Shocking Revelation: EPA Declares 'Fracking May Be To Blame For Causing Groundwater Pollution'

Picture: This is a picture of a derrick digging underground for natural gas. The drilling companies pollute the drinking waters of neighboring citizens because of their operations.

Summary: The EPA has found dangerous fracking chemicals in the water supply of Pavillion, Wyoming. The citizens began to complain about the appearance of their drinking water. There was a yellowish color, increased turbidity, coats of oil, and small bubbles of gas in their drinking water. Their water also presented a strong odor causing headaches and dizziness. Plasticizers were also found in their water. It was originally thought that the pollution was from dilution. But the EPA took action and found these hazardous chemicals due to fracking.

Opinion: This is very unfortunate for this town in Wyoming. I'm pretty sure there are other towns and communities that are suffering from the same situation. We watched a documentary in Mrs. Deluca's about fracking and the effect it had on people. People's water supplies are contaminated with fracking chemicals that are known to cause cancers and defects. Their tap water is so full of gases and chemicals, it can be lit on fire. Fracking is very contreversial and we should spread awarness about this to inform others.

Shocking Revelation: EPA Declares 'Fracking May Be To Blame For Causing Groundwater Pollution'

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A Gold Rush of Subsidies in Clean Energy Search

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/12/business/energy-environment/a-cornucopia-of-help-for-renewable-energy.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
The California Valley Solar Ranch under construction near Santa Margarita. By ERIC LIPTON and CLIFFORD KRAUSSPublished: November 11, 2011

Picture: This picture shows a wide spread of solar panels. This is what NRG Energy is looking to do.
Summary: Between LA and San Francisco, NRG Energy is building a medley of almost one millions solaro panels. These panels will be located on a once cattle ranch and gypsum mine. This source of energy is said to be able to "produce enough electricity to power about 100,000 homes."
Opinion: I think that it is awesome that we are finally trying to use more resources other than the ones that we are running out of due to the limitedness of it. Personally, I would like to see more energy efficient items being used around the world but this is a great start. Hopefull, the people's tax dollars will not increase too much to pay for the installment. I think that this is a wonderfully giant step forward!
Questions:
1. Do you think this will help of harm the people who are recieving the energy? Why or why not?
2. What do you think about the fact that these are being placed ontop of an abandoned mine and cattle farm? Why?
3. Do you think that the government will continue to fund this project? Explain.

Navy's Biofuel

Link: http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/12/navy-biofuels/

Title:Navy’s Big Biofuel Bet: 450,000 Gallons at 4 Times the Price of OilAuthor: Noah Shachtman

Summary:

The Navy is planning on buying 450,000 gallons of biofuel at fifteen dollars a
gallon. that is a grand total of twelve million dollars. This type of fuel is
made from algae and will be expected to be used at the Hawaiian coast. A 9,000
ton destroyer and a cruiser wil go on the journey across the pacific using only
alternative energy. Two companies will split the large Navy order. Dynamic
Fuels and Tyson foods take grease and other waste of this kind to make the
biofuel. Solazyme uses algae to ferment anything from plant matter to municipal
waste for their biofuel. Before this decision, the Navy would use their regular
fossil fuels combined with the environmentally friendly biofuel to gradually
convert to full biofuel use.
Nonsummary:
I
think this is a great idea for the Navy on going green. I am glad to hear that
the major organizations that use most of the gasoline and other fossil fuels
are becoming greener in the mindset of using fuels that are better for the
environment. I do not think that these alternative energy sources should be
priced so highly. It may be expensive to create these but maybe in a few years,
more people will use this alternative fuel source and the prices would
decrease.
Questions:
1.What
are your thoughts on the Navy "Going Green?"
2.Do
you think that more companies and organizations should use more alternative
fuel sources such as biofuel?
3.
Since the military is one of the highest using fuel organizations, do you think
that it is a good decision to be switching to biofuel?

A Gold Rush of Subsidies in Clean Energy Search

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/12/business/energy-environment/a-cornucopia-of-help-for-renewable-energy.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

By ERIC LIPTON and CLIFFORD KRAUSSPublished: November 11, 2011

Picture: This picture shows solar panels spread out over a wide span. This is what NRG Energy is looking to do.

Summary: Between LA and San Francisco, Halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, on a former cattle ranch and gypsum mine, NRG Energy is building an engineering marvel: a compound of nearly a million solar panels that will produce enough electricity to power about 100,000 homes

450,000 Gallons Of Biofuel For The Navy

Link: http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/12/navy-biofuels/

Title:Navy’s Big Biofuel Bet: 450,000 Gallons at 4 Times the Price of Oil
Author: Noah Shachtman

Date:December 5, 2011

Summary:

The Navy is planning on buying 450,000 gallons of biofuel at fifteen dolloars a gallon. hat is a grand total of twelve million dollars. This type of fuel is made from algae and will be expected to use at the hawaiian coast. A 9,000 ton destroyer and a cruiser wil go on the journey across the pacific using olny alternative energy. two companies will split the large Navy order. Dynamic Fuels and Tyson foods take grease and other waste of this kind to make the biofuel. Solazyme uses algae to ferment anything from plant matter to municipal waste for their biofuel. before this decision, the Navy would use their regular fossil fuels combined with the environmentallty friendly biofuel to gradually convert to full biofuel use.

IKEA to Expand US Solar Investment to 75% of Stores

"IKEA to Expand US Solar Investment to 75% of Stores"

Sami Grover

December 6, 2011

Treehugger

Link to Article!

Follow up article for other information!

(Daniela Rivera, IKEA, August 3, 2011)

Summary:

In the UK, IKEA bought a wind farm at a whopping twelve million dollars and is also planning to install solar panels (39,000) on seventy-five percent of its stores and allow them to run on 100% renewable energy. Their very first solar energy system installation occurred on August 3rd of this year and happened at Costa Mesa, California. This one solar energy system consisted of 1,078 panels. Most of the installations will continue to happen in California and also the east coast. IKEA has planned to "own the installations outright" instead of leasing them, so they do not make profit off of this project. It is only a matter of time before another well-known retailer will adopt themselves a green stimulus package themselves (actions that can be taken to help better both your life/business and the environment).

Picture:

Solar panels are one of several well-known alternative energy sources and as IKEA gets ready to begin construction on their stores, Amp Solar Group Inc. representatives pose for a picture as they prepare to provide IKEA with their company's solar panels.

Opinion:

This is quite wonderful! It is nice to know that a large corporation like IKEA is taking a big initiative and trying to make a difference. And the fact that they will not profit from the solar panel through any lease makes it all the better. Especially since if you want to do environmentally friendly, you should be doing it with your own will and not some profit incentive. I always feel like California is THE state of solar energy or eco-friendliness. There was that one time in class where we talked about how California (San Diego specifically) had houses where people would place plants all on top of their roofs not only to help keep their houses cool (because the plants would absorb the sunlight) but would also help grow plants better and the more plants, the more oxygen! That is like a personal green stimulus plan in fact! I do wish more large companies would do what IKEA is doing and has already done once to help the environment. It is a nice way to make up for the products that they sell which already use up so much of our resources.

Questions:

1) What is another corporation/company that would be a good choice to initiate the green stimulus package (most benefit) and why?

2) Do you think this project is a good idea? Consider the resources that will be used and what needs to be done to even produce the solar panels that will be used.

3) Have you ever initiated a personal green stimulus plan for yourself? (In other words, what are some things that you have done or actions that you have taken that has helped better yourself and better the environment?)

Nuclear Leaking

 

By: Katherine Locke-Brubaker

Link: http://www.emagazine.com/magazine/nuclear-dilemmas?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EMagazineIssueFeed+%28E+Magazine+Print+Issue+Feed%29

Picture: This picture displays nuclear energy being transferred and readied to be put into a cooling pond where the nuclear rods are cooled until they're safe to be put in waste dumps and landfills.

Summary: Nuclear energy is actually an very unstable source of energy  but is still be used daily. When the fuel is used and no longer is radio-active enough for energy-usage, then it is stored away into cooling ponds where the nuclear rods are cooled until safe. The problem is that when they're put into the ponds, they're still dangerously high in radioactivity and if they would happen to leak, then our health, homes, and everything we know will soon come to an end. Also, when in the ponds, the rods kill off all the aquatic life and pretty much everything else in or surrounding it, so clearly this is not a very healthy alternative in the first place. We can't seem to find a good place to store our nuclear rods after they're no longer usable because putting them in cooling ponds is killing off a lot of life, contaminating our water, making people sick, and giving off high amounts of radioactivity. The only real way to prevent all of this from happening, is to just stop nuclear energy as an energy alternative, but we all know that the government would still use use it under the table and there would always be a struggle for it, so clearly that's out of the question. It's making it safer and healthier that we have to focus on because the way we're doing it now, we're just killing off ourselves.

Opinion: I can totally agree with what this article has to say, our intense levels of nuclear energy usage isn't just killing our earth by being used in the first place, but after it's used in our local waterways and ponds. Again, what if there were to be a leakage or natural disaster that would knock down one of the towers or wash the rods up onto the land, we'd die in a matter of years. Not only would this affect u either, our surrounding wildlife and aquatic life would suffer a great deal as well, for they can't really leave the ocean or their jungles and forests. All of this, is actually what just happened in Japan when a massive Tsunami hit Japan and caused one of the nuclear cooling plants to fail. The rods overheated and soon, then, exploded, releasing TONS of highly toxic radiation. Everyone who stays in Japan will soon die from the over-exposure,along with many illnesses and mutations they acquired from the waste. It was such a big leakage that in fact, the nuclear radiation is now spreading throughout the world and has contaminated almost all the life in the ocean near Japan. This wan't even the biggest cooling systems they have either, so if you think this is a tragedy, let's just keep using nuclear energy and see what else we can kill. WE need to stop everything we're doing with nuclear energy even if it means stop using that kind of energy altogether, because everything is somehow being harmed by it. We need to stop it before it gets even worse than it is now.

Questions:

1. What are some alternatives to using nuclear energy?
2. What else could happen in the future if we don't change the way we're dealing with nuclear energy?
3. What impact will the recent nuclear explosion have on your life and the families around you? 

EPA Develops New Planning Approach to Improve Water Quality in U.S. Cities

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/0/68C9214FF1E0C157852579370055D62A

Picture: This is a picture of an old rusty sewage system underneath the city of Milwaukee. Sewage systems in many cities are beginning to age and rust.

Summary: The EPA has decided to help many cities from across the U.S. achieve clean water by managing city wastewater and stormwater runoff. They will begin to help municipalities across the country by supporting them financially. To better protect water quality, the EPA has begun to review the Clean Water Act requirements with each municipality. The EPA will begin to use innovative, cost effective storm and wastewater management solutions, like green infrastructure. Also, old and aging sewer systems will begin to overflow with raw sewage into city waterways if they are not treated. The EPA has took on a new approach to tackling the water quality issue in U.S. cities.

Opinion: I think that the EPA is doing a very good job in protecting our water quality. To learn that they are doing all these things to protect our water is assuring. We don't have to worry as much when we use our water, knowing that it will be safe. The water quality problem is certainly an issue because there is very little drinkable water on this earth. We must better protect our waters from contamination, because water is so important to our everyday lives.

Questions:

1. What are some other ways the EPA can use to better protect our water quality?

2. How do you think the EPA can spread awareness to the public about this issue?

3. What do you think you can do at home to conserve and protect our water?

Why Recycling Plastic Bottles Doesn't Help The Problem

Link:
http://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/why-recycling-plastic-bottles-doesnt-help-the-problem-video.html?campaign=th_rss
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YLtpBOLzZA&feature=player_embedded
(very worth while. Watch the video and see how many steps are involved in
recycling)

Picture
I chose this picture because it is an elephant made out of plastic bottles. I
thought that it is incredible that this can be done, while at the same time I
thought "How many bottles are there?" and "What a waste."
Summary:
There are so many steps involved in the recycling process. This company
(ecostar) takes plastic bottles and grounds them into sand like pieces. There
are about five steps to get it to this state, but it seems very time consuming and
involved. Even though we do recycle, not as many people recycle as they should.
Because of this problem it is estimated that there is about six times more
plastic than plankton in our oceans. If you know anything about plankton they
are very small organisms and there are a lot of them in the ocean.

Opinion
The fact that there is more plastic than, lets say, 30 to 40 million plankton
in our oceans is just a disturbing realization that our planet may soon become
a giant landfill. These companies, such as Coke, are obsessed with making
money. They could very easily stop production of plastic bottles and sell
reusable ones, but they want to make money so they won't. I think that if we
all stopped to look at what Earth has become in only the past few years, we
will see how much damage all of this has become.

Questions:
How could we help the recycling steps lessen?
What do you think the world will be like in a mere 10 years if this keeps
happening?
Do you think recycling is good or should we stop using plastic all together?
Why?

Water Availability in Africa

By:Unknown
Summary
There is very little water availability in Africa due to global warming. The increase in weather is drying up water sources and making it unavailable to the people who rely on it. Efforts to provide a reliable water source have been comprimised due to the rapid increase in population and problems with land use such as erosion. Only the tropical zones in central Africa have an abundant water source. Sharma et al says "Eight countries were suffering from water stress or scarcity; this situation is getting worse as a consequence of rapid growth, expanding urbanization, and increased economic development." In 2000, 300 million people could not get clean water. In 2025, about 600 million people will not be able to get clean water. This picture represents how much the water availability has decreased and will decrease over the course of thirty five years.
Personal Opinion
I think that the african government should take more responsibility for the water scarcity. We always hear how America is helping other countries, supplying them with filters and giving them money to build wells etc. The reason for this problem is mainly population growth. They should but a limit on how many offspring can be produced. Another idea that would help is supplying water pumps and wells every so many miles.
Questions
How do you feel about the decrease in water availability?

What are some ways that these people can get water more easily?

Who do think is responsiblefor this?

Sorry, NY Times: GMOs still won't save the world

By Anna Lappe

August 20, 2011

Grist

Link to Article

Summary:

GMOs, genetically modified organisms, are starting to become less favorited because of the lack of benefits it provides compared to regular, old farming style. These GMOs, if anything, cause issues because it threatens biodiversity in areas and has not even proven its worth. Regular farming however can improve the environment, one of those benefits being protecting watersheds, which in turn reduces crops water needs by thirty percent! Though the efforts in Kenya to create a "genetically engineered pesticide resistant sweet potato" failed miserably, some researchers in Uganda were able to complete the task without manipulating the sweet potatoes; rather they simply bred the different potatoes until they reached their goal through regular farming. It has also been found to help the production of agriculture and decrease the use of pesticide tremendously in countries of West Africa. Farmers also seem to be able to create communities amongst themselves and increased their wealth.

Picture:

Shown below is a picture of a watershed. You can see how with watersheds, much more water gets access into the soil, thus reducing the amount of water requirements for plants as said before.

Opinion/Reflection:

Hm... look at us humans. Forcing things to work the way we want them to through means of unnatural ways. It seems pretty clear that GMOs are not a very good idea in the agriculture industry and it should be removed and replaced with normal farming. I remember back in elementary school at Simmons, there were a couple of visits down to the Jarret Nature Center and there was the shed (which is still there) and we were taught what watersheds were (Though at the time I honestly did not know what it was still and I actually thought it had something to do with the shed. The tributary just happened to be next to it (small though).) and now, after reading this article, I have been enlightened on their impact of plant growth and the importance of their conservation. The fact that watersheds help reduce the water needs of plants (as in, compared to manuel labor to water them) by thirty percent makes it even more incredible and important.

Question(s):

1) What is your opinion of GMOs? (Would you rather keep them or try and result to regular farming considering the benefits?)

2) Why do you think we use GMOs rather than figuring things out conventionally?

3) What are other things we can do to try and preserve watersheds?

4) After considering the benefits of conventional farming, what are the negatives to doing so?

The Platypus Faces Extinction As Australia Heats Up

www.treehugger.com

by Alex Davies, Paris, France

08.7.11

Travel and Nature

Pictures:

This is a picture of a real platypus and also Perry the platypus. I chose to add Perry to show how much different actual platypus are in real life.

Summary:

"As a mammal that lays eggs, has a duck's bill, a beaver's tail, an otter's feet, and a venomous spur on its foot (males only), the platypus is a one of a kind animal." As temperatures in the waters of Australia are heating up, this mammal is finding hard to survive any longer. Their fur prevents them from losing heat because it is designed to keep them warm so they can live in icy water. They are currently safe under Australian law from hunters, but the climate changes are making it hard for them. However, since the platypus is on the endangered species list it may be possible to save them from going completely extinct sometime in the future.

Opinion:

For some strange reason I wanted to write my article about the platypus, but I never expected to read that they are on the endangered species list! I love Phineas and Ferb so naturally I love Perry the Platypus. But, if the platypus species goes extinct then future generations will have no idea how amazing the platypus is at being a secret agent and just being itself.

Questions:

1. How do you think we as Americans can help save the platypus?

2. How do you think the platypus will impact the ecosystem if it does go extinct?

3. If the platypus does go extinct do you think that Perry will also perish with the real species?

Tracking the Extinctions and Adaptations Around Us

Link to article:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/08/tracking-the-extinctions-and-adaptations-around-us.php?campaign=th_rss
Picture: This picture shows the impact of the Chicxulub Crater which happened near the Yucatan Peninsula.

Summary: There have been five major periods of extinction on our earth. The Chicxulub event was the last extinction to occur. Today, about 30,000 species are going extinct every year. We are currently entering our sixth great period of extinction in our history. Humanity is having a difficult time adapting to these changes. The globe keeps warming due to the increasing carbon emmisions in our atmosphere.

Reflection: It is very disturbing to know that we are entering our sixth period of mass extinction. Humanity has been careless at times by not preserving the earth's species. People should raise awareness about this so this period of mass extinction does not go out of control. Without our species, then our environments will not be stable.

Questions:
1. What can we do to raise awareness about this issue?
2. How can we prevent this sixth period of mass extinction?
3. What will happen if humanity does not respond to this period of mass extinction?

Plastic Seas

By: Lindsey Blomberg
August 26, 2011
The Environmental Magazine


Link to article: http://tinyurl.com/3pn7wr6

Picture- This picture shows just how much garbage and pollution we're putting into our oceans today. The incredible amount is so vast, that he actually needs a boat to sail through the trash, virtually making it a "sea of plastic".

Summary- While sailing the great waters of the Pacific Ocean, Captain Charles Moore, discovered more and more trash as he continued. Some fishing nets here, bottle caps there, it was soon to become known as the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch". It was such a great amount of garbage and human waste that he couldn't go one second without sailing past another cluster of water pollution. He wrote a book on trying to raise awareness on what we're doing to our own oceans that we swim in every day. What he relizes is that the media is trying to hide it from us because people don't want to see that on their TV screens; they'd rather watch a little, yellow sponge walking around the ocean floor with the dumbest starfish you'll ever meet. Some other discoveries he made include how no matter the great amount of awareness people try to send out to us, we just keep throwing more and more trash cans and human waste into our water systems everyday. He's on a mission to restore what was once a tropical paridise for lively fish and sea critters.

Reflection- This doesn't come as a surprize to me that our waters are very polluted with our watse, but to this extent, it's just out of hand. I just don't think people understand the vast amount of junk we dump into the oceans and how the future will look from here. We just think about the now, act first, think later, but that's a HUGE mistake. If we just do whatever we want to do now, there won't even be a future for us. The human race will actually become extinct because we're just killing ourselves out. We need to stop and think just for one second, how to make a small change that will create a big difference and his book can help the world do just that.

Questions
1. What are some ways we can start to restore the ocean to it's original, healthy form?
2. How can you spread the word of our polluted oceans?
3. What are some consiquences that we might face if there is no action taken to help our oceans?

Biodegradable's Dark Side

By: Eliana Osborn

August 26,2011

The Enviromental Magazine

Summary

Recently there has been an argument about new biodegradable products. Biosegradable products were created to decay faster to lessen our waste problem but there is a downside to the decomposition that these products bring. All trash produces methane gas -which is a potent greenhouse gas- when dumped in landfills. Methane gas is 25 times more potent in its heat trapping abilities than carbon dioxide. In landfills, they allow about two years to trap the mathane gasses and in some landfills, they turn the gas into energy. Biodegradable products decompose faster and realeses methane gas into the air befor it can be trapped. Researchers from North Carolina State University have concluded that using biodegradable products that decompose slower is more heathy for the enviroment.

Reflection

I agree with the article that fast decaying biodegradable products could be harmful to the enviroment. We have been talking about carbon dioxide in science class and how too much of it cannot be good for the enviroment. I can imagine how 25 times that can be even more harmful to the enviroment. I have heard about these new biodegradable products and I was thinking of how these products could be good for the enviroment. After i read this article i am thinking that biodegradable products just aren't the best.

Questions

1.) What are some ways that you can prevent this problem?

2.) What can you do to raise awarness to your community and maybe some companies that use biodegradable products?

3.) Do you think that biodegradable products are good or bad?

Acid Oceans turn 'Finding Nemo' fish deaf

By: Richard Black

May 31 2011

BBC News

[Link to Article]

Picture:

This picture shows the container in which they test the clownfish's hearing ability. The loudspeaker is on the left side (makes predator sounds) and when the sound is emitted, if the clownfish are capable of hearing through the acidic water, they will swim away.

Summary:

Clownfish rely greatly on their hearing to survive and if the acidic levels in our oceans continue to increase at their current rate, by the end of the century, clownfish may be in very big trouble when it comes to surviving. The way the water is becoming acidic is because the water is absorbing the heavy amounts of carbon dioxide contained in our atmosphere.The fish use their hearing to do things such as seeking out predators, mate detection, and foraging.

Through an experiment with sound (see above picture), they tested the clownfish's hearing in different acidic levels in water, using multiple tanks. In the tank with our current acidic levels (390 ppm), the fish had stayed on the opposite side of the speaker for three quarters of the time. When the other tanks which contained acidic levels possible near the end of this century (600-900 ppm) were tested, the fish had no preferences as to which side of the tank to go.

Dr. Simpson, a scientist, was looking into this situation and says, "What we have done here is put today's fish in tomorrow's environment, and the effects are potentially devastating." him and his team looked more into the cause of the deafness, and though still unclear, coral and shellfish (snails) are also victims of this issue and Simpson's team is working hard to figure out to prevent the death of the fish before it is too late.

Opinion/Reflection:

This just shows how much us humans have affected the world. I did not even have any idea about this issue until I read the article! We hurt the environment so much everyday, but we never do as much to help. I have fish and I would not like it if the water's acidic level in the tank were to raise and harm them. It is only 11 years into the century, so hopefully changes can be made to help decrease the water's acidic levels as soon as possible. Considering the fact clownfish greatly depend on hearing for basic survival needs, it is sad to know that we are preventing them from doing what they have to do to live.

Question(s):

1) What are some possible ways to help lessen the acidic levels of our oceans or simply lessen the increase rate?

2) Why do you think the acidic levels affect the fish's hearing?

3) What are a couple examples on how other organisms cope with carbon dioxide in the air? (e.g. Humans, plants, animals, etc.)