Creating a Healthy DC: The Need for Local Food (Part 2) February 26, 2009

DC area organic food is available through a variety of channels and can be easily found. Direct sales from farmers to consumers, retail sales in grocers, and restaurants utilizing these products are all featured in local directories.

Direct sales from farmers are a particularly good way to buy fresh organic food and build a relationship with the growers. Direct sales principally consist of two methods: community supported agriculture (CSA) and farmers markets. A CSA is operated by a farm, which sells shares of its produce. Typically, each shareholder will pick up their equal portion of the produce on a weekly schedule. CSA’s are run by the farms themselves, so it is best to contact them directly. There are dozens of markets in the city and its suburbs, some of which are operated by organizations such as FRESHFARM Markets and Markets & More. Many farmers market directories exist for the DC area. In particular, the Winston A. Price Foundation and the Washington Post have thorough lists.

Other comprehensive directories include grocers and restaurants, along with farmers markets and CSA’s in their listings. For Northern Virginia residents, the Piedmont Environmental Council’s Buy Fresh Buy Local program is a helpful resource. Searching by county or zip code produces results for several categories, including farms specializing in produce or animal products, vineyards, specialty products, farmers markets, restaurants, and more. The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, ATTRA, has an excellent list of area organic farms. It can be searched through their website’s “Learning Ops” link. The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (despite its name, it has members from up and down the east coast) has a membership directory including farms, businesses, schools, and non-profits related to local organic agriculture. Chef’s Collaborative database is for chefs looking for local producers and consumers looking for restaurants that buy from local producers. Culinate is more of a social networking resource for local food, but it also includes a search option. Local Harvest is another well known database. It can be used to look for farms, CSA’s, restaurants, retailers, and other local food venues.

Local organic food is available for low-income residents as well. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Clagett Farm works with the Capital Area Food Bank to provide local organic food to those in need. The 7th Street garden works to offer affordable produce and gardening programs. FARMFRESH Markets has partnerships with several humanitarian and community organizations through their “gleaning” program. DC Food Finder is a great map-based resource which locates everything from farmers markets to meals for the homebound.

Edible Chesapeake is a different type of resource – it is an inspiring magazine about the local organic food culture in the Chesapeake region. It features all aspects of our food system, from farmers and restaurants, to recipes and chefs.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of the resources available to DC area residents. But the amount of information that is available to us right now can foster the relationships between those who grow food and those who eat it. A healthier DC requires that we cultivate the relationships that will create a functional yet celebratory local food culture.

Creating a Healthy DC: The Need for Local Food (Part 1) February 19, 2009

“We need to do everything we can to encourage urban concern for the fate of the countryside and the country people. We would benefit in innumerable ways from a system of economic alliances between local producers and local consumers.” - Wendell Berry “Citizenship Papers” 2003.

An urban-rural organic food connection provides much more than a shopping experience at the Dupont Circle farmers market. Climate change, water pollution, mistreatment of animals, ecosystem degradation, loss of biodiversity, economic instability, and health risks – these are the problems associated with industrialized agriculture. Consider that one of the major sources of pollution in the Chesapeake Bay is nutrient runoff from agricultural lands. Local organic food, then, is as much about eating as it is about environmental restoration, the economics of agriculture, and community identity. A local organic food culture is an essential component for individuals seeking a more sustainable lifestyle, but by definition, it is also a community activity.

Organic farming works within natural cycles and ecological relationships to improve soil health. It avoids using harmful inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides. The fundamental starting point is the abilities and limits of the land, rather than a production quota. Marked by this concern for all life, organic agriculture has rightly become a point of focus for those concerned with their community’s health, and DC is no different. Organic gardening, of course, involves the same principles.

An organic apple, however, can still have traveled 1,500 miles to our kitchens. Considering the fuel consumption, it is essential that meaningful efforts for sustainability be local. Yet, supporting local farmers is an opportunity for other mutually beneficial relationships. Take, for example, the language of our food system that would appear helpful, but actually is limited in what it can communicate to the consumer. The USDA’s definition of “natural” only requires that no man made products be added in the processing; the use of fertilizers or other inputs is unknown to the consumer. The USDA “organic” certification costs a thousand dollars annually, which some small organic farmers cannot afford. However, these farmers follow strict guidelines of their own and produce high quality organic food. Without a local producer-consumer relationship, this type of information cannot be known. In addition to reducing fossil fuel consumption and strengthening the local economy, being closer to the farmer affords the consumer the opportunity to learn about production methods and build a caring, appreciative relationship. These relationships, so foreign in our current economic system, are nonetheless irreplaceable.

Fortunately for DC residents, local organic farms abound, and their goods are available through a variety of channels. Farmers’ markets, community supported agriculture (CSA’s), health food stores, restaurants, and local organizations concerned with these issues are abundant. The DC area’s local organic food scene is mature and robust enough to offer options from western Loudon County to Prince Georges County, for high- and low-incomes alike. Check out Part 2 of this blog to learn specifics about where to find local organic food in DC.

It Makes Sense to Build Green – Part 6 of 6 (IEQ) February 12, 2009

Building a low impact building means good indoor air quality (IAQ), both for the health of the buildings occupants and for the sustainability of the building. This credit requires minimum indoor environmental quality (IEQ) performance to enhance the air quality of the building. It starts early in the construction phase when the buildings toxins are flushed out and strict monitoring of pollutants and contamination are controlled by air quality testing. In addition to a reduction in air quality contaminants, which can also be attributed to low-emitting materials, the building must also provide adequate capacity for ventilation.

Two prerequisites are required to meet the indoor environmental quality credits. First, the buildings indoor air quality must comply with the code requirements LEED uses. The building is also required to establish an environmental tobacco smoke plan (i.e. no smoking inside the building and only within a certain distance outside of the building). After these requirements are met, this category offers 15 possible points in 8 credits. The construction and pre-occupancy steps must include steps to minimize indoor air pollution in order to to meet the level required once the building is completed. Proper installation and monitoring of the building’s ventilation systems will help meet this requirement. Selecting low-emitting materials, such as adhesives and sealants, paints and coatings, carpet, and composite wood and agrifiber products, will reduce air contaminates. Reducing the number of chemicals that ever enter the building will also help you achieve points and more importantly, create a healthier building. Comfortable thermal systems with individual controllability will cut costs and improve worker performance. Using daylight and views along with controllable lighting systems will have the same effect.

Indoor environmental quality is a crucial measure to the sustainability of your building and its occupants, and it works collectively with the other LEED credit categories to construct a low impact, eco-friendly, sustainable building. By following the LEED credits, you can work toward certifying your building and establishing an environmentally friendly building that improves your workers’ health and performance, cuts your cost, reduces environmental impacts from building, and improves the economic sustainability of your building.

As you know if you have read through these posts, there are many steps that can be taken to obtain certification and these will differ based on the building, resources used, and a host of other factors. The system also allows for innovative measures, should you meet the intent of one of the points but are not doing it exactly as specified in the guide. A LEED accredited professional can work with you and the USGBC to determine if the point will apply, not to mention that you get one point just for having a LEED AP on your team!

These posts are meant to be a brief introduction, since we have LEED APs for projects and we often get some of these questions. The US Green Building Council site provides additional information, as well as checklists for each of the different guides.

It Makes Sense to Build Green – Part 5 of 6 (Materials & Resources) February 6, 2009

Materials and resources that go into the construction process are enormous and they generate massive amounts of waste. About 40 percent of the total waste stream in the United States is from construction and demolition. There is no doubt that there will be a demand for materials and resources during construction but how we go about acquiring those resources can greatly reduce the impact of building? Recycling is the foundation of this category; from using recycled material, to recycling project waste, to using existing buildings and resources.

The LEED system requires a building to facilitate space for all occupants to recycle. Employing this prerequisite in your building is easy and educating building occupants on waste management will help everyone understand the demand to make your building green. This category addresses the importance of extending a building’s life cycle, by reusing as much of a building a possible and by redirecting resources back to manufacturers and appropriate sites. The materials and resources section offers 13 possible points in 7 different credits. Using high percentages of existing buildings (around 95 percent of the existing structure) and diverting large amounts (around 75 percent) of construction waste to reusable sites will earn you maximum points in this credit section. Emphasis is also placed on using recycled material and content inside the building, assuming it is not finite raw material – those materials should be rapidly renewable, including compliant certified wood. Another great feature of this credit is the stress put on using local materials. Materials extracted, processed, and manufactured within 500 miles will earn you credit points.

Following this LEED section closely is important for your business but also your community. You can help stimulate your local economy by buying local recycled products, which is good for local commerce and increases the demand for all companies to recycle and consider the environment. Check out the previous posts on other sections of the LEED system.