Earth911.com's Sustainability In Your Ear

Expanded polystyrene has proven stubbornly uneconomical to recycle, but Augusta, N.J.-based Foam Cycle has an affordable solution that can be added at any municipal transfer station or community location. Earth911 talks with Foam Cycle founder and CEO Lou Troiano about the self-service foam collection and recycling system his company has installed in several communities around the country. Expanded polystyrene, also known as expanded plastic #6 or by the Dow Chemical trademark Styrofoam in its blue form, is 98% air, so it takes a lot of foam to produce a usable amount of the recycled resin. In traditional waste sorting facilities, it is impractical to sort and clean foam so almost all the 1,500 tons Americans produce each day goes into landfills.The Foam Cycle system fits in a shipping container. Troiano says that people who drop off foam at the New Jersey and Florida locations where Foam Cycle has systems generally place clean packing and food service foam in the system. The $75,000 units are financed by municipal waste management systems and entrepreneurs -- Foam Cycle seeks public-private partnerships -- and will break even in four to five years based on typical usage. Troiano shares that religious organizations are expressing interest in the system to help their communities deal with an intractable recycling problem and to raise funds for their ministries. A ton of the processed resin sells for between $300 and $500. If you're interested in solve its foam recycling challenge, check out Foam Cycle at https://www.foamcycle.com/.

Young people are stepping into leadership roles in the climate restoration movement. Earth911 talks with Ashley Meeky, the first youth ambassador on the board of the Foundation for Climate Restoration, a non-profit working to encourage global support for the development and deployment of carbon capture and sequestration technology. A student at Vanderbilt University, Ashley got involved with the organization in 2019 and participated in creating its 12-week leadership program that trains youth to speak and raise awareness about climate change and the 50 trillion tons of CO2 humanity has already put in the atmosphere. It's this existing excess that carbon capture technology can remove as we reduce CO2 emissions to zero over the next several decades.The foundation argues that we can return the Earth's climate to what our grandparents knew later this century, but without carbon capture technology it may take centuries to remove. The technology produces CO2 that can be used to make concrete, fuels and industrial materials including plastic and carbon fiber.Ashley shares her experiences with the Foundation for Climate Restoration and how she is shaping her goals for adulthood based on the realities of global warming. A young entrepreneur who runs a hair care business and her own Instagram accounts, Ashley believes that business must play a leading role in the end of the fossil fuel era and the prolonged cleanup the planet needs. And she explains her own daily steps to reduce her carbon footprint. The foundation and Ashley will be involved in the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change COP26 meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, this November with hopes of getting global support for carbon capture technology, which is already operational at ClimeWorks and Blue Planet, among other companies. She argues that the necessary efforts to reforest large parts of the planet must be augmented with an aggressive carbon capture program to reverse, not just stop climate change. Learn more about the Foundation for Climate Restoration at https://foundationforclimaterestoration.org/.

What would the world look like if we could turn post-consumer waste, including food scraps, paper, packaging and other materials into a bio-based plastic? Tato Bigio, cofounder and CEO of Tel Aviv-based UBQ Materials, which makes a low-carbon bioplastic using the waste headed for landfills. It's UBQ material can be used to make rigid plastic components for buildings, shipping palettes, and even food service trays at McDonald's restaurants. Bigio explains how each ton of UBQ bioplastic reduces CO2 emissions by as much as 15 tons, resulting in an almost carbon-neutral production process.The company is beginning to roll out the technology globally. Bigio reports he is hearing from brands that environmental responsibility is increasingly important to their success and survival. UBQ is building facilities in The Netherlands and has created an early partnership with a Virginia recycling system -- they want to build close to waste sources and manufacturing locations that can use the recycled bioplastic to minimize transportation impacts. To learn more about UBQ, visit https://www.ubqmaterials.com/.

Director Joe Gantz's new film, The Race to Save the World, captures the energy and personal emotional challenges faced by people to take direct action as part of the climate protest movement. It follows the stories of protesters who blocked oil trains and oil drilling equipment in Washington state; Michael Foster, the activist who shut down the Keystone pipeline in North Dakota; Aji Piper, a young environmentalist from Seattle who sued demanding state environmental protections be enforced, and; a grandmother who marched across the country to raise awareness about the climate, among others. Each of these dedicated and sometimes terrified activists sacrificed their personal lives, and in some cases their freedom, to fight climate change. Gantz' film captures the unique personal costs and collective energy that animates protest.Gantz is known for Taxicab Confessions, American Winter, and the recent film Ending Disease. The Race to Save the World will be released on Earth Day 2021 at select independent theaters and non-profit events, will be available for streaming on Amazon, Google Play and other streaming services. Learn when and how to watch this intimate documentary about the people fighting for the planet at https://www.theracetosavetheworld.com/how-to-watch.html.

Earth911 talks with oceanographer John Englander, author of the new book Moving to Higher Ground: Rising Sea Level and the Path Forward. His 2014 TED Talk provides stark examples of close relationship between CO2, climate temperature and coastlines -- Florida was half the size it is now during the last warm period in Earth's history and twice the size it is today during the last Ice Age. In his new book, Englander describes the challenges of sea level rise (SLR) and urges humans to prepare to adapt to rising oceans, because it is too late to stop significant SLR along U.S. and global coastlines. Those changes have dramatic implications for government, business, the global supply chain, and our own neighborhoods.Englander explains how the increased surface of a warming ocean will amplify extreme weather events we are already seeing in the form of wildfires, flooding, and drought. He suggests that governments need to discourage continued building along coasts by reducing flood insurance subsidies, so that people are not displaced in a disorderly way but can plan for living on higher ground. He urges people to think in terms of short (30 years), mid-term (50 years) and long-term (100 years) time frames to understand their SLR risk, but he argues that governments and business need to act today to be ready for disruptions from the already higher sea levels around the planet. He warns that accelerated ice loss in Greenland and Antarctica could lead to 5 feet or as much as 10 feet of SLR by 2050. We finish the conversation by discussing strategies for cooling the planet to prevent further damage, including the potential for geoengineering the atmosphere to reflect more sunlight back into space and carbon capture and sequestration technology.John Englander's previous book, High Tide On Main Street: Rising Sea Level and the Coming Coastal Crisis, jump-started the public conversation about SLR in 2012 and Moving to Higher Ground: Rising Sea Level and the Path Forward, which was released this week, lays out ideas about how we can respond and adapt to rising seas.

Author Kathy Freston joins Earth911 to talk about her new book with co-author Gene Stone, 72 Reasons to Be Vegan: Why Plant-Based. Why Now. The book explains the benefits of plant-based eating and exposes the unhealthy, often gross truth about our inhumane industrial meat and dairy complex. Freston explains the health and environmental impacts of the meat and dairy industry in detail in the book and the facts shares here will make anyone think twice before eating a hamburger. But being "veganish" instead of perfectly vegan is a great step for the environment, providing a greater positive impact on an annual basis than switching to an electric vehicle.We also discuss meat and dairy addiction mechanisms that tap into human opiate receptors to make cravings almost unbearable for some people, and Freston recommends adopting a plant-based meat alternative that contains heme proteins, which mimic the iron-rich components of meat and blood without the negative health consequences. There's also plenty to worry about in a pescatarian diet, Freston warns. Not only is the world's fish population expected to collapse by 2048 if current practices continue, the bodies of wild fish are shot through with plastic, mercury and pharmaceuticals that can harm our bodies.But the conversation is not all about bad news. Making the switch to plant-based eating can improve our health, mental acuity, and the planet. Tune in to hear about  72 Reasons to Be Vegan, and check out Freston's previous books, The Book of Veganish: The Ultimate Guide to Easing into a Plant-Based, Cruelty-Free Awesomely Delicious Way to Eat and Quantum Wellness Cleanse: The 21-Day Essential Guide to Healing Your Mind, Body and Spirit.

Omvits is a four-year-old British nutritional supplements company with a deep commitment to sustainability. Earth911 talks with Shameek Upadhya, a cofounder of the company about why they focused on making vegan vitamins, including an algae-produced Omega-3 oil supplement and vegan Vitamin D, and delivering it in the most sustainable packaging possible. Omega-3 oils are difficult to get in a vegan diet. Upadhya shares how he and his team learned that global fish supplies could collapse by 2048 and decided to make Omega-3 oil, which is usually harvested from salmon, using an algae. The company currently delivers its products in plastic bottles with refills available in low-plastic pouches. Later this year Omvits will introduce plastic-free refill pouches that biodegrade in household compost piles.We also explore how Omvit's vegan Vitamin D is made using lichen to eliminate lanolin collected from sheep's wool. The company has provided free annual supplies of vitamins to more than 25,000 children and is building charitable support for climate action into its business model. Omvits vitamins will reach the U.S. in early 2022; sign up at the https://omvits.com/ to receive alerts about U.S. availability.

On World Water Day, we talk water recycling with Stephen Katz, Market Development Manager at SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions. The company, which built the Suez Canal in the 1860s is a leader in water recycling, particularly in industrial settings but also, increasingly, to augment local drinking water supplies. More than 2.7 billion people around the world experience water scarcity each year and climate change, along with growing human and farm animal populations, stresses available freshwater, which accounts for only 3% of the water on the planet. Katz explains how SUEZ processes wastewater and post-industrial water to return potable supplies for human use. In Morro Bay, Calif., the company is replenishing groundwater supplies with water recovered from the city's wastewater treatment facility -- the program provides drinkable water and prevents land subsidence (sinking) due to depleted aquifers. Katz also discusses the growing interest in water as a tradable commodity and the potential for higher prices as regions compete to acquire drinking water and increase to their industrial output. The World Bank projects that water shortages could reduce global GDP by as much as 6% by 2050. Low-income countries, which currently use only 8% of their water supply for industrial purposes, compared to high-income countries' 59% will struggle to grow their economies because of water shortages. Water desalination, another SUEZ line of business, is an energy-intensive answer in some parts of the world, but recycling remains the most accessible option.

Danny O'Malley, founder and CEO of plant-based meat alternative company Before the Butcher joins Earth911's Mitch Ratcliffe to talk about transforming the carbon footprint of  human food systems. The company's UNCUT and Mainstream branded vegan, gluten- and GMO-free soy-based meat alternatives to beef, chicken and pork in a variety of forms -- patties, chunks, tips and ground for use in recipes, as well as shredded versions -- can replace meat in a variety of recipes. O'Malley shares why he started the company and discusses the sourcing of Before the Butcher's soy proteins and canola oils to avoid producing CO2 emissions and serving people genetically modified ingredients.Meat alternative are becoming increasingly price competitive with animal products and the texture and taste more familiar to millions of people who have switched from meat for health and environmental reasons. Before the Butcher's Mainstream meats now sell for about $5.50 a pound, making it among the first to be competitive on a head-to-head with ground beef.  O'Malley also addresses the growing momentum of the pivot toward plant-based alternatives within the meat industry and the competitive advantage of making recipe ingredients instead of only finished pre-cooked meals with plant-based meats.

The energy crises of the 1970s have continued to shape U.S. energy and climate policy ever since, and historian Jay Hakes was part of the story. Earth911 talks with the author of Energy Crises: Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Hard Choices in the 1970s about how Presidents Nixon and Carter responded to the oil embargoes and Middle East conflicts that led to long gas lines and a focus on keeping oil prices low, often despite the potential for conflict. Hakes was the Department of Energy's chief energy analyst during the Clinton years and served as the director of the Carter Presidential Library for 13 years after participating in the policy-making process during the 1970s.The 1970s defined American perspectives on oil, gas, nuclear and solar energy. It was the era when oil was weaponized by the OPEC nations and early solar panel research first produced commercial results. Hakes explains how Richard Nixon's initial response to the oil embargo on October 17, 1973 has had repercussions over many decades and how Jimmy Carter's energy-centered foreign and domestic research agenda spurred investments in renewable energy. But the progress was interrupted in the 1980s by renewed support for oil exploration by petrochemical companies and did not recover its early momentum until the early 200s, when climate issues forced a new reality on Washington, D.C.Tune in to a fascinating conversation. His previous books include A Declaration of Energy Independence: How Freedom from Foreign Oil Can Improve National Security, Our Economy, and the Environment. In that 2008 book, he argued that America had ignored both the threat of climate change and the challenge of weaning itself from oil for decades. Now, U.S. energy independence is growing after the rise of renewable energy generation. Now, the U.S. must rethink foreign and domestic policy to address the distributed nature of post-fossil fuel energy. Energy Crises: Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Hard Choices in the 1970s  is available now.