Tri-County Carolina Yard Experience is based on the Carolina Yards & Neighborhoods program, which helps people work WITH the environment around their property – not against it. Sounds cool!

This is a free, environmental event focused on the home landscape-including environmentally friendly gardening practices, recycling, rainwater harvesting, pond management and much more!  Hands-on demonstrations and educational displays by county extension agents and Master Gardeners.

A ton of local sponsors, including Clemson Extension Tri-county Master Gardeners, DHEC, and Charleston, Berkeley & Dorchester County Recycling, have made this free event possible. On Saturday, March 13th, head down to the The Charleston Exchange Park, Ladson SC from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and get your green yard on!

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jezpage/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

I have been unable to reach anyone at Waste Industries, so if you’re living in Summerville and have any informatinon, please leave a comment.

Many cities have built high-occupancy vehicle lanes that allow carpoolers to use special lanes on the far left. This is a great incentive that encourages ride-sharing, and one that may work well here in the Lowcountry. Any way we can keep cars off the roads, and get others thinking about their own driving habits, is a positive step towards a more sustainable future.

SCDOT is wondering what you think about HOV lanes, and have opened a public survey to find out. Please take the survey before they close it on October 22nd, or visit their website for more information. Public meetins are also being held on the issue, so it’s not to late to get involved.

Launched in 2008 by the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments (BCDCOG) Regional Land Planning Committee, Our Region, Our Plan is a 24-month planning process designed to create a shared vision of the tri-county region for the year 2040.

This is a great opportunity for greenies like us to get out there and have our voices heard. It appears that there is still time to sign up. The event is this Saturday, July 26, from 8:30am – 3:30 pm at the Charleston Area Convention Center.

This is a great example of a local nonprofit working with the SC government, as well as private and public interests, to ensure a greener future for all of us. Over-development is a real concern for Charleston-area conservationists, and this is definitely a move in the right direction.

To facilitate the discussion, the group used LEGO® bricks to plot growth on a map of the tri-county area. Each LEGO brick represents housing or business growth, and ribbons are placed on the map to indicate new roads. In the end, the exercise will help the group support their mission…

to decide how we will accommodate this growth in ways that are economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable, so that every new resident, new job and new household enhances the quality of life of every citizen in this region.

I am pleased to see the community thinking about the future, and I really hope their collaboration will yield real positive change. We all deal with the reactionary city planning that has already taken place, and it’s barely working. Our roads are more crowded than ever, facilities for pedestrians are hard to find, and green spaces and public transportation are just fringe subjects. Exposing local leaders to these issues will help us achieve a sustainable community.

Dorchester County will host a public hearing prior to their September 2007 County Council meeting for CARTA to receive public input regarding interest and support for a Summerville Express Route.

Monday September 17, 6-7 p.m.
Dorchester County Council Chambers, 500 North Main Street, Summerville

Public transportation can help reduce carbon emissions by putting dozens of drivers into one vehicle. If you’re passionate about public transportation’s role in affecting climate change, get out and let the Dorchester County Council hear your voice.