Our Jolly Green Giants

Our Jolly Green Giants
THE GOVERNOR AND EAST BA Y ECO-WARRIORS ARE PUMPED TO SAVE THE PLANET
Green in High Places
When Arnold Schwarzenegger converted his Hummer to biofuel and showed up the feds by requiring
that California's greenhouse gases be cut 25 percent by the year 2020, Californians responded. In fact,
some say the governor's going mean and green on emissions got him back into the governor's mansion
in 2006.
Then, in Janual)', Schwarzenegger unleashed his brawny wrath on carbon being belched into the air,
specifically by cars. His low carbon-fuel standard will reduce the carbon content of the fuel you put in
your gas tank by 10 percent, also by 2020. He's certainly not your grandpa's environmentalist, or your
grandpa's conservative. Whether by careful calculation or maverick don't-give-a-damn-about-the-GOP
conviction, Schwarzenegger's green crusade is turning liberal-equals-environmentalist conventional
wisdom on its ear, and he's become something of aconsultant to conservatives evel)'where.As he said on
a recent television program, "You can still have an engine that's fast and furious and still reduce
greenhouse gas emissions by 30 to 40 percent." He happened to be talking about a pimped-out '65
Chevy Impala with an 800-horsepower engine overhauled to run on biodiesel, but we get the impression
he has the same opinion about this nation-state we call home.
Green in the Schools
Some of our most devoted eco-activists are students. Natasha Gupta, a sophomore at Danville's Monte
Vista High, laments the amount of needless garbage we generate. She says. "I've made a point to reuse
bags and refill water bottles. They are small measures but they can make a difference and are vel)' cost­
effective. "
Gupta is one of about 2,000 fledgling East Bay environmentalists to join EarthTeam, a green network
for teens and teachers at 74 East Bay middle and high schools founded by Sheilah Fish of Moraga.
These students are getting involved in habitat restoration projects, cleaning up creeks and shorelines, and
removing non-native plants. Some write for EarthTeam's online environmental newsletter; others report
for Green Screen, a monthly cable TV program crewed by teens.To fight global warming, EarthTeam's
Cool Schools program has recruited seven East Bay high schools to measure their carbon emissions with
an online student-designed carbon calculator. By logging a school's yearly electricity, water, and heat
consumption, students can determine the amount of carbon dioxide their school is churning into the
atmosphere. "The idea is to become carbon neutral," says Campolindo senior Kelsey Lucas. "So,
depending on the size of our carbon footprint, we can raise money to buy an area of rain forest, for
example, to take out the carbon we're putting in."Danville's Athenian school is also taking heroic steps
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to go green. Using a gigantic $10,000 compost churner named the Earth Tub, the school transforms its
food and landscape waste into compost that nourishes a 3,060-square-foot organic vegetable garden.
Athenian replaced every lightbulb with energy-efficient fluorescents and now uses biodegradable
tableware made of potatoes and cornstarch. This summer, it will install 1,291 solar panels-a $1.7
million collaborative project with a utility company that will provide half of the school's power.
"Solar power is not cheap," says Bob Oxenburgh, director of finance and facilities. "But by purchasing
power from an investment company that will finance the solar panels, our school has no immediate
expenses but will still save about $750,000 in 20 years. And, more important, we will attack the carbon
footprint of the school."Project Green, a student group at Saint Mary's College, is pushing for local and
organic produce to be used in the campus's food service and has organized a recycling competition
among the dorms. The group is also working to redirect the college's food waste (which currently costs
$45,000 a year to be lugged to the landfill) to a giant bio-digester in Oakland. "The students have done
all the research," says Steve Woolpert, dean ofliberal arts at Saint Mary's. "They're not getting any
academic credit for this. They just wanted to do something to help."
Green Houses
Picture this: buying a brand-new luxury home with $25,000 worth of built-in solar panels, as integrated
as a window or a doorknob, that harvest up to 50 percent of the house's power from the sun. Four new
solar communities (comprising 350 homes) built by Lennar in Danville and San Ramon are doing just
that. Why? Because they sell. "Our Bay Area customers tell us very clearly that solar is of real value to
them," says Les Lifter, Lennar's vice president of marketing. "Plus, we are a Northern California
company based in San Ramon, and we're as interested in doing the right thing for the environment as
our home buyers are."
David and Sandra White, the first homeowners to move into Lennar's Milano community, have already
received their first energy bill. "We are using 40 percent less net power in this home than we were in our
old home, even though it's 1,700 square feet bigger," says David. "That's huge dollar and power
savings. It benefits us, and it benefits California."These developments may be eco-friendly, but
Moraga's Suzanne Jones and Rob Elia have taken building green to a whole new level. Nestled in the
hills, their elegant home holds a secret: Eight years ago, it was an energy vampire with inefficient
insulation, single-pane windows, and electric heating. Its current sleek decor belies the drastic eco­
surgery that transformed the home into what it is today: an energy-conserving, dollar-saving
powerhouse. "We wanted to take a house with a lot of potential and make it green and energy efficient,"
says Jones.Mission accomplished. Packed to the hilt with environmentally friendly insulation (made
from CFC-free foam, recycled newspaper, cellulose, and cotton) and double-pane windows, the 2,400­
square-foot house holds on to its hot and cold air. "In the evening, when the temperature drops, we open
the windows before we go to bed, the hot air flushes out, and the thennal mass in the house cools
down," says Jones. "In the morning, we close all the windows and, because the house is really well
insulated, the hot air doesn't get in."The house can remain 15 to 20 degrees cooler than outdoor
temperatures even on the hottest days. "In winter, the sun is low in the sky, so a lot of heat comes into
our home," says Jones. "On a sunny day in January, when it's 40 degrees outside, our house can be up in
the 80s."Should the sun fail to bring enough warmth on its own, backup electrical heat-powered by a
solar panel system (costing between $20,000 and $25,000) that supplies about 75 percent of all the
home's required power-can be used. The cost savings are dramatic. According to Jones, the remodel,
which cost about $200 per square foot, has resulted in savings of around $2,000 a year on the energy
bill.This house isn't just about shrinking bills. Acting as general contractor, Jones made sure that hardly
any new wood was required. Rotten siding was replaced with milled Douglas fir salvaged from the
Oakland Anny Base, the maple floor was reclaimed from a 1920s postal building, and the countertops,
pillars, and kitchen nook were made from local fallen oaks. Furthermore, all reusable wood torn down
was saved and used again. "When wood wasn't reusable, we hauled it to the green waste dump," says
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Jones. "We used the old pipes for mounting birdhouses and even used a magnet to pick up all the nails
for recycling. We tried to push it as far as we could."
Her commitment to green remodeling might seem extreme, but Suzanne Jones is in good company.
Nelda Matheny's makeover for her Pleasanton home includes a solar pool heater, a recycled glass
fireplace, and a countertop made from plant fiber and resin. Antioch's Julie Haas-Wajdowicz opted for
new hardwood flooring made from Asian shipping crates. And Deva Raj an built some of his Canyon
home with wood from railroad trestles and bridges. If you want to get in on this trend, Canyon
Construction is opening an office in the historic Moraga Bam in July. Canyon Construction built its first
recycled-content home, complete with sod roof, in Pleasanton in 1969 and has since completed
numerous environmentally responsible remodels across Contra Costa. The Moraga office will showcase
everything from occupancy sensor lighting to geothermal radiant heating and cooling. "We will produce
about 75 percent of our electricity through solar panels, harvest rainwater to take care of all our
landscaping, and be 40 percent more energy efficient than a normal building," says Canyon
Construction Green Building Specialist Jeremy Fisher.The Moraga Bam is applying for LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certifIcation from the U.S. Green Building Council.
This nationally recognized rating system awards credits based on the sustainability of construction-if
the building is energy efficient, for instance, or if it uses fewer natural resources or creates less waste.
The more credits awarded, the higher the rank ofLEED certificate (certified, silver, gold, or platinum).
The Moraga Bam is hoping for LEED Platinum certification; Dublin now requires all new civic
buildings costing more than $3 million to be LEED Silver certified; Livermore passed an ordinance
three years ago requiring new commercial construction to meet LEED standards; Walnut Creek's city
council is seeking LEED certification for its planned downtown library; and the city of Orinda will
apply for LEED certification for its new city hall, which was built with creative green solutions like
using recycled jeans and recycled paper products for insulation.How Green Is Your Garden?A great way
to save water is to stock your garden with native plants. Manicured lawns and fussy roses are thirsty,
high-maintenance creatures, whereas natives are hardy and drought resistant. "I tried to have an English
country garden, and I never paid such a water bill in my life," says Clayton's June Chambers, whose
beautiful 65 percent-native garden is featured in this month's self-guided Bringing Back the Natives
tour.
Furthermore, native plants don't need the chemicals that disease- and pest-susceptible exotics require.
"That's the beauty of them. They do everything on their own," says Michael Escobar, whose Walnut
Creek garden is also featured on the tour. "You don't spray anything. I have some bugs, but I have birds
and lizards that come to eat them. Everybody's living together like they're supposed to."Walnut Creek's
Judy Adler, cofounder of LifeGarden, a nonprofit whose projects have included restoration work in the
Iron Horse Corridor, agrees. "We're so fixated on neatness and instant color that we've actually
designed our gardens to be high maintenance," she says. "For me, the only pest in a garden is the human
being managing it."
Green Businesses
The Green Business Program, coordinated by the Association of Bay Area Governments, has certified
285 businesses in Contra Costa and 269 in Alameda County. What does it take to be a green business?
Requirements vary. "Just recycling doesn't make you green," says Robin Bedell-Waite of the Contra
Costa Green Business Program. "For auto repair shops, for example, being green might mean using
water to clean instead of solvents or recovering oil on the floor to be recycled."
Many local firms are rushing to get on board. "I've had businesses contacting me nonstop about wanting
to be certified," says Bedell-Waite. "I've been amazed at the huge increase in the last year."Among
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. those making conservation efforts are Livermore's Goza Gear, which uses organic cotton T-shirts and
environmentally friendly silk-screen ink, and Concord's REI, which recycles and uses Energy Star
appliances and eco-friendly light bulbs. San Ramon's Marriott is another. The hotel cut water use by
replacing its 370 toilets, each of which used 3 gallons per flush, with 1.2-gallon models. With
EBMUD's $150 rebate on each efficient toilet, the hotel is saving more than water. "Our costs on the
new toilets are even less than the rebate," says Roy Wendel, Marriott's director of facilities. "So they
will end up being free."
Hannah Craddick is a Walnut Creek-basedfreelance writer.
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