Clean your plate: children in India/Africa are starving! Many of us heard this injunction growing up. Insufficient food is a huge problem in many countries, but even here in Fairfax County 44,000 residents receive help from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) because they are unable on their own to get enough food to eat. …

A successful recycling program is a constant balancing act of supply and demand. It depends not only on input—people choosing to recycle and recycling appropriately— but also on output, a market for the recycled materials. Ironically, China’s move to go green, a proposal to improve its air quality problem by stopping the import of a number of …

As children head back to school, it is easy for parents to get into what I call the “fast and furious” mode, particularly when it comes to packing lunches. Although the school year pace often feels frenetic, we all want our children to get the healthiest food. That may take some careful thinking. Now is …

Going into Fairfax County streams to monitor and cleanup the horrific litter problem. Seeing the headlines about the long-range environmental impact of climate change. Watching webinars on the devastating effects of marine debris on wildlife. It’s enough to turn me into an eco-witch, i.e. one who constantly finds fault with individuals and businesses who are not …

July and August are definitely the best months to get to the Farmers Markets in this area. According to the Virginia Harvest Calendar http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/pdf/producechart.pdf published by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services this is when most of the produce is being harvested, so you will find great abundance and variety at the Farmers …

This summer Clean Fairfax is working with area farmers markets to encourage a move towards going plastic-free. We will be at area markets distributing reusable tote bags and mesh produce bags to replace plastic bags. Farmers market attendees often already own tote bags, so we are especially promoting the use of smaller mesh bags. These …

According to the Chesapeake Bay Program, increased development across the Potomac Watershed has made stormwater runoff the fastest growing source of pollution to the Chesapeake Bay. The non-permeable asphalt that covers our roads and parking lots coupled with the roofs of densely packed buildings in Fairfax County, force rain water and any litter or chemicals into …

The NOVA Trash Action Work Force’s (TAWF) first Day of Action on May 8, 2017 was a success! We protested at the headquarters of the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA), calling out their opposition to litter reduction initiatives. The IBWA opposes bottle deposit bills, bans on sale of water in disposable bottles in national parks, and …

  Pohick Creek. Difficult Run. Little Hunting Creek. Yep, these are some of our streams here in Fairfax County. Notice the prevalence of plastic bottles! If you think this is a problem, come join the Trash Action Work Force (TAWF), a coalition of citizen groups, in a peaceful demonstration on Monday, May 8, from 7 …

We all know that the ingredients in most fast food do not usually support a healthy diet. However, there are other reasons to eliminate—or at least limit—your fast food intake. Spring brings lots of volunteer litter cleanups. What do we find? Amidst the high volume of non-reusable plastic bottles and the abundance of plastic bags, …