It’s Thursday and that means it’s time to catch up on politics with The Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate’s editorial director and columnist, Stephanie Grace. Today we hear about Speaker Mike Johnson’s resistance to a bill that would allow new parents in Congress to vote by proxy – and why he seems to be losing this battle.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, only about 9% of plastics are recycled, and those tend to be low-value, meaning the high costs of recycling doesn’t yield good returns. This is because many plastics have chemical additives to make them fire resistant – and nearly impossible to recycle.

But one current and one former LSU professor are creating a low-cost way to break down plastics, possibly saving billions of dollars in recycling costs, and helping eliminate billions of tons of plastic pollution.

LSU Chemical Engineering Professor Kerry Dooley, the co-inventor, joins us to discuss  this new initiative. 

The New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board is integral to the city’s survival, but the name brings images of torn-up streets, long wait times, antiquated power systems, and embarrassing scandals. So why would someone take the job of running such an organization? 

Ghassan Korban is stepping down from his position as executive director of the Sewerage and Water Board. He joins us to explain why he took on this role, his attempts to modernize the systems during his tenure and what he thinks the organization will need for long-term improvement. 

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Today’s episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Bob Pavlovich. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber. We get production support from Garrett Pittman and our assistant producer Aubry Procell.

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