Crowds gather at he Willow Street Car Barn as the The Phunny Phorty Phellows take off in a street car on Twelfth Night in 2012. ( UptownMessenger.com file photo by Sabree Hill)
Entergy and the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority are partnering to install solar panels on the streetcar barn on Willow Street, part of a larger effort to generate solar energy from the rooftops of publicly-owned buildings across New Orleans. Continue reading »
The 2018 Krewe of Iris parade rolls on St. Charles Avenue, where the live oak canopy enhances Carnival celebrations. (Robert Morris, UptownMessenger.com)
Southern live oaks make up the vast majority of the trees along St. Charles Avenue. The proportion of live oaks has continued to increase over the years, a tree survey has found.
The St. Charles Avenue Association retained Bayou Tree Service, its official partner, to perform a tree survey in a continuation of surveys that have been conducted since 1992.
The results of the 2018 survey show an increase in both the live oak population and overall condition. It revealed 756 live oaks, which is the largest number recorded since the SCAA began surveying the trees. Continue reading »
As the city and state released statements on the removal of hazardous waste from beneath the surface of a Gert Town street, WVUE Fox 8 News revealed documents indicating the Mayor’s Office and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality knew the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had detected 100 times the normal level of radium at the street surface. Continue reading »
Crews remove toxic materials in Gert Town. (via WWL-TV)
The city of New Orleans has released a statement on the removal of hazardous materials in Gert Town about two weeks week after about 1,000 Gert Town neighbors filed a class-action suit against the city, according to media reports. Continue reading »
Director of Marketing for XL Fleet Eric Foellmer, Port NOLA President and CEO Brandy D. Christian, Executive Director of Regional Planning Commission Jeffrey Roesel and Director of Southeast Louisiana Clean Fuel Partnership Courtney Young cut the ribbon on two plug-in hybrid trucks. (Port of New Orleans photo)
from the Port of New Orleans
With existing electric vehicle charging infrastructure in place and working toward energy efficiency investments defined in their new Strategic Master Plan, the Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) expanded its EV fleet with the help of the Clean Fuel Transition Fund for Public Fleets, managed by the Regional Planning Commission’s Clean Fuel Partnership program. Continue reading »
Gantry cranes load containers onto drayage trucks at the Port of New Orleans. The Port is unveiling hybrid electric trucks today. (courtesy of Port of New Orleans)
The Port of New Orleans and Regional Planning Commission today will introduce new plug-in hybrid electric trucks to its electric vehicle fleet. The new trucks are part of an overall effort to reduce emissions at the multi-billion-dollar multimodal gateway for international trade.
The Port is celebrating their arrival today with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its headquarters, 1350 Port of New Orleans Place, at 2 p.m.
Continue reading »
The city’s Mosquito, Termite and Rodent Control Board tonight will conduct adult mosquito abatement by plane in the area surrounded by the Jefferson Parish line, Earhart Boulevard and the Mississippi River. Continue reading »
Plastic bags are out, but corrugated cardboard is still accepted for curbside recycling. (Mid-City Messenger)
A crisis in the recycling industry is reflected in what we can and cannot put in our recycling bins starting with this week’s pickup, the city announced.
Here’s what can go into the bin for curbside recycling pickup:
from Green Light New Orleans
Green Light New Orleans, a nonprofit organization working towards a greener future, invites the public to its Spring Block Party on Saturday, May 11 from 1 to 4 p.m. The festivities will take place at the Fidelity Bank branch at 1201 S. Carrollton Ave (at Oak St.) and will feature complimentary food and drinks, as well as activities for the whole family.
“Most people know Green Light for our energy efficient light bulbs, and we’re proud to have given away more than 600,000 of them,” said Founder and Executive Director Andreas Hoffman.
(prcno.org)
The Preservation Resource Center is hosting a three-part series to address the risks and challenges climate change presents for New Orleans and the role preservation can play in creating a more resilient future.
The first event of the series, to be held Wednesday, is a panel discussion titled “Document.” As the PRC website explains: “As our climate changes, so do our natural, built and cultural landscapes. While we strive to save as much as we can, we must consider what we are poised to lose and how efforts to record and archive can help mitigate inevitable casualties.”
Hoffman Triangle (via Google Maps)
Hoffman Triangle residents are invited to come out to Taylor Park on Saturday, April 6, from noon to 2 p.m. for a family-friendly event to learn about ways they can reduce flooding by planting trees, installing rain barrels and reducing paving.
“Many neighborhoods in New Orleans, including the Hoffman Triangle, are vulnerable to repeated flooding,” said Dana Eness, executive director of the Urban Conservancy.
Lead author Molly Keogh shot this photo near Bohemia, looking northeast over the marshes of Breton Sound in southeastern Louisiana. (courtesy of Tulane University)
By Barri Bronston, Tulane University
A new Tulane University study questions the reliability of how sea-level rise in low-lying coastal areas such as southern Louisiana is measured and suggests that the current method underestimates the severity of the problem. The research is the focus of a news article published this week in the journal “Science.”
Relative sea-level rise, which is a combination of rising water level and subsiding land, is traditionally measured using tide gauges. But researchers Molly Keogh and Torbjörn Törnqvist argue that in coastal Louisiana, tide gauges tell only a part of the story.
The city aims to reduce litter that could end up in storm drains. (via New Orleans City Council)
Starting Jan. 31, New Orleans residents can opt out receiving unsolicited printed materials by adding their name to a new “Do Not Toss” registry through the city’s website, nola.gov or by calling 311.
Residents on the list may still receive unsolicited printed materials, including newspapers, but the items must be placed on a doorstep, dropped into a mail slot, attached to the door or hand delivered. The ordinance aims to reduce litter on streets and sidewalks and remove potential safety hazards.
The City Council unanimously passed the “Do Not Toss” ordinance on Dec. 20. It was sponsored by District C Councilwoman Kristin Gisleson Palmer, District B Councilman Jay H. Banks and District E Councilwoman Cyndi Nguyen.
The City of New Orleans wants Orleans Parish residents to recycle their Christmas trees again this season to help coastal restoration efforts. Residents can place trees curbside before 5 a.m. on their regularly scheduled collection day between Thursday, Jan. 10 and Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019.
from the City of New Orleans
Mayor LaToya Cantrell reminded residents that the City will continue its program of recycling Christmas trees in an effort to promote the restoration of Louisiana’s wetlands and to assist in the protection of the Louisiana coastline. Continue reading »
By Jesse Baum
jesse.blacktree@gmail.com
The Krewe of Mid City rolls down St. Charles Avenue. (Zach Brien, UptownMessenger.com)
Parade throws, one the biggest draws of the Carnival season, have become one of its biggest sources of controversy, with a growing push to move Mardi Gras away from the waste and excess symbolized by the all the plastic beads filling our streets and catch basins after every parade.
An Urban Conservancy conference held at the historic Carver Theater on Oct. 18 was titled “The Future of Mardi Gras.” Its focus was on sustainability and culture; panelists and environmental advocates discussed how to return the focus to the local artistry that creates Mardi Gras’ most memorable floats, throws and costumes
The audience had gathered to hear about the Carnival’s future—but the panel discussion began with the past.
According to New Orleans historian John Magill, a panelist at the event, early Mardi Gras parades did not have throws. The tradition, Magill explained, began with trinkets that were dispensed by a Santa Claus who walked through the crowd—as Mardi Gras was a post-Christmas holiday, rather than a pre-Easter Holiday. A local toy store provided the parcels.
Fast-forward to today—Mardi Gras is a bacchanalian extravaganza that generates 900 tons of waste each year. Last year the figure was 12,000 tons, and the city made national news when 93,000 pounds of beads were pulled from catch basins along a five-block stretch of St. Charles avenue.
