September 2010

September 2010

Topics in this months newsletter

Message from the President

Go Wild for Land Conservation Month!

Some people might not know this, but my day job is with The Nature Conservancy. For 12 years I’ve been working with other conservation land managers from our eleven state parks, four National Wildlife Refuges, Navy, and countless FWC, County and municipally-owned natural areas to keep our island ecosystems healthy.

On islands, because of their finite size, the effects of human population are much more apparent. What we do in our very backyards can cause the smallest benefit or harm to the ecosystems that surround us. The Nature Conservancy, GLEE and many others have been involved with drafting the City of Key West’s Climate Change Adaptation Plan, which includes preparing for sea level rise. Myself and other conservation land managers have been tasked with how to make our flora and fauna as resilient as possible. Part A of the strategy involves keeping our natural areas as healthy as possible and Part B involves you helping to add a little bit of wildness to your piece of earth.

Take advantage of the rainy season to plant a native plant! Certified GreenThumb Nurseries can help you find a native plant that will feed butterflies or migratory birds. They offer Florida Friendly mulches, and slow release fertilizers and do not sell invasive plants. There are currently only a few certified nurseries in the Keys, so please urge your favorite nursery to become one! Be sure to check out the calendar for wildlife related events this month!

Alison Higgins, GLEE President

Florida Keys

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GLEE Joins EcoWeek to Energize Future Green Potential

EcoWeek

Mark you calendars for these upcoming events!
  • Key Largo – Green Futures Expo, Monday, Nov. 1st
  • Key West – Green Life Expo - Saturday, Nov. 6th
  • Marathon – Green Business Expo, Saturday, Nov. 6th
  • Lower Keys – Green Homes Expo, Sunday, Nov. 7th

Coming to a Key near you, GLEE is planning four fabulous regional Expos in November that will educate and engage both residents and visitors to the Florida Keys. The Expos are part of EcoWeek, Nov. 1-7, a series of events designed to promote eco-tourism in the Florida Keys while encouraging locals to walk the walk of environmental stewardship. Click here for EcoWeek Updates....

Begin your Expo exploration in Key Largo at the Murray Nelson Govt. & Cultural Center, MM 102, from 4-7 pm Monday, Nov. 1st for the GLEE Green Futures Expo. With a focus on renewable and alternative energy and transportation, this weekday event offers a fresh breeze for the Monday doldrums with information on the many ways you can save money, reduce waste, and do your part to reduce emissions. EcoWeek will partner with GLEE to host a side-by-side Healthy Living Fair for those who want to learn more about tending the body, mind and spirit.

On Saturday Nov. 6th, Marathon Community Park becomes the Green Business Expo from noon – 5 pm. Featuring businesses that provide green services and products for the home and workplace, exhibits will also provide information on resource conservation and the R4 practices of reduce, reuse, recycle and rot (compost). EcoWeek will add to the menu with a Healthy Living Fair featuring new age practitioners and products.

Also on Saturday, just down the road at the Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden on College Rd., GLEE is planning a Green Life Expo from 2-6 pm. Here you can attend workshops, participate in a Tot Swap for all baby and toddler needs, taste vegetarian delights from local restaurants, and sample organic wines and beers. Exhibits on R4 practices, healing arts and clean energy will make this an eclectic event suitable for the whole family.

On Sunday, Nov. 7th, visit the Green Homes Expo on the grounds of Sugarloaf School, MM 19.5, from noon – 5 p.m. Learn how to detoxify your home with green products and practices, speak with green building and interior design professionals, and then visit the adjoining EcoWeek Healthy Living Fair to focus on your personal and spiritual well being.

For general information about GLEE Expos, contact info@keysglee.com or call Bridget at 305-923-1994.

For more information on EcoWeek Healthy Living Fairs contact Sandy at mcteagues@bellsouth.net, or call 305-393-9399.

To learn more about other EcoWeek events go to FloridaKeysEcoWeek.com or contact Ruth at ruthgrace@bellsouth.net, 305-394-1227.

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GLEE Members Given Priority to Exhibit & Sponsor Expos

Coming to a Key near you, GLEE is planning four fabulous regional Expos in November that will educate and engage both residents and visitors to the Florida Keys. The Expos are part of EcoWeek, Nov. 1-7, a series of events designed to promote eco-tourism in the Florida Keys while encouraging locals to walk the walk of environmental stewardship.

Known for producing Green Living Expos since 2005, GLEE is expanding efforts this year by producing four Expos, each with a different location and theme, all of which will provide information and resources for greening your life, business and island, including exhibits, workshops, products and services.

GLEE Expos will receive additional exposure this year as an EcoWeek sponsor, with TDC funds that provide advertising from Palm Beach to Key West and in several state and regional publications. Your Sponsorship could mean exposure of your name and logo in Keys-wide print and digital media promotion during this weeklong event and in GLEE communications throughout the year.

To show appreciation for our members’ support, GLEE is offering business members first priority for Expo exhibitor space and sponsorship opportunities. Member registration and sponsorship sign-up will be emailed to members by Sept. 5. Priority placement for business members is available through Sept. 16.

Registration and Sponsorship for non-members begins on Sept. 17th. Online registration is required to reserve space.  Click here for Exhibitor & Sponsorship Opportunities.

Registration information and link will be available on the KeysGLEE.com homepage. Space is available at each Expo on a first come basis.

Questions? Contact info@keysglee.com.

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Florida Keys Newest Unwanted

Land Managers Offer Prizes for Discovering New Invasive Species

Air PotatoWhat if the first iguanas abandoned in the Keys had been rounded up before they mated? What if the early populations of Brazilian pepper had been removed before birds and raccoons spread the seeds throughout the Keys? The Florida Keys Invasive Exotics Task Force, comprised of Keys-wide public and private conservation land managers is attempting to find out. While certain invasive exotic plants and animals have become so widespread that they are a constant detriment to natural ecosystems and wildlife, other mainland non-natives are just now crossing our borders and can be stopped, according to Alison Higgins, Land Conservation Program Manager of The Nature Conservancy.

“Air Potato, Burma Reed, and Pythons are all examples of non-native species that have proven to be major invaders on the mainland, but are just showing up here. If we can find and get rid of them now it will be a lot cheaper and a lot less harmful to our natural areas,” said Higgins. To that end, Exotics Task Force members, including State Parks, National Wildlife Refuges and private conservation groups are offering prizes to individuals that help find and map the group’s priority species. Prizes range from gift certificates and park passes for the most species per region, to a snorkel trip for two for the most species mapped overall.

To learn more about the Scavenger Hunt species and how to play, go to www.floridainvasives.org/Keys

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Cartons and Caps added to Recycling List

A few more items can be added to the recycling bin according to Monroe County Recycling Coordinator Colleen Murphy, who works with contracted haulers to provide information to the public.

“There’s been some confusion about the additions,” says Murphy. “Most people understand the plastic caps and lids addition. But the gable-top or aseptic containers like milk and juice cartons are another new recyclable on the list.”

The new additions apply to all areas serviced by WM recycling contracts, which include unincorporated Monroe County, Key West and Marathon.

For more information about county recycling guidelines from paper to electronics, download the county’s Recycling Brochure and post it near your trash area!  For Key West and Marathon, go to GLEE's How to Recycle page for recycling info.

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Community Garden Offers Plots and Communal Gardening

The GLEE community garden at the corner of Leon & Seminary Streets in Key West has flourished with an amazing bounty of homegrown, organic produce for the past two years. The garden has enjoyed an average membership of 40 members plus several school and youth groups. Discovering what grows in the tropics and how to grow organically without chemical fertilizers or pesticides has been a wonderful adventure for experienced and novice gardeners alike. In wintertime, over 45 varieties of vegetables and a few fruits produce an abundant harvest in the 4 x 10 ft. plots. Some crops, like collard greens, dinosaur kale, eggplant, sweet potatoes and herbs do well all year long.

The third garden season begins October 1st and runs through September 30, 2011. There will be a few plots available for new members @ $100 for the year, which includes a 2011 individual membership to GLEE. New members will be selected by lottery on September 12th. Those whose names are not drawn for a plot may still join the garden as a communal member. Invites to educational workshops and social events are extended to garden members as well. Interested parties should contact Jody Smith Williams at kwjody@yahoo.com or 305-304-2064.

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Florida Keys Birding and Wildlife Festival Events Planned

The Twelfth Annual Florida Keys Birding and Wildlife Festival will run from September 22-26th, 2010. Keys-wide events include birding walks, wildlife tours, internationally known ornithologist Pete Dunne, wildlife art show and an environmental fair with a live panther! Learn more at http://keysbirdingfest.org

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Hooking Up to Sewer System? Put Your Septic Tank to Work

Residents who have connected to the city’s new sewer system have a terrific opportunity to save money on their water and sewer bills. They can do so by converting their unused septic tank into a cistern. The cost of doing this come close to the cost of conventional tank abandonment and the water that is collected in the converted cistern will reduce the homeowner’s water and sewer bill.

After connecting to the sewer, all residents are required to have the old tank pumped out. It’s at this point that people have a choice: they can either pay a contractor $450 to punch a hole in the bottom of the empty tank and fill it with gravel or, for about the same amount of money, convert the tank to a cistern.

Doing the latter is the smart move. Anyone who is handy can do much of the work himself. Others, like me, can hire someone. Either way it’s all perfectly legal. The Monroe County Department of Health now allows anyone to convert a septic tank to a cistern as long as it is properly sanitized. The water can’t be used for human consumption but is fine for washing cars and boats or watering plants and landscaping, among other uses.

Before you begin work, you’re required to obtain a permit from the Department of Health office. They charge a $50 fee for the permit and then another $50 for a mandatory water test.

The first step in the process is to spray the sides of the pumped out tank with a mixture of chlorine and water and then pressure wash the tank. Then connect a pipe from the downspout of the home’s gutters to the tank. If you don’t have gutters, you’ll need to install them and the installer can connect the tank at that time. We were fortunate to already have gutters and the company that installed them connected one of the downspouts to the tank. It is a good idea to install a piece of 1/8” mesh screen material at a suitable location in the path from the gutter to the cistern. This will catch any debris, which is flushed from the roof during a rainstorm.

Next, install a “candy cane” style PVC pipe to the other end of the tank to provide a place where any overflow can run out of the tank. You’ll need to cut a hole in the cement lid of the septic tank to do this. Add a grate or screen to the pipe to prevent rodent and mosquito access to the cistern. You can then direct the overflow water to an area that won’t flood.

Next install a pipe in the cistern that can be connected to an external pump. That means cutting another hole in the cement and then sealing the opening around the pipe so critters and mosquitoes can’t get in. That pipe will be connected to a small electric pump and pressure tank that should sit above the flood plain. These pumps are readily available locally but also can be purchased online for less money from Harbor Freight (www.harborfreight.com). They call them “shallow well pumps.”

One of the pricier aspects of my conversion was hiring a local electrician to wire in the pump with a GFCI (ground fall circuit interrupter) switch that is weather tight. Having experienced the flooding of Hurricane Wilma, I wanted to be sure that the pump would be protected against shorting out. It’s also possible to simply plug the pump into an available socket.

Finally, the pump should be connected to a standard garden faucet. Now wait for it to rain so you can test the water quality. Even though it was rainy season, we waited and waited and waited. Finally, several heavy storms filled our 1,100-gallon cistern. The DOH requires that the water level be 12 inches from the top for their test. In addition, the chlorine levels can be no more than 1 part per million (ppm), the pH between 6 and 8, and the water is clear. We used a simple swimming pool tester to check on these because each additional inspection costs another 50 bucks. We called the Department of Health and they arranged to come out to inspect.

Here’s where we made our first mistake. We ignored the sage advice from conversion guru, the late Fran Wagner, to add 3 to 4 gallons of plain (unscented) chlorine bleach. Our sewer installer suggested swimming pool shock instead. Wrong. For reasons that are too complicated to explain here, the shock didn’t kill the e coli bacteria and we flunked our first DOH test.

After pumping the tank out onto our drain field with the newly installed electric pump, we waited again for several weeks before the tank refilled. This time we followed Fran’s advice and added bleach. Success!

Now instead of using FKAA water for car washing and plant watering, we’ll use wonderfully pure – and free – rainwater. Because the Department of Health tested it, we know the water is safe. And both our water bill and our sewer bill will be reduced. Now that’s a win for us and a win for our environment since water has become a very precious commodity.

Note: If you have one of those newer anaerobic tanks, the process is a bit more complicated and you might want to consult someone who has made the conversion.

Michael Welber is an environmental activist and author of the Crabby Hermit, a blog that defies authority with cynical optimism and also offers useful advice.

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Pigeon Key Picnic Potluck Picks

GLEE’s Member Appreciation event at Pigeon Key brought members -- new and old – to the annual event held on Aug. 22. The grilled veggie burgers and potluck dishes made for a vegetarian feast fit for any gourmet table and served as proof that eating low on the food chain offers tasty nutrition with minimal impact on the earth and all her resources.

Special thanks to those who chose to walk or bike the 2 miles from “the mainland” to Pigeon Key on the old bridge. Each was given a small token of appreciation for reducing Co2 and living healthy active lives.

A vote on Best Tasting and Most Healthy dishes won recognition for chefs Bill DeHart (Mango Coleslaw), Jody Smith-Williams (Daikon Beet Carrot Slaw and Collard Chips) and Jen DeMaria (Vegan Cupcakes). The votes for these dishes were, hands down, the highest in both categories! For links to winning recipes, click on the links.

A presentation by Jane Cameron of Bee Heaven Farm Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program informed members of limited opportunities to receive shares of organic veggies from the 5-acre farm that delivers to the Keys. After lunch, a tour of Pigeon Key by Executive Director Kelly McKinnon took visitors back in time with stories of hardship and perseverance by early Flagler Railroad workers and their families. Photos in the museum document the pioneer lifestyle with faces that reflect determination despite the hardscrabble existence of the time. The historic significance of Pigeon Key and it’s workers can be read in the construction of the buildings themselves, some of which were built to be temporary moveable structures and yet have lasted more than a century.

After lunch, guests were cooled by an afternoon rain shower that did not seem to dampen the spirit of sharing and green networking one bit as guests headed home by ferry, foot and bike.

Potluck FeastSweet Mango Slaw

Serving Size: 8
Ingredients:

  • 1 pound shredded cabbage or coleslaw blend
  • 1 mango, peeled, pitted and chopped
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
  • 1/3 cup sliced green onion
  • 1/3 cup light mayonnaise
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Place cabbage, mango, bell pepper and green onion in a large bowl. Whisk together remaining ingredients and add to bowl; toss well to coat.

Serving Tips:
Best served within 1 hour.
Prep Time: 10 minutes

Daikon Beet SlawDaikon Beet Carrot Slaw

Ingredients:

  • 1 medium Daikon radish (approx. 4 inches)
  • 1 medium beet, raw
  • 3 medium size carrots
  • ¼ cup red onion, minced
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
  • 3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
  • 1/4 chopped cilantro

Shred Daikon radish using food processor shredding attachment, or with hand shredder. Sprinkle with salt, set aside for 30 minutes.

Shred beet and carrots. Mix with Daikon after 30 minutes. Add onion, sesame oil, vinegar and sesame seeds and cilantro. Mix well, chill for 30 minutes, serve.

Serves 6

Collard Chips
  • Wash collard greens (very easy to grow in the Keys)
  • Remove center stems
  • Cut or tear into approx. 2 x 2 inch pieces, or as desired
  • Toss in bowl with a sprinkle of olive oil, Bragg's Amino Acids, and Nutritional Yeast
  • Spread out leaves on cookie sheet.
  • Bake at 275 degrees for 30 minutes

Serve as a healthy snack or as part of a meal.

Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes
  • 1 cup organic soy milk - unsweetened
  • 1 teaspoon Braggs organic vinegar
  • 3/4 cup organic vegan sugar
  • 1/3 cup organic canola (or other flavorless) oil (ok to use slightly less)
  • 1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon organic chocolate extract
  • 1 cup organic all purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup organic dark cocoa powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine grind sea salt
  1. Preheat oven to 350, and line muffin cups with liners.
  2. Whisk soy milk (or other non-dairy milk of choice) w/vinegar and set aside to curdle.
  3. Add the sugar, oil & extracts to the soy mixture and beat til foamy.
  4. In standing mixer sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder & salt. In 2 batches, add the wet mixture to dry mixture and beat till no lumps remain (do not overbeat), ok to have a few tiny limps remaining.
  5. Pour into liners, filling 3/4 way to top. Bake 18-20 minutes till toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

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