A digest of the latest green community news in North Texas Jan 21.  This week assistant editor Julie Thibodeaux reports on • Recycling Bins Planned for Fort Worth and Dallas • The Future of Prairie Fest • Public Hearing on Cowtown's Solid Waste Plan

Street Smart

Cities on both sides of the Metroplex are working to bring recycling to their downtowns. The city of Fort Worth recently received a $94,000 grant from the North Central Texas Council of Governments to purchase combination recycling and waste containers for sidewalks in downtown Fort Worth. The city is working in partnership with Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. which contributed funds and will be servicing the containers and promoting their use. A total of 62 bins will be purchased, with plans underway to purchase 62 more.

Debbie Branch, director of Keep Fort Worth Beautiful, said they hope to have the bins in place by April 6 when the city hosts its Earth Party celebration in Sundance Square, following the annual Cowtown Cleanup. “With more cities offering [sidewalk] recycling, I think our residents and visitors are expecting to see recycling offered downtown,” said Branch.

Meanwhile Downtown Dallas, Inc. is working with the city of Dallas to install sidewalk recycling bins in downtown Big D. According to Dustin Bullard, cityscape and urban design manager at Downtown Dallas Inc., the first hurdle is negotiating how the recycling will be picked up. There are already recycling receptacles in Main St. Garden and Belo Garden, he said.

Walks on the Wild Side

Like the wildflowers it celebrates, Prairie Fest will be back come spring. Don Young, director of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area (FOTHNA), announced that Fort Worth’s annual party on the prairie will be held April 27. Young, who founded the festival with his wife Debora Young in 2006, said in recent years, the environmentally themed festival had grown too big to manage -- plus cost was beginning to outpace the profits. So last year, they scaled back and focused on their mission to promote the prairie as opposed to offering a green outdoor expo. “We saw other festivals [like Ecofest Arlington and Earth Day Dallas] were doing something similar so we felt like we could go back to our core.” 

The centerpiece of the festival is its free guided wildflower tours through the 160-acre original prairie remnant. In addition, this year, four themed hikes will be offered that combine humor, storytelling and science for all ages. Event-goers can also enjoy live music, food vendors and about a dozen booths. While last year, the event took place on three Saturdays over three months, this year it will be held on one day only.

Meanwhile, Young is shifting responsibilities to FOTHNA board members Heather Foote and Greg Hughes. The Youngs, avid anti-gas drilling activists, plan to relocate to Marfa by 2014, seeking new scenery far from the fracking front. Young says they’ll stay involved with FOTHNA but know they are leaving the festival and the foundation in good hands. “We worked too hard to create this organization to let it dissolve.”  See http://www.tandyhills.org/. Poster by Jen Schultes, ting ting design.

On the Sustainability Trail  

The city of Fort Worth is seeking input on its long-term solid waste plan. A community meeting will be held Jan. 24 at 6 p.m. at the Hazel Harvey Peace Center, 818 Missouri St. in Fort Worth. Let them know Cowtown needs to keep up with Dallas, Austin and San Antonio by  expanding recycling and developing a zero-waste goal. Think: offering curbside organic waste pickup, mandating commercial recycling and initiating a single-use bag ban. A public hearing will be held Jan. 29 at 10 a.m. at City Hall, 1000 Throckmorton.  http://fortworthtexas.gov/swplan/

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Julie Thibodeaux covers environmental issues, green topics and sustainable living for Green Source DFW. Previously, she worked as an editor and writer at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. See jthibodeaux.com. Send your green bulletin items to Julie@greensourcedfw.org.