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The City of Austin presents the Active Texas Summit |
Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009
Palmer Events Center
900 Barton Springs Road
The purpose of this summit is to provide attendees with health information and strategies to help implement active living principles in multiple sectors, which will lead to better health for all. At the conclusion of the meeting, attendees will be encouraged to join a statewide effort lead by the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness to support and create healthy cities through the use of evidence-based practices.
Whether you want to promote a healthy lifestyle to your employees, your citizens, your school children, or even just yourself, the Active Texas Summit is the place to begin.
During this conference, you will receive:
A preview of the Austin Fitness Index
An overview of the latest, cutting-edge strategies for health and fitness management
Tools and information on evidence-based practices
Keynote speakers include Mayor Will Wynn, Luci Baines Johnson, Texas Comptroller Susan Combs, Susan Dell and more.
For more information visit the Active Texas Summit Web site.
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Austin Christmas tree recycling
It’s easy to recycle your Christmas tree in Austin. Trees can be recycled at the curb for Pay-As-You-Throw customers or at specific events at Zilker Park.
Christmas trees collected from Zilker Park are recycled into mulch which is made available free on a first come, first serve basis to Austin residents in mid-January.
City residents who do not have City of Austin garbage service can recycle their trees by dropping them off in Zilker Park on the following dates:
- 10 a.m. to 4 p.m Jan. 3, 2009
- 10 a.m. to 4 p.m Jan. 4, 2009
- 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jan. 10, 2009
Residents should use the following guidelines when recycling their trees:
- All trees six feet or taller should be cut in half
- Remove all ornaments, decorations, and tree stand
- Do not place tree in a "tree bag" before setting on the curb
- Only real Christmas trees may be recycled
For more information, call 3-1-1 or visit www.austinrecycles.com.
No Lake Austin drawdown this winter
The City of Austin did not submit a request for LCRA to lower Lake Austin this winter (January 2009) because of the considerable reduction in hydrilla in the lake.
Starting in 2000, the lake was lowered annually to control the invasive aquatic plant, hydrilla. With a significant decrease in hydrilla since 2005, the City has returned to the historic schedule of every-other-year drawdowns. The last lake lowering was in January 2008, so the next lowering is expected to occur in January 2010.
Resources from Austin Public Library can help you find your perfect job
If you need to find a new job in 2009, the Austin Public Library has the resources you need to start a new career:
- Public workstations at 21 library locations with Microsoft Office 2003 for creating and printing resumes.
- Internet access for online job searching. Use the Job Searching Research Guide to find job postings.
- Free computer classes that teach Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
- Business databases (Reference USA and Factiva) for finding companies by industry, size and location.
- Don’t forget to access our online catalog FINDIT to access the library’s selection of books and materials.
- If you need assistance while in the library or outside the library just Ask a Librarian
No Fuel Charge Increase for 2009
The Austin Energy fuel charge of 3.65 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) will not change for 2009. Natural gas prices have been a key driver in pushing up the fuel recovery charge over the past 10 years. However in recent time, natural gas prices have stabilized.
Natural gas costs are the largest component of the Austin Energy fuel charge which is a dollar-for-dollar recovery of the cost of fuel (coal, nuclear, natural gas) used to meet the power demands of Austin Energy customers. Of the roughly $400 million Austin Energy spends annually on fuel to operate its power plants, more than half is needed to pay for natural gas. The fuel charge also recovers the cost of purchased power and Austin's share of fees to support the operation of the statewide electric grid.
The fuel charges represents almost 40 percent of a monthly residential electric bill. The other 60 percent of the bill is the energy charge, which pays for Austin Energy operations. The energy charge (base rates) has not been increased since 1994. The energy charge during winter months (November - April) is 6.02 cents/kWh.
2009 brings transition to Digital TV
After Feb. 17, 2009, all full-power television stations will switch their broadcasts from analog to digital signals. To continue receiving over-the-air television programming, viewers must purchase a digital converter box to hook up to their television set or buy a new digital set. Cable and satellite television services are not affected by this change.
Coupons are available that defray the costs of converter boxes. For more information, visit these sites with information about the Digital TV transition:
Wastewater averaging runs through mid-March
The Austin Water Utility encourages customers to conserve water during the annual wastewater averaging period, which lasts through the March billing cycle.
Less outdoor watering is used in the fall and winter months. This allows for more accurate measurement of indoor water usage, which is typically returned to the wastewater system.
Wastewater averaging is calculated using the two lowest customer bills out of the three months of billing cycles, with the bill reflecting the highest daily usage not used in the calculation. This timeframe usually spans from mid-November to mid-March. The customers’ new wastewater average will be reflected beginning in the April 2009 statement.
Regardless of customers’ water usage throughout the year, the wastewater billing average won’t increase, but it could decrease depending on usage. For more information about wastewater averaging in the City of Austin, visit www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/wwaverage/default.htm.
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