By Corinne Rosen,
Williamsburg Resident, New York Organizer, Food & Water Watch

The people of New York have made themselves clear that fracking has no place in their state, and they’re building a movement that might just force the governor to ban it. While Governor Cuomo and his administration insist they are focused on making a decision based on the science, the fact is that the science is already available and it clearly shows fracking cannot be done safely.

Horizontal high volume hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is an extreme drilling technique used to extract natural gas. The studies that have been done show that fracking is a nightmare, because of water and air pollution, toxic spills, and ruined landscapes. The evidence is clear that fracking is extremely dangerous.

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By Meghan Cass

Usually North Brooklyn makes the news for being polluted, but being green in our neighborhood has never been easier. A thriving culture of sustainability is empowering residents to reduce their own environmental impact, and the benefits extend far beyond our corner of the city. There are many ways to take advantage of the eco-conscious infrastructure in our community. And leaders of our local green movement are striving to make environmental action social and fun.

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By Lisette Johnson

Although the invention of paper dates back two millenia, it wasn’t until the 20th century that paper products for the home were readily available, and it took another couple decades for them to become ubiquitous in American households. Using disposable cleaning products became a mark of wealth and prosperity rather than waste and irresponsibility. That notion is changing as we move into the second decade of the 21st century, when over 30 percent of the waste in U.S. landfills consists of paper products, most of which could be recycled or replaced with reusable counterparts.

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by Anya Szykitka

Think that the worst effects of climate change are in the distant future? Think again. Not only does carbon dioxide—a by-product of burning coal, oil, and gas—stay in the atmosphere and trap heat, it’s also absorbed by the world’s oceans. According to a 2005 report by the Royal Society, a U.K. fellowship of prominent scientists, oceans are nearly maxed-out in their capacity to hold carbon dioxide, changing the chemistry of the water, pushing acidity levels to those not known in hundreds of millennia. Ocean life—from microscopic plankton to coral reefs to fish—could be obliterated by the year 2100 as a result.

Most vulnerable are the shell-growing organisms, which, in the lower ph conditions (acidity rises), are unable to produce sufficient calcium carbonate to grow shells. Measurements have shown that ocean shells are becoming thinner and thinner as the water’s ph levels become lower. But it’s not just starfish, urchins, and the other usual suspects who could have a hard time, it’s microscopic plankton as well. The shelled plankton support entire ocean food chains, from fish, to whales, to seals, to birds, to—us. When the plankton can no longer survive because they can’t grow shells, whole ocean ecosystems could collapse, with polar regions especially susceptible, according to studies outlined in ScienceDaily (Feb. 2010), an online magazine. In addition, lower ph levels may cause existing shells to deteriorate, leaving their inhabitants even more vulnerable to predators and other threats. Coral reefs, which are home to 30 to 34 percent of Earth’s animal phyla—the tropical rainforests of the oceans—and which are already dying because of higher temperatures, pollution, and disease, will also be especially vulnerable to increased acidity.  If the current rate of carbon dioxide absorption continues, it’s estimated that lack of plankton could cause the death of major ecosystems by the end of THIS century. That’s in about 90 years. That means that if you have children, or are planning to, they might live in a world without ocean fish, or whales, or seals, or seabirds…

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The Toll of Contamination
By Athena Ponushis, Photo by Maria Howell

Laura Hoffman grew tomatoes in her backyard. She made sauce. She fed her six children. But every morning, when the stay-at-home mom would walk out to her Greenpoint garden, she would see her tomatoes were grey – yes, grey – as if someone had dumped an ashtray on her red fruit. This was the mid-‘80s. Laura simply picked up her hose and washed the ash off her food.

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