Attic Squirrels
By Amy Miller
Honey, come quick, I called.
What, what is it?
Just come listen.
We listened. We waited. They scratched. And scratched. We looked at each other. And we knew. These were no mice, these were squirrels. Or raccoons. Or some animal that would laugh at a mousetrap.
By the next day the scratching had stopped.
Our neighbor was not so lucky. For months she tried traps and barriers to get rid of her squirrels. She paid experts. And in the end she had to chainsaw nine-tenths of the branches off her giant pine trees to eliminate the bridges the squirrels were using to her rooftop.
My friend’s mother also wasn’t so lucky. All the boxes stored in her attic fell apart because squirrels apparently munched on the glue holding the boxes together.
According to one web site, about 15,000 homes fires each year are caused by squirrels and other rodents chewing on wiring. (Yes, a squirrel is a rodent).
While it’s not so hard to find a squirrel or its nest on a roof, once they are inside the house they will win the game of hide-and-seek hands down.
The Eastern Gray Squirrel is one of the most common pests. At 16 to 18 inches and weighing about a pound, they get in through small holes that they gnaw wider. They bring nesting material with them and make noise scurrying around storing their nuts, seeds, fungi or fruit. They may fall down the chimney or down a wall from the attic and get stuck.
A survey of web sites makes it clear that solving this problem is no picnic. You can try trapping them, locking them out, or quickly sealing up holes if you know they are out to get lunch and water.
I heard one story of a mother squirrel and her babies that camped out in an attic, but when the babies grew up they all left on their own, taking up residence in a new nest in a nearby tree.
Be warned, if someone recommends using mothballs, forget it; it’s illegal. The EPA allows moth balls for moths and caterpillers only. This is because moth balls are toxic to humans and pets.
EPA tells landlords that if squirrels are in a house, the tenants should be told of integrated pest management techniques, and advised to fix screens, remove clutter and eliminate wood piles. In addition, holes should be patched with pest-resistant materials and mesh should be used to cover air intake and exhaust vents.
I wonder what tricks others have used to get rid of their squirrels.
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About the author: Amy Miller is a writer who works in the public affairs office of EPA New England in Boston. She lives in Maine with her husband, two children, seven chickens, two parakeets, dog and a great community.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
My Sister, Car-less Linda
Each Monday we write about the New England environment and way of life seen through our local perspective. Previous posts
By Amy Miller
My sister Linda was feeling left out recently because she never makes it into my blogs. And really, she is quite deserving. After all, she gave up her car more than two years ago. As in no car. As in buses and bikes and walking and car-sharing. Oh, and her husband’s car for late night trips to the hardware store.
Only 5 percent of adult Americans live without a car. I venture to say most of them live in New York City, where only half the people own cars. Which makes Linda, who lives in the almost urban suburb of Brookline, an anomaly.
According to government statistics, we in the US are the densest car-owning population in the world, except the tiny country of Monaco. And the countries right behind us are Luxembourg and Lichtenstein.
Linda came by this way of life when she traded her old wagon to a contractor in exchange for construction work. He really, really wanted her vegetable oil car. And she was sick of worrying she would destroy the thing by pumping regular gas instead of diesel.
So Linda admits she uses a car sharing service about three times a week at $7.50 to $9 an hour. And that this may amount to as much as owning a car. (I kind of doubt it.) But she is still committed to the beauty of this carless life.
“I don’t want to figure it out because it might be more expensive this way but it makes me happier,” she said.
Like the other night, she considered walking the two minutes to Cypress Street to get a car to go to Jamaica Plain for takeout Cambodian food. Then she nearly changed her dinner plans to avoid the drive. But in the end she jogged around Jamaica Pond for her dinner and came back smiling.
“I was in the best mood. It was snowing and it was beautiful,” she reported. “But if I had a car I certainly would have gotten in it and that would have been that.”
Furthermore, said this mother of a ninth- and fourth-grader, “The kids even talk more if we’re walking.”
And to justify the economics, Linda has a foolproof fallback thought.
“The other day when I was speed walking I thought, you know, I really don’t have to go to a gym, so I am saving money there. I am getting so much more exercise.”
About the author: Amy Miller is a writer who works in the public affairs office of EPA New England in Boston. She lives in Maine with her husband, two children, seven chickens, two parakeets, dog and a great community.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Making a Healthy Home for a Healthier Life
By Lina Younes
There are many expressions regarding the concept of the home. My favorites are “home is where the heart is” and in Spanish, the welcoming expression, “mi casa es su casa” (my home is your home). But have you stopped to think if your home is truly a warm, inviting and HEALTHY environment?
Did you know that our homes may have hidden environmental risks that may affect our health? What are some of these environmental risks?
- Indoor air quality – Poor ventilation systems may lead to indoor air pollution that in turn can adversely affect people with asthma or heart and respiratory problems.
- Mold – Do you have a leaky faucet or roof? Excess moisture may lead to the growth of mold which is a known trigger of asthma attacks.
- Lead – Was your house built before 1978? It may have lead-based paint. Lead is a toxic metal that adversely affects people’s nervous system and causes behavioral, learning and hearing problems.
- Radon – Did you know that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers? Radon is an invisible and odorless gas produced during the natural process of the decomposition of uranium. The gas may accumulate inside your home leading to radon exposure. Have your home tested!
- Pests – Household pests can carry diseases and trigger asthma attacks. Use integrated pest management techniques. Don’t give pests any food, water or shelter in your home.
- Pesticides: Read the label before using pesticides to get rid of pests. Used improperly, pesticides may harm a developing child by blocking the absorption of food nutrients necessary for normal growth. Also, during “critical periods” of human development (including infancy and childhood), exposure to toxins can permanently alter the way a person’s biological systems operate.
Given these potential environmental hazards in our home that may lead to serious public health problems, federal agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), are working to improve the safety of your home. Just this week, EPA and its sister agencies launched a new initiative “Advancing Healthy Housing – A Strategy for Action” to establish a comprehensive agenda for addressing environmental health and safety hazards in our nation’s housing.
Advancing Healthy Housing – A Strategy for Action shows how federal agencies and our partners, at all levels, can collaborate to prevent health threats associated with the home environment. You can do your part to make sure your home is safe for you and your family. Simple steps for identifying and addressing hazards in the home can be found in EPA’s Healthy Homes brochure, “Make Your House a Healthy Home.”
About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and currently serves the Multilingual Outreach and Communications Liaison for EPA. She manages EPA’s social media efforts in Spanish. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
New Recycling Law in Pennsylvania
By Dan Gallo, EPA Region 3
If you live in Pennsylvania, important changes have taken place on how you dispose of electronics equipment. As of January 24, 2013 Pennsylvania residents can no longer put electronics like televisions, stereos and computers out with their regular trash.
So, what are you supposed to do? Well, there are outlets for finding new homes for your electronics that focus on donating them or taking them to retailers who will help with recycling.
Under Pennsylvania’s Covered Device Recycling Act, manufacturers and retailers of electronics sold in Pennsylvania must conduct recycling programs. For example, if you take your electronics to Best Buy they will send them to a certified electronics recycler, and depending on the condition, the item will be refurbished or repaired, reused, or recycled for parts and materials.
Other retailers also offer take-back services, and most Goodwill locations will accept your old electronics. For other resources, check out EPA’s Electronics Donation and Recycling page or the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Electronics Collection Programs page.
Besides saving materials, recycling of electronics also saves energy because it takes huge amounts of energy to extract the resources needed to produce the plastics, precious metals and rare earth elements that are used in electronics. Recycling one million laptops saves enough energy to power 3,657 homes for an entire year! Collecting one metric ton of circuit boards from old computers can recover 40 to 800 times the amount of gold and 30 to 40 times the amount of copper mined from one metric ton of ore.
Donating your electronics can also help the needy. So, even if you don’t live in Pennsylvania, consider donating your electronics for reuse and recycling to help others and help to save the planet too.
About the author: Dan Gallo has been working for EPA since 1989 and has served as the Electronics Recycling Coordinator for the Mid-Atlantic Region since 2007. Previously, Dan worked for 11 years as the Enforcement Coordinator for the Lead-Based Paint Program. Dan has a Masters Degree in Public Administration and also a Juris Doctorate. Interested in green buildings, he has earned certification as a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Accredited Professional. Dan also helped to found a local homeless family transition program that he supports.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Breaking the Ice
By Cameron Davis
Midwesterners as a general rule are a friendly bunch. They don’t gripe much. Even harsh winters—for which the region is legendary—typically draw commentary, not complaints.
So while recent temperatures are eliciting lots of opinions on city streets and in offices, one thing that’s not drawing as many comments is Great Lakes water levels. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lakes Michigan and Huron (hydrologically counted as the same lake) reached record low levels in December, the lowest recorded levels since the previous record, in 1964.
Warmer air temps mean warmer water temperatures, both of which mean falling lake levels. Warmer water temperatures mean the Great Lakes don’t get as much ice in winter time. Ice seals in water and reduces evaporation.
‘So what?’ you might ask because most people don’t use their coasts in wintertime.
Though lower levels may mean wider beaches for summer recreating, there are many other impacts that hurt recreation. Warmer water temperatures can mean more swimming advisories as conditions improve for harmful pathogens. Boats can have a more difficult time getting in and out of their ports as lake levels drop, which means more sediment can be stirred up when dredging needs to happen so boats can move. The list of impacts goes on.
Check out the Corps’ forecasts for yourself.
And, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has a new “dashboard” to help you understand water.
Find out more about our Great Lakes restoration efforts, or follow me on Twitter (@CameronDavisEPA). If you missed out on Great Lakes Week and still have questions, feel free to ask them in the comment box or send me a tweet.
About the author: Cameron Davis is Senior Advisor to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. He provides counsel on Great Lakes matters, including the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Single Stream Recycling for New England Communities
Each Monday we write about the New England environment and way of life seen through our local perspective. Previous posts
By Amy Miller
I stand there staring into the bin of crushed white office paper and newspaper, unwilling to let go of my empty diet soda can. I am supposed to toss it in. I know that this is where our recyclables go now. But old habits die hard. And I have been trained – finally – to sort my plastics, papers, cans and glass into an array of containers, so I am having trouble throwing them together to let some far-off machine undo this miasma.
But our office has gone to what’s called “single stream recycling” and this is what I must do.
You would think it would be easy, a no-brainer. And in the end, it certainly simplifies things to be collecting all bottles, papers and cans into the same bin.
Statistics bear this out. For instance, the town of Wilton, Maine, switched to single stream recycling last fall. It will save thousands of dollars a year, according to the Portland, Maine, newspaper.
Early stats find Wilton residents throwing away 5.5 to 8.5 tons less trash each month and recycling about that much more. Town officials translated this into a savings of anywhere from $4,200 to $6,600 a year. This savings is attributed to the fact that it costs about $65 a ton to dispose of trash and $33 a ton to get rid of recyclables.
And Wilton is far from alone.
According to Massachusetts environmental officials, single stream recycling began on the west coast 10 years ago and reached the Commonwealth in 2006. About 30 Massachusetts communities have converted to single stream, and more are planning the conversion.
The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority reported it has increased diversion rates (the amount diverted from trash to recycling) for six straight years, largely thanks to single-stream recycling.
I joined a group of EPA employees last year to see how single stream recyclables get separated. The giant machinery involved gravity, wind, filters, conveyor belts and lots of workers removing plastic bags.
Huge truckloads of cans, jars, newspaper, office paper, yogurt containers and you- name-it were dumped on conveyor belts and sorted into separate piles, with only a few alien pieces in each collection.
And so slowly I am adjusting. I have learned the joy of throwing my cans and cups in one container I still feel like I am littering, but at least I get to feel good about it.
About the author: Amy Miller is a writer who works in the public affairs office of EPA New England in Boston. She lives in Maine with her husband, two children, seven chickens, two parakeets, dog and a great community.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Working Together for a Successful Cleanup Leads to Revitalization and Economic Opportunity for a Utah Community
By Craig Boehr
The Midvale Slag Superfund Site, located in Midvale City, Utah, is adjacent to the city’s downtown area and is about twelve miles south of Salt Lake City. Smelters operated on the site from 1871 through 1958, which resulted in the contamination of soil and groundwater with heavy metals. EPA representatives, the Midvale City government, and the site’s owner all worked together to successfully clean up the site and transform the once contaminated property into a thriving multi-use redevelopment project that has revitalized the local economy.
As is often the case, reuse projects that involve liability concerns require creative uses of enforcement tools in order to secure the successful clean up of sites. At Midvale Slag, EPA’s attorneys and project managers negotiated a consent decree with Midvale City and the site’s current owner, which was signed in 2004. The consent decree included innovative provisions that allowed the owner to pay for cleanup and be incrementally reimbursed with money from a special account set up for the site. The account was funded through settlements with responsible parties (those who had contributed to the contamination at the site), and the money could only be used for cleanup purposes. This enforcement approach enabled the site’s owner to clean the site up at a lower cost and laid the groundwork for Midvale City’s vision for future development.
The consent decree also established long-term stewardship principles at the site by clarifying parties’ ongoing cleanup roles and responsibilities, and addressed the concerns of potential future owners by including a section on the bona fide prospective purchaser (BFPP) liability protection. Under Superfund, BFPPs are not liable as an owner/operator for cleanup costs, reducing a potential barrier to future redevelopment at a contaminated site.
Through these efforts, a once stagnant, contaminated property has been transformed into a valuable part of Midvale City. Currently, the site includes:
- A 95,000-square-foot grocery store,
- 175,000 square feet of Gold and Silver LEED-certified office space,
- More than 1,000 completed residential units,
- A Utah Transit Authority (UTA) light rail station,
- An 18-acre park with local and regional trails, and
- 20 acres of open space with a wetland mitigation area.
According to Midvale officials, it is estimated that the cleanup has already resulted in approximately 600 new jobs and about $1.5 million in annual property tax revenues. For more information on how the EPA helped to turn the Midvale Slag site into a community asset, please see our recently-published case study.
About the author: Craig Boehr is an attorney in the Office of Site Remediation Enforcement, which is the enforcement office for the Superfund program.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
How Safe Are Your Wood-Carving Arts and Crafts?
By LuzV Garcia, MS, ME
Traditionally, Puerto Rico celebrates Three Kings Day on January 6th. In Puerto Rico, the Three Kings or Three Wise Men are commonly depicted in wood carved sculptures by local artisans.
There is another difference in their portrayal in Puerto Rico. The artistic depictions of our Three Kings show them riding horses instead of camels. There are a variety of iconographic images where the Three Kings are riding to the left as if following the Bethlehem star. There are other images where the Kings are standing holding the gifts of gold, incense and myrrh.
While local artisans use local woods, bamboo, metals, and paints in their arts and crafts, there is a risk that some artists may still use lead-based paint in some of their crafts.
Wood painting is an art that has existed for centuries. In fact, Greeks first developed the technique of wood painting back in the Sixth century BC!
One of the environmental problems associated with wood carving is the use of chemicals or synthetic pigments such as white lead (basic lead carbonate), red and hydrated yellow ochre. We know that some colors such as black were generated from charcoal or carbon black pigment.
The original organic pigments were generated from plant components that were mixed with resin or natural oils such as Linseed oil to dissolve the solid particles in the pigment. It is important to know that the natural tints were derived from plants, minerals and invertebrates that were pulverized and dissolved into a liquid media. Originally, artisans used egg yolk as the media to transfer the pigments. The technique is called “Tempera.” It was a long lasting technique and the pigments were all natural ingredients. Beeswax was also used to seal the pigment to the wood.
Around the 19th Century, natural dyes were replaced with mineral pigments made of lead and chromium. These pigments enhanced the natural color of wood. Artisans now have the option of using organic or synthetic materials. Ask your wood artisan what type of paint he uses when making these wood carvings to ensure that no one is exposed to toxic metals like chromium or lead.
To learn more about the health risks of lead, visit. While it’s important to keep traditions, it’s even more important to stay safe and healthy.
About the author: Ms. Luz V. García M.E. is a physical scientist at EPA’s Division of Enforcement of Compliance Assistance. She is a four-time recipient of the EPA bronze medal, most recently in 2011 for the discovery of illegal pesticides entry at U.S. Customs and Border Protection in New York.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Protecting Children Comes First
By Lina Younes
I hate pests! I loathe disease-carrying rodents with a passion.
Several years ago, I participated in the filming of a TV interview in Spanish with an expert in healthy homes. Together, we went room by room through a home and day care to identify potential environmental hazards and, above all, to learn how to keep areas pest free.
I found the experience very informative. Personally, I was struck by the behavior of rodents. Did you know that mice and small rats can fit through holes about the size of a quarter and can squeeze their way into your home and take up residence, nesting in corners and feeding on food crumbs? Yuck!
Likewise, small children have their own behavioral characteristics. They spend a lot of the time on the floor, crawling or playing. Their innate curiosity leads them to grab small articles they find along their way and often put them into their mouths, including mouse pellets they may find in open trays on the floor. More than 10,000 kids each year in the U.S. are exposed to mouse and rat pellets, often by putting them in their mouths. That is why EPA has been working with pesticide manufacturers to change consumer mouse and rat poisons to be sold in enclosed bait stations, to protect curious kids from the poison. The enclosed bait stations are also protective of household pets.
In addition, EPA is banning four of the most toxic poisons from consumer products, to protect wildlife. Mouse and rat poisons that you use inside your home can harm wildlife because poisoned rodents that venture outside can poison wildlife like hawks and foxes that ingest rodents as prey.
So, what can you do to keep your children safe from accidental poisonings in the home?
- Read the label first! By not following the instructions carefully, you can actually put your family at risk.
- Create barriers to prevent rodents from entering the home by closing cracks, using wire mesh along pipes, so that these unwanted visitors will not seek shelter in your home and you will need to use less poison.
Do you have any safety tips that you would like to share with us? We always like to hear from you.
About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and currently serves the Multilingual Outreach and Communications Liaison for EPA. She manages EPA’s social media efforts in Spanish. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Brown pelicans are among the many species of birds that visit Poplar Island
By Ross Geredien
Last November, I accompanied U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) biologists to inspect a unique habitat restoration project led by the FWS Chesapeake Bay office. Here’s my account of that day:
The wind stings my face as we skim across the water. To my left, the bay’s silvery sheen meets leaden clouds at the southern horizon. I look to my right and see a northern gannett, a large, oceanic bird, floating on the surface.
I’m on a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service workboat, heading across Chesapeake Bay at 24 knots. It’s a brisk morning, and our destination is Poplar Island, where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers deposits the dredge spoil from Baltimore Harbor’s approach channels.
Poplar once boasted a lively fishing community, complete with weekend retreats and abundant wildlife. From 1840 to 1990, erosion reduced the island to just 10 acres. Since 1998, however, spoil deposits have restored Poplar to over 1,100 acres of productive marshland, and wildlife is once again flourishing.
Upon reaching the island, some 90 brown pelicans perch nearby. “It’s unusual to see this many,” says Chris Guy, one of the biologists. “Especially this late in the season,” responds Pete McGowan, another biologist. We discuss how recent storms have blown them off-course. They have found refuge at Poplar.
Over 200 bird species use Poplar Island during the year. As we explore the island, thousands of geese and ducks congregate on large, artificial ponds called cells. We also see uncommon species: night-herons, dowitchers, swans, and loons. The abundant waterfowl attract predators like birds of prey. Indeed, in the afternoon a rare short-eared owl flushes from the grass. “First of the season!” shouts Chris.
What makes all this possible? Poplar Island is a partnership among federal and state agencies. The Corps of
Aerial view of Poplar Island in the Chesapeake Bay (Photo provided by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Engineers manages the dredge spoil operation under the Clean Water Act. The Maryland Environmental Service monitors water quality and nutrients while the Fish and Wildlife Service supervises the restoration. The University of Maryland also investigates a variety of ecological questions here. As a fellow working in the EPA’s wetlands program and a former biologist with the Maryland Wildlife Service, this intersection of wildlife, Chesapeake Bay, and clean water issues naturally resonates with me.
The weather has turned fair as we depart, wind-blown spray glistening in the sunlight. I leave Poplar with a new appreciation of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and the efforts to restore its habitat.
About the author: Ross Geredien is a fellow with the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education serving in the EPA’s Office of Water, where he works on wetlands permitting issues. Previously, Ross was a wildlife biologist for the Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources where he mapped the state’s rare, threatened and endangered species.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
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