The gas gauge needle and the damage done…

I have grown to fear the end of a decade and an election year; especially an election year that’s at the end of a decade. Last year at this time, I had said, in passing, that that I’d have to take out a loan to drive my pickup… Yup, we get to examine the foreign energy topic again.

The 2008 season for this department (Aug, 2007-July, 2008) saw some drastic changes; presumably brought on by the media reporting (ad-nauseum) of the U.S.’s possible collision course with recession. I refuse to make use (mostly for fear of copyright infringement) of the mainstream media’s buzz terms to describe the way things are now. However, I must concede that even the rock I live under has become overpriced.

The TNLA ad department has a unique vantage point as we’re in regular communicatiowith our member-advertisers; this dialog seems to be in agreement with the news casts. I must also concede that the cost of my daily office commute has put us (my family) back on PB&J’s.

This is not new, recession, and I’ve been through them before. This one, if it is a recession, is different for me. Different in that more attention by the US presidential candidates has been given to domestic oil production and alternative energy sources in order to better cope with my gasoline and groceries addiction. Other writers have shed some positive light on our current energy situation reporting fewer car crashes and more people using public transportation (and weight loss, my favorite). The companies I’ve talked with are reeling from oil related shipping and production costs that were previously not issues. I can confirm that a lack of revenue also promotes weight loss.

I’ve seen the US tout environmental responsibility/energy conservation when oil prices were up only to abandon any action when oil stabilized. Just survive, maintaining until things improve.

I watched an interview with Neil Young that inspired this commentary. He’s at the forefront of some battery technology for transportation that is getting some attention. He successfully converted his ’59 Lincoln (road yacht with fins) to electric and biodiesel.

This quote has stayed with me:
“You know, I thought long ago you could change the world by writing songs…but you can't change the world by writing songs. Oh, you can inspire a few people; get some of them to change their thinking about something. But you can't change the world by writing songs.
"But we could change it with this car."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24932643
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/11/20/green.hummers/

I then dreamed of our industry using this technology in existing pickups and line trimmers. I’m not proposing to give up oil. I’m proposing that we make more use of modern technologies to augment it. My reasoning is simple; keep improving. This requires work and responsibility. I’m preaching to the choir here as our industry does this daily.

It’s been difficult for me not to include some other obvious factors in play as to why things are the way they are. I’m concentrating only on the energy component and welcome your feedback, Green Industry Professional --can you seriously see yourself owning a battery powered pickup? Have you incorporated similar technology in your business? Please tell us!

Scott Richard

New on the Sustainability Conflab

We have had a number of requests for the information published in the spring editions of TNLA Green magazine on sustainable landscape. These articles are now available on the Sustainability Conflab.

Another Promotional Plan?

Open Register reports on a "Summit" at Bailey Nurseries to discuss undertaking a nationwide promotional campaign for nursery products. We don't know who was there, but the item referred to them as "40 of the industry's brightest minds."

Like the writer of that posting, we remember the many times there have been efforts to develop national promotions for the industry. What each had in common was a certain amount of regional bias. In case anyone is looking, there is a section of the United States where the economy is in the least trouble, the housing market is the strongest, and the population is booming.

We don't know if there is a need for a promotional program or even if one can work. We do know that lack of inclusion, lack of information and materials appropriate to the Southwest and South Central United States, and lack of transparency certainly contributed to the failure of one or more of the previous efforts.

Sustainability Conflab

We've been talking lately about what a sustainable landscape really looks like. It's well and good to write standards, but the real point of a landscape is to look good, right? Today (5.14.08) we posted some images of standard home front yards on the Sustainability Conflab. We're hoping some of you will download the photos and sketch in a sustainable landscape, then share it on the site. Three of them are standard suburban homes. You may recognize the fourth. If not, we'll let you know in a future blog.

In a signing ceremony on Friday, April 18, 2008, at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, members of a steering committee signed the documents creating the first Texas Invasive Pest and Plant Council (TIPPC). The steering committee was created in October 2007 at the second Texas Invasive Species Conference held at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas. Attendees at the Conference were offered the opportunity to sign up as charter members of a TIPPC, and a steering committee was appointed and charged with creating bylaws and establishing the council.

The mission of the TIPPC is To promote understanding of invasive plant impacts and management in Texas; provide a forum for the exchange of scientific, educational and technical information; and support research and restoration activities that reduce impacts of invasive plants in Texas.

As the Council continues its formation, we will keep you posted.

Talking About Sustainability

In the TNLA Association magazine, TNLA Green, we have been running a series on the latest environmental buzz word, sustainability, or sustainable landscaping. Conventional media wisdom says we aren't sure what it is but it must be a good thing so let's all jump on the sustainability bandwagon. Unfortunately, we aren't sure what the wagon looks like so we may not recognize it when it comes by, and we certainly aren't sure where it's heading.

Two projects working to give us a more definitive picture of sustainability are the Sustainable Sites Initiative, and the Sustainable Agriculture Practice Draft American National Standard for Trial Use

We asked the TNLA Green Team to give us their understanding of what sustainable meant. To see the results, and cast your vote for the one that most nearly matches your concept, click here.

The final installment of the TNLA Green series will take a look at some actual landscapes that have been developed with sustainability in mind. After all, no matter what we say, isn't it how the landscape looks that counts?

If you have a landscape, either installed or still in design phase, that you would like to post on our photo album of sustainable landscapes, just email it to info@tnlaonline.org. After we get our set of photos posted, we can start the conversation.

Fraud Scheme Targets Landscape Companies

TNLA has learned that an identify fraud scheme is targeting landscape firms. A firm receives a fax that says it is from the United States Department of Transportation and that the Department requires certain information in order to qualify the firm as a prospective contractor. A "financial information release form" is provided and the company is told they must fax the form in to qualify for contracts. This letter is not from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

If you have received such a letter you should immediately contact your bank. If you have already suffered a loss due to this scheme, please contact Secret Service Special Agent Donnelly at 210-846-4708 and report the loss to assist the Secret Service in pursuing this case.

The Secret Service recommends extreme caution in all financial disclose areas and recommends the following business practices:

• Keep a close eye on all reported activities in your bank account(s).

• Notify your bank that any additional lines of credit or wire transactions should be viewed with suspicion and must be directly cleared with your company's official agent.

• Never provide information that would give access to your bank accounts without fully confirming who is receiving that information.

TNLA will keep you informed about this issue as information becomes available. Thanks to TNLA members who took swift action to share this information.