When it’s cold out, it can be tempting to stay cozy and hibernate. But if there’s one thing that snow, ice, and cold winds have taught me, it’s how to appreciate a winter city. Some places, especially those that rarely see snow, shut down so completely in the cold that they become ghost towns (I’m lookin’ at you, D.C.).
But New York, Boston, Chicago, Montreal: These are winter cities. Windchill of -4° Fahrenheit? We still lace up our boots to get our morning coffee and get dressed for dinner at night. We go out, and we enjoy: we have snowball fights, carve sculptures from the snow, and some of us even start skiing in the city streets. In some ways, finding joy in the harshest conditions is the best way to love and appreciate our planet. Under the August sun or in the February snow, it can still be a beautiful day.
–Michaela Keil, Editor, Bluedot Living Brooklyn
Climate news, In Brief
A Green Way to Go: Green-Wood Cemetery announced that it will partner with a German company to offer a new green option for burials: a form of high-speed composting that can turn a body into fertile soil in just 40 days.
National Grid Protests: Activists waved signs and recent utility bills outside National Grid headquarters on Jay Street in Downtown Brooklyn on Feb. 3 to protest high prices during the cold snap as well as the negative environmental effects of oil and natural gas.
Data Center Pause: State lawmakers look to slow New York’s AI data-center boom, as bipartisan concern grows over electricity costs, grid strain, and limited job creation tied to the facilities powering artificial intelligence.
Now Worker-Owned: Bike Plant, a neighborhood bike shop that has served Bed-Stuy since 2021, marked its transition to worker ownership on Jan. 30 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, after a comprehensive conversion process that took more than a year.
Green Jobs: Solar One and NineDot staff joined students at the Health, Arts, Robotics, and Technology High School for a green jobs training focused on energy production and battery energy storage systems.
The North Brooklyn Parks Alliance is leading the charge to create a new Northside Business Improvement District (BID), which it says will ensure maintenance and consistent attention to parks and streetscapes. Residents, business owners, and property owners within the boundaries can now vote on the BID. Read the opinion piece here.
A Winter of Ice and Snow: Winter Storm Fern dropped more than a foot of snow between Jan. 25-26. See photos from one of Brooklyn’s coldest, snowiest winters in recent memory.
Plus, see the snow sculptures and snow paintings an artist made in Bay Ridge.
Plans by New York State and New York City to phase out future oil and gas installations are being challenged in court. (Politico)
Elizabeth Henaff reads data from a Gowanus water sample. Photo: Nicole Vergalla
For Elizabeth Hénaff, the Gowanus Canal Is a Problem, a Lab, and an Artspace
Elizabeth Hénaff, a professor at NYU Tandon, keeps a jar of Gowanus sludge in her office. The Gowanus Canal is an EPA Superfund site and one of the country’s most polluted waterways due to a legacy of industrial use and sewer runoff.
Hénaff started studying the microbiome of the Gowanus Canal after the EPA’s invasive remediation process was announced. Last year, her team did a genetic study of the canal, collecting samples via canoe with the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club, and found a thriving community of microbes that have evolved to break down the canal’s pollution. Though these microbes may find application in other remediation projects, they work too slowly for the Gowanus Canal, which is in the middle of an increasingly residential neighborhood.
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BLUEDOT LIVING BUY BETTER MARKETPLACE
The bathroom is full of products designed to disappear quickly — used briefly, tossed, and replaced without much thought. But it’s also one of the easiest places to make changes that actually stick, simply by choosing better versions of what’s already in daily rotation. There’s no complicated learning curve: just smarter materials and fewer things headed for the trash.
From floss and toothbrushes to toothpaste and mouthwash, oral care products generate a lot of waste. It’s easy to swap in replacements. Bamboo toothbrushes and plastic-free floss are an easy place to start. Level up by trying toothpaste or mouthwash tablets, which do the job without bulky bottles and tubes. Tablets also skip the added water, making them easier to store, ship, and travel with.
Instead of using a new piece of cotton every time you apply toner or remove makeup, try a reusable. We love Zero Waste Outlet’s soft bamboo and cotton rounds, which come with an elegant holder, while the ones from Zero Waste Store come in assorted colors to match your decor.
If you love cleaning your ears every day (despite doctors’ orders), then you know how quickly you can go through cotton swabs. These plastic-free swabs can go straight into the compost, not the trash.
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Dear Dot: Does My Fireplace Create Eco-Friendly Warmth?
Dear Dot,
I love to curl up with my cat in front of a blazing fire. Is burning wood a better way to warm my home than cranking the thermostat? Are commercial fireplace logs better/worse? Should I consider a gas or electric insert?
– Sunny
Dear Sunny,
The Short Answer: Dot is loath to rob you of a fireside snuggle with your cat, Sunny. Goodness knows, we need stillness in our world’s chaos, a moment of restorative comfort. Though there is no perfectly virtuous choice, there are better ones: burning firelogs instead of wood, installing a fireplace insert with insulated doors or an EPA-certified woodstove, and, if it’s time to upgrade your overall heating system, seeking out an electric heat pump over a furnace (or fireplace) fuelled by natural gas.
BLUEDOT LIVING KITCHEN
Photo by Maja Vujic on Unsplash
When you bring home a bunch of fresh carrots from the farmers market, don’t toss those leafy greens — they’re one of the best parts. Carrot tops have a bright, super-fresh flavor with a subtle earthiness that is similar to parsley, making them a versatile (and cheap) ingredient.
BROOKLYN BIRD WATCH
Once paired, the male Northern Mockingbird supplies nesting material. The female builds the nest. Photo: Ilene J Klein
February often makes us think of courtship, and birds are no exception. This month, mating season begins heating up across much of the United States, and one of the first signs is the return of birdsong. Among the most ardent singers is the male Northern Mockingbird, heard throughout the day and well into the night, intent on attracting a mate.
The Bluedot Brooklyn newsletter is edited by Michaela Keil. If you have any questions, suggestions, ideas, or want to tell us what you’re doing, email [email protected].
