Interfaith Environmental Network of Houston

A simple thing I do that doesn't seem to occur to a lot of people is putting out the trash and recyling bins on the curb for collection ONLY when they're full or close to full. Most folks I know put out their trash on every pickup day, no matter how full the bin is. I don't want decaying food scraps to create an unpleasant smell or attract...

Today I learned about the environmental impact of leaf blowers. According to earth911.com, gas-powered leaf blowers with a two-stroke engine can produce 300 times the greenhouse gas of a pickup truck! Blowers can erode topsoil, spread herbicides, separate birds and insects from their habitats, and harm the people using the equipment. What can...

I didn't intend to take on this challenge, but it just kind of happened to me when I heard about an acquaintance who was having trouble with the contract on his solar panels. Long story short: I learned it's very important to read through all the paperwork and ignore the glib promises that exploiters will feed you. We all know there are con men...

Greenwashing alert. Greenpeace USA reported today that most plastic can't be recycled and that instead of working for solutions, corporations are misleading the public by actions such as claiming that millions of tons of plastic were recycled when the material was actually sent to China and probably ended up incinerated or in a landfill. 

 The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change presents evidence demonstrating how human activity is driving global warming:  Key Findings of the Working Group I Contribution to the IPCC  on the Physical Science Basis of Climate Change. No, we can't blame it on volcanoes. Fossil fuels are the only source of carbon dioxide large enough to raise...

Today I learned that half of all environmental pressures from food production come from just five countries: India, China, the United States, Brazil and Pakistan. Details in this article from phys.org: Researchers Map Environmental Pressures of Global Food Production

Air Alliance Houston sent a questionnaire on environmental and safety issues to 22 candidates in the upcoming election. I'm sad to report that only 4 of them bothered to reply. 

Oh no! Those fake spiderwebs can kill birds, bees, and cats. Hummingbirds are particularly vulnerable. Please decorate responsibly! Save our pets, pals, and pollinators!

"Greenwashing a police state"--In the Guardian, Naomi Klein writes that while Egypt is bragging about its environmental programs, Egypt's regime actually bans research and also censors and/or imprisons activists like Alaa Abd El-Fattah. And yet the next United Nations climate summit is being held in Egypt. 

Yale Climate Connections is an information resource I learned about while participating in the People's Ecochallenge, and this post has links to several significant articles relating to sustainable fashion:  Look More Carefully at Some of the Reasons Fashion’s Problems are Hard to Solve. Particularly troubling is the information provided about...