In the 1967 film "The Graduate," Mr. McGuire advises protagonist Ben Braddock, "There's a great future in plastics." A handful of recent UC Davis graduates have heeded that advice and are building the next generation of plastic. Their company, Micromidas, processes sewage sludge, the hardened layer of waste from sewage treatment facilities, into Polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHAs. Simply put, it turns poop into plastic. Founder and CEO John Bissell said he was motivated ethically and economically to form a truly "green" plastic company in all aspects of production. Micromidas uses bio-waste and biological methods to create biodegradable plastic. The idea that in the right conditions, bugs c

Discussion over a Nestlé water-bottling plant appears to be growing in Sacramento, as the Swiss multinational prepares a facility for operation and new hires begin work. The Sacramento City Council, which was not involved in the decision to approve the plant, will discuss the issue publicly for the first time after a request two weeks ago by council members Kevin McCarty and Lauren Hammond. They asked the council to consider an emergency ordinance requiring a special permit before Nestlé Waters North America begins bottling city tap water and spring water at a plant in South Sacramento. Such a permit could "trigger" an environmental analysis of this and future facilities, McCarty said We