Weekend Update: Cafe & Relay

Isn't it nice to still be able to call Monday part of the weekend?

* I went to the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse this weekend to catch "The Departed." I'm sure the effect was exaggerated since grew up there and bad Boston accents are like nails on a blackboard for me, but everyone talked like they were doing a bad JFK impression. Good movie with a bad ending, but the fact that cold beer was served saved the evening. One thing I wasn't a fan of -- they gave us plastic utensils. Seemed wasteful.

* What's Up Eric pointed me to an event Front Page hosts every month called "Cafe Scientifique: A Place to Eat, Drink and Talk About Science." The next one takes place Tuesday, March 6th from 6-8pm and is titled "The 'Shocking' Science Behind Electric Cars." I have the CRM meeting that night, but I'll try to stop by!

* My friend Jen is helping organize the Arlington Relay for Life, being held in June at Wakefield High School. They're having a kickoff event Tuesday Feb. 20th at Mackey's in Crystal City, check it out!

* In the wake of DC's innovative move, another city is looking at adding rubber sidewalks. This time, it's Philadelphia.

* Funny story from the Post about a close encounter with a beaver.

Arlington Co. Board Begins 2007 with a Breath of Fresh AIRE

Just got back from the Arlington County Board's traditional New Year's Day session. It was loaded with red meat for the tree-hugging crowd (and yes, I'm aware of the irony of connecting those two political phrases).

Just how green was it? Three different board members referenced An Inconvenient Truth (official site, my review, buy the DVD).

My biggest bone of contention with the County Board -- and I don't have many -- has been that in a green-and-getting-greener community like Arlington, there's no reason it shouldn't be pushing the envelope of environmentally-friendly policy. Yet DC gets the headlines for requiring green buildings and innovating on things like rubber sidewalks.

But today's meeting marked the start of a new era for Arlington's environmental policies, with new Board Chair Paul Ferguson kicking off his Fresh AIRE (Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions) program. Arlington County has already reduced its emissions 2% since 2000, and Fresh AIRE aims to cut emissions another 10% by 2012 from that 2000 baseline.

Ferguson pointed out several ways Arlington residents could quickly, easily, and affordably contribute to the effort, though he was careful to avoid nannyism, citing Jimmy Carter's sweater speech (not to be confused with Weezer's Sweater Song). The county will be providing some incentives for people to get started:

* Giving out 2,000 compact fluorescent light bulbs at county events over the next year
* Exploring personal property tax (car tax) discounts for drivers of hybrid vehicles
* The county and Dominion Virginia Power will pay for dozens of homes to get energy audits

You can watch video from the board meeting on the County website, or read the text of Ferguson's address.

The elephant in the room, as always, is funding. The dichotomy is visible in the Sun Gazette's coverage of the meeting -- separate articles detailing Ferguson's initiative and the possibility of a tight budget ahead, without mentioning how either might be affected by the other. Obviously I'm not the one writing the budget, but I'd certainly be willing to pay more (in my case, through higher property taxes via higher rent) to make sure the environmental initiatives have the money they need.

Please email board members to let them know you support all the new environmental initiatives and want to make sure they're fully funded!

Rubber Sidewalks: A Win-Win Policy

According to the AP, the District has invested $60,000 in buying sidewalks made from recycled tire rubber.

"The rubber squares are up to three times more expensive than concrete slabs but last longer, because tree roots and freezing weather won't crack them. That, in turn, could reduce the number of slip-and-fall lawsuits filed over uneven pavement.

"The shock-absorbing surface also happens to be easier on the joints of joggers, and more forgiving when someone takes a spill.

"And the rubber sidewalks are considered more environmentally friendly: They offer a way to recycle some of the estimated 290 million tires thrown out each year in the U.S., and they do not constrict tree roots the way concrete slabs do."

Has Arlington looked into rubber sidewalks? Here's a link to Rubbersidewalks.com.