“It’s really unconscionable that the system allows this to continue,” said Caitlin Peale Sloan, also a senior attorney at the Conservation Law Foundation in Boston. “These forever chemicals enter your body, and don’t leave, and they compound. Protecting the public from these chemicals should be an urgent concern.”
Our environment is drowning in a flood of single-use packaging.
“Yeah, it’s a good thing if you’re creating less waste in your home or business, but the most important part of the challenge is understanding that the system is broken,” said Kirstie Pecci, a senior fellow at the Conservation Law Foundation. “We don’t need to make each of ourselves perfect in how we handle our waste – that’s not possible. We need to make a better system.”
We’re updating our electric grid for the 21st century.
This is part three of a three-part series on the current state of Atlantic cod in New England. Part three explores how a warming ocean is making problems caused by poor management worse. Read part one about the challenge of inaccurate data here and part two on decades of bad management here. The climate crisis… Continue reading Give Atlantic Cod a Break: The Role of Climate Change
Over the last few years, the push to get food waste out of landfills and incinerators has become the new kale. Or cupcakes. Or bone broth. You get the picture. And rightfully so! As a nation, we waste a staggering amount of food every year: about 40 percent of what we produce. That’s more than… Continue reading Are You Composting Yet? If Not, Now Is a Good Time to Start!
Our recycling system is in a crisis. Up until last year, recyclables collected for the U.S. were shipped to China for processing. But then, China stopped accepting our recycling, setting off a chain reaction of problems. In New England and across the country, the cost of recycling for towns and cities is skyrocketing, forcing local… Continue reading Our Recycling System is Broken
Think for a moment about the trash you produce every day, either directly or indirectly. First, there’s what you throw out at your home or your job; then there’s the trash that restaurants, laundromats, doctors’ offices, and other businesses you frequent throw out after you leave. Next, add the waste from the farms that produce… Continue reading Municipal Solid Waste: What is It and Why is It a Problem?
This summer, 10 right whales died, including Wolverine, the great-grandson of famous right whale matriarch Kleenex. Each whale death this year means families lost mothers, fathers, siblings, and grandchildren — a family tree that’s losing branches. Calving mothers like Kleenex are crucial to the right whales’ survival.
We live surrounded by trash, especially single-use plastic. It’s in our homes, schools, restaurants, offices, communities, and the environment. There’s so much waste that it can be easy to miss its full scale in our lives. Manufacturers and brand owners have created this throw-away culture by mass-producing disposable goods. But when it comes time to… Continue reading Can You Slash Your Trash for One Week?
