Environment News in Raleigh

This current drought has been linked to many causes, man-made and perhaps natural. On Wednesday, January 23rd, experts in the field of conservation and sustainable design will present ways in which you can help reduce your water use so we can all enjoy this precious resource. 

Today the City Council will be debating a proposal from Mayor Meeker to raise the fees for water usage in the city by 50 per cent. The purpose of this what-some-would-call radical proposal is meant to encourage conservation from both residential, institutional, and business water consumers. Hopefully, a reduction of 25% by individuals will stave off any harsher restrictions later in the year.

What follows are some ideas to help cut your water usage at home.

Triangle based company Burt’s Bees might have been my favorite billion-dollar corporation… almost. Granted, the only product I’ve used is the underarm spray. It was one of those products that I actually felt good about purchasing because I knew my money was supporting what was, at one time, a locally established company. Having sold a stake in 2003 for $177 million to AEA Investors, Burt’s Bees maintained their air of locality. It is produced 20 minutes away and they seemed to understand my needs. It’s an underarm deodorant and not an anti-persperant. I knew as a human I was meant to sweat and they knew that too. It also helped me smell like lavender instead of ‘Dioxyuberclogo-Roygbiv-69’.

The buy-out company that bought Burt’s in 2003 just sold it to Clorox for (what!?) $925 million. Clorox has got faith.

The City of Oaks is always in need of more trees, especially considering how many will be taken down by the North Blount Street Development project in the coming years.  You can show your support for Trees Across Raleigh at a workday on Saturday in Biltmore Hills Park, just South of the Beltline.  Trees Across Raleigh has planted over 7,100 trees in 10 years from Glenwood Avenue to Chavis Park and looks to continue “making Raleigh, NC a little greener one tree at a time.” Mayor Meeker will be on hand to present the project and speak about the cities plans for water conservation. 

More Information and Map Below the Fold

On October 24th, in a letter to the editor, Gertrude Kappel sought to take a swing at Governor Easley. This came only days after he asked the state to cut its water use down by half. Today, the Governor’s office released its water bill to the public.