Category Archives: Environment

Image

China’s Plastic Waste Ban Causes Recycling Issues For Local Communities

Check out this article, “The Disappearing Recycling Bins: Recent disruption of the US recycling industry and the path ahead – A Deep Ripple,” from Harvard University Blog – Science In The News (SITN), written by Zhen Dai. The article describes the reasons why China’s ban on plastic waste has affected recycling across the US.

Cities like Kirkwood, Mo, were forced to re-evaluate curbside recycling pick up when Resource Management shut down single-stream recycling processes due to the ban. Republic, for the time being, will handle Kirkwood’s single-stream recycling. Read the full story from the Webster-Kirkwood Times HERE.

“The Disappearing Recycling Bins: Recent disruption of the US recycling industry and the path ahead – A Deep Ripple” is a quick read and has informative links at the end to help better understand how China’s plastic waste ban is currently impacting local recycling efforts. Read the full article HERE.

Advertisements

Leave a comment

Posted on December 5, 2018 in Environment

Tagged , , , , , , ,

Image

WebU Panel: “What did the Nov. 6 Election Mean for the Environment?”

by Don Corrigan

Democrats’ takeover of the U.S. House on Nov. 6 means that environmental issues will come to the fore, but that does not mean policies coming out of Washington, D.C., will be any greener. That is because climate change skeptics will still be in charge of the White House and the U.S. Senate where they will present roadblocks to environmental initiatives.

That assessment of post-election environmental politics came from Professor Amanda Rosen, who teaches political science at Webster University. She was on a panel entitled “What did the Nov. 6 Election Mean for the Environment?” at the university on Nov. 14. Other panelists included newly-elected St. Louis County Councilwoman Lisa Clancy and Missouri Sierra Club Director John Hickey.

Clancy said that most environmental progress is going to take place at the local level, not in Jefferson City or Washington, D.C., which remain in control by politicians who are hostile to most environmental initiatives. Locally, the City of St. Louis has resolved to become a city powered by renewable energy and St. Louis County voters passed a measure on Nov. 6 to protect their parks and to prevent them from being sold without voter approval.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on November 19, 2018 in Environment, Local Events

Image

City of St. Louis Could Build on Previous Healthy Food Access Legislation, MCE

Missouri Coalition for the Environment (MCE) released information about a local bill that would help regional farmers bring fresh food to the areas of St. Louis that need it most. MCE, an advocacy group, helps to bring awareness to Missouri’s environmental issues, including local access to fresh and affordable locally grown foods.

Please take a look at the latest updates below from MCE. Also, check out their website for informative information about local environmental issues.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on November 14, 2018 in Environment, Home

Image

Missouri Bluffs Subdivision Lawsuit Update

The Katy Land Trust has been working to keep the proposed Missouri Bluffs subdivision construction from moving forward. On July 25, 2018, Great Rivers Environmental Law Center filed suit in the St. Charles County Circuit Court on behalf of Weldon Woods, Inc., and Mark Kaiser, asking the Court to void the rezoning allowing a huge subdivision to be built on wooded bluffs overlooking the Missouri River.

The Katy Land Trust has released an update about the effort:

As you know, on July 25 a lawsuit challenging the St. Charles County Council’s decision to allow the Missouri Bluffs subdivision to proceed was filed by Weldon Woods Inc. The St. Charles County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 8 to 1 in opposition to the development, yet the County Council disregarded their recommendation. The Council’s action triggered this lawsuit.

On behalf of Weldon Woods Inc, Great Rivers Environmental Law Center has been hard at work on this case since they filed it last summer. Yesterday, October 29, the most recent hearing was held at the St. Charles County Courthouse and a trial date for the case was set for March 12, 2019.

Read more below…

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on October 31, 2018 in Environment

Image

Anheuser-Busch Recognized for Excellence in Green Power Use in 2018 EPA Leadership Awards

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released its 18th annual Green Power Leadership Awards, recognizing 10 Green Power Partners across the country.

The winners included Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC, in St. Louis for Excellence in Green Power Use.

Way to go A-B STL! Keeping St. Louis in the winning list of GREEN POWER companies making a difference!
Read more from the EPA’s news release below.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on October 21, 2018 in Environment

Image

EPA Releases Final Decision For West Lake Landfill Cleanup

Information for the cleanup of radioactive waste in the West Lake Landfill, located in Bridgeton, Mo, has been released from the EPA.
Concerns over how cleanup procedures will affect local residents and the surrounding areas are yet to be answered in detail. We will post updates from the EPA, as well as any local public meetings scheduled to address the situation as it becomes available.
Below, find the EPA’s public release announcing the Record of Decision for the West Lake Landfill.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on October 3, 2018 in Environment

Tagged , ,

Image

JUST MOMS STL: Update On Threat From Bridgeton Landfill Emissions

Leave a comment

Posted on September 21, 2018 in Environment

Image

The Night The Lights Went Out On The St. Louis Gateway Arch

The National Park Service recently released that it will shut down the Gateway Rach lights at night from September 17-30. The decision was made to help reduce the effects on nite-time migrating birds.

“The end of September is the peak migration period for birds migrating south for the winter,” says Frank Mares, deputy superintendent of Gateway Arch National Park. “In order to avoid the possible disorienting effect of the monument’s upward lighting on birds that migrate at night, the Gateway Arch’s exterior lights will be turned off for the last two weeks of September.”

The recently upgraded lighting systems will resume nightly October 1, at 7:00 p.m. Less than three dozen static xenon skylights with new custom lenses replaced 44 outdated light fixtures. The new system allows more light to be focused on the Arch itself. The number of fixtures has been reduced, but due to advances in technology, the upgraded fixtures provide increased light coverage of the Arch legs and energy efficiency.

Find more information about the Gateway Arch National Park HERE.

Leave a comment

Posted on September 15, 2018 in Environment

Image

Want Interesting Facts About The Saint Louis Zoo? Check Out Their Blog!

Photo: Saint Louis Zoo

St. Louisans love Forest Park and their Zoo! One of the zillion amazing things about our world-class Saint Louis Zoo is the fact that admission is still FREE!  This allows everyone, from every background and walk in life, to enjoy the zoo and its many learning opportunities.

The editors at Environmental Echo have had the pleasure of meeting several of the zoo’s staff members over the years. And one thing always stands out – the talented and knowledgeable people working at the zoo love what they do and love to share what they know about the animals they love, the zoo’s outstanding operations and facilities, the serious environmental challenges we face and their continuous conservation efforts.

One way to stay informed on what’s happening at the Saint Louis Zoo is by reading their online blog. Did you know the zoo had a blog?

Well, they do, and it’s a variety of interesting topics filled with insights. Did you know that some of the zoo’s catering menu has food items grown right in their own culinary garden?

How about the partnership with Ameren to help feed the animals and create mulch from tree limbs that are trimmed and removed to help prevent storm damage?

Oh, and, if you happen to browse the gift shop and take home a soapstone statuette handmade in the village of Tabaka in Kenya, the purchase helps support the village’s people and their local conservation efforts.

And, of course, news and information about the animals, along with many more interesting tidbits directly from the staff members who work at the zoo.

Leave a comment

Posted on September 12, 2018 in Environment, Outdoor/Nature

Tagged , , ,

Image

A Comprehensive Look At The Valley Park Levee And Local Historic Flooding Issues

The Valley Park levee has been a tense and bitter debate since historic flooding hit the area twice in 18 months during 2015 and 2017. With any major forecasted rain or storm event, the threat of flooding is always on the minds of local residents.

This weekend, heavy rain is predicted as the last of tropical storm Gordon pushes its way into the Midwest.  (September 2018)

Environmental Echo has posted several stories and updates about the local flooding situations related to the Valley Park levee issue in the past and we wanted to share a comprehensive piece of investigative journalism we ran across from ProPublica.

Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Posted on September 5, 2018 in Environment, Outdoor/Nature

Tagged , , , , ,