Dear EarthTalk: I work for an office equipment company selling copiers, fax machines, computers and printers. Each year new models come out making old ones obsolete. As a result, we have loads of trade-ins with nowhere to go. What can we do with this old equipment? Electronic waste, or e-waste as it’s called, is a [...]
DEA (diethanolamine) is what they call a “wetting” agent and is primarily used in shampoos and lotions to provide lather. It can also be found in brake fluid, degreasers and antifreeze. Now there is something I want to put on my body in the shower. Supposedly this chemical is not too harmful all by itself; [...]
Dear EarthTalk: Some time ago there were issues with Native American tribes storing nuclear waste on their land, something that was both unhealthy to the communities and caused considerable controversy among tribal leaders. Where is this issue today? Native tribes across the American West have been and continue to be subjected to significant amounts of [...]
In my continuing series “What is XYZ and Why Should You Avoid It?“, this time I want to look at Polyethylene, a plastic with an annual production of approximately 80 million metric tons. Yes, it’s a kind of plastic that mostly ends up in landfills and takes several centuries to degrade, but it is also [...]
OK, I get it – you don’t buy that climate change could be happening or that coal-burning power plants do any damage to anyone. Point taken, I will leave you alone…after I say this: Even if you don’t believe any of the hype, wouldn’t you rather buy products that are less toxic for both yourself [...]
Dear EarthTalk: I’ve read that human breast milk contains toxins from pollution and other causes. How serious is this and what affect will it have on my baby? Researchers have found that those of us living in developed countries – men, women and children alike – carry around quite a toxic burden in our bodies [...]
Dear EarthTalk: I am very concerned about the amount of chlorine in my tap water. I called my water company and they said it is safe just let the tap run for awhile to rid the smell of the chlorine. But that just gets rid of the smell, perhaps, not the chlorine? Thousands of American [...]
