CLF Launches Zero-Waste Project to Tackle Massachusetts’s Trash Problem On a Monday night in February, more than 100 people crowded into the Sturbridge, Massachusetts, town hall for an emergency meeting of the town’s Board of Health. Nineteen wells in the Sturbridge neighborhood closest to the massive Southbridge Landfill had just tested high for lead –…
Apr 22
2017
2017
Feb 17
2017
2017
Citizen Action Turns the Tide on Massive Landfill Expansion in Southbridge
On Monday night, more than 100 people from the south-central Massachusetts towns of Sturbridge, Charlton, and Southbridge turned out for an emergency meeting of the Sturbridge Board of Health. They came to express their anger to the Regional Director of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) that the 19 home wells in the Sturbridge neighborhood…
Feb 14
2017
2017
Why the Zero Waste Project? Protecting My Family and Yours.
I can still remember the conversation vividly. It was February of 2008 and my brother was calling to beseech me to represent a group of citizens to oppose the expansion of the Southbridge Landfill. I have to admit, I was skeptical about his concerns. This was the brother with all the ideas I sometimes wish…
Jan 11
2013
2013
You Say ‘Food Waste,’ I Say ‘Renewable Energy’: New DEP Regs Create Pathway for Anaerobic Digestion
Burying our garbage in landfills is a waste of resources, but it’s also a convenient way to get rid of stuff we don’t need or want. If there were clear alternatives to trashing our resources, would we use them? The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) believes the answer is yes. The DEP has finalized…
Aug 3
2012
2012
Single-Stream Recycling for Rhode Island: Let’s make it work
Recently, Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation attempted to make recycling easier for Rhode Islanders by creating “single-stream recycling.” Now households do not have to separate paper from plastic – everything can go in the same bin and other items can also now be recycled, such as plastic cups, tissue paper and just about any plastic container 2 gallons or less in volume. Sounds simple and great, right? Sadly, it hasn’t caught on yet.
Jan 10
2012
2012
Single-Stream Recycling Coming Soon to Rhode Island
Many of us here in Rhode Island recycle, but the sad fact is that a lot of what we “think” can be recycled, can’t. Currently, only numbers 1 and 2 get through the recycle cops at the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation (RIRRC). But come Earth Day, that’s going to change: RIRRC is implementing Single-Stream…
Sep 20
2011
2011
Recycling Can Help Vermont’s Irene-ravaged Farms Recover
Tropical Storm Irene had one hell of an appetite for destruction when it comes to Vermont’s farms. Flood waters washed away many growing crops and destroyed barns and other equipment. Those flooded farmers who still have crops standing may also be out of luck because regulations prevent the sale of crops that may have been…
Sep 2
2011
2011
Free Pesticide Disposal Day in Maine
I’m new to Maine but one thing I’ve found very refreshing is how many of my new neighbors are dedicated to recycling and ‘go-green’ efforts. Recycling bins are often as full, if not fuller than regular waste bins on trash day in my small neighborhood in South Portland. I am still pleasantly surprised when I…