June 17, 2023 VC Star What does Earth’s solar system have in common with the recyclability of our solar power systems? They both rank just “one star.” Why are solar panels optimistic? Because they keep their “sunny side up.” All jokes aside, recycling and disposal options for solar panels have been terrible worldwide, but locally,…
June 10, 2023 VC Star I thought the highlight of my Alaskan vacation would be glaciers, but looking back on the past two weeks, what really stands out are the dogs. Since 1972, dog mushing has been the official state sport of Alaska. Visiting kennels, Iditarod training camps and Denali National Park, I learned two…
June 3, 2023 VC Star At a trade show in January 2022, Goodyear displayed an amazing new tire touted as “sustainable.” It is made primarily of soybean oil, rice husks, and pine resin. These items meet the “renewable” standard because they can be grown, unlike petroleum, which comes out of the earth only once. More…
May 25, 2023 VC Reporter At a trade show last January, Goodyear displayed an amazing new tire touted as “sustainable.” It is made primarily of soybean oil, rice husks and pine resin. These items meet the “renewable” standard because they can be grown, unlike petroleum, which comes out of the earth only once. More specifically,…
May 6, 2023 VC Star It is tacky to leave a price tag on a Mother’s Day gift, but some other kinds of tags and labels are useful. Labels printed on the back of Mother’s Day greeting cards might be convenient if you want your mother to know how her card affected the environment. The…
April 29, 2023 VC Star In the Oxnard Costco parking lot last month, I saw someone open his car door, drop a cigarette on the ground and stomp it out while exiting. As he walked away, I said: “Oh, you dropped your cigarette.” He responded: “It’s biodegradable.” He was partially correct. Tobacco and wrapping paper…
April 22, 2023 VC Star A Jacuzzi hot tub sits in a fenced-off section of a parking lot at the Ventura County Government Center. Next to it, in a locked storage container, is an inflatable Zodiac raft. Neither is an employee perk. The tub was rescued from disposal and is used by the Ventura County…
April 15, 2023 VC Star It is bad enough to get stuck behind a slow truck on the long, one-lane sections of Highway 118. But far worse is when a fast truck without proper mud flaps, or sometimes just any vehicle with large tires, kicks up a rock and sends it into your windshield. With…
April 8, 2023 VC Star “California government is regulating the color of my trash cans; in times like the present, we should really focus on trash can colors.” That was a sarcastic posting on a neighborhood-based social media platform in Ventura recently. The truth is, there is a good reason to standardize trash and recycling…
April 1, 2023 VC Star Since this year’s Earth Day, on April 22, falls on a Saturday, most events will be held on the official day of commemoration. However, as usual, gatherings throughout the month will celebrate Earth Day. Here are some local events, listed by city: Fillmore • April 22, 10 a.m. to 1…