Editorial - ES is committed to Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement

The evidence that our climate is changing is growing every day. But despite melting glaciers and predictions that the North Pole will be completely ice-free in the summer in another decade, the U.S. has one of the lowest percentages in the world of people who believe climate change is real and an even lower percentage (18 percent) believe this is a serious threat that needs to be addressed quickly.

So, what can those of us working on climate protection do to get more people on the energy conservation bandwagon? One study suggests the most effective strategy isn't to lecture people telling them what to do. Instead, the best thing is to show people what others are doing to conserve. If people are convinced everyone else is doing it, then they want to join in.

With that in mind, I decided to do a couple of YouTube videos, one on what the City of Eureka Springs is doing right to conserve energy, and another on what businesses and individuals are doing.

Greener police

What I found was that on both fronts, more good things are going on than I would have ever guessed! For example, the Eureka Springs Police Department has undertaken a number of measures to reduce energy costs. The building's HVAC unit was set wrong so it was conditioning outdoor air 100 percent instead of recycling indoor air. While some fresh air intake is necessary, too much can really spike the energy bills.

The police department also switched off the chiller to the water fountain, and bought an Energy Star refrigerator that uses little power. They turned down the temperature on the hot water heater, and have the thermostat in a locked box to keep control so the building isn't over conditioned.

Police Chief Earl Hyatt also welcomed two "energy descent consultants," volunteers from the local Planet Home climate protection group, to conduct an energy audit of the police station. Jerry Landrum and Will Ensslin went over the building with a fine-tooth comb, including climbing around in the attic to look at the air conditioning vents and insulation. One vent had been squashed down and insulation was disturbed, probably by someone laying cable. Fixing that is going to help significantly with heating and cooling bills.

The energy audit also made a number of other recommendations, like weatherstripping, that are cost-effective ways the police can reduce energy usage.

Then, of course, there is the great program the police department has for putting two patrolmen on bicycles downtown. That eliminates the cost and pollution from two squad cars while making the police more approachable. People often stop to ask questions of the bicycle cops. It is just plain good PR for the city.

Greener trolleys

Then there is the mass transit system. Lots of good green initiatives there. Eureka Springs is fortunate to have such a good mass transit system, especially in a town of just a little more than 2,000. But one drawback is the pollution from the diesel buses. I'm happy to say that Lamont Richie, director of the transit system, has a plan in place to reduce that pollution greatly by installing catalytic combustion units on the buses that will reduce pollution by up to 90 percent.

"We secured federal stimulus funding to purchase some of these filters for some of our vehicles," Richie said. " At the present time, we are in the process of seeking bids for these specially engineered devices. These filters will have a dramatic effect on our emissions, particularly on the diesel particulates, the sooty black smoke that is sometimes expelled."

In the past few years, Transit has been purchasing small buses. Richie said their size makes them more versatile and their fuel economy is so much better than the trolleys that they use these vehicles as much as possible.

"That practice was especially helpful last year when we were experiencing diesel costs as high as $4.40 a gallon," Richie said.

He knows there is a nostalgic attachment to the trolleys, and is sure that some will always be a part of the fleet. But he is not committed to them at the expense of using more fuel and having more emissions.

Greener recycling

Another very progressive thing done in Eureka Springs is its program to recycle household waste. Recycling is free, but it costs to buy the yellow trash bags. Even though the yellow bags aren't that expensive, it does encourage recycling.

I also really appreciate what the city does regarding recycling of household hazardous waste. You can drop off things like paint, pesticides, used motor oil, etc. any day of the week at the Carroll County Recycling Center on US62E. When I lived on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, they only offered household hazardous waste recycling once every few months, and then you had to sit in a long line of cars. One time I got to the end of the line just as they shut it down. I had to take my waste back home and wait for several months for the opportunity to dispose of them properly.

The City of Eureka Springs has signed the U.S. Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement, and I'm glad to see it is living up to the agreement. I made a YouTube video on that subject that you can find at www.youtube.com by putting Green City of Eureka in the search box. Also, to see what the Greater Eureka Springs Chamber of Commerce, local business and individuals are doing that is great, put Green Eurekans in the search box. This is also linked at www.lovelycitizen.com the Web site for the Lovely County Citizen.

Also check out the artistic 350 Rap Poem video on climate protection created by Jesse Deerwomon and Tamarah Jonason of Enthios Studios that is linked at www.350eureka.com.

Go Green Eureka!

-- Becky Gillette