When visitors first arrive in Durango they notice a common hobby among the locals, biking. For some it is just a hobby, a way to escape the pressures of school and work, and for others it is a method of transportation. It shouldn’t shock you to be driving down Main Street or up college drive and have a bicyclist pass you. The patron saint of bicycling in Durango is Melvin Smylie, who for thirty years took donations of old bicycles and gave them a second life, fixing them up and then selling them at affordable prices.
After Mr. Smylie passed away, Durango Cyclery began to fix up the old bicycles he had left over. The problem was that people kept donating bikes. Russell Zimmerman, owner of Durango Cyclery, and mechanics Bob Gregorio and Jon Bailey kept fixing them up and giving them away. After a tremendous turn out they decided to start a bike co-op, something the bike community had been talking about for years. A local offered them a warehouse to rent for free the first year to store the hundreds of bikes. They are making it so people can get their bikes fixed and learn how to fix bikes for the future. Bikes are for sale for about $25.
To keep up the spirit of Mr. Smylie they plan to have an annual project to fix a bunch of bikes and give them away on bike-to-work day. They still have some left over money to get the co-op on its feet. The rest they will acquire through donations, grants, and fund raising. The co-op will offer monthly membership as well as mechanical and technical advice. The co-op plans to take off next spring. The co-op will pay for itself through donations. If you want more information, stop by the Durango Cyclery or call 247-0747.
Devon Dey
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
Be a Local Shopper, Help out the Environment
Its Monday afternoon, classes are over, your done with work and you’re ready to chow-down. You have several options, you can go to a supermarket and grab some quick grub; but before you run for the “one-stop-shop,” think about how these products came to Durango.
Buying your food locally can make more of a difference to the environment than you think. Supporting locally grown food helps out the local economy by supporting farms, supporting sustainability and supporting small business. Every dollar spent locally generates nearly twice as much income for the local economy compared to shopping at supercenters. Besides economics, you help reduce the plastic packaging that companies produce to transfer large quantities of food across states. By buying locally you help out the local economy and help the earth.
The effect of smog and vehicle related carbon emissions play a big role in the health of the planet. When you sit down and think about how many semi-trucks it takes to deliver tons of food to supermarkets across the nation, you begin to realize it is a clear waste of fossil fuels. Especially when communities like ours are adequate places to produce food and sustain ourselves. You not only support local farmers but you also help in a bigger way to relieving some pressure of the oil crisis.
Supermarkets are tempting. There are days when I feel basically too lazy to take the extra steps to help out the environment. I know, however, that if we want to actually see change in our environment we have to take the steps to do so and turn our words into actions. Besides, we live in a beautiful part of Colorado that has a great growing season under un-polluted skies. We should not let this go to waste.
Katie Ehardt
Buying your food locally can make more of a difference to the environment than you think. Supporting locally grown food helps out the local economy by supporting farms, supporting sustainability and supporting small business. Every dollar spent locally generates nearly twice as much income for the local economy compared to shopping at supercenters. Besides economics, you help reduce the plastic packaging that companies produce to transfer large quantities of food across states. By buying locally you help out the local economy and help the earth.
The effect of smog and vehicle related carbon emissions play a big role in the health of the planet. When you sit down and think about how many semi-trucks it takes to deliver tons of food to supermarkets across the nation, you begin to realize it is a clear waste of fossil fuels. Especially when communities like ours are adequate places to produce food and sustain ourselves. You not only support local farmers but you also help in a bigger way to relieving some pressure of the oil crisis.
Supermarkets are tempting. There are days when I feel basically too lazy to take the extra steps to help out the environment. I know, however, that if we want to actually see change in our environment we have to take the steps to do so and turn our words into actions. Besides, we live in a beautiful part of Colorado that has a great growing season under un-polluted skies. We should not let this go to waste.
Katie Ehardt
Friday, October 10, 2008
One Man's Garbage is Another Man's Garden
Think twice before you throw your food in the trash. You have an alternative, composting. For those who live on campus and have a meal plan composting is easy. The dining hall has an area to put food scraps and napkins into for composting. For the students who live off campus composting seems to be more difficult—especially for those living in apartments. But it is not as difficult as it seems. Composting bins are available for $40.00 from the City of Durango and San Juan Resource Conservation and Development. Contact information is available at the official city website, http://www.durangogov.org/. There are many types of composting bins. Holding bins are highly recommended for apartments. They can be placed on apartment balconies. You can use your compost for a balcony garden or for houseplants. If you are interested in constructing your own composting bin and have limited space here is how. The following materials are needed: a power drill or a hammer and a nail, a plastic storage bin, an extra lid for the storage bin, green composting matter such as: grass, vegetable peels, fruits, coffee grounds, and teabags, and brown composting matter such as: cardboard, newspaper, and wood shavings. Don’t compost meat, dairy, or starchy food. First, drill or hammer small holes in the plastic storage bin. Place a lid on the bottom of the storage bin. Then add alternating layers of green and brown matter into the bin. Add water for moisture. If the mixture becomes too moist or begins to smell add additional brown matter. Turn your mixture at least twice a week. Harvest your compost by running it through a sifter. Creating a compost bin is not only a great way to reduce your waste, but great for your plants as well. You can use your compost for a balcony garden or for houseplants—reduce, reuse and enjoy.
Cordia Perez
Cordia Perez
Friday, October 3, 2008
T. Boone Pickens: The Man With the Plan
If you have not noticed by now there is an energy crisis going on and the easiest place to see this is at the gas pump. It seems that America is addicted to gasoline and cannot find any other way to power this great nation. But luckily there is a man with a plan. T. Boone Pickens has come up with a plan that will not only save the nation billions of dollars every year but will also be beneficial to the environment.
The problem that Mr. Pickens, as a business man, is concerned with is that “…we will send $700 billion [of oil] out of the country this year alone”. That is money that we could be using for further development of renewable energy research. “Everyday 85 million barrels of oil are produced around the world. And 21 million of those are used here in the United States”. That is a huge problem. We are addicted to this source of energy. But this is all included in the plan.
We have a great wind resource in the Great Plains states. Which is a great location because the energy gained here can easily be transported either east or west. On his web site Pickens mentions that it will be a large expense to build the wind power and infrastructure to move the power, but this is a onetime payment compared to the $700 billion annually that we are currently spending. Also by investing in this wind program it will create skilled jobs both in building and maintaining these wind energy sites, as well as jobs at the facilities. This all makes way for changing many cars from using gasoline to natural gas, which we also have an abundance of.
You can find more information online at www.pickensplan.com/theplan/. We need to do what we can to save the environment and the economy; this plan takes care of both.
Royce Johnson
The problem that Mr. Pickens, as a business man, is concerned with is that “…we will send $700 billion [of oil] out of the country this year alone”. That is money that we could be using for further development of renewable energy research. “Everyday 85 million barrels of oil are produced around the world. And 21 million of those are used here in the United States”. That is a huge problem. We are addicted to this source of energy. But this is all included in the plan.
We have a great wind resource in the Great Plains states. Which is a great location because the energy gained here can easily be transported either east or west. On his web site Pickens mentions that it will be a large expense to build the wind power and infrastructure to move the power, but this is a onetime payment compared to the $700 billion annually that we are currently spending. Also by investing in this wind program it will create skilled jobs both in building and maintaining these wind energy sites, as well as jobs at the facilities. This all makes way for changing many cars from using gasoline to natural gas, which we also have an abundance of.
You can find more information online at www.pickensplan.com/theplan/. We need to do what we can to save the environment and the economy; this plan takes care of both.
Royce Johnson
Elect Your Environmental Policy
Improving the condition of the environment is something that we should all strive to do. Individually there are many things that each of us can do every day to help. To really make a difference elected officials must be taking steps towards a greener tomorrow. There is only one way to get the people that we need to do this in the office and that is by voting.
But before we can do that we must be registered to vote. Some students may be a bit confused by this process, especially if they have just moved here from another state or county, but it is very easy. All you need is to be an American citizen, have an address here in La Plata County and your school I.D. card. You can fill out a voter registration form at the information desk or voter registration table, if it is set up, in the CUB. Voter registration is also available at the DMV (305 S. Camino Del Rio) or the courthouse (1060 East 2nd Ave). Then you are ready to go in November. The deadline for registration is October 6th, so we have to get a move on.
As to who to vote for that is totally up to you. You can get great information on all of the candidates at govotecolorado.com. Also to read the individual environmental policies of the presidential candidates you can go to barackobama.com or johnmccain.com. No matter whom you vote for you must be informed on the policies of that particular candidate. The most important thing is to go out and vote and have your voice be heard.
Royce Johnson
But before we can do that we must be registered to vote. Some students may be a bit confused by this process, especially if they have just moved here from another state or county, but it is very easy. All you need is to be an American citizen, have an address here in La Plata County and your school I.D. card. You can fill out a voter registration form at the information desk or voter registration table, if it is set up, in the CUB. Voter registration is also available at the DMV (305 S. Camino Del Rio) or the courthouse (1060 East 2nd Ave). Then you are ready to go in November. The deadline for registration is October 6th, so we have to get a move on.
As to who to vote for that is totally up to you. You can get great information on all of the candidates at govotecolorado.com. Also to read the individual environmental policies of the presidential candidates you can go to barackobama.com or johnmccain.com. No matter whom you vote for you must be informed on the policies of that particular candidate. The most important thing is to go out and vote and have your voice be heard.
Royce Johnson
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