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How Italy got its citizens — and me — to adopt a rigorous recycling scheme

Italy has become a global leader in recycling, in part by relying on households to do a lot of the work.

Of all the sources of culture shock I might have anticipated after my partner and I bought a home in 2022 in northern Italy, trash collection never crossed my mind. I didn’t know going in that Italy had become the top overall recycling country in the EU and one of the best for household-level recycling — in part by relying on those households to do a lot of the work. I quickly got my crash course. In short: In our town, Lesa, we have to sort trash into six categories: “wet” (compost), plastic, glass, paper, metal, and “dry” (aka everything that isn’t recyclable, which isn’t much). Like our neighbors, we keep six bins in our kitchen, one for each category, and our kitchen is in fact designed around this need. (There’s yet a seventh “green” bin for yard waste, but that generally goes in the shed.) One type gets picked up every day except Sunday, meaning we have to put some form of trash out nearly every night. Some categories go in government-issued bags, while “wet” must be in biodegradable bags, glass goes in an unlined bin, and paper goes into designated reusable open bags. The household bin arrangement: Most of the receptacles fit neatly into drawers and cabinets, with the exception of the paper bin. Sarah Stodola It was a lot to learn. But once I got the hang of it, the recycling and trash sorting efforts stopped feeling like an inconvenience and became something like second nature. I’d go so far as to say it felt satisfying to contribute in this way on a daily basis. Thirty years ago, Italian households mostly took out the trash in one go. Since then, nearly all residents of Italy have at some point reprogrammed their habits, just as I had to. This behavior shift, along with investment in domestic waste-processing infrastructure, has been integral to Italy’s recycling success. Getting residents on board Italy’s transformation into a recycling powerhouse began in 1997 with the Ronchi Decree, a law that created a compulsory minimum recycling rate of 35 percent, placed the responsibility for achieving it on municipalities, and empowered them to manage both the logistics and financing of the subsequent efforts. The law came about after a waste-management crisis in the region around Milan brought the issue of trash processing to the forefront of Italian politics. Most municipalities today set their own local waste collection tax rates (known as the TARI), while recently a few have moved to a “pay-as-you-throw system,” with fees based on the amount of waste a household generates. The Ronchi Decree also placed responsibility for trash sorting at the household level — as opposed to a single-stream approach, where waste gets sorted at facilities — with measures to get residents on board built into the legislation. Marco Ricci, a circular economy expert in Italy who worked with the national government on the legislation’s rollout, points to several factors that helped shift individual behavior, including a new door-to-door collection system and, in most localities, giving residents the necessary bins and bags free of charge. Still, people needed convincing, with concerns about both costs and the program’s effect on their time and their kitchens. “The resistance was approached in a very simple and effective way: a lot of local meetings,” Ricci said. He spent a few years going from town to town, working with mayors and other experts to explain the new scheme to residents. This federally coordinated outreach campaign ultimately reached about 50 percent of the Italian population, he said. Regional implementation, rather than relying on a national system, was key. “It was fundamental,” Ricci said. “Italians are really closely linked to their community, and we made use of this community feeling.” Because small communities were easier to communicate with directly, rural areas ended up adopting the new system more quickly than the big cities. In addition, both local politicians and residents proved more willing to learn from others and hold neighbors accountable. As a result, a domino effect swept the less populated areas of Italy: Once people saw their neighbors using the new bins, they wanted their own, and once mayors saw neighboring towns finding success in recycling, they wanted in on it, too. Fines for improper waste disposal were part of the equation, but equally important were softer incentives, such as the policy of providing residents a set allotment of bags for nonrecyclable trash, which is only picked up if it’s in those bags. If someone were to use up her allotment too quickly by including too many recyclable items, she’d be out of luck until the next allotment. This is all the motivation most residents need to sort their trash properly. In 2006, additional legislation mandated raising Italy’s minimum recycling rate to 65 percent of all household waste, a requirement that went into effect in 2012 — years before the EU set the same standard in 2018. By then, Italy was well ahead of the game. Individual change, collectivized I met Maria Grazia Todesco while doing some volunteer translating for a local museum. She has lived in Italy her whole life and currently resides in Solcio, a town neighboring mine. Since she’s experienced Italian trash collection both before and after the changes of recent decades, I was curious to get her take. She told me that the new system definitely requires more effort and attention — but to her at least, it feels well worth it. “With a little goodwill, the task becomes easier,” she said. “I think it was a necessary choice and very useful if we want to somehow safeguard our planet. Each of us individuals can do a lot to achieve the goal.” Lesa and Solcio are in the wealthier northern part of the country, where recycling efforts have long been among the best in Europe. In recent years, Italy’s southern regions have been making notable progress as well — despite the need for more processing facilities in the south and challenges with a wider recycling industry that resists close monitoring, similar standards and enforcement mechanisms now exist throughout the country. Still, the need for reinforcement and education remains. Erum Naqvi, a friend of mine back in New York who also owns a home in Lesa, said she initially handled her trash the same as she would back in the States — which is to say, not thinking much about tossing most things into the bin destined for the landfill. But one afternoon, a local police officer showed up to give her a warning about sorting, bagging, and putting it out correctly. Naqvi quickly got herself up to speed. She is careful about sorting correctly and keeps the trash pickup schedule pinned next to her door, consulting it every day. Naqvi has now changed her habits even back home. “Coming back to New York, I felt so guilty not doing it [to the same degree]. It’s instilled in me a more positive approach toward recycling,” she said. For me, it’s been revelatory to witness the collective impact of individual efforts, and to participate in it. Nearly every evening in Lesa, households place the appropriate bags or bins out next to their doorsteps, creating a consistent tableau throughout town. Looking up the next morning’s category, then preparing it and putting it out, has become part of my after-dinner routine. Early every morning, collection trucks built small enough to pass through the town’s ancient, narrow streets arrive before most residents are awake — except on glass collection day. Those trucks arrive later so as to not wake residents with the inevitable clatter of glass as it’s dumped from the bins. In the winter months, the nonrecyclable trash gets collected just once every two weeks. Nothing has surprised me more than finding myself struggling to fill even one small bag during that time, so thorough is my sorting of the recyclables. That’s a common observation — and a sign that individual action, like trying to produce less garbage, becomes a whole lot easier when the system is designed to support it. — Sarah Stodola More exposure Read: more about rising recycling rates and circularity in the European Union (Eunews) Read: about the definition of “recycling,” and the difficulty with achieving true circularity for certain products, especially plastics (Grist) Read: about the origins of the chasing-arrows recycling symbol — and how that symbol came to lose its meaning (Grist) Read: about New York City’s recent efforts to mandate composting (Grist), and why the city is now pausing fines for noncompliance (NBC New York) Read: about some common misconceptions with recycling, and how an overemphasis on recycling can obscure more important efforts to reuse and reduce (The Conversation) A parting shot Waste management has long been a troubled industry. When we as individuals “throw something away,” we’re really just sending it somewhere else for someone else to deal with — that same paradigm can play out on a global stage, even going so far as cross-border “waste trafficking.” One of this year’s prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize recipients, announced this week, helped challenge such a scheme between Italy and Tunisia. In 2020, Italy illegally sent 282 shipping containers filled with common household garbage to Tunisia. Thanks to prize winner Semia Gharbi, and other advocates, the majority of the waste was returned in February of 2022 to the same Italian port where it originated, as shown below — and the scandal also led to tightened regulations in the EU. IMAGE CREDITS Vision: Mia Torres / Grist Spotlight: Sarah Stodola Parting shot: Ivan Romano / Getty Images This story was originally published by Grist with the headline How Italy got its citizens — and me — to adopt a rigorous recycling scheme on Apr 23, 2025.

Culture
Crisis
Education

Vineyards in NY Wine Country Push Sustainability as They Adapt to Climate Change

The Finger Lakes are home to New York’s largest wine-producing region, but vineyards there are struggling with the impacts of climate change

PENN YAN, N.Y. (AP) — A decade ago, Scott Osborn would have eagerly told prospective vineyard owners looking to join the wine industry to “jump into it.”Now, his message is different.“You’re crazy,” said Osborn, who owns Fox Run Vineyards, a sprawling 50-acre (20-hectare) farm on Seneca Lake, the largest of New York’s Finger Lakes.Despite the challenges, however, many winegrowers are embracing sustainable practices, wanting to be part of the solution to global warming while hoping they can adapt to changing times. EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is a collaboration between Rochester Institute of Technology and The Associated Press. The Finger Lakes, which span a large area of western New York, have water that can sparkle and give off a sapphire hue on sunny days. More than 130 wineries dot the shorelines and offer some of America’s most famous white wines. At Fox Run, visitors step inside to sip wines and bring a bottle — or two — home. Many are longtime customers, like Michele Magda and her husband, who have frequently made the trip from Pennsylvania.“This is like a little escape, a little getaway,” she said.Traditionally, the plants’ buds break out in spring, emerging with colorful grapes that range from the cabernet franc’s deep blues to the soft greens of the region’s most popular grape, riesling. However, a warming world is making that happen earlier, adding to uncertainty and potential risks for farmers. If a frost comes after the buds have broken, growers can lose much of the harvest. Year-round rain and warmer night temperatures differentiate the Finger Lakes from its West Coast competitors, said Paul Brock, a viticulture and wine technology professor at Finger Lakes Community College. Learning to adapt to those fluctuations has given local winemakers a competitive advantage, he said. Winegrowers as part of the solution Many winegrowers say they are working to make their operations more sustainable, wanting to help solve climate change caused by the burning of fuels like gasoline, coal and natural gas.Farms can become certified under initiatives such as the New York Sustainable Winegrowing program. Fox Run and more than 50 others are certified, which requires that growers improve practices like bettering soil health and protecting water quality of nearby lakes. Beyond the rustic metal gate featuring the titular foxes, some of Osborn’s sustainability initiatives come into view.Hundreds of solar panels powering 90% of the farm’s electricity are the most obvious feature. Other initiatives are more subtle, like underground webs of fungi used to insulate crops from drought and disease.“We all have to do something,” Osborn said. One winegrower's sustainability push — and struggle to stay in business For Suzanne Hunt and her family’s 7th-generation vineyard, doing something about climate change means devoting much of their efforts to sustainability. Hunt Country Vineyards, along Keuka Lake, took on initiatives like using underground geothermal pipelines for heating and cooling, along with composting. Despite the forward-looking actions, climate change is one of the factors forcing the family to make tough decisions about their future.Devastating frosts in recent years have caused “catastrophic” crop loss. They’ve also had to reconcile with changing consumer attitudes, as U.S. consumption of wine fell over the past few years, according to wine industry advocacy group Wine Institute.By this year’s end, the vineyard will stop producing wine and instead will hold community workshops and sell certain grape varieties.“The farm and the vineyard, you know, it’s part of me,” Hunt said. “I’ll let the people whose dream and life is to make wine do that part, and I’ll happily support them.” Tariffs and US policy changes loom Vinny Aliperti, owner of Billsboro Winery along Seneca Lake, is working to improve the wine industry’s environmental footprint. In the past year, he’s helped establish communal wine bottle dumpsters that divert the glass from entering landfills and reuse it for construction materials.But Aliperti said he’d like to see more nearby wineries and vineyards in sustainability efforts. The wine industry’s longevity depends on it, especially under a presidential administration that doesn’t seem to have sustainability at top of mind, he said. “I think we’re all a bit scared, frankly, a bit, I mean, depressed,” he said. “I don’t see very good things coming out of the next four years in terms of the environment.”Osborn is bracing for sweeping cuts to federal environmental policies that previously made it easier to fund sustainability initiatives. Tax credits for Osborn’s solar panels made up about half of over $400,000 in upfront costs, in addition to some state and federal grants. Osborn wants to increase his solar production, but he said he won’t have enough money without those programs.Fox Run could also lose thousands of dollars from retaliatory tariffs and boycotts of American wine from his Canadian customers. In March, Canada introduced 25% tariffs on $30 billion worth of U.S. goods — including wine.Osborn fears he can’t compete with larger wine-growing states like California, which may flood the American market to make up for lost customers abroad. Smaller vineyards in the Finger Lakes might not survive these economic pressures, he said.Back at Fox Run's barrel room, Aric Bryant, a decade-long patron, says all the challenges make him even more supportive of New York wines. “I have this, like, fierce loyalty,” he said. "I go to restaurants around here and if they don’t have Finger Lakes wines on their menu, I’m like, ‘What are you even doing serving wine?’”The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Feb. 2025

Climate
Business
Sustainable

Analysis-Textile Giant Bangladesh Pushed to Recycle More Waste

By Md. Tahmid ZamiNARAYANGANJ, Bangladesh (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Bangladesh's limited capacity to deal with the enormous waste generated by...

NARAYANGANJ, Bangladesh (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Bangladesh's limited capacity to deal with the enormous waste generated by its textile sector may prove unsustainable as the global fashion industry faces pressure to reduce its environmental footprint.Bangladesh, the world's second-largest apparel producer, only recycles a small percentage of its textile waste, with the rest shipped abroad or left to pollute the landscape.As more countries introduce rules requiring greater recycled content in clothes, analysts and business owners say Bangladesh must expand recycling to meet demand from a global textile recycling market projected to be worth $9.4 billion by 2027.The European Union this month published its first road map towards meeting the standards under its Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, which includes provisions for reducing the environmental harm caused by the textile industry.This will require Bangladesh and other fashion suppliers to boost recycling while improving working conditions in what is largely an informal sector, said Patrick Schröder, a senior research fellow at the British think tank Chatham House."As the call for recycling grows and fast fashion goes out of fashion in the coming years, millions of jobs will be impacted, and Bangladesh needs to think ahead to step up its capacity to keep up with the changes," he said.Bangladesh's fashion industry is estimated to produce up to 577,000 metric tons of textile waste from the factories each year.Most of it is shipped abroad, and the rest is left to clog bodies of water, pollute the soil, enter landfills or be incinerated, which produces toxic gases, according to a report by Switch to Circular Economy Value Chains, a project supported by the EU and the Finnish government.What is processed has evolved into a vast, informal business in Bangladesh. Thousands of informal workshops sort and bundle the waste, known as jhut, and what remains in Bangladesh is down-cycled to make low-value products like mattresses, pillows and cushions.When clothing scraps are swept up from factory floors, politicians and other influential people control who gets it and at what price, said Asadun Noor, project coordinator at the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation in Dhaka."This is a very opaque process, offering limited visibility of the waste value chain to clothing brands and suppliers," he said.The scraps go to hundreds of mostly unregistered workshops near the capital Dhaka, where they are cleaned and sorted into batches based on quality, colour and other considerations.Tens of thousands of workers, 70% of them women, sort the remnants for 10 to 12 hours a day, a study by the U.N.'s children agency UNICEF said last year.Workers said they toil for low wages without key safety measures, like drinking water, paid sick leave or protection from harassment.One of them is Sabura Begum, 30, who works with 250 other women at a workshop in the city of Narayanganj, near Dhaka."I earn a wage of about $80 a month and it does not make it easy to run my family," she said.A small share of the waste sorted in workshops like Begum's is sent to about two dozen recycling factories in Bangladesh.A large portion is exported to other countries such as India or Finland for recycling into new fibre where this is a larger base of recycling facilities as well as advanced technology like chemical recycling that produces strong, fresh fibres.Some of the fibres made from exported scraps are then sent back to Bangladesh to be made into clothes.More local recycling could save Bangladesh about $700 million a year in imports, the Switch to Circular Economy Value Chains report estimated.Other major textile hubs are ramping up recycling capacity. For example, India recycles or reuses about 4.7 million tons, or about 60%, of its textile waste, according to a report by Fashion for Good, a coalition of businesses and non-profits.Some Bangladeshi companies are aiming to compete and provide proper labour standards.In 2017, Entrepreneur Abdur Razzaque set up Recycle Raw, which has now become one of the largest waste-processing businesses in Bangladesh."We offer decent wages and respect basic labour standards - ensuring things like drinking water, air circulation and security for our largely female workforce - so we attract and retain them much better than others," Razzaque said.A few local recycling factories are also investing in adding more production lines, but large-scale investment in technology like chemical recycling, with support from fashion brands and development-finance organisations is needed, said Abdullah Rafi, CEO of recycler Broadway Regenerated Fiber, based in the city of Ashulia, near Dhaka.However, investors expect a regular supply of waste feed stock and that means the current opaque system of handling waste would have to go, he said."What we now need is more finance and collaboration among brands, suppliers, waste handlers and recyclers to scale up our capacity," said Rafi.(Reporting by Md. Tahmid Zami; Editing by Jack Graham and Jon Hemming. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. Visit https://www.context.news/)Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

Waste
Business
Government

Meet Portland’s 2025 Rose Festival Court Princesses

Every spring, Portland crowns a queen. Here are the contenders.

Every spring, Portland crowns a queen.That is, of course, the Rose Festival Queen, a local high school girl chosen from the Rose Festival Court.Last June, Jefferson High School senior Kobi Flowers was crowned the 110th Portland Rose Festival Queen.This year, at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 6, a new queen will take her place. Who will it be this year? One of 15 area high school students who were selected as princesses earlier this spring.After a month of orientation, princesses spend May traveling to community events. Each receives “a $3,500 scholarship provided by The Randall Group valid for any accredited college, university or trade program, a wardrobe including shoes and accessories, and a lifetime of enduring friendships with their Rose Festival Court sisters.”Here are the 2025 princesses. All information is provided by the Portland Rose Festival.Kathy Nguyen, Leodis McDaniel High School Kathy Nguyen, a junior at Leodis McDaniel High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: Nguyen plans to study law and work in medicine in law.Activities: Nguyen participates in dance, Key Club, tennis and National Honor Society, among many other things. She also runs and teaches pickleball to elementary school kids. What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Portland’s scenery is unparalleled, and I enjoy biking up to Mount Tabor on bright summer days, where the journey through tree-lined streets, local shops, and public art makes the effort worthwhile. I’ve been going there since I learned to ride a bike, and it remains a special place where I make lasting memories with friends, watching sunsets and enjoying sports and nature.”Eleanor Isles, Ulysses S. Grant High School Eleanor Isles, a junior at Ulysses S. Grant High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: Four-year university and a career in law, specifically patent litigation.Activities: Isles takes part in mock trial, cross country and National Honor Society, among many other things. She developed an AI cyberbullying detection algorithm during an internship at PSU. What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place to visit in Portland is Powell’s Books. Every time I’m downtown, I find myself drawn to its endless shelves of stories and knowledge.”Sabrina Johnson, Cleveland High School Sabrina Johnson, a junior at Cleveland High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: Four-year university and then graduate school studying counseling psychology or environmental justice.Activities: Johnson is part of the cheer team and student council. She is also an active member of the youth group at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? "My favorite place in Portland is Sellwood Riverfront Park, or ‘the docks,’ which holds special memories of joy, friendship, and beauty. Surrounded by greenery, sparkling water, and a stunning city skyline, it’s where I find peace and happiness while spending time with friends and family."Brenda Martinez De Jesus, Benson Polytechnic High SchoolBrenda Martinez De Jesus, a junior at Benson Polytechnic High School was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: University and a career as a pediatric nurse.Activities: Martinez De Jesus is her junior class vice president and vice president of HOSA-Future Health Professionals. She is also a cheerleader, swimmer and tennis player.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place to visit is Mount Tabor because of how much you can see. You can see how our city is truly beautiful. From the top you can see our beautiful buildings, the trees being so big and so green, and the light through the city that light it up.”Janiya Thompson, Jefferson High School Janiya Thompson, a senior at Jefferson High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: University, majoring in graphic design then working in illustration/animation or marketing/media design.Activities: Thompson participates in mock trial, choir and theater, among many other things, and loves to make art in her free time.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “I love visiting Mississippi Street for its vibrant mix of experiences, entertainment, and great food. Whether I’m with friends or exploring on my own, it always offers new adventures and feels like a perfect representation of Portland.”Gloria Zawadi, Roosevelt High School Gloria Zawadi, a senior at Roosevelt High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose Festival Year in school: SeniorFuture plans: Major in Psychology at a university and then work as a clinical psychologist. Activities: Zawadi plays tennis and is president of Roosevelt’s Black Student Union. She participates in African Club and Upward Bound, along with many other activities, and loves dancing and writing.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Columbia Park because it is a place where I hold a lot of memories and is very dear to me. I learned how to swim for the first time at Columbia Pool and frequently spent time on the swings and play structure when we would visit the park in elementary school on walking field trips.”Ava Rathi, Lincoln High School Ava Rathi, a senior at Lincoln High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Study international affairs, political science, or business at a university and pursue a career in international relations or public policy.Activities: Rathi is the captain of Speech and Debate and participates in mock trial and National Honor Society, among other things. She likes to ski and make art. What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place to visit in Portland is the Japanese Gardens. It has a calm atmosphere and beautiful design. It was one of the first places I visited after moving to this city and I have been enamored with the architecture and nature since I was a kid.”Meerali Patel, Central Catholic High School Meerali Patel, a senior at Central Catholic High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Study law and be either a business lawyer, financial consultant or economics consultant.Activities: Patel is a varsity lacrosse player and a member of mock trial and constitutional debate, among other things. She is also the leader of the Women’s Coalition and a member of the Asian American Hotelier Owners Association What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Even before the amazing renovations, the PDX airport has always been the most representative of a city’s spirit in my opinion. With the kind staff that have always made my family feel welcome, the wide variety of art that showcases our beautiful city and of course the amazing food that I am not afraid to eat before a long-haul flight I genuinely look forward to going to the airport before a flight.”Sivan Safran, Ida B. Wells High School Sivan Safran, a senior at Ida B. Wells High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Major in urban studies and Jewish history and then pursue a career in documentary filmmaking. Activities: Safran participates in theater, track, yearbook and is the co-president of the Jewish Student Union, among other things. She plays drums and loves to take photos.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Forest Park – All my life I’ve loved nature. I was born into a family of park rangers, backroads bike trip leaders, and commune members who worshiped Mother Earth.”Isa Halle, Franklin High School Isa Halle, a junior at Franklin High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: Major in international relations and minor in French at a university and potentially a career in international relations focusing on environmental advocacy.Activities: Halle is the president and co-founder of Franklin’s Harm Reduction Club and is on the ski and cheer team, among other things. She loves to thrift shop and is a vendor at Portland Vintage Market. What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place to visit in Portland is Sellwood Riverfront Park. Since my birthday is at the beginning of summer, I often spend it at the docks in Sellwood. I have had my birthday party there for the last four years, and for this reason, I have very fond memories of laying in the sun and swimming with my friends. My happiest memories of summer and sunshine are in Sellwood Riverfront Park, and I look forward to dock days every year.”Jayden Rendon-Ramirez, David Douglas High School Jayden Rendon-Ramirez, a junior at David Douglas High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture education plans: University and then a career as a pediatrician or nurse.Activities: Rendon-Ramirez participates in Red Cross, College Possible Club and dance team, among other things. She volunteers every weekend at her church and loves hike in Portland.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place in Portland, Oregon, would be SW downtown because of the busy city environment and all the restaurants and shops that they have there. Also, its diverse culture and views make it a vibrant and exciting place to explore.”Ivette Hernandez, Parkrose High School Ivette Hernandez, a senior at Parkrose High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Attend a university and enter the pediatric field.Activities: Hernandez manages the Parkrose wrestling team, leads the Finance Club and plays tennis, among other things. She likes to solve puzzles and play video games. What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “My favorite place to visit in Portland is Rocky Butte Natural Area. I love this place! It has greenery, knowledge, and a beautiful view of the city.”Esther Lian, St. Mary AcademyEsther Lian, a senior at St. Mary Academy, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Attend university and go into business, marketing and management.Activities: Lian participates in robotics, volleyball and the South Asian Student Association, among many other things. She likes to cook, craft and dance.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Grotto, it’s one of the most breathtaking places that I have visited. It’s both spiritual healing and connecting with nature. The view is spectacular and so beautiful as well as the Church inside the Grotto.” Addie Glem, Century High School (Metro West)Addie Glem, a junior at Century High School, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: JuniorFuture plans: Study nursing and become either a labor and delivery nurse or ICU nurseActivities: Glem does cross country and track and is an officer in the National Honor Society, among other things. She likes baking and volunteering in the Labor & Delivery unit at Kaiser Westside Hospital.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. This building holds so many memories that I treasure in my heart.” Avari Brocker, La Salle Catholic (Metro East)Avari Brocker, a senior at La Salle Catholic, was selected to the 2025 Rose Festival Court.Courtesy of the Rose FestivalYear in school: SeniorFuture plans: Study biomedical engineering with a minor in business, and later get a master’s degree in prosthetics engineering so she can start a prosthetics company.Activities: Brocker is part of student council and the captain of the speech and debate and volleyball teams, among other things. She works at Mathnasium and likes poetry and photography.What is your favorite place to visit in Portland and why? “Rose Garden, because of all the memories I have shared there. One of my favorite memories is my parents’ impromptu vow renewal.”– Lizzy Acker covers life and culture and writes the advice column Why Tho? Reach her at 503-221-8052, lacker@oregonian.com.Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.

Business
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Education

Slither, by Stephen S. Hall, Explores Our Fear and Fascination around Snakes

 In a new book called Slither, Stephen S. Hall takes a deep dive into the biology and history of one of the most reviled animals.

Rachel Feltman: For Scientific American’s Science Quickly, I’m Rachel Feltman. People are funny about snakes. I remember being taught the rhyme, “Red touches black, you’re okay, Jack; red touches yellow, you’re a dead fellow,” in elementary school—never mind the fact that we did not have coral snakes in New Jersey. My guest today has spent a lot of time exploring our cultural aversion to—and fascination with—snakes. Stephen S. Hall is a science writer and the author of seven books. He’s also a teacher of science communication at New York University, Rockefeller University and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. His latest book, Slither: How Nature’s Most Maligned Creatures Illuminate Our World, is on sale now.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.Thank you so much for coming in to chat. I’m really looking forward to it.Stephen S. Hall: My pleasure to be here. Thank you.Feltman: First question: Why snakes?Hall: There’s several answers to that question. One of them is that as a kid, like many kids, I caught snakes, brought them home, put them in terrariums in the garage until my mother screamed when they would get loose, and that sort of ended that experiment. I was always fascinated by them because they were so different from other animals—and also so beautiful. There was a real fascination and attraction there. But I wasn’t a herper; I didn’t go out and continue to collect snakes.What I did do is become a science writer, and probably in the 2000s and 2010s, when I was reading science journals like Science and Nature, I occasionally would run across these really interesting major research articles based on snakes, and I always sort of set them aside, thinking, “This is kind of interesting. I should gather a little pile on this.”The third piece of this explanation is that my agent suggested at one point, “Why don’t you do a book about an animal?” which I had never done before. And my first reaction was, “I’d only do a book about an animal that most people don’t like,” because I thought it’d be a really interesting challenge to try to change people’s minds. And as most people know snakes are not very popular. People do not like them—they’re afraid of them; they loathe them; there’re all these surveys that children detest snakes and adults detest snakes—and I thought it would be an interesting challenge to try to change people’s minds about a really interesting creature. Feltman: Very cool. Given your research for the book, how have our feelings about snakes evolved over time?Hall: One of the things that surprised me is: this deeply embedded loathing of snakes was not always the case. In fact, that was the later evolution from earlier cultures, and part of the fun of doing Slither was going back and seeing how ancient cultures perceive snakes, and they perceived them very differently.They were respected. They were venerated in some cultures. In, in early ancient Greek culture the snake was associated with healing. In Mesoamerican cultures the snake was associated with a kind of messenger that would go back and forth between humans and nature but also humans and the afterworld—the world of the nonliving, as it were. There was a great respect for these creatures. This was also true in ancient Egypt. And then [laughs] with the Garden of Eden story the snake got demonized and was blamed for human fallibility, human sin, and I think that changed a lot of perceptions.One of the goals that I was trying to accomplish here was to get people to rethink what snakes represent: Why did ancient people venerate them, and is there a way to reclaim that sense of respect for these otherwise disliked creatures?Feltman: Well, and what do you think it is about snakes that made them venerated, and what do you think it is about them that makes people feel so negatively towards them?Hall: In terms of the negative part they are so different from so many other creatures: They don’t have legs. They’re secretive. You can’t see them. They’re [laughs] extremely good at hiding. In fact, you know, there—it’s sort of a Darwinian badge of honor that they make themselves hard to see, with their camouflage skin, and coloration, and so on. So they represent a kind of extreme version of the other. And people also associate threat and danger with them, certainly with venomous snakes.One of the interesting things that came up in the research—it’s a really interesting theory called the snake-detection theory. This is advanced by a researcher at the University of California, Davis, named Lynne Isbell. Isbell argues that the necessity of spotting snakes in the wild as a self-preservation mechanism led to the creation of a much larger primate brain, which we humans have inherited as well. So she attributes human acuity in vision to spotting snakes in [an] evolutionary sense that was developed a long time ago.Feltman: Yeah, I’ve also seen that as an explanation for why cats are freaked out by cucumbers; I’ll have to fact-check that. But that’s not [laughs] anything I’ve—I’ve heard that theory brought up before in the context of cats running away from cucumbers [laughs], so.Hall: There’s some ingrained perception.Charles Darwin read a report by a German scientist—this is in the middle of the 19th century—that he had taken snakes to the monkey house in a zoo in Germany, and the monkeys went crazy just seeing that there was a snake in it when he revealed it. So Darwin puts a stuffed snake in a bag and goes to the London Zoo, and then he takes off the top, and all the monkeys go crazy, and he’d never seen a reaction like that. Then he went back with a live snake, and the same thing happened, and it was this sort of instantaneous reaction to the appearance of a snake, so there’s definitely an alarm system ...Feltman: Mm.Hall: We don’t need to say that it was fear, necessarily, although some people call it a “fear module,” but there’s an alarm system in spotting a snake that I think is connected to the alarm that many humans feel when they see a snake.Feltman: Sure, and speaking of Darwin’s kind of crude research, how has our scientific understanding of snakes changed over time?Hall: Scientists are belatedly using snakes as a nontraditional model organism.Feltman: Mm.Hall: You would think that there was not much you could learn from a snake, but they’ve actually discovered some remarkable qualities in snakes because they finally started paying attention to them with the advent of molecular biology. What used to be observed naturalistically—okay, a snake eats a large prey and digests it—and they would take x-rays of it, like, in the 1970s; that was how metabolism was explained. After genomics emerged and they did the genome of the snake after the Human Genome Project, they discovered that snakes, pythons, as a model organism activate a huge suite of genes from the moment that they have a meal. And they were particularly interesting organisms to study because—I facetiously kinda say they invented intermittent fasting [laughs]—but, but they could go for a year at a time without eating a single meal. And then they eat these enormous meals. So the equivalence was, like, a 150-pound human, for example, roughly, eating a 220-pound hamburger ...Feltman: Mm [laughs].Hall: “In one gulp.” That’s kind of what the meal of a python was like. How does an animal handle the digestion and processing of that? It turns out they activate all these genes that regenerate tissues in the body—a bigger heart, a bigger intestine—just to handle the [laughs] massive processing of this meal. And then they carve away all the regenerated tissue that they’ve created and go back to normal. So they have this ability to regenerate tissue, which, of course, is something we can’t do, except in a couple of isolated cases, and it became a really interesting thing to study.Another thing that’s really interesting is convergent evolution: this idea that animals can evolve the same traits, although they’re completely unrelated. So there was a study that came out a couple years ago on spitting cobras. The researchers established that three different lineages of cobras that were completely independent of each other each evolved the anatomical mechanism to spit venom—a physiological change. They evolved the behavior to aim the spit at the eyes of whatever it was that was threatening them.Feltman: Wow.Hall: And they independently evolved a change in their venom that produced excruciating pain in eyes. So independently all three of those different qualities were evolved in three different species of snakes that were completely unrelated to each other, in a sense. You couldn’t have found that out until you had genomics and very sophisticated molecular analysis of venom and all that stuff.Feltman: Yeah. What were some of the most surprising things that you learned in this project as someone who already really had a fondness for snakes?Hall: The thing that really impressed me is how adaptive snakes are, how rapidly they adjust to their environment; it’s one of their signal traits. They’re very diverse—it’s amazing that they can live on every continent except Antarctica, which means temperate, cold weather, tropical weather, jungle, seawater. If there’s a threat in the environment, they have these remarkably ingenious evolutionary adaptations to it. There’s a story of these sea snakes in, in the Pacific off New Caledonia that, in response to the pollution in the waters there, have developed melanistic characteristics—a darker coloration in their skin—because that sequesters all these toxic chemicals that are in the water and prevents it from harming the animal, and then they slough off their skin and they get rid of the chemicals. And it’s only in those snakes that are inhabiting that particular niche.This idea of being able to adapt to environmental challenge really struck me, not just because of the cleverness of the evolution or the selective process, but also, it’s a warning to us in terms of climate change and changes in the global meteorological systems. Snakes have a way of adapting to this that we don’t have, and maybe we can learn something from them. It’s really interesting that in the Mesoamerican cultures in particular, snakes were traditionally associated with meteorological events ...Feltman: Mm.Hall: So rain, lightning, thunderstorms, droughts, floods, and all of that being attached to agricultural fertility. And these are all issues that are front and center now because of climate change, and I think the ancients realized that snakes were symbols of coming to terms with both the unpredictability of nature and perhaps suggesting ways to adapt to it.I spoke to a very well-known Australian herpetologist named Rick Shine. He did fieldwork in [the mountains of] Tasmania, which has horrible weather, and there are snakes there, and, you know, he said there’s only 20 or 30 really nice sunny days there. And humans go there, and they think, “This is the most god-awful environment. How could anything live here?” And the snakes live under the rocks for all but those 20 or 30 days, and then they come out, and they think they’re living in the villa by the sea [laughs], and it’s just, it’s a sunny day for them; they don’t have the sense that it’s a bad environment because they adjust to it. And he had this wonderful observation—he just wondered what it felt like for a snake to emerge into the sunlight, warm up, have all its organ systems click on, its consciousness click on. He said, “That must be an amazing feeling.” And I thought that was a wonderful way of kind of capturing the uniqueness of these creatures.Feltman: Yeah, well, and speaking of that adaptation, what dangers are snakes facing these days?Hall: I would say the biggest danger’s habitat destruction. And there are a couple of anecdotes in the book—so I talk about when I caught snakes as a kid, and this was in a sort of exurban area of Michigan, outside Detroit. I went back to that area 50 years later to see how the habitat had changed, and all the places where you would catch turtles or you catch snakes or you would see them, it’s all changed: It’s been developed residentially. Population spread has confined the habitat.Thomas Cole, who’s a pretty famous Hudson River School painter, had made the point that a habitat destruction was something that needed to be addressed or, as he put it, we would lose Eden and wouldn’t be able to recover it again.Feltman: Why do you think people should care about snakes?Hall: I think it’s really important, when we talk about conservation, preservation of species, prevention of extinction, that we don’t only think about cute animals that everybody likes. It’s really important to globally embrace all creatures—including, in this case, that animal that is so different and so repulsive and historically so loathed by so many people—because if we pick and choose, we’re really not saving anything in terms of habitat or anything else.And it’s an acknowledgement that ecologies are complicated, that there are these very fragile webs, and it’s not just birds or mammals or snakes, but it’s the combination and interaction of these creatures that creates a vibrant and sustainable ecology. It’s really important to include everyone in our conservation arc, if you will.Feltman: Absolutely. Steve, thank you so much for coming on to talk to us, and I’m sure our listeners are really gonna love your book.Hall: Thank you very much for having me.Feltman: That’s all for today’s episode. Don’t forget to check out Slither wherever you buy books. We’ll be back on Friday to learn how you can explore your urban or suburban neighborhood with all of the enthusiasm of a seasoned naturalist out in the wild.Science Quickly is produced by me, Rachel Feltman, along with Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Naeem Amarsy and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check our show. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Subscribe to Scientific American for more up-to-date and in-depth science news.For Scientific American, this is Rachel Feltman. See you next time!

Animals
Chemicals
Conservation

These communities are unaware they’ve lived near toxic gas for decades. Why has no action been taken?

Five facilities near schools and houses in LA County fumigate produce shipped from overseas with methyl bromide. But the air agency doesn’t plan to monitor the air or take any immediate steps to protect people from the gas, which can damage lungs and cause neurological effects.

In summary Five facilities near schools and houses in LA County fumigate produce shipped from overseas with methyl bromide. But the air agency doesn’t plan to monitor the air or take any immediate steps to protect people from the gas, which can damage lungs and cause neurological effects. In a quiet Compton neighborhood near the 710 freeway, children on a recent afternoon chased each other at Kelly Park after school. Parents watched their kids play, unaware of a potential threat to their health.  On the other side of the freeway, just blocks from the park and Kelly Elementary School, a fumigation company uses a highly toxic pesticide to spray fruits and vegetables.  The facility, Global Pest Management, has been emitting methyl bromide, which can cause lung damage and neurological health effects, into the air near the neighborhood for several decades.  Earlier this year, the South Coast Air Quality Management District asked the company — along with four other fumigation facilities in San Pedro and Long Beach — to provide data on their methyl bromide usage. But the air quality agency does not plan to install monitors in the communities that would tell residents exactly what is in their air, or hold community meetings to notify them of potential risks. Instead, the South Coast district has launched a preliminary screening of the five facilities to determine if a full assessment of health risks in the neighborhoods is necessary. But even if that analysis is conducted, the agency won’t require the companies to reduce emissions unless they reach concentrations three times higher than the amounts deemed a health risk under state guidelines, said Scott Epstein, the district’s planning and rules manager. Piedad Delgado, a mother picking up her daughter from the Compton school, said she “didn’t even know” that the hazardous chemical was being used nearby. When a CalMatters reporter told her about the fumigation plant, Delgado wondered if it was causing her daughter’s recent, mysterious bouts of headaches and nausea. “It’s concerning. We may be getting sick but we don’t know why,” she said. For about the past 30 years, the companies have sprayed methyl bromide on imported produce arriving at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to kill harmful pests. Adults and children are shown after school at Kelly Elementary School in Compton, which is near a facility that uses a highly toxic fumigant, methyl bromide. Photo by Joel Angel Juarez for CalMatters Methyl bromide, which was widely used to treat soil on farm fields, has been banned worldwide for most uses since 2005 under a United Nations treaty that protects the Earth’s ozone layer. Exemptions are granted for fumigation of produce shipped from overseas. While little to no residue remains on the food, the gas is vented into the air where it is sprayed. State health officials have classified methyl bromide as a reproductive toxicant, which means it can harm babies exposed in the womb. With acute exposure, high levels can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea and difficulty breathing, while chronic exposure over a year or longer could cause more serious neurological effects, such as learning and memory problems, according to the California Air Resources Board. “It’s concerning. We may be getting sick but we don’t know why.”Piedad Delgado, Compton Resident State and local air quality officials are responsible for enforcing laws and regulations that protect communities from toxic air contaminants such as methyl bromide, while the Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner issues the permits to the fumigation companies. After CalMatters reported about the facilities last month, members of Congress representing the communities demanded “greater monitoring, transparency and oversight surrounding these fumigation facilities and their toxic emissions.” “We have serious concerns about the prevalent use of methyl bromide, a toxic pesticide, by container fumigation facilities in Los Angeles County,” U.S. Reps. Nanette Barragán, Maxine Waters and Robert Garcia wrote in an April 11 letter to state and local air regulators and county and federal agricultural officials.  “Several of these fumigation facilities are located close to homes, schools, parks, and other public spaces. Our communities deserve a greater understanding of the levels of toxic emissions from these facilities, the health risks from exposure to such emissions, and the oversight processes in place to ensure all protocols are maintained at these sites,” they wrote. “Our communities deserve a greater understanding of the levels of toxic emissions from these facilities, the health risks from exposure to such emissions, and the oversight processes in place.”U.S. Reps. Nanette Barragán, Maxine Waters and Robert Garcia Even though the San Pedro facility at the Port of Los Angeles and the Compton plant use the largest volumes of methyl bromide — a combined 52,000 pounds a year — the air in nearby communities has never been tested.  The two Long Beach facilities use much less, yet state tests in 2023 and 2024 detected potentially dangerous levels in a neighborhood near an elementary school. South Coast district officials said although certain levels of methyl bromide in the air could cause health effects, it doesn’t necessarily mean immediate action is necessary.  “We don’t want to go out and unnecessarily concern folks if there isn’t (a health concern), but we are actively investigating this right now,” said Sarah Rees, the South Coast district’s deputy executive office for planning, rule development and implementation.   Global Pest Management, which fumigates in Compton and Terminal Island, did not return calls from CalMatters. An employee at the facility declined to comment. A general manager at SPF Terminals in Long Beach also declined to comment.  Greg Augustine, owner of Harbor Fumigation in San Pedro, said his company has been permitted for more than 30 years and complies with all requirements. “To protect the health of our community, the air district establishes permit conditions and we comply with all of those permit conditions,” he said. “Those are vetted by the air district…and they’re all designed to protect the health of our community.”  “To protect the health of our community, the air district establishes permit conditions and we comply with all of those permit conditions.” Greg Augustine, owner of Harbor Fumigation in San Pedro Daniel McCarrel, an attorney representing AG-Fume Services, which fumigates at facilities in Long Beach and San Pedro, did not respond to questions but previously told CalMatters last month that the company is adhering to all of its permit conditions.  High levels found in Long Beach  Back in 2019, during regionwide testing, South Coast district officials detected methyl bromide in the air near the two West Long Beach facilities close to concentrations that could cause long-term health effects. The South Coast district took no action at the time — other than to publish a large study online of all toxic air contaminants throughout the four-county LA basin. Then, several years later, the state Air Resources Board found that the two facilities — SPF Terminals and AG-Fume Services — spewed high concentrations of methyl bromide at various times throughout the year. The state’s air monitor near Hudson Elementary School in West Long Beach — which is just about 1,000 feet from the two facilities — detected an average of 2.1 parts per billion in 2023 through part of 2024. Exposure to as little as 1 ppb for a year or more can cause serious nervous system effects as well as developmental effects on fetuses, according to state health guidelines. Spikes of methyl bromide were as high as 983 and 966 ppb in February and March of 2024. Short-term exposure to 1,000 ppb can cause acute health effects such as nausea, headaches and dizziness.  But state and district air-quality officials didn’t inform nearby residents about any of the monitoring data for longer than a year — not until three months ago, in a community meeting held in Long Beach.  First: Edvin Hernandez, right, waits to pick up his son at Kelly Elementary School in Compton, which is near a fumigation plant. Last: SPF Terminals in Long Beach uses methyl bromide. High levels of the gas were found near an elementary school in West Long Beach. Photos by Joel Angel Juarez and J.W. Hendricks for CalMatters Upon learning of the test results, the Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner a few months ago added new permit conditions for SPF Terminals and AG-Fume Services, including shutting doors, installing taller smokestacks and prohibiting fumigation during school hours, according to permits obtained by CalMatters. But the county permits for the three San Pedro and Compton facilities, which use much larger volumes of methyl bromide, remain unchanged, with none of the protections added to the Long Beach permits. And officials still have not held any community meetings there. The agricultural commissioner’s office declined to comment on the facilities. A complex web of ‘hot spots’ rules for methyl bromide About 38% of the methyl bromide used in California for commodity fumigation is in LA County, according to Department of Pesticide Regulation data for 2022. After many Long Beach residents expressed concerns, the South Coast district assessed all nine facilities permitted to use the chemical in the region and determined that five could pose a risk to residents.  Now the agency is going through a complex process outlined under the state’s Air Toxics “Hot Spots” law, enacted in 1987. Usage data, weather patterns and proximity to neighborhoods will be used to calculate a “priority score” for each of the five facilities. If a facility’s score is high enough, then the company will be required to conduct a full health risk assessment to examine the dangers to the community. None of the scores have been released yet. Risk assessments under the air district’s rules are a complicated, multi-step process likely to take many months. Smokestacks are shown at a facility that fumigates imported produce at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. AG-Fume Services and Harbor Fumigation operate at this facility. Photo by Joel Angel Juarez for CalMatters And these health assessments may not trigger any changes at the facilities. It all depends on whether certain thresholds for hazards are crossed. The state Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment has set guidelines, called reference exposure levels, for concentrations of methyl bromide that could cause the long-term or short-term health effects, such as respiratory and neurological damage, nausea and fetal effects, based on human and animal studies. But South Coast district officials said action isn’t triggered if methyl bromide exceeds these reference levels. Instead, the district uses a state-created “hazard index” based on them. If a facility’s hazard index reaches one — which means concentrations outside the facility have reached the reference dose and could cause harm — the company must notify the public, under a South Coast district regulation. However, the facilities will only be required to take steps to reduce emissions if the hazard index reaches three — three times the reference level that indicates potential harm, according to that regulation. Expedited action is required under the rule if the index is five times higher.   “Just because it’s above the (reference level), it doesn’t mean it’s going to cause health impacts,” said Ian MacMillan, assistant deputy executive officer at the South Coast air district. He said the reference level indicates “there’s a possibility that there could be health impacts.”  The series of escalating thresholds is designed as a balancing act between regulating facilities and protecting the public, officials said. MacMillan also said methyl bromide emissions must be considered in the context of overall air quality in the region — the entire LA basin has an average hazard index of 5.5 when considering all sources of toxic air pollutants from industries and vehicles, he said. When told about the fumigation plants and lack of air testing and risk assessments, residents contacted by CalMatters were outraged. “There’s no interest from the government to protect our health,” said Edvin Hernandez, a father picking up his 9-year-old son from Kelly Elementary School in Compton. “We’re surviving by the hand of God.” The members of Congress — Barragán, Waters and Garcia — asked air regulators to install monitors near all Los Angeles County fumigation facilities, compile inspection records, conduct health assessments in the communities and provide all of the results on a public website.  “It is egregious that communities in California are still being impacted by this harmful and unnecessary chemical,” said Alison Hahm, a staff attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, which is working with community members. “In addition to stopping this ongoing public health threat in West Long Beach and Los Angeles, residents are demanding accountability and remedies for the harm endured.” The methyl bromide facilities in L.A. County are subjected to a different permitting process than elsewhere in California.  That’s because in 1996, the South Coast air district and the Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner agreed to share responsibility for regulating fumigating facilities. The agricultural office is tasked with issuing permits and the air agency is in charge of setting emissions limits and enforcing them.   In the Bay Area, the local air district has a similar agreement with agricultural departments that originated in 1997. However, the district decided that agreement is out of date so it is now issuing permits, too. One facility in the Bay Area uses the pesticide, Impact Transportation of Oakland. In 2019, the air district assessed the health risks of that facility and modeled how the fumes spread.   In the San Joaquin Valley, new facilities or those changing their methyl bromide use are subject to a health risk evaluation before a permit is issued. Facilities permitted before the air district was established in 1992 are subject to a review like the one that the South Coast district is now launching in San Pedro and Compton. The Los Angeles Agriculture Commissioner’s office, when asked whether it conducts a risk assessment before issuing permits, declined to answer any questions. CalMatters filed a public records request seeking risk assessments, but they said they had no records matching the request.   South Coast air regulators said they and the commissioner are now considering if any changes to their agreement should be made.  Allowed to use up to a half-ton of methyl bromide a day  Fumigation of produce using methyl bromide occurs within an enclosed facility, and the produce is covered by a tarp when sprayed. The fumes are then released into the atmosphere through tall smokestacks, a process called aeration. CalMatters filed a public records request with the county agricultural office and received the five facilities’ permits for 2023 through 2025. The permits show that the two Long Beach companies are now required to take an array of new precautions to limit fumes emitted into communities that the three Compton and San Pedro families are not — even though the Long Beach ones use much smaller volumes of methyl bromide. The San Pedro and Compton plants are allowed to use up to 1,000 pounds of methyl bromide in a 24-hour period. In contrast, the Long Beach plants can use up to 200 pounds in 24 hours, and in Oakland, Impact Transportation’s permit allows only 108 pounds.  First: Pallets of produce are piled up at the outer berths at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. Last: A tarped area holds a tank that contains a hazardous gas, most likely methyl bromide. A fan and roof vents ventilated the area while garage doors were left open on April 8, 2025. AG-Fume Services and Harbor Fumigation operate at this location. Photos by Joel Angel Juarez for CalMatters The San Pedro and Compton facilities release fumes into the atmosphere during the daytime, except when they use an exhaust stack meeting certain height requirements, according to their permits. The two Long Beach facilities, SPF Terminals and AG Fume Services, have new, additional requirements this year: Fumigation can’t occur between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. when a school is within 1,000 feet. And by the end of this month, they must replace their smokestacks with taller ones that are at least 55 feet tall, which disperse the fumes better. All doors must be closed during fumigation and aeration and fans must be used in the aeration process.  ‘We don’t have a choice’ At a ballpark on a recent day in San Pedro, Eastview Little League players took the field.  When a 13-year-old boy on the Pirates team was up to bat, his mom, Amy Shannon, cheered him on.  “Let’s go D! Deep breath boy, you got it!” she shouted.  Then she paused. Maybe she shouldn’t be encouraging her son to take a deep breath, she said. Shannon had just learned from CalMatters about the fumigation facility across the street from the baseball field. Amy Shannon, left, and Roxanne Gasparo, right, attend their children’s Little League game at Bloch Field near the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro on April 8, 2025. Both women were unaware that a fumigation facility nearby has been using a toxic gas for about 30 years. Photo by Joel Angel Juarez for CalMatters At the facility where AG Fume and Harbor Fumigation operate, located at 2200 Miner Street, it was business as usual that day. A ship was docked on one side of the Los Angeles Port berth. On the other side, hundreds of stacks of fruits and vegetables were visible through several large garage doors.  Some of the stacks were covered with plastic. A tank containing a fumigant — labeled with a hazard sign depicting a skull — was hooked up outside. Yellow smokestacks protruded from the facility.  An AG-Fume Services truck was parked near one of the garage doors. Workers wearing yellow vests and sun-protective hats closed the garage doors, but left them slightly open at the bottom.  At the baseball field, Shannon watched the game with a friend, Roxanne Gasparo. Both women grew up in San Pedro. Gasparo said she wasn’t at all surprised to learn that a dangerous gas could be in their air.   “Because it’s a port town, unfortunately, we’re used to pollution. We have the port, obviously, and all the refineries next to us,” Gasparo said. “There’s really no way to get out of it unless you leave the city, and because most of the families here are blue collar families that rely on the unions, we kind of don’t have a choice,” she added. “We just deal with it and raise our kids the best we can.” More about air pollution in port communities ‘We should be in crisis mode’: Toxic fumigant could be seeping into these communities March 21, 2025March 26, 2025 Polluted communities hold their breath as companies struggle with California’s diesel truck ban December 10, 2024December 10, 2024

Agriculture
Animals
Business

Climate Change Has a Joe Rogan Problem

If you’re reading this, chances are good that you read other stories about climate change too. Looking around at the news yesterday, you may well have stumbled onto any number of Earth Day–inspired cases for optimism: “tiny climate actions” like adjusting the thermostat and propagating your plants, profiles of environmental do-gooders, steps to becoming the “best planetary citizen possible.” Those kinds of cheery spreads are standard fare for Earth Day. But they feel more than a little discordant with the drumbeat of decidedly awful climate news coming from both the planet itself and a White House attempting to dismantle clean air regulations, defund scientific research, claw back climate funds approved by Congress, and potentially even strip environmental groups of their nonprofit status.Many people, though, are hearing less about all of the above. Media Matters recently found that corporate broadcast news coverage of climate change fell by 25 percent last year compared to 2023. While climate coverage at national outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post has surged by as much as 300 percent since 2012, according to one recent academic study, smaller outlets around the country haven’t kept pace; smaller, predominantly state and local outlets expanded their climate coverage by about half as much over the same time period. The growing numbers of people who tend to get their news from other sources, meanwhile—including social media platforms—are hearing a lot of nonsense. An analysis published this week by Yale Climate Connections found that eight of the 10 most popular online shows—including those hosted by Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson—have “spread false or misleading information about climate change.” A report from the British news site Tortoise Media—analyzing the climate-related output of more than 300 influencers—likewise shows that climate-skeptic posts on YouTube grew by 43 percent between 2021 and 2024. On X (formerly Twitter), such content ballooned by 82 percent over the same time period. As much as 40 percent of it posits that climate change is merely an excuse for some shadowy network of conspirators to control the population and/or bring about “communism.”Given that one in five people in the United States regularly get their news from social media, that means a lot of people are getting bad information about the climate crisis. That’s especially true of young people. A Pew poll released late last year found that 37 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds here regularly get news from “news influencers,” who tend to lean right if they have any obvious political affiliations. Survey results released in early 2024 by the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that nearly a third of U.S. teens aged 13 to 17 view climate change as “harmless,” including 39 percent of teen boys. The same poll found 33 percent of teenagers—and 40 percent of teen boys—said climate change policies “do more harm than good.”Academics and philanthropists have spent more than a decade theorizing about the best ways to convey information about climate change to the general public: the merits of projecting hope instead of “doomerism” and of showcasing actually existing climate solutions. Nobody seems to have cracked the code, though. Growing awareness of the climate crisis—and consistently positive polling about how many people want their governments to do more about it—still hasn’t translated into many governments actually taking said action, at least not at anywhere near the scale the crisis requires. Big national outlets have invested in telling more good-news stories to readers who already care about climate change, while right-wing YouTubers broadcast lies and conspiracy theories to huge audiences. If you’ve made it this far, you can count yourself among the relatively small number of people who regularly read climate coverage beyond the headlines. Thank you! Accordingly, you probably don’t need me to sugarcoat the conclusion with a half-baked case for optimism: This isn’t good.

If you’re reading this, chances are good that you read other stories about climate change too. Looking around at the news yesterday, you may well have stumbled onto any number of Earth Day–inspired cases for optimism: “tiny climate actions” like adjusting the thermostat and propagating your plants, profiles of environmental do-gooders, steps to becoming the “best planetary citizen possible.” Those kinds of cheery spreads are standard fare for Earth Day. But they feel more than a little discordant with the drumbeat of decidedly awful climate news coming from both the planet itself and a White House attempting to dismantle clean air regulations, defund scientific research, claw back climate funds approved by Congress, and potentially even strip environmental groups of their nonprofit status.Many people, though, are hearing less about all of the above. Media Matters recently found that corporate broadcast news coverage of climate change fell by 25 percent last year compared to 2023. While climate coverage at national outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post has surged by as much as 300 percent since 2012, according to one recent academic study, smaller outlets around the country haven’t kept pace; smaller, predominantly state and local outlets expanded their climate coverage by about half as much over the same time period. The growing numbers of people who tend to get their news from other sources, meanwhile—including social media platforms—are hearing a lot of nonsense. An analysis published this week by Yale Climate Connections found that eight of the 10 most popular online shows—including those hosted by Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson—have “spread false or misleading information about climate change.” A report from the British news site Tortoise Media—analyzing the climate-related output of more than 300 influencers—likewise shows that climate-skeptic posts on YouTube grew by 43 percent between 2021 and 2024. On X (formerly Twitter), such content ballooned by 82 percent over the same time period. As much as 40 percent of it posits that climate change is merely an excuse for some shadowy network of conspirators to control the population and/or bring about “communism.”Given that one in five people in the United States regularly get their news from social media, that means a lot of people are getting bad information about the climate crisis. That’s especially true of young people. A Pew poll released late last year found that 37 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds here regularly get news from “news influencers,” who tend to lean right if they have any obvious political affiliations. Survey results released in early 2024 by the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that nearly a third of U.S. teens aged 13 to 17 view climate change as “harmless,” including 39 percent of teen boys. The same poll found 33 percent of teenagers—and 40 percent of teen boys—said climate change policies “do more harm than good.”Academics and philanthropists have spent more than a decade theorizing about the best ways to convey information about climate change to the general public: the merits of projecting hope instead of “doomerism” and of showcasing actually existing climate solutions. Nobody seems to have cracked the code, though. Growing awareness of the climate crisis—and consistently positive polling about how many people want their governments to do more about it—still hasn’t translated into many governments actually taking said action, at least not at anywhere near the scale the crisis requires. Big national outlets have invested in telling more good-news stories to readers who already care about climate change, while right-wing YouTubers broadcast lies and conspiracy theories to huge audiences. If you’ve made it this far, you can count yourself among the relatively small number of people who regularly read climate coverage beyond the headlines. Thank you! Accordingly, you probably don’t need me to sugarcoat the conclusion with a half-baked case for optimism: This isn’t good.

Climate
Crisis
Government

Despite progress, Los Angeles is nation's smoggiest city for 25th time in 26 years

An annual report from the American Lung Assn. showed that Los Angeles has improved its air quality but still deserves its reputation for unhealthy air.

Despite decades of progress in reducing air pollution, Los Angeles is still the nation’s smoggiest city, according to a report released Wednesday by the American Lung Assn.The association’s annual “State of the Air” report noted that Los Angeles held on to the infamous title for the 25th time even though the number of unhealthy ozone days has dropped nearly 40% since 2000. Particle pollution metrics told a similar story, where Los Angeles saw improvement but still had the dubious honor of being the nation’s seventh-most polluted city by that measure.California is home to five of the country’s 10 smoggiest places, as defined by levels of ozone pollution, and also to five of the worst 10 cities by particle pollution, according to the report. Los Angeles, Visalia, Bakersfield, Fresno and San Diego were among the list of cities most polluted by ozone. Bakersfield, Visalia, Fresno, Los Angeles and Sacramento were in the top 10 for worst particle pollution. The report comes roughly a month after the Environmental Protection Agency, under the Trump administration, announced its plan to loosen or eliminate a wide swath of environmental regulations that many experts worry could negatively effect air quality, reversing decades of progress in California.“Nobody wants to go back to the kinds of skies that triggered our clean air laws in the first place,” Mary D. Nichols, a UCLA law professor and former chair of the California Air Resources Board, said during a news conference Tuesday.At the EPA, the Trump administration seeks to “roll back existing rules that have been effective in protecting public health” she said, as well as eliminating staff positions and removing science and research functions. If the EPA is dismantled, “we’ll have more sick kids. We’ll have more people going to the hospital with asthma attacks,” Nichols said. “We’ll see people dying sooner than they should have just because of the poison in the air.”The “State of the Air” report tracks two main types of air pollution: ozone pollution, largely a factor of tailpipe emissions and heat, and particle pollution, driven primarily by drought and wildfires. The report found that more than 34.3 million Californians live in a community with at least one failing air quality grade and 22.9 million live in a community with three failing air quality grades.Southern California has been choked by smog since the mass adoption of the automobile. Millions of cars and trucks in the region release a vast amount of vehicle exhaust, which forms smog when it’s cooked in the perennially sunny climate. The mountain ranges restrict airflow and prevent pollution from dispersing.State and local regulators have adopted a number of nation-leading rules to reduce emissions from vehicles and industrial facilities, including Senate Bill 32 in 2014 and Assembly Bill 398 in 2017, which enacted strict greenhouse gas emission limits and a cap-and-trade system.While electric vehicles and cleaner car engines have significantly reduced pollution, transportation remains the largest source in California’s major cities. Heavy-duty trucks, cargo ships and trains are some of the biggest contributors to regional pollution.Despite the lackluster results, a dozen California cities including Los Angeles posted their best-ever reports on either ozone or particle pollution, said Mariela Ruacho, a senior clean air advocacy manager at the American Lung Assn. Fresno improved across the board, registering its lowest ever number of ozone days and particle days and its lowest annual particle levels since tracking began in 2000.Meanwhile, Bakersfield earned the title of the city in America with the least healthy air. The San Joaquin Valley town ranked as the most particle-polluted city in the nation, both for short-term and annual levels, according to the report.“Phasing out agricultural burning, maintaining state investments in cleaning up heavy-duty trucks, and off-road agricultural equipment incentives are critical to ongoing local progress,” the American Lung Assn. wrote in a news release.Though California’s air quality has improved significantly since the first “State of the Air” report in 2000, concerns over climate change and new legislation abound. California Senate Bill 712, which would fully exempt collector cars at least 35 model years old from smog check requirements, would “set our progress back decades,” Ruacho said.“Unhealthy air is inequitable and unaffordable,” Ruacho said. “To protect against these costly health emergencies, California must double down on investments to reduce wildfire risk, spur zero-emission transportation and energy sources, and align transportation funding with pollution reduction needs.”Times staff writer Tony Briscoe contributed to this report.

Health
Climate
Mountains

Evangelical churches in Indiana turn to solar and sustainability as an expression of faith

A growing number of evangelical churches and universities in Indiana are embracing renewable energy and environmental stewardship as a religious duty, reframing climate action through a spiritual lens.Catrin Einhorn reports for The New York TimesIn short:Churches across Indiana, including Christ’s Community Church and Grace Church, are installing solar panels, planting native gardens, and hosting events like Indy Creation Fest to promote environmental stewardship.Evangelical leaders say their work aligns with a biblical call to care for creation, distancing it from politicized language around climate change to appeal to more conservative congregations.Christian universities such as Indiana Wesleyan and Taylor are integrating environmental science into academics and campus life, fostering student-led sustainability efforts rooted in faith.Key quote:“It’s a quiet movement.”— Rev. Jeremy Summers, director of church and community engagement for the Evangelical Environmental NetworkWhy this matters:The intersection of faith and environmental action challenges longstanding cultural divides in the climate conversation. Evangelical communities — historically less engaged on climate issues — hold substantial political and social influence, particularly across the Midwest and South. Framing sustainability as a religious obligation sidesteps partisan divides and invites wider participation. These faith-led movements can help shift attitudes in rural and suburban America, where skepticism of climate science and federal intervention runs high. And as the environmental impacts of fossil fuel dependence grow — heatwaves, water scarcity, air pollution— the health and well-being of families in these communities are increasingly at stake. Read more: Christian climate activists aim to bridge faith and environmental actionPope Francis, who used faith and science to call out the climate crisis, dies at 88

A growing number of evangelical churches and universities in Indiana are embracing renewable energy and environmental stewardship as a religious duty, reframing climate action through a spiritual lens.Catrin Einhorn reports for The New York TimesIn short:Churches across Indiana, including Christ’s Community Church and Grace Church, are installing solar panels, planting native gardens, and hosting events like Indy Creation Fest to promote environmental stewardship.Evangelical leaders say their work aligns with a biblical call to care for creation, distancing it from politicized language around climate change to appeal to more conservative congregations.Christian universities such as Indiana Wesleyan and Taylor are integrating environmental science into academics and campus life, fostering student-led sustainability efforts rooted in faith.Key quote:“It’s a quiet movement.”— Rev. Jeremy Summers, director of church and community engagement for the Evangelical Environmental NetworkWhy this matters:The intersection of faith and environmental action challenges longstanding cultural divides in the climate conversation. Evangelical communities — historically less engaged on climate issues — hold substantial political and social influence, particularly across the Midwest and South. Framing sustainability as a religious obligation sidesteps partisan divides and invites wider participation. These faith-led movements can help shift attitudes in rural and suburban America, where skepticism of climate science and federal intervention runs high. And as the environmental impacts of fossil fuel dependence grow — heatwaves, water scarcity, air pollution— the health and well-being of families in these communities are increasingly at stake. Read more: Christian climate activists aim to bridge faith and environmental actionPope Francis, who used faith and science to call out the climate crisis, dies at 88

Activism
Climate
Crisis

Cambodia Canal's Impact on Mekong Questioned After China Signs Deal

By Francesco Guarascio(Reuters) -Cambodia should share a feasibility study on the impact of a planned China-backed canal that would divert water...

(Reuters) -Cambodia should share a feasibility study on the impact of a planned China-backed canal that would divert water from the rice-growing floodplains of Vietnam's Mekong Delta, said the body overseeing the transnational river.After months of uncertainty, Phnom Penh last week signed a deal with China to develop the Funan Techo Canal when President Xi Jinping visited Cambodia as part of a tour of Southeast Asia.It was Beijing's first explicit public commitment to the project, giving state-controlled construction giant China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) a 49% stake through a subsidiary, but also linking Chinese support to the "sustainability" of the project.The Secretariat of the intergovernmental Mekong River Commission (MRC) that coordinates the sustainable development of Southeast Asia's longest river said it had so far received from Cambodia only "basic information" on the project."We hope that further details, including the feasibility study report and other relevant reports, will be provided," the Commission said in a statement to Reuters this week.That would be needed "to ensure that any potential implications for the broader Mekong Basin are fully considered," it added.The canal has already created concern among environmentalists who say it could further harm the delicate ecology of the Mekong Delta, which is Vietnam's major rice growing region and is already facing problems of drought and salination as result of infrastructure projects upstream. Vietnam is also a leading exporter of rice.On Friday, the Cambodian government said the canal would have minimal environmental impact and "aligns with the 1995 Mekong Agreement" which governs cooperation among riverine countries in Southeast Asia.The Mekong River, fed by a series of tributaries, flows some 4,900 kilometres (3,045 miles) from its source in the Tibetan plateau through China, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam to the sea."Whether the Funan Techo Canal violates the 1995 Mekong Agreement depends on several factors, including its connection to the Mekong mainstream," the Commission said, offering additional guidance to Phnom Penh and other member states "to ensure compliance".Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam are members of the MRC while China and Myanmar are dialogue partners.The Cambodian government did not respond to questions about whether it intended to share the requested documents.Vietnam's foreign ministry did not reply to a request for comment after the deal with China was signed, but the country has repeatedly asked Cambodia to share more information about the canal to assess its impact.Xi made no reference to the canal in his public statements in Phnom Penh but a joint communique issued at the end of his visit said China supported Cambodia in building the canal "in accordance with the principles of feasibility and sustainability".The deal signed by CCCC on Friday was for a 151.6 km (94.2 miles) canal costing $1.16 billion.However, the Cambodian government says on the canal's official website that the waterway would stretch 180 km and cost $1.7 billion at completion in 2028.The higher cost reflects a short section to be built by Cambodian firms as well as bridges and water conservation resources, the government told Reuters without clarifying who would pay for the bridges and water conservation.Cambodia's deputy prime minister said in May 2024 that China would cover the entire cost of the project, which was put at $1.7 billion.The canal is designed to link the Mekong Basin to the Gulf of Thailand in Cambodia's southern Kep province. Much of the Mekong's nutrient-rich sediment no longer reaches rice farms in the Delta because of multiple hydroelectric dams built by China upriver, a Reuters analysis showed in 2022.The project agreed with China is also different from the original plan as it is focusing on boosting irrigation rather than solely pursuing navigation purposes, said Brian Eyler, an expert on the Mekong region at U.S.-based think tank Stimson Center.The water diverted from the Mekong Delta "will be much more than previously described," said Eyler.(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; additional reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi; Editing by Kate Mayberry)Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

Water
Conservation
Sustainable

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