Gleanings of the Week Ending September 19, 2026
/The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.
09/09/2026 Leaf & Limb Right Tree, Right Place: What to Plant and Where to Plant it – The top 4 questions to ask when selecting a tree: what is the goal of the tree; what are the planting area’s soil and light conditions; how big will the tree be at maturity; what are the secondary benefits of a tree.
08/06/2026 Plastic Pollution Coalition Recent Recalls on Plastic Toys—and How to Choose Safer Toys - About 90% of toys on the global market are made primarily from plastic. Plastic toys are also especially dangerous for kids because they are made with hazardous chemical additives and become more brittle over time—breaking into small pieces that pose choking hazards and shedding microplastics. Interactive plastic toys are also often made to hold tiny button batteries, which, if not properly secured, can be swallowed to cause extreme and permanent harm.
09/09/2026 The New York Times Toxic ‘Forever Chemical’ Cleanups at Military Sites Face Years of Delay -PFAS cleanups at nearly 243 military sites had been pushed back by an average of 5 years, and some as long as 19 years. At many sites, PFAS has contaminated local drinking water sources, prompting the Pentagon to provide bottled water to service members as well as nearby residents. The inspector general also found that the Defense Department’s list of contaminated sites might be incomplete, and that the Pentagon could provide no documentation proving that officials had ever analyzed whether PFAS chemicals were used or released at more than 80 installations.
09/09/2026 Clean Technica Denmark Can Produce 140% Of Its Electricity Demand from Wind Power - The Danish Energy Agency is spearheading an ambitious plan to produce even more wind power for both export and domestic use. The plan is to construct two new “energy islands” in the North and Baltic seas that will serve as wind power hubs, transmitting some electricity directly to coastal grids while reserving the rest for offshore activities including green hydrogen production.
09/09/2026 Yale Environment 360 Chinese Industry Is Starting to Wean Off Fossil Fuels - New clean power more than met the growth in demand across China last year, leading to a small decline in coal output. Analysts identified eight provinces where coal generation is now seeing declines, including industrial centers such as Hunan and Shandong, and it named another nine provinces where the growth of coal generation has slowed substantially….you can see fossil fuel use flattening out, sector by sector and province by province.
09/08/2026 Science Daily Caffeine may flip an ancient cellular switch linked to slower aging - Scientists found that caffeine activates an ancient cellular energy system involved in stress resistance, DNA repair, and growth. The discovery could help explain caffeine’s links to healthier aging and may point toward new ways to target the same pathway.
09/09/2026 Planetizen 15 million people rely on the Rio Grande — in 2 years, it may run dry - The Rio Grande is one of the most threatened rivers in the country — even more so than the Colorado River. The river fuels billions of dollars in agricultural production, and roughly 15 million people depend on it for drinking water. In Mexico, taps could run dry within a year. In two years, the river may be completely depleted, resulting in millions of Texans losing their source of fresh water. The only thing that can help now is reducing agricultural water use.
09/07/2026 The Conversation Farmers can now produce more of their own energy than ever – but will they? - We’re unlikely to see the farm diesel tank disappear any time soon. But we are likely to see many more shed rooftops covered in panels – and new ways to make use of clean, cheap power from the sun.
09/06/26 Cool Green Science A Nature Conservancy Volunteer’s Hunt for Champion Trees – Gary Williamson, age 82, has devoted his career and free time to conservation and natural history. He has been a Nature Conservancy volunteer for more than 40 years, contributing to the organization in many ways. He’s a herpetologist, park ranger, author and canoeist. And he’s always on the lookout for big trees.
09/08/26 The New York Times California’s Ambitious Plan for Textile Waste - California is trying to become the first state to make fashion brands, manufacturers and retailers pick up the tab for textile waste, and the details of the plan are taking shape now. California residents discarded nearly 1.2 million tons of textiles in 2021 alone. The vast majority of textile waste is landfilled. In the new system - fees will be lower for clothes designed to be easily repaired and for clothes made from recycled materials. Fees will be higher for clothes that are difficult to recycle, like those made of blended fibers or that contain toxic chemicals.
