"New legal action could put an end to the practice of spreading toxic sewage sludge on US cropland as a cheap alternative to fertilizer, and force America to rethink how it disposes of its industrial and human waste."
Animal agriculture is a massive industry with a vast environmental footprint, so there are plenty of reporting opportunities for journalists on the “eat beat.” In the second of two parts, following last week’s examination of diet-related greenhouse gas emissions, food-and-climate journalist Jenny Splitter serves up a variety of story ideas and information sources, plus some thoughts on solutions journalism.
"Plastic food packaging contains chemicals that disrupt the endocrine system — and that can leach into food, a new study has found."
"With a presidential election looming, a wave of state-level legislation circulating, an international plastics treaty taking form and fights brewing over proposed facilities, 2024 is set to shape the regulatory future of chemical recycling in the U.S."
Many people who want to reduce their carbon footprint consider the climate impacts of diet, but their efforts may be misdirected. When it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, it turns out what we eat is often more important than where it comes from. Sentient Media’s Jenny Splitter unpacks the locavore myth and explains methane burps, carbon opportunity costs and more. First of two parts.
"When the Hawthorne Park Landfill opened in 1977, it transformed everyday life for residents of Carverdale, a historically Black neighborhood in northwest Houston. Myra Jefferson has seen pests and roaches from the dump multiply over the decades and remembers yellow dust from the rot sticking to everything."
"Waste produced by the public will surge by 2050, causing hundreds of billions of dollars of damage through biodiversity loss, climate change and deadly pollution, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said in a report on Wednesday."
"EPA announced an additional $1 billion will go toward cleaning up the nation’s most contaminated areas under its Superfund program." "The funding will help scrub 25 waste sites and speed cleanups at another 85 existing tracts."
"Federal environment officials have ordered a Los Angeles County landfill to take urgent action to protect public health, citing noxious odors and hazardous waste issues in the surrounding community."
"Two Texas farm families have seen their health decline, their pets and livestock sickened and killed, their water poisoned and and their property values wiped out due to high levels of chemical contamination linked to a company marketing treated sewage sludge as a fertilizer and soil conditioner, according to a lawsuit filed by the families."
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