North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale School District fined $20,000 for using janitors for electrical, plumbing work

ST. PAUL, MN — The North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale School District was fined $20,000 after a janitor reported he was ordered to perform electrical and plumbing work he was not trained or licensed to perform, according to KSTP-TV.

According to the story, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry issued the fine along with a cease-and-desist order after employee Tahmi Hall alerted the city of Maplewood and the state about the district's practice of using unlicensed janitors for repairs and for ignoring his complaints.

Hall said: "It vindicated what I've been trying to do all this time. Now I'm not just this complainer. I've done the right thing, and that makes it all good."

The district acknowledged the improper use of janitorial employees and said it will only use licensed contractors for future repairs, the story stated.

The district also claimed the repairs janitors were asked to perform were "minor," the story added.

Click here to read the complete article.

Meijer store becomes first LEED-certified retrofit supercenter

WALKER, MI — Supermarket chain Meijer's North Shores store has become the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified retrofit supercenter, according to the Grand Rapids Press.

According to the story, the store, located just south of Muskegon, Michigan, is 195,000 square feet and is almost 50 years old.

Remodeling of the store began in 2008, and sustainable features include six windmills on a solar reflective roof to produce electricity and maintain a consistent temperature within the store, as well the use of drought-resistant plants and the reduction of the store size by 30,000 square feet, the story stated.

Meijer has opened LEED-certified stores before, but they were all new construction projects, the story added.

Click here to read the complete article.

Another state passes green school cleaning bill

DES MOINES, IA — The Iowa House of Representatives has passed a controversial bill requiring state buildings and schools to use green cleaning products, according to the Globe Gazette.

According to the story, local school boards, community colleges and regents universities would be able to apply to opt out of the requirement.

The bill had faced opposition from lawmakers and school districts who claimed the measure was unnecessary and would result in a financial burden for schools, the story stated.

Supporters, however, argued that green cleaning can actually save schools money and provides a healthy environment for students and custodial workers, the story noted.

Representative Nathan Reichert said: "It's about the environment [in] which our kids learn, [in] which our teachers teach, and how we can reduce their exposure to chemicals used typically in cleaning, but also to those folks that do the cleaning for us in our state government buildings and our classrooms."

My Blog Is Now Carbon Neutral! Is yours?

That's right, it's now carbon neutral. What does this mean? Well, I have learned that a blog with 15,000 visits a month (I wish I had that many visitors, lol) has a yearly carbon dioxide emissions of 8lb. Interesting isn't it? I have added that button in support of a team out of Germany that works for an initiative called "Make it green!". They raise the awareness of the severe environmental damage caused by carbon emissions.

I know your asking "How does this make my blog carbon neutral"? They plant a tree in cooperation with the Arbor Day Foundation in Plumas National Forest in North California to off set the emissions of my blog. As you may (or may not) know thousands of wildfires burned down many national forests over the past ten years and 88.000 acres of Plumas' were destroyed by two fires in 2007.

They have asked bloggers from all over the world to help support the replanting of trees and they are doing it one blog at a time. One blog = one tree.

Read more about what they do here

First LEED-EBOM Silver-certified building in Ohio

COLUMBUS, OH — The Bath and Body Works headquarters has become the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Existing Building: Operations and Maintenance (LEED-EBOM) Silver-certified building in the state of Ohio, according to a press release.

According to the release, the building is also the first of parent company Limited Brands Inc. to achieve a LEED certification.

Nathaniel Beegle, LEED Accredited Professional (AP) and manager of the project for Limited Brands, said: "As a values-led organization, Limited Brands is increasingly integrating the protection and preservation of global resources into our everyday business practices. It is part of doing what is right and means that we are committed to sustainable, responsible and thoughtful environmental design, operation and maintenance of our facilities."

The building, originally built in 1997, contains more than 150,000 square feet of office space and about 540,000 square feet of warehouse space, the release stated.

Included in the sustainable design and operation features are: Storm water management, light pollution reduction, water efficiency, recycling, indoor air quality improvements and green cleaning, the release noted.

Additional information is available online regarding Limited Brands' Corporate Social Responsibility, the release added.

Click here to read the complete release.

Senators concerned over poor conditions at American Indian schools

WASHINGTON — Federally supervised Indian schools in Northern Minnesota, which failed testing standards and are in desperate need of building repairs, have senators concerned that they will miss out on additional funding under education reform, according to MinnPost.

According to the story, approximately one-third of Indian schools are categorized as in "poor condition," but lack the funding to make necessary repairs — and may not see funding for years, even decades.

Minnesota Senator Al Franken said: "No student in Minnesota should have to contend with mold problems or huge leaks, but that's what kids in some reservation schools deal with every day. Students can't be expected to achieve at high levels when their school building is falling apart."

Under President Barack Obama's proposed 2011 budget, $9 million would be cut from the Indian school construction line down to $52.8 million — far shy of the estimated $1.3 billion it would cost to repair every "poor condition" school, the story stated.

Franken said: "The people need to know what dismal conditions these schools are in. Only then will Indian schools become a priority in the federal budget."

There are a total of 64 federally supervised "poor condition" Indian schools in the United States, the story added.

Click here to read the complete article.

State dedicates first LEED-certified prison building

SOLEDAD, CA — The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation will dedicate the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified building in the state prison system, according to the Salinas Californian.

According to the story, the building, a mental health treatment center, will be dedicated in a ceremony on Tuesday next week at its location at the Salinas Valley State Prison.

The 36,500-square-foot facility will be used for housing and to provide inmates with inpatient care, and will use 50 percent less water and one-third of the energy as a traditional mental health facility, the story stated.

The prison is located in Soledad, California, the story added.

Click here to read the complete article.