From Durham to Raleigh to Pittsboro to Chapel Hill to Clayton to Wake Forest, the entire Triangle is getting down and getting dirty to celebrate Mother Earth this Saturday (April 19th).  Here are some of the Rockstar events going on THIS weekend, as well as which ones you are apt to see me! (more…)

(PLEASE NOTE, THIS POST IS FOR APRIL 2008 AND IS NOT CURRENT)

This weekend, Chapel Hill is having a rainbarrel event, and Chatham County’s Abundance Foundation is having a Vermiculture Workshop at Pittsboro’s Piedmont Biodiesel.

1. Chapel Hill’s rainbarrel event:

Purchase Discount Rain Barrels at H2Oh! Education Fair

Chapel Hill’s Stormwater Management Division is sponsoring a rain barrel sale and H2Oh! Education Fair on Saturday, April 5, 2008 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Eubanks Road Park and Ride Lot. Two styles of rain barrels will be offered and may be pre-ordered, with payment and pick up required on the day of the event. Hillsborough’s Mark Ray will sell 55-gallon rain barrels for $65 each. Rain Water Solutions’ 65-gallon rain barrels will cost $90. Please e-mail Wendy Smith at wwsmith@townofchapelhill.org to pre-order. Pre-orders are limited to two per household due to limited quantities available. Vendors will demonstrate how to set up the rain barrels on April 5.

The accompanying education fair will teach people about composting, watershed issues, rain gardens, waterwise landscaping, and how we can improve our water quality, maintain streamside buffers for clean water and healthy creeks, and prepare for hurricanes. Free low-flow showerheads will be given out by OWASA to their customers.

A one-inch rain produces 623 gallons of runoff from every 1,000 square feet of impervious surface, such as a roof. This stormwater is sometimes directed into vegetation where it can infiltrate the ground, but most of it quickly runs off into the nearest storm drain or creek. Runoff washes nutrients, sediment, litter, automotive fluids and other pollutants from yards, parking lots and streets into local streams and on into Jordan Lake. Properly set up rain barrels can help residents slow the flow of runoff during storms, infiltrate water into the ground during non-storm periods, and give residents a water supply for outdoor and gardening needs.

2. The Abundance Foundation’s Vermiculture Workshop

(You had to register by April 1, but call if you are interested and find out if you can get in or if they are planning more)

Vermiculture is the fastest, easiest way to get immediate results in reducing your waste and creating rich garden soil. Come on out!

Date: Saturday, April 5, 2008 10am – 2pm
Location: Piedmont Biofuels Industrial Plant, Pittsboro
Instructor: Amanda Sand, Piedmont Biofuels VermicultureDig in to the basics of backyard composting, including bins, tools, and accessories; sift through the process of turning kitchen scraps into plant fertilizer and cultivate the production of compost tea. You will learn from experts, experience the process first hand and go home with hard working worms ready to produce for you!

2b. A Worm Farm Conference is coming up in May, just in case you’re interested but missed this one… I’ll keep you posted as I here more.  Or you can learn about composting and National Compost Awareness week (May 4-10, 2008) here.

…ps… thanks, Courtney, for bringing the awesome green of Chatham and Orange Counties to my attention!