Philadelphia

Hey friends & readers- Who's excited to help Philadelphia this Saturday for Philly Spring Cleanup Day? As we mentioned, Green Philly Blog is partnering with greenlimbs, in Queen Village neighborhood of 300-600 Washington Avenue. Our volunteers will help bag trash, recycle, tend trees and prepare beds for spring planting. My friend and I visited the project location on Sunday afternoon. While there were 20-30 kids playing in this park, trash litters the streets and area inside. Here are some pics of the area (click through for the slideshow courtesy of Chad Collier):

Although living in the city is great, there are occasionally downfalls... such as endless supermarket lines, loads of Pizza options circa 2 AM and pesky leases that prohibit dogs. Don't fret dog-lovers... there's a program that allows you to "time-share" dogs... ethically. The Monster Milers is a group of runners who run the PAWS (Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society) dogs to "connect Philadelphia runners with homeless dogs as running companions". Benefits for the pups are giving them exercise, time out of the shelter, and a little bit of runner's love. The running outlet for these canine pals have resulted in less frantic behavior when adopters meet them - and much faster adoptions. Founder of the group, Carrie Maria is

While many in Philadelphia started celebrating St. Patrick's Day with the Erin Express & such this weekend - the official big day is approaching! We love greening our holidays... especially one of our favorite days of the year when everyone wears green! Here's a few ways to celebrate leprechaun-style & green your St. Patrick's Day:

Mayor Nutter Announced the 4th Annual Philly Spring Cleanup at Kickoff Event in North Philly yesterday! There's about 1 month until residents can “Keep Up the Sweep Up.” The Spring Cleanup will be on Saturday, April 2 (rain date: Sat, April 9). and has has been designated as a Great American Cleanup National Kickoff Event by Keep America Beautiful. Want to get involved? Visit www.PhillySpringCleanup.com to volunteer or submit a project. Deadline is 3/18 for project submissions. Last year's cleanup in 2010 accomplished:

The Mayor’s Office of Sustainability is ambitious with its Greenworks plan to make Philadelphia the greenest city in America. One important part of the plan is the Philadelphia chapter of Solar America Cities, (one of 25 cities). Thank you Mayor Nutter & the Sustainability office for making easy to understand video tutorials for Philly homeowners. Here's the Intro to Solar video that explains how to use Solar Energy in Philly: Solar Tutorial 1: Introduction to Solar from One Way Street Productions on Vimeo. Still on the fence?

GlaxoSmithKline announced last week that it's moving to a LEED-certified building in the Navy Yard from its current Center City location. According to the Philly.com story, "GSK says it will sign 15 1/2-year lease for a four-story, 205,000-square-foot facility being developed by Liberty Property Trust and Synterra Partners". Glaxo would move all its employees either at One & Three Franklin Plaza Center city locations to south Philly in late 2012/early 2013. I definitely commend any company who wants to become green and up its efficiency. The eco-friendly design should (find out more, after the jump!)

How should I recycle old batteries? -Chris, Green Philly Blog Reader Good question, Chris! Did you know that over 3 BILLION single-use, dry cell batteries are disposed of in landfills? Most importantly, I'd first recommend switching your batteries to rechargeable ones over the single-use. I have approximately 8 reusables and a charger, so I always have backups for my toothbrush/etc when previous ones need recharging. To answer your question, here's where to drop off & recycle your batteries in Philadelphia area:

Italy decided to start the new year off right by completely banning plastic bags in the country. Italians were using 20 BILLION bags per year - more than 330 per person, and was about 1/5 of the bags used in Europe. However, starting January 1st, retailers were required to distribute biodegradable plastic, cloth or paper bags instead. Italy joins the ranks of Mexico City & San Fran to implement a complete plastic bag ban, which Philadelphia failed to pass in June 2009. (However, retailers with Philly locations like IKEA & Whole Foods have banned plastic bags internally.) Other cities have imposed taxes on plastic bags:

Did you purchase a new winter coat this season? An upgrade for you is the perfect opportunity to make use of your old duds. One Warm Coat is an organization dedicated to helping others by taking your old coats, jackets, sweaters and mittens of your hands (pun intended) and donating them to people in need. This blurb on their website caught my attention: