April is Earth Month, and April 22 is Earth Day, a time to increase our awareness about how to protect our planet, so I asked four of Alameda’s “environmental champions” to suggest the most impactful things Alameda residents can do or not do to address climate change and reduce our carbon footprint.
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The four are Danielle Mieler, the city of Alameda’s sustainability and resilience manager; CASA (Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda) Steering Committee members Ruth Abbe and Joyce Mercado; and Debi Ryan, CASA’s vice president and the council climate and sustainability co-chair for the Alameda Unified School District Parent-Teacher Association. Their advice follows.
Danielle: Think about making small changes in your daily routine; they add up over time. For example, switch one of your normal trips in town from driving to walking, biking or transit.
Debi adds, “Let’s get out of our cars and jointly help reduce our local emissions and footprint! Walk, bike, bus, ferry and enjoy Alameda‘s wealth of transportation options (alamedaca.gov/getaround), including bikeways that run across town, some right along the water.”
Danielle continues with — help keep our neighborhoods and waterways clean by picking up one piece of trash every time you go for a walk. Cut out some of the meat in your diet. Bring your own grocery and produce bags to the store and try to choose plastic-free packaging.
Danielle referenced an article about the “tyranny of convenience” — how easy-to-use services and products like Amazon and DoorDash, prepackaged meals, etc. create huge environmental problems — from a proliferation of packaging materials to traffic and pollution. So try to avoid unnecessary purchases, choose slower delivery times and walk to a local restaurant to pick up your dinner. Slow down the pace of life a bit!
Joyce: Take advantage of Alameda Municipal Power’s (AMP) zero-emissions electricity by converting gas appliances to electric and making your next vehicle purchase an electric one. See AMP’s many helpful rebates and incentives available to support this transition online at alamedamp.com/407/Rebates-and-Incentives.
Request a street tree in the curb strip in front of your home at seeclickfix.com/us-ca-alameda, and plant trees on your property too.
Debi: Help us achieve the goal of a Zero Waste Alameda! Bring your own reusable cup to local cafes, or borrow one for your next hot or cold beverage. Okapi Reusables are available in cafes all over town and you have two weeks to return cups to ANY cafe in the network. Learn more at okapi-reusables.com/alameda.
Stay updated on Alameda’s sustainability and resilience work by joining our newsletter at alamedaca.gov/residents/subscribe. Learn about CASA’s ongoing efforts (casa-alameda.org/stayupdated), or join us for a monthly meeting! Visit the city’s Earth Month webpage at alamedaca.gov/earthmonth.
Ruth: Some encouraging data underscores Danielle’s observation that Alamedans are increasingly working to make changes in their daily lives that help slow climate change. Alameda is a leader in zero waste and has an 81% diversion rate (alamedaca.gov/Departments/Public-Works-Department/Zero-Waste).
AMP provides 100% clean energy to Alameda residents and businesses (alamedamp.com/337/Clean-Energy-in-2020). Alameda is leading a regional effort to address climate resilience and has received several federal grants to support this work (bit.ly/3POT7Bj).
What climate-friendly practices will YOU adopt this month?
Panel vacancy: Interested in local transportation? The Transportation Commission, which reviews and provides input to city staff and the City Council on Island transportation priorities, street design concepts, transportation plans and more, has an opening.
Recent commission recommendations include design concepts for the Clement Avenue extension, a roundabout at Clement Avenue and Tilden Way, traffic calming measures on the Lincoln Avenue/Marshall Way/Pacific Avenue corridor and a raised bikeway and pedestrian improvements on Grand Street, all of which the council approved.
The panel’s upcoming agenda items include converting “Slow Streets” to neighborhood greenways, proposed concepts for the Fernside Boulevard traffic calming and bikeways project and sea level rise adaptation plans that protect roadways.
For more information about the Transportation Commission or to submit an online application, visit alamedaca.gov/transportationcommission.
Meals on Wheels: Last month, to recognize “March For Meals,” I helped deliver Meals on Wheels to homebound Alamedans. What a great way to start the day! Since 1973, local nonprofit group Alameda Meals on Wheels has delivered a hot meal and bag lunch — 365 days a year! — to residents who aren’t able to shop for and prepare their own meals.
Recipients pay on a sliding scale based on financial ability, and deliveries are made by local volunteers who are assigned specific routes. For some residents, this daily contact with an Alameda Meals on Wheels volunteer is their only in-person interaction.
Alameda Meals on Wheels needs more volunteers, on a regular basis or occasionally, to cover absences and holidays. For more information call 510-865-6131 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday through Friday.
You can also help sustain this vital program with a tax-deductible financial contribution. Donate online at alamedamealsonwheels.org or mail a check payable to “Alameda Meals on Wheels” to the group at P.O. Box 2534, Alameda, CA 94501.
Protect our planet, serve your city, deliver meals and be “Alameda Strong!”
Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft is the mayor of Alameda.