NEWS
By Anthony Clark Carpio | April 30, 2014
Durai Swamy was interested in reducing his carbon footprint by making his Huntington Beach home as energy efficient as possible. So he turned to the Community Home Energy Retrofit Project (CHERP) of Huntington Beach in the interest of doing the work without overpaying for it. CHERP, which is made up of real estate agents, contractors, city officials and those passionate about sustainability, is hosting free community forums about its services. Members educate homeowners on how to retrofit their properties at a reasonable cost, said John Shipman, the program's regional director.
NEWS
By Andrew Shortall | December 26, 2012
Huntington Beach High School's Sustainability Club is exactly what its name suggests. It's self sufficient after just three years of being in existence, not relying on the Huntington Beach Union High School District for any funding. "The Sustainability program is definitely sustainable, it doesn't cost taxpayers or the district a dollar," said Greg Goran, Huntington Beach High Sustainability Club director and teacher of social studies and an Environmental Awareness and Responsibility class.
NEWS
By Michael Miller | August 22, 2012
The McKenna Claire Foundation has just taken another bold step toward fighting pediatric brain cancer, and now the words of Rex Hudler are stuck in my head again. Hudler, the former TV color commentator for the Angels, had a homespun phrase that he would whip out periodically: "Be a fountain, not a drain. " It's a simple enough creed to live by: Put out positive energy and don't cave in to cynicism. More often than not, it sounds doable. There are times in life, though, that make that fountain seem like a Herculean effort.
ENTERTAINMENT
By Imran Vittachi | July 11, 2012
The artist traced her giant baby doll concept back to when she cleared out her 10-year-old son's room of toys he no longer touched. "I had just been stashing things in his room," Joyce Dallal said, describing the size of her now 13-year-old son's past playtime footprint on the environment. "I was just amazed at the amount of stuff I pulled out of his room. It filled several garbage bags. " Dallal soon discovered that it wasn't so easy to get rid of the boy's unwanted toys.
NEWS
By Mona Shadia | July 11, 2012
Judy Sykes and her husband, Ray, always knew their electricity bill was higher than average because of a large freezer they have in their garage for business. But in the last 20 years, their bill kept getting higher despite the recent installation of a smart meter by Southern California Edison, which Judy said was supposed to lower their bill. "It was supposed to help, but I didn't see it helping," she said. The couple now pays about $350 a month. Realizing that their bill would only get higher, the Sykeses decided recently to look into installing solar panels.
NEWS
May 2, 2012
State Sen. Tom Harman (R-Huntington Beach) selected Duke's Huntington Beach as the 35th Senate District's "Green Business of the Year," he said in a release. Harman said he selected Duke's for its earth-friendly practices. The restaurant uses energy-efficient light bulbs and energy-saving appliances, according to the release. Duke's often refrains from using Styrofoam and elects to use recycled and recyclable containers. The restaurant also buys seafood and beef from suppliers who are also environmentally responsible, and its cooking oil is soy-based, which has a smaller impact on the environment.
NEWS
By Mona Shadia | January 25, 2012
The Huntington Beach City School District has slashed its electric bills in half and expects to save more than $15 million over the next 25 years in electricity. The lower bills, which have even had a negative balance at times, come thanks to solar upgrades that have been underway for the past two years, said Jon Archibald, the district's assistant superintendent of administration services. The district replaced internal and external lightings at all of its nine schools, and the new lights demand less energy.
NEWS
By Michael Miller | December 21, 2011
If T. Boone Pickens could choose between his current circumstances and being an 18-year-old preparing to enter the job market, he would choose the latter — and he might send his first résumés to energy companies. The oil and gas entrepreneur, who served as the keynote speaker at First Foundation Bank's 21st Economic and Market Update on Wednesday at the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach, said with the economy continuing to struggle, now is as good a time as ever to reduce America's dependency on foreign oil. And if he had to trade in his wealth and private plane to be a young go-getter, he'd do just that.
NEWS
By Mona Shadia, mona.shadia@latimes.com | February 16, 2011
Huntington Beach is in the process of issuing permits to begin the installation of solar panels at three city facilities. The installations are set to take place in the parking lots of the city's Civic Center, Central Library and city yard. "It's a great project," said Aaron Klemm, the city's energy project manager. In October, the city entered into an agreement with SunEdison to install the systems. The solar canopies will resemble carports and provide shaded parking lots at the facilities, Klemm said.
NEWS
By Britney Barnes, britney.barnes@latimes.com | January 12, 2011
Students in Huntington Beach High School's new environmental sustainability class aren't just learning how to live green, but are making it a reality at their school. The Environmental Awareness and Responsibility class, which started in the fall out of an on-campus club, is opening students' eyes about the environment while letting them take action through a campuswide recycling program and digging into the dirt to build an organic garden. "This is my favorite class," said 17-year-old Tony Tennant.