The grass was green.

The parking lot was porous.

And in the center, stood John Hoekstra, director of watershed advocacy for Green Valleys Association, holding court.

The occasion was the Chester County organization's annual Enviro-fest and it was a veritable cornucopia of information about everything green.

Hoekstra, who knows more about local stream ecology and the patchwork of laws that generally fails to protect it than I will ever forget, was giving a pep talk to a small group of gritty volunteers about attempts by the state legislature to address the issue, and why, influenced by the building lobby, they probably wouldn't work.

A few feet away, a table set up for State Sen. John Rafferty was there to assure those in attendance that the good senator does indeed care about the environment.

At one booth, an expert talked about the important pollination role played by bees and expressed dismay about the colony collapse disorder that has plagued this insect.

Further along, a table offered information about a new green building development, Kimberton Green, a condominium complext combining the age-old elements of a classic village, with the modern green tchnology like geothermal heating and cooling, solar photovoltaic electricty and smar home technology that tracks and controls energy use.

Another company called "Greenable," had samples of sustainable building materials, including information I've been seeking abotu a green material to replace my sagging side porch, now more of a hazard to my health than TCE in my air.

And since we're talking about basics like shelter, let's also talk about another one -- food.

Maysie's Farm Conservation Center in Ludwig's Corner (Motto: Think Globally, Eat Locally) espouses a sustainable practice called Community Supported Agriculture.

Made more relvant by headlines about food shortages, the idea is to eat food that's grown nearby.

To ensure the farmer has the capital needed to plant a crop, local "members" buy into the crop ahead of time. Then, when harvest comes, come and pick up your fresh produce, without the carbon footprint of having it shipped up from Chile.

And while we're talking basics, let's not forget my favorite part -- the FREE BEER!

Seriously, they had free beer.

Victory Brewing Company, a Downington microbrewery, was on hand with samples of Sunrise Weissbier, a delicious Bavarian Hefewiezen with a nice cistrus snap.

Did I mention it was free?