Most of us are very familiar with the prefix “bio.” It often indicates a reference to living plants or creatures, and it connotes images of the earth, its many life forms, and perhaps a few scenes from Planet Earth or National Geographic images. But the prefix bio as it’s used in the marketing of new …

A new report reveals how Virginia voters feel about plastic pollution and potential policies to address it. The report, a collaboration by Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood University and the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program with OpinionWorks, describes findings from a statewide survey of Virginia voters conducted in March, 2022. The opinion research aimed to …

Trees do more than give you the warm and fuzzies because they house wildlife and look pretty. Trees are essential for life; they filter water and produce oxygen, which all animals—including us!—need. But wait, there’s more! Not only do trees provide resources we need to survive, but they also improve mental health. The latest research …

Deep down in the ocean, it’s not only microplastics piling up (~63% of seafloor dirt is plastic). BIG pieces of plastic, along with other trash, used to stay where it fell. It now can move due to human activities and pile up in odd, and important, places. A study out of the University of Barcelona …

Loudoun County may be up next for a plastic bag fee in Virginia (see here and here)! The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors will vote in January whether to adopt the bag ordinance, which would produce a potential revenue of $275,000 to $340,000 in 2023 for things like environmental cleanup, education programs to reduce environmental …

It’s business as usual for streams, like us, to be facing a lot of stress; from new developments, changes in climate, introduction of chemicals, extraction for drinking water/ irrigation, the list of stressors seems endless and dire. Good news can be found at a local, Fairfax County stream, Old Courthouse Spring Branch (Spring Branch) in …

Pointing Fingers at Plastic The push to stop transforming fossil fuels to plastic has not received the attention it deserves. We easily point fingers (and rightfully so) at the transportation sector as a contributor to climate change; in response, there’s a push for solar energy and electric vehicles as preferential climate change solutions. Climate solutions …

Plastic water bottles often seem more convenient and safe than tap water, but this is not true. Oftentimes, we turn to bottled water because it’s 1) more “pure”, or tastier, and 2) more convenient than what comes from the tap. Let’s dive into it.  First, what does it mean to be “purer” and does bottled …

Imperfect is perfectly fine as far as the environment is concerned and some progress is better than no progress at all! So join us in committing to Plastic Free July to do our small part in reducing our environmental impact. Eliminating single-use plastics in your daily life can be as simple as utilizing a reusable …