WCC Environmental Science

08/31/2020

Happy first day of Fall Semester 2020! Good luck to all WCC Students.

09/19/2019

There are many simple ways to support birds throughout the winter without putting up birdfeeders.

A manicured lawn might look nice, but messy is better for birds and bugs.

07/28/2019

The article describes studies showing native bees ate substantially better pollinators than honeybees. Supporting native bees improves crop yield. I planted two wildflower gardens and have seen a significant increase in my home garden. I used to have to pollinate zucchini and cucumber flowers by hand. This year, there are enough bees to so it. Weeds and wildflowers need to exist with farming.

Wild bees are our best pollinators, yet pesticides, pathogens and industrial farming are devastating their numbers. Is there a better way to work with them?

05/27/2019

The youth climate lawsuit Juliana vs United States is finally set to begin June 4, 2019.

05/19/2019

Large increases in domestic recycling infrastructure are occurring, much of it by Chinese companies for paper and plastic.

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — The halt on China's imports of wastepaper and plastic that has disrupted U.S. recycling programs has also spurred investment in American plants that process...

04/18/2019

Interesting map showing cities that are currently powered by 100% renewable electricity (the light blue dots) and those that have committed themselves to 100% renewable electricity. Traverse City is the only city in Michigan with a commitment to 100% renewable electricity. You can click on each city to see its goal date.

Across the U.S. over 100 cities, more than 10 counties, three states, the district of Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico, have already adopted ambitious 100% clean energy goals. Six cities in the U.S.--Aspen, Burlington, Georgetown, Greensburg, Rock port, and Kodiak Island--have already hit their targ...

02/21/2019

Very interesting story about the dangers of coal ash which exist on the site of every coal burning power plant around the world. This focuses on the health impacts on workers who cleaned up a coal ash spill in Tennessee.

Workers who cleaned up a huge spill from a coal ash pond in Tennessee in 2008 are still suffering—and dying. The U.S. has 1,400 ash dumps.

02/14/2019

Lake Effect Snow in Michigan means it is literally Snowing Lake Michigan!

02/05/2019

Expanded bottle deposits in Oregon have created contamination-free recycling so they can earn a higher price when sold. Curbside recycling suffers from customers putting things they hope can be recycled in the bin. Bottle returns prevent the contamination and get a higher return rate with a 10 cent deposit. Michigan needs to expand what goes into bottle return to see this boost.

The expanded program includes more types of containers and benefits from a cleaner mix of recyclable materials, which is easier to sell than the mishmash of waste that ends up in curbside bins.

01/11/2019

Single-stream recycling is easy for consumers but is generating contamination rates that are too high. Some cities are switching back to dual-stream recycling so paper is separated from other recyclables. If recycling is too contaminated, it goes to the landfill. Estimates are we have about 25% contamination.

For those of us who spent most of our lives painstakingly separating plastic, glass, paper and metal, single-stream recycling is easy to love. No longer must we…

12/19/2018

Two US electric utilities recently declared something remarkable: It’s cheaper to tear down their coal plants and build renewable-energy plants than to keep the old boilers running. Solar and onshore wind were less than half the cost of a new coal plant.

Platte River Power Authority said it was just an admission of economic realities, not a political statement.

10/09/2018

Attention! It's time for the last County Clean-Up Day of the year! Get that fall cleaning done and join us October 20 at Eastern Michigan University from 9am-12pm.

Details: https://www.washtenaw.org/2414/County-Clean-Up-Days