Eight cigarette buttlers are now installed downtown, with 12 more coming, in an attempt to keep the city clean and lessen pollution runoff into the ocean. The Gloucester Clean City Commission received a $2,500 Cigarette Litter Prevention Program grant from Keep America Beautiful in March and used the money to buy 20 buttlers. Commissioners Ainsley Smith, Nick Iliades, Beverly Low and Eric Magers installing seven buttlers on Main Street themselves Wednesday evening.. "Its' a pretty easy process," Smith said. "For the most part we put them up there with simple hand tools and they're sturdy so we're feeling good about that."

It has been estimated that lab plastics waste accounted for 5.5 million tons in 2014 (http://www.nature.com/nature/index.html), roughly the combined tonnage of 67 cruise liners. The quantity and variety of waste generated depends on the type of laboratory, as the laboratory and research industry can be broadly defined to include hospitals, universities, pharmaceutical corporations, and regulatory agencies. Every lab is different and creates a mix of natural and synthetic materials, which may include glass, plastic, hybrid material lab garments, and nitrile and rubber gloves.

Local musicians are invited to attend a free recycle and restring event at JC Music in Meriden Saturday, August 5 at 10 a.m. Sponsored by D’Addario, musicians can bring any old instrument strings for recycling and get their electric or acoustic guitars restrung with D’Addario NYXL or Nickel Bronze Acoustic strings. Old strings collected during the event will be recycled through Playback, D’Addario’s free, national recycling program. JC Music is a family owned, full-line music store, which has been serving the Connecticut music market for the past 30 years. The store offers one of New England's largest selections of new and used musical instruments and stocks a huge selection of print music and accessories, including 130 different models of guitar strings. JC Music has an on-site ProShop and repairs any type of musical instrument or equipment. The store offers both instrumental and vocal lessons in its education center, and students perform twice a year in their popular student showcase concerts. JC Music also visits schools throughout Connecticut and is now the fourth largest band and orchestra rental store within their affiliate network in the United States.  

Alright, it is that "Back to School Shopping" time of year again, and honestly, I remember loving it as a kid. When else could I get my Lisa Frank Trapper Keeper with awesome Lisa Frank folders, none of which would get much use during the year (organization has never been my game). I also loved the new outfits and getting dressed up for the first day  of school- I mean, come on! Who can step to that freshness!? It's a sunflower hat and a jumpsuit for goodness sake! On the other hand, businesses like to create a panic that your students NEEDS about 100 things. Of course you need 75 glue sticks- you don't want to raise the pariah with only 74! These stores and schools push these epic lists, but what do your kids actually need? My Dad wrote a blog over at Curmudgecation  from the teacher's perspective about what exactly needs bought for Back to School- his bottom line? Chill. You don't need as much as you think, and good communication with the teacher might surprise you about what can be helpful to send with your student to school. If you really want to help them out, a box of tissues (which you can get recycled!) might be a lot more help than buying yet another single glue stick to dry out by the end of the year.

Recycling comes naturally to me; I do it every day in my small soap making business. But for some, it takes more of an effort. If it’s not something you do all the time, it’s easy to get out of the habit. I want to train my customers to help in the recycling effort, so I’m doing a few things to make it easier for them.

Our CEO Rick Fedrizzi often talks about the Second Wave of sustainability. At IWBI, we believe that sustainability extends far beyond environmental protections. Just as WELL is for people, we believe that sustainability is about helping people make the best choices for both the environment and their health.

Personally, I’ve long been interested in the intersection of food and nutrition with health and sustainability. Our land, our health and our food systems are so intricately connected and dependent on one another that it’s almost impossible to address one without affecting the other. Think about it: we can only cultivate healthy, nutritious food in soil that is well taken care of. If we neglect the land, then the food suffers. If the food suffers, then human health suffers.

Whether you like it or not, bottled water is here to stay. It’s portable, accessible and a convenient way to stay healthy with fresh, purified water every day. Unfortunately, Americans throw out around 60 million of these plastic bottles daily. But there are plenty of ways to stem the tide of this massive waste stream. By making simple, versatile swaps, you can stay hydrated this summer and all year long without ever touching a disposable water bottle again.

Manufacturers are constantly looking for new, more efficient ways to deliver food to hungry consumers. But unfortunately, technologies that promise to bring you your grub quicker aren't always so easy on the environment. Here are some common packaging options ranked by eco-friendliness—starting with the worst offenders and working up to greener options. Every purchase counts, so by putting your dollar toward packaging that's easier on the environment, you're acting as a change-maker and influencing companies and manufacturers to do better.