Radiation Questions Over a Body Scanner Let’s just focus today on radiation, a concern with one kind of body scanner that is being installed at airports, the so-called backscatter machines. As of last week, the agency had bought 250 backscatter units, which scan body surfaces using an “ultra low dose” of X-ray radiation, according to the manufacturer, Rapiscan Systems. 

  What Connects Your Carrot to the Climate Crisis? A new online film from WhyHunger, "The Food and Climate Connection: From Heating the Planet to Healing It," highlights the impact of today's global food system on the climate and how a community-based food movement around the world is bringing to life a way of farming and eating that's better for our bodies and the planet. Featuring interviews with farmers, community leaders, and sustainability advocates, the film highlights how the industrial food system is among the greatest contributors to global warming and how sustainable farming practices can pose a powerful solution to the crisis. 

  Getting Married? Going Eco? How to Plan a Great Green Wedding Well in all of my green internet travels and tweeting, I have come across a few really good people who can help you start your green wedding day planning and I wanted to share. 

  A Green Approach to Nail Salons A new ordinance, introduced this week by Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, would allow the city’s 200 nail salons to qualify for a “green seal” if shop owners agree to stock products free of hazardous chemicals. 

  Can BPA be Absorbed through the Skin? As suggested by EWG, one thing is certain: because many retailers already use BPA-free paper for their receipts, it’s one source of contamination that could easily be eliminated. The EPA is even concerned enough to start looking for BPA-free thermal paper alternatives. In the meantime, EWG offers some helpful tips to reduce your exposures to BPA in receipts: 

  The Chemical Marketplace: Triclosan I was reading my toothpaste tube the other day and noticed something I hadn't expected in the list of “active ingredients.” In addition to the familiar-sounding hexafluoride, I found triclosan. Doing a little more detective work, I discovered that same ingredient on the labels of a variety of personal care products including deodorants, soaps, shaving creams, and mouthwash. A little more snooping on the Internet revealed that triclosan is also added to cleaning products like dishwashing liquids, as well as toys, socks, and trash bags. Impressive but ...

  Greening One of the World's Greenest Places: Yellowstone National Park Even if you’ve never set foot in Yellowstone National Park, you know its iconic natural splendors: Old Faithful, Mammoth Hot Springs, and the like. What you may not know -- even if you’ve been there -- is that Yellowstone is the largest essentially untouched ecosystem in the lower 48 states. And while its status as a national park means its "protected," that doesn’t mean its 2.2 million acres are safe.