Tag Archives: Go Green

Trayless Dining on Campus Reduces 15 Million Pounds of Food Waste

27 Apr

Finally FastTechnology news from the Finally Fast Team

While Earth Day is celebrated once a year, at campuses throughout North America served by ARAMARK, Every Day is Earth Day, thanks to ongoing sustainable practices focused on reducing waste, conserving resources, purchasing responsibly and operating environmentally friendly spaces.

One initiative, trayless dining (removing trays from college dining halls), is having a measurable impact on reducing waste and conserving natural resources.  According to a national survey conducted by ARAMARK Higher Education, trayless dining reduces waste by approximately two ounces per person, per meal. As of spring 2012, more than 300 colleges and universities served by ARAMARK throughout North America have removed trays from their dining halls, diverting more than 15 million pounds of food waste from landfills this year, while reducing trash hauling needs, decreasing water and chemical use, and reducing electricity consumption.

“Trayless dining is just one high impact example of how engaging an entire community can yield significant results for the environment,” said Christopher Stemen, Associate Vice President of Sustainability, ARAMARK Higher Education.  “Our goal is to involve the campus community in sustainable practices that they can incorporate into their daily lives. By making Every Day Earth Day, we can positively impact our campuses, local communities and planet all at the same time.”

Throughout Earth Week, ARAMARK is hosting several campus events that highlight the importance of environmental stewardship, including:

  •  Weigh the Waste-What’s in Your Garbage.  Learn how to identify types, quantities, and origins of waste and understand opportunities for waste reduction, recycling and composting.
  • Meatless Monday.  By cutting out meat once per week at a single meal, you can help reduce your impact on the environment
  • Know Your Recyclables Speed Recycling Game. Play and understand how to properly dispose of waste and avoid contamination.
  • Dim or Turn Off the Lights.  Save energy and generate awareness about the importance of reducing energy consumption.  Energy consumption currently accounts for approximately 39 percent of all greenhouse gases emitted, a major impact to the environmental footprint on campus.
  • Get Caught Green Handed.  A game that instantly rewards students, faculty, employees, staff and guests who are spotted participating in sustainable practice
  • Farm 2 Fork Meal. Local farmers will be on campus to talk about where food comes from during a special meal that features more local, seasonal, vegan and vegetarian offerings.

Beyond campus events, ARAMARK partners with the Student Conservation Association (SCA), a nationwide conservation force of college and high school students who protect and restore America’s parks, forests, refuges, seashores and communities.

During the month of April, ARAMARK and SCA will host several volunteer events throughout the country where hundreds of our employees will complete conservation service projects at natural resource management areas nationwide, including urban parks and green spaces.  Projects include habitat and riparian restoration, tree planting, trail building and maintenance, and more.

Additionally, in partnership with SCA, ARAMARK is offering career opportunities to young professionals through its Environmental Sustainability Internship Program. The program provides participants with hands-on environmental job experience as they help implement solutions for clients at schools, universities, businesses and other locations across the country.

ARAMARK Higher Education is committed to protecting and improving the environment. We strive to develop innovative environmental stewardship programs within the areas of Sustainable Food; Green Buildings; Blue Cleaning; Waste Stream Management; Responsible Procurement; Energy and Water Conservation; and Transportation.

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EverPower acquires Patton Wind Farm in Pennsylvania

22 Dec

finallyfast.comBusiness news from the Finally Fast team

EverPower Wind Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Terra Firma, a leading private equity firm, and OwnEnergy, the leader in Community Wind, announced today that they have closed a transaction where EverPower will acquire and construct Patton Wind Farm, LLC. This is a project that OwnEnergy has been developing from inception with its local landowner partner.

The project will be 30 MW and will be fully operational by the end of 2012. An interconnection agreement with PJM has been secured and power will be sold on the merchant market. The Patton project is located in Elder, West Carroll, and East Carroll Townships across approximately 2,700 acres of agriculture land. According to EverPower, the project will provide approximately 100 jobs during construction, and up to 10 full-time jobs required to operate and maintain the project over the next thirty years.

As a Community Wind project, with local ownership of the farm, it enjoys unprecedented local support and will provide incremental economic development for the region. Many of the workers will be drawn from the local labor pool and non-local workers will require lodging, food and other necessities that will be also purchased locally, which will benefit local businesses. In addition to construction jobs, locally purchased goods and services will be needed. These construction materials include gravel, concrete, wood, fencing, steel rebar, cabling and fuel.

The development companies worked together to obtain funding in the amount of $3.2m from the Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA) under the Renewable Energy program. The award will improve the project’s viability in a challenging market environment and help enable the Patton Wind Farm to provide clean, renewable energy to more than 9,000 households and move Pennsylvania closer it its renewable energy targets.

The Community Wind project was started by Saint Francis University’s Renewable Energy Center. The university installed a meteorological tower in Patton and Ebensburg and found that the area was suitable for a wind farm. The university requested proposals from Community Wind developers and in what was a highly competitive process OwnEnergy was ultimately chosen to develop the project. OwnEnergy then partnered with local entrepreneur Marty Yahner to secure land and begin development of the wind farm.

“We’re the Sixth generation of Yahners to farm and live in the Patton community,” said Marty Yahner. When I learned that a wind farm would be developed here, I was excited by the prospect, but wanted to make sure it would work for me and my neighbors. By taking this Community Wind development approach, OwnEnergy enabled us to get comfortable with the many aspects of the project, while getting involved in a more meaningful way and sharing in the profits.”

Jacob Susman, Founder and CEO of OwnEnergy, said, “This is an exciting opportunity for OwnEnergy, The Yahner Family and the local Cambria county community. EverPower will get this project built next year, which means the community will see the benefits of the wind farm immediately and for many years to come.”

The Patton Wind Project will be EverPower’s fourth Pennsylvania project and third in Cambria County. The 62.5 MW Highland Wind Farm, located in Adams Township became operational in 2009. The 75 MW Highland North Wind Farm is located in townships of Adams and Summerhill and will become operational by the end of the year. In 2012, EverPower hopes to be constructing the Twin Ridges Wind Farm, a 140 MW wind farm located in Somerset County. Combined, the three wind farms are expected to have an annual economic impact of over $4 million on the region’s economy.

“I am very excited to announce the acquisition of the Patton Wind Project,” said Jim Spencer, president and CEO of EverPower Wind Holdings. “This strategic acquisition solidifies our presence in Pennsylvania. It also helps us achieve a milestone of having over 300 MW of operating assets in Pennsylvania by the end of 2012 and to become the prominent wind energy provider in the Commonwealth.”

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Car Sharing Service launches in Portland

15 Dec

finallyfast.comOn Tuesday the City of Portland today announced that peer-to-peer car sharing company and 2011 TechCrunch Disrupt NYC winner, Getaround, was selected by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to participate in a joint initiative with the city to use $1,725,000 in federal funding to launch peer-to-peer car sharing in the greater Portland metropolitan area by February of 2012, following an initial launch at Portland State University. In anticipation of the launch, starting today, Portland commuters and car owners can begin signing up for Getaround.

“The City of Portland continues to partner with the private sector, providing new alternatives to expensive personal car ownership. Peer-to-peer car sharing will keep money in Portlanders’ pockets, so I hope you’ll check it out and see whether it works for you”

The FHWA grant in Portland is the first federal grant ever awarded for peer-to-peer car sharing. The selection of Getaround by the FHWA as the car sharing provider for the state’s pilot program was based on Getaround’s novel technology, insurance program and successful track record in enabling car owners to safely and easily share their cars in other metropolitan areas, including the San Francisco Bay Area.

“The City of Portland continues to partner with the private sector, providing new alternatives to expensive personal car ownership. Peer-to-peer car sharing will keep money in Portlanders’ pockets, so I hope you’ll check it out and see whether it works for you,” Portland Mayor Sam Adams said.

As part of the government initiative, Getaround will work closely with the Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium (OTREC) to research the dynamics and impacts of peer-to-peer car sharing, making Portland the test bed for peer-to-peer car sharing nationwide. The planned launch in the Portland metropolitan area will take place in February 2012, with a preliminary launch taking place at, and in partnership with, Portland State University on January 1, 2012 to coincide with the enactment of Oregon HB 3149, the landmark legislation enabling personal vehicle sharing in Oregon.

“Since our inception, Getaround has viewed the city of Portland, OR as a perfect place for our service. Residents here have a reputation for being early adopters of innovative ways to solve transportation problems in the U.S., including traffic and pollution,” said Getaround co-founder and CEO, Sam Zaid. “We look forward to bringing the Getaround experience to Oregon to reduce car overpopulation while empowering people to turn a costly asset—which on average sits idle 22 hours per day—into something that can generate sustained revenue.”

Getaround enables car owners to “un-idle” their cars and offset the cost of vehicle ownership by sharing with friends, co-workers and neighbors, while people seeking cars are provided easy, affordable access to vehicles everywhere. Getaround differs from other car sharing services by offering an open marketplace that gives owners total freedom over their vehicle’s pricing, availability and selection of renters. Additionally, the Getaround Carkit and iPhone app together make it easy for members to conduct entire transactions using only their smartphone. The service provides community and financial benefits to both owners and renters, backed by the peace of mind of A++ insurance carrier Berkshire Hathaway.

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