environment

Nonprofit for sustainability to host block party Saturday

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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. “We saw so much success with light bulbs, that we have expanded our programs to include backyard gardens and rain barrels. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to re-introduce ourselves to our community, and to make new friends.”

A staple of Green Light New Orleans’ rain barrel program is the public art component, whereby each rain barrel is hand-painted by New Orleans artists and volunteers. Green Light’s Board Chair Rebecca Madura is a local artist who has painted many of the barrels that now collect water across the city.

environment

Tree planting and rain-barrel painting among the activities at Hoffman Triangle event

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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. The Urban Conservancy is working with Launch NOLA Green, Sustaining Our Urban Landscape (SOUL), Green Light New Orleans, Water Block, and the city’s Office of Resilience and Sustainability — as well as Hoffman Triangle residents, churches, schools and others — to improve the neighborhood’s stormwater conditions. “This event is part of a larger outreach effort aimed at understanding community needs, assets and growth opportunities” says Atianna Cordova, founder of Water Block and outreach manager for the project. At the Green Your Neighborhood event, Hoffman Triangle residents can learn about effective stormwater management techniques and resources to help reduce flooding on their properties and on their streets.

coastal preservation

Tulane study says seas may be rising faster than thought

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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. Tide gauges in such areas are anchored an average of 20 meters into the earth rather than at the ground surface.

city government

Reminder: Christmas trees will be recycled this week for coastal restoration

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Christmas trees this week will be picked up this week during the second trash collection, from Wednesday, Jan. 9, to Saturday, Jan. 12. The program of recycling Christmas trees, funded by the city’s Office of Resilience and Sustainability, is an effort to promote the restoration of Louisiana’s wetlands and to assist in the protection of the Louisiana coastline. Orleans Parish residents eligible for city trash collection are encouraged to recycle their Christmas trees by placing them curbside before 5 a.m. on their second regularly scheduled collection day.

city government

Recycle Christmas trees for coastal restoration

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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.

environment

Can Mardi Gras value artistry over excess?

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By Jesse Baum
jesse.blacktree@gmail.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.