Environmental Activism – For a Pollution-free Planet

Traffic: zoonabar / Chris Brown

Author: oil

Pollution caused by oil spills from tankers is one of the biggest threats to the environment. But it is only one part of the picture. Not many know that oil runoff from cars, trucks, and other vehicles also cause severe marine pollution. When it rains, oil leaked onto roads and driveways is washed into the storm drains, which ultimately flows into lakes or streams.

Used motor oil is the largest source of oil pollution. In fact, of the 20 million gallons of oil that escape into the North American waters every year, only 15% are caused by pipeline or tanker spills, whereas the remaining 17 million gallons are due to oil spills from cars and trucks, fuel dumping by commercial pilots, and contamination by recreational boaters.

Oil leaked from cars pollutes drinking water and waterways in more ways than you can imagine. One of the main reasons why auto fluids are termed as very harmful is that they do not dissolve in water like oil. One pint of motor oil results in a slick that is larger than a football field.

The underground aquifers that supply us drinking water are polluted costing millions of dollars to municipalities in drinking water treatment and operational expenses. Oil, antifreeze, and break fluids that seep into the water contain heavy metals wrecking havoc on the wildlife. Hypothermia in birds, damage to the immune system in animals, and death of fish are only some of the effects.

You can see how a simple oversight on our part can pollute our planet. It is our responsibility to take steps to protect our environment. First and foremost would be to take steps to prevent oil spills, and if an oil spill does occur even after all these, being prepared to deal with it.

For oil spill cleanup from driveways or anywhere else at home, use eco-friendly oil spill cleaners, such as Oil Gone Easy S-200 rather than other toxic oil stain removers. This environmentally-friendly oil stain remover uses bio-remediation technology to cleanup driveway oil stains the natural way without causing any further harm.

About the Author:

OilSpillBlog

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Environmental Activism – For a Pollution-free Planet

Caring for the world ecology

Let's Get Green! by ecstaticist / Evan Leeson

Author: goyal.ishaa

BOTH THE developed and the developing countries are between the devil and the deep sea. The developed countries do not wish to cut green house gas emissions as it would slow down their progress and enable competing countries to take over. The developing countries including China, a surprise entrant, take the plea that they have to reach the level of the developed countries and for that cutting the green house-gas emissions would be like committing Harakiri.

Be that as it may, numerous conferences on promoting ecology and checking environmental pollution have turned out to be mere discussions in a debating club. Be it Kyoto, or Latin America or now Copenhagen in December 2009, the talking shops did not produce any positive results. Many hundred reams of paper, secretarial work, a lot of wining and dining and track two diplomacy failed to produce any positive results. Time and energy went down the drain.

Now some light can be seen at the end of the tunnel. On Sunday, November 15, 2009, at Singapore at the session of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, President Obama of the United States and other opinion makers and shapers arrived at an agreement ahead of the Copenhagen Summit on Ecology to tone down criticism of the advanced nations.

A deal was struck by agreeing to tone down the target and also to renew efforts to achieve positive results.The Prime Minister of Denmark, Lars Lokke Rasmussen put forth the compromise formula and called it one agreement two steps that would be legally binding as a treaty by 2010.

Indeed, the developed nations may be happy but it is a compromise that would not reduce the global warming substantially. In another 11 years, China will account for 50 per cent of the global emissions. Maldives and parts of Mumbai and London may bid adieu to the earth and become a part of the surging waters of the sea.

Let us hope and pray that the Gangotri, source of our Ganges river does not melt as it would spell disaster for the plains of India. We must keep on convincing those who are not affected now by global warming and climate change to listen to the suffering humanity.

About the Author:

Hi, I am Ishaa Goyal from India, by profession i am a journalist. Recently i m covering news on Global Warming and China News.I have written number of climate related articles.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Caring for the world ecology

A Forum To Restore The Earth

Green Weed Cove: brentbat / Brent Pearson

By: Adolphpaul

The Green Revolution is here! Many are concerned about saving the planet and restoring it to its pristine glory.

Is it a movement just for the elite?

The green movement is currently a lifestyle choice that people can embrace if money is available to buy organic food and hybrid cars. It is important that it should become main-stream if it is to have any real influence on all of us. The green solutions prescribed by pundits are expensive and many are not able to afford them. How many of us can afford to install solar- powered panels on the roofs of our homes? These are expensive consumer choices. However, it goes without saying that environmental concerns are the topmost priority.

What is a sustainable blog?

A sustainable blog brings out ideas from different sections of the society to lessen noxious emissions and suggest ways to use clean and green technology that is simple and accessible. For instance, instead of throwing away plastic bottles, why don’t you give them away to the factory to make polyester? Polyester garments are an eco-friendly option.

Its importance in the virtual world

• Global warming is not something that is going to happen ten or twenty years from now. It is already happening.
• Unfortunately, governments and industries have been slow in waking up to this fact.
• Blogs and online communications are an excellent way to keep the pressure on the state for concrete action and measures to minimize the effects of climate change.
• These are advocacy tools by means of which extensive and broad campaigns can be conducted by environmentalists and the civil society to save the planet from further destruction.
• Everybody has a stake here and a significant role to play.
• Eco-themed blogs from around the world discuss issues on the current eco crisis and the measures to tackle it by sustainable means.
• You would be able to know about clean technology in the UK, climate change concerns in Italy or green farming in Canada.

It is important that an economy has to evolve from green technology and provides a sustainable life to us. A sustainable community would suggest ways to minimize our negative impact upon the planet. There has been a growing awareness among environment and sustainable groups to ensure that the existing resources on the planet do not get wastefully depleted.

The future generations should not suffer for the negligent actions of the past and present communities. Sustainable living is not an option. It is a necessity.
Overpopulation and a fierce battle for resources have wrecked havoc on the fragile eco-system of our planet. It is imperative that you should be conscious of your actions in conserving the planet by eco-friendly methods and limit over-consumption.

About the Author:

Commoncircle.net is a social networking site where you can post and share your reviews, information on sustainable blog.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – A Forum To Restore The Earth

Vegas Sparkles With Solar Energy

Paris Las Vegas: http2007 / Thierry

By: Elysia Niemi

In a plan that is less surprising than audacious, Las Vegas city fathers plan to place solar panels on top of carports at a number of city-owned and operated facilities.

The $11-million plan, will reportedly cut the city’s electricity costs by about $300,000 a year when completed, and generate enough electricity to supply 170 homes.

The solar panels in question have a life expectancy of between 25 and 40 years (the first figure being closer to the expert’s usual estimates), and the city’s investment of $600,000 from a “green” building fund will reportedly be recaptured in about 15 years.

The rest of the funding – $4,150,000 of Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant funds (EECBG), $1,276,738 from Community Development Block Grant Recovery (CDBG-R, or ARRA) funds, and $5.1 million from New Clean Renewable Energy Bonds, as well as utility rebates for renewable energy – makes up the balance.

The project will initially start with three sets of panels mounted across 34 carport stalls and paid for by ARRA funding, and will be located at the new Stupak Community Center at 300 W. Boston Ave. (across the street from the Chester Stupak Park). The center, built in 2008 at a cost of $7.5 million, is nearly complete and contains 34,183 square feet of ESL and general classrooms, an indoor gym/aerobic fitness and weight control center, a kitchen, a library and a game room. Opening is scheduled for this winter.

Two other solar projects, also slated for carport roofs on public buildings, will finish the 950-kilowatt project, which is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the city’s carbon footprint by 949 tons of carbon monoxide (which would have been produced by burning fossil fuels). Stupak Center solar project construction is expected to start in 2010.

The new Stupak Community Center is slated for completion this fall, with an opening proposed for this winter. The solar carport at the center is expected to break ground sometime in 2010.

The panels, funded from the Community Development Block Grant Recovery portion of ARRA, is the first project approved in the region, which includes Nevada, California, Arizona and Hawaii, and will provide between 10 and 30 percent of the center’s power needs, depending on usage.

The panels also provide covered parking, and they, along with solar installations at the wastewater treatment plant, will move the city to 10 percent of renewable power by 2011, which is close to Nevada’s Renewable Energy Standard (RES) of 25 percent of energy from renewables by 2025.

Cooler Planet is a leading solar resource for connecting consumers and commercial entities with local solar Installers. Cooler Planet’s solar energy resource page contains articles and tools about solar panels to help with your solar project.

About the Author:

Cooler Planet is a leading solar resource for connecting consumers and commercial entities with local solar Installers. Cooler Planet’s solar energy resource page contains articles and tools about solar panels to help with your solar project.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Vegas Sparkles With Solar Energy

Biotechnology in Renewable Energy Resources

Alternative energy gift guide - Solar, wind, fuel cell, biodiesel and more...: pt / phillip torrone

By: Edward Hunter

Alternative energy is defined as energy that comes from a natural source and is renewable or naturally occurring. Alternative energy typically does not produce pollution and comes from such sources as the sun, wind, and water.

There have been many recent innovations to alternative energy as a result of expanding alternative energy technologies.

Alternative energy technologies have made it possible to do much more research on how to use the alternative energy sources that we have more effectively to generate the most power out of the various sources.

Alternative energy technologies have also been instrumental in discovering new ways to produce heating fuels, such as bio-diesel, methanol, and ethanol from bio-mass for energy consumption.

It is imperative that companies who are dedicated to alternative energy options continue to develop their alternative energy technologies to keep up with the demand to make alternative energy more readily accessible to a larger amount of people as the dwindling supply of fossil fuels and concerns over our dependence on foreign oils drives many more people towards considering alternative energy sources.

In recent years alternative energy technologies have propelled bio-mass and bio-deisel into the fore front of the alternative energy movement. Biotechnology has become an extremely important area of research and development as a result of the record high gas and heating fuel prices.

Biomass is organic material made from plants or animals that originates from agricultural and forestry residue as well as municipal and industrial wastes and terrestrial and aquatic crops. Through the use of alternative energy technologies bio-mass has been able to be transferred into usable fules such as methane, ethanol, dio-deisel, methanol and biocrude.

These products are viable and readily available alternatives to pertroleum and gasoline. Through the use of alternative energy technologies bio-mass has also been found to be a source of biopower. Biopower uses biomass to produce electricity using alternative energy technologies such as direct firing, co-firing, gasification, pyrolysis, and anaerobic digestion.

The direct firing method biomass is burned to produce steam. The steam drives a turbine that turns a generator to convert power into electricity. Without alternative energy technologies it would be much more difficult to develop new ways to use the resources that are available naturally.

Alternative energy technologies also make it possible to discover new ways to develop alternative energy and make it more user friendly and efficient in usage and installation.

Alternative energy technologies truly are changing the face of the alternative energy movement and creating more innovative ways to use natural resources as well as providing new products that rely on alternative energy as their source of power.

About the Author:

Learn more about alternetive energy at Energy4Freedom.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Biotechnology in Renewable Energy Resources

Green Cleaning Technologies

Green Leaf of a Bio Plant in Nature: epSos .de

Author: oil

Green cleaning is a term that refers to cleaning techniques and products that make use of eco-friendly materials and substances rather than toxic ingredients. Certain products emit volatile organic compounds, which can cause irreparable damage, respiratory problems, and skin infections. Green cleaning techniques are a much safer and healthier way to treat water, purify air, and clean a home or land.

Sunrays are natural disinfectants. Ultraviolet radiation emitted from the sun can be used to disinfect water and air. UV radiation is commonly used in waste water treatment and is increasingly being used in drinking water treatment. In fact, there are several manufactures that offer water purifiers that use UV light. This cleaning technique is more eco-friendly than treating water with chemicals. Almost all the pollutants in the air are carbon-based compounds. These compounds break down when exposed to high-intensity UV light at 240-280 nm.

Hospitals have used UV technology for years to sterilize the air in their facilities. Halo vacuum cleaners also use this green cleaning technology to kill germs, bacteria, mold, dust mite eggs, and flea eggs that fester deep in carpet fibers. Halo vacuum cleaners suck up dirt as well as any other vacuum, but unlike other models, they kill microorganisms like E.coli and Samonella. Rather than use toxic chemicals that are harmful to the environment and humans to sterilize surfaces, a Halo vacuum cleaner is a great alternative.

Electrokinetic remediation is a green technology used to clean land, especially to restore contaminated waste sites. The section of soil that has been contaminated is exposed to a low voltage direct-current electric field. When the electrodes are charged, ions and water move toward the electrodes. The ions flow through the outer casing of the electrode, which contains water, where they are then removed for treatment. Bioreactors and bioventing technology are two forms of bioremediation that are used to remediate soil that has been contaminated by fuel.

Oil Gone Easy S-200 also uses bioremediation to help fight oil spill pollution both on land and in water. This eco-friendly product is more readily available than bioreactors or bioventing technology and is ideal for home and boat owners.

About the Author:

http://www.oilgoneeasy.com/oil_spill_blog/

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Green Cleaning Technologies

Are We Running Out of Clean Water?

macro water drop: Hypergurl - Tanya Ann / Tanya Puntti

by Thelma Oliver

Water is a life giving substance! We are confident that life as we know it cannot exist without the presence of clean water. We can live weeks without food but only days without water. Recent tests on the moon were designed to detect any presence of water, for eventual colonization would be impossible without it.

The earth is not short of water as such. The 326 million trillion gallons of water on earth divided by the current population, 5.8 billion, reveals that we have 56 billion gallons apiece. For sanitation, bathing, and cooking needs, the average person in the world has a daily requirement of about 13.2 gallons of water. That means the world contains enough water to last each of us over 11 million years (not counting population growth)! That doesn’t take into consideration the free recycling system provided for us called evaporation and condensation.

Of course, this is a little misleading for not all (or even most) of this water on earth is in a useable form. Ninety-eight percent of the water on the planet is ocean salt water. Of the 2% of the planet’s fresh water, 1.6% is locked up in the polar ice caps and glaciers. Another 0.36% is found underground in aquifers and wells. A mere trifle, just .036% of the planet’s total water supply, is found in fresh water lakes and rivers. This is still 392 million gallons each, but that isn’t much compared with the 56 billion gallons we could have. The sobering fact is that only about 0.007% of all water on earth (and less than 1% of the world’s fresh water) is accessible for direct human use.

Another problem is that the available useable water is not distributed evenly to the population. For example, the average American uses more water in one shower than most third world people use in a whole day. Nearly one billion people lack access to safe water. Nearly one billion people of the world lack access to safe water. That amounts to about one in eight people. Further, two and a half billion do not have access to improved sanitation, which means they are unable or don’t bother to separate drinking water from wastewater.

Major health issues throughout the world result from a lack of sanitary drinking water. One estimate is that half of all those in hospital beds at any one time are there because of a water related disease. As a result, a child dies from a water-related disease every 15-20 seconds in the world, usually from diarrhea. That adds up to a staggering 1.4 million children each year. The children in these environments often carry 1,000 parasitic worms in their bodies because of stagnant water supplies. In all, unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, or insufficient hygiene account for 88% of diarrhea cases worldwide.

Polluted water brings death, but also an increase in disease, crime, birth defects, and decreased ability to concentrate in school. In other words, it results in major economic decline. Investing in ways to purify water, or to desalinate the sea are investments that bring returns. On average, every US dollar invested in water and sanitation for a third world people provides an economic return for them of eight US dollars.

Some want the western civilization to feel guilty for taking a shower or watering their lawns. This is faulty thinking. Lowering our living standard only borrows their problems. America has sufficient good, clean water because we have learned how to preserve it and where to get it. Our response to criticism should not be guilt but better stewardship and an increased willingness to share our knowledge with others. When we are frugal and generous with our water, we will set a higher standard for other nations to follow.

Article Source: amazines.com

Hindus admire Church of Norway for firm stand on environment

Bremnes Church, Bømlo by Henke

Special to Earthpages.org

Hindus have praised Church of Norway for launching a sustainability reform.

Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, applauded Church of Norway’s powerful stand on environment challenging national and diocesan councils, parishes and local joint church councils, individuals, and Government and the Parliament to make environmental reform efforts.

Zed, who is president of Universal Society of Hinduism, said that it was commendable for the Church Synod to try to persuade parishes to become “greener” and local joint church councils to be “environmental lighthouses”, individuals to “make a personal climate promise”, Government and Parliament to make the petroleum extraction carbon neutral, etc.

Faiths coming out in support of the environment was a remarkable signal, Rajan Zed said and urged all world religious leaders, religions and denominations to openly bless the environmental causes. Ancient Hindu scriptures, especially Atharva-Veda, were highly respectful of mother nature, he added.

We may believe in different religions, yet we share the same home—our Earth. We must learn to happily progress or miserably perish together. For man can live individually but can only survive collectively, Zed says quoting scriptures.

Christianity came to Norway around 1000 AD, from the British Isles, Germany and Friesland. Church of Norway, with about 1,600 churches/chapels, and with King as its constitutional head, can be defined as a State church with an Episcopal and a Synodical structure. Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about one billion adherents and moksha (liberation) is its ultimate goal.

Hindus applaud Vatican & Pope for bravely going ahead with biggest solar plant of Europe

Special to Earthpages.org

St. Peter's Square - Vatican City by vgm8383

Hindus have lauded Vatican and Pope Benedict for stepping up its fight against global warming by planning to build the biggest solar plant in Europe costing about $660 million, resulting in cutting around 91,000 tons of carbon-dioxide emissions a year.

Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, commended His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI and Vatican for this environment friendly move, being outspoken to save the planet and curb environmental degradation, going greener in a big way, listing pollution as one of seven social sins, covering roof of the Paul VI auditorium with solar panels cutting carbon-dioxide emissions by about 225 tons, proposing solar-heating system for Vatican’s 300-seat cafeteria, thinking of a renewable energy project for Pope’s Castel Gandolfo summer palace, planning energy production from the gasification of natural products, etc.

Faiths coming out in support of the environment was a remarkable signal, Rajan Zed, who is president of Universal Society of Hinduism, said and urged all world religious leaders, religions and denominations to openly bless the environmental causes. Ancient Hindu scriptures, especially Atharva-Veda, were highly respectful of mother nature, he added.

We may believe in different religions, yet we share the same home-our Earth. We must learn to happily progress or miserably perish together. For man can live individually but can only survive collectively, Rajan Zed says quoting scriptures.

Zed criticized some countries of Europe for complaining that harnessing sunlight on a grand scale was too expensive to curb global warming.

Pope Benedict heads the Roman Catholic Church, which is the largest of the Christian denominations. Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about one billion adherents and moksha (liberation) is its ultimate goal.

“THE DEBATE IS OVER!”

Say ‘Global Warming Is Man-Made’ OR ELSE!!