EarthTalk Q&A

Since the dawn of the automobile age, residents of urban areas worldwide have been choking on exhaust fumes and tempting fate every time they enter a crosswalk. According to J.H. Crawford, author of the book, Carfree Cities, as much as 70 percent of downtown space in most

Many fruits and vegetables sold in the United States today are treated with pesticides, and residues of these potentially harmful chemicals often remain on their surfaces. Rinsing all produce thoroughly before eating is always a good idea, but many pesticides, fungicides and other agricultural

Fiberglass, a common home insulator that grew popular after the dangers of asbestos became more widely known, is itself now associated with a range of health issues. Microscopic slivers of fiberglass can break loose during handling and be inhaled, irritating the lining of the respiratory

Although salt and various salt derivatives melt ice effectively and make both walkways and roads safer, they can be damaging to the environment. After salt is applied, it washes off paved surfaces into storm drains or onto adjacent ground,

The tsunami that devastated Southeast Asia in December was a natural catastrophe triggered by a massive undersea earthquake. But rampant coastal development in recent years—which removed the mangrove forests and coral reefs that had previously

The tsunami that devastated Southeast Asia in December was a natural catastrophe triggered by a massive undersea earthquake. But rampant coastal development in recent years—which removed the mangrove forests

In E – The Environmental Magazine’s January/February 2002 cover story, “So You’re an Environmentalist
Why Are You Still Eating Meat?” author Jim Motavalli wrote, “Just about every aspect of meat production—from grazing-related loss of cropland and open space, to the inefficiencies of feeding vast quantities of water and grain to cattle in a hungry world

Arsenic occurs naturally in our environment, and there are trace amounts of it in all living matter. In fact, arsenic is part of the Earth’s crust, and as a natural component of underground rock and soil it can work its way into our groundwater in amounts that pose little or no threat to human health.

Just 30 years ago, the once-abundant bald eagle—America’s national symbol—was in danger of extinction in its primary habitat across the lower 48 states. Hunting, sprawl and poisoning from the agricultural pesticide DDT had conspired