Photos via theplastiki.com
What better way to draw attention to the issue of plastic pollution in our oceans than to build a 65-foot boat made of 12,500 reclaimed plastic water bottles and sail it from San Francisco to Australia? Well, this is precisely what Adventure Ecology has done, and the boat, ‘Plastiki’, and its 6 crew members are already 11 days or 900 nautical miles into their epic three month journey. (Click here to track their voyage). Read more…
Photo Credit: Matthew Johnson
By 2030, the state of Hawaii aims to have 70 percent of its energy for electricity and ground transportation come from clean sources. Taking large strides towards this goal, the state is in the final permitting stages of the Kahuku Wind project which will produce clean, renewable energy for about 7,700 Oahu homes a year. The 30 MW wind energy project, created by First Wind (an independent US-based wind energy company), will also feature a battery energy storage system, which will provide as much as 10 MW of power for at least an hour during periods of low wind speeds. Read more…
Photo Credit: Nerissa Michaels
Can one really have the problem of too many fish in the water? Is the picture above not a fisherman’s dream? Sadly the picture, taken on the Illinois River, may be more of a nightmare than a sweet dream. Silver Carp, an invasive species native to China are taking over America’s waterways. Originally introduced to American waters in an attempt to control Algal growth in southern cat fish farms, large floods washed Silver Carp into the Mississippi River in the early 80’s. Due to the Silver Carp size (they can grow as long as four feet and weigh as much as one hundred pounds) and voracious appetite (they can consume up to 40% of their own body weight in plankton every day), the fish has encountered few predators besides humans. Thus, the Silver Carp population has flourished while America’s waterways continue to foul. Read more…
Photo credit: Jonas Clemens
As China continues its surge as a world superpower, it also has no intention of capping its greenhouse gas emissions whilst the country is industrializing. This is in spite of the increasing pressure from other leading nations to set caps on emissions and begin reversing the damage caused over recent decades. Read more…
photo credit: Procsilas Moscas
Would you spend extra money buying something that was damaging to the environment, could be harmful to your health, and that is readily available in your own home? No, so why do Americans today continue to buy bottled water? Excuses include that it’s more convenient, that it tastes better, that tap water is “dirty”. The truth is that bottled water usually has no benefits over tap water and its time for more people to realize this. Read more…
Adam Jackson
It may come as a surprise to some that there are still areas of remote and relatively untouched landscape in the state of California. However, nestled between the Bay Area and Sacramento lays the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area, a half-million acre range of inner coast land that is one of the most biologically diverse landscapes in the entire state. Clean rivers and expansive oak forests lead to snow peaked mountain tops in an area extending over 100 miles across six counties. More than twelve local,state, and federal agencies have worked to conserve this ecological corridor. Now, groups have fought to unify conservation efforts by nominating the area to be decreed as a national monument by the Department of the Interior. Read more…
Do you ever sometimes wonder how one person’s actions, like say yours, could possibly make a difference in this enormously complex and vast world that we share with over 6.8 billion people? Well, here is a short story of how one Ethiopian-born American citizen made a huge difference.
A few years ago Gashaw Tahir traveled back to his homeland and was blown away by the dramatic changes that had taken place since he was last there. Mountains had been deforested and as a result erosion was everywhere. Rivers that depended on the moisture contained in the lush forests were drying up and climate change was only intensifying the situation. Tahir knew that something had to be done and quickly. “ My ultimate vision is making Africa green again.” he said. That inspires me, touches me, moves me into action.” Read more…
Photo Credit: Elisabeth D'Orcy
I remember telling my college advisor that I was thinking of being an environmental studies and music major. Music and the environment seem like two completely different ways of life to me, but today I discovered a link between the two. When I look at an instrument, I don’t usually think of the tree that it came from. Now I will. Read more…
Set your clocks for 8:30 PM on Saturday, March 27th, and join hundreds of millions of people around the world who are turning off their lights for one hour, symbolically calling for action on climate change. This bold statement began three years ago, and has grown into a world wide phenomenon that joins together organizations, corporations and governments in sending out a positive message that they care about the well being of our planet and the crisis of global warming. Read more…
Photo Credit: Keith Bacongco
The dense jungle interior of northwest Indonesia has been home to rebel troops throughout the last several decades. Throughout their struggle, the jungles and forests in the province of Aceh have been a haven for these rebel foot soldiers fighting for independence and control of natural resources. Although the area has not seen combat for the last five years and the war is largely over, many of the rebels still live the jungles of Aceh and look to illegal logging for revenue. Read more…
Keep reading and continue greening!
Loading ...A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.
-Greek Proverb
