Humans create a lot of waste, but when you throw something away, how much do you know about where it goes or how it’s handled? This article is the fourth in a five-part series that explores what happens to the tons of materials we discard. In the U.S., there are two primary methods of garbage disposal — landfilling and incineration. […]
Paint is a common household and workplace material that can be recycled, donated, or disposed of responsibly. Oil- and water-based paints pose different challenges when recycling, and you can extend the use of paint by storing it safely and passing it along to someone who can use it. Do you know your paint recycling steps? When should it be recycled, […]
Twenty years after the Antarctic Peninsula’s Larsen B Ice Shelf disintegrated in spectacular fashion, a remaining portion of that ice shelf dramatically broke apart last month, according to NASA’s Earth Observatory. The space agency’s satellite images show the so-called remnant “Larsen B embayment” collapsing from January 19 to January 21. Scientists are still investigating the cause of the breakup, but […]
Wood is one of the more sustainable building materials because it is renewable and biodegradable. But we don’t want our buildings or other outdoor structures to biodegrade while we’re still using them. Enter wood treatments. For most of the 20th century, creosote-soaked railroad ties and pressure-treated lumber were the go-to materials for garden projects and decking. But those chemicals were […]
Mike Marsch, the head of solar development at BlueWave Solar, explains how floating solar panels (“floatovoltaics“) can plan a key role in delivering widely available community and privately owned renewable energy generation capacity. The Boston-based certified B Corp is on a mission to “revolutionize energy with simple, powerful solutions.” But solar faces challenges from communities that are concerned about local […]
A common fixture in mid-20th-century bathrooms, our medicine cabinet hung on the wall above the sink. It was a very thin, metal cabinet with a couple of glass shelves and a mirror-covered door in front. While we didn’t store much medicine in it, Dad used that mirror for shaving and we all brushed our teeth in front of it. While […]
The manufacture of steel and paper consumes tremendous amounts of water. So it’s a good thing that both steel and paper are two of the most-recycled materials. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans recycled 1.1 million tons of steel cans and 46 million tons of paper and paperboard in 2018. Keep up the good work! Steel, like other metals, can […]
At the southeast tip of a large valley in the northern Sierra Madre Oriental is the small Mexican town of Estanque de Norias, some 200 miles west of the Texas border at Laredo. Mountains rise up around the scrubby, treeless terrain like undulating brown walls. The star of this parched landscape is Agave asperrima, whose rosettes of impressive thick, blue-gray […]
A vegan diet may be the single most effective way for individuals to minimize their environmental impact, but giving up meat is a huge challenge for many people. A pescatarian diet — that means eating fish and other seafood but no other meats — can be a practical step on the road to veganism or even a permanent middle ground […]
Collagen is the most plentiful protein in the human body and a major building block of connective tissue found in skin, bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and many other body parts. Most notably, though, collagen benefits the elasticity and hydration of the skin. As we age, and the body produces less collagen, dry skin and wrinkles are the result. Enter the […]