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Reader blogs

Green Living Store in Wichita!

Blog: New "Sustainable/Green Living" store in Wichita

Posted by Justin Bjork on June 27, 2011 at 12:26 p.m.

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Verde Sustainable Living to open at Mill Creek Village WICHITA — New “green” products come on the market every day, and now two Wichita brothers ...

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Come on Lawrence, let’s Take Charge!

Blog: Come on Lawrence, let's Take Charge!

Posted by Julie Anderson on May 22, 2011 at 12:42 a.m.

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Who doesn’t like to save money, right? Normally at Shop Talk we are talking savings when it comes to shopping. Today I’m going to tell ...

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Solar PV system

Blog: Notes from the Extension Office

Posted by Bill Wood on April 26, 2011 at 9:01 a.m.

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Our Douglas County Extension office installed a 4.2 kW solar photo voltaic (pv) electricity producing system in November 2010. If you would like to look ...

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For the future »

Grasslands conservation program deadline nears

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The Natural Resources Conservation Service in Kansas says Jan. 25 is the deadline to submit applications for the grassland reserve program. ...

For the future »

Support grows for Kansas water policy reforms

The Associated Press Legislators say support is building for Gov. Sam Brownback's proposals to change Kansas policies to conserve the state's water and extend the ...

Research and development »

Bugs may be resistant to genetically modified corn

By Rick Callahan, Associated Press One of the nation's most widely planted crops — a genetically engineered corn plant that makes its own insecticide — ...

Friends of the Kaw »

Happy Holidays from Friends of the Kaw

Thank you to all who gave one of the best gifts to the Kansas River this year – your comments opposing in-river dredging. Hundreds of ...

Making good choices »

Kansas reservoirs filling up with sediment

In this 2007, file photo Frank "Jerry" deNoyelles, KU ecology professor of the Kansas Biological Survey, launches a boat off the banks of Kanopolis Lake southwest of Salina. DeNoyelles is part of a team of researchers that is measuring the silt filling up Kansas reservoirs.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Two federal reservoirs in Kansas have been losing significant amounts of water storage capacity because of sedimentation, according to a study ...

Friends of the Kaw »

Kansas River Water Trail Makes Department of Interior Top 100 List

The America’s Great Outdoors Initiative has been set in motion by President Obama as a way to advance conservation and recreation in the United States. ...

For the future »

Ranch teaches farm to table process

Rock Bottom Ranch in Basalt, Colo., is offering a series of hands-on classes focused on the slaughter and butchering of farm animals.

JANET URQUHART, The Aspen Times BASALT, Colo. - It's one thing to grow a few backyard tomatoes. It's another to raise a pig and serve ...

Friends of the Kaw »

K-State Researchers to Release Kansas River Dredging Study

Dredging operation on the Kansas River owned by Kaw Valley Companies, one of the companies seeking expansion.

Private in-channel dredging operations on rivers like the Kansas River cause deepening and widening of the channel and accelerate erosion of the banks. As a ...

For the future »

Report shows Lawrence meeting goal to lower greenhouse gas emissions

By Chad Lawhorn In the battle against global warming, Lawrence can proclaim it is a good soldier, thus far. A new report from City Hall ...

Friends of the Kaw »

Friends of the Kaw Receives Awards and Focuses on Dredging Concerns

Friends of the Kaw Receives Two Major Awards Patagonia Environmental Grant: Patagonia has awarded Friends of the Kaw a grant for $8,000 dollars in support ...

Making good choices »

Fix-It Chick: Conserve energy by insulating hot-water pipes

By Linda Cottin Hot water loses 2-4 degrees of its heat when left in uninsulated lines. Insulating hot and cold water lines can save energy, ...

For the future »

Apply Today! City and County Launch "Common Ground" Program for Farmers, Gardeners

The City of Lawrence and Douglas County have made 12 sites available for community members to use during the 2012 growing season. The Common Ground ...

For the future »

KC firm helps develop low-cost green housing

KANSAS CITY, MO. (AP) - A Kansas City architecture firm has teamed up with an area Habitat for Humanity group to develop affordable, green housing ...

For the future »

FACT CHECK: GOP senator gasps for facts on asthma

Dina Cappiello, Associated Press It was a startling claim: Air pollution has no connection to asthma, Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul said on the Senate ...

Friends of the Kaw »

Major Dredging Expansion Threatens Kansas River

Thirteen sand dredging sites on the Kansas River are now up for public comment before the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. These sites comprise of ...

For the future »

Businesses hope to increase dredging along Kansas River; environmentalists warn that process is destructive

Several area companies hope to increase the amount of sand and gravel dredged from the Kansas River by 1 million tons per year. But before ...

For the future »

TransCanada says it will reroute planned pipeline

Keystone XL Oil Pipeline Hearing Rally at the Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center on 14th Street between Pennsylvania Avenue and Constitution Avenue in NW Washington DC on Friday afternoon, 7 October 201

By Grant Schulte, Associated Press LINCOLN, Neb. — Canadian pipeline developer TransCanada will shift the route of its planned oil pipeline out of the environmentally ...

Making good choices »

Free workshop to give tips on weatherization and home energy conservation

Local sustainability advocacy group Transition Kaw Valley will hold a free home energy conservation and weatherization workshop from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday ...

For the future »

US delays massive oil pipeline from Canada

WASHINGTON (AP) The State Department is ordering the developer of a pipeline that would carry oil from western Canada to Texas to reroute it around ...

For the future »

US mulls new route for Canada oil pipeline

Demonstrators against the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, protest outside the law offices of Nebraska Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood, in Norfolk, Neb., Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2011, while Alex Pourbaix, president of TransCanada Corp.'s energy and oil pipelines, holds a meeting inside with state senators to discuss the proposed route of the Keystone XL pipeline through the state.

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press The State Department is considering a plan that would reroute the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada away from ...

For the future »

Local group forming to support a tax on carbon

Most folks want energy costs to go down, so it’s rare to find a group pushing for energy costs to increase. But that’s the intention ...

Research and development »

Renewable energy options to be studied for Farmland Industries site

The former Farmland Industries site on the eastern edge of Lawrence is shown in an aerial photo taken Monday, May 16, 2011.

Federal agencies will spend $35,000 to study how the former Farmland Industries site could one day support the production of renewable energy. On Friday, the ...

Research and development »

Scientists hope to see birth of iceberg

Ben Panzer, a Kansas University PhD student in electrical engineering, works on snow radar equipment in NASA’s DC-8 aircraft as it flies over Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica. Standing is John Sonntag, Instrument Team Lead for Operation IceBridge.

Radar technology developed at Kansas University is helping NASA scientists track something they’ve never monitored before: the birth of an iceberg. Last month, a crew ...

For the future »

Douglas County investing in long-term sustainability

Upgrades to heating and air-conditioning systems at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center are on pace to save county taxpayers more than $50,000 this year. ...

Making good choices »

Can you tell bottled water from tap?

Lawrence resident Sam Groth signs a pledge to avoid drinking bottled water after taking a taste test to distinguish bottled water from tap on Wednesday at the corner of Ninth and Mass streets. Representatives from Think Outside the Bottle spent part of the afternoon talking with local residents about their drinking choices.

Not all water tastes the same. Or does it? That was the question a group of community organizers were posing to pedestrians on Massachusetts Street ...

Friends of the Kaw »

FOK Annual Dinner & Silent Auction

“Into the Sun – Kaw River” watercolor on paper by local artist and FOK board member Lisa Grossman. Each year Lisa donates one of her Kansas River paintings to the FOK silent auction. This particular watercolor is 8x10” and will be available for bidding during this year’s event.

Friends of the Kaw is hosting the FOK Annual Dinner & Silent Auction on November 17, 2011 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at the ...

Making good choices »

Firefighters, medics save energy, thousands of dollars during friendly competition

At Station #2 at 19th and Massachusetts sits a piece of Lawrence History an American LaFrance pumper and branded it #68 as it came via a box car on the railroad.

By Mark Fagan Turning off lights, computer monitors and treadmills helped Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical trim more than $1,500 from their electric bills during a ...

Making good choices »

Local musician warns of vampire energy through song

Robert Baker isn’t what you’d call an environmentalist. The Lawrence resident is a lifelong musician who was tasked in 2010 with penning the score to ...

Making good choices »

Fix-It Chick: Put a stake through vampire energy-suckers

By Linda Cottin Vampire power is a term coined to describe electrical power wasted by typical household electronics when they are plugged in but not ...

Research and development »

Manhattan, K-State win energy challenge over Lawrence, KU

TOPEKA -- The city of Manhattan and Kansas State University teamed up to win a $100,000 prize by defeating the city of Lawrence and Kansas ...

For the future »

New report provides in-depth analysis of food system in Douglas County area

As a heavy rain falls outside, Douglas County farmer Mark Wulfkuhle, second from right, talks about some of his farming practices at his Rocking H Ranch during the Douglas County Food Policy Council tour of Douglas County farms Friday, Nov. 9, 2010. According to a new report released by the council, there are 1,040 farms in Douglas County, down 36 percent from 1,630 in 1950.

The Douglas County Food Policy Council released a 75-page report today that provided a smorgasbord of information about the food system in Douglas, Jefferson and ...

Research and development »

State makes battle plan for toxic algae

BY CHRISTINE METZ During the past summer, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment tracked toxic blue-green algal blooms in more than 40 lakes and ...

For the future »

Writer calls for better environmental foresight in new book

Bryan Welch

By CHRISTINE METZ In 2007, Bryan Welch nearly killed himself on a twisty mountain road in Oregon. He was on a motorcycle and entering what ...

For the future »

Advocates hope Food Day eventually gains same staying power as Earth Day

Hubbard squash, a plant native to the region, is among the crops being grown by Brett Ramey on the Iowa Reservation near White Cloud. The squash will be used in a variety of dishes this weekend at the Haskell Indian Nations University indigenous food festival. The event is one of many being held over the next week and half in celebration of Food Day.

In spring 1970, at a time when industries could pump and dump practically whatever they wanted into the skies and waters, U.S. Sen. Gaylord Nelson ...

Westar Energy »

Westar begins citywide hookup to smart grid today

John Valdez installs Westar Energy's new SmartStar meters Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2011, at the Graystone Apartments in Lawrence.

Starting today, Lawrence will get a little smarter. Well, at least the electric meters in the city will. Westar Energy is beginning the mass installation ...

Making good choices »

Lawrence Electronic Recycling Event, Saturday, October 15th

The City of Lawrence will host an electronic recycling event on Saturday, October 15th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Free State High ...

For the future »

Don't forget: The Homegrown Lawrence Festival starts at 5:30 p.m.

Got Friday night plans? Tonight's Late Night at the Phog, of course, but if you aren't checking out the Jayhawks' first official scrimmage of 2011-2012, ...

Making good choices »

Add a little green to your Jayhawk tailgate

Crowds gathered on the hill near Memorial Stadium to tailgate for Thursday evening's KU football game against K-State.

What’s crimson and blue and green all over? With these tips, we hope it will be this weekend’s tailgate. An 8:15 p.m. start time for ...

For the future »

Pieces of razed buildings find new life at 'clean fill' site

Holli Joyce, stands on the edge of a Kansas City property that borders Interstate 70. Once a 1900s rock quarry, the property is now the site of a clean fill project, which accepts demolition debris with the hope of reusing the material.

Kansas City, Kan. — On a dead-end street in a not-so-nice neighborhood of Kansas City, Kan., a makeshift open air showroom has been set up ...

Making good choices »

Tips for removing leaves the green way

Turner Omelau, 7, left, hides inside a compost bag from his friend Taloa Lena, 6, as the two raked and played in the leaves in front of their houses in East Lawrence, Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011. The city is encouraging people to compost or mulch leaves rather than burn them or put them in the trash.

We all love the beauty of the changing leaves. What’s less enjoyable is managing them once they fall off the trees. Here are some ways ...

For the future »

Study of possible changes to Lawrence's trash and recycling system creating questions

You thought your trash day was a chore. Lawrence city commissioners are inching closer to their own trash day as a city-appointed task force moves ...

For the future »

EPA administrator job a whole new environment for KU professor

Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 Administrator Karl Brooks lives in Lawrence and is a Kansas University professor of environmental history. Brooks took on the role of EPA Region 7 administrator in 2010.

Attached to Karl Brooks’ hip is a ringing, buzzing reminder of how much his life has changed in the past year and a half. When ...

Westar Energy »

Westar to offer $100 home energy audit program

Just as the state’s Efficiency Kansas home energy audit program comes to an end, Westar Energy has announced a program that could replace it. Westar ...

Making good choices »

Lawrence writer uncovers homes made from materials destined for the dump

Jessica Kellner, editor of Natural Home and Garden magazine, is pictured on Thursday, Sept. 6, 2011 in the dining area of her Lawrence home. Kellner, who has craftily furnished her own home with many reclaimed items, recently wrote a book about homes made of items that were otherwise destined for the dump.The book is called Housing Reclaimed.

As editor of the Topeka-based magazine Natural, Home & Garden, Jessica Kellner had plenty of stories of families and organizations from across the country who ...

For the future »

Land with historic buildings latest easement for Kansas Land Trust

A 261-acre property in Clay County that houses threatened bird populations and historic structures dating back to pioneer days is the latest piece of land ...

For the future »

Nature advocate inspires Lawrence crowd

Author Richard Louv poses on the dock at the Miramar Reservoir in San Diego Monday June 27, 2005.

In the mind of Richard Louv, the clump of trees at the end of a suburban cul-de-sac is just as important as Yosemite National Park ...

Friends of the Kaw »

Third Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival

Friends of the Kaw will host the third annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival at 7:00pm on Friday, October 14 at Liberty Hall (646 Massachusetts ...

For the future »

$500,000 grant will help green buses

A $500,000 grant will help “green up” how students in Kansas get to school. Funded through Westar Energy and managed through the Kansas Association for ...

Making good choices »

State honors leaders in sustainability

Across Kansas, businesses, educational institutions and government offices have signed up to become “Green Teams.” Each year, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment recognizes ...

For the future »

Seed money: Homegrown Lawrence Festival raises money to get school gardens growing

Sesha Edie, 5, right, shows her father Brian something she found while playing in the garden while Jessica, left, helps Mira, 2, with a water bucket. Brian is an organizer of the Homegrown Lawrence Festival, Oct. 14. Part of his inspiration for working on the festival, which raises funds to start school gardens, is that Secha will start at public school next year.

How does your garden grow? If you’re a Lawrence school, you grow through grass-roots support. Several student gardens have sprouted up over the past few ...