The first step toward listening to the environment is to stop listening to the conventional wisdom about the environment. The events at Chernobyl and Valdez were accidents. The 1986 explosion of a Soviet nuclear reactor and the 1989 grounding of an Exxon oil tanker illustrated the dangers of nuclear and fossil-fuel derived energy. But the dangers had always been there, built in to the margin of error inherent in every technology. And these events will seem petty when the consequences of acid rain and global warming become evident.
Toxic waste comes from industrial pollution.
Workers in yellow rubber suits at Superfund sites like Love Canal make great news pictures, but home cleaning products spread more toxics. Public awareness of the germ theory of disease, combined with decades of advertising, led to germ phobia. The big business of household cleaners has translated that into a widespread and unmonitored source of toxic waste. Non-biodegradable products are clogging our landfills. Plastic is actually safer than many biodegradable products in a sealed landfill.