Green Living Expo to cap weekend events in Port Townsend
By Erik Hidle, Peninsula Daily News
Print This |
Email This
Recent Headlines
To our readers . . . about the Aspire! Quartet’s Singing Valentine program -- 2/10/12 -01:53 PM
Floating luxury home hits the water, now moored at Point Hudson [**Video**] -- 2/10/12 -01:03 PM
Mountain goat population up about 40 percent in Olympic Mountains -- 2/10/12 -12:07 PM
417.9 million bites later . . . (does this video warrant that much attention?) -- 2/10/12 -12:02 PM
Josh Powell had ‘incestuous’ sex images, investigators say -- 2/10/12 -09:32 AM
"Our Earth, Our Community," will be the theme for the weekend.
Events planned today (Friday) and Saturday lead up to Sunday's Green Living Expo, which will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Jefferson Memorial Field at Washington and Monroe streets in Port Townsend.
"We always try to come up with something new every year to make it interesting," said Val Johnstone, coordinator of the event.
This year the expo will be new from the start.
For the first time, the expo will include a processional at 11:30 a.m. from the U.S. Bank parking lot.
"Mayor [Michelle] Sandoval will lead us down Water Street and into Memorial Field," Johnstone said.
"At that point she will speak, and read a proclamation from the city."
Also new this year is the green market place which will feature vendors from the area selling sustainable and environmentally-friendly products and services.
A community tent will be set up on the field to allow for community demonstrations and panel discussions with community members.
Information will be available on everything from solar electric systems to "green" building designs and materials to sustainable agriculture, vehicles that use little or no gasoline, and ways to control pollution and protect land and water.
Johnstone also said that this year would feature several new contests involving reducing and reusing.
"Those concepts are actually more important than recycling," she said.
There will be a contest for who can come up with the most innovative ideas for reusing and reducing, and another for the most unique bicycle.
There will also be a raffle to win an electric scooter, and the Food Co-Op will give away free bags to the first 100 visitors. The bags can be decorated on site.
Today's events
Even before Sunday's Green Living Expo, plenty of "green" activities will be available.
Today, Rhys Roth, director of the Clean Energy Programs for an Olympia-based nonprofit called Climate Solutions, will give a keynote address on "Practical and Profitable Solutions to Global Warming."
The speech will be at 7:30 p.m. at the USO Building at Fort Worden State Park. A donation of $5 is suggested.
Before his address, Roth will participate in two workshops today.
Both are at the USO Building and both are offered free of charge.
The first, "Green Economic Development Strategies," will be from 10 a.m. to noon. The workshop, sponsored by Team Jefferson, will focus on clean energy and green jobs.
The second, "Developing an Action Plan," for those interested in helping local government decrease energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions, will be from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
It is sponsored by the Climate Protection Campaign.
For more information about today's events, phone Joanna Loehr at 360-385-6579.
Saturday's events
Volunteers and business owners will clean up the streets of Port Townsend during the Main Street Program Earth Day Spring Cleanup from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.
Workers will weed, plant, paint and remove litter in both the uptown and downtown historic districts.
Those who want to help can meet at Adams Street Park next to Nifty Fiftys, 817 Water St.
For more information, phone the Main Street office at 360-385-7911.
Friends of Fort Flagler have scheduled its 8th Annual Earth Day Event on Saturday.
Volunteers, who will clean up the state park's upper campground to prepare it for spring and summer campers, will meet at 9 a.m. at the gate to the upper campground and work until early afternoon.
For more information, phone Bob Suther at 360-437-0897.
Also on Saturday will be Jefferson County's first E-Waste Roundup.
Electronic waste — such as old computers and televisions — will be taken for recycling.
The roundup will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Port Townsend Boat Haven.
"There will be a fee, but it will pay for it to be recycled responsibly," Johnstone said.
Fees are charged per item: $30 for large items such as console televisions, $10 for microwaves, portable TVs and computer monitors, $3 for telephones, no charge for computer keyboards or mice.
No credit cards or checks will be accepted.
Only electronic appliances will be accepted. Washers, dryers or refrigerators will be turned away.
The E-Waste Roundup is sponsored by Beyond Waste, an action group of Local 20/20.
________
Reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: April 17. 2008 9:00PM