This week we are talking about composting of the last variety. 

What happens you your body after death?  Some people are buried in a cemetery, some cremated.  What if you could compost your body? Take a listen as we talk about a new bill, 6045 as it relates to funeral director slash embalmer and funeral service establishments. The reason that this proposed bill is being cited under that particular chapter of Rhode Island law is because it is proposing to amend existing funeral service type statute to include natural organic reduction.  

We will cover some of the many benefits this new found process and share some examples of places already doing it. 

Take a listen.

Reference:

https://ecori.org/legislation-would-give-rhode-island-residents-chance-to-compost-themselves/

https://legiscan.com/RI/text/H6045/id/2726588

https://earthfuneral.com/resources/most-asked-questions-human-composting/

The federal Clean Water Act contains something called a Citizen Suit Provision. If you’re thinking it means “Citizens Arrest”.. you’d be right. But before you get too excited, there isn’t actually an arrest process. So why are we telling you this?  The lawsuit we are going to discuss today has to deal with just that and a company discharging illegal amounts of copper into the Pawtuxet river. What does this mean for the river, the people in the area and what happens to the company that is discharging the copper.  Take a listen to find out. 

A 13 year old girl from San Jose, California has been a beekeeper for a few years now and noticed the behavior of some of the bees were… off.  IN this episode we talk about this amazing young lady who has made a breakthrough discovery that helps a bees memory.  Why is that important?

When bees are exposed to pesticides, it ruins or damages parts of their short term memory and their ability to collect pollen, so, they struggle with what their main function of life is and they have a hard time getting back to the hive.  If this happens, it could lead to what is called colony collapse disorder.

We get into more detail as to how this young lady discovered this and the solution she has come up that is working! 

We end the show with a little bonus for you… Fish Doorbell (ring responsibly) 

https://visdeurbel.nl/... You’re welcome!

Reference: https://www.societyforscience.org/blog/five-questions-with-rory-hu-dod-stem-talent-award-2022-winner/

https://www.beeculture.com/ca-teens-bee-memory-research/

https://news.harker.org/eight-students-named-broadcom-masters-top-300-scholars/

https://www.beekeepingtodaypodcast.com/broadcom-masters-award-winner-rory-hu-s5-e22/

In this week’s episode we are heading out to sea!  We are going to discuss a recent article of a ship captain who has pled guilty to Environmental Crimes!  The Galissas is a tanker that was carrying diesel oil from Rotterdam, Netherlands, to Providence, RI, in February 2022. During their voyage, the vessel discharged untreated oily bilge water directly from the tanker into international waters and into Rhode Island waters.  So what happens now? Take a listen to find out what it all means.

Article we reference:

https://www.marineinsight.com/shipping-news/ships-operator-captain-and-chief-engineer-admit-to-environmental-crimes-aboard-a-rhode-island-bound-oil-tanker/

How many of you are ready for summer and ready to hit the waterways for some swimming, boating, etc.  Well, pay attention because Rhode Island DEM announces the closure of certain waterways after Fall River accidentally releases 10 million gallons of partly treated wastewater. 10 MILLION GALLONS of wastewater!

This is a real crappy situation (pun intended) and we are going to discuss what you need to look for before heading out to the waterways, where you can find the information and who is ultimately responsible for all of this.  We also talk about how this is going to affect the shellfish harvesting in the area.  

Here is the article we were referencing: 

https://ri

demgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=110a7a4aec914a3492117e9848fe67da

https://dem.ri.gov/environmental-protection-bureau/water-resources/research-monitoring/shellfish-area-monitoring

https://fallriverreporter.com/ri-dem-announces-closure-of-certain-waters-after-fall-river-short-releases-10-mill-gallons-of-partly-treated-wastewater/

Earth day was on April 22nd and in this week’s episode, we are going to recap earth day and discuss how people celebrated not just here locally, but around the globe as well! 

What country do you think has the biggest celebration of Earth Day?

How much can you really do with your hair?  Well, there are organizations out there collecting human hair (some animal hair as well) and forming mats out of it. They are using these mats made of hair to clean up oil spills!  We get into more detail as to how this is done and discuss what happens when there is an oil spill and who is responsible for the clean ups.

References:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8fsVzyj-PA

https://time.com/6262631/philippines-oil-spill-cleanup-hair/

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2022/05/19/world/oil-spills-human-hair-matter-of-trust-spc-scn-intl-c2e/index.html

https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-tech/remediation/hair-clean-up-oil-spills.htm

https://matteroftrust.org/clean-wave-program/

Ever see an abandoned gas station and wonder why someone just doesn’t do something with it?  Well turns out it’s not that easy… or is it?

Redevelopment is where you take a previously developed property. And you do exactly what the name says. You re develop it, you're not impacting undisturbed habitat. 

We are going to give some examples of some redevelopments that have happened around our area and discuss what effects projects such as these have on the environment.

Here is the link that kicked off this topic. https://www.instagram.com/reel/CqQ3-aaDsNB/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Today we are going to discuss the Rhode Island coastal resources management council (CRMC).  We’ve discussed the CRMC in past episodes however, this episode is different.  

The CRMC isn’t set up like other state agencies are. The CRMC (agency) staff and the executive director work every day like a regular state agency on permits and projects and approvals. The “Council” (not agency) only meets once or twice a month. To serve on the council, mean you were appointed by the governor… can be anyone. Why is this important to know? 

We discuss how recently the council (folks appointed by the governor) decided to vote to overrule a staff recommendation that relates directly to the general assembly’s authority to provide oversight and decision making in approving something called a submerged land lease.  Why is this a recipe for disaster?  Take a listen to hear what happens.

Article for reference; 

https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/environment/2023/03/22/offshore-wind-farm-cables-and-seabed-lease-put-crmc-lawmakers-at-odds/70037715007/

https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/environment/2023/03/22/offshore-wind-farm-cables-and-seabed-lease-put-crmc-lawmakers-at-odds/70037715007/

It’s  been a month since the train derailment in East Palestine Ohio that has caused a horrific environmental disaster.  We chose to wait to discuss this topic simply because we wanted there to be some short of concreate news to have a conversation about it.  One thing we’ve found is…there are still a lot of questions that need to be answered. 

Take a listen as we discuss some of the findings.  One question asked is, was there a second train involved or a second derailment in the same area?  Another question is, why create a controlled, purposeful explosion to detonate the rest of the chemicals that had been leaked?  And the big question everyone is asking is, is the water safe to drink? 

Find out the answers to these question and more.  Take a listen.