November 25, 2023 VC Star Last year, during the week after Thanksgiving, Rosa Cruz, manager of Coastal Byproducts in Oxnard, received an unusual phone call from a homeowner in Montecito. “Can you please come collect cooking oil from my house?” the caller asked. Cruz explained the minimum requirements of her company, saying, “Drop-off here is…
November 18, 2023 Last week, I had the honor of making a lunchtime presentation to the lovely ladies of the Somis Thursday Club. I asked them, “How do you know whether something is recyclable?” The first response was, “Three arrows in a triangle! …Right?” For more than 100 years, their social club and service club…
November 11, 2023 VC Star The United States Flag Code is a federal law, but compliance depends on goodwill. Within our country’s general population, inconsistency is common. Many people seem to take great offense when someone refuses to honor the code’s rules for standing in the presence of the flag during the playing of the…
November 5, 2023 VC Star You probably know you can place food scraps in your organics curbside cart, but do you know what types of organics belong in the garbage cart? The organics cart at many homes is still labeled “yard waste only,” even though lumber has always been allowed and food scraps are now…
October 21, 2023 VC Star Goodwill stores in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties have a new tool on their counters, and it is helping customers envision great Halloween costumes. It’s called the “Look Book,” with suggestions for pairing commonly available thrift store items with seasonally available accessories. Stores in other areas have used similar books…
October 14, 2023 VC Star Three barriers stood between wasted food and the hungry residents of a shelter on Harvard Street in Santa Paula. “Time, temperature and moisture are the enemies of food recovery,” said Kay Wilson-Bolton, volunteer director of Spirit of Santa Paula, the nonprofit administering the shelter. To feed the hungry, not landfills,…
September 24, 2023 VC Star “Like a lot of people my age, I live in an apartment, so it isn’t practical to charge an electric vehicle at home,” said Nick Benitz, who nevertheless has been driving an impressive 2022 Ford Lightning electric pickup truck for almost a year. He uses the truck for his business,…
September 16, 2023 VC Star A retired teacher raised her hand after my presentation about environmental education to a conference of the California Retired Teachers Association last year. “Why is it that the same kids who leave their lunchtime waste on the tables in the cafeteria are the first ones to sign up for a…
September 9, 2023 VC Star Last year, garbage industry worker fatalities rose nearly 65%, according to the Solid Waste Association of North America, or SWANA. The organization operates several programs to improve safety, but the actions of their customers are also crucial for keeping these workers safe. Trash truck drivers are usually safe when they…
September 2, 2023 VC Star Honeybees work all day in service to their hive and their pollination is essential for the growth of many plants, but the whole venture is sustainable only because the bees are paid. Payment is made by plants in the form of nectar. The lesson: work must be rewarded to be…