>> A Q&A about the subway to the sea, written by Steve Hymon of Bottleneck Blog. Summary of his post: The route for the subway hasn't been picked yet, the money isn't there, and assuming those obstacles are overcome, it'll still be 2 years until the line starts getting built.
>> Summer excursions, car-free! That's the next live Web chat topic with Metro Board Chair Pam O'Connor, happening noon to 1 p.m. on June 18 at metro.net/chat. According to Metro's press release, "Chair O'Connor will also be available to discuss the potential half cent sales tax dedicated to Los Angeles County transit projects and other transportation issues."
>> The L.A. River Ride happens tomorrow! Tune up your bikes now, and register on-site early tomorrow morning; online registration's now closed.
>> L.A.'s Bike Advisory Committee comments on the City’s Bike Master Plan. Top item on the BAC's comments: "Identify why many policies and recommendations in the previous bicycle master plan have not been implemented." The BAC's action comes after much critique from the bicycling community about BAC's inaction and ineffectiveness -- perhaps a contributing factor as to why not much has been done with the previous master plan.
>> Yet another reason why nuclear energy's unpopular: "Under current plans, the casks of nuclear waste material awaiting burial at Yucca Mountain could be sent into a "chaotic melee of bouncing and rolling juggernauts" in an earthquake, according to Holtec International, one of the nation's largest manufacturers of nuclear waste storage systems.
Photo by Liz O. Baylen, L.A. Times
 Celebrate World Environment Day by signing up for a green workshop series! The next round of classes for the 6-week Sustainable Works Green Living Workshop program starts next week.
Each week will tackle a new area of your life, from water to food to energy. The materials fee ($25 for Santa Monica residents, $50 for L.A. residents) -- waived for those who can't afford it -- gets you a workbook, a resource guide and some useful eco swag. The dates are:
- Tuesdays 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m., starting June 10. Sustainable Works office, 1744 Pearl St., Santa Monica.
- Wednesdays 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m., starting June 11. Santa Monica Public Library, 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica
Space is limited, and after those series, new classes won't start until the fall -- so sign up now by calling (310) 458-8716 x1 or e-mailing roth_barent@smc.edu.
Photo courtesy of Sustainable Works
 Today is World Environment Day! Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972, World Environment Day's now organized by the United Nations Environment Programme on June 5 each year. The day's theme this year is "Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy." Everyone -- from individuals to entire countries -- are encouraged to shrink their carbon footprints.
Unfortunately, the materials UNEP's put together are rather vague, though well-intentioned. UNEP's 80 Ways to Celebrate are full of unspecific directives (top item on the list: "Adopt a ‘green’ way of life.") and the Twelve Steps to Help You Kick the CO2 Habit too is rather vague. I would've at least linked to a carbon footprint calculator to get people started -- and I will here! Get into the theme of the day by measuring your own carbon footprint -- if you haven't done so already -- and making plans to shrink it.
 As for more collective events: The main international celebrations are far, far away in New Zealand, and even the North American celebrations are all the way in the Chicago Botanic Garden. Still, we do have an L.A.-area celebration -- a free Family Art Festival at the Canoga Park Youth Arts Center -- though it's not actually happening today:
When: June 17, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Where: The Canoga Park Youth Arts Center, 7222 Remmet Ave., Canoga Park
Cost: Free
UNEP invited the center, a facility of the city of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, to create "an installation of expressive projects exploring issues of climate change, environmental awareness and leadership." So students created artworks from recycled trash items! The fair on June 17 will serve as a reception for this recycled art exhibition. Refreshments will be served, and art workshops will let the audience take part in the event.
 Enviro-fans of Dwell magazine: You'll be glad to know that the focus for the 3rd Annual Dwell on Design will be sustainability in the L.A. area. The conference and exhibition will showcase and discuss modern design, architecture while examining ways to encourage sustainable living in an increasingly dense city.
And you can check out the exhibition -- with more than 200 exhibitors -- for free! Just use the codes below.
When: Conference on June 5 and 6; Exhibition on June 7 and 8 (exhibition preview for conference attendees on June 6).
Where: Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles.
Cost: Exhibition tickets cost $25 online (free with code BDODEC) or $50 at the door; conference registration costs $349 ($50 off with code GRP22SP). Register here.
The exhibition include lots of green panels that examine everything from what L.A.'s new green building codes will mean to new resource and energy efficiency innovations to sustainable interiors. Lots of panel members are also LEED-accredited professionals!
If the conference and tour aren't enough, you can sign up to take a tour of green homes in L.A. And on June 6, you can watch 16 L.A. designers produce 2D sustainable and modular dwellings, rooms and furniture in a tournament-party at MOCA. $50 gets you into the evening event, featuring an open bar and a live DJ.
 Go hiking this Saturday! June 7 is National Trails Day 2008, and in celebration, nearly 1,000 outdoorsy events are happening around the country.
The day's activities aren't limited to hiking; you can go biking, horseback riding or paddling too -- though what you do may be limited a bit by the types of events that are planned in your area. Check the list of California events to find the one nearest you.
Irvine seems to have the most going on, with a hike, a bike ride, exhibits, workshops, and other activities happening over this weekend. If you'd rather get your hands dirty prettying up hiking trails, head up to San Fernando to help the USDA Forest Service with trail maintenance and construction.
National Trails Day is organized by the American Hiking Society, self-described as "the only national organization dedicated to promoting and protecting hiking trails, their surrounding natural areas and the hiking experience."
 Valley bicyclists: Want better walk-bike-rail connections in your 'hood? Then join the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition and Metro for a bike or walk tour and weigh in on a plan to improve bike and walk access to the Van Nuys Metro Orange Line Station.
When: Saturday, May 31, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Where: Marvin Braude Constituent Services Center, Conference Room 1A., 6262 Van Nuys Blvd., Van Nuys
Cost: Free, with a free lunch if you RSVP to Dorothy Le at Dorothy@la-bike.org or (213) 629-2142.
According to Metro, this bike-walk deal is "part of a comprehensive study of existing conditions and recommendations for improvements at transit hubs across the Los Angeles County." The Saturday tour is just the first of five. The next four will all focus on Blue Line stations:
- Metro Blue Line Compton Station, Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Florence Station, Saturday, June 21, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Rosa Parks Station, Saturday, July 12, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Metro Blue Line Vernon Station, Saturday, July 19, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Put them in your calendars. Wondering what happens after you put in your two cents? The findings from the tours -- which are part of a study funded by a Caltrans Environmental Justice Planning Grant -- will be put together into a final report of recommendations, scheduled to be completed this fall. That report, in turn, "can be used by cities to apply for grant funds to improve access to the stations," according to Metro.
Yes, that means that Metro's using a grant to do a study to apply for more grants; actually bringing about the recommended changes that come out of these bike-walk tours will be contingent on whether or not we get these future grants...
Find out more about Metro Bikeway Planning here.
Photo by Frederick Dennstedt via Flickr
 >> L.A.'s greener than San Francisco and New York City, according to a study by think tank Brookings Institution. But Margot Roosevelt delves through the fuzzy math: "The calculations did not account for the fact that half the city's electricity comes from coal-fired power plants. Instead, Brookings used a state-wide average that included the hydroelectric and nuclear plants in Northern California. Omitted from the data are emissions from industries and commercial buildings, and from local roads apart from federal highways." Also omitted were CO2 emissions from long-distance commuters.
>> The L.A. River's getting revitalized -- and also getting tagged a lot. L.A. Times describes the graffiti as "tagging on steroids, with monikers big and bold, containing letters that often are as big as garage doors." Earlier: L.A. River, now with its own controversial mural.
>> Your own private L.A. traffic island. Guerrilla gardeners are taking over unkempt public spaces, bringing greenery to urban blights. "One of a slew of DIY gardening currents, such as permaculture (design of highly sustainable ecosystems), urban homesteading, composting and free fruit movement, guerrilla gardening is a response to dwindling green space, limited land and suspicions about food sources, say experts."
>> Go species scoping in the Santa Monica Mountains. BioBlitz 2008 starts at noon to end 24 hours later! Join scientists, naturalists, and fellow Angelenos to observe and record as many species as possible in a 4-hour-shift. Register on-site at one of the stations (PDF).
>> An organic burger-n-hot dog joint called O!Burger opens in WeHo this Saturday (via LAist).
Photo by Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times
 Nowhere would a plastic bag monster be so popular as at a Heal the Bay party. Earlier tonight, Heal the Bay -- a nonprofit dedicated to cleaning up SoCal beaches -- threw its 17th Annual Bring Back the Beach Benefit Dinner party.
And people were lining up to take pictures with the plastic bag monster, who became a bit of a celebrity!
The event brought out a big crowd to the Barker Hanger at the Santa Monica Airport on a beautiful, if a little windy, day. I randomly met Jack Sahl, director of environment and resource sustainability at
Southern California Edison, an eco-initiatives person at Warner Brothers, then ran into the usual westside eco-peeps like Andy Lipkis of TreePeople. 
 Everything from a guitar signed by Maroon 5 to a Ford Escape Hybrid was auctioned off while people tucked in "an organic and sustainable menu" catered by Patina
Restaurant Group while sipping on local beers and "sustainable" but
not organic certified wine from Kunde Estate Winery. Amy Smart, Julia Louis-Dreyfus (left), and Ingo Rademacher all took part in the ceremonies.
In general, the event itself was very eco -- aside from all the driving people did to get there (I received a free parking pass but no biking instructions; in the end I eco-cabbed it). Heal the Beach's little brochure for the dinner -- printed with soy based inks on 100% post-consumer recycled paper processed chlorine free -- bragged that the event used neither single-use serviceware nor bottled water.
 Strangely, each gift bag given to attendees contained a plastic (#1) bottle of water -- something Anna Cummins, also at the party, pointed out to me. To be fair, the stuff isn't just plain water -- it's organic certified "Bone Water," (right) meaning that the concoction also includes evaporated cane juice and other juices, oils, and flavors -- as well as calcium and other "nutrients" that make the "water" taste a lot like a less-sweet but still synthetic Gatorade.
Heal the Bay's dinner brochure included a plastic warning educational page of sorts, which said this about #1 plastic: "Unfortunately, studies indicate that with repeated use, PET containers may release di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, an endocrine-disrupting compound and probable human carcinogen." 
Granted, the info mainly advises against reuse of #1 plastic bottles, but in general, Heal the Bay is no fan of plastic. I mean, most disposable water bottles are made of #1 plastic, which Heal the Bay bragged about avoiding -- outside the gift bags. Plus the nonprofit's leading the fight against plastic bags.
Of course, Heal the Bay has to make a lot of compromises -- something I wrote about when the L.A. County Board of Supervisors' decision on plastic bags came down. Bone Water wasn't even the only plastic bottle issue of the night. Heal the Money must've also gotten money from FIJI water -- because that company got a page in the dinner brochure.
The entire evening was full of conundrums such as these. The Escape Hybrid -- auctioned off for $30,000+ going directly to Heal the Bay -- has better mileage than other SUVs, but it's still an SUV made by un-eco Ford. Both the Paul Mitchell and Murad products included in the gift bags have some eco-properties -- but are preserved using parabens. Even the gift bags themselves are reusable totes -- but appear to be made of pesticide-intensive conventional cotton.
I'm not saying Heal the Bay was wrong to accept these sponsorships or products, necessarily. I'm just pointing out the quandaries to say I don't envy the jobs of the people who work there. Sure, I really do have a bone to pick with this Bone Water thing -- but every environmentalist has her pet peeve, and every little compromise the nonprofit makes must bring forth a cacophony of complaints --
Junk -- a raft made with 15,000 plastic bottles -- is ready to set sail! Last week, Anna Cummins wrote about the Junk voyage's effort to call attention to the frightening plastic pollution in the oceans -- and now you're invited to the bon voyage party:
When: Sunday, June 1, 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Where: Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific, 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach
Meet Dr. Marcus Eriksen and Joel Paschal -- both of Algalita Marine Research Foundation -- before they set sail on their 6-week journey from Long Beach to Hawaii. Then follow their progress on the Junk blog!
It was bound to happen: We now have an Environmental Hall of Fame, which will hold its first awards ceremony next month.
While really anyone can create their own Hall of Fame (I just found the Ecology Hall of Fame and the Assault on Science Hall of Fame -- both basically on-line lists created by teensy nonprofits), the Environmental Hall of Fame is a somewhat bigger deal -- if for no other reason than the fact that its awards ceremony will mark its existence in real life, beyond the Internet.
The ceremony honors 20 environmentalists over three nights -- and some very cool people have already signed up to attend! Among them are Van Jones, an environmental and social justice activist, and Rainforest Action Network founder Randy Hayes. If you want to rub elbows with them, all you have to do is buy an $8 ticket.
When: June 5-7, 7 p.m.
Where: Westin LAX Theater, 5400 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles
Cost: $8 for general admission. Purchase tickets on-line here.
The Environmental Hall of Fame could actually be seen as part of an elaborate book promo. It came to be through the research of Allen Rubin and Catherine Corbin, two life coaches who decided to write a book that "recognizes individuals, companies and organizations that have made the most significant impact on environmental issues." Before that book, titled "The Environmental Hall of Fame, 2008 Edition," comes out this summer, the authors are recognizing the people they wrote about in this awards ceremony.
Unfortunately for those hoping to see the really big names, neither Al Gore nor Bill Clinton are expected to attend -- though organizers are hopeful that the two men will send people to participate in the ceremony on their behalf.
(Thanks to Geoff for the tip)
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