Join our next webinar!

To have a beautiful yard, garden, or landscape we often think we need to load it with lots of fertilizer and other inputs. This isn't actually true...and overusing fertilizer and other inputs impact local estuarine and marine ecosystem health. With the 2020 fish kill in Biscayne Bay, we hope that all our residents take some time to learn about landscaping in a way that can minimize these impacts.

We're joined by experts: Lorna Bravo from Broward County Extension/UF IFAS & Megan Kelley from Garden of Growth. This discussion will be moderated by Hallandale Beach Commissioner Sabrina Javellana who sponsored Hallandale Beach's Coral Reef Protection Act which includes fertilizer blackout dates.

Join us! Student volunteer hours are available for those who attend and participate.

Register to attend here.

Do you want to watch the recording of our webinar from this week on Marine Wildlife? You can watch it here.

plants in the background, low nutrient landscaping and gardening webinar on feb 1 from noon to 1pm

Wach our dunes get restored!

Thanks to three grants (totaling $15,000) from Broward County, we will be removing invasive plants and re-planting a section of our dune at South City Beach Park next month. All volunteer planting dates are fully booked but you can still watch the magic happen as you visit and recreate at South City Beach Park. Don't be alarmed by some machinery removing plant matter early next month, this is all part of the process.

native plant drive through distribution March 6 from 10 am to 1 pm pre-registration required

Native plant drive-thru distribution

The cities of Hallandale Beach and Hollywood are co-hosting a rain-or-shine native tree and shrub giveaway! To participate you must pre-register by 3/4/21 at 5:00 PM and select your plants. Maximum 2 plants per household.

To register select a time window that you'd like to pick up your plants and select a maximum of 2 plants per household. On the day of the event, arrive at the site during your ticket time window and bring your photo ID so we can verify your residency.

This plant giveaway will be no-contact. Be sure to wear a facial covering even when inside your vehicle while at the distribution. You'll simply need to check in with us when you arrive in line and pop your trunk when you reach the end of the line. If you'd like to put a box or container in your trunk to keep things clean, feel free.

Register today and select your plants.

Website screenshot of www.haveyoursayhallandale.org

Be a part of the solution to greenhouse gas pollution!

We get it, greenhouse gas emissions are an intangible thing that most of us don't think about every day. Those emissions, however, are part of our everyday routines and will make themselves more oppressively known in the coming years and decades.

It's such a big issue, where would I even start?
Greenhouse gas emissions in Hallandale Beach come mostly from our transportation sector and the electricity used in commercial and residential buildings. In fact, almost half of our emissions (49.1%) come from the transportation sector alone. Focus on those sectors in your ideas and how the fossil fuels used to support those sectors can be reduced or even eliminated. There are so many solutions out there to reduce emissions and we simply want to know which solutions you'd prefer your city to pursue.

I won't experience climate change in my lifetime, so why should I care?
Reducing emissions can have co-benefits that improve quality of life. Most of the solutions residents have shared so far would increase shade in our city, make walking and biking safer, and reduce flooding. What's not to love about that?

Of course, future and already existing younger generations are another reason to care! We're already starting to feel some of the impacts and other impacts will be arriving before we know it. There isn't time to kick the can down the road. When the person writing this newsletter is elderly, she will experience sea-level rise of 4.5 feet (she is 5.5 feet tall) and over 9 months of temperatures that "feel like" 100 degrees or hotter in Hallandale Beach. Be part of the solution for her and people younger than her.

Be part of the solution and share your ideas today!
We can take action now to make future conditions less harsh while improving our quality of life now. What changes would you like to see that would reduce our emissions? Share your ideas today at www.haveyoursayhallandale.org. Feel like you need to learn more about climate change before you share your ideas? Watch our Climate Change 101 training from this year and get up to speed. Make it a family activity to brainstorm ways the City and your family can reduce emissions and share those ideas with us, please!

Get a new toilet, save money, and conserve water! Win-Win-Win!

Toilets use the most water of any indoor water fixture and replacing your toilets is one way you can save lots of money on your water bill! The City participates in a program where residents can get $100 to replace their toilets with water-efficient models. To participate in this program you must:

Apply for the rebate before purchasing your toilet at www.conservationpays.com;
Replace toilets in a building that was built before 1994; and
Replace your toilet with an approved model that is EPA WaterSense certified.

When replacing your toilet using this program, the City will waive permit fees for the toilet replacement work!

Seats available on the sustainability & flood mitigation advisory board

The Sustainability & Flood Mitigation Advisory Board assists the City Commission to identify and recommend affordable strategies associated with sustainability, climate change, and flood mitigation. This Board works directly with the City's Green Initiatives Coordinator.

Because what we do now impacts future generations, we have designed this Advisory Board to include participation from youths who either live in Hallandale Beach or go to school in Hallandale Beach. There are currently 2 open positions on this Board which are held for individuals who are under the age of 18. There are also 3 open positions, unrestricted by age, if you or someone you know would like to get involved and participate!

If you know someone who has a high level of interest in helping move the City in a more sustainable direction, please have them submit an application to join this Board.

The application is available here.

Get in touch or involved with Green Initiatives

If you're interested in learning more about Green Initiatives or if you want to get more involved, please reach out to our Green Initiatives Coordinator Alyssa Jones Wood at ajoneswood@cohb.org and visit cohb.org/green.