SEPTA station closure, horseshoe crab bloodletting, & more

Catch up on the latest sustainability news:

SEPTA 11th Street Station to close for one year. At the beginning of September, SEPTA will be closing 11th Street Station to L train riders in order to make updates to the station. SEPTA says that renovations will make the station “fully accessible” by improving platform access and installing two new elevators. The L will be bypassing 11th Street for one year during renovations. NBC 10

Group provides free transit tours. Transit Forward Philadelphia is offering free SEPTA Transit Tours on Saturdays through August 22nd to help users get familiar with using SEPTA in the region. Tours explore different neighborhoods and varying modes of transit. Upcoming tours will focus on university areas as students return in the fall.

Horseshoe crabs threatened by medical testing. Environmentalists are calling on the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to investigate a biomedical company for harming thousands of horseshoe crabs. The company uses horseshoe crab blood to test for bacteria in vaccine development. It is estimated that up to 30% of the marine arthropods do not survive when returned to their habitats after testing. WHYY

Meeting over data center development turns sour. In a public hearing last week, attendees repeatedly booed and shouted at representatives of a developer who wants to build an AI data center just outside of Conshohocken. Residents are opposed to the development due to environmental and health concerns. Developer Brian O’Neill is seeking a special permit for the project. The Philadelphia Inquirer

Eakins Oval park hosts August “minifest.” Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, in partnership with the Parkway Council, kicked off The Oval Minifest on Saturday with Hip Hop in the Park. The festival will run for three weekends in August. Activities at the park will include live music, crafts, lawn games, a phone-free puzzle challenge, and dance performances.

Food waste challenge starts. The Sustainable Business Network is challenging businesses in Montgomery County to fight food waste by participating in a food waste reduction competition. SBN is partnering with Share Food Program and Mother Compost to provide training and resources to businesses. The business with the greatest food waste reduction impact will receive a $5,000 cash prize.

Cover photo: Horseshoe crab. Photo by David Trinks on Unsplash

Angie Bacha

Angie Bacha (she/her) is a Philadelphia-based solutions journalist and recent Erasmus Mundus Master's in Journalism, Media and Globalisation student in Aarhus, Denmark. Previously, she worked as a student journalist at Community College of Philadelphia and Editorial Intern at Resolve Philly. Some other hats she has worn: Human Rights and Theatre Studies graduate; teaching artist; carpenter; AmeriCorps volunteer; and rock climbing gym shift supervisor.