“An increase in rain and snow is not an emergency,” said Jen Duggan Vice President and Director of CLF Vermont. “Vermont is a wet state and it is getting wetter as a result of climate change. The State should be focused on real solutions instead of relying on blanket waivers that are inconsistent with clean water laws and result in polluted waterways.”
Jen Duggan, director of CLF Vermont, said in an interview that the ban should remain due to the “greater risk” of manure spread on snow running off into water. The Vermont Attorney General’s Office is looking into possible stream pollution by a Highgate dairy farm based on an Agency of Agriculture enforcement staff video of manure-laden water flowing off a field into a nearby ditch.
Some Vermont lawmakers seem hell-bent on eliminating the state’s few wetlands that have survived three centuries of filling and draining. And if they have their way, our remaining wetlands could be at risk at the upcoming state legislative session, starting in January. It’s time to gear up and raise your voice for the under-appreciated, yet critically important values of Vermont’s wetlands.
Fracked gas was once considered part of a lower-carbon future. But this volatile, dangerous, and polluting fossil fuel now needs to be shown the door. Thankfully, as New England’s growing investment in cleaner energy ramps up, this transition is becoming easier. But standing in its way are the last gasps of the dirty fossil fuel industry. And they are not going quietly.
We can’t allow manufacturers to get away with the false narrative that it’s up to you and me to recycle our way out of the plastic pollution crisis. It’s time to call them out as the real culprits and put the burden on their shoulders, not ours.
Our environment is drowning in a flood of single-use packaging.
We’re updating our electric grid for the 21st century.
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?
