Recycling event coming to Eastlake
Sammamish residents are invited to recycle household items from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 19 at Eastlake High School, 400 228th Ave. N.E.
Residents can bring tires, motor oil, filters and antifreeze, batteries, household goods and clothing items that are in good repair (no mattresses), cardboard, bulky wood, TVs and other items. Charges and restrictions apply to many items; residents should check the guidelines listed on the flyer on the city’s Web site at www.ci.sammamish.wa.us for further information.
Also at the event will be a rain barrel sale, to help residents use water more efficiently. The 55-gallon barrels typically retail for about $125, but residents pay only $25. Quantities are limited.
In 2007, more than 2,800 Sammamish residents and business participated in Sammamish recycling collection events, and nearly 370,000 pounds of material was collected and recycled. This included 120,000 pounds of “moderate-risk” wastes, such as computer monitors, TV sets motor oil and lead acid batteries.
A visit from the Household Hazardous Wastemobile is also planned for mid-August. More information on the Wastemobile or the household hazardous waste collection site in Bellevue (Factoria) can be found by visiting www.govlink.org/hazwaste/house/disposal/.
Also in the summer, the city will host a Sammamish business recycling collection event. This event is intended to help city businesses recycle waste typically generated in the commercial sector. The exact day, time and service provided will be announced later in mailings and on the city’s Web site.
The continuing programs are sponsored by the city of Sammamish and made possible by grants from the state Department of Ecology, King County Solid Waste Division and the local Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County. The city contracts with a regional firm, Olympic Environmental Resources, for implementation and management of city recycling programs.
Learn how to “green” up your lawncare
Northwest residents can welcome spring with greener lawn care and gardening practices by taking advantage of up to 25 percent savings on natural yard care products during the 10th annual Northwest Natural Yard Days, April 15 to May 15.
The partnership between King County, the City of Seattle, the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency and 24 other agency members promotes environmentally friendly yard care by offering discounts on gardening products at 64 participating retail locations throughout the Puget Sound region.
“Offering significant discounts on natural yard-care products encourages more people to explore environmentally sound solutions to common lawn and garden needs,” said Gerty Coville, of the King County Solid Waste Division.
Natural yard care products such as electric mulch-mowers, bagged compost and natural organic fertilizer save work, reduce air pollution and add nutrients to the lawn and garden.
“A typical suburban lot lawn produces at least 1,200 pounds of clippings a year, but using an electric mulching lawnmower instead of a traditional mower eliminates the need to bag and haul all of that grass away,” Coville said. “Mulching mowers also put nutrients back into the lawn, which reduces the need to add chemicals.”
While emissions from diesel engines and wood smoke remain the primary source for harmful air pollutants in the Puget Sound region, gas-powered lawn mowers are far from guilt-free, said Katherine Himes, criteria and toxic pollutants team lead for the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency.
“The good news is that affordable and powerful zero-emission electric lawn mowers are available and on sale through the Northwest Natural Yard Days program,” Himes said.
For more information about natural yard care, contact the Garden Hotline, 206-633-0224, or help@gardenhotline.org.
King County and Seattle have a variety of educational materials and workshops about natural landscaping available at no cost. Natural landscaping brochures and a full list of participating Northwest Natural Yard Days retailers are available at www.yarddays.com.
Companies partner to offer natural care
Clean Air Lawn Care and In Harmony Sustainable Landscapes recently announced a partnership to offer green lawn and garden care to residents in Issaquah, Sammamish and surrounding cities.
“Together (we) will be able to offer a complete alternative to conventional lawn care,” the companies said in a release.
In Harmony provides organic solutions for lawn, tree and shrub care, as well as design and landscape installation. Clean Air uses clean electric- and biodiesel-powered equipment, as well as using solar panels to charge the electric equipment during the day.
In Harmony co-owner Ladd Smith will give a talk on less-toxic, environmentally friendly lawn care practices at 11 a.m. April 19 in the Jersey Room at Pickering Barn as part of the Issaquah Farmers Market Earth Day Celebration.
“I think we’re finding that our garden practices have a big impact on our carbon footprint,” Ladd said. Many homeowners over-use fertilizers and pesticides, not realizing how much of the product washes into water systems and is tracked into homes, he said. The talk will also discuss how to make gardens and lawns more attractive, child- and pet-friendly and economical to maintain.
