Join the City of SLO for the Sustainable SLO Earth Month Event Series as they highlight the champions and community organizations that are leading efforts to reduce local pollution and address the climate crisis. The City of San Luis Obispo’s Office of Sustainability and Natural Resources is partnering with the SLO County Library on this informative series with events throughout the month of April.
Save the dates for the following events or visit the community calendar located at www.slocity.org/SustainableSLO for more details.
- 4/3 – Kid-Friendly Handmade Recycled Paper Workshop (Science Discovery)
- 4/6 – Community Compost Giveaway (Hitachi Inova Zizen Anerobic Digester)
- 4/6 – SLO Creek Time Travel & Rekindling the Food Web (Creek Lands Conservation)
- 4/6 – Stuffed Animal Rescue (SLO County Library)
- 4/7 – Upcycling Competition (SLO Climate Coalition)
- 4/13 – Fix Your Stuff, Fix the Planet Lecture and Repair Race (iFixit)
- 4/13 – Kids Garden Day (One Cool Earth)
- 4/17 – Recycle Right Workshop (Science Discovery)
- 4/20 – SLO County Earth Fest at Laguna Lake Park (Earth Day Alliance)
- 4/22 – Good Fire and Indigenous Leadership in SLO (yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini)
- 4/22 – Compost Application Tour and Discussion at Johnon Ranch (CSL-RCD)
- 4/27 – Keys for Trees Planting (ECOSLO)
- 5/4 – Speedweve Patch and Clothing Repair Workshop (SLO County Library)
Over the coming two months, the City will also share information on key sustainability topics including waste, water conservation and natural climate solutions. Over the past six weeks, the City of San Luis Obispo, led by the Office of Sustainability and Natural Resources, has been sharing information about the climate solutions that are gaining momentum in our community. Follow them on Instagram and Facebook for tips and tricks to safeguard SLO for future generations.
So far, we’ve covered the two largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the community — transportation and buildings.
Sustainable Transportation
The City can reduce transportation emissions — the largest source of climate pollution in the City of SLO — by walking, biking, taking the bus, carpooling, and driving electric or hybrid vehicles. These transportation alternatives make the community safer, healthier, and more connected, especially when they mean leaving the car at home.
And the city government is doing its part by replacing SLO Transit buses (at the end of their useful life) with quiet, full-size, zero-emission electric buses and purchasing e-bikes and electric vehicles when their gas fleet vehicles are up for replacement. They’re also making it easier for community members to do their part. They have built about 25% of the planned Tier 1 bicycle and pedestrian network and they are on track to complete the Tier 1 network by 2030. This network will make it safer and easier for people to bike and walk as a mode of transportation. And for those trips that still require personal vehicles, they’re building out publicly accessible EV chargers, so it’s easy to choose electric vehicles and charge on the go.
Check out these interviews from the City’s SLO Transit team and Fleet Maintenance Supervisor to learn more!
Green Buildings
The city can reduce building emissions — SLO’s second largest source of emissions — by swapping out fossil fuel appliances with efficient electric alternatives that are plugged into California’s increasingly green electric grid.
Your city government is also on track to achieving carbon neutral municipal operations. The City’s Municipal Climate Plan called “Lead by Example” directs staff to eliminate fossil fuels in city facilities and operations by 2030. They are working on replacing natural gas hot water heaters with efficient electric heat pumps and have already completed 7 projects using rebates and incentives that have resulted in no cost to the City! They’re also developing solar projects at five different City facilities and have swapped out almost every lightbulb in their buildings and parking garages with LEDs.
Community members, architects and housing developers have also made major contributions to achieving their climate goals. In the past five years, over 1,000 new buildings have been constructed or approved as all-electric, which means they will generate zero-emissions in 2030 when Central Coast Community Energy starts providing SLO with 100% carbon-free electricity. At the same time, there’s still work to do. In most of SLO’s existing buildings there are fossil fuel appliances that heat up water and air, and on average these appliances cause 80-90% of a home’s climate pollution. That means you can make a big impact by upgrading to a heat-pump hot water heater or furnace; you can also increase a building’s efficiency with weather proofing, air sealing and swapping out incandescent lights with LED bulbs!
Even better, rebates, incentives and tax credits are available to help pay for the projects. Check out this interview with the Sustainability Manager to learn more!
Find more information about upcoming Earth Month Event Series at www.slocity.org/SustainableSLO and volunteer opportunities at www.volunteer.slocity.org.