Two Reasons to Celebrate!

By Zach Hiatt

The first reason to celebrate, of course, is St. Paddy's Day. Slainte! The second reason, which is less obvious and certainly less well-known, is that today marks our 100th post here on http://www.wagreentech.com/, the blog of Graham & Dunn's Green Tech Practice Team! Like good produce this blog has grown organically, and it's been our pleasure to share a bit of greentech/cleantech knowledge with the blogosphere. We hope our excitement and enthusiasm for this rapidly growing sector has shown in our first 100 posts, and we hope the enthusiasm will continue to grow for 100 more posts and beyond...

In the spirit of this celebratory day - when "green" becomes not just an environmental ethic but also a festive tradition - we thought a light-hearted topic would be most appropriate:

Have you ever wondered about the environmental consequences of dying the entire Chicago River green on St. Patrick's day? In other words, have you ever questioned the "green-ness" of dying the Chicago River green? (Or is it only environmental lawyers like myself who think about these things?) Well if you have ever questioned the environmental impacts of dying the Chicago River, you were right to do so. As it turns out, this famous tradition was not so eco-friendly in the early days, but like many things, it has become more "green" over time.

The original idea came from plumbers who used the fluorescent green dye to check for illegal discharges to Chicago's sewer system. In 1962, with the consent of city officials, the local plumber's union arranged for 100-lbs of a common dye known as fluorescein to be dumped into the Chicago River. That much fluorescein turned out to be over-kill, leaving the river green for a week! Not surprisingly, environmental groups soon became concerned about the potential toxic effects of the fluorescein dye on wildlife in the river. A few years later, in 1966, a group of environmentalists successfully lobbied the city to have the fluorescein dye replaced with a more environmentally-friendly option.

Today a relatively small amount (about 40lbs) of vegetable-based dye is used. Although the exact formula is supposedly a closely guarded secret, event organizers maintain that the new dye is safe and non-toxic. The upside of the new dye (and lower quantity), naturally, is that it's much more eco-friendly; the downside, especially for hardcore St. Paddy's revelers, is that it only turns a short stretch of the river green for a few hours.

So when you raise your glass of green beer in honor of St. Paddy's day this evening, you can do so with peace of mind knowing that the Chicago River is safe and sound. (Or at least if it's not, it's not because of St. Paddy's Day.)

Here's to the good health of the Chicago River and yours, too. Slainte!