by Admin | Apr 1, 2022 | Announcements(home), Climate Action
Hi Friends,
I’m so proud of Jim Merrill and the whole crew that made this possible.
- UUCV has moved, in just a decade, from being environmentally-aware to achieving Green Sanctuary status to being accredited as a Green Business — so impressive!
- Now we are recognized by the UUA/Ministry for Earth, as well as the City of Ventura, and the California Green Business Network
- People can find us by searching any of these networks.
- All of us at UUCV are representatives of this status, and we should be proud and exemplary of the Green practices we have highlighted and committed to. It’s an ongoing process in which there’s always room for improvement!
- UUCV folks should always feel free to point interested/incoming folks to members of the Environmental Action Team.
- Some upcoming projects: UUCV rideshare program development,…
We would love everyone’s participation!
by Admin | Jan 31, 2020 | Announcements(home), Climate Action
The Big Deal: 2020 UUA Pacific Southwest District Assembly
April 24-26, 2020
Unitarian Universalist San Luis Obispo, CA “The Climate of Justice” is the theme of the 2020 PSW District Assembly. The keynote speaker will be Aly Tharp, the program director of the Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth (UUMFE) and leader of the UUA & UUMFE’s Create Climate Justice initiative.
Aly Tharp will join UUs from throughout PSWD as we strategize for a future in which our congregations are at the forefront of the fight for climate justice in their communities. The 2020 PSW District Assembly will be the best opportunity this year for UU congregations to share how they are working for climate justice and learn from one another about how to live out our seventh principle: “Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.”
Detailed information coming early in the new year! Keep an eye on our website https://pswduua.org/ for updates.
by Admin | Dec 3, 2019 | Climate Action, News (home)
Environmental Tips: Recycling Soft/Film Plastics
It’s easier than we thought! The Mendelsohn family will no longer be collecting your soft, otherwise known as film, plastics to take them to Santa Paula’s curbside recycling program. Santa Paula’s recyclables are now taken to Oxnard’s Del Norte transfer station, which does not recycle the film plastics. The bin in the church kitchen will be removed as of December 1 because every one of us can now simply drop them off on our regular shopping trips! Sprouts, WinCo, Vons, Target and Kohl’s send them on their journey to become outdoor decking, fencing and furniture products manufactured in the USA by the socially and environmentally responsible company, Trex.
Of course, reducing and reusing is always preferred to recycling, so do that first, but when you find yourself ready to recycle, know that there are many film plastics that can find a new life with Trex. These include grocery bags, bread bags, case overwrap (e.g., around toilet paper rolls), dry cleaning bags, newspaper sleeves, ice bags, wood pellet bags, produce bags, air pillows, bubble wrap, shrink wrap, salt bags, and cereal bags. Zip-top bags are acceptable only if they do not have a lining. Plastic shipping envelopes, padded or not, are acceptable but not combos of paper and plastic.
All film plastics should be 99% dry and clean. You should rinse out and dry zip-top bags, but with all others it’s more like a shake out the crumbs level of cleaning.
Trex explained a good way to feel for the HDPE #2 and LDPE #4 types of plastic that are accepted, because they won’t always display the symbol/number, is to stretch the plastic with your finger. If it leaves a finger dimple, then it’s good.
Some items NOT acceptable are biodegradable/compostable bags, frozen entree wrappers and other plastics that are shiny, crinkly, and rip easily/straight, as well as foil-lined chip/snack/energy bar bags/wrappers, and pet food bags. Trex is counting on us to properly sort and only submit these accepted film plastics!
Other types slow down their process, cost more to burn off of the correct plastics, and jeopardize the entire film plastic recycling program of the submitting store! We will install posters (available from here: https://www.trex.com/recycling/recycling-programs/) in the church kitchen, and other places, to help you get used to this new way of caring for the Earth! Oxnard is hoping that their transfer station can also become a collection post for the Trex program; and Ventura has started promoting this rapidly growing way to divert our waste from landfills, via social media and in the press: https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/local/2019/11/10/eco-tip-update-effects-grocery-bag-law/2549735001/.
By Mark Mendelsohn and Celia Ortenberg
Please print these to post on your refrigerator!
by Admin | Dec 3, 2019 | Climate Action
The 7th Principle Environmental Action Team (7PEAT) would like to provide some reminders, compliments and an inquiry regarding our church’s waste reduction efforts.
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First, please take the time to review
this poster (open PDF) showing what CAN go into our
recycling stream. Many folks have put in the effort to learn and practice these guidelines over the past couple years, so THANK YOU! Please do not put anything
else into the blue
recycling bins, including used paper cups, plates, and napkins, plastic cutlery, and film plastics. Those are the most commonly misplaced items that we relocate into the landfill bins each Sunday.
We heartily commend all church members, friends and visitors who regularly use their own mugs and bring their own tableware for lunches, dinners and receptions, rather than using disposable items that fill up our landfill bins. We encourage everyone to make this your habit!
Further, in partnership with Building & Grounds, we are seeking volunteers who’d be willing to help our waste diversion divas (thank you, Kappy Paulson, Joyce Sattler and Linda Pietrzak!). Often weekly, they toil in the UUCV trash enclosure picking, stomping, sorting, and planning so that as little as possible goes to the landfill, and so that our church remains beautiful and in compliance with local laws.
If anyone is able to sign up to be a trash monitor alongside a B&G volunteer, spending about a half-hour on a given Monday (in advance of Tuesday trash day), please let Mark know at
mmendels33@gmail.com.
Also, email me if you have any general waste sorting questions. Thank you again for embracing our 7th Principle!
by Admin | Feb 2, 2018 | Climate Action
Let the Sun Shine!
by Jim Merrill
At the January 7, 2018 meeting of Seventh Principle Environmental Action Team (7PEAT), we learned that the installation of our solar panels in 2015, our church rooftop generation plant has produced 74,750 kWh (kilowatt hours) of electricity. To put that figure in perspective, the average California home uses 6,684 kWh annually. Our rooftop panels have generated enough power for 11.2 California homes per year since 2015!
The 7PEAT team is glad to share with anyone how our congregation is reducing our carbon footprint through photovoltaic generation and through our many other sustainability initiatives.
Contact: Jim Merrill:
merrilly@verizon.net
