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NASA is Teaching Us Sustainability
“Astronauts who spend months on end in orbit have to learn to make do and mend in the best tradition of sustainability. Missions to bring fresh supplies are expensive and time consuming. For any astronauts who take on a mission to Mars, planned for the 2030s, with the round trip likely to take two years, life would be even tougher.
That prospect has helped focus minds at America’s space agency, Nasa, on clever ways to provide for daily needs in challenging conditions. But the lessons being learned are also proving to have knock-on benefits down here on Earth.”
Apple Has Recovered More Than A Ton Of Gold
“Helping the environment pays back — in Apple’s case, to the tune of millions. The tech company says it recovered more than a ton of gold from recycled devices last year — 2,204 pounds, according to Apple’s environmental responsibility report.
It came from Apple products that were either dropped off at stores or mailed in by consumers. Each iPhone, for instance, contains approximately 25 milligrams of gold worth about $1, according to a Forbes report. With gold selling for about $1,237.50 an ounce, Apple got back approximately $43.6 million last year and reduced its need to mine more gold from the Earth.”
Florida’s Coasts and Their Ecosystems are in Danger
“Central Florida’s Indian River Lagoon, North Florida’s Apalachicola Bay and a trio of coastal estuaries in South Florida are in the throes of ecosystem collapses that threaten sea grass, fisheries, recreation and local economies.
What’s to blame? A historic toll of chronic pollution and crippled drainage has been compounded by drought in recent years and El Niño downpours this winter. The troubled environments are far apart, but their stories are similar and even intertwined.”
The First State to Ban Bee-Killing Pesticides
In an effort to curb its plummeting honeybee population, Maryland is about to become the first state in the nation to pass strict restrictions on neonicotinoids for consumer use.
Neonicotinoids are a potent class of pesticides used on many crops in the U.S. that have been linked to the widespread decline of pollinator species. As EcoWatch mentioned previously, 29 independent scientists conducted a global review of 1,121 independent studies and found overwhelming evidence of pesticides linked to bee declines.
A River Bursts into Flames from Nearby Fracking
“So much methane gas is now bubbling up through the Condamine River in Queensland, Australia that it exploded with fire and held a large flame. Gas seeping into the river began shortly after coal seam gas operations started nearby and is growing in volume and the stretch of river affected is expanding in length.
Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham travelled to Chinchilla in South Western Queensland to investigate the impact of the coal seam gas industry on the environment as part of the Greens’ campaign to ban fracking and unconventional gas in Australia.”
GAME OVER for Climate Change
“Shigeru Miyamoto from Nintendo once said: ‘For those who don’t play video games, video games are irrelevant. They think all video games must be too difficult.’
I say, same goes for fighting climate change. Life as we know it is about to end. Quite literally!
Nowadays, everyone is busy in their own bubbles, whether it is sustaining a living, building a career or raising kids. We don’t often look around to check what is happening around us. Even if we do notice major issues such as poverty, pollution, climate change, natural disasters, we immediately think, ‘this is out of my league, there is no way I could solve such issues, I prefer to stay in my bubble.’
But what if these major issues will start affecting your bubble? What if you can still move on with your same routine, same lifestyle and still help in solving one of these looming and world-crushing dangers?”
World Food Supply Suffers when Pollinators Do
“The birds and the bees need help. Also, the butterflies, moths, wasps, beetles and bats. Without an international effort, a new report warns, increasing numbers of species that promote the growth of hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of food each year face extinction.
Pollinators, including some 20,000 species of wild bees, contribute to the growth of fruit, vegetables and many nuts, as well as flowering plants. Plants that depend on pollination make up 35 percent of global crop production volume with a value of as much as $577 billion a year. The agricultural system, for which pollinators play a key role, creates millions of jobs worldwide.”
March: Another Hottest Month
“NASA’s March temperature data was released Friday, showing that it was the planet’s second-most unusually mild month on record, only somewhat cooler than February 2016.
The NASA data shows the monthly global average temperature was 1.28 degrees Celsius, or 2.3 degrees Fahrenheit, above the 20th century average. According to NASA, six straight months from 2015 into 2016 have had a temperature anomaly of at least 1 degree Celsius. That had not happened in any month prior to this record warm stretch.”
WATCH: Food Inc.
Food, Inc. is a 2008 American documentary film directed by filmmaker Robert Kenner. The Academy Award-nominated film examines corporate farming in the United States, concluding that agribusiness produces food that is unhealthy, in a way that is environmentally harmful and abusive of both animals and employees.
Dig a Hole, Create a Refrigerator
Solutions to big problems – in this case energy use- can often have simple solutions. In this case a design company called Weltevree has designed a usable refrigerator that can be placed in the ground. We love it when design solves problems. Check this out. Now that the kids are grown, replace the swing set with an in-ground back yard cooler.
