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GreenTown’s top picks for Earth Day events near you include the following: Saturday, April 21 Earth Day Celebration at Shaped by Water. 12noon-4pm Los Altos History Museum, 51 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos Riveropolis artist, Gregory Gavin will bring his play river for kids to play in. Water Wizard, Kathy Machado, will dazzle them with her magic show at 1pm. Lots of organizations will be on hand with the lastest information on how to conserve and protect our water resources. Fun for the whole family! See poster. Spring Native Plant Sale. 10am-3pm Hidden Villa, 26870 Moody Road, Los Altos Hills Scores of species of native plants, seeds, and bulbs for sale. See poster. Sunday, April 22 Earth Day Every Day in Los Altos Hills, 1-4pm Westwind Barn, 27210 Altamont Road, Los Altos Hills “Live Wild Cats” education presentation by Leopard’s Etc. at 1:30 and 3:00pm. See poster. Water Lilies Installation in Palo Alto, all day Opening Remarks, 12-12:30pm. Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, Byxbee Park Parking Lot, 2375 Embarcadero Road. Hear from artist Judith Selby Lang and Palo Alto Art Center Director, Karen Kienzle, and celebrate the opening of Water Lilies, the Palo Alto Art Center’s latest temporary site-specific installation. See poster. #EarthDay

I was talking with someone yesterday who asked me, “How can people drive less?”  This is an excellent question. In suburbs like Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, we habitually get in a car to go places and can’t imagine how else to get around. How to Drive Less In Town or Nearby Combine trips when you are running errands.  Stop on the way home from someplace to run that quick errand (e.g. pick up that prescription refill on the way home from work). If you need to drive kids to events or school, carpool with other families. When heading to the grocery store for just one or two things, try going on your bike or on foot.  If you don’t have a basket, be sure to grab a backpack to carry your purchases. Bike or walk to school with your kids instead of driving.  It can be a fun way to start your day. If you go to a fitness center or yoga studio, try walking or biking there instead of driving.  Your body will be warmed up when you arrive and you’ll probably enjoy the trip. Public Transit – Really? Public transit can be a challenge in getting around the suburbs.  Busses and trains are less convenient than driving and they may not run frequently in the “burbs.”  But sometimes the hurdle is just that we haven’t done it and aren’t familiar with how to use it.  We have questions like “When does the bus or train come?  How long will it take to get to my destination? How do I get a ticket?” It can be daunting. So, during our 2-week Drive Less Challenge, take the opportunity to try out public transit.  Make it a fun excursion.  Try taking the light rail to the Tech Museum in San Jose.  Make a Saturday visit to downtown San Francisco by driving to the Millbrae BART station (parking is only $2) and then picking up BART to downtown. Or try taking Caltrain to San Francisco and grabbing a bus to the Metreon or MOMA.  (Caltrain youth fares for kids older than 4 and younger than 18 are only $3.25 each way from Mountain View to downtown San Francisco.  If you’re 65 or older, you pay the same price as youth.  Kids 4 and under ride free when accompanied by an adult.) Kids love discovering a new way to get around.  When my son was in junior high school, he and a friend decided they wanted to take the bus from Los Altos to Palo Alto one Saturday evening.  So, they mapped out the trip and figured out the schedules using the VTA website.  They felt so independent and had a great adventure.  They found out that their bus fare was a real bargain – especially when they saw the bill for their dinner at California Pizza Kitchen! What are Your Ideas for Driving Less?  Share them in the Comments section.

The Drive Less Challenge starts on Earth Day, April 22 and runs for just two weeks. Last year, the Los Altos and Los Altos Hills community earned a 5th place rank out of 9 communities participating.  We collectively logged more than 8,500 green miles and saved tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.  This year, we’re hoping to do even better! Twenty-five of our local businesses have contributed some great prizes in the form of valuable gift certificates.  Altogether, these merchants have contributed over $1300 worth of prizes.  Here are some of them: $29.99 gift certificates from Chain Reaction Bicycles $10 gift certificates from Bicycle Outfitters $40 gift certificate from Skateworks $40 gift certificate from Sumo Sushi Boat Breakfast or lunch for two from Rick’s Café $100 massage gift certificate from Shawsu $50 gift card from Safeway $20 gift cards for Adventure Toys $20 gift certificates for Casa Lupe Certificate for an extra large pizza from Spot Pizza $10 gift certificates from Tom’s Depot $20 gift certificate from Chef Chu’s $35 dinner coupon from Marie Callender’s $10 pie coupon from Marie Callender’s $5 gift certificates for Gourmet Works $10 gift certificate for New Wing Wah Restaurant Gift certificate for the children’s Playroom at Bumble $10 gift certificate from Linden Tree Books Gift certificate from Alabasta Flower Shop Ice cream cones from Baskin Robbins 31 Flavors Sign up now so you’ll be eligible for random prize drawings that start on the very first day of the contest.  To be eligible for random prize drawings, you MUST select Los Altos/Hills as your participating community. Save Gas! Have Fun! Win Prizes!

by Gary Hedden, GreenTown Volunteer The recent storms have been handled with ease along Rosita Ave in Los Altos.  The newly rebuilt Rosita Park has a lot of impervious surface so storm water runoff was a big concern.  With three tennis courts and a big parking lot, water could have surged down the street into the storm drain, carrying with it lawn chemicals, oil from cars, and other pollutants that harm our creeks and Bay and the wildlife in them. Curb cuts along Rosita Ave. help direct stormwater to a bioswale. Photo credit: Gary Hedden But it didn’t. Instead curb cuts cleverly directed the water to infiltration areas filled with a special soil, slowing the flow and allowing the water to sink into the subsurface.  These planted areas that slow and help sink water are sometimes referred to as bioswales.  Pipes buried 18 inches deep eventually carry excess water to the storm drain. According to Larry Lind, Senior Engineer with the City of Los Altos, this approach will “slow the flow into the storm drain and allow micro-organism treatment of the water.”  So we get both flood control and cleaner water in our creeks.  Denise Welsh, who lives at the corner of Rosita and Campbell, says she and her husband are “extremely pleased” with how well the system works. Three cheers to the City of Los Altos for a job well done. Rocks and special soil in the swale help to slow and sink the stormwater. Photo credit: Gary Hedden

REC Solar cars parked in front of the Bike Shop at 359 State St. by Gary Hedden Volunteer – GreenTown Los Altos Brian Boggs talks with Ben Chates, REC Solar Energy Consultant. Over two dozen eager residents turned out Wednesday night for a community workshop hosted by GreenTown Los Altos to kick off an initiative to get more solar panels installed in Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.  Working with Bay Area Climate Collaborative’s SunShares program, a group discount has been obtained that offers local residents substantial savings.  Kevin Armstrong, technical advisor for the SunShares program, reported that the selection team screened several proposals and picked REC Solar on the basis of price, quality and experience.  The first step in getting a solar installation is to sign up and then REC Solar takes over. Kevin Armstrong, Technical Advisor, SunShares program Jay Hermon, Northern California Sales Manager for REC Solar explained that you will get a no-obligation bid and you will quickly know if it makes sense.  He also told the story of REC Solar – started in 1997 by two Cal Poly graduates and now with over 7000 installations completed.  He told how solar works and how it feeds energy back into the PG&E grid – and the best part is when “the meter literally runs backwards.”  He next explained that the lease options now available, actually power purchase agreements, mean “homeowners can install solar with little or no money down and see immediate savings.”  In addition, Ben Chates, Solar Energy Consultant, mentioned that “we keep the systems up and running because that is the way we get referrals.” Join GreenTown Los Altos and SunShares in the move to clean solar energy.  This group buy offer is a really great deal, but the registration is only open until the end of June, so don’t wait.  It can be a win for the environment – and a win for you. #BACC #BayAreaClimateCollaborative #Residentialsolar #SunShares

REC Solar panel installation. Photo courtesy, REC Solar, Inc. By Peg Champion, GreenTown Correspondent Residents of Los Altos and Los Altos Hills are one step closer to affordable solar power. In January, GreenTown joined three other San Mateo County cities – Hillsborough, Portola Valley and Woodside – in SunShares, an innovative group-buy program. The program, sponsored by Bay Area Climate Collaborative (BACC), helps communities in the Bay Area advance their sustainability goals. “This program will help you reduce utility bills, increase home comfort and generate clean energy,” says Kevin Armstrong, technical advisor at GroupEnergy, the administrator for the program. “In addition to the great group discounts on solar, there are significant savings available – up to $4,000 – through energy-efficiency rebates from Energy Upgrade California.” The federal energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC), available through 2016, provides tax credits for up to 30 percent of the total system cost. Solar panel installation, John Bigler residence, Los Altos. Photo by John Bigler. Sharing with Others – the Group-Buy Model GreenTown Program Manager Gary Hedden says that the new program not only delivers savings 15 percent lower than current market rates, it also eliminates customer confusion in the complex bid-evaluation process. In the process, a resident is often forced to compare “apples to oranges” in terms of installation, length of contract, pricing, etc. “We’ve taken care of a crucial first step for anyone interested in solar. SunShares issued a Request for Proposal and, on March 12, completed the difficult process of vetting and selecting providers from among seven solar and two energy-upgrade companies.” The SunShares evaluation committee chose REC Solar for the solar installations and SDI Insulation for energy-saving upgrades. REC Solar will offer discounted pricing, as well as a solar lease/power purchase agreement (PPA), which enables homeowners to install solar with little or no money down and to see immediate savings on their utility bill. SDI Insulation is an approved PG&E contractor in the Energy Upgrade California program. Solar System Savings Hedden says residents with energy bills averaging $100 or more per month can save money using a solar photovoltaic (PV) system. Here’s how it works: PV systems generate electricity during the day, when demand throughout PG&E’s territory is the greatest.  Any excess power generated by your PV system is sent to the utility grid. Your utility meter tracks how much electricity you take and how much your system gives to the grid. Excess generation earns you credits from your utility company, a process known as net energy metering. By installing a PV system, you’re contributing to a cleaner, greener and more efficient distributed energy grid. “Collaborating with BACC SunShares on this effort is an important part of GreenTown Los Altos’s ongoing Energy Savers Program, which provides information and online assessments to reduce home energy use and increase renewable energy,” says GreenTown Los Altos Chair Margie Suozzo. “We are pleased to participate in this new collaborative effort to expand solar energy in Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.” For more details on how BACC SunShares can help you reduce your electric bill – and your carbon footprint – email energy@GreenTownLosAltos.org or come to the workshop Wednesday, March 21, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at 359 State St. Resources Register for the workshop. For information on the benefits of going solar, read the BACC report “Why Go Solar?” Learn about the GreenTown Los Altos’s Energy Savers Program. To find out more about solar PV and other energy-efficiency measures for your home. For more information about the BACC SunShares program. Peg Champion is a member of GreenTown Los Altos and the principal of Champion Organic Communications. Her work focuses on communication and education strategies to encourage sustainable behavior. #SunShares #Residentialsolar #BACC #Solargroupbuyprogram #BayAreaClimateCollaborative

Attendees get up to speed on greywater rules and regs. Greywater systems take water from bathroom sinks, showers, tubs, and washing machines and reuse it elsewhere, typically on the landscape. In Santa Clara County, more than half our water is used for landscaping. We can cut our outdoor water use by reusing laundry water, which accounts for about 10% of the typical resident’s water use, with a “laundry-to-landscape” greywater system, the focus of a March 10th GreenTown Los Altos workshop. Participants prime and glue greywater distribution pipes. Twenty-four highly-engaged participants gathered at the home of Kacey Fitzpatrick, former GreenTown Executive Director, to learn about and install a system that would use Kacey’s dirty laundry water to water fruit trees throughout the yard. Greywater guru, Forrest Linebarger, member of GreenTown’s Leadership Team and Principal of Vox Design Group, an award-winning sustainable design firm, led the workshop. After learning about the rules and regulations governing greywater systems in California, participants got their hands dirty, cutting and laying PVC pipe, priming and gluing joints, and installing valves. Linebarger and Fitzpatrick had done some work previously — digging lines and setting up the interior plumbing — so the group was able to complete the installation in just a few hours and witness the new system in action. Laundry water flowed freely to three mulch basins strategically placed around Fitzpatrick’s yard. If you are interested in hosting a GreenTown workshop at your home or would like to learn more about what GreenTown is doing to reduce water use, contact water@GreenTownLosAltos.org. To find out more about greywater: Check out this KPIX5 News Story featuring a system Forrest installed in Mountain View Visit WhollyH20 and Greywater Action. Click here for a list of Bay Area installers. Linebarger hands Fitzpatrick her new greywater system manual.

Ryan and sister Cameron Cox, 3rd and 2nd grader at Santa Rita Elementary The GreenTown Walk or Wheel (WoW!) program honors kids who walk or ride their bikes to school. Ryan Cox 3rd Grader, Santa Rita Elementary School Cameron Cox 2nd Grader, Santa Rita Elementary School How far and how often do you ride your bike to/from school? We ride our bikes everyday except when it rains. What is your favorite thing about riding your bike? My favorite thing is I get to ride with my sister, Cameron. What do you wish was better about your trip? I wish it was not so cold sometimes. Why do you ride your bike to school? It gets me active and I get to go outside. What is the funniest thing that happened on your ride? Coco, our neighbor’s dog, chased after us. How would you get other kids to ride their bikes to/from school? I would say they could win a Popsicle party for their class. #BikingtoSchool #SantaRita #WOWWalkorWheel

Last year Los Altos/Hills come in 5th out of the 9 competing communities – not bad for our first year.  But we can do better! If you plan to ride your bike during the Drive Less Challenge, you might want to tune up your safety and bike riding skills by coming to one of the Family Bike Days on March 30 or 31 or the Bike Rodeo on April 7. #DriveLessChallenge

Matt McTighe, 7th Grader at Blach Middle School The GreenTown Walk or Wheel (WoW!) program honors kids who walk or ride their bikes to school. Matt McTighe 7th Grader, Blach Middle School How far and how often do you ride your bike to/from school?  How long does it take? I ride about 2 miles from home to school and about 4 or 5 days a week.  It takes 15 minutes to ride to school. What is your favorite thing about riding your bike? I like going off mini-jumps on the curbs as I go to school.  I like going off road as well on gravel or dirt on the way to school near St. Simon on Grant Rd. What do you wish was better about your ride to/from school? I wish the sidewalks were wider so that I can ride my bike on them because the cars feel they are very close when I ride on the street. Why do you ride your bike to school? We live a little far away so I cannot walk and my dad does not want to drive me school. How would you get other kids to ride their bikes to/from school? Why would they drive in a car when they live so close to school and could get there just as fast? #BikingtoSchool #BlachMiddleSchool #WOWWalkorWheel

Remember the feeling of first learning to ride a bicycle on your own—without training wheels and without a parent’s balancing hand? Remember that sudden rush of freedom? Not only is bicycling fun and freeing, it is also a great way to get exercise. But bicycling comes with risks. To address these, the Los Altos Police Department, in partnership with the GreenTown Los Altos WoW! program and the Los Altos Recreation Department is holding Family Bike Days designed to teach young bicyclists the skills they need to be better cyclists: March 30, 2012, 3:30pm-6:30pm, Oak Avenue Elementary School, 1501 Oak Avenue, Los Altos, in cooperation with Oak Avenue Elementary School PTA March 31, 2012, 10:00am-1:00pm, Santa Rita Elementary School, 700 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos, in cooperation with Santa Rita Elementary PTA April 7, 2012, 9:30am, Hillview Community Center at the Los Altos Recreation Department’s Easter Egg Hunt These events are made up of a series of stations, each addressing an important aspect of safe cycling. Participants will have their bikes inspected and helmets fitted, then learn about and practice bicycle-handling skills that will increase their enjoyment of bicycling and could some day save their lives. Parents must be present at the Family Bike Days and must sign a permission form for their children to participate. The Family Bike Days are paid for by the City of Los Altos. For more information or to volunteer contact SafeMoves at 408-374-8991 or email bike@greentownlosaltos.org. Recycle that Bike! Do you have a bike that is not being used? Want to help children in need experience the joy and freedom of cycling? GreenTown Los Altos is partnering with the Silicon Valley Bicycle Exchange for its first annual Used Bike Drive at the Santa Rita Family Bike Day: March 31, 10:00am-1:00pm, Santa Rita Elementary School, 700 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos. We will be accepting gently used bikes of all sizes. Flat tires and broken or missing parts are no problem, but we can’t restore paint and can’t reverse corrosion. So please donate thoughtfully. For more information or to volunteer, contact Kathleen Santora at 408-893-9091 or contact bike@greentownlosaltos.org. #bike #losaltosschools

Grist uncovered a fun list of 41 rules for lady bicyclists dating from 1895.  Click the image below to go to the Grist.org story and read all 41 rules on the brainpickings.org site. Comic by Kate Beaton. © 1999-2012 Grist Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved.