. The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership is betting on it with Tap Into Erie, a new initiative that's looking for ways to use the region's abundant water supply to attract companies that depend on water.

Water helps remove 'rust' from region

"The regional cities of the 'Water Belt' may now, half a century later, have regained a competitive advantage. They have space to grow internally on vacant and under-utilized land. They have adaptable buildings and neighborhoods. They have roads and utilities in place. They have strong institutional resources. They are places of authenticity and heritage. They have the persistence, strength and resiliency of the people who did not leave. They have water."

Replanting Cranberry

. . .In Cranberry, at least, developers are cottoning to the idea that a huge segment of the home-buying public doesn't want a McMansion on a postage stamp of bare earth, a 10-minute drive from an asphalt jungle of chain stores and eateries seized by bumper-to-bumper traffic. They want neighborhoods, with parks and trees and businesses that at least pretend to be local.

Dark Side Of A Natural Gas Boom

The report discusses local environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing to produce natural gas from previously untapped beds of shale, juxtaposing lower prices for natural gas and decreased carbon emissions from electricity production against potential methane contamination of drinking water wells in populated areas. Concerns over local impact are creating political obstacles for the gas industry, and cites reports of wider groundwater contamination from Wyoming and Pennsylvania, though it concedes that evidence for such contamination is "thin." The debate is becoming more urgent as gas companies move closer to more populated areas, especially in the Northeast, where millions of people are likely to find themselves living near drilling operations in coming years.

Help wanted: Director of Sustainability

Forms+Surfaces seeks Director of Sustainability who plays a key role within company's management team, providing both strategic leadership and hands-on, tactical direction to the company's global sustainability efforts.

Cheap Catalyst Could Be Used To Both Generate, Consume Hydrogen

Researchers at Joseph Fourier University in France have shown that a cheap catalyst could be used to both generate hydrogen to store energy, and also to consume it to extract stored power. The researchers circumvented the requirement of water-free conditions required for platinum-free catalysts by coating the platinum-free catalyst in a membrane that lets hydrogen ions reach the catalyst, but not water molecules. The researchers also found that the new design can work in reverse, to split up gaseous hydrogen into ions, and release electrons to provide power. Currently the device can't compete with the power output of a conventional platinum-catalysed fuel cell, although the team haven't yet begun to optimise it for that use.

The French Revolution: How Strasbourg Gave Up the Car (and Why Midsized American Cities Can Too)

After decades of auto-dependence, the French city of Strasbourg turned its back to the car and built a citywide tram system and street grid that reclaims roads from auto-dominance.

"Just like most American cities, the car’s midcentury domination had largely forced public transportation out of Strasbourg. The once-extensive tram lines fell into disrepair, and the last one was taken out of service in 1960. But by 1989 traffic and parking had become major headaches for residents and for businesses in the dense warren of downtown streets. Rather than see retail flee to suburban malls, as it did in America, the city decided to take action.

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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 in 2009 from:

Bayer Corporation
Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
Buhl Foundation
Dollar Bank
Falk Foundation
FedEx Ground
The Giant Eagle Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
Richard King Mellon Foundation
Dylan Todd Simonds Foundation
University of Pittsburgh
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