Sustainability: Is it Working?

I attended a Sustainability Forum at the University of Minnesota over the weekend. Being the skeptic that I am, I was not sure whether this was a good choice for me or not. I also wanted to know what could I take away from this forum that would work in the Heights. The following are some comments that I have from what I heard and saw at the event:

First, what we mean by sustainability refers to several things but it all involves people and ecology. How to accomplish this will evolve with the neighborhood and city and needs to include vision, design, action and measurement on how this is being accomplished. 

How is Columbia Heights doing? Unless we bulldoze the whole city and start over, (I really don't recommend that!), Columbia Heights is limited on what can be accomplished. But as a whole, we are making a difference.

Starting with our recycling and garbage program: We offer garbage, recycling and yard waste bins to all of our residents. With the larger recycling bins we have seen an increase in our recycling. The city also offers a drop site for recycling hazardous waste and recyclables for residents at 3801 Madison St. NE, and is open on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The center is staffed by volunteers from the local Kiwanis groups and is closed on holiday weekends.

With several vacant properties located around the city, community gardens are being requested by many citizens. Several have been started and the key to their success is that they are maintained by neighbors and they have become a great place to have a garden and to meet other neighbors. SACA, our local food shelf, has become a recipient of some of the surpluses.

The Columbia Heights School has also gotten into the sustainable gardening mode by incorporating an edible garden to the north side of the high school. It includes vegetables along with fruit bearing trees. Plans are being made to expand on it over the next couple of years.

Many homeowners have taken advantage of home improvement programs that are offered to make energy improvements to their homes. Going to the Columbia Heights website, you can find several programs or information that is available for upgrading appliances, windows, insulation or simply replacing toilets or water faucets. 

But, what can we do different? One thing that we could use help with is the recycling of electronics. Many residents and businesses have had electronics dropped off anonymously forcing those residents or businesses to pay to have those electronics disposed of properly. It would be good to have some way to deal with this in a reasonable manner. Hopefully, making it easier for residents to dispose of electronics.

As more residents are becoming interested in gardening, whether it is flowers or vegetables lets try composting bins and rain barrels. Anoka County does have information about composting and rain barrels on their website and has in the past offered composting bins for sale.

One last comment I want to make about the forum is that of the examples that they gave from Sweden of communities that are working and have done so for several years are that they are all privately owned. They are cooperatives that are funded by the community and financed by that community. The restrictions that they have imposed and improvements that they have made in sustainability are governed by that community. They also started with new developments.

What are your suggestions for improving sustainability in your community? Maybe it is mulching leaves instead of bagging them. Maybe it means you look into planting trees for shade to help cool your home in the summer. Maybe it means using bikes or walking more for errands. As the cost of installing solar panels become cheaper, maybe it means incorporating solar panels into your next home improvement project.

Check out the many resources available. Use the local library as a resource for information along with many resources available at the University of Minnesota. Whatever we do, whether it is a small or large project, we can make a difference.