Most of us know about paper, cardboard, glass, and plastic recycling, but what on Earth is chemical recycling? No, it is not recycling lab waste - it is the industry's new term for incinerating plastic, and the fossil-fuel companies' latest enthusiasm. Eco-Logic guests this week are Alexis Goldsmith and Lisa Ramsden. They will discuss the successes so far and what needs to be done.

Alexis Goldsmith is Beyond Plastics' National Organizing Director. Long-time listeners will have heard her on previous Eco-Logic programs speaking about plastics, in particular our show about nurdles and about "Demystifying plastics." She has a background in grassroots environmental organizing and independent media. Alexis points out, "The pandemic increased our use of single-use plastics and made the problem worse." New legislation aims to address the problem. She will discuss a recent success in Maine, where chemical recycling is not allowed to be called recycling.

Lisa Ramsden is a Senior Oceans Campaigner at Greenpeace USA living in Durham, NC. She has worked on several campaigns in various roles for more than a decade, including the fight to keep Shell Oil from drilling in the Arctic, and the ongoing struggle to keep corporations from producing single-use plastics that end up in our oceans, via the Global Plastics Treaty. She has sailed on all of Greenpeace's ships up and down both coasts of the US, to the Alaskan Arctic, and through the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

They will cover:
• What is chemical recycling?
• Is chemical recycling a solution to pollution as industry claims?
• What do they do with the materials they collect?
• Who regulates these chemicals they use?
• Are chemicals regulated in combination with each other?
• What can we do about all this?

What is Section 120 of the Clean Air Act and why is it important?

Chemical recycling is technically incineration.

As with most environmental issues there is a need for a combination of corporate campaigning and government and individual choices.

Our environmental stories today cover the historic ruling in Hawai'i passing State law to prevent harmful seabed mining and another historic victory, this one for rivers, an Ecuadorian judge rules that pollution violates river's rights.

We have some environmental announcements for you. The Summer of Heat protests against Citigroup's funding of fossil fuels is in week 6 out of 12. This week the focus is financing wars which also means fueling the climate crisis: wars spew pollution and destroy life-sustaining ecosystems worldwide.

And The People's Music Network, PMN, will host its Mid-Summer Convergence on July 19 and 20 at 235 W 23rd Street in NYC. PMN is a diverse community of inspired musicians and activists using music for peace and justice. The event includes sharing songs, workshops, shared meals, and an evening collaborative concert. Please see www.peoplesmusic.org for more information.

This week's environmental music has Brian Goodall singing his song "Goes Around, Comes Around."

And...
Join us Wednesday July 24th at 10am EDT.

Listen live anywhere in the world.

Stay tuned,
Ken Gale, Donna Stein & Sally Gellert

When the air or water are clean, thank an environmentalist. If not, become one. 'Nuff Said!

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