Plastic bags don’t recycle curbside in Kansas City. Don’t let them clog up the system | Opinion
Clog in the system
I’d like to express my appreciation to The Star’s Natalie Wallington for Wednesday’s in-depth front-page story “Is recycling real?” It is heartening to know that recycling efforts continue in the metropolitan area. Thanks to all who make this a viable endeavor.
Of particular note was the reference to single-use plastic bags, which clog the sorting machines at recycling centers daily. Observing the abundance of plastic bags in carts departing the grocery store should be a reminder to take one’s own bags or request paper bags.
Thank you to The Star for all stories pertaining to local news. It is easy to access national news from multiple sources, but involvement in our communities starts locally. This is why we subscribe to The Star: local coverage of events that affect our Kansas and Missouri neighbors.
- Jodi Dinkins, Olathe
Editor’s note: Kansas City-area curbside recycling programs do not accept plastic bags. You can look up drop-off sites near you that accept plastic bags, films and wraps at bagandfilmrecycling.org
Follow the money
Bulletins flash across our television screens with the details of another mass shooting, such as the most recent tragedy in Nashville. (April 2, 8A, “Swift response to Nashville shooting contrasts with Uvalde”) Overwhelmed with sorrow for the victims and anger at the shooter, you might also feel a sense of helplessness about what you could do to stop this senseless slaughter of innocent lives.
There is something we can do as we sit in the comfort of our homes. We should be looking at where the money comes from to support the gun advocates and the manufacturers of the guns and ammunition, as well as the retailers that sell guns and ammunition. Make sure your own money is not invested in the firearms industry.
If you use financial advisers, tell them to not invest any of your money in companies that manufacture or sell guns or ammunition. There are also websites such as the 501(c)(3) nonprofit As You Sow’s Gun Free Funds at gunfreefunds.org. There, you can look up a stock or mutual fund by name, ticker or manager, and see its grade of A through F according to how much money it makes from handgun, assault rifle and ammunition sales. Check with your bank and find out what, if any, policies it has regarding doing business with gun manufacturers.
Money talks, and we need to make our voices heard.
- Carole Webster, Independence
Follow the science
Thank you for your March 26 editorial on the 2023 Farm Bill. (16A, “Kansas and Missouri have a major stake in the 2023 Farm Bill”) For adequate river flows, farmers and city dwellers cannot rely on melting snowcaps throughout the summer. We need increased carbon in our soils for a texture that absorbs water to reduce quick, damaging runoffs, and for sustained seepage into tributary rivers. The process of transpiration from moister soils can drive moderate rainfalls that replenish faltering rivers.
Soils need several action paths to boost the microorganisms that assist plant growth and build soil carbon, such as planting cover crops (like clover) after harvest, reduced tillage or no-till practices, and reduced use of chemical fertilizers, which science shows cause bacterial and compacted soils.
Recently, an experienced bureaucrat predicted that the 2023 Farm Bill won’t assist a ramp-up of such practices locally, other than promoting cover crops. Farm policy is like a tortoise, he said.
But must we accept that Big Agriculture’s lobbyists will lull Congress into complacency? That is intolerable. We urgently need regeneration of soil. Let’s push this tortoise into a wagon that rolls with the times. Media members must explain the modern science of soils and water cycles. We must demand prompt, comprehensive and effective action from Congress.
- James R. Turner, Kansas City
Missing detail
Everybody in our immediate family loves The Star’s “Let’s Dish” series about great places to eat in the area, but we have one big problem with the reporting in the print edition: Just where are these places located by street address?
One installment merely said a restaurant was on the Country Club Plaza: no help at all. Some places are referred to as having more than one location, such as the Palacana ice cream shops. (March 24, 1A, “Kansas City shop has variety of ice cream, sorbets, paletas”) Great — where are they? Please help us find them.
- Dick Davenport, Lee’s Summit
