Environmental Club: September Meeting

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-Anna Cait

Environmental Club: September Meeting: "St. Jude's Ranch for children: NO hallmark, Disney, or American greeting Get a basket in front office Bring in greeting cards from old occa..."

Sustainability

Sustainable development is the process of research to find a resource that supports today's human needs while protecting the environment now and in the future. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_development

The natural resources attributing to climate change are being used at great rates in the United States as well as many other countries. Greenhouse gases emitted from the use of oil are not only a threat to the environment, but also our dependence on oil is becoming more and more hazardous. http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/energy.htm

The BP oil spill is a prevalent example of how we have taken advantage of our earth. The Gulf's plant and aquatic life has been devastated by the estimated 94 million gallons of oil spanning the waters. Not only has the life within the ocean been affected, but those whom reside on the Gulf coast have, too. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/environment/2010-06-09-1Aoilhowbad09_CV_N.htm The income of these areas have been hit hard due to their dependence on fishing, tourism, etc. Lately, I have been seeing commercials advertising Florida's, for now, clean beaches to attract tourism. It is so sad to see area's and people's lifestyle become in jeopardy due to man's selfish and greedy methods. Oil is a non-renewable resource. Who knows how long oil will be able to flow from an oil rig at 25,000 barrels a day? New sources are eminent to our future on earth. Dependence on oil needs to shift with advancements in biofuels quickly. The changes we do see like hybrid cars and the small use of ethanol in place of oil are not enough. Advancements need to be made in order to increase the use of biofuels and decrease the amount of oil used. Less rigs would be necessary as a result. A decrease in the US alone would be unbelievably beneficial. If a waterway were to be exposed to a spill again there is a good chance the life within the water would not survive again.

Littering is a big problem in the US, as well as many other places. I find it difficult to drive half a mile without seeing some form of trash on the road. People do not realize that they are directly affecting themselves when they throw their McDonald's bag out of their window. Trash has germs, that is why we call it trash. It is bad. Diseases can result when certain things are eaten by animals. Water is contaminated by litter as well. Waste can seep into soil, trashing our water that we drink and bathe in. Animals are greatly affected from littering, too. Swallowing the wrong thing can kill an animal. Laws are set up and littering is illegal. Signs are posting reading that a $500 dollar fine will be faced if you liter. Do you really think that every piece of trash on the road comes with a fine like that? No. Since that is not easily enforced, the only way for it to stop is if people stop being lazy and selfish. Littering should be a stronger topic in environmental issues. If brought up more, maybe someone will decide to wait until they find a trash can next time. We're all paying the fine that you aren't receiving for throwing your trash out the window. It affects us all. http://www.greenecoservices.com/littering-facts-and-statistics/

Sustainability

In the midst of the BP oil spill, the sustainability movement has entered into public awareness. As defined by Living In the Environment, sustainability is the ability of the earth's various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely. In light of this disaster, sustainability has moved to its appropriate place in the forefront of our minds. At this time, we need to consider the repercussions of these actions and find sustainable solutions to such problems.
A major issue that is relevant to most countries is dependency on both foreign and local oil. Over the years dependency on oil has grown and so has the amount of oil drilled for and obtained by major companies. Excessive use of this non-renewable resource has led to an unsustainable lifestyle for all. Our seemingly insatiable thirst for oil has not only led to oil disasters in the past, like the Exxon-Valdez spill, but most recently resulted in the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the oil spill in China's Yellow Sea. The Gulf Oil spill has been grabbing headlines for months. It has been estimated that before it was temporarily caped in mid-July, the well emitted between 94 million and 184 million gallons of crude oil into the waters of the Gulf.(Webber and Bluestien) The explosion in Dalian, China is said to have spilled between 18.47 million gallons and 27.70 million gallons of oil into the Yellow Sea, which is estimated to be somewhere close to the amount in the Exxon Valdez disaster.(Ann)Both of these accidents have released an unimaginable amount of oil into the water and caused huge problems. Specifically in the Gulf, the spill has endangered delicate ecosystems and effected countless animals. It has also put great strain on the economies of the small towns and cities on the Gulf coast. It has hurt local businesses and fishermen that rely on the bountiful waters for a living. It has also put a damper on the crucial summer tourism season that some of these areas depend on.
One of the most effective solutions to our oil dependency is the use of sustainable biofuels. The most common sustainable biofuel is ethanol made from corn. Corn is an effective and sustainable raw material used for ethanol. Currently around thirty percent of our corn crops go toward making ethanol for fuel. http://science.bigchalk.com/sciweb/science/do/document?set=search&lastset=search&groupid=1&requestid=lib_standard&resultid=29&sortResultsBy=TopicRelevance&groupResultsBy=&inmylist=false&edition=&ts=70CE44A705533E1320A473FAC969B44C_1280629751679&urn=urn%3Abigchalk%3AUS%3BBCLib%3Bdocument%3B180148172&start=26
While using corn for ethanol has been successful, it does have a downside. By using thirty percent of the corn crop in ethanol production, only seventy percent is available to be used as a food source. In many areas we cannot afford to lose that thirty percent of the crop to ethanol production. A newer and more efficient form of ethanol is called cellulosic ethanol. It is three times more effective than corn ethanol in respect to energy and it emits much fewer greenhouse gases. Cellulosic ethanol can be produced using a wide variety of materials including plant wastes, industrial wastes like paper pulp and sawdust, and energy crops like switchgrass. Things like hay, tall grasses, and corn cobs can be used to create this efficient biofuel. http://science.bigchalk.com/sciweb/science/do/document?set=search&lastset=search&groupid=1&requestid=lib_standard&resultid=1&sortResultsBy=TopicRelevance&groupResultsBy=&inmylist=false&edition=&ts=70CE44A705533E1320A473FAC969B44C_1280630815583&urn=urn%3Abigchalk%3AUS%3BBCLib%3Bdocument%3B107791308&start=1
BP Biofuels North America has actually now acquired Verenium's cellulosic biofuels business, which includes three of its factories. This agreement is in hopes to gain more ground toward the eventual commercialization of cellulosic biofuels. http://science.bigchalk.com/sciweb/science/do/document?set=search&lastset=search&groupid=1&requestid=lib_standard&resultid=2&sortResultsBy=TopicRelevance&groupResultsBy=&inmylist=false&edition=&ts=70CE44A705533E1320A473FAC969B44C_1280631699135&urn=urn%3Abigchalk%3AUS%3BBCLib%3Bdocument%3B182250845&start=1
I think with corn ethanol and with cellulosic ethanol we are making great strides into a more sustainable relationship with fuels. A reliance on these alternative fuels can help us to ease our dependency on oil and lead to a sustainable future with biofuels. This can help to reduce the risk of offshore drilling accidents and reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted when using these fuels.

Ann, Cara. "DId China Underestimate Spill Size?" The Virginian-Pilot 31 July 2010: 16.

Webber, Harry R., and Greg Bluestien."BP Shifts Focus to Long-Term Effects of Spill". The Virginian-Pilot. 31 July 2010:3.

Sustainability Assignment- Sarah Bass

Living in the Environment states that sustainability is the ability of earth's various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely. One of the most popular definitions of sustainability can be traced to a 1987 UN conference . It defined sustainable developments as those that "meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs." http://www.arch.wsu.edu/09%20publications/sustain/defnsust.htm

This is a universal concept that we have been encouraging for many years. Today, however, we face many environmental issues despite the efforts of many trying to make the world we live in a better place. Some of the many issues include, pollution, over use of natural resources, and poverty.

Pollution is probably the most familiar environmental issue. However, it is still a major problem our world faces. Pollution ranges from water to air pollution. Each year in our country alone, factories release over 3 million tons of toxic chemicals into the water, land, and air. Land pollution is pollution of the Earth's natural land surface by industrial, commercial, domestic and agricultural activities. One major action we can take to prevent land pollution is to recycle. Over 80% of items in landfills can be recycled, but they are not. It takes an action as simple as recycling or reusing to help save and sustain life on earth. Air pollution is another form of pollution and its sources include: nuclear weapons, aerosol sprays, power plants, combustion of coal, and acid rain. The emissions from U.S. vehicles alone contribute to 45% to global warming. Actions that are being taken advantage of are carpooling, not using aerosol sprays, and avoiding smoking. Every little contribution and effort helps. Finally, water pollution is also a form of pollution and is caused by mining, pesticides, and oil spills. Although the majority of the population considers oil to be a major source of money for our counrty. We are also using up a very important "non-renewable resource" and risking disasters from drilling, such as the one in the Gulf of Mexico. Non-renewable resources exist in a fixed quantity, or stock, in the earth's crust.Ways to preserve non-renewable resources is to reuse and recycle. http://www.greenstudentu.com/encyclopedia/pollution

Organizations and groups across the world are working hard to help save the earth from pollution and harmful damage we cause to it. An organization called Eco Friends is working in Kanpur, India to clean up the river Ganga. A group called HIkers for Clean Air provides news and resources to promote public awareness and support in the nation's hiking community for legislation and regulatory initiatives to significantly reduce air pollutants. http://www.dmoz.org/Society/Issues/Environment/Pollution/Organizations

Sustainable development includes addressing issues such as poverty, inequality, hunger, and environmental degradation. The causes of poverty and environmental degradation are inter-related. http://www.globalissues.org/367/sustainable-development Approximately 1 billion people suffer from hunger and some 2 to 3.5 billion people have a deficiency of vitamins and minerals. The UNited Nations 1998 Human Development report revealed that, "Globally the 20% of the world's people in the highest income countries account for 86% of total private consumption expenditures- the porrest 20% only 1.3%. All of these issues are inter-related. Poverty and third-world debt have been shown to result in resource stripping to just survive or pay off debts. Civil society Organizations, Private Voluntary Organizations, and charity are all non-governmental organizations working towards developmentissues that link to environmental issues.

I think that steps toward a better tomorrow include small steps that will make our lives greener. Simple steps such as just recycling can drastically help. However, it takes everyone to solve the problem, because one person helps but if the world joined hands and fights this issue together we can accomplish great things.

Sarah Basss

Sustainability

Sustainability is the policies and strategies that meet society's needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs according the the US EPA. http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/basicinfo.htm

Currently, the Gulf Coast has experienced tragedy with the busted oil rig in April of this year. It has left habitats destroyed, animals killed, and an overwhelming amount of Americans jobless. BP in an effort to repair the damage, is collecting surplus volumes of oil and natural gas daily, and are hiring unemployed workers to assist in the cleanup, however, with all of their impressive ideas to alleviate the damage, one must still question why more precautions were not taken in an effort to prevent the spill in the first place. http://www.bp.com/generalarticle.do It seems as though companies today worry about only today's problems instead of thinking about the damage that may be done in the future. If more ideas were put in place to protect the Coast, then the problem would have never occurred in the first place.

Another pressing issue is one that is so often seen in the summer which is stores blasting air conditioning with exterior doors wide open. It wastes unnecessary amounts of energy, and for what, cooling the sidewalks? According to the Independent Electricity System Operator, air conditioning takes up 30% of your total energy consumption, but by setting it to a more moderate temperature, and keeping the doors closed, we may be able to cut down the total energy consumption. http://www.citytv.com

Ciara Viola

Sustainability

The Living in the Environment definition of sustainability is the ability of the earth’s various natural systems and human cultural systems and economies to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinitely. The key words in this definition are adapt and survive since human disasters and natural disasters constantly change the environment. The natural systems around the world are constantly hit with various changes which require them to change and adapt in order to survive and grow.

One natural system many people around the world interact with is water. Oceans, rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes are all waterways that spread throughout every continent in the world. However, pesticides and chemicals often contaminate earth’s various water bodies making the water impure and unsafe. US Geological Survey decided to test the extent of pollution due to pesticides and fertilizers and came up with a staggering percentage. USA is known for its pristine beauty and safe drinking water compared to other countries, but the survey shows that pesticides and other chemical run-off pollutes over 65 percent of US streams. (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=decade-long-examination-o) I have seen the effect of fertilizers and pesticides in the pond in my own backyard. Every year around spring time, people around the neighborhood spray their newly blooming plants with fertilizers and insecticides. However, they do not realize that the run-off created from rainfall washes those chemicals right into my pond. At one point we had koi fish swimming around, but within a month, seven out of the ten fish died due to excessive algae bloom created by run-off that stifled the oxygen in the water. Similarly, the problems with run-off transfer to the aquatic life within these streams and rivers. Fish in many streams which were contaminated with DDT run-off over 20 years ago in America still contain the banned pesticide according to the US Geological Survey. Progress has ensued within the government such as the Clean Water Act, which aims to regulate the quality of surface water in the United States. (http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/cwa/) Also, the act enforces that any person wants to discharge pollutants near waterways must obtain a NPDES permit. (http://wildlifelaw.unm.edu/fedbook/fwpca.html) Still, many pollutants flow into the waterways because regular individuals who spray fertilizers on their personal plants do not obtain permits. With a little under 310,000,000 people in America, the pollution created from personal use of pesticides and fertilizers is enormous. Some steps that could alleviate the excess run-off are to place a limit on how much pesticides people can buy from local stores such a Lowes and garden centers. Another step America could take is to limit the months and usage of plant fertilizers and pesticides in personal homes. For instance, the city of Suffolk could limit the spraying of these chemicals to March-May and August-October and limit to only once a week as the maximum amount of spraying.

Food is constantly in the minds of many Americans, especially with dinner portions that could feed three people. Unfortunately, the rest of the world is not so lucky. Malnutrition, pot bellies, and food shortages plague many poor cities in developing nations. Sustaining food for everyone in the world is a hard task to complete, yet, with planning and hard work is possible. Zimbabwe is one of many nations going through a food shortage due to a dry spell which hurt many of their crops. (http://allafrica.com/stories/201001191056.html) The Famine Early Warning System Network predicts that 2.2 million will need food aid in just Zimbabwe. In 2006 according to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, an estimated 40 countries in the world faced food shortages. (http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000416/index.html) If there are 2.2 million people in one country who need food aid, the amount in the combined 40 countries is horrendously high. There are many dedicated organizations that strive to feed the many malnourished and unfed people in the world such as World Vision, End 4 Hunger, and Bread for the World. These organizations raise millions of dollars, but if every person who is in the middle class donates $10.00 and every person in the upper class donates $100.00 or more, then the odds of lessening world hunger increases greatly. United Nations estimates that it will take 195 billion dollars a year to end world hunger. (http://www.squidoo.com/world-hunger) In America, we can help by implementing a donation fee to the middle and upper class. Also America can cut back on the portions served in restaurants. Instead of serving meals worthy for two or more people, restaurants and diners can reduce the serving size to accommodate only one person. Sending the remaining non-perishable ingredients saved from cutting back to needy people will both lessen America’s increasing obesity problem and the number of hungry people in the world. Simple steps such as cutting back on portion size, donating money, and limiting the use of pesticides for personal use can help sustain the natural resources in the world’s environment.

http://www.pollutionissues.com/Na-Ph/Pesticides.html

http://www.naturalnews.com/021409_childrens_nutrition_malnutrition.html

Sustainability

Sustainability is a conglomeration of many interlocking networks between environmental and human cultural systems. The environmental systems include the cycle of natural resources put together with natural services to end up with the natural cycle and the nutrient cycle. These cultural systems can include human activities in the economic, political and sociological environments. An example of how these two systems interact can be represented through a Carbon Dioxide Emissions Bill the Senate halted. Also politics has a heavy impact on how people reacted to the BP oil spill and the consequences of it. Economic spheres are affected by the water pollution and by the by-products of our own factories that provide jobs and food, but end up helping to destroy other staples of a region’s economy. However, there are some steps being taken to help sustainability, to slow down the destruction to the earth and hopefully reverse it, specifically attacking the sociological sphere and a more specific region of that: domestic life.

A bill as presented to the U.S. Senate known as a Cap-and Trade Bill would provide certain provisions that would make the most stubborn coal-burner eventually switch to a cleaner energy source. This bill would force big companies and states to cut back on CO2 emissions and would also provide a raise in the cost of oil and coal and would force people to use a more eco-friendly power source such as solar, wind, or nuclear energy. However, the bill was halted because the senate and even the White House could not get 60 senators to agree to the bill. Their argument? The bill would be a “‘job-killing energy tax’” (“Senate Halts Effort to Cap CO2 Emissions”). Due to the refusal to pass this bill, many of the companies that produce the alternate energy sources are turning their attention to states that have a greenhouse- gas emissions cap already in place. While the future of the alternate energy sources looks a bit bleak, it is not all bad; for example “solar energy is growing at a rate of 40% a year in terms of electrical power installed and is likely to continue to grow” (Ron Kenedi, qtd. in “Senate Halts Effort to Cap CO2 Emissions.”)
(The Wall Street Journal, July 23, 2010, “Senate Halts Effort to Cap CO2 Emissions”)

Politics also played a big role in the infamous BP oil spill. There were many controversies over the spill dealing with how to handle the clean up and the CEO as well as the blow to the tourist industry along the gulf coast. Also conspiracy theories started to circulate, and the result of it was an overdrawn response to the solution with a tug of war and a blame game. However the damage to the gulf ecosystems did not start, contrary to popular belief, a month after the spill, but, for the Louisiana Delta area in April. In April Louisiana officials decided to open the levees along the banks of the Mississippi River so the fresh water would push back the encroaching oil. A side affect of this strategy that worked for a short time was the drop in the salinity level. The oyster population of the marshes began to die. The oyster farmers were the first to notice this and became very concerned because Louisiana produces one third of the United States' oysters, making the industry a major staple of Louisiana’s economy. The farmers are concerned with a little bit more that just the oysters. Oysters are incredibly sensitive to their surroundings, so where they become sick or the population began to die; it’s not much longer until the environment around them becomes visibly affected. (The Wall Street Journal, July 20, 2010 “Fresh Water Aimed at Oil Kills Oysters”)

Louisiana’s fishing industry is not the only region affect by water pollution or oil spills; the Alaskan fishing industry has suffered several times due to spills, and Maine’s lobster industry relies on the purity of the water. The Chesapeake Bay is renowned for its blue crab and oyster fishing industry, but this economic staple is affect by water pollution. Chicken manure is used in some Maryland farms, and when the manure washes away in the tributaries that feed into the bay, it pollutes the water and affects the blue crab pollution as well as the oyster population. The oysters of the Bay help to purify the water making the cycle a perfect example of the natural capital cycle. Full natural capital is reach when natural resources work effortlessly with natural services. The state of either the natural resources that is being provided the natural service influences the natural capital. For example, the water pollution in the Bay has effect the oyster population. Not only are the oyster a big part of the Bay area’s economy; they help to purify the water, contributing a natural service. However, since the oysters are being over harvested and the water is so pollute, the oyster cannot purify it and that affects many other species as the water become more and more polluted. (For more: http://www1.american.edu/TED/bluecrab.htm http://www.thechesapeakebay.com/article/408/chesapeake)

While we continue to engage in harmful practices, there are examples of sustainability in action. Earthships are a totally self-sustainable domestic unit made of recyclable materials and “the way of the future.” The designer, Michael Reynolds, was an architect major from the University of Cincinnati. When he heard about the excessive littering in the city during the 70s, he decided to build a house out of the aluminum cans. The houses have virtually no utility bills because there is no air conditioning unit to because the house is built with the outer air in mind and has many features to control the inside temperature. There is a power box always built into the home that converts solar and wind energy into power. There is also a water panel with a filter to clean the water and to pressurize it for household use like any other conventional system. The natural; the water is recycled four separate times and purified for each different use. Also the homes have year round green houses so the owner can grow their own food. The houses are a step forward and have even pioneered a new division of architecture: Biotecture. The houses are an ultimate balance between human living and working to reverse the negative affect humans have on the environment.
(For more information see: http://earthship.com/
http://earthship.com/testimonials/my-hero-project-michael-reynolds-garbage-warrior
Earthships tour(you'll need to copy and paste these links): Part One: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9jdIm7grCY
Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rlrhxqat_6A&feature=channel)