Special Issues & Guides

The sun has made a comeback in Central Oregon after a long, gloomy winter. The sunshine has returned just in time for the opening of Bend Broadband's new data center, dubbed “The Vault,” which has become a showcase for the latest solar panel technology. Bend's own Sunlight Solar took on the project, which stands as the homegrown company's biggest installation to date.
When it came to Bend Broadband's new data center, the company wanted to make the facility as green as possible. Bend Broadband execs said incorporating such a large solar installation was important because typically, the energy-intensive data center industry hasn't gone out of its way to be clean and green.

“This beer is so good, I wish I could bathe in it.”
You may have actually heard someone on the barstool next to you say this. I know I have. Now, with the help of retired schoolteacher Leslie Colvin, those people can make good on that claim with LeCol's Soap Bars.
Colvin, who has been making soaps since she retired four years ago, met with the folks at Boneyard Beer and realized that she could use their brews in her soaps. Now, she has made soaps from the brewery's Girl Beer, Femme Fatale and Black 13 brews, and has them available for sale at Boneyard's midtown tasting room.

Two weeks ago, at the April edition of the First Friday art walk, you could hear an approaching roar coming down the street. People on the sidewalk stopped as what appeared to be some sort of old-timey boat on wheels rolled down the crowded streets. At first, it looked like a bus. But as it approached, you could see the pumping thighs of passengers as they waved joyously to those not lucky enough to have secured a seat on what turned out to be the Cycle Pub of Bend. It looked like a hell of a lot of fun, not to mention an Earth-friendly way to tour Bend's breweries.

Every year Bend's Environmental Center compiles a directory of Central Oregon's sustainability minded business that is published and distributed throughout the community as The Green Spot. The directory, which can be found as an insert in this week's paper, shines a light on Central Oregon's Earth-friendly businesses while giving consumers the information we need to support the merchants and service providers that have embraced the sustainability ethic.
The businesses listed in The Green Spot have met specific criteria, that the Environmental Center believes is necessary to support a healthy future for people and the planet. The Environmental Center qualifies businesses by evaluating their products, services, and operations in the categories of energy use, water conservation, transportation, third party certification, waste reduction, toxics prevention, and community.

At nearly 50 square miles, the Skyline Forest is the sea of dappled green that stretches from just outside Bend nearly to Sisters. It's the forest that frames Bend's postcard view of the Three Sisters Wilderness. It's also a playground for hikers, bikers and horseback riders, a source of clean water, clean air and a significant swath of wildlife habitat – all right outside our back door. It's also one of the most endangered forests in the Northwest because of its relatively low timber value and high development potential. However, thanks to the efforts of a number of individuals and groups like the Deschutes Land Trust and Central Oregon Landwatch, there's a good chance that Skyline Forest will be preserved intact for future generations as a multipurpose asset. Under the proposed plan, the community will have an option to purchase the bulk of the 33,000-acre forest, which would be protected from piecemeal development while allowing for expanded recreation and some selected timber harvest.

One of the most ambitious species reintroduction efforts in the United States is happening right here in Central Oregon with the $100-plus million Pelton Round Butte Dam fish passage project. Last year, fish biologists counted more than 100,000 chinook and sockeye as they passed the Round Butte dam at Lake Billy Chinook on their journey from the Upper Deschutes to the Pacific Ocean. It's the first such migration in more than a half-century for these once-plentiful fish after their historic migration was blocked by the construction of dams and irrigation diversions in the Deschutes and its tributaries. The goal is to bring salmon and steelhead back to their home waters, reestablishing resident populations within the next decade. If successful, Central Oregon's experiment could become a model for species reintroduction around the world. It's also evidence that it's not too late to fix some of the mistakes of the past – a lesson that can be taken far beyond Central Oregon. And if the thought of watching a thousand ruby red sockeye barreling their way up Lake Creek outside Sisters to their historic spawning grounds in Suttle Lake doesn't inspire awe, you're probably living in the wrong place.

If you want carpet, go wool, a cradle-to-cradle product that can be composted or recycled. Wool is more durable than its synthetic counterparts, longer lasting, all natural and feels amazing!

Choose flooring surfaces like wood and bamboo that can last a lifetime. A new product called “Woven Bamboo,” is one of the hardest flooring surfaces available on the market – sustainable, renewable and durable!

Add color with non-toxic paints, exterior and interior stains and plasters. A great way to be “green” while helping the environment.