NWREporter November 2009

REALTORS® to Assist with Landscaping at Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center

More than 40 King County REALTORS® will shift their attention from listing and selling homes to landscaping on Friday, Oct. 23. The volunteers with The Realtors Environmental Council (TREC) are expected to plant up to 600 native specimens at a wetland nature park near the heart of urban Bellevue.

"With this help, we will really transform the landscape surrounding the new Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center," said Christina Krueger, park ranger in the Natural Resource Division for the City of Bellevue.

Working under the direction of Krueger and other staffers from the City of Bellevue Parks & Community Services Department, the volunteers will significantly increase the density to "turn this urban forest into a thriving native habitat," Krueger remarked.

The upcoming planting project at the Mercer Slough marks the third annual "on the ground" activity of The Realtors Environmental Council (TREC), a combined educational/volunteer initiative of the Seattle KingCounty REALTORS®.

Among their tasks, the Realtors will be planting sword ferns, red-flowering current, dogwood, nine-bark, salmonberry and Indian plum. They'll also plant some trees and transplant plants.

SKCR established The Realtors Environmental Council to be a nonprofit affiliate to promote environmental stewardship among REALTORS, its affiliate members and homeowners, and to support projects and policies to preserve a healthy natural habitat.

In its inaugural on-the-ground project in 2007, REALTORS® spent a day at the Hylebos watershed in Federal Way. Under the direction of The Friends of the Hylebos, 40 participants planted more than 500 native trees and shrubs and undertook other tasks to help protect various areas within the North Fork Open Space.

Last year, the TREC group worked on the Kelsey Creek West Tributary Restoration Project in Bellevue where they installed native trees and snags, shrubs and forbs to improve the riparian habit along 2,000 feet of the stream.

The on the ground project is complemented by educational offerings. Earlier this month, SKCR hosted the Green Designation Core Course of the National Association of REALTORS. It provides real estate professionals with knowledge of green building principles applied in residences, commercial properties, developments and communities so they can help consumers in purchasing, retrofitting and operating green properties. The course encourages real estate professionals to be advocates for green principles in the design and use of homes and commercial buildings and to be a positive force for creating sustainable communities.

That two-day program was followed by elective courses on Green Residential Real Estate, Green Commercial Real Estate and Green Property Management.

NAR'S Green Designation is supported by the NAR Green Resource Council. Students who complete the Core Course received a one-year membership in NAR's Green Resource Council.

Since forming The Realtors Environmental Council, the first such council in the country, SKCR staff and members have participated in numerous activities and collaborations, including:

• Advocating for the advancement of sound environmental public policies to protect and enhance the quality of life in Washington's communities;
  
• Collaborating with various individuals and organizations to create state-approved continuing education programs on environmental topics and sustainability issues;
  
• Offering training to help Realtors® attain certification and professional designations to better assist green-minded consumers.
  
• Presenting regular news and feature articles in Northwest REporter (the official online monthly publication of SKCR and the Northwest Multiple Listing Service) to enhance understanding of environmental issues and their impact on the sustainability, utilization and development of real property;
  
• Promoting the use and expansion of "green" information on multiple listing services' databases;
  
• Producing consumer information that promotes environmental stewardship, including a downloadable brochure titled "Green Living: A Resource Guide for Residents of King County."

Information on upcoming courses on environmental topics for REALTORS® is available on the SKCR website at nwrealtor.com or by calling the association offices in Bellevue, 425.974.1011.

About SKCR
The Seattle KingCounty REALTORS®, with 6,000-plus members, is a local board of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). Its members adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and participate in matters at all levels of government that affect private property rights, housing supplies, affordability and homeownership opportunities. Membership is voluntary, and only members may use the term REALTOR®, which is a licensed collective trademark.