Dumpster dive | January 24, 2025

Photo by Shannon Kunkle on Unsplash

• The loss from the Los Angeles wildfires is staggering, with over 15,000 structures damaged or destroyed, neighborhoods wiped out, dozens killed, and lives and landscapes unimaginably altered. The need for donations grows as fire continues to ravage the area. Here are some vetted charities to consider:

  • California Community Foundation's Wildfire Recovery Fund

  • American Red Cross

  • Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation

  • If you'd rather donate to a specific individual or family, GoFundMe has set up a dedicated page

Keep in mind that money is preferred to physical donations, such as clothing, blankets, furniture, household goods, and food. Physical donations can be overwhelming for donation centers, and since the centers don't always have the resources for sorting, storing, and distributing physical donations, these items often end up in a landfill. Check with your local centers first to see what items they need.

• While last fall's hurricanes Helene and Milton left behind mountains of contaminated debris, the LA wildfires have left residents with air pollution so bad it raises fears over super toxic lung damage. Today's urban areas have become tinderboxes of plastics and synthetic polymers—present in furniture, mattresses, carpet, flooring, electronics, appliances, car parts and tires, clothing, toys, and nearly everything else that surrounds us—and when burned they produce toxic smoke full of VOCs, including highly carcinogenic benzene and other contaminants. Joel Kaufman, a professor of environmental health and medicine at the University of Washington, explains, “What’s a little bit different in this fire is that we don’t really know the toxicity of a fire that includes so much in the way of buildings that have burned and anthropogenic materials. What’s burning in the businesses and in all the houses are not the same things that would burn in a forest fire. Some of what’s getting in the air can have toxic effects that we don’t really know at this point.” Those same toxins are also present in the resulting ash, making cleanup a particularly hazardous task. [The Guardian]

  
  

• Toxic water is another widespread consequence, resulting in do-not-use or do-not-drink water advisories since the LA wildfires began. When water systems lose pressure, as when hydrants run dry, the resulting suction pulls air into the pipes, or in this case, toxic smoke full of VOCs. Those toxic chemicals are then absorbed by biofilm, microorganisms that coat the insides of the pipes. To restore conditions for safe drinking water, pipes either need to be flushed repeatedly or replaced altogether. [LA Times]

  
  

• LA suburbs have become coated in the pink powder used to combat the LA wildfires. The powder is a flame retardant called Phos-Chek that becomes more difficult to remove the longer it sits. Apparently, it's non-toxic, but since it was originally developed by Monsanto and contains trade secret "performance additives," suspicion lurks. Environmental groups have argued that Phos-Chek harms aquatic life and causes detrimental long-term effects on soils, insects, and microbiology. At least it doesn't contain intentionally added PFAS chemicals? [The BBC]

  
  

• Lately I've run across multiple articles and posts asking that we stop applying the phrase "natural disaster" to extreme climate events caused by human activities, and instead simply call them "disasters." The rationale makes sense: These disasters, occurring more frequently and with greater intensity, are not natural, and referring to them as such implies that nature is to blame.

  
  

• If you're curious what the climate for your area will be like in 2080, look to this interactive map from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Type in your city's name to see its expected climate and be matched with a location that today exhibits those conditions.

  
  

• Back in 1993, Octavia Butler gave us another glimpse into the future with "Parables of the Sower." The novel starts off in 2024, in a gated community twenty miles from Los Angeles. Society in the US has become unstable as a result of climate change, growing wealth inequality, and corporate greed. Rain is scarce, and fires are a constant threat. As the book unfolds, a newly elected autocratic president takes office, aiming to restore the country's "greatness." The post-apocalyptic, speculative fiction is uncomfortably close to the present, as if it might one day be reclassified as historical fiction.

  
  

• Popular Science answers the question, Why can't we just launch all of Earth's garbage into the sun? The short answer is that we probably would if doing so were cost effective.

  
  

• For now, the US makes do by relying on other countries as trash cans, since it's often cheaper for companies to send their waste elsewhere than deal with it themselves. Liability is another reason why the US sends nearly 1.4m tons of toxic waste to Mexico, Canada, and South Korea each year. By offloading the waste, companies also offload the liability, and once toxic waste is exported, the US no longer has the authority to regulate it. The waste usually ends up in countries where environmental oversight is weakest and at facilities that aren't equipped to handle it responsibly. One investigation found high levels of lead and arsenic in homes and schools near a factory in Mexico that processes US toxic waste. A few days after the details were reported, Mexican authorities ordered the factory to shut down. [The Guardian]

  
  

• "Got it, I promise not to freak out." That's the disclaimer on the PlasticList database, which documents the plastic contamination found in everyday foods. Nearly 300 food products from well-known American brands were tested, and 86% were found to contain plastic chemicals. The highest levels were found not just in fast foods, but also seafood, common kitchen staples, and bottled water. Upscale, healthy, and organic foods, including produce, weren't exempt, either. Some general takeaways: Less-processed foods contain fewer plastic chemicals than highly processed ones, and hot takeout foods take on higher levels of chemicals the longer they sit in their containers.

  
  

• Are you freaking out? Let me introduce you to one5c, which for me is a newly discovered resource that "surfaces the meaningful changes everyday folks can make to help save the world." It's climate-action information that's easy to digest and served with a dose of optimism, which is something I believe we can all use right now. Check out their website, follow them on Instagram, or subscribe to their free newsletter.

  
  

• Speaking of good things: Shortly after I watched the documentary "Martha" on Netflix, the Internet spies decided to add this Martha Stewart article on junk journals to my news feed. Unlike traditional scrapbooks, which tend to be intentional, thematic, and linear, junk journals are viewed more as creative forms of self-expression that evolve over time. I do have some unattended journals, plenty of ephemera, and several drawers of literal garbage I've collected, so I may have found a new hobby to calm my nerves.

  
  

• More Martha vibes: I have several friends who've thrifted whimsical collections of mismatched vintage plates and glassware that they use instead of disposables when hosting gatherings. A fabulous and inexpensive way to reduce waste, but if you start your own collection, be sure to test your vintage finds for lead, since lead paint wasn't banned in the US until 1978 and nearly all vintage glassware contains lead. These easy-to-use lead test swabs provide results in 30 seconds. [CNET]