Latest news with #BridgeMichigan
Axios
3 days ago
- Business
- Axios
Michigan's bottle return rates plummet
More Michiganders are skipping the hassle of collecting their 10-cent bottle and can deposits — and the state is making millions in the process. The big picture: Only 70% of deposits were redeemed last year, the state's lowest rate going back to 1990, state data shows. Since the pandemic, Michigan's bottle and can return rates have fallen drastically from the 96% annual average from 1990-2019. Many factors are to blame, including: People are less incentivized by the 10-cent return, particularly if they have curbside recycling at home. Bottle return rooms at grocery stores can be unclean, with a foul odor. Retailers reject containers from brands they don't sell. Follow the money: As Michigan's deposit redemption rate has fallen, the state has made more money. More than $116 million went unclaimed last year, leaving $87.6 million to the state, its largest cut on record, Bridge Michigan reports. Under the law, the first $1 million in unclaimed deposits goes to a state police fund for enforcement. Of the remainder, 75% goes into a state environmental fund and 25% goes back to the retailers who collect empties. What they're saying: The data shows Michigan's bottle and can return system isn't working, even as the state's recycling rate reached a new high in April for the fourth straight year, says Drew Beardslee, vice president of government affairs for the Michigan Retailers Association. "There's this reverse incentive where the state benefits when the system doesn't work, because the amount that goes back to the state is at an all-time high," Beardslee tells Axios. Catch up quick: Voters approved Michigan's bottle law in 1976 to discourage littering and keep the state's roads, parks and waterways clean. Michigan's treasury department is in charge of collecting and distributing unredeemed deposits. State of play: Reforming the law is difficult. Because voters originally approved it through an initiative petition, any change would need to be voter-approved or gain the support of three-quarters of the Legislature, per Bridge. Environmental groups have proposed expanding the law to include water, juice and sports drink bottles. Allowing empties to be returned at stores even if they don't sell that brand, known as universal redemption, also has been discussed. Retailers, however, oppose the law's expansion because it would increase costs. 💭 Joe's thought bubble: After countless rejected craft beer bottles, I decided years ago that my time is more valuable than returning my empties. I just recycle them.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Officials stunned after discovering source of dangerous contamination in town's drinking water: 'It's a terrible situation'
State officials investigating the source of toxic chemicals in residential wells in the town of Cadillac, Michigan, found that common household products may be contaminating residents' drinking water. As Bridge Michigan reported, ever since residents discovered PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in their private wells after getting their water tested, they've been anxiously awaiting answers from the state about the cause of the pollution. Many believed the dangerous chemicals had come from the Cadillac Industrial Park near their homes, as the community has spent decades cleaning up volatile organic compounds and hexavalent chromium that leached into groundwater from local manufacturers. But after officials tested water from 70 wells near the park, they discovered a surprising probable culprit behind the town's tainted water: everyday household products, such as shaving cream, laundry detergent, toilet paper, and shampoo. All these items contain PFAS, and when residents and local businesses flush them down the drain, they enter septic systems and contaminate liquids from the sewage. Eventually, these toxic chemicals leach into groundwater. While officials haven't definitively identified household products as the cause of the contaminated wells, they believe it's the most plausible explanation since most tests "lacked any clear link to the industrial park," noted Bridge Michigan. "We're not seeing that smoking gun, so to speak," Abigail Hendershott, executive director of the Michigan PFAS Action Response Team at the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, told the news outlet. However, she noted that heavy industry rather than septic systems likely polluted the wells in the industrial park's immediate vicinity. "It's a terrible situation," added City Manager Marcus Peccia. "And it's a situation in which Cadillac is absolutely not unique." Since PFAS are extremely pervasive and persistent in the environment, they can take hundreds of years to break down. As they build up in groundwater that residents rely on for drinking and cleaning, they can cause numerous health problems. How often do you worry about the quality of your drinking water? Never Sometimes Often Always Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. PFAS have been linked to a range of conditions, including cancer, thyroid disease, poor immunity, reproductive disorders, and developmental delays. With so many homes in the same area relying on untreated water from private wells, it can lead to a shocking level of PFAS exposure since thousands of household products contain the chemicals, per a University of Queensland study. "These are a very large class of chemicals, and very few of them have been regulated for safety before they got out onto the market," Erica Bloom, the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center's toxics campaign director, told Bridge Michigan. The state is distributing water filters to residents with PFAS-tainted wells, and Cadillac is seeking funds to cover the cost of switching residents to city water. Officials have also urged residents to get their wells tested for PFAS through a certified lab. In addition, households can limit the amount of PFAS entering their septic systems by shopping for PFAS-free products. However, this takes dedication since the chemicals are in a vast array of products and at times aren't clearly labeled. Michigan's Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy provided the town of Pellston, which also had high concentrations of PFAS in water samples, with a grant to research and develop alternative water supplies. Perhaps something similar can be done for Cadillac residents until a more permanent solution is found. Companies are working on removing PFAS from wastewater using new technology. The system is affordable and scalable, so it's possible it could be used to treat contaminated water in septic systems. Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump Moves to Kill DEI
With America's public education system on the chopping block of billionaire Elon Musk's quasi-government DOGE, this week's School (in)Security newsletter zeros in on the most recent barrage of White House orders that carry major civil rights implications for students. Up first: An order for schools to kill diversity, equity and inclusion — or else. Schools and universities were given 14 days to end diversity initiatives or risk losing federal funding. But the order's vague language, civil rights advocates argue, could have a chilling effect and encourage schools to eliminate everything related to race. | Associated Press Suggesting statewide resistance to the DEI order, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey responded by saying 'we are going to stay true to who we are in Massachusetts.' | Boston Herald Michigan state Superintendent Michael Rice said a review of Trump's letter 'will take time,' but as of now, the state education department 'continues to support diversity in literature, comprehensive history instruction and broad recruitment to Grow Your Own programs for students and support staff to become teachers.' | Bridge Michigan Meanwhile, in Louisiana, state Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley endorsed Trump's DEI directive, noting in a letter this week that his department is working to 'stop inherently divisive concepts, like Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), from infiltrating Louisiana's K-12 public education system.' | KALB Trump's order applies a broad interpretation of a recent Supreme Court ruling that struck down affirmative action in college admissions and could be leveraged to restrict content taught in classrooms. | Axios My colleague Linda Jacobson reported this week on the Education Department's abrupt decision to terminate $600 million in teacher training grants, many specifically designed to recruit future educators of color, who are underrepresented in the classroom. | The 74 After PBS scrubbed a video series on LGBTQ history in response to Trump's DEI orders, the content has a new home: the New York City school district's website. | Chalkbeat A new lawsuit by college professors and diversity professionals alleges the order is unconstitutional. 'In the United States, there is no king,' they write in their complaint. 'In his crusade to erase diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility from our country, President Trump cannot usurp Congress's exclusive power of the purse, nor can he silence those who disagree with him by threatening them with the loss of federal funds and other enforcement actions.' | Inside Higher Ed A coalition of civil rights groups filed suit against the Trump administration on Wednesday, arguing the DEI order infringed on their free speech rights. NAACP Legal Defense Fund President and Director-Counsel Janai Nelson said that 'beyond spreading inaccurate, dehumanizing and divisive rhetoric,' Trump's orders tie the hands of organizations that are 'providing critical services to people who need them most.' | Time More from Washington: Trump's executive order to end birthright citizenship for children whose parents are undocumented or on work visas remains blocked after an appeals court declined to reinstate it — and paved the way for a potential battle in the Supreme Court. | NBC News A majority of Amerians in a recent poll opposed ending birthright citizenship and another Trump order allowing immigration agents to make arrests in churches, schools and other sensitive locations once considered off limits. | Miami Herald Two federal courts have blocked a Trump executive order that sought to restrict transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming care, with a Washington judge writing the directive violated the Constitution's Equal Protection Clause and disregarded Congress. | Advocate 'It looks like a zoo': Children are among the nearly 100 migrants who were recently deported from the U.S. to Panama and placed in a detention camp with 'fenced cages' on the outskirts of the jungle. | The New York Times Trump issued an order on Thursday to end 'all taxpayer-funded benefits for illegal aliens.' But undocumented immigrants generally don't qualify for federal benefits with one major exception: In 1982, the Supreme Court found that all children, regardless of their immigration status, are entitled to a free K-12 education. | LAist Get the most critical news and information about students' rights, safety and well-being delivered straight to your inbox. A judge has ordered the Milwaukee school district to station police officers on campuses within 10 days or face sanctions. Amid a dispute over school police funding, the district has not complied for more than a year with a state law that mandates police in schools. | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel School police in Texas have opened an investigation into the suicide death of an 11-year-old girl after her mother said the middle school student suffered pervasive bullying from classmates who claimed her family was in the country illegally and threatened to have them deported. | Fort Worth Star-Telegram Sandy Hook Promise was credited with helping to thwart an 18-year-old Indiana student's plot to commit a mass school shooting on Valentine's Day. Police reports note a tipster to the nonprofit's anonymous reporting system said 'their friend has access to an AR15 and has just ordered a bulletproof vest.' | NBC News Missouri public schools would be required to develop cardiac emergency response plans and equip campuses with automated external defibrillators under bipartisan legislation. | Missourinet Fewer than half of Texas school districts are in compliance with a 2023 law requiring armed security at every campus. | KERA Graduates of a Kent, Connecticut, boarding school have sued the institution on allegations its former IT administrator accessed financial records, medical information, photos and videos from hundreds of former students and employees. 'There are potentially many hundreds of former Kent School students and employees who are victims of [the school official's] personal invasion and sexual exploitation,' the complaint alleges. | Fox 61 For a recent investigation for The 74 and Wired, I fell down a dark web rabbit hole and chronicled more than 300 school cyberattacks in the last five years — and revealed the degree to which school leaders in virtually every state repeatedly provide false assurances to students, parents and staff about the security of their sensitive information. This week, I highlighted my investigation into a ransomware attack on the Minneapolis school district — an 'encryption event,' according to school officials — which led to the widespread exposure of students' sensitive data. What the district told the public and the FBI, documents I obtained through public records requests show, differed drastically. Students Fearful After Posts Threaten to Report Undocumented Peers to ICE Parents, Medical Providers, Vaccine Experts Brace for RFK Jr.'s HHS Takeover 'Evict Elon': Teachers Union, Others Sue to Stop DOGE's Access to Ed Dept. Data After Declaring NAEP Off-Limits, Education Department Cancels Upcoming Test If Kathy Moore's pup Sinead knows one thing, it's how to build a good fort to ride out these cold winter days.
