Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Recycling Water the Greywater Guerrillas' Way

What: Informal Information Evening on Greywater – Why? How? You can do it!
By the Greywater Guerillas (www.greywaterguerrillas.com)

This gathering is for anyone who is interested in rainwater harvesting and greywater use, whether
· you are just curious about the possibilities
· you know you want to install a greywater system and need info and guidance
(I can e-mail you a worksheet to fill out before the event and you can get concrete design guidance for your project)
· you are interested in a paid design consultation this weekend or in May
· you want to hear about participating in a hands-on Greywater Installation Workshop planned for May 2008

When: Saturday, 1/12/08 7 PM

Where: West Seattle home
please contact Susanne (206-949-0343; susi_anne@yahoo.com) for directions

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Recycling Water the Greywater Guerrillas' Way

I am organizing for the Greywater Guerillas from Montana to come to Seattle
January 12-15, 2008 for design consultations and host site evaluations and
May 16-18, 2008 for a 3-day public hands-on Greywater Installation Workshop.
I am also planning to organize some speaking engagements for them during their May visit (any ideas about hosting organizations or outreach would be appreciated).

If you are interested in any aspect of this

- a design consultation during the January or May visit
- being a site for the May 2008 workshop
- hosting a Greywater Talk
- supporting the organizing of this project in any other way
- being on the mailing list for potential participants

please contact Susanne (206-949-0343; susi_anne@yahoo.com) and I will send you more info.

Greywater is water that flows down sink, shower, and washing machine drains--but not the toilet. Though it may not smell great due to traces of dirt, soap, food, grease, or hair, it is safe to use for irrigation. Greywater contains nitrates and phosphates from household cleaning products. If released untreated, these compounds pollute rivers and groundwater, but to garden plants, they are valuable nutrients. Aside from the obvious benefits of saving water (and money on your water bill), reusing your greywater keeps it from polluting local bodies of water and reconnects you and your garden to the natural water cycle.

Workshops by the Greywater Guerrillas
http://www.greywaterguerillas.com/

In our community water workshops, we place alternative water technologies in the context of water, food, environmental, and economic justice work. All our workshops emphasize low-cost planning, scavenged materials, do-it-yourself construction and maintenance techniques, flexibility of design, and animal habitat creation.

Installation Workshops involve groups of 10 to 25 participants in the hands-on work of installing rainwater catchment, composting toilet, and greywater recycling systems. By workshop’s end, participants should feel confident to apply this technology to their own sites.
To host an installation workshop, you need to secure a site, gather the materials for the system, and get the word out. We consult with you, design the system, and teach the workshop.

Greywater Systems Installations
Cut pipes, dig trenches, and guide a building’s greywater away from the sewer! Participants learn plumbing basics and design principles, and become familiar with the tools of the trade. There are two options:

Direct Greywater Irrigation Workshop: Install simple, safe irrigation systems by piping laundrywater and/or bathwater to trees, shrubs, and perennials. Subsurface distribution of water may involve branched drains, perforated pipe, other infiltration devices, and mulch basins. Participants construct surge tanks and lay pipe at appropriate slopes. Usually a half-day workshop.

Constructed Wetland Treatment Workshop: Install a system that purifies greywater before distributing it, so that it’s good for all irrigation. Gravel wetlands—contained within bathtubs, stocktanks, or pondliner—are planted with cattails and other local wetland plants and innoculated with the microorganisms that clean the water. A woodchip grease-trap pre-filters kitchen water. Participants also plumb the outflow from the wetland. Usually a one-day workshop with lunch break.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Duwamish River Tour


update from Bingram:


i did a similar tour a year ago. it's a lot of fun to learn about the water shed and the clean-up effort. the guide has a great wealth of knowledge of the river. highly recommended.






The Northwest Environmental Education Council presents:

Duwamish River Boat Tour!

Take a tour of the Duwamish River from Harbor Island upriver to the 'Turning Basin' and Hamm Creek estuary! Learn about the river cleanup and restoration process from local experts (People for Puget Sound, DRCC, Duwamish Tribe), and see eagles, ospreys, otters, and other wildlife; all while enjoying some organic food and drink!

September 22, 2007, 10:30am to 1pm


$25/person. Space is VERY limited, reserve your space with NWEEC today!
Contact Shannon Luoma at 206.923.1980 for more information.

http://www.nweec.org/

Thursday, August 30, 2007

About Longfellow Creek








The Watershed



Do you live in the watershed? Check this map to see if you live within the Longfellow Creek Watershed. If you do, then you are a resident of the watershed and your lifestyle directly affects the health of Longfellow Creek. There are many things we can do to minimize our negative impact on the watershed. You can find a list of easy things here.

Did you ever wonder where all that storm water goes when it rains? This article explains the process and systems in place to try and deal with it and what you can do to help.