Go Green. Live Green.

From the Louisville Charter's website, I think the six suggested reforms for our nation's chemical policy are really important to protect our health and the environment. For the first reform about requiring safer substitutes and solutions, I think it is really important to find an alternative chemical that it is safer to use. For the second reform, the government should prioritize people's health and eliminate the chemicals that are toxic for us. For the third reform, I agree that we need to be involve in deciding about problems/issues with chemicals because we are also the one that are being harm by it. We need to know if toxic chemicals are in the products that we use so we can make better decisions. For the fourth reform, it is important to act right away and stop chemicals from being produced or use once there is evidence that it can harm people and the environment. For the fifth reform, I agree that manufacturers need to be transparent and provide safety information a...

I think the first essential step for an ideal chemical policy is to learn about the problem in the past up to the present time. It is important to understand the policies that was implemented successfully and the policies that failed. It is also important to hear from the communities for suggestions and comments about the toxic chemical problems. The second step of a chemical policy should be requiring companies to list all the chemicals that they use in their product. The third step should be reviewing all companies/manufacturers that produce products that contained chemicals. The chemical content of all the products needs to be review and examine if it’s safe for people. For new chemicals, they should not be allowed to hit the market without a long review process about its content and safety. From one of the videos that I saw, Europe legally enforced a maximum residue level for pesticide residues. This is the amount allowed for pesticide residues to be found in food and this amount ...

I had chicken with some corn and rice last night. For the chicken, there were no pesticide residues. For the corn, I learned that there were 15 pesticide residues found by the USDA Pesticide Data Program. Among these pesticide residues, there were 9 suspected hormone disruptors, 5 known or probable carcinogens, 5 neurotoxins, and 1 developmental or reproductive toxins that can affect the human health. There were also 7 honeybee toxins found in the corn. For the rice, I learned that there were also 15 pesticide residues. Among these pesticide residues, there were 10 suspected hormone disruptors, 4 known or probable carcinogens, 3 developmental or reproductive toxins, and 2 neurotoxins that can affect the human health. There were 6 honeybee toxins that can affect the environment. I was so surprised to find out that the corn and rice that I ate last night both have 15 pesticide residues. That means my one meal contained a total of 30 pesticide residues. That number is big! It’s scary to ...

My topic for my literature review: Harmful chemicals like phthalates in clothes What agencies at the local, state, federal, and/or international level provide information, regulatory oversight, or are otherwise implicated in addressing that topic? The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is an agency that enforces the Textile Products Identification. They inspect the information in the labels of the clothes. They make sure that the clothing was labeled correctly with its fabric content. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is an agency that enforces the law about not using harmful chemicals in the clothes like some flame retardants and heavy metals.

Department of Agriculture The Department of Agriculture protects the environmental health by managing farming, food, and natural resources. This agency promotes agriculture production and trade. They provide services and help farmers and ranchers. They support sustainable management which I think it’s very important for today’s generations and future generations. In addition, they protect the health of the land and animals. They secure that all food products are labeled properly and safe for consumption. Their vision is for America’s agriculture to continue to flourish and improve the quality of life in rural America. The agency preserves our natural resources through healthy private working lands, restored forests, improved watersheds, and conservation. The agency also helps with the negative effects of climate change to our lands. They educate farmers about climate change and offer supports for heat stress, drought, pests, floods, and other changes caused by climate change. I thin...

S an Francisco Department of Public Health – Environmental Services Their mission is to implement San Francisco’s health-protective environmental policies and laws such as habitable housing, safe and nutritious food, and clean water, air, and soil. They also want to prevent people from exposure of noise pollution and toxic chemicals. They also have business regulations for tattoo, piercing and permanent cosmetic facilities, massage establishments, medical cannabis dispensaries, and facilities that sells tobacco products. I also found out that they have a Weights & Measures Program which surprised me. The program is about protecting the consumer from inaccurate scales, taximeters, and other measuring devices. SF Environment Their mission is to provide solutions for climate change and improve the quality of life for all San Franciscans. They have services for transportation, energy, buildings and environments, waste, and climate change issues. They also have services for red...

Utilizing the first article, discuss what is locally grown and what is currently in season in your area. In addition, the seasonal foods can help in reducing the gas emissions from vehicles that are used to transport food. In San Francisco, the vegetables and fruits that are locally grown in San Francisco are bell peppers, herbs, tomatoes, leafy greens, lemon, cherry, peach, pear, plum, and dwarf apple. According to the Local Harvest website, the fruits in season in San Francisco are avocados, dates, figs, grapefruits, pears, pomegranates, peaches, and cranberries. According to the SF environment website, the vegetables in season are arugula, bok choy, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, collard greens, kale, swiss chard, eggplant, fennel, okra, snap peas, winter squash, and tomatoes. Websites URL: https://www.localharvest.org/store/fruits.jsp https://sfenvironment.org/vegetables-fruits-in-season-bay-area Discuss your thoughts on seasonal/local foods and hospital menus.  ...

After reading the Antibiotic Resistance 101: How Antibiotic Misuse on Factory Farms Can Make you Sick article, I learned that antibiotics are losing their effectiveness because agriculture are misusing it for their livestock. In 2011, the article stated that the FDA reported that 80% of antibiotics are sold for agriculture use. This is my first time I heard about this fact and I’m really surprised that a big percentage of antibiotics are used for animals. According to the article, agriculture uses antibiotics to prevent disease and promote growth among their livestock. They give their animals low doses of antibiotic over a long period of time. In result, these animals can develop antibiotic-resistant (AR) bacteria. People can get the AR bacteria if they eat the meat of animals that are contaminated by AR. The article mentioned that FDA banned the use of some antibiotics for agriculture. Why can’t they ban it all? I think the congress and FDA need to work together and enforce the use...

Your thoughts about the vanishing of bees (what else have you heard/seen about this issue?) After watching the “Vanishing of Bees,” I was surprised to learn that bees are disappearing. This is the first time I heard about the colony collapse disorder (CCD). It was surprising to know that CCD is documented in 35 states and beekeepers are losing at least 30% of the hives per year. Honestly, I ran whenever I see a bee flying near me. After watching this film, I realized that they play an important role in growing our fruits and vegetables. Farmers need to stop using pesticides that might be killing the bees. I like the idea about sustainable agriculture. Farmers need to stop using pesticides that might not only be harming the bees but also people. Dirt!: The Movie  After watching “Dirt: The Movie,” I appreciate dirt more. I think people take dirt for granted. I learned that numerous species can be found in dirt. I saw in the film that dirt is sacred in some places, lik...