Bike Fest & Pedal Pittsburgh 2012

August is a big month for Bike Pgh, Pittsburgh’s bike advocacy group. In addition to celebrating their 10th year in the Burgh, Bike Pgh will be hosting the 8th annual Bike Fest, which now includes PedalPGH, a large-scale bike event originally created 18 years ago by the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh. The Bike Fest begins with PedalPGH, an all-inclusive bike event on August 5th. This year, Bike Pgh is taking over PedalPGH by expanding its scope and making it the largest group bike ride in the state. They will have 3 routes to choose from: a family-friendly no-cars trail, a low-traffic city ride, and a 63-mile tour of the city, hills included.

For 2012, Bike Fest will span fifteen days. A variety of biking activities will occur throughout the city. Bike Pgh will also host a fundraiser party August 10th. All donations will go toward Bike Pgh’s mission: transforming streets and communities into vibrant, healthy places by making them safe and accessible for everyone to bike and walk.

bike-pgh.org/events/bikefest/

2012 Venture Outdoors Festival

Last weekend was the annual Venture Outdoors festival, and the SPAQP was there handing out kites and Frisbees and teaching visitors about the Air Quality Index. Venture Outdoors encourages everyone to run, jump, kayak, climb, swim, walk, bike … anything to enjoy the outdoors! The SPAQP wants everyone to be able to appreciate the beauty of Southwestern Pennsylvania every day. When we choose to take positive steps toward cleaner air, we’re making sure everyone can get out and enjoy the outdoors whenever they want. Visit ventureoutdoors.org to learn more about the program.

Air Quality Awareness Week

April 30th – May 4th is Air quality Awareness Week! The easiest way to stay aware of the air is to sign up to have the air quality forecast and Air Quality Index (AQI) levels sent directly to your inbox.

The AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality that translates pollution levels to colors. It tells you how clean or polluted your air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you. The AQI focuses on health affects you may experience within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air. To learn more about the AQI, please visit AirNow.gov.

If you are in the Pittsburgh and greater Allegheny County region, sign up for air quality information at Pittsburgh.enviroflash.info. 

SPAQP Lawn Mower Exchange!

The SPAQP will be hosting lawn mower exchanges at 17 True Value stores in southwestern Pennsylvania.

The Partnership is offering 300 rebates available on a first-come, first-serve basis, one rebate per household for a lawnmower and/or a lawn trimmer. Residents, at their convenience, may visit their local participating True Value Store to exchange the lawn equipment. Residents will receive a $100 rebate toward the purchase of an electric or battery-powered mower and $25 toward the purchase of an electric or battery-powered trimmer or chain saw.

This program is an ozone-reduction strategy – the combustion of gasoline from lawn equipment, typically in warmer summer days, produces volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. VOCs are ozone precursors.

The exchange will begin over the weekend of April 28th and end on May 31st.

Follow this link to learn more about the program, and to see what True Value stores are participating.