Recycling

Staff Writertaff Writer

RePlanet was California’s biggest recycling center chain, making up one- "# h of all centers, including Newbury Park, before its August shutdown. ! e lack of government attention towards environmental preservation has led to unsustainable recycling in the U.S. In turn, this has le# recycling centers and the communities they a$ ect devastated.

Without dependable recycling returns to rely on to save an extra penny, RePlanet’s shutdown is leaving low-income families and struggling businesses wholly compromised. ! e issue lies in the widelyaccepted myth that modern recycling in the U.S. is sustainable.

When RePlanet " rst opened, local businesses that needed an outlet for their recyclables or cheap access to recyclable material % ocked in its direction. ! e original exchange rate inspired huge mutual bene" t, with local communities thriving. But, as Los Angeles Times reporter George Skelton and Recology reporter Eric Potashner warned back in 2018, “! ere’s no market for a lot of stu$ in the blue bin… Revenue has fallen o$ the cli$ .” RePlanet, like every other recycling center, depends on a healthy exchange rate internationally, created by nondomestic buyers. ! is, in turn, highlights the fundamental % aw of current American recycling centers: they are not capable of keeping up.

Recycling centers in California work like this: residents and businesses earn " ve cents for each recyclable item that they return, known as redemption rate. ! ose items then undergo processes to become purchasable recyclable material in the centers, then exported to America’s international buyers. But, as the world moves towards a cleaner future, American recycling centers are unable to meet new standards put forth by countries like China. While residents and businesses continue to donate at the same rate as before, recycling centers receive virtually nothing back from international buyers. ! ese exchange rates then % uctuate as standards raise internationally. Yet, American environmental legislation, the only roadblock to e$ ective recycling, remains stagnant through it all. Without any returns, governmental support or reform, these centers are unable to operate. Recyclable plastic that would regularly be processable is, too o# en, sent straight to the land" ll without the manpower to make up the di$ erence.

RePlanet is just one of the many examples of recycling centers that have met their death at the cruel hands of weak economic diplomacies, and de" nitely will not be the last. However, RePlanet’s loss is on a di$ erent scale of devastation, insisting governmental reform. Local businesses and populations in over 275 di$ erent

locations, including Newbury Park, relied on these centers. ! e fact is, real people and companies subscribed and invested in it, and now no longer know what to do without it. Recycling has the opportunity and space to leave an actual improvement, but not if it the system stays statically riddled with the unsustainability coming inevitably from strained diplomacy and poorly designed environmental legislation. With the missing support and lack of care the government is directing towards the environment, soon, the very basis and only truly normalized and respected aspect of environmental preservation will turn as harmful as the rest. Hauntingly- RePlanet’s empty building leaves behind the ghost of security in environmental protections. This facility is just one of 275 recycling centers that were closed. Its presence haunts the local businesses that depended on this dangerous myth. Jacob Malone/Prowler

Johnson and Johnson should own up to their mistake in the opioid crisis, especially when given the opportunity in Oklahoma who has recently been su$ ering from statewide cases of opioid addiction.

Commonly abbreviated to “J & J”, this multinational corporation strives to improve the health of people and the environment worldwide through projects, publicity, and policies. Its primary target is pharmaceutical sales and medical devices.

One way Johnson and Johnson in% uences the medical " eld is providing

Emily Augustine

Cover Editorover Editor

opioids to patients for pain relief. According to NBC news, Oklahoma underwent a trial with Johnson and Johnson, and the corporation now has to “pay over $572 million for pushing doctors to prescribe opioids while downplaying the risks of addiction.”

If you think it is over now, you are mistaken. Johnson & Johnson snapped back at the outcome of this trial with an article called “Johnson and Johnson To Appeal Flawed Opioid Judgement in Oklahoma.” It basically calls the outcome of the trial a bunch of baloney and goes on to say that they are “working with frontline health care professionals, academic institutions, policymakers, online communities and others to address the unmet needs of those impacted by this crisis” on their website. ! e consequences of opioid use should not have been underplayed by Johnson & Johnson. Addiction is an easy way to ruin a person’s life, and it becomes a physical lose-lose situation, whether it be risking an opioid overdose or being nauseous and depressed for weeks without the opioids.

It is bad enough that Johnson & Johnson was involved in the opioid epidemic, but they made the situation so much worse by not owning up to their mistake. Whether it was ignorance or insensitivity, I can not tell. However, I know for a fact that they should at least issue an apology rather than trying to put a bandaid on the humongous gash they in% icted on innocent people.

Jessica Zhou/ Prowler

A girl has got to go girl has got to go

Clarissa Shin

Graphic Designerraphic Designer

Ding, ding, ding. ! e late bell rings for class and once again, in a matter of seconds, I arrive moments before I am marked tardy. I was waiting in line for the restroom. Personally, I can’t speak for the males on campus, but the line to use the female restroom is out the door and blocking the halls. ! e girls’ restrooms at our school are home to many girls waiting to " nish their business and get back to socializing, meeting with teachers or walking across the school to their next class.

You would think it would take around two minutes to get in and out of the bathroom, yet for many girls, their whole break is wasted standing in line. Many girls, including myself, don’t even bother to wait in the long lines anymore and hold it until class gets out for lunch. Since I don’t have a class fourth period, I normally wait to use the restroom until I get home a# er school, yet not all female students have this advantage.

Holding your pee is extremely harmful to the body, and speaking from personal experience, can cause an increase in urinary tract infections (UTIs). When it’s “that” time of the month, I su$ er severe cramping, and holding my pee greatly increases my cramps. In class, I am barely able to move due to my pain. My concentration and focus also decrease because I am only thinking about when I’ll get to use the restroom, even when I’m not on my period.

Teachers partially contribute to the reason many girls don’t want to leave class to use the restroom. I have had many teachers assign bathroom passes to try and limit the amount of time we leave the class, and reward students who don’t use them with extra credit. ! is is frustrating because as a student, I never want to leave class because I don’t want to lose the extra points. Furthermore, due to block scheduling, teachers have to " t more curriculum into the class periods and tend to move at a fast pace. Many girls and I have the fear of being gone and missing material. ! e number of girls who wait to use the restroom is about triple the amount of stalls in the three girls bathrooms accessible to us, as shown by the long lines seen in the halls. ! ere are only three and four stalls in the B and C buildings respectively, yet over 12 people waiting in line at break.

Our school needs to either reconsider the amount of time in our breaks or build more bathrooms on campus so girls such as myself have the ability to use the restroom as necessary without being punished. ! is bathroom situation is severe and it a$ ects the psychological and physical wellbeing of female students at school.