Environmentally Faster

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This entry is intended to be more observational and less of a commentary on current events.

I recently moved back to the Washington DC area after graduating from Fordham University. After experiencing the Bronx and all of NYC as a whole, I can honestly say that the traffic is nothing compared to what people in DC deal with every single day. After driving to my new job several times, I became fed up and started taking public transportation despite it taking the same amount of time. The only difference is that you avoid sitting in standstill traffic.

The reality is that that unlike NYC’s commuter train, there is no real advantage to using DC Metro public transportation as a commuter. Most people who work in DC live in the suburbs, however the public transportation system for the demographic is terribly inefficient. One example is the MARC train that is equivalent to NYC’s Metro North. The MARC train does not make getting to Union Station (downtown DC) a transportation priority for DC commuters like Metro North makes Grand Central Station a priority for NY commuters. DC commuters would be better off taking an appropriately scheduled Amtrak train despite it not necessarily being cost effective. The MARC train does exist as more of a Maryland, DC transportation initiative that shuttles residents between the two cities.

From an Eco-friendly perspective, this creates a problem. An efficient and effective public transportation system helps reduce vehicle emissions and overall energy consumption by removing the amount of cars on the road. People in the DC metro area still do not have enough reason to turn to public transportation as it is just as timely and cost effective as driving.

Here is an excerpt from Forbes Magazine from 2008 when DC ranked 7th among the worst cities for commuters:

No. 7: Washington, D.C.
Because most of the workers in Washington D.C. are commuting from the Virginia or Maryland suburbs, it can take an exceedingly long time to make it downtown. Here, 15% of commuters take over an hour to get to work, the second highest rate in the country. Drivers spend 60 hours a year stuck in traffic, and only 26% of commuters get to work in under 20 minutes– the worst rate in the country. The only thing saving D.C. from a worse ranking is its efficiency ranking for carpooling, public transportation and walking, the country’s second best. (stats since then have remained relatively the same)

I want to point point out that the public transportation within the city is great! As the observation above mentions, it is one of the best. Commuters who live outside the city limits however, are nit experiencing the same situation. For everyone’s sanity and for the environment, there needs to be a more effective solution for commuters surrounding our Nations’s Capital. City planners need to look at models such as NYC and Chicago and develop a better a better public transportation for everyone outside the city limits.

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Go Green with Hummingbird Garden

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One of the most enjoyable parts of summer is getting to shed the heavy winter clothing and to spend time outside soaking up the sun.  The warm months also provides greater opportunities to relax outdoors, enjoying daytime and evening picnics and dinners.  One downside to outdoor summer fun is the invasion of mosquitoes, fleas, no-see-ums and other pesky bugs.  There is an expectation that this past unseasonably warm winter will result in an exceptionally brutal insect infestation this summer.  Many communities have instituted mosquito programs to try to keep these infestations to a minimum because these bugs are disease carriers.  Besides the discomfort of itching, allergic reactions and unsightly sores, mosquitoes can carry diseases that affect humans, such as malaria and West Nile virus, and they also can cause dog heartworms and encephalitis in other animals.

Although pesticide spraying is mandated in many communities for public health reasons, each of us can adopt green incentives to reduce the mosquito population in our neighborhoods.  Green gardening goes a long way here.  Planting a hummingbird garden is one way to help control the mosquito population because hummingbirds eat mosquitoes.  Some of the plants that attract hummingbirds include bee balm, columbine, butterfly bushes, lantana, Catawba rhododendrons and many other red plants.  A hummingbird garden can be as small as a patio garden or hanging plants or as large as landscaped community gardens.  Any home or community can achieve beauty with a purpose.

Mosquitoes and other bugs are a natural part of summer, but if we live green, be green, we can reduce the impact of this problem.

Sustainability in Ontario

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According to a recent survey conducted by Research House, Eighty-nine percent of Ontarians feel that their communities would benefit environmentally and economically by incorporating green alternatives. The survey, which was conducted in April of this year, sought to obtain consumer insights into creating more sustainable communities.

Ontarians felt that in order to make greener communities, development should be promoted through local governments. More specifically, “Ninety-six percent of respondents felt municipalities could do more to ensure shared community spaces such as parks and recreation centers incorporate environmentally friendly products.” This statistic is encouraging as the green movement has seemed to move to top-of-mind-awareness in the global community. Being green is not an ambitious goal anymore, rather a reality that has set in for many individuals and companies around the world.  Andrew Horsman, Executive Director of the Ontario Tire Stewardship reiterated this sentiment claiming, “Factoring environmental sustainability…isn’t just a trend. It’s a necessary, everyday consideration that extends beyond World Environment Day, to preserve our environment, health, and livelihoods of future generations.” The amazing reach of the green movement has invited more people, year after year, to not only think green, but to live green as well. As exemplified by the survey described, citizens are not only aware of the concept of sustainability, but also wish to implement programs to see these ideas through. To see more of the survey please check out the link below.

http://sustainablebusinessforum.com/derekwong/58656/ontarians-want-more-sustainable-communities