Inside of the Jamaica Bay National Wildlife Refuge, a lone swan sits on the water, grooming itself. It is backed by the tall marsh grasses that characterize this swampy preserve, and behind those, I can see the Manhattan skyline.

The refuge, which encompasses 9,155 acres just east of Brooklyn and Queens, is such a haven for birds, from oystercatchers to willets and ospreys, that an estimated 20 percent of North America’s bird species visit it annually.

What makes the refuge more striking, though, is its proximity to one of the world most intensely urban areas. Less than an hour outside of Manhattan by subway, it sits just southeast of the runways at JFK, so that a visitor to the refuge hears not only a profusion of wild bird calls, but also the constant blast of man-made birds taking off nearby. When the twin towers fell in 2001, 29-year Park Service veteran Eduardo Castillo was watching from the shoreline of Jamaica Bay, just a short walk from his post at the refuge visitor’s center.

Along with such closeness to the city, however, comes exposure to a range of pollutants that threaten the health of the ecosystem. Four wastewater treatment plants discharge into the Bay, leading to elevated nitrogen levels that harm animal and plant species. Development in Brooklyn and Queens continues to reduce available habitat, and dredging and digging projects have altered water flows. The rate of salt marsh loss in the bay is estimated at 54 acres per year, and is accelerating.

The city Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has created a Watershed Protection Plan for the Bay, and the first draft of the plan  contains scores of proposals intended to improve the bay’s water quality, restore its ecology, and control upstream pollution. However, an advisory committee appointed to oversee the plan has criticized it for lacking enough quantitative goals, timelines, or cost estimates. “You can say you’re going to restore some oyster beds,” said committee co-chair Brad Sewell, an attorney for NRDC, “but are you going to restore one oyster bed, or 100 oyster beds?”

Because members of the advisory committee consider elevated nitrogen levels in the Bay from wastewater discharge to be the most urgent threat facing it, they have called for the creation of a separate, accelerated plan to address that issue.  “The DEP has been out of compliance with water quality standards for many years because of those wastewater facilities,” said Sewell. His group, the NRDC, has organized a campaign to urge the DEP to adopt a nitrogen reduction plan.

As I wandered through the Jamaica Bay Refuge on a recent visit, I came across a turtle in the middle of the path, attempting to bury itself in the sand to protect its eggs from predators. It was a basic survival mechanism, meant to diffuse a threat that the turtle has faced for eons. The external forces currently affecting Jamaica Bay are of a different sort: only humans can change them.

Way before I knew anything about the coming solar and wind energy revolution, I was using the sun that comes through our kitchen window to defrost frozen fish, heat up burritos and plump up bread dough. I'd dry my hair by riding my bike downhill. On hiking trips, I "cooked" our food in the perfect solar cooker-my car dashboard on a summer day. I also used to set my ceramic artwork out in the sun to harden and dry-instant kiln! Sure, these techniques took more time than zapping something in the microwave, plugging in the hairdryer or heating up our gas oven, but it's fun and free to work with nature.

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I've avoided it for 24 years, thanks to living in big cities, but now that I'm moving back to Connecticut, I can no longer deny it - I need to buy a car. Unfortunately, cars are not like houses, which you earn equity on. The moment you drive a brand new car off the lot, it starts to depreciate in value drastically. Of course, we can't forget the eco-implications of having a car: oil changes, burning fossil fuels, buying something that is mass produced … etc. Thanks to my car-need realization, I began delving into the world of green automobiles last month. You know what I found? Numerous choices, most of them out of my price range. Add on the choice of what type of eco-car to buy (gas hybrid, electric hybrid, ethanol-ready, biodiesel-ready … etc) and you've got one frustrated consumer. If I had the opportunity, I'd save for the new Chevrolet Volt, which is scheduled to be released in 2 years. Reality check: That is 2 years from now. I need a car in 3 months. So, back to the drawing board - and to the Yahoo! Autos Green Center. Those little Smart cars are adorable - I could pick one of those up in NYC after I get back to the East Coast. Reality check: Those suckers are small! For just a bit more, I could get a brand new Prius. I doubt a Smart car would handle the Connecticut winters very well either. Having a Toyota Prius Hybrid or a Honda Civic Hybrid would be a joy! Reality check: they both start around $23,000 for a 2008 model. Then it hit me … used cars. Duh! While buying a used car can be a stressful process (if you work with an obnoxious used car dealer), it will cost you much less and save from having to use fresh resources to build a new car. Yes, there is the undeniable issue of fuel efficiency, but there are a number of ways to improve that. If you are willing to make an investment, you can buy a kit to turn you current vehicle into a hybrid (or pay someone to do it for you). You can also shop around, and compare MPG's of used cars- be sure to check the engine type and any options packages (sports options can make a fuel-efficient car into a bit of a guzzler) against published reports. Some smaller cars can have very good fuel economy, even it they aren't hybrids (the Honda Fit is an example).

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