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Boulderlamp CEO Fazle Quazi talks with visitors at his booth during the expo Friday. (Photos by Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post)

At first, Fazle Quazi was wary of making lights for marijuana growers.

The founder of Boulderlamp Inc., which sells energy-efficient commercial lighting, said he was worried that doing business with weed vendors would tarnish the company's image among its core clients, including retailers and school districts.

But Quazi figured that if his company didn't make the lights, someone else's would.

Conventional grow lights aren't very efficient, and electricity brings an enormous cost of growing marijuana. A 2012 study in the journal Energy Policy estimated that growers nationwide spend $6 billion a year on electricity, and lighting is the biggest draw.

Alex Barondess, 16, watches his 12-year-old brother, Caelan, play "The Edge Energy Delivery Game" at the Enserca booth at the Colorado Energy Expo on Friday.

Producing the weed needed to fill a single joint has the same carbon footprint as running a 100-watt light bulb for 25 hours, the study said.

Boulderlamp, which had a booth at Friday's Colorado Energy Expo, says its ceramic metal halide grow lights use two-thirds less energy than traditional, high-pressure sodium lamps. This year, Quazi says, he's on track to sell about $2 million of grow lights.

"The cannabis industry is going to continue to take up more and more of the available power in this state and regionally," said Evan Anderson, owner of 14er Holistics in Boulder, who plans to buy and resell Boulderlamp lights. "It's a serious problem."

Dylan Donaldson, owner of Karing Kind dispensary in Boulder County, said he cut his power bills 15 to 25 percent by installing about 40 of the lights.

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Boulder company sheds light on energy-efficient means for pot growers

Listen MPR News reporter Elizabeth Dunbar discusses Minnesota's 'contaminants of emerging concern' 2min 28sec

In what may be the nation's most extensive study of its kind, a survey of 118 test wells scattered around Minnesota has found that about a third of them contain measurable levels of antibiotics, detergents, or other consumer chemicals known as "contaminants of emerging concern."

The chemicals, apparently coming from landfills, septic systems and sewage treatment systems, have been found in surface waters in recent years, and some scientists have looked at their effects on fish and other animals. But this new survey, published online Monday by the U.S. Geological Survey, is the most extensive evidence yet that the chemicals are also making their way into both shallow and deep aquifers in Minnesota.

Beneath the Surface, a special Ground Level report

Groundwater is the source of drinking water for three-fourths of Minnesotans.

The study (PDF), conducted between late 2009 and mid-2012 by the USGS and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, found no chemicals in excess of drinking water quality standards.

But for four of the most common chemicals it found -- the antibiotic azithromycin, the antihistamine diphenhydramine, the flame-retardant tributyl phosphate and the animal antibiotic lincomycin - neither the state nor the federal government maintains any health-based water quality standards.

Our use of these chemicals in our everyday lives is releasing them into our environment. Our question as a society is, 'What do we think about that?'

The chemicals come from a variety of consumer and industrial products - prescription and over-the-counter medicines, lotions, detergents, plastic-making ingredients and more.

"Our use of these chemicals in our everyday lives is releasing them at low levels into our environment," said Mindy Erickson, groundwater specialist for the USGS. "Our question as a society is, 'What do we think about that?'"

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Study: Chemicals spreading in Minn. groundwater

In what may be the nations most extensive study of its kind, a survey of 118 test wells scattered around Minnesota has found that about a third of them contain measurable levels of antibiotics, detergents, or other consumer chemicals known as contaminants of emerging concern.

The chemicals, apparently coming from landfills, septic systems and sewage treatment systems, have been found in surface waters in recent years, and some scientists have looked at their effects on fish and other animals. But this new survey, published online this week by the U.S. Geological Survey, is the most extensive evidence yet that the chemicals are also making their way into both shallow and deep aquifers in Minnesota.

Groundwater is the source of drinking water for three-fourths of Minnesotans.

The study, conducted between late 2009 and mid-2012 by the USGS and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, found no chemicals in excess of drinking water quality standards.

But for four of the most common chemicals it found the antibiotic azithromycin, the antihistamine diphenhydramine, the flame-retardant tributyl phosphate and the animal antibiotic lincomycin neither the state nor the federal government maintains any health-based water quality standards.

The chemicals come from a variety of consumer and industrial products prescription and over-the-counter medicines, lotions, detergents, plastic-making ingredients and more.

Our use of these chemicals in our everyday lives is releasing them into our environment. Our question as a society is, What do we think about that?

Our use of these chemicals in our everyday lives is releasing them at low levels into our environment, said Mindy Erickson, groundwater specialist for the USGS. Our question as a society is, What do we think about that?

Erickson said the groundwater study, which will continue, was prompted several years ago by scientists finding the chemicals in rivers and lakes in Minnesota, sometimes bodies of water that were otherwise considered pristine.

The 118 wells tested are among those the MPCA monitors regularly, and they were chosen because of their assumed vulnerability to this kind of contamination, said Sharon Kroening, research scientist at the MPCA. Some were in the Twin Cities area, some near St. Cloud and others in north central, northwestern and southeast Minnesota.

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Chemicals spreading in state groundwater

TIVERTON Residents in three areas of Tiverton Riverside (557 households), the Robert Gray neighborhood (77 households), and Bay Street (123 households) will vote soon on whether or not to bring sewers to their neighborhoods. Im in favor of it, said Dr. Gus Stratton of Riverside Drive. Its better for the environment long term. Its only going to enhance property values, Dr. Stratton said. And if you want to modify your property by putting on an addition, it would be easier to do that kind of planning. I think its a no-brainer. But youd be surprised how many people are opposed to it. Dr. Strattons home is on the Sakonnet River. When Im standing on my dock I see all kinds of stuff floating by, he said. Dr. Stratton said he has a fairly new septic system, put in about 2005-2006, that he has to clean about once or twice a year. South a few blocks on Riverside Drive lives Sharon Silvia who rents from an owner who lives next door. I would love for the area to be sewered, she said. Were right by the water so if were hooked up to the town sewer, it really enhances the value of the house. And maintenance-wise its really beneficial. Ms. Silvia said some of the homes along Riverside Drive just have holding tanks. I know theres a lot of controversy because a lot of people have put in new systems. Paul White lives on Old Colony Terrace on the hillside above the river in the Robert Gray neighborhood, I support it 100 percent, he said. Even though we have a septic system about 10 years old, I think its absolutely necessary. I would hope they prioritize Main Road, because thats the only way youll get commercial development. I would vote yes. I support the wastewater district idea, said Richard Fanning, who lives down the street from Mr. White. He said he knows no one whoe opposed to it. Another Old Colony Road resident, Dave Lithway, said, I dont understand how theyre going to handle the vote, and how the neighbors will decide. I cant understand how theyll sewer if they get a no vote. But does he support sewers? Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely. I have a good septic thats approved but I live at the bottom of the hill and see what rolls down. Over in the Bay Street area, Al Trecida on Hooper Street said, my opinion is its probably good, but if my system is good and up to date and working, they ought to let me keep it. Door-to-door visits by the Times encountered nobody who said theyd vote no. If a majority of the homeowners in a neighborhood votes yes, sewers will be built. If a majority votes no, the provisions of the Cesspool Act of 2007 and other legal mandates relating to septic systems will apply. Inspections will take place, violations will be noted, and appropriate enforcement action will be taken, Mr.Kendrick said. Who can vote Under the new law, only residents who own their homes will get chance to vote. This was not the original intent when the proposed new system was discussed at neighborhood meetings by the towns existing Wastewater Management Commission, and as it was passed by the town council. The change came in the form of an amendment to the legislation that was inserted by the state Senate. The town-approved definition of a voter was originally defined to mean a resident and registered voter within the area. The Senate amendment changed the definition to resident and property owner within the area. Thus, absentee owners not residing in the neighborhood are precluded from voting, as are renters, family members, trustees, and corporate owners (such as banks holding mortgages). The requirement that a district voter be a registered voter in town was also eliminated.

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Some Tiverton voters welcome sewers

Ten percent of all water samples taken from American beaches last summer exceeded the protective benchmark for swimmer safety established by the Environmental Protection Agency, according to a report released Wednesday.

Authors of the Natural Resources Defense Council's 24th annual guide to water quality at vacation beaches pointed to stormwater runoff as a particular long-term problem. But in the shorter term, they urge the EPA to finalize the proposed Clean Water Protection Rule, which would reaffirm that discharges of upstream water can be regulated under the Clean Water Act of 1972. [Editor's note:This paragraph originally identified the Natural Resource Defense Council incorrectly.]

The rule restores protections that long existed in the Clean Water Act but that have been thrown into legal limbo by ... Supreme Court decisions in 2001 and 2006, says Jon Devine, a senior attorney for the NRDC.

Specifically, the rule would clarify what kinds of water bodies fall under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act. It was proposed in March by the EPA and US Army Corps of Engineers.

The study was based on sampling conducted during the summer of 2013 at nearly 3,500 coastal and Great Lakes beaches in the United States. About 1 in 10 samples contained excessive levels of microscopic pathogens, industrial and agricultural chemicals, or sewage, the NRDC analysis reveals.

The report cites the Clean Water Protection Rule as the greatest opportunity to address discharge of pollutants into upstream waters that eventually flow into Americas beaches.

But in the longer term, the report stressed the importance of stormwater runoff, which washes over roads, buildings, parking lots, and lawns, where it picks up oil and grease, pesticides, and pollutants on its way to storm drains that empty into nearby waterways.

The most important long-term action to protect beachgoers is to adopt policies that address the sources of beach water pollution, particularly stormwater runoff, the report says.

The level of pollution in stormwater tends to correlate directly to the amount of concrete and pavement in the surrounding area. Sidewalks, roads, buildings, and parking lots all deflect rather than absorb rainwater, routing the water and any pollutants in its path into the nearest waterway.

While coastal counties represent just 17 percent of US land mass, they house more than half of the nations population, the NRDC reports. As more people move to coveted beach communities, the more built-up those areas become, which can lead to more asphalt and fewer wetlands.

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1 in 10 beach water samples is contaminated, report finds

sandy springs remodeling |room addition | new construction
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nI065JRicmw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKS_IF3bDoM sandy springs remodeling |room addition | new construction We provide t...

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Amanda Williams

Amanda Williams has been writing since 2009 on various writing websites and blogging since 2003. She enjoys writing about health, medicine, education and home and garden topics. Williams earned a Bachelor of Science in biology at East Stroudsburg University in May 2013. Williams is also a certified emergency medical technician.

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Article updated: 6/27/2014 9:35 AM

Maine Township High School District 207 officials are planning to build a $9.3 million addition to the existing spectator gym at Maine West High School in Des Plaines.

George LeClaire | Staff Photographer

Maine Township High School District 207 is planning to build a $9.3 million, 23,000-square-foot addition to the existing gym at Maine West in Des Plaines that would include locker rooms, a weight room and wrestling room.

It would bring those athletic amenities out of the basement of Maine West's spectator gym. But it stops short of something many around Maine West have long sought, and something Maine East and Maine South already have: a field house.

Such a project would take up a larger footprint to make room for an indoor track, which is staying put for now in Maine West's basement. The biggest obstacle to making it a reality, district officials say, has been finding the money to pay for it.

"It's a thought," said Dave Beery, the district's spokesman. "The proposal here is to construct an expansion in such a way that if a (school) board at some future date wanted to add a field house, it could do so. It would work with this expansion. But the district does not have the financial resources to do a field house at this point."

At a meeting of the board's buildings and grounds committee in May, Maine West Athletic Director Jarett Kirshner asked committee members to consider the addition of a field house. Board member Sean Sullivan "expressed flexibility in having a field house" since all district facilities should be "comparable and equitable," according to meeting minutes.

A smaller-scale gym addition, as proposed, could be funded without borrowing or raising taxes through the district's budgeted 10-year capital improvement plan. In its second year, the plan has focused on upgrades to each of the district's schools, including window replacements, roof repairs and improvements to electrical, mechanical, plumbing, heating and cooling systems.

The Maine West gym addition would be one of the largest and most expensive projects in the 10-year plan -- and the only one involving new construction, Beery said.

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Maine West plans $9.3 million gym addition

Dave Sparks just completed one of the more challenging restaurant construction projects he has encountered in his years as a local McDonald's franchisee.

It's not because the design of the new south-side Mishawaka McDonald's is radically different from any other area restaurant.

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New McDonald's opens