“A flood at one of these terminals would spell disaster for surrounding communities,” said CLF President Bradley Campbell. “Yet both Shell and Gulf have failed to prepare for increasingly frequent extreme weather and have even sought to expand their facilities without addressing climate risk. These big oil companies must take the necessary steps to prevent oil and toxic chemicals from flooding into nearby homes and waterways.”
Connecticut’s updated bottle bill is both a step forward and a step back. We break down the good, the bad, and the ugly of the new legislation.
I’ve always assumed that because I care about Connecticut’s environment, others do, too. But after volunteering with CLF as a fellow earlier this year, I learned that Connecticut suffers from a waste crisis. Now, the blinders are off.
“Our legislators had the opportunity to pass a strong bill to reduce waste, increase recycling rates and slash pollution in our communities,” said Kevin Budris, Zero Waste Attorney at CLF. “While this bill includes some important updates, it’s not nearly as strong as it should have been. At the eleventh hour, legislators have handed the beverage industry the keys to the state’s bottle return system and significantly compromised the effectiveness of the legislation.”
Modernizing the bottle bill will not instantly solve every part of Connecticut’s waste crisis, but it is a proven, cost-effective step forward at a time when the state needs to take advantage of every tool in its toolbox. We can—and must—protect our communities and our environment, and save money, by reducing and diverting waste and improving recycling. This legislation is key to these efforts.
We have a food waste problem. Each year, the U.S. trashes about 125 to 160 billion pounds of food. And while several factors play into our increasing wastefulness, the good news is, we have readily available solutions at hand.
Toxic PFAS have been found in some pesticides – where they’re not supposed to be. We’re demanding state leaders take immediate action to curb this toxic threat.
Incinerator emissions are polluting the air and poisoning our communities. The problem is, clean air laws often favor polluters instead of the people they’re supposed to protect.
Expanding a landfill’s acreage or the number of tons it buries each year only increases the pollution it emits. That’s why CLF is fighting back against these southern New England landfill expansion proposals.
Time and again, corporate waste giants are granted permission to expand their dangerous landfills. CLF is working to stop these Northern New England landfills from getting bigger and harming our communities.
