Salty about pollution this Earth Day:
Salt– we love it in our food and we need it on the roads during winter for safety. But how much salt is too much? Local ecosystems are inundated with salt during winter, which is a problem if you are a freshwater fish, but what’s more is that salt also negatively impacts infractures like roads and pipes. Globally, salt levels are increasing in freshwaters, even into non-winter months! Check out this article on how the world’s freshwater supply is threatened by something that was once thought of as harmless. Earth Day is upon us, and while spring showers and blooms bring positive outlooks and new commitments to sustainability.
They Can’t Breathe: an entire Michigan zip code exposed to toxic levels of pollutants everyday
Private industry has wreaked deadly havoc in one particular Michigan zip code, 48217; this neighborhood encompasses more than four dozen polluters monitored by the EPA. From cement and waste treatment plants, steel factories, to oil refineries, all of these businesses pump out a toxic soup of air pollutants that are known to cause cancer, respiratory disease, asthma and liver failure. The EPA issues warnings and notes the levels exceed what is permitted under the Clean Air Act, but community members have no way to flee their neighborhoods and corporations get a slap on the wrist. Check out the article for more detail the struggles this neighborhood faces. This Earth Day, keep in mind your fellow Americans that fight everyday, not just today, for clean air to breath.
ANNT: Tech Companies
What’s the word on E-waste these days? That it’s a mess, that’s what. The United States cannot adequately address plastic waste, let alone e-waste; thus, we do what we do best, outsource our problems to other, less developed nations for them to deal with. When e-waste IS recycled (which majority of the time, it’s not) the programs often result in the products ending up in Asia, Africa, India, and South America. It has been found that children as young as eight years old are employed and involved in segregation hazardous e-waste. What can we do about the waste of products that are so integrated into our daily life? According to this article, the real power of change for e-waste lies where it begins: with tech companies.
White House, Green Summit
President Biden starts a virtual Leaders Summit on Climate along with 40 world leaders today to reestablish partnerships to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build out clean-energy infrastructure. The President’s American Jobs Plan invests in creating more clean-energy jobs in Pennsylvania, through tax credits for clean-energy generation and manufacturing and 94,000 Pennsylvanians had jobs in the clean-energy sector in 2019. Check out the White House’s press release for more details on what this Summit entails, kicking off today, Earth Day!
