Sonoma County's main dump, seen from the air at left,  has been closed since 2005, but its future continues to be hotly debated.

Operating a landfill anywhere in northern California is a difficult prospect in today's regulatory climate, observes Assemblyman Wes Chesbro, and even a well-funded private company must surmount those obstacles.

A proposed Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) for Sonoma County could eventually be able to sort out and reuse as much as 90% of the region's waste stream. Alan Strachan, one of the backers of that project, suggests that through composting or other processes, even most of the remaining 10% could someday be reused.

Longtime recycling advocate Mike Anderson is one of many voices taking up the call for setting a goal of zero waste.

 The March 30th forum on the future of the Sonoma County landfill was co-hosted by the Climate Protection Campaign and the  Leadership Institute on Ecology nd the Economy.

The entire public forum was recorded and will be broadcast at the following times on Community Media Channel 26 in Santa Rosa:

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To learn more about the Landfill.

Genetically modified organisms are not the villain in the newest mystery novel by Susan Arnout Smith. But they play a key role all the same.

Smith says she had a background awareness of the GMO issue, but began to see it in a new light-as potential subject matter-when she witnessed an impassioned public demonstration by concerned activists.

Some longtime NPR listeners may recognize Smith  (right) from her past work as a regular essayist on Weekend Edition Sunday. That's something she stopped doing a few years ago, as books plays and screenplays demanded all her available time, but she still thinks of her NPR experience fondly.