EcoLocalizer

Editor’s note: Today, we’re pleased to start a content partnership with GreenSceneUSA, a site that’s provides “…a supportive, interactive, nationwide community that gives you access to everything for greening your life with style and ease.” In addition to broad information on green lifestyle, GSUSA also provides “City Scene” sections… so they seemed like a natural partner for Ecolocalizer. Today’s post, on Chicago’s Green Alleys intiative, appears here on the GreenSceneUSA site.

With 1900 miles of alleys, Chicago has more of the narrow service streets than any other city in the nation. In summer, all that blacktop radiates a lot of heat into the scorching metropolis, and during rain and snowmelt, it’s a conduit for rivers of contaminated run-off. But under Mayor Richard Daley’s Green Alley initiative, part of an ambitious citywide greening strategy, the Chicago Department of Transportation has begun resurfacing the alleys with new eco-friendly material.

• » See also: Chicago Gets First Green Jewel-Osco Grocery
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The porous mix of stone and concrete supports grass and other vegetation, supplies oxygen and allows water to penetrate to the soil beneath, reducing run-off, filtering the run-off that occurs and replenishing the natural water table. The material also reflects solar heat rather than absorbing it, cooling the city. So far, 25 alleys have been resurfaced and simultaneously fitted with energy-efficient street lamps; plans call for greening hundreds more during the next few years.

For more information, download the 47-page Green Alleys Program Booklet from the Garden Wood website (which is also the source of the images above).

Read More about Green Activities in Chicago:

• First Chicago-Based Grocer Adopts Biodiesel
• Greening Chicago with Building Permits
• Chicago Restaurant Co-op Expands Use of Eco-Friendly Takeout Containers

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