Michigan is not new to the world of recycling and lessening the environmental impact that our generations are having on Earth. The Department of Environmental Quality is focusing its energy on diverting waste from landfills, minimizing the use of virgin materials that must be collected or extracted, and creating jobs to replace the waste management department that will displace this reduction.
Those are just part of the plan, and Michigan officials are proud to say that they are doing their part to improve our environment. Each county has contacts listed on the Department’s website that allow residents to find local programs to handle their recycling needs. There is also an organization called the Michigan Recycling Coalition that coordinates cooperation between businesses and local government, as well as individual community members to reduce, recycle, and compost all possible products and by-products.
Michigan is currently leading the way in recycling news. In Michigan, the deposit on beverage containers in the form of airtight plastic, paper, glass, metal, or a combination thereof is a full 10 cents. This is the highest rate in the country for deposits, however, so is its recycling rate. Container redemption is 97.2 percent, making the program a nationally recognized success. Since 1976, when the Bottle Act was enacted, the state has intended to reduce litter on the roads and clean up the environment. His approach has certainly worked.
This same state, however, faces environmental challenges such as the hot weather that creates a large amount of waste in the ponds in the lakes, a recent fuel spill in White Lake on June 3, 2009. The City of Whitehall will pay more than $ 16,000 to clean up the spill. . The steep price tag won’t put off the people of Michigan, despite this disappointing blow to the state’s overall environmental health. The citizens here are dedicated to the environment and will continue public and private efforts to maintain their state as one of the greenest states in our country.
Michigan notes that, on the other side of the coin, the Department of Energy is helping by lending Ford Motor Company, Nissan Motor Company, and Tesla Motors portions of a $ 25 billion fund to increase the fuel efficiency of vehicles being sold. Manufactured in the state of Michigan. These loans are expected to increase the functions of factories to produce more fuel efficient models compared to yesterday’s gasoline consumers. Officials hope the huge loan assistance will offset much of the negative impact the fuel spill has had.
Leading the way to environmental awareness awareness, even a late night talk show host from Michigan is raising awareness about how we dispose of our everyday waste. In particular, the fluorescent bulbs that we throw away become a major concern. The small amount of mercury needed to power the light bulb is released into landfills, creating quite a dangerous hazard to our environment. Poisons contaminate fish and mammals alike and are becoming an international concern. Our food supply could well be affected by contaminated sources of seafood and beef. Work is underway to find better ways to dispose of these bulbs and reduce the risk to wildlife and nature.