How you can reduce your trash bill

Mar 18, 2025 | Community, Education, In-Person, Past

March 2025

How you can reduce your trash bill

By Susan Mead, LOSN

The Lake Oswego garbage, recycling and yard debris with food waste rates have increased as of February 2025. The new rates are available to review at the city’s website: https://www.ci.oswego.or.us/recycle/garbage

There are several ways you can lower your monthly costs and take advantage of free services.

If you have weekly service for a 65-gallon or 90-gallon trash roll cart and usually do not fill it more than half full every week…

SOLUTION: Consider going to a smaller roll cart from what you currently have. A 35-gallon trash roll cart service is almost 50% cheaper than the two largest sizes.

You want to keep weekly service at your current roll-cart size because if you put food waste in yard debris bin, it gets too dirty/stinky…

Get more trash tips

The Repair Fair is back!

When: Saturday April 5th, from 10:00 am to 1:00pm

Where: Lake Oswego Adult Community Center, 505 G Avenue, Lake Oswego, OR 97034

Repair Fairs are a great way to save money; get your cherished items back in shape and reduce waste. Come with clothes that need mending, small appliances, electronics, and toys so that expert volunteers will try to repair them for free!

How it works: Your item will be queued up in the order of your arrival. When a fixer is available, you explain what is wrong to help troubleshoot. Over 50% of the time they are able to repair the item. The most common reason for no repair is the lack of a replacement part.

The process often that takes a while, so bring a snack, something to drink and read. We have plenty of tables for you to relax or meet a neighbor while you wait.

Last year, 12 repair fairs were held throughout Clackamas County and many more are held in the greater Metro area. Clackamas County is collaborating with Lake Oswego Sustainability Network, City of Lake Oswego and Master Recyclers for this Repair Fair. We look forward to seeing you.

Global Recycling Day Is March 18

Recycling can be complex and frequently changing. Update yourself on the most current recycling guidelines from Clackamas County.

Let us know how much you recycle and your recycling challenges. Take this 2 minute survey:

Take the recycling quiz

Additional Recycling Services Soon May Be Legal

Collection of hard-to-recycle items by companies like Ridwell has been in violation of the City of Lake Oswego’s regulations. That may change as early as today, when the City Council votes on an ordinance to license these collection services.

At their meeting earlier this month, the City Council held a public hearing to consider the ordinance establishing a new license program for companies providing additional recycling collection services in Lake Oswego. The City Council voted unanimously to approve the ordinance tentatively and it directed staff to return March 18 to vote on the final version. It is expected to be approved.

For more details, read the full March 4th Staff report.

Oregon’s new Recycling Modernization Act: Increasing trust and creating
profitable recycling services

On July 1 of this year, Oregon will become the first state in the U.S. to launch a new recycling plan that will:

expand the number of things most of us can recycle,
provide residential recycling pickup service to city and rural customers in all parts of the state,
require owners and managers of multi-unit housing to provide recycling for residents,
improve public education about recycling,
require certification of recycling operations to verify that their products are really being recycled,
enable upgrades to the facilities that process recycled materials, and
require producers of plastic and paper products to form a Producer Cooperative through which they will pay part of the cost of recycling, enough to provide funding to enable recycling facilities to upgrade equipment and make up for fluctuations in market prices,
spur changes in packaging as manufacturers discover that making packaging easy to recycle saves them money.

For collectors, materials recycling facilities, final processors and especially manufacturers of plastic packaging and tableware, that means quite a change is coming. This bill will require manufacturers to share the cost of recycling plastics and paper products as well as help support and stabilize the recycling markets.

Learn about Oregon’s new recycling law

Join us for the Lake Oswego Sustainability Resource Fair on April 6

When: Sunday, April 6, 2025, 11 am – 2 pm

Where: River Grove Elementary, 5850 SW McEwan Rd., Lake Oswego

Discover hands-on ways to live sustainably and help our community thrive!
This FREE, all-ages event has something for everyone:

Explore practical ways to protect the environment, save money, and live well.
Engage in hands-on activities, arts & crafts, and family-friendly fun.
Give & receive free cycling and recreation equipment at Shifting Gears, Gifting Gears (S3G).
Connect with local sustainability groups and learn how to make a lasting impact.
Tour the new River Grove Elementary School, a model of resilient, sustainable school design!

Join LOSN for an Open House and Tour of Tigard’s first Net Zero apartments

Jan 7, 2025 | Events as posts, In-Person, Past

January 2025

Join LOSN for an Open House and Tour of Tigard’s first Net Zero apartments.

The Steward is the first certified Path to Net Zero apartment building in Tigard, Oregon, offering fully electric living without the carbon operating footprint from fossil fuels. Residents will enjoy a clean and healthy living environment thanks to the rooftop photovoltaic solar system (103 kW), energy efficient windows, extended capacity heat pumps and more.

Register online to tour The Steward on January 14, 2025.

Tours of the building will be leaving from the lobby at 5:30 PM, 6:00 PM, and 6:30 PM.

Following the tour, enjoy light refreshments and connect with local environmental organizations: Solar Oregon, Electrify Now, and Lake Oswego Sustainability Network in the community space on the 5th floor.

The Steward combines environmentally friendly living with purposeful design, where energy efficiency, sustainable practices, and sophisticated design coexist.

Urban Forest Summit and healthy yard tips for fall

Oct 1, 2024 | Community, Electrify Your Landscaping / Healthy Yard Care, Natural Resources - Testimonials, Past

October 2024

6th Annual Urban Forest Summit:

A Healthy Urban Forest – What You Can Do

Saturday, November 2, 9 am – 12:30 pm

Lake Oswego United Methodist Church

1855 South Shore Blvd, Lake Oswego

Learn about our speakers

You are invited to attend the 6th annual Urban Forest Summit. This is an opportunity to expand your arboreal knowledge, discuss the importance of a healthy, interconnected urban ecological system and share opportunities to maintain and support the health of the urban forest.

This year’s agenda will include an update on the City of Lake Oswego Community and Urban Forestry Plan, information on tree care and maintenance, understanding our urban forest from floor to canopy, and best practices for native plant landscaping. We’ll be exploring how we can care for our urban forest, individually and collectively.

The opening speakers will be Jack Halsey, Executive Director of the OLWC, Jessica Numanoglu, Community Development Director for the City of Lake Oswego, and Scott Altenhoff, Manager of the Urban and Community Forestry Program at the Oregon Department of Forestry. They will be followed by the following panelists: Caitlin Pope Daum, Principal Landscape Architect at Studio Wild, Ian Hunter, founder and owner of Phoenix Habitats, and Leah Puhlman, Master Gardener Oregon State University Extension.

The Urban Forest Summit is presented by the Oswego Lake Watershed Council in partnership with the Lake Oswego Sustainability Network.

For more information and to register: oswegowatershed.org

Learn more about and register for the Urban Forest Summit

Leave the Leaves… and other sustainable gardening ideas for fall

Leave the Leaves:

If they fall in garden beds let them stay in place.
Place leaves from your walkways and hardscape into your garden beds.
If they fall on your lawn use an electric lawn mower to chop them up and let them stay in place. By spring, all of the leaves will disintegrate into a leaf duff, which is just another name for natural compost.

Leave the flowers:

Birds will come to eat the seeds.
Wait until early spring to cut back your perennials to maximize winter food for birds and small mammals.

Leave the berries and other fruit on shrubs and trees.

Leave small branches and twigs – they provide good food for fungi. They will also disintegrate into the leaf duff.

Save yourself a lot of work and Leave the Leaves!

Leaving the leaves improves the health of the soil, helps insects, habitat and wildlife. Get more ideas from the Oswego Lake Watershed Council and Xerces Society.

ELECTRIFY YOUR LANDSCAPING AND HEALTHY YARD CARE

It’s Clean, It’s Quiet, It’s Healthy

The Lake Oswego Sustainability Network has launched a campaign to support healthy yard care practices and the transition away from gas-powered landscaping equipment (GPLE). Gas-powered landscaping equipment causes significant air and noise pollution that negatively impacts workers, neighborhoods, habitat, and health of the soil.

Here is our new yard sign we shared at the Lake Oswego Home and EV fair last month.

This is the first year we featured Electrify Your Landscaping/ Healthy Yard Care as part of our Fair. This included landscapers that offer alternatives to gas equipment and a display of STIHL electric landscaping equipment.

Take a look at our landscaping page to see our recent newsletter, an August mailer to 14,000 homes in Lake Oswego, a list of landscapers that offer alternatives to gas equipment, resources and ways to get involved.

Candidate Forum

Do you want to hear about what our Lake Oswego candidates think about accelerating the implementation of the Sustainability and Climate Action Plan, banning gas-powered leaf blowers and other sustainability and equity questions? This forum was held on October 7 and was hosted by Respond to Racism and the Lake Oswego Sustainability Network. Here is the YouTube link to the Candidate Forum: https://www.youtube.com/live/sPVqkuKB1jQ

We experienced difficulty in the audio recording and the sound begins at the 18:45 mark.

Lake Oswego Repair Fair Coming November 16

Please join us at our upcoming Lake Oswego Repair Fair on November 16 from 10 am – 1 pm. For more information on upcoming Clackamas County Repair Fairs.

Solar at the Electric Home and Vehicle Fair

Sep 1, 2024 | Electrify LO Journey, Past

September 2024

Find out about Solar Options for you!

The Lake Oswego Electric Home and Vehicle Fair has opportunities to learn about solar. Check out our Home and Vehicle Fair event page for complete details.

Event Details

Rooftop Solar and Battery Storage

Rooftop solar serves as a hedge for rising electricity prices, allows energy independence, assures you are using clean, renewable energy and will increase the value of your home. Pairing solar with a battery storage system allows you to retain power during an outage. There is currently a 30% federal tax credit for rooftop solar and battery storage systems.

Three locally owned rooftop solar companies were chosen to participate in this year’s fair, all known for their high quality and superior customer ratings. The solar companies are Power Northwest, A&R Solar and Sunbridge Solar. Check out our event page for information on these companies and the discounts they offer to attendees to the fair.

You can also visit the Solar Oregon table to talk about all things rooftop solar. Since 1979 this non-profit has been offering reliable and impartial consumer education about solar energy for both individuals and communities. They offer solar tours, zero energy showcases and monthly webinars called How to Go Solar + Storage.

Community Solar

For many people rooftop solar is not an option since they are not homeowners, their roofs are not suited to solar or the cost of solar is prohibitive. Community solar is available for most everyone who pays a PGE electricity bill and does not have rooftop solar. When you sign up for community solar, PGE is obligated to purchase energy on your behalf from small scale solar farms in this area. The advantages include:

Guaranteed 100% renewable energy.
Lower energy bills – 5% minimum discount and higher discounts for low-income subscribers.
Pay through your current electric utility – no additional bills.
Easy, no-cost sign up and easy cancellation.
You help provide green energy jobs in your community.

Common Energy will be at the fair and you can sign up for community solar right there. They have 80 community solar projects in Oregon and 9 other states, and they are adding new projects all the time.

The Oregon Clean Power Cooperative offers a different model of community solar. The Co-op focuses on building solar and other renewable energy for schools, churches, nonprofits and local governments as well as businesses, and has successfully created multiple public-private partnerships to leverage tax credits for renewable energy. This type of solar makes Oregon communities more energy resilient. They provide local, independent energy sources and microgrids that provide power even if wildfires, earthquakes or other natural disasters take down the electric grid. In addition to exhibiting, Dan Orzech from Oregon Clean Power Cooperative will speak about different models of community solar at 1:00 pm at the Fair.

There is some type of solar for you, and by attending the fair you will find out what it is!

Thank You to Our Electric Home and Vehicle Event Sponsors

Thank you to sponsors of the 2024 Lake Oswego Electric Home and Vehicle Fair

2024 Lake Oswego Candidate Forum

Monday, October 7, 2024 | 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Lake Oswego United Church of Christ | 1111 Country Club Rd

Please join the Lake Oswego Sustainability Network and Respond to Racism on Monday evening, October 7, for an opportunity to hear from candidates for Lake Oswego Mayor and City Council on how they will address equity and sustainability in our city. Even though the candidates are running unopposed, these issues are critical to the health and well-being of our community. Doors will open at 6 pm.

Respond to racism 2024 candidate forum information

The forum will also be live streamed on youtube.com/@respondtoracismlo.

For more information https://respondtoracism.org/events/candidate-forum/

The 2024 Electric Home and Vehicle Fair

Aug 1, 2024 | Electrify LO Journey, Electrify Your Landscaping / Healthy Yard Care, Past

August 2024

Mark Your Calendar for the Lake Oswego Electric Home and Vehicle Fair

Where: LO United Methodist Church, 1855 South Shore Blvd
When: September 28, 2024 – 10 am to 2 pm

Free

Event Details

People are deeply concerned about the climate crisis. LOSN offers effective and practical ways for home-owners and renters to move away from fossil fuels that are causing global warming. Our electricity, by law, is becoming clean and renewable from solar, wind, and hydropower.

As your appliances and vehicles are replaced, we encourage you to move away from gasoline and natural gas and begin your electrification journey—electric vehicles and high-efficiency home appliances such as heat pumps for heating and cooling your home, heat pumps for heating water, and induction cooking for your stove. Become more resilient with solar energy and battery storage. These changes will also lower your energy bills and make your home safer, healthier and more comfortable.

Our Lake Oswego Electric Home and Vehicle Fair gets to the ”how” of electrifying.

Meet contractors and representatives of organizations who can help you plan your electrification journey and take advantage of a variety of financial incentives. Many contractors will be offering incentives available to fair attendees. Visit our event page for a full list of exhibitors.
New this year, every ride in a dealer-owned EV enters you to win one of fifty $25 gift certificates to a Lake Oswego restaurant. You can also talk with dozens of local electric vehicle owners about their EVs.
Discover the advantages of electric yard equipment and ditch the gas.
Listen to a speaker every half hour starting at 10:30 am on important electrification topics, including financial incentives, how to join a community solar power project, and more. Visit our event page for the schedule of speakers and topics.
Keep your energy up with Arrow Coffee and Desserts and pancake and cider samples cooked on induction hot plates by Electrify PDX

Speakers & Exhibitors

Test Drive an EV at the Fair and Enter to Win One of 50 Gift Cards Worth $25

Are you wondering if an electric vehicle is right for you? A great way to find out is to test drive an EV at our Fair. You can enter a drawing for one of fifty $25 gift cards good at many Lake Oswego restaurants. We will have a dozen EV dealers including Tesla, Polestar, Ford, Chevrolet, Kia, Hyundai, Nissan, BMW, Audi and Volkswagen with EVs you can test drive.

You can also visit with many of the EV owners who have brought their EV to display and discuss at the Fair. Find out what their experience has been.

The number of available EVs is going up while the cost of owning one is going down. Financial incentives on a new EV can run from $10,000 to $15,000 depending on your income level. Financial incentives for used EVs can be as high as $9000. The operating and maintenance costs typically are 70% less than a gas car. You will find that owning an EV is financially very attractive.

EV Owner?

Are you an EV owner? Then sign-up as a Participant and bring your EV to display and discuss at our Electric Home and Vehicle Fair.

As an EV owner you are one of the best sources of what it is like to own and operate an electric vehicle. People who are considering owning an EV want to hear directly from EV owners. Chances are that you also will want to speak to other owners at the Fair. This is our seventh year of participating in National Drive Electric Week so please join us on September 28 and share your experiences.

Thank You, Event Sponsors!

Another Upcoming Electrification Event

Electrify Portland! 2024 Home Electrification Fair

When: Sunday, September 15, 2024 from Noon-4pm

Where: The Redd on Salmon St., 831 SE Salmon St. Portland, OR 97214

Make your home healthy, comfier and more resilient! Join ElectrifyPDX for their Electrify Portland! Home Electrification Fair on Sunday, September 15th from noon to 4pm, hosted at the beautiful Redd on Salmon Street.

Whether you’re a homeowner or renter, this free, festive home electrification fair offers inspiration and practical tips for switching from gas or older electric to efficient, renewable electric. Check out heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, solar, EVs, ebikes, electric yard tools, induction cooktops and more! Plus free ice cream sandwiches from Ruby Jewel!

Get your free ticket at ElectrifyPortland.org

Ever wonder where your trash goes? Take a tour and find out

Jul 1, 2024 | Community, Education, Past

July 2024

Ever Wonder What Happens to Your Curbside Trash and Recycling? Now you can find out!

Please join the LOSN Materials Management Action Team for a 60-min tour of the material recovery facility operated by our residential hauler, Republic Services in Wilsonville.

Republic Service’s Materials Recovery Facility Tour

Friday Aug 9, 2024 ⋅ 11:30am – 12:30pm (Pacific Time – Los Angeles)

10295 SW Ridder Rd, Wilsonville, OR 97070, USA

There is a maximum of 30 participants who can attend. Please RSVP to Susan Mead at semead90@gmail.com. If you are interested in carpooling, please let Susan know.

Tour details:

Be sure to allow enough time to arrive for the tour start at 11:30 AM. Approiximately 30 minutes should be adequate from downtown Lake Oswego.
To join the walk-through of the facility, you must wear close-toed shoes. All needed personal protective equipment will be provided by Republic Services.