What might be one person’s trash is another’s treasure. Or so they say.

The Freecycle Network is a non-profit entity that organizes a global community of local Freecycle groups. The aim of these groups is to keep usable goods out of landfills by helping people find a home for their unwanted belongings. The organization boasts thousands of chapters and over 3 million members in the United States. Additionally, Freecycle has expanded to the UK, Canada, France, Germany, and dozens of other countries.

Locally, the Jax Freecycle group was created several years ago by Andrea Talton. At the time a UNF student, she now works for a major cargo shipping company and helps to moderate the group in her spare time, along with several other dedicated volunteer moderators.

JaxDaily: What first inspried you to start the Jax Freecycle group?

Andrea Talton: I read an article about it on Yahoo several years ago. So I searched on the Freecycle website, but I couldn’t find a local group here in Jacksonville. I figured since one didn’t exist I would go ahead and create it. Things just took off from there.

The real stars are the group’s members, because without their posts, there wouldn’t be a Freecycle.

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Andrea Talton: We have over 7,700 members and we’re adding more everyday. It depends somewhat on the time of year and, of course, if Freecycle has been mentioned in the media somewhere.

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Is Jacksonville an unhealthy city for men to live in? That seems to be what one national magazine is saying.

The editors of Men’s Health magazine revealed their annual ranking of America’s Best & Worst Cities for Men. The lists appear in the January/February edition of the magazine, which hit newsstands on Tuesday, December 23. And among the 10 worst cities was Jacksonville, ranked at number 92 out of 100 cities surveyed.

The magazine’s editors tallied 38 different factors to determine the rankings, including cancer rates, air quality and number of gym memberships. The analysis took into consideration 100 of America’s largest cities (from all 50 states) and focused on the overall health, fitness and quality of life for their residents. The comprehensive report focuses specifically on major cities, not their suburbs, and utilizes data from sources such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the Census Bureau, the FBI and the U.S. Department of Labor.

A complete ranking of all 100 cities can be found on MensHealth.com.

Featured in the January/February edition of Men’s Health Magazine:

The ‘10 Best Cities’ for men to live in…

1. Madison, WI
2. St. Paul, MN
3. Salt Lake City, UT
4. Seattle, WA
5. Aurora, CO
6. San Jose, CA
7. Lincoln, NE
8. San Francisco, CA
9. Boston, MA
10. Minneapolis, MN

The ‘10 Worst Cities’ for men to live in…

91. Detroit, MI
92. Jacksonville, FL
93. Riverside, CA
94. Bakersfield, CA
95. Memphis, TN
96. Birmingham, AL
97. St. Petersburg, FL
98. Las Vegas, NV
99. St. Louis, MO
100. Charleston, WV

The story from the Miami Herald…

Nobody loves biomass. When talk turns to global warming and the green movement, it’s hardly ever mentioned. Biomass can be garbage (literally) or wood chips or sugar-cane remnants or grass.

Still, among energy experts, biomass has some strong supporters, and for good reason: Right now, virtually all the renewable-energy power in Florida comes from biomass, including three plants in Miami-Dade and Broward.

What’s more, it’s cheap — cheaper in some instances even than coal, which is generally considered the nation’s least expensive way of producing electricity but is also the biggest producer of greenhouse gases that scientists say are heating up the globe.

”We’re very strong supporters of biomass,” says Stephen Smith, head of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. ”In the short run, it will be a real workhorse.” But he adds: “There are various shades of green in biomass. Some is better than others.”

Click here to read the rest of this story.

Between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., community members can help reduce electronic waste by bringing unused computers, monitors, motherboards and other consumer electronics to the Coolcat truck at WJCT Studios, located in downtown Jacksonville at 100 Festival Park Avenue across from Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

“At WJCT, we are committed to the environment,” says WJCT President and CEO Michael Boylan. “We know it’s important to work together to protect and sustain our planet. We encourage everyone to pitch in and do their part to reduce electronic waste, by bringing the outdated computers and other consumer electronics in their drawers, closets and garages down to WJCT for recycling.”

Brian Pippin is the Conservation Coordinator for JEA and recently took a few moments to answer some of our questions about their solar incentives program as well as other energy conservation issues. Hopefully this information will be helpful to anyone who is currently thinking about installing solar or wind technology in their home…

JaxDaily: What led you to work in this field, and how did you become the Conservation Coordinator for JEA?

Brian Pippin: Prior to this position, I helped our Information Technology group develop business cases for hardware and software related projects. My current boss, Bruce Doueck, came to me and asked if I would be interested in doing a different kind of business case analysis — one in which I would determine the costs and benefits associated with energy and water conservation techniques and products to help our customers choose the right solution for lowering their utility bills. I jumped at the chance and have truly embraced the opportunity to lower JEA’s cost to provide energy and water services, help our customers save money and live more comfortably, all while lessening Jacksonville’s impact on the environment. It is very satisfying work indeed!

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The tree lighting ceremony is creeping closer on the calendar. It will be lit the day after Thanksgiving, this year on Nov. 28. The new artificial tree is much “greener” than the trees that have graced the courtyard in years past. In addition to not killing one of the planet’s 120-year-old oxygen generators, as was the case with the trees brought down from North Carolina, the new display didn’t have to be trucked to Florida on a flat-bed truck. The LED lights on this year’s “tannenbaum” consume less than 10 percent of the electricity previously required to spread holiday cheer on the Northbank Riverwalk, further reducing the carbon footprint.

Personally, I think it’s a good thing if they’ve come up with something to save money and energy… but it’s just not the same. And while it’s good they’re using LEDs… it’s a seperate issue from the fact that they’re not using a real tree this time around. Certainly a real tree could be decorated with LED lights.

Either way, the 22nd Annual Tree Lighting will happen on November 28, 2008 at 7pm.

Now the problem is finding local growers to supply venues since farmers have been pushed further and further away due to real estate development and zoning laws.

The Jacksonville Business Journal reports…

The farmers market on Beaver Street has been in virtually the same location for three-quarters of a century, but other area farmers markets that haven’t been around as long are also expanding hours and locations. New markets are sprouting up as interest grows in food that is locally grown and, in many cases, less expensive than that sold in traditional grocery stores.

Beaches native Gretchen Ferrell helped spearhead the Beaches Green Market in November 2007. It started in the parking lot of Twisted Sisters restaurant in Jacksonville Beach, but quickly ran out of space and relocated its 15 vendors to Jarboe Park in Neptune Beach.

Ferrell, who also sells herbs from her home garden, said the growing popularity of farmers markets is likely due in part to rising fuel and food prices, along with nutritional and environmental concerns and a growing desire by consumers to know where their food was grown.

Along with the Beaches farmers market, the Fernandina Farmers Market is also new and the Flagler Beach Farmers Market recently extended its hours from Friday mornings only to Friday and Saturday mornings. There is an effort, led in part by steering committee members of the St. Johns Riverkeeper, Executive Director Jimmy Orth and U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw’s wife, Kitty, to start another farmers market in the Riverside area this fall.

Orth said that while farmers markets might be trendy now, as food prices continue to rise, they will likely become a necessity.

“You’re going to start seeing more of this,” he said.

The problem is that there are not enough local farm vendors, Orth said, so the markets have to be careful not to all schedule the same days of the week.

“This highlights the challenge,” Orth said. “There’s a growing interest in local agriculture, but you need more farmers to meet the demand.”

The Riverside market organizers are considering a midweek evening market or possibly combining forces with another effort to organize a farmers market at the base of the Fuller Warren Bridge.

To expand the short supply of local vendors, the University of Florida Extension Service office in Duval County offered a class in January called Growing Growers. The class taught large landowners how to diversify their holdings by growing crops. Based on continued interest, extension agent Brad Burbaugh intends to offer the class again in the fall.

“It’s good for small farmers; it’s good for small businesses,” Burbaugh said.

Kitty Crenshaw is excited about the growing momentum of farmers markets.

“They are all about taking the time to enjoy life with family and friends around really fresh, delicious, affordable food in a festive atmosphere while getting to know our neighbors, encouraging our local farmers and dramatically conserving fuel and our environment,” Crenshaw wrote in an e-mailed response. “Farmers markets are a win-win for all.”

The Times-Union reports…

The energy, which will be critical as the region grows, will be purchased from a nuclear plant in Eastern Georgia and make up about 5 percent of the utility’s energy mix.

JEA’s board of directors decided earlier this year that nuclear energy should make up about 10 percent of its power. The move was in response to a changing political climate at the state and federal levels calling for lower carbon emissions.

The 20-year contract with the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia is expected to start in 2016, after Plant Vogtle is expanded. The plant is about 30 miles south of Augusta.

Randy Boswell, JEA’s vice president for corporate data, said the deal is done and he’s awaiting the final paperwork. He said the city-owned utility likely will pay about $80 for every 1,000 kilowatt-hours it needs from the plant. The cost would add up to millions of dollars annually, he said.

“That’s in 2016 dollars. It would be the equivalent of about $50 today,” Boswell said. “That’s a big number, but based on where we are with coal and gas, that’s competitive.”

Using natural gas to generate 1,000 kilowatt-hours generally costs from $90 to $100, he said, which cuts into revenue potential. Consumers had been paying $95.93 for the same amount of energy, but this month will begin paying $110.93. JEA raised the rate to offset a $61 million deficit as the cost of fuel skyrocketed in recent months.

Fuel costs and pollution concerns thrust into question how many nuclear reactors could be built in the United States in coming years. Boswell said it’s unclear at this point how nuclear energy will affect JEA customer bills.

A dredging barge breaks in an oil line, spilling thousands of gallons of oil spilling into the St. Johns River.  Crews are working to clean up an oil spill in the St. Johns River.

The accident occurred around 9:30 this morning, when a dredging barge owned by Misener Marine hit the cable in the Metro Park Marina.  The Coast Guard and several environmental agencies are responding to assess the damage and oversee clean-up.

The oil is contained, but the six-thousand gallons of oil in the three-mile cable will have to be released before they can make any repairs.  There are currently no reports of impacts to wildlife or significant environmental problems. Clean-up and repairs are expected to take two days.

“We have strong objections to both proposed alternatives. The Mosquito Lagoon and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge areas are premier destinations in Florida ’s six billion dollar saltwater recreational fishery. Florida’s recreational fishery is one of the major economic engines driving Florida’s tourist economy,” said Ted Forsgren, CCA Florida Executive Director. “Essential habitat and critical estuarine areas should not be destroyed when other existing and abandoned launch sites exist in the area. We oppose both alternative 1 and alternative 2 and urge NASA and the U.S. Air Force to work cooperatively to use existing and abandoned launch sites.”

U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, U.S. Senator Mel Martinez, Congressman Tom Feeney and State Representative Andy Gardiner have also sent letters and press releases opposing the proposed sites and urging NASA to work with the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in the use of their abandoned launch facilities.