July 2014 Green Fire Times

News & Views

from the

S tories

of

S u s t ai n ab l e S o u t h w e s t

R oute 66

A lbuquerque ’ s I nternational D istrict G reen B uilding : L eadership July 2014

by

E xample

Northern New Mexico’s Largest Circulation Newspaper

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Vol. 6, No. 7 • July 2014 Issue No. 63 Publisher Green Fire Publishing, LLC

News & Views

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Contents

Stories of Route 66: Albuquerque’s International District. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 7 . A Creative Placemaking and Community Revitalization Project Art & Community Change . . .. . .. . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . ..8 Artist Team and Community Participants . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 9 ID Live! Event Schedule . . .. . .. . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . ..9 History of Albuquerque’s International District . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 11 The International District: A Portrait. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 13 Establishing the “International District” . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 16 Refugee and Immigrant Women Making Their Way . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 17 When Did Buildings Become “Green?” . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 20 Training the Next Generation of Green Builders . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 21 50 Shades of Green: Leadership by Example . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 23 Save Energy, Save Water: What to Do?. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 24 Rainwater: Good Water with Good Uses. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 24 Build Tight and Ventilate Right. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 26 Leaky Ducts: How Much Energy ($) Do They Waste?. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 27 Green-Built Homes Are Affordable Homes . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 28 Times Are Changing for Sustainably Built Homes . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 29 Op-Ed: It’s Time for New Mexico to Adopt Modern Building Energy Codes . . .. . .. 31 City and County Launch “Solarize Santa Fe!”. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 33 Sustainable Santa Fe Monthly Update . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 33 Book Review – Farms and Foods: New Mexico’s Agricultural Legacy . . .. . .. . .. . . 35 Newsbites . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 14, 16, 29, 33, 37 What’s Going On. . .. . .. . .. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 38

Privilege, Power and Position in the International District Enrique Cardiel

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© Anna C. Hansen

Associate Publisher

from the

ery few people think about privilege, power and position in their daily lives. Doing so can be difficult and painful, requiring self-reflection, at the least, and a change of behavior for the most sincere. The dynamics of power play out in all aspects of our lives, including our neighborhoods. I think a lot about how the International District (ID) is “represented.”

Because of its deep diversity, how do we ensure that its “voice,” or range of voices, gets heard?

We know that one’s social position often determines access to information, decision-makers and resources. An easy approach is for those with privilege and power to speak for others or be treated as though they represent the entire community. Another simplistic approach is to get a friendly member of a marginalized community to participate in a tokenized way. This happens with me as a Chicano-Cahuilla member of the community. Inviting a dark-skinned person from the neighborhood to meetings is often used to show “community participation.” But using an individual as a proxy for an entire community meets very minimal requirements for participation.

Most people who get involved in improving their neighborhoods feel threatened when you start asking about their position in our social hierarchy. Anger or guilt are often the primary responses. “Community” approaches often stick to the “this-is-how-we’ve-always-done-it” perspective and keep leaving the same people out of conversations and positions.

Including those in different positions of privilege, power and position is not easy. The best approach is to encourage and enable those who are normally left out of community conversations and decisions, so they can have meaningful participation.

The Littleglobe arts engagement process is a step in that direction; seldom have I seen such a diverse group of residents (from so many ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic and other backgrounds) meet and work together week after week, month after month. This isn’t easy to do, but it’s worth the effort.

Enrique Cardiel and his family live in the ID and are actively involved in a wide range of efforts toward community change.

COVER:

h ahn nguyn, a vietnamese immigrant and resident of albuquerque’s international district,

is one of the “stories of route 66” project participants. Photo © Littleglobe Green Fire Times is not to be confused with the Green Fire Report, an in-house quarterly publication of the New Mexico Environmental Law Center. The NMELC can be accessed online at: www.nmelc.org

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ID LIVE! July 26–27 Weekend of Art & Community Events

A Creative Placemaking and Community Revitalization Project

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n exciting new project has been taking an unusual approach to community revitalization. The Stories of Route 66 project has brought Albuquerque residents together in a collaborative process of storytelling, art and design.The project is transforming outdoor spaces along the Route 66/Central Avenue corridor in the International District.

This project was developed as a result of several organizations that were working or wanted to work toward transformational change in New Mexico’s most diverse legislative district, which locals refer to as the “ID.” The organizations—Littleglobe, Story of Place Institute (SoPI), UNM School of Architecture and Planning, and the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority (AMAFCA)— each wanted to apply for a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town”program,a community-engagement and creative-placemaking initiative.

© Anna C. Hansen

NEA “Our Town”grants are very selective and awarded to just a few metropolitan areas in the United States. Usually, organizations present their projects to a city mayor and he or she chooses one to send on to the NEA for consideration.

In the fall of 2013, Albuquerque Mayor Richard J. Berry requested that, rather than one organization applying, they work together to create a collaborative project.

Mayor Berry assigned the city’s Cultural Services Department to help coordinate the application.The organizations worked hard to find ways in which their individual projects might come together—largescale arts engagement with residents, community assets mapping, a permanent installation along Route 66, stormwater management as art, and more. The resulting project,“Stories of Route 66: The International District,” was good enough to get an NEA grant, the first of its kind awarded in New Mexico.

© Littleglobe

Valerie Martínez

The ID is a four-square-mile southeast heights neighborhood bordered by Lomas and Gibson and San Mateo and Wyoming boulvevards. The first phase of the project (October, 2013 to September, 2015) is based on two-plus years of relationship building that began in 2011. It emphasizes arts engagement with more than 100 residents, as well as

Community assets mapping and largescale arts engagement with residents

assets mapping and design. Community members, assisted by a Littleglobe artist team, have been sharing their stories and perspectives through movement, visual art, music, theater, filmmaking and other artistic mediums. Meanwhile, SoPI is engaging with community members to map community assets, while students in the UNM School of Architecture and Planning have been involved in a

range of place-based projects. All of these collaborations will result in ID LIVE!, a weekend of art and community events on July 26-27.

During the second phase of the project, the UNM School of Architecture and Planning, working with the AMAFCA at a water reclamation site, will utilize the July art and events as inspiration in the creation of a design for a “story plaza,” a permanent space along Route 66 that will be a gateway to history and neighborhood stories. For hundreds of years, plazas in New Mexico have been community-gathering spaces—places to enjoy everyday life and celebrate annual events and festivals. The story plaza in the ID will encompass that tradition.

Residents and visitors will be able to enjoy a vibrant and beautiful gathering space that encourages fellowship, understanding and refuge. i Learn more about the project and the ID LIVE! weekend at the Littleglobe website: www. littleglobe.org

Pillars representing cultures of the International District were created and installed by Lorie Roddick and Margy O’Brian in 2009. They are located on Central Avenue, Louisiana Boulevard SE, Alcazar Street SE and Zuni Road SE.

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Art & Community Change

S

ometimes, maybe often, when we think of a “community artist,” we think of someone who inspires our individual creativity—a visual artist, for example, who helps teens express their feelings in a collage, or a writer who helps elders gather their thoughts into a story or memoir. This is important work, often with lasting effects.

We may not, however, always make the connection between art and large social movements; the idea of a collage or story changing the world might seem farfetched. My work with the New Mexicobased nonprofit Littleglobe is devoted to transformational social change through creative collaboration.

Right now, we are immersed in a community development project in the International District of Albuquerque (ID), the most culturally diverse district in the state of New Mexico, and one of the most challenged. I’d like to tell you how this project came about and, in doing so, shift our perception of “community art” with a small “c” and “a” to Art with a community, capital “A.”

In 2011, New Mexico Sen. Tim Keller came to Littleglobe (along with the Story of Place Institute) to invite us to consider a project in his legislative district. He told us that economic and other development initiatives were being hampered by a lack of coordination of efforts, the need for more social cohesion and the absence of a strong community identity. He felt that empowering residents themselves to define who they are as a community—to “tell their story” —was key.

Empowering residents to define who they are as a community Sen. Keller had learned about our work in other communities and attended a Lifesongs performance (a Littleglobe project with elders in hospice and nursing homes). He asked, “Would you be interested in working with residents in the ID?” We said, “Well, let’s see if residents want to work with us.” We then spent the next couple of years meeting as many individuals and representatives of organizations in the ID as we could manage.

When it was clear that residents were excited about the prospect of a largescale arts-engagement project, we started planning and fundraising. Last fall, we were lucky enough to receive a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Our Town program. With this in hand, we were ready to launch.

Here, I’ll focus on the first foundational phase of the “Stories of Route 66: The International District” project—arts collaboration between a Littleglobe artist team and more than 100 members of the

The Story of Place Institute As a lead partner in the Stories of Route 66: The International District Project, Story of Place Institute has been collecting historical and contemporary data on cultural and ecological aspects of the International District (ID) via historical documents, map analysis, field research, and in-depth interviews. This work has been done in partnership with UNM’s Resource Center for Raza Planning. The information gathered to date has served to provide meaningful insights into key community issues and assets, as well as to better understand the make-up of this distinct sector of Albuquerque.

Story of Place Institute is currently working to synthesize this data and develop an interpretive narrative that helps connect residents to the rich history of the place where they live and/or work, while at the same time serving as a “story” frame for helping to inform the design of an International District “Story Plaza.”

The next phase of this work will involve presenting findings to the ID community and facilitating dialogue with residents and community stakeholders that invite further community storytelling.

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© Littleglobe (3)

Valerie Martínez

Community members participating in the “Stories of Route 66” arts engagement process with Littleglobe

community. This work will culminate in a weekend festival of events, ID LIVE!, in late July.

Last fall, through a competitive process, we chose a team of professional artists—a filmmaker, painter, installation artist, writer and two theatre actors, directors and playwrights. Two are residents of the ID. The team was trained in the Littleglobe collaborative process, community facilitation, and the artists were immersed in learning everything they could about the people and place of the ID. They were also trained in an artistic process specifically designed for working with a community of people who don’t always speak the same language.

Here’s why.

The I D is a four-square-mile neighborhood bordered by Lomas and Gibson and San Mateo and Wyoming boulevards. There are approximately 47 languages spoken in the district.

Its population is approximately 51 percent Hispanic/Latino, 18 percent Native American, 8 percent African or African-American, 5 percent Asian, and also includes a significant population of immigrants and refugees, most recently from Iraq, Afghanistan and Congo. In this way, the district is incredibly rich.

At the same time, the ID is facing critical challenges: a high infant mortality rate, real poverty, unacceptable levels of unemployment and homelessness and a

lack of political influence, in part because many residents cannot or do not vote.The area was once called “the war zone,”a term residents don’t like us to use. Parts of the ID suffer from urban blight.

On Jan. 12, 2014 we began seven months of sustained arts engagement. Every

single Sunday, from that day through the end of July, the artist team has been working with a large group of community members, making small and larger works of art. To date, we have worked with 136 residents, ages 5 to 70, who speak eight languages. A significant number of our young participants have been in the country less than three years and come from Afghanistan and Iraq.

The circle is one of our central metaphors and at the core of our practice; each Sunday we begin with an opening circle, and we always end in one. The circle democratizes any community process and discourages dominance by the few.

The circle also encourages listening and witnessing. We engage in many continued on page 19

“I’m very proud that our residents found the connections and creativity to designate a special place for their celebrations and interactions. The plaza for ‘Stories of Route 66 in the International District,’ which highlights our heritage and pride for our beautiful city, will be a stunning example for all Albuquerque residents as well as visitors.”

- Albuquerque Mayor Richard J. Berry www.GreenFireTimes.com

Stories of Route 66: The International District Artist Team and Community Participants Artist Team Member Reflections

Erin Hudson: “Being a part of the Stories of Route 66: The International District allows me to be engaged in a process I love—getting to know people I normally wouldn’t and listening to their stories. Through this process, I have gained a dynamic and more complex view of what it means to be a part of the Albuquerque community. Ultimately, I have become a member of a new family, made up of a wide range of nationalities, languages, ages and abilities. Our family has a common story: we journey through the city to come together, relate, create, be witnessed, and be fully human, every Sunday from 1:30 to 4:00 pm.”

Billy Joe Miller: “Early into our Sunday meetings, Mónica put a group of 10 into a circle for an activity. First, we did some movement exercises; then, she asked everyone to sing a song from their homeland. I immediately felt uncomfortable for the group. I don’t mind singing to strangers but, sadly, it’s something that the average American just doesn’t do. I thought it wasn’t going to go over well. As she went around the circle I was completely blown away by everyone in the circle participating. And not just a song. All of them sang with passion, some beat the side of a concrete table like a drum and others performed an explosive dance. Despite over six languages, each week we learn more about each other and create together. I’m so grateful for this experience, and I’m learning so much so rapidly. There is so much potential for all of us to see something in another light and learn something new.”

Quotes from Community Participants “ I like the idea of bringing people together to build relationships through art.” “ I like being around neighbors of different backgrounds. The group movement activities seemed to push people into dealing with each other in different and better ways.” “ I grew up in this neighborhood, and I’m excited about the coming transformation because of this project.”

“I like kids. I like coming with my son. I also like the community-building.” “ Porque arte sobre muchas raices y hacer art con otros personas cree una comunidad.” “ Me gusta el arte y también es muy positivo para mi comunidad en el Distrito Internacional.”

“So fun! I get to hear stories from other places, and songs or music.”

“Thank you, for in Afghanistan [I have] no art with [other] persons.” “ I enjoy hearing the many languages. I enjoy learning from one another and making art.” “ I feel more connected because I meet a lot of people from different countries.”

“We get to do fun stuff like making masks, drawing, and acting.” “ I’ve never seen or done anything like this, and making large artworks I didn’t think

was possible by people who were strangers and now are like a big family.”

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Artist Team Members (l-r) Erin Hudson, Mónica Sánchez, Valerie Martínez and International District residents Billy Joe Miller and Judith Shaw

ID LIVE! SCHEDULE FRIDAY, JULY 25 3-5:30 pm: Premiere of 5 Free Little Libraries

in the International District 5:30-7 pm: ID Community Portraits Exhibition.

Sundowner Apartments, 6101 Central Ave. Opening reception for an exhibition of portraits of ID residents SATURDAY, JULY 26 10-11 am: Ribbon-cutting,

International Art Garden.

NE corner of Dallas and Bell in the

Trumbull Village Neighborhood 11 am-3 pm: Building Bridges: Art and Immigration. SE corner of Alcazar & Central. New Mexico Faith Coalition for Immigrant Justice 1:30-2 pm: Garden Park Sidewalk Dedication. 7401 Copper Ave NE

(Corner of Española St. & Copper Ave. in the La Mesa Neighborhood) 1-5 pm: Student Artwork Exhibition and Outdoor Barbecue

on the campus of Southwest University of the Visual Arts 2-4 pm. Children’s Music and Dance.

La Mesa Presbyterian Church, 7401 Copper Ave NE, 87108.

2-6 pm: Bell Street Block Party 6-7 pm: “Morning Glory” (Shade Structure).

Opening reception for an art installation/shade structure co-created by residents of the Int’l. District and Littleglobe. SE corner of Central and Alcazar (just east of Talin International Market in the South San Pedro Neighborhood) 7-8 pm: BYO picnic dinner. NM Veteran’s Memorial Park 8-9:15 pm: Title TBD: Short-Film Festival and Performance.

NM Veteran’s Memorial Park, north of Gibson on Louisiana SUNDAY, JULY 27 10 -10:45 am: Lion Dance and Public Walk from Van Hanh Temple (327 Georgia St. 87108 in So. San Pedro) to Talin International Market. The walk will be led by Van Hanh’s lion dance team in a celebration of culture, history, and good fortune.

11 am-3pm: Pop-Up Block Party. Empty lot on 708 San Mateo SE Noon-2 pm: Design the ID! 5321 Acoma SE in South San Pedro.

Design and develop an image representing the International District.

4-6 pm: Closing reception. Lot at Central and Alcazar.

The Stories of Route 66: International District Team

© Anna C. Hansen

Mónica Sánchez: “My background is anchored in theatermaking, which I’ve been at for the last 30 years. It is, however, the last six months that have distilled a return to process in the most basic way: not only with the why (do we make art?), which is answered in every session when some unexpected communion occurs, but also in the how, which is a constant exercise in adaptation and being present. It is this sense of process and sharing that we will present through a series of movement and images as we illuminate our shared and separate journeys, converging now as the Stories of Route 66.”

© Littleglobe

Judith Shaw: “As a painter, it warms my heart to be present when some of our group experience amazement and empowerment as the shapes, forms and colors flow from their hands. Little by little, our group has gone from a room full of strangers to a room full of family. Like any family, sometimes we have disagreements and problems, but with love and compassion for each other we are able to resolve them. As much as our participants have learned from the artist team about making art, we have also learned from them about their cultures, their struggles and their joys. This work is unique, intense, creative, challenging and immensely rewarding.”

Pillars on Central & Alcazar

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History of Albuquerque’s International District Senator Tim Keller

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estled between the Foothills and Nob Hill on Albuquerque’s historic Route 66 is one of New Mexico’s most dynamic and diverse neighborhoods, a four-mile-square section now known as the “International District.” This remarkably diverse community is entering its 21st-century reinvigoration.

The district has been profoundly shaped by global events and U.S. foreign policy.

I first learned about the people and the history of the International District (ID) by walking—literally—door to door in 2008, when I ran to represent the area in the New Mexico State Senate. This small district in the heart of the Duke City has, perhaps, been more profoundly shaped by global events and U.S. foreign policy in the last 50 years than any other area in the state. Today, it is home to thriving Asian, African and Central American communities, and more than 27 languages can be heard on its streets and playgrounds.

diners and storied nightclubs, all of which buzzed with activity and life. In the 1940s, World War II established Kirtland Air Force Base (KAFB) , which sits just south of the ID, as a nexus of wartime workforce and military activity. Following the war, as young servicemen returned home optimistic and ready to begin their new lives, the combination of KAFB and Route 66 made this neighborhood legendary as a lively place to live and visit. Neon lights beckoned at Caravan East and the Sundowner nightclubs on Saturday nights, while families from across the state flocked to a racetrack that sat at the south end of Eubank Boulevard (where my house is today!) for weekend entertainment.

As post-war military activity increased, hundreds of apartment blocks were needed to house families affiliated with KAFB. These large complexes—by our local standards—many of which still exist in today’s La Mesa, Trumbull, South

San Pedro, Singing Arrow and Elder Homestead neighborhoods, eventually comprised New Mexico’s densest housing community. However, as America entered the 1970s, two major changes transformed the area.The first was the slow and gradual move to military-associated housing inside the fence-line of KAFB; the second was the Vietnam War. While military employees continued to relocate onto KAFB, the Federal-Aid Highway Act and subsequent creation of Interstate highways that crisscrossed the country drew traffic away from Route 66.

The vast housing developments soon sat empty; the once-vibrant Central Avenue was quiet.

Around this time on the global stage, however, the U.S. Department of State, in conjunction with the United Nations Refugee Agency, began contracting with Catholic Charities to relocate refugees displaced by conflict and turmoil around the world in American communities.

Recognizing the potential that this newly emptied neighborhood in Albuquerque held, the federal government began a refugee-resettlement effort in the soonto-be International District.

Beginning with the arrival of Vietnam’s now-famous “Boat People”—refugees continued on page 15

After New Mexico was admitted to the United States in 1912, the district’s first modern incarnation took shape around the vitality of Route 66. Travelers making their way west across the country would encounter, on the east end of Albuquerque’s Central Avenue, shining new car dealerships, along with motels,

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© Anna C. Hansen (5)

The story of the ID begins in the 1870s, as America began the tremendous project of rebuilding and restructuring after the Civil War. Although this area was still undeveloped farmland, it symbolized what the frontier has always represented in the American narrative—unlimited opportunity and unencumbered hope. In pursuit of this reality, homesteaders, including many newly freed men, uprooted their lives in the Deep South and moved west to what is now Albuquerque’s southeast quadrant. Today, the “Elder Homestead” neighborhood bears the name of one of the first homesteading families, and “Eubank” Boulevard, which runs north through the heart of the district, carries the name of one of the largest AfricanAmerican landholders in the area.

Top (l-r): Wat Buddhamongkolnimit Temple with Thai monk; Marian Jordan, Elder Homestead Neighborhood Assoc. president; Asian mother and child in Trumbull Park; War Zone Smoke Shop on Zuni Road; Talin Market at Central Ave. and Louisiana Blvd.

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The International District: A Portrait Valerie Martínez In 1931 plans were finalized for rerouting Route 66 so it would pass through the heart of Albuquerque along Central Avenue, going east and west. Route 66, which became the nation’s busiest western highway, was the single-largest influence in the urbanization of southeast Albuquerque. When the new route was completed in 1937, the area that is known today as the International District experienced significant new development. Car-centered services such as motor hotels, restaurants, car dealers and gas stations were the first to emerge. In 1950, it was estimated that 2,000 to 5,000 people traveled the full length of Route 66 every day. From the beginning, capitalizing on this traffic was the incentive for the area’s development.

After the railroad was established in the 1880s, the city of Albuquerque (also called New Town) grew steadily, especially in what are now the Barelas and Old Town areas. By the turn of the 20th century, very little development had occurred on the East Mesa, and it wasn’t until the 1930s that the present-day International District experienced any substantial urban development.

In 1936, the State Fairgrounds, in the heart of the International District, were established, making it a local, state and regional destination. It was widely believed that the area would become one of Albuquerque’s primary urban centers, with large-scale commercial and residential development.

One of the most dynamic and diverse areas of the city

For hundreds of years, transportation through the Albuquerque region had been along north and south corridors.

The Camino Real, the railroad, and even the original Route 66—established in 1926—all followed the general direction of the Río Grande through the river valley.

Most of the International District’s residential development took place in the decades following World War II.This growth was encouraged by mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Authority for war veterans. The establishment of Kirtland Air Force Base (1941), located adjacent to the district on the south, also encouraged housing development.

Central Avenue between Wyoming and San Pedro

The base, including S a n d i a Na t i on a l Laboratories (1948), quickly became a dominant feature of Albuquerque’s economy.

The construction of Interstate 40 (I-40) drastically changed the character and the development of the International District.

As soon as plans for I-40 were finalized, property values plummeted, especially along Central Avenue.

I-40 siphoned away Cruising San Mateo, © 1991 Barbara Grygutis and City of ABQ virtually all of the from Latin America, Asia and Africa, traffic along Route 66, some on their own and others with the and the incipient business corridor was assistance of local nonprofit organizations. affected dramatically. For example, in 1956, Recent immigrants, including refugees, Tijeras Place Development Company have come to the area f rom Iraq, proposed a giant commercial development Afghanistan and Congo. The district is on San Mateo between Central and also home to the largest population of Zuni, to be called The Uptown Shopping Native Americans in the city, as well as Center. This plan was never realized. Just large numbers of Hispanic/Latino and after the plans for I-40 were finalized, mestizo residents. it was decided that Winrock Shopping Mall would be built, not along Central Avenue, but along I-40, which was completed in 1970.

Though there were many negative consequences of the district’s declining property values, low housing prices created conditions for the district to become one of the most dynamic and diverse areas in the city. Since the 1970s, the district has been the epicenter of immigrant settlement in Albuquerque. In 1975, the State of New Mexico Indochina Refugee Resettlement Program sponsored nearly 500 Vietnamese immigrants who settled in the area. Since then, families and individuals have continued to migrate

The district has benefited greatly from the entrepreneurial energy generated by the influx of immigrants over the past decades. The area offers a wide range of international restaurants, businesses continued on page 15

Serving NM Cannabis Patients www.GreenFireTimes.com

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© Anna C. Hansen (2)

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lbuquerque’s present-day International District (a four-square-mile area in the Southeast Heights, bounded by Lomas and Gibson and San Mateo and Wyoming boulevards) is within a larger area once known as the East Mesa (or Grand Mesa). Before it was urbanized, the East Mesa was a grassland, stretching for about eight miles from the edge of the Río Grande to the foothills of the Sandía Mountains. The East Mesa wasn’t best suited for agriculture (as was the river valley), but it was fruitful for grazing sheep and cattle.

NM Energy Projects Funding Available from USDA-Rural Development United States Department of Agriculture-Rural Development programs currently have a wide variety of funding opportunities available for energy projects in New Mexico. Terry Bruner, USDA-Rural Development state director, noted, “The programs encourage energy efficiency for businesses, farms and ranches and offer incentives for the production of biofuels.” The following programs are available: •R ural Energy for America. Provides funding to rural small businesses, farmers and ranchers to purchase and install energyefficiency improvements and renewable-energy (RE) systems. Residences are not eligible. Energy-efficiency improvements can include a broad range of equipment types relevant to the business or agricultural producer. RE includes solar, wind, geothermal and other renewables. The grant can fund up to one-quarter of the cost of the project. A loan guarantee is also available. The deadline for submitting a grant or a grant/loan guarantee application is July 7, 2014. The deadline for submitting a loan guarantee without a grant request is July 31, 2014.

•R epowering Assistance. Provides financial incentives to certain biorefineries to assist them in replacing the use of fossil fuels to produce heat or power at their facilities by installing new systems that use renewable biomass. Applications will be accepted through Sept. 15, 2014.

• Contract Proposals for the Advanced Biofuels Payments. Provides payments to producers to support and expand production of advanced biofuels produced from renewable biomass crops such as cellulose, sugar and starch (other than corn kernel starch), hemicelluloses, lignin, waste materials, biogas, butanol, diesel-equivalent fuel, sugar cane, and nonfood crops such as poplar trees or switchgrass. Applications can be made through Oct. 31, 2014, for payments in fiscal year (FY) 2015.

Links to information on these programs are available at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/Energy.html.

For inquiries, contact Jesse Monfort Bopp at 505.761.4952 or jesse.bopp@nm.usda.gov

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who fled after the withdrawal of American forces during the Vietnam conflict—history has continued to repeat itself in this little corner of Albuquerque, as tens of thousands of new settlers (refugees this time) have arrived in search of a new life. The initial wave included Vietnamese and Laotian refugees, who were displaced by the conflict; over the past four decades, this group has remained active in the founding of many of the businesses and temples that define the contemporary ID. In the meantime, the demographics of the district have continued to change in line with U.S. foreign policy and global political events. In the 1990s, as the American presence in Central America increased, Albuquerque welcomed a new group of refugees, first from El Salvador, then from other Central American countries.

Today, a sizable community of African refugees has formed, which includes many families from Burundi, Congo and southern Africa.

Unfortunately, to some New Mexicans, the district I represent is still more commonly known as the “War Zone,” a moniker that reflects a turbulent period in the 1990s that left the district in duress. In addition to grappling with the national recession and urban drug epidemic, southeast Albuquerque was also impacted by military downsizing at KAFB and a general shift in the city’s population to the West Side. Gangs and drug dealers controlled the impoverished district, and, eventually, large barricades were installed throughout the neighborhoods in an effort to curtail crime and violence.

Toward the end of the ‘90s, the community decided that it could no longer tolerate the lack of safety in the neighborhood.

Armed with bullhorns and backed by Albuquerque’s newly minted Safe City Strike Force, community leaders like Alvorn Cliffton, Nancy Bearce and the Anaya family would gather groups of neighbors and march through the streets, confronting known drug houses and gang affiliates. By the turn of the century, they had succeeded in taking back the community. Crime rates locally began to fall, and most of the barricades that had turned an urban community into a “War Zone” came down.

When I first engaged in community service in 2007, I realized just how eager the community was to put its outdated reputation behind. Outsiders paid no attention to the strengths of the area that stemmed from its unique diversity; as long as the “War Zone” label remained, businesses would lack customers, property values would

© Anna C. Hansen (2)

ID History

New apartments and condos on Bell Avenue and San Pablo Street in the International District

remain depressed, school attendance would suffer, and the entire area would be viewed through a discriminatory and, often, racist lens.

In 2009, after multiple town halls and community forums, local leaders and citizens finally picked a name that appropriately captured the spirit of the neighborhood.

My first piece of completed legislation in the state Senate officially renamed the area, and when city and county officials followed suit, the International District was officially born.

Slowly but surely, this community is regaining its footing.

The local International Festival is entering its sixth year; Talin Market, an international shopping center, has come to symbolize the business potential of the community; 10 Asian temples have been constructed; and the quality of education has vastly improved. Change and progress are evident everywhere, from the new UNM health clinic to the Veterans’ Memorial, to the Ed Romero home, to the recently improved community centers.This summer, artists and activists are teaming up to install a “story plaza” that celebrates the identities, histories, narratives and dreams that exist throughout the International District. While we certainly have a long way to go, the community has rallied in support of a stronger district and a better future. So next time you find yourself in Albuquerque in need of a good adventure, or you want to sample the state’s best Vietnamese cuisine, head east from Nob Hill on Central and pay a visit to the International District. i Tim Keller is a senator in the New Mexico Legislature, where he represents Albuquerque’s International District.

ID Portrait

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and specialty stores, including Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican and U.S./New Mexican. In addition, the affordability of the district has, in part, created its international character. The district’s diversity also makes it remarkably rich in terms of people, history, culture and character.

At the same time, it is facing significant challenges.

The absence of green spaces and the large numbers of empty lots contribute to areas of urban blight.

Single-family homes and apartments, in some places, are in serious disrepair. Housing conditions, for some, are dire. Unemployment in the 87108 ZIP code area has reached 35.9 percent, poverty levels are 42 percent below the federal poverty level (FPL) in some areas, crime rates are three times the national average, and infant mortality is 7.8 per 1,000, all of which present residents with challenges that hamper development and vitalization initiatives.

Between 2006 and 2009, community groups began a process of rebranding the area. In early 2009, both the city of Albuquerque and the New Mexico State Legislature officially named the area—one more important step toward enhancing the quality of life in the district for residents and visitors. On Feb. 26, 2009, the New Mexico Senate District 17 celebrated the newly named area: the International District. This was made possible by the unanimous passing of Senate Joint Memorial 24, sponsored by Sen. Tim Keller, and by the strong support of the community. i

NM State Fair Portrait Project

Marion Center for Photographic Arts, Santa Fe University of Art and Design, St. Michaels Dr. July 1st – August 1st, 2014 • M – F, 9 am – 4 pm

AnnA Christine hAnsen • 505.982.0155 • dakinidesign@newmexico.com www.GreenFireTimes.com

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Establishing the “International District” Nancy Bearce

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My personal involvement began at a 2002 town hall meeting led by (then) Mayor Martín Chávez. I was active in my neighborhood association. I listened to small business owners complain that it was hard to get customers to come to the area that was maligned by the media and realtors and marginalized by the city.

The Albuquerque Police Department found it difficult to meet the challenges of covering its largest command area, which included the largest city athletics venues—for Isotopes baseball, UNM athletics and the BMX track.

The area was maligned and marginalized.

I asked the businesses why we allowed and accepted others labeling us and suggested we come up with our own name that reflected our values and beliefs. I was asked, “Like what?” I reminded them of the positive ideas many of them had expressed about our community—cultural diversity, acceptance of differences, and the feeling that we are more alike than different— and pitched the phrase “International Neighborhood.”

© Anna C. Hansen (3)

moved back to my home state of New Mexico in 1999 after attending college, establishing a career and marriage. My husband and I chose a location close to downtown because it was diverse in all ways— culturally, economically, historically, and, don’t forget, food-wise.

National Night Out with La Mesa Community Improvement Association. Nancy Bearce, in the black & white top, is seated in the center. Senator Tim Keller is in the back row on the right in the red shirt.

That simple notion planted the seed for me, and over the next six years I promoted the idea at every public meeting I attended—neighborhood associations and coalitions—and to elected officials in the city, county and state Legislature. The first traction came from County Commissioner Deana Archuleta, who grabbed the idea and began an annual event at Hyder Park called “International Day,” filled with international music, dancing, food and civic information booths. Commissioner Hart Stebbins continues that event today.

Water Authority Demands Kirtland Air Force Base Clean Jet Fuel Spill

Last month, the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (ABCWUA) held a news conference in Albuquerque’s Southeast Heights near a drinking water well the agency said is threatened with contamination by a jet fuel spill emanating from Kirtland Air Force Base. The ABCWUA has approved a resolution demanding that KAFB “immediately develop and implement an appropriate remediation plan that prevents further migration of the EDB (ethylene dibromide) plume, continue to monitor the location of the plume and install additional monitoring wells to track the movement if it continues toward water supply wells.” The Authority says that the dissolved phase plume of EDB is located less than 4,000 feet from the nearest production well and that it is moving in the direction of a well field to the north.

ABCWUA Board Member and Bernalillo County Commissioner Debbie O’Malley said, “We will accept no more delays and no more conceptual plans that turn out to be unacceptable. The burden of remediation is theirs. It is their financial, ethical, legal and moral duty to make sure our community’s drinking water is safe. We will not accept anything less.”

It has been estimated that, for decades, 8 to 24 million gallons of fuel have leaked from storage tanks at KAFB’s Bulk Fuels Facility, creating plumes of contamination 6,500 feet long to 1,500 feet wide. The spill was first detected in 1999. KAFB’s website says that a final recommendation on how to clean the spill is expected in September.

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More attention came when the Talin Market World Food Fare at Louisiana and Central was completed and opened in fulfillment of our 2000 sector plan goals. With Talin’s great success in attracting customers from all over New Mexico, the communities in the area, with leadership f rom neighbor hood associations, like-minded coalitions and nonprofits, began to join together to give a single voice to other important community efforts, such as the closing of Lovelace’s Gibson Hospital, decreasing the crime rate, eliminating gang activity, opposing a proposed new casino at the State Fairgrounds, responding to the governor’s request for ideas on the redevelopment of the fairgrounds/Expo NM, and the winning of a two-and-a-half-year-long zoning case to not grant an exception to a CVS store in the area to sell retail liquor.

As we continued our redevelopment efforts, we gained credibility and partnerships with several key elected officials. Spearheaded by (then) Sen.elect Tim Keller, the International Neighborhood concept went through a succession of town hall meetings with area residents, business owners and government representatives. The proposed new name was discussed and voted on to be the “International District.”

Even logos were presented and voted on for area signage. Lastly, Sen. Keller proposed a memorial for the rebranding.

Commissioner Archuleta was first to get

the memorial passed by the Bernalillo County Commission. Sen. Keller then got it passed in the New Mexico Legislature, and, finally, Councilor Rey Garduño was able to get it passed within Albuquerque’s City Council. All of the governing bodies passed it unanimously within a total of six months, from late 2008 to 2009.

Since then, the International District continues new redevelopment, housing, community gardens and much more, as we move into the future. We welcome all to New Mexico’s International District of Albuquerque. i Nancy Bearce, board member of La Mesa Community Improvement Association, is president of the City Council District 6 Coalition of Neighborhood Associations. She also founded and is the president of La Mesa Community Land Trust, Inc.

Lumberjack landmark on the southwest corner of Central Ave. and Louisiana Blvd.

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Refugee and Immigrant Women in the International District: Making Their Way ince the 1970s, Albuquerque’s International District has been a destination for refugees, immigrants and their families, first from Asia and then from Africa, Latin America and other countries around the world. Women and children constitute a significant percentage of these immigrants.

Refugees and immigrants face a wide range of challenges, both upon arrival and in the months and years after they settle in New Mexico. Many arrive with nothing more than the clothes on their backs.The majority do not speak English, and many are illiterate in their native languages.They must work hard to learn a new language quickly, navigate a complex foreign culture, and find a job to support themselves and their families. Many also are committed to sending money to other family members still in refugee camps.

Initially, both the U.S. State Department and nonprofit agencies provide resettlement funds, but these typically cover expenses for only three to five months, most often not enough time for them to learn the language, secure employment and access all the services they need. Finding employment is particularly difficult because of the language barrier, employment inexperience and/or lack of education.

Many women, who have lost their spouses, migrate with their children and have the responsibility of raising young ones at home, which makes working particularly difficult.

Despite NM’s own cultural diversity, immigrants commonly experience forms of racism.

It’s important to know that immigrants, and especially refugees, often have experienced and witnessed violence, war and destruction. They have seen loved ones murdered, and many have languished in refugee camps for years.

These experiences and the culture shock of a new country demand a wide range of physical- and mental-health services that are hard to access.

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sell them for between $10 and $25. In 2012, after three months of training in sewing, the artisans held their first soldout fashion show/sales event. Currently, the artisans retain 100 percent of the proceeds from products they sell. It is expected that, after they receive ongoing training in business, they will be able to give 30 percent back to the organization.

Access to health care, after immigrants arrive, is a particular challenge. If they are lucky enough to find a job, most are lowwage positions that do not provide health insurance.

Refugees and immigrants

typically do not have the money to hire a professionally trained doctor. If they are lucky enough to find a physician, it can be hard for doctors to diagnose them because of the communication barrier. Even after being diagnosed and prescribed a given drug, immigrants and refugees can find it hard to follow instructions in a foreign language.

Albuquerque does have health clinics that are free to those who cannot afford a doctor, but waiting times and transportation to and from these clinics are often barriers to getting the services immigrants need.

Finally, immigrants experience both subtle and blatant forms of racism after they arrive. Despite New Mexico’s own cultural diversity, immigrants commonly report experiencing hostility, mistrust, racial slurs and even violence, simply because they are different.

For all of the above reasons, in 2009 a group of women from Africa and Asia—who themselves had made the complex journey of migration— formed New Mexico Women’s Global Pathways. NMWGP, a program of the Immigrant and Refugee Resource Village of Albuquerque, is a grassroots, microenterprise program that teaches women basic craft skills to earn income,

provides English-as-a-SecondLanguage (ESL) tutoring, and teaches life skills. Most of the women who come to NMWGP are from Ethiopia, Somalia, Congo, Burundi, Bhutan, South Africa, Iraq and Afghanistan.

There are also a few low- or no-income artisans from the United States. The women learn to craft traditionally inspired garments and accessories that they sell at local markets. When women learn or build upon their traditional skills and find venues to sell their crafts, they are able to place healthy and adequate food on their families’ tables.

This has a positive impact on their selfesteem, as well as the quality of their families’ lives.

NMWGP is run out of a room provided

by Peanut Butter & Jelly (PB&J) Family Services at its Southeast Heights location, right in the middle of the International District. Every Monday and Wednesday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., the sounds of sewing machines, women learning English, and children playing are heard.

Children play inside this one room and in the adjacent playground because there are currently no funds to pay a childcare worker.

At this point, they still do not have their own shop to display and sell the bags, pillows, garments, jewelry and other crafts they create, but this is their goal.

NMWGP also works with and alongside other local organizations, families, ethnic leaders, and resettling agencies including the New Mexico Asian Family Center, Read to Excel, and Albuquerque Academy ’s POWER (Promotion of Women’s Education and Rights).

NMWGP is grateful for seed money that was provided by the Self-Development Program of the USA Presbyterian Church, La Mesa Presbyterian Church, the Office of African American Affairs, the New Mexico Women’s Foundation and Bernalillo County. These funds enabled them to buy ethnic fabrics and materials. Since then, sources of funding have become scarce and program founders, who also volunteer their time, are utilizing personal funds to maintain their work.

They know this is unsustainable, so they also work hard with fundraising activities.

NMWGP is absolutely dedicated to providing vulnerable children and their families a chance to build dignified lives, self-worth and, above all, livelihoods to transform themselves and their communities. i Nkazi Sinandile co-founded New Mexico Women’s Global Pathways, which is located at 209 San Pablo SE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87108.

© Littleglobe

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Nkazi Sinandile

Nkazi Sinandile with her granddaughter Thandiwe.

NMWGP artisans also make tote This is one of the many community portraits that bags from recycled rice bags and will be exhibited during the ID Live! weekend.

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State Farm, Bloomington, IL

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Art

continued from page 8

exercises that move around the circle, meaning that we have to wait, listen and watch. Between these opening and closing circles, we create together via carefully designed activities that encourage individual and group creativity, cooperation and teamwork and, well, joy.

At the end of each session, we feed everyone and give each person—even the children—an envelope of cash. In this way we compensate everyone for working as a collaborative artist.

Over the last six months we have seen what we see in every large-scale Littleglobe project: over time, people who don’t usually share the same space and, in this case, not even the same language, form significant bonds.Creating together,working together, eating together, week after week, month after month, in an atmosphere of creativity, shared risk, problem solving, and laughter, grows a strong connective tissue between us—a social fabric.

At the same time, significant individual and group capacity have been generated, especially in the last weeks now, as we approach the ID LIVE! weekend and the premiere of several co-created works of art. You can imagine what it might take for a large group of people of all ages, backgrounds, skills and talents to envision, design and then create and build major works. These works express the dreams and imaginings of a community collective, mined from months of shared work.

On July 26-27, this large community ensemble will animate three spaces in the ID (two empty lots and one amphitheater) with large works of art, film and performance.

After the weekend festival, our job will be to channel this energy and capacity into a range of community development initiatives led by community members themselves.

We do this by facilitating relationships, meetings and partnerships with individuals and organizations who can assist the leaders and teams that have emerged.

Ar t—Communit y—L ong-Ter m Collaboration—Real Community Change. This is how it works. i Valerie Martínez is project co-director of Stories of Route 66: International District and artistic director of the Littleglobe/ ID Community Ensemble. She is a poet, educator, activist and collaborative artist.

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When Did Buildings Become “Green”?

Katherine Mortimer

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orthern New Mexico is a green building leader and has actually been so for thousands of years. Ancient Anasazi Indian homes were shaded from the summer sun by building within an overhang of a cliff, under which the low winter sun would then reach, heating up the stone and mud exteriors, thereby storing energy in thermal mass to be released during the cold nights. The temperature of the rear of the dwellings would be kept fairly even due to the thermal properties of the earth of the cliff the homes were built into.

Pueblo Indian descendants of the Anasazi developed unique, stepped-design architecture and construction systems, which allowed a construction style similar to that of their Puye cliff dwellings, Santa Clara Pueblo ancestors but could be employed where there wasn’t an existing cliff. They used limestone blocks or large adobe bricks (about 8x16x4 inches), replicating the stone and mud walls of cliff dwellings. Rectangular rooms would be built on top of each other, over generations, in an irregular pyramid fashion, sometimes up to five stories high. The dense exterior walls would be warmed by the sun during the day and reradiate it out at night, as with their ancestral cliff dwellings, although the north side of these structures would be colder, not having a cliff to shield them.

Evolving frontiers in green building

European building materials and techniques were imported from the East, even though the building materials they call for, mostly wood, are in short supply here in New Mexico.This represented a less-green time for New Mexico buildings. These buildings were outfitted with furnaces, then evaporative (swamp) coolers and, eventually, air conditioners, using lots of then-abundant and cheap fuel and electricity.Then, in the 1970s, there was a resurgence in passive-solar adobe construction, as well as a proliferation of other solar thermal-storage strategies. Many of these buildings have more glass than would be recommended today and were designed to be “leaky” to allow for natural ventilation.

© Seth Roffman (3)

While solar thermal panels have remained all but unchanged through that last halfcentury, photovoltaic (PV) panels have been steadily improving. 1970s’ solar-panel installations covered a much larger area than they do today to produce the same amount of electricity. In the 1970s, PV installations could cover the south-facing side of a house, even with the angle of the south wall tilted to maximize their efficiency.

An earthship under construction, Taos County, NM

Earthships took the energy self-sufficiency of passive and active solar systems and design to a new level. Starting in the 1970s, as well, earthships have evolved to include self-sufficiency in all energy, water and food needs of the building and occupants and incorporate recycled and readily available building materials, reducing the “cradle-to-

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grave” impact of these dwellings. They are the penultimate example of green building, but their initial cost reduces their market even if they are all but free to live in.

Green building programs began emerging early in the 2000s, first focusing on commercial buildings and eventually on residential. Santa Fe was one of the first communities to develop a green building code. The current code affects only new, single-family residential buildings, but a code for residential additions and remodels will go into effect on Aug. 1, 2014, and a commercial code is being finalized.These programs and codes address the lot design, resource-, energy- and water efficiency, indoor air quality and building- Among its many green attributes, the owner education. They don’t look different “Emerald Home” produces more from any other building and can therefore be energy than it uses. incorporated into any community’s historic or aesthetic style.

Passive House, developed in Germany, is a standard to reduce the heating and cooling load of a building by 90 percent or more. These buildings are super-tight, with little natural ventilation from leaking, and super-insulated.They therefore require mechanical ventilation to maintain healthy indoor air quality. By adding a device that takes the energy of the indoor conditioned air and exchanges it with the unconditioned outdoor air, it reduces the energy loss from leakier homes. Because this standard does not rely on passive solar, buildings built to it look essentially like traditional wood homes.

While meeting this standard has meant added costs, Santa Fe’s Habitat for Humanity is currently building a duplex using this standard as a guide demonstrating how it can be done affordably.

Passive House on Shoofly, Santa Fe, by Mojarrab Stanford Architects (MoSA) and Daniel Buck Construction

Buildings don’t exist alone. They are located within communities where people have to go to work, school, shop, get services, recreate, etc. The next horizon is to address the context within which buildings exist. Higher density reduces the number of vehicle miles traveled within a community and increases walking and biking, which, in turn, promotes public health. However, people enjoy their privacy, solitude and quiet, which may seem contrary to higher densities at first. There are examples of higher-density developments that detract from the visual and social environment. At the same time, there are examples of ones that contribute to them. I would venture to guess that community design will be the next frontier in green building.

Are we, in northern New Mexico, ready to be on the forefront of this new chapter in green building as well? i Katherine Mortimer is Sustainable Santa Fe programs manager for the city of Santa Fe. http://www.santafenm.gov/sustainable_Santa_fe

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Training the Next Generation of Green Builders

SF Community College’s YouthBuild Program Jeff Hood and Devon Ludlow

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icture for a moment a young man, 17 or 18, with a few tattoos, baggy pants and a ball cap to the side. To his left sits a smartly dressed, middle-aged man. The older man checks his watch. Then, the young man’s parents walk in, and they’ve brought appetizers. This is a potluck in honor of the young man and his peers, students at Santa Fe Community College’s YouthBuild program. As they eat, the young man and his peers talk excitedly with parents and teachers about what they’re learning—the latest building techniques, R-values for walls, and job prospects in the fast-growing green building industry. Appetizers aside, what’s really happening is that parents, faculty and students are building bonds, paving the way for the future success of this young man and his classmates.

Fueled by a Department of Labor grant, YouthBuild combines SFCC’s Adult Education-GED program, Green Construction Skills cer tific ation program, and Teamwork in Action Leadership training p r o g r a m . Yo u t h B u i l d students can earn a GED w h i l e s t u d y i n g g re e n construction skills using computer-aided drafting and modeling, then work with faculty to find and keep jobs or move on to more advanced education. The program also offers financial support for food and transportation. For their part, students commit to a one-year, full-time program, five days a week. Their days are divided between academics and hands-on practice, building a sustainable house on campus that will be moved and sold to a lowincome family in Santa Fe. Students learn a lexicon of cutting-edge building skills and technology, from advanced framing and envelope integrity to passive solar and high-efficiency heating and cooling.

YouthBuild students come from every kind of background.

It’s much more than construction, though. These students are learning teamwork, problem solving, trust and patience. They’re also building camaraderie, confidence and a new philosophy, because when you study green building you’re studying green living. YouthBuild students come from every kind of background, and SFCC faculty members work with students and their parents to help build the crucial “soft” social skills, challenging students to broaden their horizons. And students rise to the challenge, becoming bright, creative and career-ready young adults.

In the end, these students will learn not just the techniques; they will learn more about themselves, that they have valuable skills to offer the world. YouthBuild shows that a little time and trust can go a long way. Students leave behind old patterns and look forward to bigger goals and brighter dreams. So, look for them on the job; they’ll be the ones with a firm handshake ready to face any task, learn any skill, and to share with you all that they’ve learned.

In addition to YouthBuild, SFCC offers an associate in Applied Science and a certificate in Green Building Construction, as well as training through its Energy$mart Academy and Continuing Education programs. For more information, call 505.428.1270 or visit sfcc.edu i

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50 Shades of Green: Leadership by Example Two New Mexico Homes with Vision and Commitment to Sustainability Chris Webster

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he world as we know it today has dramatically benefited from advancements and discoveries in the realms of energy, technology and sustainable supplies.

The necessity to effectively apply this knowledge and resulting products to the practical world of designing and developing new homes and communities is of paramount importance as these changes become standard operating procedure.

New Mexico has long been recognized for its focused concentration on innovative design, utilization and implementation of energy efficiencies, sustainable materials and environmentally friendly systems utilizing existing resources, all combined in finished products that lead by example.

As a community, Santa Fe continues to demonstrate leadership through innovative, cutting-edge developments in architecture, engineering and construction. People from around the world visit Santa Fe to experience and learn from our community’s diverse examples. Numerous newly designed and constructed “green” homes have been instituted city- and county-wide. Solar features are prevalent and are continually cropping up in all sectors, from Tomasita’s Restaurant downtown to Casa Alegre to Eldorado.

Two exemplary, standout Santa Fe homes are available in today’s market, one recently designed and constructed, and the other a retrofit.

CASA CAROLINA

Casa Carolina, 129 Circle Drive, Santa Fe

Completed in June, 2014 by architect/builder Jim Satzinger, AIA, LEED AP, of Satzinger Design, Inc., Casa Carolina exemplifies smart-home design and execution. Located on the north side and entered into the 2014 Santa Fe Homebuilders’ Parade of Homes, this home features many of the best available green-built options, articulated by its creator as follows.

Design Concept: Sited on an east-sloping 2.7-acre parcel, the approach to the main residence and studio follows existing topography, respecting the native foliage.

The floor plan weaves along the natural land contours between open but sheltered courtyards. Sun and light are available in all spaces as the day unfolds. Indoor and outdoor living areas are open and inviting and encourage an all-season lifestyle.

Energy- and Water-saving Materials and Systems: An insulated barrier wraps both the inside and outside of all walls, floors and doorsills, providing increased interior comfort and reducing energy needs. The thermal break and seal at exterior doorsills are particularly innovative, energy-efficient designs. The wall and roof envelopes include the latest in insulation and air-barrier strategies.

Exterior walls are filled with blown fiberglass insulation. A membrane with taped seams forms the exterior air barrier and foam-sealed, rigid styrene “outsulation”

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and fiber-reinforced, breathable cement plaster compose the drainage plain and complete the wall system.

Doors and windows average better than 0.3 U-value, and glazing design and solar-heat coefficient are based on exposure. Passive solar elements on the south side provide naturally warmed interiors in winter. Exterior and interior shading devices control heat and glare. The structural roof framing is an engineered truss system, sloped for roof drainage, and provides a sealed cavity filled with insulation of 16 to 24 inches in depth. Above the trusses, a reflective membrane keeps heat buildup within the roof cavity to a minimum, while air intakes over windows—in frieze blocks and sheet metal shrouds—draw cool air that is convected in a miniattic across the entire roof and, as warmed air, exhausts through roof-cap vents.

The roofing membrane contains a reflective aggregate and a high Solar Reflective Index. Cooling needs are greatly reduced or eliminated even in the hottest month.

Windows and doors are constructed with Sustainable Forest Initiative harvested lumber. All exposed timbers, wood decking, siding and trim have been milled from standing-dead Douglas fir trees that were harvested from Santa Clara Canyon in the aftermath of the 2011 wildfire. Interior casework is made from “no-addedurea formaldehyde” sheet goods, and coatings and sealers are water base and low in volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Electrical-system demand is greatly reduced by LED fixtures and lamps. Lighting levels in living areas and exterior spaces are managed and customized with an intuitive, energy-saving lighting control system. All appliances are Energy Star® qualified. An easily monitored 4.4 kW photovoltaic solar system will greatly reduce electrical bills and bank electricity when the house is not occupied. A thermal solar system and a high-efficiency condensing boiler, which also feeds smartly zoned, hydronic under-floor heating, provide domestic hot water. Water-saving circulation pumps are zoned to reduce the length of water piping and deliver hot water only to where it is required. Interior plumbing fixtures are all low-flow and water-saving.

Cooling, if needed, is available from a state-of-the-art evaporative cooling system that allows variable-volume passive airflow throughout the home while providing guilt-free indoor/outdoor living on the warmest days. An energy-recovery ventilator provides continuous fresh air. Occupancy sensors activate exhaust fans.

The irrigation system is supplied by a roof stormwater-catchment piping network and is stored in a use-monitoring underground storage tank. All native and semi-native plant materials have been chosen to minimize or eliminate the need for watering, and irrigation delivery is zoned to provide specific plant species requirements and minimize evaporation.

A Retrofit in Hondo Hills

Opportunities for retrofitting an existing home can be as beneficial as designing and building from scratch. As demonstrated in Nathan Mackintosh’s Hondo Hills home, improved energy efficiency, entertainment and data amenity options are better than ever.

Mackintosh applied his knowledge and expertise in electronics to incorporate a new high-efficiency heating system, a state-of-the-art entertainment center and a custom programmable LED lighting system.

Specific energy-saving features in the home include Low/-E glass in windows that prevent the sun’s heat from overpowering the regulated air temperature systems, hydronic radiant baseboard heating from the New Mexico company, continued on page 25

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23

Rainwater: Good Water with Good Uses

Doug Pushard

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or millennia, humans used rainwater for a variety of purposes, including drinking, washing and irrigation. Yet these days, rainwater can be highly polluted and not suitable for use. Still, it is one of our purest sources for water, and with the right treatment, it has many uses.

When rain falls onto a polluted roadway or roof, it becomes contaminated with everything it touches. But before it hits the ground, rainwater is relatively pure.

Compared to well water (i.e., groundwater), which is typically very high in minerals, rainwater is cleaner and easier to purify. And unlike the water in lakes and streams (i.e., surface water), rainwater contains no pharmaceuticals, minerals or pollutants.

With the right treatment, rainwater can be used to drink, flush, bathe and irrigate.

We drink, flush, bathe and irrigate with water from wells, streams and lakes and can do the same with rainwater. The planned use of the rainwater determines the type of treatment necessary.

If you are using rainwater in a drip irrigation system, very little treatment is needed— just simple gutter or canale screens and then a 200-mesh filter. The filter prevents the sand and particulates from clogging up the drip heads. Rain is nature’s way of watering plants, and your garden will thrive on it. Unlike typical municipal water and well water, rainwater contains no salts or minerals. In fact, rain dilutes salts in our soils that can, over the long term, be very harmful for landscaping.

Much finer filtration is required to make rainwater suitable for drinking. Along with the canale or downspout screens, a 25-micron filter followed by a five- or one-micron filter is required. Like lake, stream and pond water, rainwater will contain bacteria. City water is treated with chlorine to address this problem. Small municipal and residential systems typically use either ultraviolet light (UV), ozone or both to deal with this issue.

These two technologies are well known, used around the world, and not highly expensive.

Rainwater can be used for irrigation without much processing and can be made potable with appropriate, widely used technology. In addition, there are other uses for rainwater that can have a meaningful impact on our water use that are worth considering.

Toilet flushing is one such example. Flushing human waste down the toilet is the top use of clean drinking water in most households. Why use a limited resource for something that literally goes down the drain? Clothes washing is another great use for rainwater.

The water used for flushing toilets and washing clothes doesn’t need to be treated to drinking water standards. Recently released plumbing codes recognize that alternative water sources such as rainwater can be used in both toilets and washing machines with the proper signage and precautions. By implementing these simple applications, a typical household could drop its potable water usage by more than a third.

Such savings would greatly reduce your monthly water bill and help in a variety of other ways. One big, indirect cost saver would be reducing the need for new water treatment plants. In the Santa Fe area, the recently constructed Buckman Regional Water Treatment Plant cost in excess of $220 million, and expanding this plant or building another one is likely to cost much more. Delaying this forever, or for as long as possible, would be in all our best interests.

Additionally, by cutting down on our potable water use we reduce the pollution from transporting and treating water. It is estimated that conveying, treating and delivering potable water consumes about 15 to 19 percent of the nation’s power. The Buckman Direct Diversion project has installed solar panels to reduce this reliance on fossil fuels, but it is still one of the major costs to this utility.

Rainwater is free, and although climate changes and changing weather patterns may affect its regularity and intensity, it should be part of the solution to our water future.

It is cleaner than most other sources, and its use is only limited by our imagination. i

Save Energy, Save Water—What to Do?

Decisions about what to do to live more sustainably can be complex.

L

ife is complex today; there is no doubt. Gone are the days of simple decisions if you are going to live in today’s world in an active way. Even simple-sounding decisions can be daunting—what phone to buy, what foods are good for me, or how much exercise do I really need? Then there are more complex decisions such as, what I should do to live more sustainably? Too many choices, too many conflicting views and too many alternatives can cloud our ability to decide. Many put off making a decision, even though our intentions are very good.

So how do we try to live on a water- or energy budget? Should I install a photovoltaic system, a rainwater system, a geothermal or solar thermal system? These competing choices can all save big dollars over the long term, help reduce our carbon/water footprints and are great alternatives for the environment. Many property owners are not fortunate enough to do all of them, so we have to choose which to do first or which we can really afford, and not do the others. They are all good options and, if done properly, will increase your security and provide a positive return on your investment.

But how to choose? How to prioritize? A good starting point is to gain an understanding of how much you could save, energy- or water-wise. Water and energy audits are a great way to start. These will give you an understanding of where you should spend your hard-earned dollars and what options are first steps to consider.

On the energy side of the equation, it is possible to save up to 30 percent of what you already pay for by performing an energy audit, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (www.energy.gov/public-services/homes). Santa Fe Community College (SFCC) has a home audit energy program and graduates certified auditors. A list of local certified auditors is available at www.bpi.org/homeowners.aspx “While most people can identify and repair obvious energy issues in their homes, a trained energy auditor can give you a more comprehensive view,” said Xubi Wilson

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of Energy Solutions New Mexico. “Home energy planning can help a homeowner understand their building—its energy strengths and weaknesses—and how to make the most economical improvements. While economics are important,” Wilson continued, “comfort is the main driving force for most home energy improvements.”

For water, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has an irrigation audit certification program that teaches professionals how to perform and report on irrigation efficiency and effectiveness. The city of Santa Fe has partnered with the SFCC to offer this program locally. The next class is scheduled for Nov. 5, 6, 12, 13 and 14 at the Santa Fe Convention Center. Graduates must both pass a test and perform a water audit before being certified.

City of Santa Fe Water Conservation Manager Laurie Trevizo states, “We are pleased to offer landscape professionals an opportunity to be nationally certified and expand their business. Some of the benefits of landscape evaluations include reducing water consumption, increasing the efficiency of your irrigation system and ultimately saving money on water bills.” To register for the class, go to www.santafenm.gov/ waterconservation Investments in energy and water systems such as photovoltaic, solar thermal and rainwater harvesting are great ways to save money, energy and water; however, reducing what you are already using should always be the first step. Get an audit and save.

Information and a DIY video for homeowners may be viewed at: http:// www.sfcc.edu/NM_energysmart_academy i Doug Pushard, founder of HarvestH2o.com, is a member of the city of Santa Fe Water Conservation Committee. He designs and installs active and passive rainwater systems in northern New Mexico. doug@harvesth2o.com

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50 Shades of Green continued from page 23

19 Piute Road, Hondo Hills, Santa Fe

Runtal, in conjunction with passive solar heat by direct gain and thermalmass retention, a Lutron automation system for lighting and exhaust fans, as well as an entire home exhaust system recirculating fresh air as programmed.

The recirculating domestic hot water system prevents waste while otherwise waiting for hot water and allows the system to remain off when water is not in demand.

Wireless technology eliminates having to install wiring to numerous amenities.

All aspects of electronically driven equipment and systems, whether it be lighting, the home’s environment, or entertainment, may be manipulated and controlled through a smart phone, tablet or computer.

Given the strength, as well as depth, of the creative and intelligence quotient per capita found in northern New Mexico, it’s no wonder our community and its dwellings are looked upon as stellar examples of world leadership, innovative design, and sustainable accomplishment—50 shades of green, and counting. i C h r i s We b s t e r o f Webster Enterprises, oversees and coordinates numerous activities in the arts, real estate and development, business consulting, investments and philanthropy, and is an associate broker with Sotheby’s International Realty - Santa Fe. 505.780.9500, chris@webster-enterprises. com, www.chriswebster.com

Advertise Support our work for a more sustainable world.

Call Skip Whitson at 505.471.5177 or Anna Hansen at 505.982.0155 www.GreenFireTimes.com

Green Fire Times • July 2014

25

Build Tight and Ventilate Right

Amanda Hatherly

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id you know that the Environmental Protection Agency lists poor indoor air quality as the fourth largest environmental threat to the United States? And that this poor indoor air often leads to allergies and asthma problems? Asthma is the leading serious chronic illness for children, and there are about 40 million people in the United States who are affected by allergies. In addition, the air we breathe in our houses can cause other health problems.

What’s this got to do with green building?

One of the key requirements of any “green” home these days is that it needs to be energy efficient. And one of the big things that must be done to create an energy-efficient home is to build it airtight, with few or no leaks or cracks for heat to sneak in or out of. New Mexico state code and various local codes address air tightness. People living in older homes are also sealing up cracks to cut out drafts and reduce their energy bills.

This is all well and good on its own, but what about the air quality inside these homes? Older houses had plentiful leaks or chimneys with ill-fitting dampers, so

there was always air moving through the house. Energy was cheap, and there was no concern about climate change.

If you were cold or hot you could adjust the thermostat.

But now we are making houses very tight. Is this wise? You’ve probably heard people say, “A house needs to breathe.”

That’s a big myth. Houses do not need to breathe—the people inside them do. And what is the best way to do that? Well, if we rely on the cracks and leaks in a house or opening windows for natural ventilation, this is what you may get in your air: pollen, dust and particles from car exhaust. A recent study showed that children who live near highways have higher rates of ADHD from the pollutants that come into their homes.1 And what about people living alone who don’t feel safe leaving their windows open? Relying on opening windows for ventilation isn’t practical in many cases.

If you have a crawlspace, moldy, creepy things often live down there; that crawlspace air can leak into your home.

The dead mouse that died in your walls?

The leaky air is leaking past that, too.

And the worker who left his lunch in the wall by mistake as he installed the drywall? You get the point.

Think of all the things we bring into our house—the new sofa that off-gases chemicals, the cleaning products or air fresheners we might use, etc. We need a way to get rid of them effectively.

And we need to get rid of the moisture we create when we shower or cook,

or this can lead to mold.

Cooking on a gas stove without a good kitchen fan has been shown to increase asthma and COPD attacks.

And think of pests and the pesticides used to kill them.

Air in the house can be quite toxic sometimes.

Are you still sure you want to let your house breathe? We really need a controlled way to get rid of stale or contaminated air in our house.

So we want to create energy-efficient houses that are tight, and we want to bring in fresh air, and we want to get rid of stale or contaminated air. How do we do that?

The air we breathe in our airtight houses can cause health problems.

The Tenement House Act of 1879 was one of the first attempts to address ventilation in the United States, written to ensure that people living in tenement housing in big cities like New York had some source of fresh air—a window, for example. Now we have a standard called ASHRAE 62.22, which guides indoor air quality in many green building codes.

The best way to ensure good air quality?

Build tight and ventilate right.

Have a controlled, continuous system that filters the incoming air and exhausts the stale air.These are becoming standard in many homes, particularly as more and more people realize that allergies, asthma and other health complaints

can be connected to the home they live in. There is a small energy penalty for using a continuous-ventilation fan, but research has shown that to leave a house leaky enough to provide adequate fresh air, you need to leave it so leaky that you are wasting a lot more energy than a fan would use. Systems that many builders use today pass the incoming and outgoing air through a small heat exchanger, thus pretempering the fresh incoming air3 and saving energy.

We want to live in safe houses. Building codes originated to address our safety.

Now, as we become more aware of energy issues and our health, we have more responsible builders, standards and codes that ensure our safety by also carefully controlling the air that we breathe. i 1. Newman, Nicholas C et al. “Traffic-Related Air Pollution Exposure in the First Year of Life and Behavioral Scores at 7 Years of Age.” Environmental health perspectives 121.6 (2013): 731. http://ehp.niehs. nih.gov/1205555/ 2. American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and AirConditioning Engineers 3. Heat Recovery Ventilators or Enthalpy Recovery Ventilators (HRV or ERV)

Amanda Hatherly is the director of the EnergySmart Academy and the Center of Excellence at Santa Fe Community College. She is on the board of the Santa Fe Area Homebuilders Association and the curriculum committee for the National Center for Healthy Housing. She teaches classes in energy efficiency and environmental health.

505- 690-6272

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

New Mexico classic fencing for our high desert climate Excellent privacy fencing

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Leaky Ducts: How Much Energy ($) Do They Waste?

Rodney Fox

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ne of the biggest wastes of energy I encounter when performing energy audits is from leaky ducting. From the data I’ve collected over the years, I find the average is about 10 percent. So, if your building has ductwork that runs either in your attic or crawlspace and it’s leaky, you can use this simple formula to determine how much those leaky ducts cost you during the heating season: Annual total of 12 utility bills Example Gas or electric, depending on how you heat your building $2,000 - Average of the three lowest monthly bills x 12 ($50 + $45 + $55) / 3 = $50

$50 x 12 = $600 = Your probable heating cost $1,400 x Industry standard factor of 1.1 $1,400 x 1.1 = $1,540 (accounts for winter variance when more consumption can be expected) x 0.10 (10% average leaky duct factor) $1,540 x 0.10 = Annual cost of duct leakage (for heating) $ 154

Of course, your costs may vary. But wouldn’t you rather keep that money in your pocket? And what else does leaky ducting cost you? Well, for one, your health. A good forced-air system should be a closed system, where roughly the same amount of air that is blowing out of the supply registers is also being sucked back into the system through return registers. I rarely see them sized appropriately. With an unbalanced system, two things can occur: 1. If you have leaky return ducting, which takes the air in your house and routes it back to the air handler, you’re picking up garbage air from the attic or crawl space—or both—like carbon monoxide, fiberglass, radon, mold and bacteria of all sorts and depositing this junk into your home. These contaminants can be deadly. Get headaches often? Respiratory problems?

2. The other problem is that the furnace needs to work that much harder to condition the air again. For example, if it’s 20 degrees in your attic and there is a leak in your return ducting, what normally would have been 60–70 degree return air now gets injected with that 20-degree air, and your furnace has to work harder to heat it up. This also works in the inverse; that is, if you send cool air through leaky ducts in your attic for air-conditioning (AC) in the summer, that cool air gets injected with the 120-degree heat in the attic, making the AC work really hard to cool and dehumidify that air. If you have leaky supply ducting, you’re going to get cold rooms, inconsistent heating throughout the building, and a warm attic or crawl space—or both—venting your hard-earned money right out into the atmosphere.

In most cases, the fix is simple: flexible duct mastic over every duct joint. What’s not simple is the labor. It’s a miserable job crawling around in your crawl space or attic, trust me. But it’s absolutely necessary. If you don’t want to do it yourself, you can hire a high-school kid or someone who needs the money because, to be quite honest, it’s not rocket science applying the mastic. What it takes is a willingness to get dirty for a while. You can pick up a bucket of mastic at Home Depot for about $15. Just paint it on or smear it on with your hands, being sure to squeeze it into every crack and hole. Use this easy formula to determine how much time it will take:

complete. If you pay your neighbor’s kid $10/hour, it will cost you about $300 plus materials, which should include a good drop light and extension cord, a painter’s coverall, a bandana for your head, a headlamp, several good dust masks (or even a respirator), and a box full of nitrile gloves (because you don’t want to get that goop all over your hands). Still sound like too much? You can often skip all of the straight pipe connections because they tend to leak far less than the junctions (where one shape of metal ducting joins with another). So, if you were to seal only the 24 junction points, your cost for the neighbor’s kid’s labor would be only $80.

In most cases, the fix is simple.

What’s not simple is the labor.

Using the annual leakage cost example of $154 and a cost of $350 for the work, the payback would be around two years, with an annual rate of return on investment of over 50 percent. If you use AC, the savings will increase by at least another 25 percent. That’s good business sense. With the problem fixed, you will enjoy more comfort, better health and the peace of mind of knowing you’ve reduced your carbon footprint a little more. i Rodney Fox is an energy-efficiency and weatherization wizard in the greater Santa Fe/ Albuquerque area. He is committed to sustainable living and carbon reduction on a massive scale, one building at a time. 505.216.6119, rod@amgi.net, www.amgi.net

Example 1. Count all supply and return registers (grates) in your building and multiply by two.

12 x 2 = 24 2. From each supply and return register, count the number of long strides (4 ft.) it takes to get from the register to the furnace (most metal ducting comes in 4-ft. lengths).

10 + 8 + 8 + 4 + 20 + 12 + 12 + 6 + 6 + 12 + 6 + 4 = 108 3. Multiply that number by 0.6 (many supply registers share supply ducting).

108 x 0.6 = 64.8 (65 rounded) 4. Add the total from number 1 to the total from number 3.

24 + 65 = 89

In the example above, there are 89 areas needing sealing. My average is three per hour. So, in this example, we can assume the project will take about 30 hours to

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

27

Green-Built Homes Are Affordable Homes

Kim Shanahan

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he persistent myth that green-built homes are more expensive than “regular” homes is dispelled every day by builders producing some of the most affordable homes in our state. This article will look at four of the best: two in Santa Fe, one in Albuquerque, and one being built all over New Mexico.

The obvious place to start when discussing affordability is Habitat for Humanity. As an organization, it is one of the top five builders in America by volume. But it is a bottom-up organization, with each local chapter determining its own building style and methods of construction. Not surprisingly, the Santa Fe chapter, led by Executive Director Ted Swisher, is one of the greenest in the national Habitat family.

Santa Fe Habitat recognized early on that its clients, who only earn from 33 to 60 percent of area median income, need the smallest utility bills possible, which means the most energy-efficient homes that can be built on really tight construction budgets. The evolution of specifications of their homes over the past decade has been dramatic as they continued to seek maximum efficiency.

Because the homes are built primarily with volunteer labor, attention to detail is guaranteed by a core of consistent local volunteers who have turned their

on a duplex project off Henry Lynch Road, built to Passive House standards.

Designed by local architect Jonah Stanford, the project exemplifies Habitat’s commitment to pushing the envelope on maximizing the tightness of the building envelope. The total number of homes in America built to this standard is estimated to be in the low hundreds, which makes Habitat’s efforts truly worthy of recognition and applause.

One of the homes will be featured in the Haciendas—A Parade of Homes, put on by the Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association in August.

Another local nonprofit builder with an entry in the Parade of Homes will be Homewise. Most Santa Feans are aware that Homewise is an affordablehousing provider, but they may not know how committed it is to building energy-efficient homes. Like Habitat for Humanity, Homewise (operating in Albuquerque as “Homesmart”) recognizes that affordability goes far beyond the initial purchase price of a home; it is also about how much it costs to operate.

Executive Director Mike Loftin, in his more than two decades of overseeing Homewise’s growth, has built an organization that does far more than simply qualifying buyers for the city and

Palo Duro Homes Craftsman-style with photovoltaic solar

“retirement” years into full-time jobs.

They are on-site every day to ensure that the never-ending stream of out-of-town and part-time volunteers stays on track.

They also make sure the cadre of student workers from Santa Fe ¡YouthWorks! is learning both how to build houses and why energy efficiency matters.

Habitat stepped up its commitment to affordable super-efficiency by taking

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

county affordability programs. Homewise buys raw land, develops it, designs the houses, hires the contractor, qualifies the buyers, originates the loans, and then often services those mortgages for the life of the loan. And those are just some of the myriad of services it provides.

One of Loftin’s most fortuitous moves in recent years was bringing on Rob Gibbs to be in charge of development

Santa Fe Habitat for Humanity Passive House duplex

and construction. Rob was for many years the head of BT Homes, a Santa Febased builder/developer with dominant market share until the building crash of 2008. Rob recognized that, if Homewise were to compete effectively with national production builders, it would need to be as green and energy-efficient as possible.

Rob began working with Larry Gorman, a pioneering New Mexico Home Energy Rating System (HERS) rater credited with mainstreaming the evolution of “building science” for New Mexico homebuilders. Rob was an eager student and helped mentor the growth and education of Platinum Sky Construction, owned by Joseph and Valerie Montoya.

Platinum Sky builds all of Homewise’s subdivisions. All of Platinum Sky’s homes routinely achieve HERS ratings in the mid-50s, which means they are more than twice as efficient as an average Santa Fe home, estimated to be in the mid-120s.

Santa Fe’s newest entry into affordable, highly efficient homes is being built by Palo Duro Homes in a subdivision off Agua Fría Road near Agua Fría Village.

Owned by Jerry Wade and his son, Tom, this duo brings 56 years of New Mexico home building experience as they jump into the 220-lot commitment they are making in Santa Fe. Jerry Wade was an early adopter of energy-efficient homes, even before they were called “green.” He made a name for himself in the ’90s by building Albuquerque’s South Valley to a standard called “Building America,” developed by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Jerry became nationally known for his pioneering efforts, in part because of the larger-than-life character he embodies.

While still active, Jerry is handing Tom the reins of day-to-day operations of the

business, and Tom has stepped up Jerry’s commitment to affordable green building.

As an organization with subdivisions all over New Mexico and southern Colorado, they bring a commitment to green building in every community they build.

Comfortable superefficient homes with predictable and affordable utility bills The Wades were also one of the first to offer full solar options on their homes for true net-zero energy usage. Their distinctive craftsman-style, pitched-roof homes are not out of place in Santa Fe and harken back to a look often seen in some of Santa Fe’s oldest, most cherished neighborhoods. The pitch of their roofs also lends itself to unobtrusive installation of photovoltaic solar panels.

As a for-profit builder going head to head with the nonprofit Homewise and the publicly traded behemoth Centex Homes, this new but very experienced New Mexico builder promises to shake up the affordable-homes market in Santa Fe, which will certainly benefit the area’s first-time homebuyers. The initial Palo Duro model home is expected to be finished in time for the Santa Fe Parade of Homes.

The builder least familiar to Santa Feans, but one who is quickly making an impressive national reputation, is Albuquerque’ s Paul Allen Green Built Homes. Rex Paul Wilson, developer and builder of the Saltillo Subdivision on Albuquerque’s West Side, designed and created specifications for super-efficient affordable homes. The unique look is all

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Times Are Changing for Sustainably Built Homes

Steve Hale

A

bout two months ago, funding for the New Mexico Sustainable Building Tax Credit ran out. Although the program was to be in effect through 2016, the funding had an annual cap to be shared by single-family, multi-family, manufactured housing and commercial construction interests across the state. The incentives worked great, better at helping the building sector than likely any other credit has helped its targeted area—such as the film industry—at an amazing 10 times the annual amount.

Since 2007, this incentive has transformed the home-building industry to make New Mexico a national leader in sustainably built homes. What is meant by “sustainably built”? Homes that are built to be more comfortable, have better indoor air quality, are energy- and water-efficient, and utilize better and fewer materials than their code-minimum brethren. These homes have been built across the state and are mostly in the affordable price range of first-time buyers, those moving up, and even for Habitat for Humanity homes.

So, what now? Housing has not made much of a comeback since the Great Recession. Fewer homes are being permitted this year than last. The surprise is that they are still building green. Maybe they are trying to figure out the next move, but, for now, most builders are still building exceptional homes and having them third-party-certified by Build Green New Mexico or LEED for Homes.

One of the biggest issues with building these great homes is the appraisal process. his own, but Wilson credits his daughters for pushing him to incorporate green principles into the construction.

With an oft-repeated tag line of “less than one hundred dollars a year to heat and cool your home,” Wilson makes a bold claim for a housing market that relies on both a good deal of electricity for air conditioning and a good deal of natural gas for heating. With homes built to the Gold level of the National Green Building Standards and LEED for homes, and with HERS ratings from zero to the mid-50s, Paul Allen Green Built Homes can stand by its claim.

Like other builders mentioned in this article, Wilson makes sure the home’s envelope (walls, floors and roofs) is as efficient as can be. With 2x8 walls, twice as thick as typical Albuquerque homes, he achieves R-30 with blown-in fiberglass insulation. R-10 rigid insulation on foundation walls and under slabs keeps the floor temperatures well modulated, and R-60 roof insulation is more than double that of the average Albuquerque home.

Highly efficient mechanical equipment, ENERGY STAR® appliances and windows, along with sensible design and orientation on the lot, allow Wilson to achieve some of the most efficient production homes built in America, without breaking the bank of his buyers.

Indeed, homes in the Saltillo Subdivision

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start in the mid-$130s and top out in the mid-$280s. That’s affordable, even without the affordable housing mandates that Santa Fe builders must comply with.

Wilson often notes that many of his buyers are out-of-town empty-nesters migrating to the Southwest who have done their research and picked Albuquerque because of his homes and the comfort they have, knowing they can live out their golden years on a fixed income with predictable and affordable utility bills. Paul Allen Green Built Homes may not have huge market share in the Albuquerque market, but its unparalleled success is clearly setting a high bar for the competition and is moving that very competitive market in an ever-greener direction.

Green building has long stopped being a fad or even a trend. It may soon stop being a movement and simply be what is. The fact that some of New Mexico’s most affordable homes are also some of its greenest should finally put to rest forever the notion that green building is too expensive for the average American homebuyer. It is also one of New Mexico’s areas that can truly claim to be one of the nation’s best. i Kim Shanahan is the executive off icer of the Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association and a former builder of affordable green-built homes.

Banks and mortgage lenders take into account the amount of the mortgage payment, including taxes and interest, but when it comes to utility bills, they don’t even consider them. A granite countertop will add value, but a $100-lower monthly utility bill isn’t a factor. This, by the way, has been a major issue of concern for green builders for more than 10 years.

That may be changing. I recently talked with a mortgage broker who will be rolling out a “real” energy-efficient mortgage program that will plow annual energy savings back into reducing the principal of the mortgage. Imagine having the mortgage reduced by $500 per year while living comfortably in a home that you are paying less to operate than most existing homes of the same or even smaller size. That is a winning combination, and it will change the home-valuation process.

Build Green New Mexico is in the process of revising its program, which is based on the National Green Building Standard (ICC 700-2012). We are raising the bar for energy- and water efficiency and making sure that the indoor air quality is correct in these tightly built homes. It’s an interesting and exciting time for green builders and one that will challenge them to not only build great homes but also to tell the sustainability story in their marketing. i Steve Hale, a custom homebuilder and remodeler in the Albuquerque area since 1986, has been program director of Build Green New Mexico since 2009.

“Greenwash Action” Takes on IndustryBacked Green-Building Standards

Green Globes is a green-building rating system backed by chemicals, plastics and timber industries as a cheaper and easier alternative to LEED, the U.S. Building Council’s standards that are the nation’s preeminent green certification. Green Globes is administered by the Green Building Initiative (GBI), whose board of directors is largely made up of representatives of those industries, as are many of its members and supporters, along with trade associations and industry lobbying groups that are conducting media campaigns against LEED and the USGBC. Green Globes has made inroads at state and federal government levels. The General Services Administration approved the rating system in November, 2013 as an alternative to LEED. Through gubernatorial executive orders, several states have banned the use of LEED in public construction projects, and legislation banning LEED is expected to be filed in the states of Oregon and Washington.

Greenpeace and the Sierra Club have recently launched “Greenwash Action” (greenwashaction.org), a campaign to expose Green Globes. The environmental groups say Green Globes’ standards aren’t strict enough on forest stewardship and disclosure of whether the ingredients in building materials are nontoxic. The use of toxic chemicals in carpet and other materials actually gets points in that system. The groups also say that Green Globes has no mandatory prerequisites to ensure that buildings meet minimum performance levels and that its approach to assessing energy does not fully address actual energy performance, contains loopholes and is subject to gaming.

New Mexico Ranks High for Residential LEED-certified Homes

According to a recent U.S. Green Building Council report, New Mexico is one of the top states for homes build to LEED-certified standards. The “LEED in Motion: Residential” reports ranks New Mexico, with 1,698 qualifying projects, 10th out of all states in green building for single-family homes, low-rise apartments and condo projects.

The report says that across the country, since 2005, the green share of new singlefamily residential construction has increased from 2 percent in 2005 to 23 percent in 2013, and that green-labeled homes sell for an average of 9 percent more than conventional homes. Financial incentives for homebuilders average from $20,000 to $25,000 per home. To read the full report, visit http://go.usgbc.org/ rs/usgreenbuilding/images/LEED-in-Motion-Residential.pdf

Green Fire Times • July 2014

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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OP-Ed: It’s Time for New Mexico

to Adopt Modern Building Energy Codes

Tammy Fiebelkorn

W

hat year is it? For New Mexico’s building industry, it’s still 2009.

That’s the outdated version of the International Energy Conservation Code that New Mexico still follows.

New Mexico skipped right over the 2012 codes without any discussion about updating them. “ W hen consumers buy a new house, they enjoy more comfort and affordability if the house is built to the most current building energy codes,” said Jim Meyers of Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP).

“Homebuyers in New Mexico are missing that opportunity.”

Building code templates are updated every three years, and those templates are made available for jurisdictions to tailor and adopt. The International Code Council (ICC) develops these templates with input from building officials, builders and industry professionals from across the nation. The ICC regularly updates the energy-conservation codes—along with codes for plumbing, electrical and general construction—to ensure that new buildings are constructed using the latest in building technology and provide the best value to building owners and users.

The most recent 2015 energy codes were released on June 1, 2014, and New Mexico now has an opportunity to catch up. The Construction Industries Commission (CIC) should begin the process of adopting the 2015 codes now, so they can go into effect at the beginning of next year.

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There are many reasons for New Mexico to adopt the 2015 energy conservation codes. The most obvious one is that building science is continually evolving, with new products and construction methods being introduced continuously to the market. Building codes are meant to keep the building industry current with the latest in building science. New Mexicans should reap the benefits of the latest innovations in the building industry, making new buildings as inexpensive to operate and as comfortable as possible.

Another important reason to upgrade the New Mexico state energ yconservation codes is the new carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standards recentl y proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to combat climate change. The standards call for a 30 percent reduction in CO2 emissions from existing power plants by 2030. The proposed standards give states the flexibility to include emissions reductions from energyefficiency strategies in their compliance plans, including greater buildingenergy efficiency through codes.

The state’s decision to move forward with adoption of the 2015 building codes or remain stagnant with the 2009 version will be made by top state leaders. Under Gov. Martínez, steps in this area have all been backward.

There was the ill-fated attempt, on Gov. Martínez’s first day in office, to block the publication of the energy-efficient New Mexico code (among several other environmental protections) that was developed during the past administration via a year-long public process. The state Supreme Court overruled that attempt, and the energysaving code was published.

The next step backward was the administration’s appointment of new members to the CIC, who voted, through a questionable process, to replace the progressive codes with 2009 base codes. Several environmental and policy groups, as well as businesses, builders and individuals, filed an appeal of this roadblock, and it is still in progress. The Court of Appeals has

ruled in favor of the appellants on one of the seven legal issues included in the appeal. The remaining six issues await deliberation. In the meantime, the state continues to operate under the rolledback version of the 2009 codes.

New Mexico now has an opportunity to catch up.

Rather than continuing to fight over which version of 2009 codes will remain in effect in New Mexico, many are calling upon the Martínez administration and the CIC to begin immediately the process of reviewing and adopting the 2015 energy code.

Revisions to the template need to be tailored to New Mexico’s unique geography and traditional building methods and can take several months.

The process should begin now in order to allow the 2015 codes to become effective in 2015. Building industry leaders are coming out in favor of adoption of 2015 codes.

“The idea of skipping the 2012 codes in favor of immediately adopting the 2015 version is gaining traction among many of the state’s building professionals, including members of the Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association (SFAHBA), members of the CIC and staff at the Construction Industries Division. It just makes sense, especially since the 2015 codes formally recognize an energy-performance path that is used extensively by builders in New Mexico,” said Kim Shanahan, executive officer of the SFAHBA.

How does New Mexico compare with other states in SWEEP’s territory?

Of the three Southwest states that have statewide energy codes, New Mexico lags behind Nevada and Utah, both of which have adopted the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code. Although Arizona does not have a statewide code, a 2013 study found that nearly 60 percent of all construction in the state occurs in jurisdictions that have adopted the 2012 energy code.

Will New Mexico adopt 2015 energy codes that offer savings and added comfort to building owners and users?

Or will we continue to lag behind in code development, delivering six-plus year-old building science and less-thanoptimal construction of new buildings statewide? Since the governor sets the tone for many important issues in this state—including updated building energy codes—we look for either Gov. Martínez or her successor to move New Mexico forward and get these upgrades done. i Tammy Fiebelkorn is the state representative for the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project, a public-interest organization that advances energy eff iciency in the Southwestern states of Arizona, Colorado, Ne va da, Ne w Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. www.swenergy. org

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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City and County Launch

Sustainable Santa Fe

S larize Santa Fe!

Craig O’Hare

I

t’s time to “Solarize Santa Fe!” The city and county of Santa Fe have embarked on a cooperative public outreach campaign to promote the benefits of solar power to homeowners and businesses. The “Solarize Santa Fe” initiative has two components: 1) a marketing and advertising campaign to increase public awareness on the cost-effectiveness of solar systems these days, and 2) public education and free advice to those interested in solar but who have additional questions or concerns before they move forward with installing a system for their property. The Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce and the Santa Fe Alliance for Clean Energy are also partners on this initiative.

On June 11, the Santa Fe mayor and City Council adopted a resolution formally expressing their commitment to the Solarize Santa Fe! campaign.

The Santa Fe County Commission addressed a similar resolution on June 24. Both governing bodies have previously established aggressive policies promoting solar power in our region—the city via its “Sustainable Santa Fe Plan” and the county in its “Sustainable Growth Management Plan.” The city and county recognize the environmental and public health benefits of transitioning to clean, renewable solar power and also the significant job creation and economic development associated with growing the solar industry in our community.

On behalf of the county, I’ve been promoting solar power to the public for more than three years now. The most common comment I continue to receive goes something like this: “I

Monthly Update

had no idea that solar was so affordable.

I’ve wanted to go solar for awhile now but thought it was still just for the well-to-do.” Solar photovoltaic (PV) electric systems are less than half the cost they were just five to six years ago.

Both PV and solar thermal (water and space heating) systems enjoy 40 percent income tax credits and can be totally or close to “zero cost” from the get-go.

The monthly loan payment for your solar system can be about the same as the reduction or elimination of your electric, natural gas, or propane bills, making it cash-neutral from the first month of owning your system. For those that qualify (gross household income less than $104,000 per year), a loan from Homewise, a nonprofit lowand moderate-income lender, can be a great option. Many solar companies offer attractive financing as well. In addition, a solar system increases the resale value of a home or commercial property.

Solarize Santa Fe! aims to educate the public about how solar systems are now quite cost-effective—making both dollars and sense. Contact me for more information at 505.992.3044 or cohare@santafecountynm.gov. The county cannot recommend specific solar companies to install your solar system, but we do maintain an informative list of companies that do business in the area. Go to www.santafecountynm. gov and click on “Solar Power” under “Services.” i Craig O’Hare is Santa Fe County’s Energy Programs specialist.

Supporting Local Business in Southern New Mexico 221 N. Main Street, Las Cruces. 575-­‐323-­‐1575

The Sustainable Santa Fe Commission’s current efforts are focused on projects that integrate sustainability practices into all city operations and increase awareness and understanding of these practices among city employees. The targeted projects involve improvements in public accountability, updates to the city’s sustainability and climate adaptation plan, and the creation of training resources for facility managers. When sustainable practices are integrated throughout all municipal operations and each department is held accountable for progress, larger-scale improvements can follow, and the city can serve as a model for the private sector.

The following projects are high priorities for the SSF Commission from June through August, 2014: The Sustainable Santa Fe Plan Revision. Revisions will include an adaptation plan based on current climate-projection science and a training package for city facility managers. The revised plan will be presented in a digestible form for use by city staff to set annual sustainability objectives specific to each department.

Identify Existing Sustainability Measures. The Commission is working with city facility managers to identify current sustainability measures and define specific implementation plans.

Community Scorecard. This report will measure and track progress over time, providing annual, trackable indicators for citywide greenhouse gas emissions, energy and water consumption, green economic development, and other areas of sustainability. Baseline data, national averages and comparisons between Santa Fe’s current status and stated objectives will be included.

Environmental Impact Questions. Three questions will be proposed as additions to the financial impact statement required for city resolutions and ordinances.

Mandatory evaluation and reporting of environmental impact, prior to approval of new city policies and laws, will prevent unintended negative impacts and assist with integrating sustainability into all city actions.

Santa Fe residents are encouraged to participate in SSFC projects on subcommittees.

The commission meets on the third Tuesday of every month, from 2:30–4:30 p.m. in the Council Conference Room in City Hall. Interested community members should contact the commission staff, Katherine Mortimer, at kemortimer@ci.santa-fe. nm.us. Other information can be found at http://sustainablesantafe.wordpress.com

New Green Building Code in Santa Fe Aug. 1

An increasing number of municipalities are adopting green building ordinances and/or codes, and the development community and homeowners are following as they recognize the longer-term value in building green. The city of Santa Fe recently adopted a Residential Addition and Remodel Green Building Code, which goes into effect on Aug. 1. Tailored to northern New Mexico’s climate, the code change is part of an effort by the city to meet the 2030 Challenge, which is part of the U.S. Conference of Mayors agreement on climate change. The new code is designed to provide a number of homeowner benefits, including lower operating costs, increased comfort, improved environmental quality, enhanced durability and less maintenance.

Two new chapters were added to the city’s Code Section 7-4, Green Building Codes: Chapter 11, on large remodels and additions, and Chapter 12, covering small additions and complete kitchen, bathroom or basement remodels. Chapter 11 applies to remodels affecting 50 percent or more of the floor area and additions greater than 400 square feet. There is a point system and mandates similar to that required by the city’s Green Building Code for portions of the building affected by the project. Chapter 12 applies to portions of buildings affected by smaller remodels and additions and includes mandates for a building’s thermal envelope, air sealing and insulation, recessed lighting, high-efficiency lighting, boiler supply piping, appliances, gas-fired equipment, solid-fuel-burning appliances, HVAC system protection, duct insulation, recycling, universal design elements, showerheads, faucets, water closets, radon control, flashing, ice barriers and architectural features.

To learn more about the code, visit www.santafenm.gov/greenbuildingcode

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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Book Review by Susan Waterman

Farms and Foods: New Mexico’s Agricultural Legacy

by Timothy McKimmie

104 pages, 200-plus color photographs Available at local bookstores and on Amazon ISBN 978-0615844800 unityswpress@gmail.com, http://www.unityswpress.com

I

n his recently released book, Farms and Foods: New Mexico’s Agricultural Legacy, Tim McKimmie invites the reader to join him in a journey through New Mexico’s colorful agricultural history. More than 200 color photographs taken by the author are a heartfelt tribute to the rich landscapes of farming and food that shape this arid state. Retired from the College of Agriculture at New Mexico State University, the author shares his passion and wisdom, acquired over 30 years of involvement in food and agriculture in the Southwest. The book is a definite “must-read” for families and food lovers of all ages. The author shows us that we all have a stake in an important agricultural legacy and how we can help preserve it.

McKimmie’s book presents a concise history of New Mexico’s farming, beginning with the Indian people who grew the Three Sisters crops—corn, beans, and squash—two thousand years ago. The earliest farmers planted in scattered locations where moisture was available, and eventually developed skills in places like the Mimbres Valley and Chaco Canyon to harvest water and create irrigation systems.

In 1598, Spanish colonists, led by Juan de Oñate, settled near the confluence of the Río Grande and Río Chama. Spanish crops, livestock and farming practices, along with the colonists’ missions, revolutionized the lifestyle and stimulated trade along the Camino Real. We journey through the radical transformation in landscape and agriculture as Puebloans adopted new crops and livestock that arrived with the Spanish explorers.

surprising varieties found among the traditional crops, as well as other vegetables, herbs and spices. The book also surveys the large and surprising variety of nuts and fruit grown in New Mexico.

Beef cattle –northern New Mexico rangeland

“What about water?” the author asks. “Farming arid lands requires an intimate knowledge of water.”The long history of water management, distribution and usage in agriculture in New Mexico is presented as an urgent reminder of the scarcity of this precious resource and its necessity for a thriving, sustainable agriculture.

I asked McKimmie what he has found to be most encouraging and most disheartening for the future of agriculture on his journey across family farms over the years. He told me without hesitation, “The promise of so many small farms.” He pointed out that in the past two years the number of farms in New Mexico increased by 10 percent, while the acreage has remained constant. When questioned about challenges facing sustainable agriculture and local food systems, he mentioned “short-sighted sacrificing”—allowing pollution and the give-away of already-scarce water to corporations and industries that have little stake in livelihood, lifestyle or agriculture in New Mexico. “Making the choice, the decision, to use water wisely for the good of our communities is the best each of us can do to ensure our sustainable agricultural future and local food systems,” he says. i Susan Waterman has a Ph.D. in Botany and has been an advocate of sustainable agriculture and local food systems for over 25 years. Visit www.harvestbyhand.com and susan@susanmwaterman.com

The book is truly a picturesque directory to farms, fairs, harvest festivals and museums across the state. And McKimmie’s stunning images illustrate the colorful, rich abundance of fresh produce available at New Mexico’s farmers’ markets in spring, summer and fall. Locally inspired farmers’ market signage, along with the portraits of landscape, livestock, fiber products, flowers and food, reflects the traditions of agriculture in our high-desert state and the fun of spending a day visiting these markets and chatting with the hard-working farmers who grow the food we eat. A morning at the market may inspire you to spice up your culinary repertoire with the

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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NEWSBITEs Buckman Direct Diversion Installs New Solar Array

The Buckman Direct Diversion (BDD) has installed a 1.5 megawatt (MW) solar array on eight acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land adjacent to the Buckman Regional Water Treatment Plant. The new array has 4,608 high-efficiency panels, increasing the total energy BDD’s solar system generates to 2.5 MW. That constitutes 41 percent of the energy needed to treat and deliver Río Grande surface water to Santa Fe residents. The new system also powers pumps to push water 11 miles uphill to the treatment plant.

Triangle Gallegos’ owners also have an interest in Lucky Corridor, LLC, a company planning to build a 130-mile transmission line that will carry the wind-farm power through Springer and Taos.

The Triangle Gallegos wind farm will be the eighth wind-energy project on state trust land. The leased land will generate about $47 million during its term—a little over a million dollars a year—for state schools, universities and other institutions. Powell says that the Land Office is working to expand the state’s renewable energy portfolio.

El Cabo Wind Farm, being built by Iberdrola Renewables in phases over the next decade on 34,000 acres in Torrance County, will have a 1-gigawatt generating capacity.

Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Gas Industry in Colorado

San Miguel County (NM) Clerk Sued for Refusing Home Rule Petition On June 10, 2014, residents of Lafayette, Colo., filed a first-of-its-kind class-action lawsuit against the state of Colorado, Gov. John Hickenlooper and the Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA) to protect the rights of the people of Lafayette to self-governance.

Total potential savings on BDD’s annual bill will be about $400,000. Because of the solar system, the cost of energy is fixed for 30 years, and the savings will grow over time as grid electric becomes more expensive.

“The BDD board mandated several years ago that green power would be a component of providing customers with sustainable drinking water,” stated Joseph Maestas, BDD board chair and Santa Fe city councilor. “The board is firmly committed to energy- and water-efficient practices that continue to reduce our carbon footprint and help our citizens adapt to climate change.”

The new $4.8-million solar system was funded in part by the New Mexico Finance Authority through the Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund. “Santa Fe has paved the way, and we hope to see other communities create these kinds of projects too,” stated Ryan Helton, NMFA senior program administrator.

Positive Energy Solar and Bradbury Stamm Construction were selected through an RFP process to install the array.

Arizona Solar-Wind Tower Planned

Solar Wind Energy, a Maryland-based company, has received the necessary startup capital for construction of a 2,250-foot-high solar-wind hybrid tower, to be built near San Luis, Arizona. The tower would be the tallest freestanding structure in the U.S. The concept for solar-wind towers was invented in Israel and patented in 1975. A mist of water droplets is sprayed over an opening in the tower. The fog evaporates and absorbs the heat of the surrounding air. Because it is denser than warm air, the cooled air sinks to the bottom, accelerating up to 50 miles per hour. At the base of the tower the downdraft is tunneled through wind turbines, which generate CO2-free power. As long as the air is warm and dry enough, the downdraft can be produced at all times of the day, year-round, generating an average of 435 megawatts, close to that of the smallest nuclear power plant in the U.S., which averages 502 megawatts.

The company intends to pipe desalinated water from the Sea of Cortez, 46 miles away, across the Mexican border. The overall cost of the plant is estimated at about $1.6 billion. The company has so far received $1.6 million and hopes its rising stock value will continue to attract investors. Construction is planned for 2018.

New Mexico Wind Farms

A Texas company that is a joint venture of Triangle Cattle Co. and Gallegos Wind Farm won a bid to build a wind farm in northeastern New Mexico’s Union County on 19,000 acres of state trust land and 31,000 acres of private ranch land. The project, to be built in two phases beginning in 2015, will create 400 construction jobs and 25 permanent, full-time jobs. State Land Commissioner Ray Powell says that the wind farm could generate about 500 megawatts of electricity with 285 wind turbines, enough to power about 200,000 homes. Compared to generating power with coal, the wind farm will reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 1.3 million tons and save more than 550 million gallons of water annually.

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In November, 2013, Lafayette residents overwhelmingly adopted a Home Rule Charter Amendment banning all new commercial extraction of natural gas and oil within the city limits. The amendment established a Community Bill of Rights, including the right of human and natural communities to water and a healthy environment. The Bill of Rights bans fracking and other extractions as a violation of those rights. In December, COGA filed a lawsuit against the city of Lafayette to overturn the Community Bill of Rights, contending that the community does not have the legal authority to protect itself from fracking and that corporate members of the association have the constitutional “right” to frack.

The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) which assisted Lafayette residents in drafting the Community Bill of Rights, is providing its expertise with the filing of the class action lawsuit. CELDF Executive Director Thomas Linzey stated, “This lawsuit is merely the first of many by people across the United States, whose constitutional rights to govern their own communities are routinely violated by state governments working in concert with the corporations that they ostensibly regulate.”

CELDF, on behalf of a San Miguel County, New Mexico, citizen, is also currently suing the San Miguel County Clerk to challenge the clerk’s refusal to allow a citizen petition to go forward to seek home rule in San Miguel. If this court case is successful, it will open the doors for all counties in New Mexico to petition for home rule and to take a ballot initiative forward on the county level.

Albuquerque Wildlife Federation: 100 Years July 19 Celebration — Valle de Oro Natl. Wildlife Refuge

Aldo Leopold arranged a meeting of sportsmen and conservationists in Albuquerque in 1914. His purpose was to enlist a group of volunteers to advocate for laws protecting wild game species. Fourteen years earlier, the last wild passenger pigeon had been killed. Similarly, during the late 1800s Leopold had witnessed the near-extermination of the bison from the American West. Leopold was convinced that we could learn from mistakes of the past and put in place protections that would prevent other species from meeting the same sad fate.

Since its founding a century ago, the Albuquerque Wildlife Federation has demonstrated the power of volunteers to make a difference for wildlife and wild lands.

Their work has made a profound difference in changing how wildlife is managed and has prevented more extinctions by overhunting. Today, the AWF organizes eight restoration service projects around the state each year. Volunteers do things such as plant native vegetation, remove unnecessary roads and fences, and build rock structures to improve the integrity of vital wetlands.

The public is invited to a celebration of the AWF’s 100th anniversary on July 19 at the Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge in Albuquerque’s South Valley. It is a location that likely would have pleased Aldo Leopold and the other founders because they had called for both the protection of the Río Grande bosque and the creation of a national system of wildlife refuges. The celebration will include music, games, food, and a keynote talk by renowned local environmental historian and author Jack Loeffler. Details can be found at abq.nmwildlife.org

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What's Going On! Events / Announcements

ALBUQUERQUE July 2, 9, 16, 23, 3-5 pm Farmers’ Market/ Healthy Families Initiative East San José Elementary School 415 Thaxton Ave. SE

Fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables, activities, health information. 505.304.8724, vneco@hotmail.com

July 2, 5:30-7:30 pm Green Drinks Hotel Andaluz, 125 2nd St. NW Network and mingle with people interested in local business, clean energy and other green issues. Guest speaker: Michael McDade of Focus Creative Agency.

Free. 505.244.3700, Lind say@nmgreenchamber.com

July 7, Aug. 4, 10 am Wildlife Habitat Garden Tour Xeric Garden Club of ABQ, 10120 Lomas Blvd. NE

Guided tour of garden that uses native plants to support indigenous wildlife and migratory birds.

All ages welcome. Free. www.xericgardenclub.org

July 8. 10 am-12 pm NM Music Commission Meeting Natl. Hispanic Cultural Center

Open to the public. 800.879.4278, www.new mexicomusic.org

July 9, Aug. 13, 9-10:30 am Agriculture Collaborative Meeting MRCOG Offices, 809 Copper NW

http:www.mrcog-nm.gov/agriculture-mainmenu-55/meetings-mainmenu-240

July 10, 5:30-7:30 pm TEDxABQ Salon – The Entrepreneur Albuquerque Museum of Art & History

This salon will feature New Mexicans who are putting the entrepreneurial spirit to work for themselves or from within their organizations to benefit the community. Info/Tickets $21.50: tedxabq.com

July 12, 9 am-12 pm Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge Open House

Creating Habitat for Wildlife. See wildlife, learn more about nature and enjoy free, hands-on activities for all ages. Presented by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. http:// www.fws.gov/refuge/valle_de_oro

July 14-25, 8:10 am-12:40 pm Curanderismo Class UNM Main Campus (Anthropology Bldg., Room 163)

Traditional Medicine without Borders: Curanderismo in the Southwest and México.

Workshop, lectures, demonstrations. Registration for credit: 505.277.8900; non-credit: 505.277.0077, Info: 505.277.0952, http:// curanderismo.unm.edu

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

July 17, 7:30-9:30 am Reinventing Our City Mariott Pyramid North 5151 San Francisco Rd. NE

July 30, 9 am Santolina Master Plan Hearing Vincent E. Griego Chambers, City Hall

A summit on building a better economic future for Albuquerque. Networking breakfast and panel discussion of business and community leaders. $35. 505.348.8326, http://bizj.us/vnrqt

Bernalillo County Planning Commission hearing on proposed South Valley development that has yet to address water issues. http://contrasantolina.wordpress.com, http://www.southvalleyacequias.org/

July 19, 3-10 pm Albuquerque Wildlife Federation 100th Birthday Celebration Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge

Aug. 6, 6 pm Pueblo Revolt Lecture Indian Pueblo Cultural Center 2401 12th St. NW

The federation was founded by Aldo Leopold. Music, food trucks, bosque tours, speakers, games and family activities. Free. http:// abq.nmwildlife.org/

July 23, 5:30-7 pm; July 31, 2-3:30 pm Eating for Your Health Lomas-Tramway Library, 908 Eastridge Drive (corner Lomas & Tramway)

Community-based presentation with Q&A

by Susan Clair, MCRP/MPA, on elements of a healthy lifestyle, plant-based and animal proteins, organic vs. conventional, antioxidants and systemic alkalinity, health benefits of herbs & spices, fats & sweeteners. Free or by donation. 505.281.9888, clair@nmia.com

July 23, 6-9 pm Home Composting Basics UNM Continuing Education, South Bldg., 1634 University Blvd. NE

Learn the science, materials and methods of drought-proofing your garden soil in order to grow vegetables, fruit and berries. Registration: go to UNM Continuing Ed website.

Info: 505.277.0077

July 24-25 Indian Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Conference Isleta Resort and Casino

“Connecting the Dots through Tribal/State Relations” Sponsored by the NM Children, Youth and Families Dept. and Casey Family Programs. Registration: $85. 505.842.1122, http://aidainc.net/ICW/contact.htm

July 26, 10 am-12 pm Home Composting Basics Palo Duro Senior Center 5221 Palo Duro Ave. NE

Desert garden soils often lack sufficient organic matter. Learn the science, materials and methods of drought-proofing your garden soil in order to grow vegetables, fruit and berries. Registration: 505.782.4495, register@nmcomposters.org

July 26-27 ID Live! Stories of Route 66 Festival Between Lomas and Gibson & San Mateo and Wyoming

Celebrating ABQ’s International District.

Littleglobe and residents of the district will premiere four co-created works of art, film and performance, the result of seven months of preparation with over 130 community members. www.littleglobe.org

July 28, 8 am-Aug. 1, 5 pm Certified Training and Certification for Energy Managers PNM Training Facility 414 Silver Ave. SW Instructor: Mark Roche. $1800-$1900. Info: cae vans@sandia.gov; certification info: http://www. aeecenter.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3351

Dr. Matthew J. Martínez will present an overview of the events leading up to the Revolt of 1680 and discuss how pueblos continue to honor and remember legacies. Free.

505.843.7270

Sept. 26 Fall Solar Fiesta CNM Workforce Training Center

A full day of engaging presentations sponsored by Central NM Community College.

Presented by the NM Solar Energy Association. http://www.nmsolarfiesta.org

Oct. 15-19 National Wilderness Conference Hyatt Regency ABQ, ABQ Convention Center

Presentations, panels, exhibits, field trips and skill-development workshops focusing on recent advances and emerging issues in wilderness stewardship. The companion Wilderness Celebration Exhibition will showcase organizational booths for gradeand middle-school students. Conference registration: $350/$200. Scholarships. Get Wild Festival (public) on Oct.18, 2-10 pm on Civic Plaza. http://www.wilderness50th.org

Daily, 10 am-6 pm Wildlife West 87 N. Frontage Rd., Edgewood (just east of ABQ)

122-acre park/attraction with educational programs dedicated to native wildlife and ecology. $7/$6/$4/children under 5 free. 7/25-27: Wildlife Music Festival. www.wildlifewest.org

Through May 31, 2015 El Agua es Vida: Acequias in Northern New Mexico

Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, UNM Groundbreaking, multidisciplinary exhibit.

Free. 505.277.4405, maxwellmuseum.unm.edu

SANTA FE

July 1-August 1 9 am - 4 pm NM State Fair Portrait Project Marion Center for Photographic Arts, SFUAD Campus, 1600 St. Michael’s Dr.

Multicultural portraits taken over five years by six photographers. Free. 505.473.6341, Sharon.russell@santafeuniversity.edu

July 2, 5:30-7 pm Santa Fe Green Drinks Inn of the Governors, 101 W. Alameda

Learn how the Green Lodging Initiative is helping hotels, and soon, restaurants, operate more sustainably. Speakers: Sam Gerberding, Gen. Mgr., Inn of the Governors; Andy Otto, Exec. Dir., SF Watershed Assn. Free.

505.438.9123, glenn@nmgreenchamber.com

July 3, 7:30 pm Family Lotus String Band Sol Santa Fe, Hwy. 14

Legendary 8-piece NM band The Family Lotus (bluegrass/jazz/rock) with guests The Santa Fe Revue in a dance concert to support restoration of the historic Madrid ballpark. $15 advance/$20 at the door. Tickets: The Lensic, 505.988.1234, Ticketssantafe.org

July 10, 5 pm International Folk Art Market Community Celebration SF Railyard Park

Welcome the artists at the annual Artist Procession. Followed by a community concert.

505.992.7600, www.folkartmarket.org. Free.

July 10 & 12 The Wastewater Gardener 7/10, 6 pm: Collected Works Bookstore; 7/12, 9 am-12 pm: SF Farmers’ Market

Dr. Mark Nelson, chairman of the Institute of Ecotechnics will discuss his new book and his wastewater projects around the word. www.waste watergardener.com, synergeticpress.com

July 10, 11, 7 pm Krishna Das & Band Green Garson Theater

Be transported to the heart. Presented by Center for Inner Truth and Transitions Radio Magazine. Reserved seating tickets: 505.988.1234, Lensic box office, www.Tick etsSantaFe.org, www.krishnadas.com

July 11-13 International Folk Art Market Museum Hill

150 master folk artists from 60 countries, international food bazaar, live music. Handmade traditions support economic, social and individual empowerment. 505.886.1251, http://holdmyticket.com/event/170173

July 12-13, 9 am-3 pm Young Natives Arts & Crafts Show Palace Courtyard, NM History Museum

Collect from the next generation of artists when children and grandchildren of the Portal artisans display and sell their wares. Free.

505.476.5200, www.nmhistorymuseum.org

July 16, 5-7 pm Opening Reception Temporary Installations Made for the Environment (TIME) Museum of Contemporary Native Art, 108 Cathedral Place

Live performance of “Pull of the Moon,” 3-D digital landscape project by artists Ai Weiwei and Bert Benally. Documentary film and new media installation.Through Oct. 16. 888.922.4242

July 16, 6:30-8:30 pm Eating for Your Health Residential Community Clubhouse, Off of Old Taos Highway

Community-based presentation with Q&A by Susan Clair, MCRP/MPA, on elements of a healthy lifestyle, plant-based and animal proteins, organic vs. conventional, antioxidants and systemic alkalinity, health benefits of herbs & spices, fats & sweeteners. Suggested donation: $5. 505.281.9888, clair@nmia.com

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July 19, 10 am Solar Energy Seminar Constellation Home Electronics, 215 N. Guadalupe

Amenergy, a leading solar installer, will provide information and answer questions for home and business owners about solar options, hedging against future energy costs, available tax credits and power company renewable energy certificates. 505.983.9988, ext. 202

July 20, 12:30 pm Film about Fracking CCA, 1040 Old Pecos Trail

Screening and Q&A with director/producer. $5 donation. Santafecitizensclimatelobby.org

July 20, Aug. 17 2-4 pm Turquoise from Prehistory to the Present Museum of Indian Arts and Culture

7/20 lecture on Zuni. 8/17 lecture on Navaho. Sundays free for NM residents/$9 non-residents/free for children under 16.

505.476.1272, www.indianartsandculture.org

July 22-26 Hispanic Cultural Festival Museum of Spanish Colonial Art 750 Camino Lejo

Performances, Spanish Market preview, lunch and dinner events, film screenings. Cipriano Vigil y la Familia, Nosotros. Tickets: 505.982.2226, ext.

109, www.spanishcolonial.org

July 25, 5-8 pm Activate Neglected Landscapes Radicle, 1703 Lena St.

Christie Green will lead an interactive session looking at how to landscape wasted and neglected spaces. Bring photos or sketches of your problem areas. 505.474.8000, Christie@beradicle.com

July 25, 5-8 pm Perspectives on “Pest” Plant Species Radicle, 1703 Lena St.

Artist Connie Schaekel will display and discuss unwanted, non-native, invasive and “pest” plant species in relation to land use, design and culture. 505.474.8000, Christie@ beradicle.com

Aug. 14, 6:30-8:30 pm Ernest Thompson Seton Birthday Celebration Academy for the Love of Learning Seton Village

Gallery opening and reception (7:30 pm) with curator David L. Witt. Free to the public. 505.995.1860, learn@aloveoflearning. org, www.aloveoflearning.org

Aug. 15, 3-4:30 pm; Aug. 16, 8:30 am-5 pm Inaugural Symposium: Women’s INT’L Study Center Drury Plaza Hotel, 228 E. Palace Ave.

Risk & Reinvention: How Women Are Changing the World. Panel discussions about women in the arts, sciences, cultural preservation and business. With keynote speaker, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and attorney Roberta Cooper Ramo. 505.983.6538, info@wisc-amh. org, wisc-amh.org

Aug. 15, 5 pm-Aug. 17, 1 pm Transforming Suffering Upaya Zen Center 1404 Cerro Gordo Road

A Five Energies Approach to Service and Social Change, taught by Acharya Fleet Maull, M.A. CEUs for counselors, therapists and social workers available. $285 includes meals. 505.986.8518, registrar@upaya.org/ programs, www.upaya.org/programs

Aug. 15-17; Aug. 22-24, 11 am-6 pm Haciendas: A Parade of Homes

Self-guided tour. 8/22, 4-9 pm: Twilight tour.

505.982.1774, sfahba.com (See ad, page 21)

Aug. 28-31 Santa Fe Yoga Festival Bishop’s Lodge Resort

International instructors, speakers and musicians, hikes, cooking classes, farm-to-table dinners. $149/$399. www.santafeyogafestival.org

Sept. 19-21 Startup Weekend SF Business Incubator, 3900 Paseo del Sol

July 26-27, 8 am-5 pm 63rd Annual Spanish Market Santa Fe Plaza

Dynamic entrepreneurial event. Pitch an idea, form a team, build a startup. Registration: $75/$35. 505.424.1140, soshea@sfbi. net, www.santafe.startupweekend.org

July 26-27, 8 am-5 pm Contemporary Hispanic Market Lincoln Avenue

Oct. 11: Public Conversation; Oct. 13-16: Retreat Leading by Being: Exploring a New Vision of Leadership Conversation: The Lensic; Retreat: Ghost Ranch, Abiquiú, NM

Handmade art from hundreds of artists, music, demonstrations and food. www.spanish colonial.org

505.331.5162, info@contemporaryhispanic marketinc.com

Aug. 9, 10 am-4 pm Annual Benefit Art Show Kindred Spirits Animal Sanctuary, 3749-A State Road 14

A wide variety of donated original artwork shown throughout the barns and shady grounds benefits the animals. 505.471.5366, kindredspiritsnm.org

Aug. 14, 6-9 pm Objects of Art Opening Night El Museo, in the Railyard

Benefits NM PBS. More than 65 exhibitors showcase the new, the old, the unique and the unexpected from around the world. $50. Show runs 8/15-17. ObjectsofArtSantaFe.com

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Gloria Steinem, Alice Walker, Chung Hyun Kyung will explore ways to support the growth and development of the feminine voice and balanced leadership. Lensic tickets ($35): 505.988.1234; Retreat ($455$900): 877.804.4678, ext. 4152 or Registrar@ GhostRanch.org

First Saturday of Each Month, 10 am-12 pm SF Citizens’ Climate Lobby Natural Grocers, Community Room, 3328 Cerrillos Road

“Creating political will for a livable world” santafe@citizensclimatelobby.org

Become a Site Steward Santa Fe National Forest

Monitor archeological and historical sites on a regular basis for evidence of natural deterioration or vandalism. www.sfnfsitestewards.org

Española

July 7-23 Adobe Workshops El Portal, Santa Cruz, NM (near Española)

Fundamentals of adobe construction.

Adobe-making, foundation, wall-building and mud plastering techniques. Details: 505.410.0959, alej@cybermesa.com

and field trips with local & international experts on sustainable, resilient design for a changing world. Open to sustainability professionals, architects, designers, advocates and the general public.

Class credits and CEUs available. Lectures, films, informal social gatherings. Full pass: $300. Other rates available. 575.737.3737, info@sustaintaos. com, www.sustaintaos.com

HERE & THERE

July 6-10 2014 National Solar Conference San Francisco, California

July 11-13 Española Valley Fiesta Culture/ Art Market Española Plaza Park, Española, NM

Local artisans, craftspeople, talent, nonprofit organizations. 7/11: 3-9 pm; 7/12: 10 am-9 pm; 7/13: 11am-8 pm. 505.929.0380, jrvigil95@ gmail.com, http://www.cityofespanola.org

July 12, 7 am-1 pm Sostenga Garlic Festival Sostenga Center Farm, NNMC, 1027 N. Railroad Ave., Española, NM

A gathering in celebration of traditional agriculture and community. 7th annual festival will feature live music, food, fun, games and workshops. Sign up your garlic-picking team. Free. 505.747.2236, Updates@face book.com/sostenga.atnorthern

Hosted by the American Solar Energy Society, this conference will feature 47 papers and panels from 22 universities and a dozen design and architectural firms from around the world. http://solar2014.org, http://ases.org

July 10, 9 am “Fire on the Mountain” Valles Caldera National Preserve, Banco Bonita Staging Area, near mile marker 30 along State Hwy. 4

Doug Cram, NMSU Extension wildland fire specialist will conduct a tour of the caldera. He will address livestock issues, wildlife, vegetation and wildfire. 575.646.3221, ucomm@nmsu.edu

July 13, 12-3 pm Española Valley Fiesta Grande Parade Española, NM

July 12, 10 am-12 noon Home Composting Basics Zuni Christian Mission School 19 Pía Mesa Rd., Zuni, NM

TAOS

July 19-20 Ohkay Owingeh Arts & Crafts Ohkay Conference Center, Pueblo of Ohkay Owingeh (north of Española)

Parade route: Industrial Park Rd., south on Paseo de Oñate, left on Calle Salazar, right and ending on Hunter Street at the old Española High School complex. 505.929.0380, jrvigil95@gmail.com

July 11-13 Taos Pueblo Pow Wow Social gathering and cultural celebration, dance competitions, crafts. Admission and photo permit fees.

TaosPueblo.com, TaosPuebloPow Wow.com

Impressive tribal art and Pueblo dances.Ohkay.com

July 24, 6:30-8:30 pm Home Composting Basics Cibola County Extension Office, 551 Washington, Grants, NM

July 18-20 Fiestas de Taos Taos Plaza

Centuries-old fiesta. A gathering of generations celebrating the cultural uniqueness of Taos. Delicious cuisine, traditional music and fellowship. Fiestasdetaos.com

Desert garden soils often lack sufficient organic matter. Learn the science, materials and methods of drought-proofing your garden soil in order to grow vegetables, fruit and berries. Registration: 505.782.4495, register@nmcomposters.org

Aug. 6-10 93rd Intertribal Ceremonial Red Rock State Park, Gallup, NM 505.863.3896

July 25-26 Feast Days of Santiago and Santa Ana Taos Pueblo

Culturally rich religious celebrations where patron saints are celebrated with traditional Corn Dances. Photography is not allowed.

575.758.1028, taospueblosocial1@gmail.com

August 2 Los Jardineros Garden/Home Tour Taos, NM

See beautiful, unique and refreshing concepts for your home and garden. Emphasis on native plantings, xeriscaping and food production. $20 in advance; $25 day of tour.

575.751.0191, Schedule and venue info: www.gardencluboftaos.org

August 5-8 Sustainability Institute: Humanitarian Design UNM Taos, Taos, NM

Learn the science, materials and methods of drought-proofing your garden soil in order to grow vegetables, fruit and berries.

Free. Registration: 505.782.4495, register@ nmcomposters.org

Innovative seminar, workshops, demonstrations

Aug. 10, 7 am-3 pm Pueblo Independence Day Jémez Historic Site, NM

Commemorating the successful rebellion against Spanish colonization. Pilgrimage run from Jémez Pueblo to Jémez Historic Site (13 miles) begins at 7 am. Festivities begin at 10 am: traditional dances, music, Native arts & crafts, food vendors. Free.

575.829.3530. nmhistoricsites.org/jemez

Tuesday-Friday, 10 am-1 pm and Saturday Pajarito Environmental Education Center 3540 Orange St., Los Alamos, NM

Nature center and outdoor education programs. Exhibits of flora and fauna of the Pajarito Plateau; herbarium, live amphibians, butterfly and xeric gardens. Free.

505.662.0460, Programs@PajaritoEEC.org, www.pajaritoeec.org

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Green Fire Times • July 2014

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