Putting Down Roots: Resources (for environmental and social justice event listings, including Sustainability Salons, please visit https://marenslist.blogspot.com)
Pennsylvania Sea Grant has a new e-book about native plants:
https://seagrant.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Choose-Native-English.pdf
This is one of many resources on their web site; there are many others on invasive species, green infrastructure, and related topics.
[text from a PennEnvironment email, because it contains a lot more information than the petition page -- the petition message is customizable, so you can add talking points from this email.]
Polystyrene foam, which you've probably been handed in the form of a takeout coffee cup, takes hundreds of years to decompose.1 Over time, it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, becoming ever easier for an animal to swallow.
In the belly of a sea turtle or a dolphin, this plastic can lead to sickness, starvation and death.2 The momentary convenience of keeping a drink warm leads to centuries of pollution and harm.
This isn't worth it. Tell Gov. Josh Shapiro: Ban polystyrene foam.
Each year, 26 million metric tons of polystyrene foam are produced worldwide, much of it for the purpose of single-use disposable items, like beverage cups and food containers.3
Thousands of tons of plastic are ending up in landfills or in the ocean, where marine animals consume it, damaging their intestines and causing painful, unnecessary deaths.
And because less than 3% of polystyrene gets recycled in the United States, every time we throw it away, we have to make more.4
This process is energy intensive and polluting, requiring petroleum and a host of other highly polluting ingredients that can leach into our food and drink.5
In fact, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has listed styrene -- the chemical released from polystyrene containers -- as a potential carcinogen.6 Polystyrene is just not good for us or the planet, and when safer and more sustainable alternatives exist, there is no reason to keep using it.
Call on Gov. Shapiro to take this step toward a zero-waste future.
We can create a country without polystyrene foam, but we need you to stand with us.
The support of people like you has helped our national network pass legislation banning single-use polystyrene foam containers in 11 states and counting.7
These bans could bolster global progress on polystyrene, too. The European Union's ban on polystyrene went into effect in July 2021.8 Countries such as France, Germany and Spain provide a roadmap for living without polystyrene and the harm it does to our planet.
Why not make Pennsylvania the next place to say "no" to polystyrene?
Add your name: Help us keep one of the worst forms of plastic from harming wildlife.
Thank you,
David Masur
Executive Director
1. Mike Wehner, "It takes decades for polystyrene to break down, even in direct sunlight," BGR, October 13, 2019.
2. "Why is Marine Debris a Problem?" National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, last accessed October 10, 2023.
3. "Production forecast of thermoplastics worldwide from 2020 to 2050, by type," Statista, last accessed October 10, 2023.
4. Ross Sherman, "Statement: Maryland's plastic foam ban officially becomes law," Environment America, May 24, 2019.
5. "Why you should never use styrofoam again," Going Green, last accessed October 10, 2023.
6. "New substances added to HHS Report on Carcinogens," National Institutes of Health, June 10, 2011.
7. "Reducing Plastic Waste in the States," Environment America, last accessed October 10, 2023.
8. "EU restrictions on certain single-use plastics," The European Commission, last accessed October 10, 2023.
These documents and links are offered as an educational resource, in conjunction with our Sustainability Salon series on movement-building and creating effective campaigns (including salons 141, 142, 144, and 145). There's a video of the first one here.
You can learn more about Bill Moyer's Movement Action Plan on the Commons Social Change Library web site, and in videos like this one.
Thanks to Penn Garvin for facilitating these sessions, and for these resources (click on each image for a larger view).
Creative Reuse is hiring a part-time Operations Assistant, who will work behind the scenes in support of the staff and organization. More information and application are here.
BCMAC is looking to hire an executive director!
BCMAC’s mission is to protect the residents of Southwestern Pennsylvania, with emphasis on those in Beaver County, by informing them about the health, safety, environmental and economic impacts of fracking infrastructure, including the petrochemical buildout and by supporting sustainable alternatives to carbon-based energy sources and economic development strategies in Beaver County.
Climate Nexus is expanding their Methane Team. The new campaign associate will help hold the oil and gas industry accountable for reducing methane pollution, and pressure governmental entities to stand up to the industry and craft policies that prioritize communities and the planet over corporate profits. Simply put, they want to humanize the fight against methane polluters.
The Campfire Dispatch is a newsletter about climate action and climate news in Pennsylvania. Due to organizational changes, it has moved -- you can view past articles here.
