Pictured above: Jo Schaper. All photos courtesy Jo Schaper.
Meramec Caverns is closed due to environmental contamination of a substance called TCE, a chemical used in automotive parts manufacturing and cleaning. But how did the popular Missouri show cave become contaminated with TCE in the first place?
Pictured above: Dawn Chapman (Left) and Karen Nickel, co-founders of Just Moms STL.
Dawn Chapman, from the Just Moms STL group, is the guest on this Environmental Echo podcast edition with Don Corrigan.
Chapman shares her thoughts and opinions about several recent issues, including the recent St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, which details expert opinions saying that “fear may be overblown and even misplaced” about the radiation risks in West Lake and Coldwater Creek areas. Also, the online threats to the EPA and other authorities on the Facebook page administered by Chapman and others, which caused the EPA to cancel an appearance at a public meeting.
Corrigan also asks about the outcome of the group’s trip to Washington D.C. visit to the White House, the United Nations, and members of Congress about the West Lake Landfill issues, and what it is like to try and balance family, being a mother, and being thrust into the advocate spotlight.
Turret Arch and North Window are two of the massive stone arches at the Windows Section in Arches National Park. Photo Credit: NPS/Jacob W. Frank.
The National Parks Service celebrates its centennial this year!
Watch for Don Corrigan’s story this month on the National Park Service (NPS) and their 100th Anniversary, and why more and more people are planning summer trips to the parks to celebrate and to take advantage of some deals, both locally and nationally.
The NPS has many opportunities to learn and experience the country’s National Parks during this centennial year. One way to learn is to see what issues the NPS is currently focused on, like the nine parks the NPS says are in peril.
Chris Whitley, a spokesman for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7, shares the latest updates on the remediation efforts at Meramec Caverns. The popular tourist cave closed in March due to elevated contamination levels of trichloroethylene (TCE) vapors.
Pictured: Kim Cella
Kimberly Cella of Affton is always in a multi-modal frame of mind – from a transit standpoint. She thinks about hiking, biking, car-sharing, riding buses or MetroLink practically 24-7.
That may be why Cella, executive director of the Citizens for Modern Transit (CMT), was recently selected by her colleagues as the Woman of the Year. The award was presented by the St. Louis chapter of the international WTS, otherwise known as the Women’s Transportation Seminar.
Photo Credit: Webster-Kirkwood Times.
In Don Corrigan’s latest column, he talks about Missouri businesses influence on the Missouri legislature in the past year, including the changing business views about the environment.
The Missouri Prairie Foundation (MPF) celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year. The organization has established National Prairie Day the first Saturday in June. This year, National Prairie Day is Saturday, June 4, 2016. Find details about the annual Prairie BioBlitz event below.
CMT Executive Director Kim Cella, Jacque Lumsden with CBB and Mayor Francis Slay.
Citizens for Modern Transit (CMT) is holding its fifth annual Great Race competition on Thursday, May 12, 2016.
Kim Cella, executive director of CMT, is the guest on this edition of “Behind the Editor’s Curtain” with Don Corrigan.
Corrigan and Cella discuss the meaning behind the race, the positive environmental impacts of public transportation, and he might even try to uncover a few race strategy ideas from Cella.
Credit: Pixabay
The 650th Climate Letter is out from Carl Campbell. A couple of interesting items he covers gives analysis on the wildfires in Alberta and an updated discussion on what it would take for the U.S. to convert 100% to renewable energy.
Photo by Diana Linsley, Webster-Kirkwood Times.
Carl Campbell, a retired petroleum investment advisor, spends every morning searching the internet for climate and environmental information. By early afternoon, he releases an analysis of his most important finds in a daily newsletter called “Carl’s Climate Letters.”
This past week, Campbell released his 646th climate letter. Here is an excerpt from the current letter.
Environmental Echo 