Solar yard lights like this are being offered to new customers who sign up to support SNAP in August.

During August, Chelan County PUD is offering customers a free set of six solar yard lights when they sign up to support  SNAP.

SNAP is the PUD’s alternative energy program for small-scale solar and wind power. With SNAP, customers voluntarily pay a little extra on their utility bills. These customer donations are collected by the PUD and distributed once a year to our SNAP producers who are generating solar and wind power, which goes into the PUD’s electrical grid and is distributed to all customers.

SNAP started in 2001 with a committed group of about 600 supporters. With the downturn in the economy or for other reasons, that’s dropped to under 500 now. The PUD is aiming to improve those numbers by raising  customers’ awareness and interest in the program.

The solar yard light sets are available to the first 100 new SNAP supporters. Customers must agree to pay at least $2.50 a month for six months in order to receive the lights. Customers need to come into a PUD office at Chelan, Wenatchee or Leavenworth to sign up. After that the SNAP payment is automatically added to utility bills each month.

SNAP compliments the abundant, renewable hydropower enjoyed in this region. And it underscores the value of buying locally – helping your neighbors pay for their investment in equipment, helping schools fund programs, helping nonprofit agencies assist people in the community.

There are 44 producers around the county.

The award-winning 'Barn' at Barn Beach Reserve in Leavenworth includes green features such as solar-heated water that radiates through the floor for winter heating.

If you haven’t been to Leavenworth lately, here’s a really good reason to go: Visit Barn Beach Reserve. 

The reserve spans eight acres overlooking and adjacent to the Wenatchee River.  A group of conservation-minded citizens established the reserve in 2002 to help protect the river ecosystem and, according to the Barn Beach website, “to promote the environmental, economic and social sustainability of the Greater Wenatchee Valley through educational programming and stewardship bridging environment, arts and cultural history.” 

Executive Director Jeff Parsons has been with Barn Beach since its inception in 2002.

This they do through exhibits, programs and community events along the river at the focal point of the reserve,  the 107-year-old River Haus, home to the Upper Valley Museum and Icicle Arts as well as Barn Beach Reserve. Jim White, senior energy services engineer for Chelan PUD, conducted an audit at the historic former home last month to recommend ways to save energy. 

That’s not necessary at “The Barn,” the  new, green-built education and environmental center constructed on the foundation of a 1960s-era home on the property. The facility features 

The century-old River Haus is home to Barn Beach Nature Center, Icicle Arts and the Upper Valley Museum at Leavenworth.

countertops made from recycled paper, low-VOC pressboard cabinets, recycled corrugated metal, and acoustic “cloud” ceiling panels made of remnants from a Hanes underwear factory. Solar energy is collected in two systems, one to heat the building and another to provide electricity. A simple, passive convection ventilation system operates in mild weather. In summer heat, cool air from a basement is circulated to the main floor of the 4,000-square foot building. 

The American Institute of Architects named “The Barn” one of the top 10 green building projects in the Northwest in 2009. 

If Barn Beach Executive Director Jeff Parsons isn’t there to show you around, interpretive signs can guide visitors through the building and its green attributes. 

The reserve is adjacent to the city park and Blackbird Island, a popular stop on Audubon’s Great Washington Birding Trail. Check out upcoming events at the reserve here.

Idle reduction program saves fuel, cuts emissions

New technology is helping the PUD reduce idling time and cut emissions from its diesel trucks. The technology, which is still being tested, allows the engines to be turned off while enabling PUD crews to run electric power equipment from the trucks and keep vehicle systems operating with enhanced battery power.

Initial tests on a sampling of trucks show engine idling time  reduced by about a third and engine life extended by an estimated three years. Watch the video (below) to learn more.

Learn how Feb. 20 with WSU Master Gardeners

Discover how to grow, produce and preserve your own fruits and vegetables with the Washington State University Master Gardeners of Chelan County Saturday, Feb. 20, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Chelan County PUD auditorium, 327 N. Wenatchee Ave. 

Garden for Food is a series of free programs covering composting, organic gardening, container gardening, irrigation, seed selection, and preserving your harvest. The Feb. 20 kickoff will include speakers from S & W Irrigation, and gardener Ken Lacy will discuss seed.  Participants can join discussions on soils, composting and soil nutrients; common problems and solutions in the vegetable garden; and when and what to plant. 

There are many reasons to grow your own:  For health, for the environment, to save money, for self-sufficiency or just for fun.   Whatever your reason, Garden for Food can help you be successful.

Dates and times for follow-up sessions will be provided at the kickoff.

For more information, contact Master Gardener Coordinator Jennifer Marquis
a jgmarquis@wsu.edu.

Ryan Tuss is the Green Team supervisor at The Gorge Amphitheatre near George in Grant County.

How do you set up a program to keep the cans, bottles and cardboard used by 25,000 concert-goers from ending up in the trash? According to Ryan Tuss, as quickly as possible.

Tuss is the Green Team supervisor and recycling coordinator at The Gorge Amphitheatre near George in Grant County. When he was hired to the seasonal position in 2008, he was asked to develop a green program – the sooner the better.

His primary focus then and now is keeping recyclables out of the trash and into 180-plus receptacles placed strategically near garbage cans around the 215-acre complex. Plastic, aluminum and cardboard gathered up this way are then sorted, thrown into larger bins, compacted and carted away to the Waste Management recycling center in Woodinville.

Tuss estimates 45 cubic yards, or 12 football fields covered with recyclables, are produced at each event.

The Gorge recycles over 50 percent of the waste produced by its patrons.

Tuss, 29, is an artist and teacher who took the coordinator’s job to supplement his income. He was singled out from a group of potential employees at a job orientation. “I had done it (recycled) at home and was a green head (translation: sustainable living enthusiast) in college so I did know something about it,” he said.

What he didn’t know he’s learned through research and experience. Concert-goers at Sasquatch, the three-day festival held over Memorial Day weekend, filled all the recycle bins on the second day. “We underestimated the resources needed” for the crowd, he said. Tuss said he’s learned to be better prepared by asking more questions of venue managers and the environmental coordinators who work for the bands that draw the huge crowds.

There’s an obvious perk to Tuss’ position: good music from top-name bands in a breathtaking setting overlooking the Columbia River. The downside: On concert days he works shifts as long as 14 hours.

One part of Tuss’ job is to make sure each band’s green requirements are met. Phish, for example, which appeared at the Gorge Aug. 7 and 8, included a four-page environmental rider in its contract requesting organic foods from local farms, reusable china plates and biodegradable coffee cups. Drinking water had to come from a local spring water vendor. The band asked for room for its buses and trucks to receive biodiesel deliveries. And six large recycling containers for glass, plastic, aluminum, paper and cardboard were to be set up backstage.

Other requirements: replace traditional light bulbs with compact fluorescents, institute a no-idling policy for venue vehicles, and use eco-friendly cleaning and restroom products.

Most bands have environmental guidelines and some even bring their own green coordinators, Tuss said. “I actually got to sit through most of the Coldplay concert (July 11),” Tuss said, because the band brought  its own environmental managers.

The Dave Matthews Band, which will be at the Gorge over the Labor Day weekend, has long been a proponent of recycling, Tuss said. Singer/songwriter Jack Johnson kicked the green movement into high gear at the Gorge last year, he said.

Tuss and his motivated crew of six, who are students from Moses Lake and Quincy high schools and Central Washington University, do their best to meet bands’ demands. And they’ve instituted some green initiatives of their own. For example, hybrid vehicles are given a parking preference closer to the entrance gates. Tuss helped create a Green Zone within the complex for experts to set up demonstrations on green topics such as plug-in hybrid electric cars and sustainable foods. One of his crew members has drawn eco-action figures on plywood cutouts that encourage recycling. Visitors put their faces in a round hole where the figure’s face should be, then have their photos taken. The exhibit is used to draw people into the Green Zone.

“There’s so much more that I’d like to do with this program but it’s part-time, there just isn’t enough time,” Tuss said.

What he’s helped achieve is significant, though: The Gorge recycles over 50 percent of the waste produced by its patrons.

Tuss is an active artist and member of the Two Rivers Gallery in Wenatchee, where he lives. With the concert season soon coming to an end, he is looking forward to his new job as the art teacher at Liberty Bell Junior/Senior High School in Winthrop.

Related links:
Official Gorge Web site

Pyrethrum daisy

Learn the principles of organic landscapes at a seminar Thursday, July 16 at the WSU Tree Fruit Research Center in Wenatchee and the Chelan County Compost Facility at the Dryden Transfer Station.

Organic landscapes rely on ecological principles and natural processes and do not automatically mean pesticide- or chemical-free. Organic means pesticides must be derived from natural sources rather than synthetically manufactured. A wide range of chemical sprays and powders technically are organic.

Organic landscapes use a holistic approach that involves soil management and integrated pest management. The goal is to increase beneficial organisms in the landscape and to turn waste materials into valuable composts and fertilizers.

The seminar will begin at 9 a.m. in the conference room at the Tree Fruit Research Center, 1100 N. Western Ave.  After a break for lunch, participants will carpool to the Dryden Transfer Station’s compost facility.

The seminar is presented by Paula Dinius, urban horticulturist, WSU Chelan County Extension; Julie Sauve, pesticide specialist with Wilbur-Ellis; and Brenda Harn, Chelan County Solid Waste coordinator. The seminar is sponsored by Chelan County PUD.

Pre-registration is required. The fee is $10. Call the extension office to register, 667-6540, or download a brochure and registration form.

Paul Steinbroner, left, and Malcolm Keithley at the controls of their Web-based EnergyRush TV.

Talking to film producer Paul Steinbroner, you get the impression he’s in a hurry. So much to say, so much to do, so little time to save the planet.

Steinbroner is the mastermind behind the aptly named EnergyRush TV based in Wenatchee. He and fellow producer Malcolm Keithley have been traveling around the country, developing Web-based programming on renewable energy and transportation. Their work and that of others is available on EnergyRush TV as both pre-programmed and on-demand pieces. 

Steinbroner’s goal is to popularize the renewable energy movement. “This is a transformational moment when we’re going away from the fossil-fuel world because it’s not sustainable,” he said.

He cares. He really cares. He wants you to care, too.

“Why should you care?” he asks, then answers the question. “Well, there’s the environment. There’s the  economy.  And then there’s national security.”

Steinbroner believes once the plug-in car is in full production, electric “fuel” will cost the equivalent of 15-70 cents per gallon. Displaced auto workers will find new jobs building  new hybrid cars. The economy will grow as the plug-in and related renewable industries are developed. While we’re at it, we’ll reduce our dependence on foreign oil and foreign governments.

Paul Steinbroner

“People ask about cost, but the cost is incalculable. What would it take to fix the environment? I don’t know, but what other planet do we have to go to?”

While EnergyRush TV is all about a sustainable future, it’s hard to tell whether the programming  has one. EnergyRush TV has been bankrolled by private investors  and are soliciting sponsors: “Getting intelligent renewable energy short films made is our first goal,” their Web site states, “but deploying them is our specialty.” 

Steinbroner and Keithley take on outside film jobs to support themselves. Steinbroner is originally from Southern California and remains a partner in CNS Productions based in Medford, Ore. The company produces educational materials including films and textbooks. He’s been in Wenatchee six years. Keithley grew up in Stehekin, worked briefly in LA, then moved to Wenatchee in the 1980s and formed M and M Productions. His studio, which doubles as EnergyRush TV’s base, is at Olds Station.

The pair recently turned their lenses toward producing a feature-length documentary they hope will be “not a movie, but an event.”  The film will pose a future where jobs, technology and the environment are in sync.  It will be about “hope, change, possibilities,” Steinbroner said.

Much of the film will be devoted to Dr. Andrew Frank, engineering professor at the University of California-Davis, also known as “Professor Plug-In” for his work with hybrid electric vehicles.

Steinbroner points to the Port of Chelan County’s hybrid vehicle project, Chelan County PUD’s SNAP program, and the region’s abundant hydropower as reasons Wenatchee is a good base for launching EnergyRush TV. “We’re the herald of what will be a renaissance,” he said. “We’re ahead of the curve.

“It’s a small piece of a big picture and we’re happy to play a role.”

Paul Steinbroner is entering a contest sponsored by singer/songwriter Neil Young to create your own video using the song “Johnny Magic” from Young’s CD “Fork in the Road.” Watch Steinbroner’s video about the evolution of the electric car here.