Austin is ready to take food waste preventionseriously. On September 18th Mayor Leffingwell, an EPA executive, as well as reps of the Austin Restaurant Association, Keep Austin Fed, Austin EcoNetwork and other groups will be signing a Project Charter that establishes source reduction and food recovery in the food service industry as important and cost-effective zero waste strategies. The project focuses on emerging solutions for reducing loss in the food service industry which, when handled the right way can help hungry people, the environment, and the business bottom line. 

The event, which includes tacos, starts at 11:30 at the Long Center. If you would like to request an invitation to the Charter Signing event then click here. Read more on the newly revived Food Shift Austin website.
 

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Just last week my world was dramatically effected by seeing a provocative and enlightening documentary film called Cowspiracy. Whereas the film Forks Over Knives makes thehealth case for eating a predominantly whole food, plant-based diet,Cowspiracy makes the environmental case, loud and clear. When you combine the pollution and emissions (more than all forms of transportation combined), deforestation and loss of biodiversity, water and other resource consumption, (not to mention the cruelty to animals), nothing else comes close to the level of global environmental impact…and yet none of the major environmental groups are taking on the production or consumption of animal products as their leading campaigns. Of course there are the questionably constitutional Food Disparagementor Food Libel Laws that Oprah was sued under. She was not found guilty but it's clear intimidation looms near for those who are outspoken.
 
It's a message most don't want to even consider, even I am toiling with my own personal dietary choices (vegetarian but eat lots of dairy and eggs from our chickens) as well as how to run a household with two sons and a husband who are very attached to dairy products, in particular.

There will be another screening of Cowspiracy in Austin on October 8th (yes it's during SXSW Eco). I plan to organize some community dialog sessions after the next screening. In the meantime, this month's Chicas Verdes luncheon will be held at the local "Best of Austin" award-winning Counter Culture restaurant, and I will begin a conversation about what we can do to forward the adoption of more plant-based protein and food options.

I know renowned chef and author of a new book The Third Plate, Dan Barber, is coming to Austin at the Pararmount in December. Apparently he offers a way to move beyond farm-to-table to a revolutionary way of eating. From the little I know, I think he advocates incorporating the sustainable raising of animals. But this is not on the scale of production that can feed the planet with the daily portions of animal-based products that Americans currently consume.

 

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Also food related… the 8th Annual Farm & Food 

Leadership Conference is taking place at the Bastrop Convention & Exhibit Center Monday, September 15th through Tuesday, September 16th, 2014. We hope you will join our friends at the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance (FARFA) for this year's event, where you can hear the latest news on the laws and regulations that govern our food supply, connect with individuals, organizations, and small businesses who are passionate about our food system. The keynote speaker is none other than populist rabble-rouser Jim Hightower. You can see the program here>> and register online here>>.
 

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The Austin Environmental Democrats are continuing to endorse 

candidates for the upcoming city council race. This week, the club gave their official recommendation to Greg Casar in District 4, Jeb Boyt in District 7, and Mandy Dealey in District 10. They also endorsed a yes vote on Proposition 1, in support of the $1.4 billion roads and urban rail bond. 

The Austin EcoNetwork's Amy Stansbury was at these meetings and will continue to release recordings and blogs about the endorsement meetings for each of districts.
This week, we have District 4, which is available here and District 3 (in which no candidate received an official AED endorsement), which is available here.
 

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Three candidates fromDistrict 9 were at the Capital Factory last week, discussing all thingstransportation during theAURA District 9 candidate forum. Current city council members Chris Riley andKathie Tovo sparred over density requirements and affordability, but were vastly similar in their support of Proposition 1 and urban rail. Fellow candidate Erin McGann, on the other hand, disagreed with both of them over the merits of the current bond proposal. To learn more about these candidates' views and to listen to the entire AURA forum, check out Amy Stansbury's blog here>>
 

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Last week's Austin City Council meeting was a doozie, filled with public testimony, groundbreaking resolutions, and heated debate.

The Holly Shores Master Plan, which includes a pilot project to establish a food forest along Lady Bird Lake, was passed, but not without controversy. According to reports from the Austin American-Statesman, many longtime East Austin residents signed up to speak out against the plan, fearing that the park will attract too many visitors and will become heavily commercialized. Instead, they said that they would prefer more basic amenities like picnic tables, a bigger pool, and better bathrooms. In attempt to appease this group of residents, city council made amendments to the plan, including a promise that initial funds for the park will go toward upgrading bathrooms and improving sidewalks. Read more about the new master plan in this Austin American-Statesman article>> 

Both Riley's clean energy and Tovo's energy efficiency resolutions were passed unanimously by council in a 5 to 0 vote (Mayor Lee Leffingwell and Council Member Bill Spelman were not present). Together, the resolutions will set a goal for Austin to become carbon neutral by 2030, replace the Decker gas-fired power plant with 600 MW of solar, and increase energy efficiency programsfor low-income Austin Energy customers. 

However, immediately after the meeting ended, a media frenzy broke out over the way that these resolutions were passed, spilling over into social media, newspapers, and TV reports: 

• Reports in the Austin American-Statesmansaid that council had actually sent the crowd home for the day, and then quickly passed both resolutions. AEN blogger, Chris Searles, quickly shot back at that claim, laying out a comprehensive and very different overview of the meeting, which is available here>>
• Several clean energy activists also jumped in, sending letters to the Austin American-Statesman, which you can read here>>
• The debate continued with a story published on myfoxaustin.com that featured Mayor Lee Leffingwell protesting the manner in which the resolution was passed, claiming that council told him they would wait to vote on the resolutions, and then voted without him after he had left the meeting. He took special issue with replacing Decker with solar, saying that the move will force Austin Energy to buy some power off the grid, "which is like rolling dice with money and Austin's future." 

 

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Speaking of Decker…KUT published an interesting story this week about the possibility of using Decker Lake as a future water source for Austin, now that city council has expressed a desire to shut it down. Sharlene Leurig, who chaired the Austin Water Resource Planning Task Force, was interviewed for the piece, saying that in light of the city's recent drought, using Decker Lake for water is a very real possibility. Listen to the full story here>> 
 

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And now that we're on the topic of water, there were two in-depth stories in the news this week that are worth checking out:

• A Tale of 2 Water Districts: 1 Aquifer, 2 Strategies from The Texas Tribune – This article tells the story of the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer and explains why water from Burleson County is set to be pumped and sold to San Antonio, while at the same time water marketers in Bastrop and Lee counties are unable to secure pumping rights from the very same aquifer. The answer, explains the Tribune, lies in groundwater conservation districts. Read the article here>>
• Becoming Drought Tolerant from The Austin Chronicle – Their cover feature article delves into the history of Texas droughts and then runs through several solutions that have been proposed for dealing with future drought conditions.Read the whole story here>>