4^th Annual Slow Money National Gathering

What? The Slow Money event promotes sustainable agriculture and supports local businesses for an increasingly positive experience for citizens and the planet. Learn about how food systems are being rebuilt to decrease environmental impacts, give back to the earth for future generations and support local food distribution. This is an annual two-day event and requires registration to attend. More than 25 local businesses will be there supporting the event and helping attendees learn how they can get involved.

Where? Boulder (multiple locations)

When? Monday, April 29 – Tuesday, April 30

Cost? Varies

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Fracking Lecture Series Continues

What? This week’s fracking information session and discussion is presented by Nick Flores and focuses on how oil and gas drilling and processing procedures could affect economic policy decisions. Flores is an environmental economics professor at CU Boulder who specializes in the development and refinement of methodologies for eliciting environmental preferences. This ongoing lecture series about fracking will continue meeting weekly through May 2013.

Where? Hale, Room 270, CU Boulder

When? Tuesday, April 30, 6:30 p.m.

Cost? Free

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Sun Energy Research Seminar

What? The CU Boulder Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) will present a seminar on variables that could affect how the sun’s energy affects Earth’s climate. Dr. Greg Kopp will talk about an ongoing spacecraft research experiment that is collecting long-term data about variables in the sun’s energy output. Dr. Kopp is a research scientist at CU Boulder with a background in solar physics and aerospace instrumentation.

Where? LASP Space Technology Building, Room 299, 1234 Innovation Drive, CU Boulder East Campus

When? Wednesday, May 1, 7:30 p.m.

Cost? Free

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A Local Look at Fracking with John Hickenlooper

What? A special fracking information session presented in conjunction with the Center for American West FrackingSENSE series, this event features Governor John Hickenlooper. Natural gas could be a path forward for transitioning America from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The discussion will address the current state of oil and gas development in Colorado and question how the industry’s future could affect environmental issues and state economics.

Where? Mathematics Building, Room 100, CU Boulder

When? Thursday, May 2, 6:30 p.m.

Cost? Free

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Build-Your-Own Aquaponics Garden Workshop

What? This is a day-long workshop that will teach you how to build your own aquaponics garden from the ground up. The session is hands-on with no prior knowledge or experience is necessary. You will leave with all the tools to create a miniature-sized, self-sustaining garden to grow vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers. The combined plant and fish system is based on the commercially successful Green Acre aquaponics methods.

Where? The GrowHaus, 4751 York, Denver, CO

When? Saturday May 4, 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Cost? $125

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Snowpack in the mountains has still not reached average levels this year. (Photo/April Nowicki)

Spring 2013 brought more than a foot of snow to Colorado, but the drought status persists, driving the cost of water up and affecting small farms’ bottom lines.

Demand for water swells with population growth, which is on a continual rise – almost half a million more people live in Colorado than did six years ago, for a total of almost 5.2 million, according to the 2012 U.S. Census. Meeting high water demand depends heavily on how much snow falls in the mountains in winter, and farmers know that less snow can dictate crop yields.

Statewide, snowpack has reached 86 percent of normal, thanks to spring snowfall. Seeing the majority of snowpack  in March and April is a welcome last minute contribution to the reservoirs, and has potential to keep farms in sufficient supply of water throughout the growing season.

“That’s what saved us in the 2003 drought season,” said Eric Wilkinson, the general manager of Northern Water, a public water conservation district based in Berthoud, Colo.

Three major water resources benefit agriculture: mountain snowmelt runoff, storage reservoirs and rental water. Rental water often comes from municipalities that own local water rights.

“Farmers can lease water from cities, and that’s definitely where the cost has gone up,” said Anne Cure, owner of Cure Organic Farm. “That’s almost doubled what it used to be three or four years ago.”

Cure’s 12-acre farm, located near Valmont Reservoir east of Boulder, provides organic vegetables, herbs and flowers to local restaurants, an organization for Community Supported Agriculture and the city’s seasonal farmer’s market. Cure said that her farm owns water rights that are usually enough to irrigate the fields from the end of April through July. However, whether or not that water exists at sufficient levels depends heavily on snowfall throughout the winter. Low winter snowfall means water storage reservoirs might be too low to provide enough water for all her farm produce.

Irrigation is essential to most farming projects in Colorado. (Photo/April Nowicki)

Cure said that in past years, she received less than half the acre-feet she requested from the city. “It’s just because there’s not enough water to go around,” she said.

An acre-foot of water is enough to cover slightly more than one football field one foot deep in water. According to the Colorado Division of Water Resources, almost half of all the land in the state is used for agriculture. Production of vegetables, meat and milk contributes almost $16 billion to Colorado’s economy each year.

In low snowfall years, farms sometimes need to reassess which crops they can afford to grow. For example, winter wheat requires less water to grow than corn or sugar beets.

Transportation of water impacts cost as well. According to the Colorado Water Conservation Board, more than 80 percent of both human population and of productive farmland in Colorado are located east of the Continental Divide. But 80 percent of the water resources are west of the Continental Divide, and the system of pipelines transporting that water costs money to maintain. Pipelines encompass every type of water transport – from miles of federally maintained underground tunnels to small farms paying out-of-pocket to run water via irrigation ditches to their property.

Irrigation ditches like this one along the Goose Creek Path are a common feature in the Front Range. (Photo/April Nowicki)

Wilkinson said that Northern Water’s local storage reserves were low at the beginning of the snow season, including for the main Colorado-Big Thompson project, which consists of 12 reservoirs and more than 100 miles of canals and tunnels that transport water across the state for consumption. An acre-foot of water from the CBT project costs $12,500. This price promises reliable water delivery for as long as the project exists, but it is too expensive for many farmers – even Wilkinson, who owns an 80-acre farm east of Fort Collins.

“The price of water is going up daily,” Wilkinson said. “There’s much more demand in Colorado than there is supply, particularly on the East Slope.”

Denver Earth Day Fair

What? The 2013 Earth Day Fair in Denver will be the city’s very first zero waste event powered by 100 percent renewable solar power. Showcasing a display of electric vehicles and booths from local sustainable business, this event is a great place to learn about environmental projects going on in the community. Click here for a list of exhibitors and food truck vendors.

Where? Wellington Webb Municipal Building Atrium, 201 W. Colfax Ave., Denver

When? Saturday, April 20 – Monday, April 22

Cost? Free

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Wind Turbine Efficiency

What? Professor Kathryn Johnson from the Colorado School of Mines will present this research summary discussion about how wind turbine technology can be improved to produce higher energy yields and lengthen the life of mechanical parts. A new graduate class at CSM has designed, and is currently improving, a turbine two meters in diameter. Future classes hope to contribute research to future technology advancements.

Where? Engineering Center, Room ECCR 265, CU Boulder

When? Tuesday, April 23, 3:30 p.m.

Cost? Free

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Fracking Lecture Series

What? This week’s fracking information session and discussion is presented by Gabby Petron and Jana Milford and focuses on how oil and gas drilling and processing procedures affect atmospheric conditions. Petron is a researcher at CU Boulder’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences and Milford is a CU Boulder professor and researcher focusing on atmospheric chemistry and transport modeling. This ongoing lecture series about fracking will continue meeting weekly through May 2013.

Where? Hale, Room 270, CU Boulder

When? Tuesday, April 23, 6:30 p.m.

Cost? Free

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Wyoming Case Study Discussion of Wind Energy Politics

What? Concentrating on the motivation behind opposition to east-central Wyoming wind farms, this discussion intends to address what implications these events have on locations across the country. The 100 megawatt wind farm has defended the benefits of their renewable energy output for three years, and industrial-scale wind farms have much to learn about how to best collaborate with communities. This seminar is presented by the CU Boulder Center for Science & Technology Policy Research and will feature Professor Shawn Olson.

Where? CSTPR Conference Room, 1333 Grandview Ave., CU Boulder

When? Wednesday, April 24, 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

Cost? Free

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Boulder Green Drinks

What? Boulder Green Drinks is hosting a special Earth Day event at the Outlook Hotel which aims to be the city’s first zero-waste hotel. Enjoy drink specials and complimentary hors d’oeuvres as well as music by Cassie Taylor. This networking event also will feature the release of the 2013 version of the ReDirect Guide – a local guide to environmentally and socially responsible products and services available only in three areas, and Boulder is one of them.

Where? Boulder Outlook Hotel & Suites, 800 28^th Street, Boulder

When? Wednesday, April 24, 5:30  – 9:30 p.m.

Cost? Free to attend.

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Plant operator Emanuel Watson gave a tour of the facility during Monday’s snowstorm. Watson frequently gives tours as part of the facility’s commitment to public education. (Photo/Christi Turner)

Despite the heavy bout of mid-April snowfall, repairs to the primary clarifiers at Boulder’s wastewater treatment facility were completed on schedule on Wednesday.

“The work on the primary clarifiers is actually fairly minor and only related to rehabilitation and replacement of old components,” said Chris Douville, wastewater treatment manager at the facility. “The work on the third and final clarifier was completed today, so other than site cleanup the contractor is done.”

The repairs to the primary clarifiers, also called sedimentation tanks, included replacing the gates that let the wastewater in, as well as installing new trash racks to remove large debris that may still be in the water when it enters the clarifiers. Repairs also included an increase in the height of the tank walls to increase their total capacity. This will further reduce the risk that the clarifiers would let untreated sewage flow into Boulder Creek. While such a failure has not happened in over 50 years of operation, keeping the risk at a minimum is a primary concern of the treatment facility. This is especially true in light of population growth in the Boulder area, which translates to an increased output of wastewater. The city’s population has grown from just under 38,000 in 1960 to more than 103,000 in 2010.  It is expected to grow to more than 119,000 by 2035.

Population growth, as well as the need to increase energy efficiency and reduce the use of chemicals, was also a factor in the construction of the new ultraviolet disinfectant system, according to Douville. The system was completed in December 2012 with the help of a $9.2 million revenue bond.

The complex wastewater treatment process begins with machines called step screens, which remove large debris such as plastic bags, diapers, and even clothing.

Aeration tanks like this one allow microorganisms to remove dangerous ammonia buildup from the wastewater as it is treated.
(Photo/Christi Turner)

“Sometimes there are uniforms from the Boulder County Jail,” said Emanuel Watson, an operator at the wastewater treatment facility. “I guess they’re trying to cause trouble up there or something, stuffing their uniforms down the drain.”

The wastewater then passes to the primary clarifiers, where solids that were small enough to pass through the step screens are removed. As the solids settle along the bottom, slow rotating metal arms push the materials toward the center of the clarifier. Now separated from the water, the solid waste collects in a large, tapered container before being pumped out through the bottom to the next step of the treatment process.

“After this, about 90 percent of the solids have been removed,” Watson said.

Those solids go on to be concentrated, thickened, digested, dewatered and eventually hauled off to area farmland and safely used as fertilizer. The digestion process also produces methane gas, which the treatment facility captures and uses to power its generators – another increase to both efficiency and risk-preparedness.

The new ultraviolet disinfectant system is safer and more energy-efficient than the old chemical-based process. (Photo/courtesy City of Boulder)

With solids removed and the physical stage of treatment complete, the wastewater then undergoes biological treatment, where microorganisms in aeration tanks help further break down organic solids and bacteria. After the biological phase, the wastewater then flows through the new ultraviolet system.

The UV rays provide a highly effective and efficient means of disinfecting the wastewater in its final stages of treatment, before it is safely released into Boulder Creek. The new UV system also replaces an old disinfection process that relied on the use of chlorine gas and sulfur dioxide gas. These hazardous chemicals required extensive safety procedures at the treatment facility, as even low-level exposure may cause permanent organ damage, or even death.

The facility treats an average of 12.5 million gallons of wastewater per day from the city of Boulder, although it is currently able to handle more than 25 million gallons per day.

Nancy Contreras, a junior at Fairview High School, helps to remove invasive Scotch thistle from Violet Park in Boulder. (Photo/Caitlin Rockett)

Despite the day’s blustery conditions, 17-year-old Nancy Contreras smiles as she digs a shovel into the ground, wrenching out a hairy looking weed along the greenway in Boulder’s Violet Park.

The weed is onopordum acanthium, commonly known as Scotch thistle. The grayish green plant is native to Europe and Western Asian, but has quickly spread throughout North America since its introduction in the late 19^th century. In spite of the pleasant purple orbs the biennial plant produces in their second year, the United States Department of Agriculture considers the plant an invasive species due to its ability to crowd out native species and crops. Colorado, along with 13 other states, has declared it a noxious weed. Brought together by the non-profit group Wildlands Restoration Volunteers, Contreras and her brother Oscar joined a handful of adult professionals and student volunteers this past Sunday to help manage the spread of Scotch thistle in Boulder.

Volunteers came to the event prepared to pull another invasive weed known as garlic mustard, but due to recent cold weather, that species isn’t as far along in its growth cycle to allow for effective removal. Nonetheless, the change in plans didn’t slow down the day’s work.

Nancy Contreras was to the point about their function at Violet Park.

“We’re helping the Earth,” she said.

For the past two years, the Contreras siblings have learned a lot about helping the Earth through CLACE (klay-say), a Boulder-based program aimed at inspiring diverse youth groups to embrace science. Specifically, the pair is part of CLACE’s Video Labs component, a digital storytelling program that encourages students to seek answers to their questions about the world. Students learn from experts inside and outside the classroom, creating public service announcements, commentaries and animations about climate change topics.

Siblings Oscar and Nancy Contreras take a break from pulling Scotch thistle during a volunteer restoration event at Violet Park in Boulder. (Photo/Caitlin Rockett)

CLACE co-director Margi Dashevsky worked alongside the Fairview High School siblings on Sunday afternoon.

“The main idea today is to explore how native plants sequester carbon in a way that invasives don’t because of the biennial versus perennial distinction,” Dashevsky said.

All plants capture, or sequester, carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use sunlight to convert the CO2 into complex sugar compounds and oxygen. However, longer-lived plants – perennials such as trees – do a far better job of keeping carbon out of the atmosphere. A biennial plant such as Scotch thistle dies off every two years, releasing carbon back into the atmosphere more frequently than a plant that grows over a number of seasons.

Dashevsky said that while the students weren’t filming the thistle-pulling event, they hope to incorporate the concept of carbon sequestration by native perennial plants in future productions.

Helping the student volunteers identify the invasive weed and learn how to properly remove it from the ground was Cassie Stube, crew leader for the City of Boulder’s Greenways Habitat Maintenance Crew. She explained that Scotch thistle is an early colonizer, easily taking root in disturbed soils along roadsides and streams.

Scotch thistle grows low to the ground in its first year, forming a grayish green “hairy” rosette. (Photo/Caitlin Rockett)

“We do have a lot of native species that would be early colonizers but they’re just not as aggressive as Scotch thistle,” Stube said.

As aggressive as Scotch thistle may be, Stube made it clear that herbicides weren’t an option.

“It’s very controversial in Boulder to use herbicides on anything, so that’s definitely one thing we don’t use if we can help it,” she explained. “Digging up the taproot is a good way to deal with first year plants, which most of these are.”

During their second year, Scotch thistles can grow to heights of more than 8 feet and span 5 feet in width. Even then, the plants can be clipped by hand in such a way that prevents growth and avoids the use of herbicides.

John Wold, from Boulder Parks and Recreation, explained that Scotch thistle was the focus of the day because of its classification as a Class B+ species in Boulder County.

“We’re mandated to eradicate it prior to seed so it doesn’t keep spreading, especially along roads and waterways where it could be easily transported,” Wold said.

High school junior Caitlyn Wood removes a rosette of Scotch thistle from the ground at Violet Park in Boulder. (Photo/Caitlin Rockett)

Representing Wildlands Restoration Volunteers was 17-year-old Tavon Boaman and 15–year-old Caitlyn Wood. Both students are part of WRV’s Youth Steering Committee, which meets once a month to develop youth programs aimed at ecological restoration, and also provides youth leadership training in outdoor ecology.

Boaman, a junior at Silver Creek High School in Longmont, has been involved with WRV in a number of capacities and has served on the steering committee for around nine months. He says that working with WRV has opened his eyes to the problem of invasive plants in the area.

“We do a lot of removal of invasive species, whether it’s the main focus of the project or just one of the many things that’s going on in a project,” he said.

Boaman said he feels that his work with WRV creates a more healthful ecosystem while giving him a sense of accomplishment.

“I think volunteering is just something I’ll be a part of all of my life,” he said. “Rather than just sitting around doing normal teenage boy things I feel a lot more rewarded.”