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  • Ask Umbra on mowing with goats

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, Google is replacing lawn mowers with goats. I’ve seen commenters make some interesting points (What is the impact of raising the goats? Transporting the goats? Watching goat poo run off into the Bay?). So what gives: is this a good idea? Is there a better one, like […]

  • Which natural toilet-bowl cleaner wins with a flush?

    Sure, you’ve greened your bathroom – fixing leaks and retrofitting for low-flow flushes – but what happens when you clean your bathroom? Are you undoing all your good deeds by flushing toxins down your toilet? Many conventional toilet bowl cleaners contain corrosive ingredients like hydrochloric acid and chlorine bleach that can irritate eyes, skin, and […]

  • Obama nominates Superfund polluter lawyer to run DOJ environment division

    Cross-posted from Wonk Room. President Barack Obama has nominated a lawyer for the nation’s largest toxic polluters to run the enforcement of the nation’s environmental laws. On Tuesday, Obama “announced his intent to nominate” Ignacia S. Moreno to be Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division in the Department of Justice. Moreno, […]

  • Toxic waste from New York river cleanup headed to Texas

    In a bit of good news for the environment, work got underway this week to clean up hazardous PCB pollution that General Electric dumped into New York’s Upper Hudson River. But there’s also some bad news — which is that the toxic waste is being sent to a landfill that sits atop the Ogallala Aquifer, […]

  • New report details pesticide over-use in child care centers

    When eco-minded people become parents, it seems like they frequently become even bigger green freaks.  I know that’s been true for my partner and me since we embarked on the journey to parenthood last year – decisions around our house that used to be made based on a variety of factors have become green mandates.  […]

  • Pennsylvania rejected TVA coal ash that’s going to poor communities in Alabama and Georgia

    Some of the more than 1 billion gallons of toxic coal ash that spilled from an impoundment at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston power plant in eastern Tennessee last December is making its way to landfills in poor and black communities in Alabama and Georgia, as we reported last week at Facing South. It turns […]

  • Ask Umbra on urban foraging

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, In honor of spring finally coming to my frigid corner of the Midwest, I was thinking about trying my hand at making some dandelion wine. But I live in a major metropolitan area and the only dandelions available are in parks. There are hundreds of parks in […]

  • Taking a bite out of the environment

    Phobias are powerful sh*t. Some people really hate bugs, for example. Even consider them torture. Why are these two Gristers smiling? Click here to find outGrist PhotoBut for me, bugs aren’t the worst. If I wind up in a secret detention center and get subjected to the ultimate third degree, here’s a little tip for […]

  • Simplify your cleaning routine

    Tip #4: Simplify your cleaning routine by tossing out toxic stuff and sticking to the (very cheap) basics. Do you really need a different spray or scrub for every surface in your home? Marketing mavens want you to think so. But the dirty truth is that many mainstream cleaners are major contributors to indoor air […]