What Will YOU Find?

You never know what you will find at the Creek to Bay Cleanup. Over the last eight years volunteer have found some very unique items.  Some of our volunteers have found a disco ball, an ab-roller, a purple plastic camel, a velvet suit, a couple safes and even a prosthetic arm and mannequin, among other strange items. Others have found valuables such as a $20 bill, a digital camera, half of a $3,000 check and a wallet with money in it. All of these unique discoveries just add to the excitement surrounding Creek to Bay.  With 75 locations this year who knows what participants may be able to find? This is just another reason that you should come out to one of the Creek to Bay locations this Saturday April 30th, 2011 at 9am and join the thousands of other volunteers that are doing something positive for San Diego. For more information, go online to www.creektobay.org.

One individual found a trophy from 1911. Participate and you might be able to find a trophy of your own.

Organics: what’s the big deal?

Written by ILACSD Director of Education, Connie Glenn

Personally, I love to buy organic food. It’s tastier, free of toxic chemicals, and more sustainable for the environment. However, whenever I talk with people about it, the overwhelming response is “it’s too expensive!” Even Time Magazine showed their cynicism of organics by running a cover article declaring that conventionally grown products are just as nutritional as organics, so what’s the big deal? Buying organic doesn’t have to mean spending more on groceries, and there certainly are undeniable health benefits for your body, and the environment as a whole, when you choose these over conventionally grown items.

First, let’s talk money. Everyone, from my doctor to Diane Sawyer, love to complain about how much organic food costs. In my personal experience, I have found that organic food can cost about the same, and sometimes less, than their conventional counterparts. Often at the grocery store I will see organic items on sale for less than the conventional option. When this happens, I wonder why people would choose to pay more for pesticide laden fruit with a flavor similar to polystyrene (aka Styrofoam)? But they may not even be checking price tags because, in their minds, “organics are too expensive”.

Now, when it comes to which choice is better for your body, consider this: organic foods are grown without chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. That means that these chemicals, some of which are toxic, are not going to find their way onto your dinner plate and into your, or your children’s, bodies. Maybe that organic orange has the same amount of vitamin C as a conventional one, but it will also be free of nasty chemicals like pesticides which have been linked to brain damage and birth defects. Sounds like a healthier choice to me!

There is no question about which is better for choice for the environment. Fertilizers lead to eutrophication (too much nutrients in a water body) which can take out oxygen from the water. When you have no oxygen in a water body, you also have no fish because they can’t breathe. We call this a dead zone, and it doesn’t take a BioChem degree to realize that that is not a healthy water body! Pesticides that run off our properties into local water ways will continue to kill insects out in the environment, and can eliminate entire layers of food webs. Also, they add harmful chemicals into the food chain, which will affect animals throughout the food chain including birds, and of course our favorite species, humans!
Probably the best reason to buy organics is the flavor. If you’ve ever bitten into a strawberry and wondered where the strawberry taste went, you were probably eating a conventional one. When you grow food without adding a bunch of chemicals, and you let Mother Nature work her magic, you will be greatly rewarded with fantastic flavor. They may not be the prettiest sitting on the shelves, but foodies agree: nothing beats the taste of organic food!

Now that spring has sprung, check out some organic, and ideally local, foods at your local store or farmers market. You, your children, and Mama Nature will be glad you did!

From Talking Trash to Tracking Trash

All of us at I Love A Clean San Diego are excited to embark on a new program called Trash Trackers this winter. We are extremely pleased with the tone and the results from the program’s kickoff last week. Our Community Events Department coordinated with a small group of dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers that were motivated and ready to get out there and get really dirty to protect their environment. The group tracked types of trash found in a particularly trash-ridden section of the Otay River in Chula Vista. Whether these volunteers were painstakingly picking up thousands of small pieces of Styrofoam cups and pellets or removing large auto parts from the river, they took great pride and care in marking each item on trash tracker sheets.

Volunteers exhibiting such gusto are a true inspiration to all of us! Those of us who attended the event were thrilled to get to spend more time cleaning up alongside each of these volunteers through this smaller scale cleanup program that is unlike any other ILACSD program.

Not only did we get to work with a fantastic group of volunteers and remove thousands of pieces of trash, we also were able to collect data on the type and source of trash found in this targeted impaired waterway. At ILACSD we hope to inspire behavior change through all that this program provides – hard data and event photos that show the direct problems caused by litter building in our waterways. See for yourself in photos included from the event. We hope that the shocking sheer volume of Styrofoam and other plastics found at this site will inspire our volunteers and readers to always be mindful of the impact daily habits have on the environment here in San Diego County.

Continue reading

Recycling from Past to Present

This week was a big one for the environmental community. Monday we celebrated America Recycles Day across the country with a proclamation from President Obama himself. While it was long and a bit dry, there were a few parts that really resonated with us, and reassured us of the importance of our work.

Each small act of conservation, when combined with other innumerable deeds across the country, can have an enormous impact on the health of our environment.  On America Recycles Day, we celebrate the individuals, communities, local governments, and businesses that work together to recycle waste and develop innovative ways to manage our resources more sustainably.

Recycling is important, and for some it’s easier than others. When I Love A Clean San Diego made the commitment to serve the community in 1954, recycling was term rarely used. Through phone book recycling drives, Christmas tree recycling programs, electronic waste collection events and our Disposal Solution Center, www.wastefreesd.org, I Love A Clean San Diego has always been first to tackle a recycling challenge.

We were especially happy to hear the report out on Monday from the City of San Diego which announced that the 2010 recycling diversion rate is their highest ever, at 66%. While we don’t want to strain a muscle patting ourselves on the back for this accomplishment, we know that I Love A Clean San Diego’s efforts over the past 56 years may have something to do with this recycling success. But, as a city and a county, there is still room for improvement. Why not shoot for 75% diversion from our landfills? But how?

Good news for those of you living in within the City of San Diego. The City of San Diego also announced on Monday that they will be accepting many more “rigid plastics” in the blue curbside bins. These items include clean plastic food packaging, plant pots, toys, even lawn furniture. The complete press release with all the new rigid plastic rules can be found on the City of San Diego’s website.

And to provide some inspiration for all of us who sometimes struggle with recycling, here’s another excerpt from Obama’s proclamation.

On America Recycles Day, let us respond to our collective responsibility as a people and a Nation to be better stewards of our global environment, and to pass down a planet to future generations that is better than we found it.

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves!

ILACSD’s Back to Blogging

That’s right, after a significant hiatus from blogging, I Love A Clean San Diego is back! We have so much to say, and so many events to talk about, restarting the blog was pretty much a no-brainer. Many of our staff members will be contributing to the blog, and if you’d like to be featured as a guest blogger to give a first-hand account of your experiences with ILACSD please contact u.

We look forward to sharing with you and hearing from all of you who have helped shape the environmental movement in San Diego County!