Petal Project

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Air Quality Updates Archive – Clean Air in the River Valley As of Friday at 11:40 am, airnow.gov shows moderate conditions for most of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Pockets of “unhealthy for sensitive groups” are possible in low lying areas. Saturday- winds from the north will bring in cleaner air for the weekend. For up to date air quality monitor conditi...

As of 10:00 AM Thursday air quality was good with majority of monitors reading good and some moderate in the Midwest.

Friday/Saturday - Air quality will move to moderate for the Midwest.

Pockets of “unhealthy for sensitive groups” will be present for some hours in certain locations of the upper Midwest.

Emissions reductions, particularly from cars, trucks, and electricity generation, will limit the severity of this episode. Calling it an episode because this will be "worse-than-average" air quality. Without the emissions reductions, it may have developed to the level needing air quality alerts.

CLE4R team will be tracking the details and keeping you updated on twitter, Facebook, and web.

A special thanks to the University of Dubuque's Environmental Science J-term class for inviting the Petal Project to their class. We had a great discussion on what students can do to "green" their dorm rooms, homes, classrooms and workplaces.

Thank you to those who came to the Petal Project and Grants to Green quarterly meeting yesterday! Bev Wagner of Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency did a great job educating us all on the landfill and services offered.

If you're cooking this Thanksgiving, you've probably begun the mental planning process for casseroles, desserts, potatoes and the big turkey. Although this Thanksgiving Food Planner Calculator can't cook for you, it can help you get organized and reduce extra food. Everyone loves leftovers, but this will help you to avoid sending food to a landfill.

Happy almost Thanksgiving and good luck cooking! http://www.personalcreations.com/blog/thanksgiving-food-planning-calculator

Thanksgiving Food Planning Calculator - Personal Creations Blog Answer a few simple questions and our custom calculator will help make sure you have plenty of turkey and fixings to feed any size crowd.

Today, we visited Unison Solutions, Inc., which has been Petal Project certified since 2013. Along with maintaining all of the sustainable practices that shape the business, Unison has begun retrofitting light fixtures for LED bulbs in the welding shop. We got to see the massive equipment that's welded on-site to filter and generate biogas. Thank you for the tour, Kim!

Mark your calendar for the Petal Project's Quarterly Meeting on Tuesday, November 22nd! Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency's Bev Wagner will present on the resources available to local businesses and non-profits to minimize waste and maximize recycling. See invite for details.

Look at all the photos to see where the gravel path leads here at the ECIA...to our new solar panels installation!

We'd like to introduce our new Petal Project intern, Louisa Pavlik! As a senior at Loras College, Louisa is double majoring in Spanish & public relations with a minor in peace and justice studies. She feels passionately toward sustainability and loves the outdoors! Working here at ECIA for the Petal Project is a great fit to expand her knowledge of sustainability. Her summer was spent working alongside chickens on a small-scale organic farm in Winchendon, MA. She was responsible for collecting eggs, harvesting vegetables, picking berries, delivering the food to local food pantries and helping with forest maintenance on the 20 acre property (+ other farm-related tasks)! Raised a suburbanite with little knowledge of farming, Louisa is grateful to have spent the summer working alongside the farmers at Noonday Farm, Inc. She can't wait to see where else her interest in the environment will take her! Here are some pictures of her summer- enjoy!

HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION EVENT

The Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency (DMASWA) is sponsoring a household hazardous waste (HHW) collection event to properly dispose of cleaning supplies, lawn and garden chemicals, automotive chemicals, and oil-based paint related materials from Dubuque and Delaware county residents by appointment. The event will be held on Saturday, September 24, 2016, rain or shine, from 8 a.m. to noon at the NICC Peosta Campus parking lot. Residents can register for this event at www.DMASWA.org/hhmevent. Businesses are not permitted to participate.

This event is to provide a HHW disposal option to the residents of Dubuque and Delaware county while the permanent facility is closed.

Acceptable Item Include:
- Household cleaner’s including toilet bowl, oven, rug/carpet, drain and ammonia based cleaners.
- Lawn and garden products including w**d & feed fertilizers, herbicides such as Round-up and 2-4-D, and pesticides such as roach and ant sprays, mole killer, mouse poisons, and flying insect sprays.
- Automotive chemicals including brake fluids, carburetor and engine cleaners transmission fluid, waxes and polishes.
Hobby products and paints accepted include oil based paints, stains, paint removers, thinners such as alcohol or acetone, varnishes, and wiping oils such as tung oil. Water-based latex paints and stains will not be accepted.
Unacceptable Items Include:
- Water-based latex paints, if the label calls for a water cleanup, it is a latex product and should be dried out and placed in the trash.
- Laundry detergents, soaps, cosmetics, and medications.
- Used motor oil, oil filters, and antifreeze.
- Any item in 5 - gallon containers or larger – no drums.
- For information on disposal for these materials visit www.DMASWA.org/services/recycling-reuse

Residents interested in participating should go to www.DMASWA.org or call 563-557-8220 ext. 2 to make an appointment before September 21st. Items will not be accepted from schools, businesses, farms, non-profits, or governmental entities. Containers will not be returned to the resident and any container larger the 5-gallons will not be accepted during this event.

For further information on this and other Agency programs visit www.DMASWA.org.

(photo taken from countyofkane.org)

DMASWA (Municipal Service Center) Select this option to set up an appointment to dispose of household hazardous waste at the special c

Free of plans this Sunday, September 18th? Come see an informative movie on how to confront the climate crisis at the Hotel Julien! $10 is the suggested donation for admission. FREE with a student ID!

Feel free to share to other friends and pages.

Make sure you sign up for the sustainability conference being held on October 4th and 5th at the Grand River Center in Dubuque.http://www.gscdubuque.com/

Growing Sustainable Communities - 9th Annual Conference - Dubuque, October 2016