Elizabeth "Lisa" Bender

I am so excited that I start my Leed Green Associate Exam Prep course tomorrow at Atlantic Cape Community College here in Atlantic County, NJ (they also have a campus in Cape May County, hence the name). Before I decided to join the fascinating world of real estate in Ocean City, NJ and surrounding Atlantic and Cape May County communities, I worked at the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) when they started the process of becoming a LEED certified building. For those who may not know, LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design which is a program of the US Green Building Council. LEED is a rating system for how "green" a building is. It takes into account so many facets of both construction and, commercially, green practices of the company itself. Things like Energy Star appliances get you points, and using recycled materials in carpet, tile, shingles, etc., composting, recycling... the list goes on and on. I will be able to tell you more over the next couple of days as I will be learning a ton.

I already knew I wanted to work to become a LEED Green Associate, but it is not really a super easy thing to do. With my science background in the environmental field and my practical experience with being "green" both personally and professionally, I feel like I will be able to do well on the test, but I didn't think a prep course would hurt as there are so many details.

The knowledge I gain and the affiliation with LEED I will obtain will be invaluable to my real estate clients, whether building new or purchasing an existing home. I will be able to assist them with ways to green their home saving money on heating, air conditioning, water use; making their home healthier; and thinking sustainably. The bonus, as minor or sometimes major improvements to their home help the homeowners, my clients, they will be helping their home planet, Earth.

For more green real estate news check YourShoreTownAgent.com over the next few days, weeks, and months as I will be taking additional courses that will give me even more experience with green real estate and assisting home buyers and sellers in the Ocean City area.

Since my last blog entry about the new Green 34th Street Playground in Ocean City and how great it is, I contacted the City of Ocean City to find out more about how green it is. The playground was installed to replace an outdated playground made of pressure treated lumber that was in need of replacing. The City made a great choice in a new playground area to not only make it green, but also accomodating to children of all ages and abilities. It's a fantastic, fun, greenhouse-gas-reducing place to play!

Here are the facts from Ocean City, NJ:

"The overall recycled content of the playground equipment is 75% by weight. Approximately 97,720 milk jugs and 5,593 lbs of scrap steel were kept out of landfills by constructing this playground. The playground equipment is also 100% PVC Free. The playground equipment was shipped via rail reducing carbon emissions approximately 41% as compared to shipping via truck."

Here is what those numbers mean:

By recycling this material, the reduction in greenhouse gas emission is 60 tons of carbon dioxide and 2.6 tons of methane. These amounts equate to

CO₂ emissions from the electricity use of homes for one year

or

CO₂ emissions from gallons of gasoline consumed.

What a great community! Next time your community is ready to replace an old playground or install a new one to enhance open space, get involved and try to get your community to go green, I know I will. You can see what a big impact every choice makes.

Have a green day!

I can't believe I am saying that a day in the high 30s was nice, but it was. The sky was blue, the sun was out and the boys wanted to go to the park (I am doing showings later, but had a chance to get out at lunch time). So, we went to a park that was new this summer in Ocean City at 34th Street. It is fantastic with a whole area for many, many swings, even for disabled children, and two playscapes - one for little ones and one for the older kids. They are challenging physically and the kids really have a great time there. There were a number of moms there with kids and one dad and, of course, they were talking about Ocean City real estate - houses they loved, what just sold, etc. Ocean City is a fantastic place to be able to live, invest, and enjoy! And, it is a very eco-conscious city to top it all off, as if the beach, boardwalk, awesome downtown and numerous city services weren't enough.

Yes, the playground is made of recycled plastic lumber, no splinters, no painting, easy clean! It is really cool and a great way to contribute to keeping all of the plastic bottles that were recycled to make the lumber out of the landfills! Go OCNJ!!! America's Greenest Family Resort!

I was watching Super WHY on PBS with my sons today and the story of the day was about Wyatt's (Super Why's) Mom getting mad at him for wasting water. I had to laugh because I've totally been there and thought myself ridiculous for practically yelling at my then 2 year old for wasting water, like he really understood at that point. He understands now that he is almost four, but really, I was upset. Just hearing the water run when not being used at that exact moment or filling up the sink or bath more than necessary really irks me. I think he may have been "doing dishes" or something at the time and letting the water run while the sink already had plenty of water in it for him, or something like that (I can't even remember now). Anyway, it reminded me that there are plenty of adults who also don't understand about water conservation and how simple it can be.

I'll share another memory to illustrate my point. My now husband, then friend, made my cousin and I dinner at his house. Since he did the cooking, we did the cleaning and while we were washing dishes, he said the wrong thing to me. I guess he noticed me constantly turning the water on and off and he said, "I have a well, so you can use as much water as you want." I believe my reply was, "You did not just say that to me," and then went on some rant about saving water, not just for money but because it is a precious resource and especially in our areas where we are so close to the ocean and taking too much water out of the aquifer puts us at risk for saltwater intrusion, etc. etc. I continued with explanations about how you should also always turn off the water when brushing your teeth and how even a leak, no matter how small even if only a tiny drip can waste gallons and gallons of water.

At the time, I was serving as a New Jersey Watershed Ambassador for the Americorps National Service Program, so it especially hit home and helped me to make my point even more since all the numbers and facts about water conservation were at the tip of my tongue. Obviously, Bob never made the mistake of wasting water in front of me from that point forward and now he is my partner in training our children. I was just so amazed that a grown man could not comprehend how much our daily behavior affects the world around us. Having been interested in the environment since I was a kid, majored in Geology and have a Master's Degree in Oceanography, I feel like I have always been aware of the importance of conservation, but he made me realize, that not everyone is. He helped me to serve my term better, remembering to illustrate even basic points to the students, civic groups and everyday people I educated as an Americorps volunteer.

Makes sense that I went on to write a grant application that was awarded to Atlantic County Utilities Authority when I worked there for a Countywide Water Conservation Program worth more than $150,000. Pretty cool to think that I helped to make a difference, now hopefully those of you reading this will also conserve and help spread the word.

If you would like to discuss more about water conservation, other green living topics, or real estate buying and selling, please visit my website at http://yourshoretownagent.com. You can also find me on ActiveRain at http://activerain.com/lisabender and http://localism.com/agents/lisabender or through LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethlisabender.

Don't forget that green is a color of the season this year while you are out doing your last minute shopping. For those ordering online, kudos for saving the gas on traveling to the regional shopping areas. Another way to go green is to skip the regional shopping areas that may not be so close to home and patronize local shops. It's great to help your local community businesses and great for the environment, too. The fewer miles we drive every day, the more we help our situation. I love downtown Ocean City and shop there often. The boutique prices are surprisingly reasonable for the quality and unique merchandise. If you have to scoot around to hit some big sales, then plan your trip so you are making stops in the most efficient and gas-saving way. It won't only help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but it will help reduce the money you spend on gas. When I write my list of errands, appointments, and/or showings for the day, I always consider what I have to do and plan accordingly, so I do not have to backtrack and waste time, energy, wear on the car, or gas.

Some other easy green shopping tips:

1) SO SUPER EASY - Bring re-usable bags!!! I have the ones that rollup so tiny I can keep 5 in my purse at a time, and as a mother of two I have a lot in my purse already and they are still in there not taking up much room or adding much weight at all.
2) If you are going out shopping, or out to run errands or going to work on any typical day, bring a reusable cup/mug/water bottle. I personally have a stainless steel bottle that is perfect. It is not made of plastic, so I don't have to worry about any chemical leaching (not that all plastics do this, but I just like the stainless). Also it's double insulated so it keeps my hot tea hot when I'm heading out with my first "cup" in the morning, and my cold water cold when I refill as I'm out and about. If I'm not in the mood for water and want anything else, most establishments will refill my bottle and often give a discount. Just ask!

Believe me, making these choices make you feel good. You can come home from a long day out and feel proud that you've done your part. Who doesn't want to be proud of themselves.

Good luck going green. If you want to discuss any green living tips or have any questions regarding real estate, please contact me through my website at http://yourshoretownagent.com.