With drought, threats of rations and desal plants it is time we learn to recycle the water coming out of our showers, washing machines, and bathroom sinks.

Interested in reusing your greywater?
Want to learn more about it and how to build your own system?
Come to our design and installation workshop.

Saturday, August 22nd from 11-4 in a Fairfax home
Cost $40-$100 sliding scale
You must register! Space is limited.

In this hands-on class we will take a top loading washing machine and route the rinse water into the nearby landscape.

Greywater Installation Workshop
Taught by the Greywater Guerillas

Cost: $40 to $100, sliding scale. Pay what you can, work-trade available.
  Snacks and beverages will be provided.   Bring your own lunch.

To register: send a check to Sustainable Fairfax 141 Bolinas Rd. Fairfax,CA 94930
This is a three-part workshop:

• First we'll present you with information on the most common, low-tech,
low-cost, effective, residential greywater systems.

• Next we'll break into groups and help you plan a system for your
ownhome. You'll be emailed a greywater planning sheet, that you'll fill
out and bring to the workshop.

• Then we'll move into the design for the system we'll be building on the
site. We'll reroute the water from the washer to irrigate fruit trees,
bushes and large perennial plants. Activities will involve digging,
measuring, cutting pipes, observing, and more!

For more info about the workshop, email <la...@greywaterguerrillas.com>

To see a video about this kind of workshop in the LA Times see
http://www.latimes.com/features/printedition/home/la-hm-graywater27-2...
ep27,0,4091041.story

Agenda:
10:45 - Arrive/Register  A word from our sponsor Fairfax Lumber

11:00 - Greywater Presentation: We'll go over the most common and
reliable residential greywater systems, greywater basics (e.g. soaps,
plants, filters), greywater codes, and any questions people have.

11:45 - Overview of system: Going through the design process for the
specific greywater system.

12:00 - Lunch Break: Bring your specific greywater questions to be
answered.

12:45 - Build System: Plumbing Group will attach a 3-way valve to the
washing machine and send one line out to the yard. Irrigation Group will
connect greywater irrigation lines to send water to the landscape.
Participants can move freely between groups, participating in all aspects
of the system construction.

3:30 - Review system, talk about maintenance and any last questions
people have.

Check the Greywater Guerillas website for more info on greywater:
http://www.greywaterguerrillas.com

To secure your place in this class send a check to:
Sustainable Fairfax 141 Bolinas Road Fairfax, CA 94930
Include the name and email of participant.

sponsored by Fairfax Lumber

"Green Wednesdays" are back this year at the Fairfax Farmer's Market!
Come by and visit our Sustainable Fairfax table every Wednesday from 4-8.
Get your one dollar produce bags here!!

Harvest Exchange is back in season! Sundays 4-5 p.m. in the park where the Farmer's Market is held. It will run every week, same time and same place, until we all run out of edibles to share. This year the Harvest Exchange is a collaboration with Sustainable Fairfax and the GoodFestival !!! The idea is swapping homegrown veggies, fruit from our lovely trees and anything green and alive! Get there early for the best pickings and a chance to share about how you grow.
Please Join Us!

As of May 4th, 2009 the very first ever balloted Plastic Bag Ban goes into effect in the Town of Fairfax! Please do your part to support our local businesses through this transition and retrain yourself to bring your own bag for all your shopping needs. Look out Paper- your next! :)

The Plastic Bag Ban began as a action by one woman, Renee Goddard, who ran the Inconvenient Group and got inspired by a talk called Rethinking Plastic Rethinking Our Lives by Green Sangha. She said we should be able to get plastic out of the Farmer's Markets and they said we have been trying, but there are a lot of challenges. Renee worked with Sustainable Fairfax to organize a reusable bag sew-in and purchased 1500 biobags. In one night at the Fairfax market we gave away 140 hand sewn bags and 1200 biobags. A lot of bags. Then the real work began. With the help of other heroes such as Larry Bragman who wrote the ordinance, Good Earth who helped us provide affordable alternatives, Marin Sanitary Service who provided educational tools and numerous committed citizens who collected signatures, we have a Bag Ban. Congratulations!
plastic_bag_ban_ordinance

From the Marin Farmer's Market-

The Fairfax Farmers Market is thrilled to be the first of MFM’s markets to no longer offer single use plastic bags. In November 2008, the Town of Fairfax passed their Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance by a landslide, banning plastic bags. Customers will be encouraged to do their part by bringing their own reusable bags and market vendors will have paper and compostable bags available. Thanks to the ongoing educational efforts of our partner Sustainable Fairfax, MFM is confident that Fairfax shoppers will be prepared to take on the challenge. For creative ideas on alternatives to plastic bags visit our Greener Markets Page.

Marin Clean Energy is on it’s way to becoming a reality in 2010! Eight towns and the County voted last fall to join together to set up our community based clean energy system. Now we’re into the nitty-gritty details and you can help all of Marin get the best Marin Clean Energy System we can have.

   MCE has the potential to integrate energy efficiency and local power generation. Energy efficiency is the cheapest 'clean energy' available and we would create good local jobs. Public Goods Funds are available to Marin and we should make sure that we get the funding, because Marin Clean Energy can do better Energy Efficiency, Solar, and Low-income programs than PG&E.

Please email your MCE county representative and your MCE town councilor and say that we need to bring energy efficiency and local power generation front and center into all MCE proposals.