It's Time for Action on a WV Bottle Bill!

When: Thursday, February 19, 1:30 PM., House Chambers, State Capitol Building

What: Presentation to Joint House Judiciary and Finance Committees. Public encouraged to attend!

Who: John Ferrari, President of NexCycle’s California Operations. John will present the environmental and economic implications to West Virginia presented by the Bottle Bill including job creation. NexCycle-California provides beverage container redemption services to affected Grocers/Retailers mandated by California’s Beverage Container Redemption Act of 1986. It is a subsidiary of SMI (Strategic Materials Incorporated), the largest glass recycler in the United States with thirty-one plant operations in the US, Canada & Mexico. For more information about NexCycle visit http://www.nexcyclecalifornia.com/.

Can’t make it to the Capitol? Here are other ways you can help:

1. Ask your legislators to support the WV Bottle Bill. Call toll-free at 1-877-565-3447.
2. Sign our on-line petition.
3. Contribute to our campaign.
4. Sign up to receive action alerts.
5. Send a letter to editor.

You can do all this and more by visiting http://www.wvbottlebill.org/.

We need your help! If you have time to come to the state Capitol and talk to your legislators during the 2009 Legislative Session, which starts February 11, please let us know. For more information, please contact Linda Frame at linda@wvcag.org or 304-346-5891.

Did you know?

West Virginians use over 1 billion containers each year, the majority of which end up in landfills or along our highways.

Eleven states have Bottle Bills and no statewide bill has ever been repealed. Oregon’s is the oldest and was enacted in 1971. Several states are working to expand their laws to include plastic water bottles.

Please ask your legislators and Governor Manchin to support bottle bill legislation:

Governor Manchin: 1-888-438-2731, Senators and Delegates: 1-877-565-3447

Write your legislators:

The Honorable ___________, Member of WV Senate/House of Delegates, Bldg. 1, State Capitol Complex, Charleston, WV 25305

E-mail legislators at http://www.legis.state.wv.us/, or use the "Contact Your Legislators" at http://www.wvbottlebill.org/

Letters others have written are there, too.

This issue is critical to the future of Huntington and Cabell County residents. Cleaning up our local environment will ensure the continued appreciation of our property values and marketability of our homes, if we decide to sell. Come on! Join in this appeal to our state legislature! Together - we will accomplish anything we can imagine!

"I just wanted to stop by ...." Beware of Garbage Trucks!

This emailed comment came today and is in regard to my posting about "The Law of the Garbage Truck":

"Thanks for posting this great story! My name is Dawn, and I work with David J. Pollay, the author of The Law of the Garbage Truck™ - Beware of Garbage Trucks™! I just wanted to stop by and let you know that you can read the original story on David’s blog http://www.davidjpollay.typepad.com/. I know he’d love to have you stop by!

Also check out the video of people in New York City taking the No Garbage Trucks!™ Pledge: http://www.bewareofgarbagetrucks.com. It’s pretty cool.

Thanks again!"

Dawndawn@themomentumproject.com

Brick streets - history, beauty, and functionality for the community

Many cities throughout the country are recovering their historical brick streets. The City of Huntington administration and the 13 different neighborhood associations' leaders should hold a joint meeting to discuss the possibilities.

New restoration techniques are available, and we should evaluate them in our discussions.

If not now ... when?

Here is a link to the story of one city's pilot projects that have lead to the successful restoration that adds the elements of history, beauty and functionality to the city's image:

http://obr.gcnpublishing.com/articles/jan06d.htm (Just click on it.)

We Need to Test "Metro" Government Assumptions

Newly elected councilperson-at-large, Steve Williams (photo), has put forth the idea of formal discussions regarding the concept of “metro government”. During the mid-to-late 1970's, I lived in Augusta, GA. I was the CEO of the city's coliseum/sports arena/exhibition hall. The governments of Richmond County, Georgia and the city government of Augusta, Georgia merged into the Augusta-Richmond County Consolidated Government in 1995 with 66.7% of the citizens voting yes. Three previous attempts failed (in 1971 with 41.5% voting yes; in 1974 with 48.5% voting yes; and in 1976 with 45.5% voting yes). It took twenty-four years to get it done. A new generation had to make it happen.

Why is it so very difficult to get people to accept change? Now, their citizens are prospering and they are pleased with the cost savings and the improved delivery of public services. The police, fire and medical services for the consolidated government are well respected and admired and the infrastructure is modern and well maintained.

Ditto for the Consolidated Government of Columbus, Georgia (Muscogee County). I was the CEO of the Ironworks Convention and Trade Center from 1985 to 1988. The City of Columbus, GA and Muscogee County (GA) governments consolidated much earlier than August-Richmond County (1970), with 80.7% of citizens voting for approval. Consolidation had failed in 1962 with only 42.1% in favor. The City of Columbus and the Government of Muscogee County consolidated their governments and, because of that decision on the part of the voters, the area has prospered dramatically.

What had to happen before the citizens had an opportunity to vote on the creation of a “metro government? First, newly elected and progressive thinking officeholders had to dare to look into the future to consider the seriousness of the ever-increasing cost of delivering goods and services to citizens. They agreed that it was imperative that they put aside personal and political interests and relinquish their long-held city and county government’s turf. That must happen with the City of Huntington and Cabell County governments.

Why is our state always fifty-years behind in taking action for needed change? Will the people of Cabell County ever vote in favor of consolidation? Unless a study is completed that determines the viability of “metro government”, we will never know the answer.

Future generations of our area will praise us for having the courage and foresight to have considered a better governmental structure for our citizens! Layered-government is too expensive - one government is less costly, more efficient and more capable of delivering quality public services. We need to test that assumption through formal discussions and research. Councilperson Williams’ idea of forming a joint city/county “consolidation of government investigative task force” has great merit. If not now, when?

Law of the Garbage Truck

My brother-in-law, who lives in Cross Lanes, sent me this thought provoking story:

"One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly. So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!'

This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.' He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you.

Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets. The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks takeover their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so...

Love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don't. Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!

Please remember: People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But.......people will never forget how you made them feel."

Have a great New Year and get involved in making our county and the city of Huntington a more livable place!