sea rising
http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/ClimateTrendsSeaLevel.html
http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/ImpactsCoastalZones.html
http://www.howstuffworks.com/question473.htm
http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/Update2.htm
chapter 25 web exercise
Hillary Clinton voted 95% rated among these environments at the LCV. I agree with the funding to stormwater cleanup and regulations on Mercury emissions but I don’t agree with what she said in reference to fuel economy, she wants to stifle the oil industry in new york by raising prices. Change will come but not overnight. The correct alternatives haven’t been developed properly.
chapter 23 web exercise
The funnel metaphor shows demand and supply. The funnel is pinching at the moment and there is a diminishing amount of resources. Through innovation, creativity, and the unlimited potential for change, we can open the walls of the funnel. Supply and demand and innovation are the keys to this philosophy. Life may change if the innovations occur. The individual may have to give up certain privileges for a time but they should eventually return. This method doesn’t increase concentrations of substances extracted from the Earth, concentrations of substances produced by society, degradate by physical means and in that society people are not subject to conditions that systematically undermine their capacity to meet their needs. The textile industry is huge. If these methods were to be changed in current business, transportation will have to change or business will start have to focus closer to the country which is being sold too.
chapter 22 web exercise
The issue at hand is taking advantage of compact building design. In summary, incorporating ideas of less land consumption in the building of structures will benefit the environment. It would be beneficial to build up instead of out. The more green, the better off the situation. This idea is more for urban development than anything else however it can be applicable to any area. Current zoning practices limit the use of compact building design. There is a size minimum on lots, along with community perceptions of higher density development both limit the use of this idea.
Actions of compact building design in the community is shown by Inderkum High School in Sacramento California. The building has been built higher and narrowed its perimeter. Sports fields are the public fields. We use the last idea in Watertown. IHC uses the Duffy Fairgrounds for baseball, soccer, and hockey.
chapter 21 web exercise
Items in this room
Glass window
Wood table
Plastic pen
Keyboard
Monitor
Paper sheets
Cotton clothing
Leather shoes
Metal cabinet
Hardcover books
Water based paint
A globe
Picture frame
Crayola crayons
Hair
Dog
Chair
Sheetrock
Socks
Satin underwear
Fingernails
Food wrapper
Fleece jacket
Hair tie
The glass, wood, plastic, cotton, paper, and metal all can be recycled
The majority of this list would be easy in function to recycle but hard in the community because the resources needed to carry out this process is not readily available. Recycling paper products, wood, plastics by melting and metals by melting and reshaping all are easily done. Toenails aren’t necessary in the living room, other things are and have been acquired as recycled. These are the aluminum cans, the metal cabinets, and plastic pens.
In the state I chose, New York, there are 86 NPL sites. It seems the sites are located more to populous areas than by an geographic landmarks. Crown Cleaners of Watertown is the only site in Jefferson County, it is a laundry and dry cleaning facility. I have never heard of this site, it has been cleaned up. Most of the sites that have been spotted have been noticed and cleared by 2001. I think it the responsibility of the residents of the area to deal with any problems in the area. So therefore it is my problem to deal with the cleaning of the sites listed by the national priority list in my area.
chapter 21 vocabulary
biodegradable plastics- incorporate such materials as cornstarch that can be decomposed by microorganisms.
bioremediation- taps the great capacity of microorganisms to absorb, accumulate, and detoxify a variety of toxic compounds.
brownfields- have been abandoned or are not being used up to their potential because of real or suspected pollution.
composting- biological degradation or breakdown of organic matter under aerobic conditions.
demanufacturing- the disassembly and recycling of obsolete products.
e-waste- computers, cell phones, tvs, and printers.
energy recovery- waste-to-energy; the heat derived from incinerated refuse is a useful resource.
hazardous waste- any discarded material, liquid or solid, that contains substances known to be fatal, toxic, ignitable, corrosive, or explosive.
mass burn- to dump everything smaller than sofas and refrigerators into a giant furnace and burn as much as possible.
permanent retrievable storage- placing waste storage containers in a secure building, salt mine, or bedrock cavern where they can be inspected periodically and retrieved for repacking or for transfer if a better means of disposal is developed.
photodegradable plastics- break down when exposed to ultraviolet radiation.
recycling- the reprocessing of discarded materials into new, useful products.
refuse-derived fuel- in some plants, refuse is sorted as it comes in to remove unburnable or recyclable materials before combustion.
sanitary landfills- where solid waste disposal is regulated and controlled.
secure landfills- have many layers of clay, and various types of rock that protect the earth and dispose of the waste.
Superfund- a revolving pool designed to provide an immediate response to emergency situations that pose imminent hazards, and to clean up or remediate abandoned or inactive sites.
Toxic Release Inventory- requires 20,000 manufacturing facilities to report annually on releases of more than 300 waste stream- describes the steady flow of varied wastes that we all produce, from domestic garbage and yard wastes to industrial, commercial, and construction refuse.
chapter 21 notes
-Global waste production is a critical issue in environmental quality. Global waste production is growing, as nonbiodegradable materials grow in a waste stream
-Solid waste includes domestic, commercial, industrial, agricultural, and mining wastes that are primarily nontoxic. About 60% of N American domestic and industrial wastes are deposited landfills; the rest is incinerated or recycled
-old landfills are often leaky and messy, modern fills have impermeable liners added
-incinerators are our second most important method of waste disposal. Can destroy organics, can produce energy
-Recycling and composting are growing in N America and globally. Japan is the world leader in recycling, with about 60%of domestic waste being recycled
-Reusing, demanufacturing and reducing material consumption are important additional strategies for reducing waste stream.
-Hazardous materials cause health problems including birth defects, neurological disorders reduced resistance to infection and cancer. Environmental costs of hazardous and toxic waste and destruction of habitat.
-Hazardous materials are flammable, explosive, reactive. Disposal of solid and hazardous wastes have often been unsatisfactory. Thousands of abandoned waste sites still leak toxic materials into the environment.
-Wastes are taken from rich countries, extracted and moved to poor countries
information needed for oil project
new type of engine
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=d1105470-0f64-476d-a0ab-15046c3e5708
situation of oil in the states as of this month
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=6309b71b-925f-4e42-83c7-8b01ca4ebf12
instance of oil companys influence on other industry(honeywell)
oil is growing, so why are they raising prices
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=3573cde1-5556-40e8-b456-07b8a0b05fce
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=331a45dd-3d3d-4c5b-b930-5c90702534fd
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?DocID={520F3A80-7D2A-4DEB-8DC1-97563D19C2B3}&Bucket=Current+Headlines
synopsis of Hubbert Peak Theory and relative information
MIT, the end of oil
http://www.technologyreview.com/BizTech/wtr_14178,296,p1.html
my site for this project
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/
numbers on US and international oil
http://www.gravmag.com/oil.html
ethanol information
http://www.ilsr.org/columns/1997/22apr97.htmlgasoline information
gasoline informationhttp://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/analysis_publications/primer_on_gasoline_prices/html/petbro.html
chapter 20 questions for review
1.) Drive less, take the stairs, insulate your house and add more insulation to the existing amount, turn thermostats down in the winter and up in the summer, eat locally grown food in season.
2.) Net energy yield is based on the total useful energy produced during the lifetime of an entire energy system minus the energy required to make useful energy available. Nuclear power, and hybrid cars are good examples.
3.) Active solar energy generally pumps a heat-absorbing, fluid medium through a relatively small collector, rather than passively collecting heat in a stationary medium like masonry. Passive uses natural materials or absorptive structures with no moving parts to simply gather and hold heat.
4.) Capture solar energy and convert it directly to electrical current by separating electrons from their parent atoms and accelerating them across a one way electrostatic barrier formed by the junction between two different types of semiconductor material.
5.) Fuel cells are devices that use ongoing electrochemical reactions to produce an electric current.
6.) Problems with burning wood in industry are the film it creates on things near the source, also the high amounts of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons emitted.
7.) Methane is produced by anaerobic decomposition of any moist organic material. It is a fuel that burns efficiently.
8.) Hydroelectric dams are very efficient and don’t hurt the air, however they do affect water flow, and can damage aqueous habitats.
9.) Ethanol, methanol, and bio fluid.
10.) Tidal power or ocean wave power generate electricity by tidal stations’ turbines spinning as the tide flows through them.
chapter 20 notes
More efficient energy use and a greater reliance on renewable sources, could reduce or even eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels and nuclear energy.
There are many opportunities to conserve energy through greater efficiences in lighting, space and water heating, insulation, better industrial motors and controls, and simply turning off appliances when not in use.
Cogeneration of heat and electricity can double the efficiency of home or business energy use.
Transportation is one of our biggest energy uses as well as a great opportunity for conservation.
Hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles have the highest efficiency rating and lowest emissions of any commercially available option.
Solar energy is one of the most useful resources at our disposal.
Remote, large-scale solar arrays, the best way to transport energy may be to use it to generate hydrogen gas that can be shipped to markets via underground pipelines.
Fuel cells are devices that use electrochemical react6ions and semipermeable membranes to generate an electrical current.
Biomass has long been used as a fuel for heat and light.
Firewood, dung, and charcoal are the main forms of biomass used in most places.
Hydropower once produced most electricity in the world, but largely been replaces by fossil fuels.
Wind power is th fastest growing energy source in the world and offers a huge potential for clean, renewable power.
Wind could easily supply all the electricity we need and free us from the economic, social, and environmental problems associated with fossil fuels and nuclear power.
Nearly everywhere, the constant temperature of the earth a few meters below the surface can provide a useful heat sink for heating or cooling.
