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- 🌳 What are the effects of strip mining?
🌳 What are the effects of strip mining?
Wednesday 12/3: Sponsored by Tailfeather and Cash App - Prepping home for cold weather, sunset, and apples
Wednesday
“Hope begins in the dark. The stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come.”
Anne Lamott
In today’s issue, we’ll take a look at:
Simple steps to warm your home naturally
What are the effects of strip mining?
How is cat litter made?
How apple leftovers can be reused
Teaching kids lasting money habits
Did You Know
Turning down your thermostat by _°F can save up to 10% on heating energy.
Scroll to the bottom for the answer.
Simple Steps to Warm Your Home Naturally
As the temperatures dip, a few thoughtful changes can make your home feel warmer, cozier, and more efficient, without adding extra strain to your energy bill. The U.S. Department of Energy says sealing drafts can save up to 20% on heating costs, which makes checking for gaps around windows, doors, and utility openings a small task with a big payoff. Adding weatherstripping or a bead of caulk takes minutes and instantly helps keep heat where you want it.
Protecting your plumbing is just as important. Insulating exposed pipes in basements or crawl spaces can help prevent freezing, and on especially cold nights, opening cabinet doors lets warm air reach tucked-away pipes. It’s a simple step that offers real peace of mind during winter’s cold snaps.
A little outdoor prep rounds out the picture. Disconnecting hoses, clearing gutters, and trimming shaky branches help avoid avoidable damage as the season unfolds. None of these changes requires major renovations, just a bit of care and attention. With a weekend of prep, your home can feel more comfortable, use less energy, and stay protected all winter long.
How is Cat Litter Made?
Most cat litter on the market is made from either clay or silica, both of which require environmentally damaging mining processes.
Strip mining, the primary method for extracting sodium bentonite clay, harms ecosystems by removing topsoil, destroying habitats, and polluting waterways. Silica-based litters also require intensive energy to produce, contributing to carbon emissions.
Once used, cat litter ends up in landfills, where clay-based litter does not decompose. Traditional litter is not biodegradable and can take decades to break down, adding to the growing waste crisis. Silica-based litters also remains in landfills indefinitely.
Fortunately, there are eco-friendly alternatives to traditional litter. Plant-based options offer biodegradable solutions that reduce landfill waste and mining impact.
5 Billion Pounds of Cat Litter Ends Up in Landfills Each Year
Most traditional cat litters are made from strip-mined clay or silica. Both end up in landfills when thrown away and are not biodegradable.
A new natural cat litter called Tailfeather is changing this with their eco-friendly, plant-based, clumping cat litter made from coconut and cassava.
Why coconut? The husk of the coconut absorbs liquid up to 9 times its weight! This makes for a soft, luxurious litter that cats love and is 70% lighter than traditional litter, but also doesn't track and bounce out of the box.
It's fully biodegradable and 100% plastic-free, including the packaging. Tailfeather is delivered conveniently to your door, and each package lasts for 8 weeks, double the amount of other litters.
For the next 24 hours, Canopy readers get a $15 credit on your first order with code Canopy15.
Thank you to Tailfeather for sponsoring The Canopy.
How Apple Leftovers Can Be Reused
Apple waste usually has a short, uneventful life: squeezed for juice, turned into compost, or tossed into landfills. But new research from Cornell University suggests those leftovers can do a lot more. Scientists found that ground beef mixed with up to 20% freeze-dried apple pomace tasted nearly identical to regular meatballs.
It’s a clever way to confront a huge waste stream. The U.S. grows about 10 billion pounds of apples each year, and 25% of that turns into leftover skins, cores, and pulp. Instead of hauling those scraps away, researchers milled them into a stable powder and blended them into ground beef. The results weren’t just environmentally useful; the mix added fiber and helpful micronutrients that most of us don’t get enough of anyway.
If restaurants or meal kit companies ever adopted even a small percentage of apple pomace in their ground beef, millions of pounds of food waste could be kept out of landfills each year. It’s a small, practical shift that shows how creative thinking can turn scraps into climate solutions.
3 Money Habits Teens Can Start Building Now
With a Cash App Card, teens can take their first steps toward independence with a secure debit card. They’ll learn how to spend, save, and manage money, all with your guidance and oversight to help them get started.
Learn to spend responsibly
A debit card gives them a safe way to practice managing money under your supervision. It gives you the opportunity to teach them how to make smart spending choices.
Start saving for their goals
Setting goals can help them see how saving a little at a time can help them reach their short-term and long-term goals.
Manage their own money
Whether they get paid with direct deposit or use Cash App to get allowance or gifts, they get real experience with money.
Cash App is a financial platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App’s bank partner(s). Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. See Terms & Conditions. To view the eligibility requirements for sponsoring a teen, please visit the Sponsored Accounts section of the Cash App Terms of Service.
Thank you to Cash App for sponsoring The Canopy.
Final Thoughts:
From low-waste swaps to winter refreshes, here are today’s trending eco-finds:
Reflections:
🌎 Did You Know: Turning down your thermostat by 2°F can save up to 10% on heating energy.
🌅 Sunset Of The Day: The sun can provide the most beautiful photography. That's why we're eager to see your favorite sunrise or sunset photos. Reply to this email with your best sun-based pictures for a chance to be featured!