May 20, 2012

You are here: Home / 2011 / Archives for January 2011

Seven Ways To Conserve Energy

January 31, 2011 By admin

It’s not news that humans’ need for energy have been one of the major reasons why the world is having a big problem about global warming and climate change. That’s why it is not news, too, for people that energy saving and achieving energy efficiency is radically needed.

The following suggestions may be useful to help you get started on what you can so that you can save the planet a little, everyday:

1. Control your refrigerator or freezer. Refrigerators take up a very high portion of your monthly electric bill. To help you save, make sure that your refrigerator’s temperature is roughly around 37 degrees, and your freezer at around 3 degrees. Check the gaskets, too, to ensure that they are properly working, and properly sealed. Also, always turn the energy saver feature on.

2. Use your dishwasher smartly. Only run your dishwasher when it’s full. If you want better energy saving, manually turn off the dryer option. That would let your dishes air dry, and would help you appreciate the big chunk off your electric bill.

3. Lower your water thermostat temperature. Many people make the mistake of turning their thermostat to 120 degrees, when 110 would have already been good. This difference accounts for the increased number of carbon dioxide emissions. If everybody would do this, the CO2 emissions of an entire country would have been deducted from the whole world’s annual release of that greenhouse gas.

4. Buy energy-saving appliances. The concern about global warming has led some appliance makers to include an Energy Saving button or feature to their appliances. Choose those types of household materials. There’s a reason why companies brag about them, and the whole world will thank you for it.

5. Go with compact fluorescent bulbs that have high energy efficiency. Compared to regular incandescent bulbs, compact fluorescent bulbs are capable of reducing the energy that you consume. Thus, they’re easier on the electric bill, and on the environment.

6. Save your gasoline. Every time you get the chance, ditch your car. Walk, bike, or use mass transportation instead. Aside from helping you save money on frequent fill-ups, your carbon footprint would also be considerably reduced.

7. Reuse, reduce, recycle. This certain energy saving tip is probably the best that you can do, if you’re aiming to improve your energy efficiency. If you do those, you will make a big difference. The world will have to use resources less, and you would be assured that you have made your part.

Filed Under: Saving Energy Tagged With: ,

Wildlife Preservation And Environment Conservation

January 28, 2011 By admin

Wildlife preservation and environment conservation are both issues that need to be addressed properly, especially during this time when global warming and climate change are threatening to make them both problematic. With the different alarming effects of the changes in the environment to the wildlife of this planet, critical understanding of what needs to be done is very, very important.

How Global Warming And Climate Change Impact Wildlife
The changes in the Earth’s temperature has a very disturbing relationship with the Earth’s animals and their habitats. They raise the possibility of completely killing certain species, and making existence harder for those who are already having a hard time.

Habitat displacement. Climate change touches on the sensitive environments that some species have learned to adapt to. Take the melting of the polar ice caps. When the ice starts turning into water, some animals – like the polar bears – may find that all the years that they have spent trying to deal with the cold would have been for nought. Upon finding that they are in a new environment, they may feel totally out of their element, and that may lead to them unable to make the necessary adjustments that would be vital to their continuing survival.

Breeding habitats issues. In an article posted by The Washington Post, the possibility that the important breeding habitat of waterfowls in North America may dry up has been raised. The changes in the climate pose problems that are not only connected to making sure that life continues for them, they also lead to the cropping up of issues that are related to creating new life for them.

Also, even if a certain group of animals would just venture out into areas that are more ideal for their breeding purposes, they may still come face-to-face with another problem: human population. Our population is always on the rise, and this trend is certainly not nice for our animals. We occupy spaces that could have been used by the other species for propagation and population.

Biodiversity on this planet will never be the same, due to the changes that we have all seen recently. But, what’s good is that those changes are not uncontrollable. We, as the ones who have been blessed with more rational minds, can do something to correct the problem. Wildlife preservation and environment conservation may be hard, but they’re not unreachable. If we turn our attention to them now, as we should, we can all find that this planet can continue to be home for all the organisms that have lived on it.

Filed Under: Climate Change Tagged With: ,

Global Warming And Climate Change

January 25, 2011 By admin

Global warming is a topic that has been raised on so many scientific forums, environmental debates and educational conferences. It is hardly a new topic. Everyone has an opinion about it. But, what everyone fails to realise is that global warming and climate change are things that can be easily solved – if humans would develop the will that would be necessary to solving it.

The Causes Of Global Warming
Global warming can be attributed to two broad reasons: natural and anthropogenic (or man-made).

Natural causes. The natural environment contributes to the triggering of climate change and global warming. That is through the release of the greenhouse gas methane by wetlands and arctic tundra. Volcanic eruptions also start the onset of hotter days and hotter nights when hey produce ash that escapes into the atmosphere, every time they erupt. However, this rate of contribution is a considerably insignificant event. Mother Earth has been doing those processes for ages, and the Earth’s ozone layer has not had a problem with it. The current issues that we are having are primarily due to what we have been doing to the planet.

Anthropogenic. Much of mankind’s activities involve the use of energy, one way or another. In fact, electricity is hailed as a modern-day wonder because it makes so many things possible for us. This devoted reliance on energy, though, has started to pose some really terrible problems for us. When fossil fuel is burned to produce the electricity that we all need, carbon dioxide is released into the air. Carbon dioxide, like methane, is a greenhouse gas. It traps the heat inside the planet. Thus, there is no wonder why we have all been feeling ‘a bit under the weather’.

Mining is also another headache. Digging for sources of energy means letting methane escape from the bowels of the Earth and into the top of the world. This makes it harder for all the accumulated heat to escape from the planet.

Also, the continually rising population of human beings is yet another reason why global warming is such a problem, right now.

The Effects Of Global Warming
Changes in sea levels. The increasing hotness of the planet will lead to the melting of the ice caps that are on the Earth. When they do melt, they will all find themselves adding to the amount of water that the oceans hold. Sooner or later, all those water will spill out onto the land, making existence a very disturbing one.

Changes in climate. Everything that we don’t want to experience will have a very probable chance of coming to life. Extreme, opposing weather conditions will all manifest. That translates to droughts beside floods, heat waves beside cold waves, and storms and hurricanes beside really, really hot weather.

Changes in the biodiversity. Climate change will lead some species to die out. The world’s biodiversity will be troubled, and habitats will never be the same again.

Filed Under: Climate Change Tagged With: ,

The Effects Of Pollution On The Environment

January 20, 2011 By admin

Pollution exists in so many forms. And it is a truly multi-bladed weapon, because each form and type corresponds to disturbing consequences that make living just a little too unpleasant sometimes for all of us.

Pollution in the environment is one of the top reasons why so many problems exist. First, the physical health of the inhabitants, us, is disadvantaged. Then, the different cycles that breathe life into the Earth are compromised. And, the overall quality of every being’s existence is put at an uncomfortable position.

There are three forms of pollution in the environment: soil pollution, water pollution and air pollution. They each come with alarming repercussions that all human beings would do well to recognize.

Soil Pollution
Soil pollution is the end-result of the effects of any undesirable man-made chemical on the soil’s natural composition. The effects of soil pollution may lead to the development of:

- Kidney problems from mercury
- Cancers like leukemia
- Liver toxicity from cyclodienes
- Fatigue, skin irritation, nausea, headaches
- Brain damage and depression
- Contamination of plants and crops
- Terrestrial animals’ poisoning

Water Pollution
Water pollution results from the unwanted relationship that water has with the harmful substances that end up in it, because of people’s activities. It manifests its disapproval through the following:

- Endangerment of aquatic and terrestrial plants
- Chances of passing up the harmful absorption of chemicals in the water to other organisms, including humans
- Death of marine organisms
- Disruption in the aquatic ecosystems and habitats
- Chemical contamination and nutrient pollution

Air Pollution
Air pollution is caused by the many pollutants that contribute to the impure quality of the air that we breathe. We get a taste of just how unhealthy this air is by:

- Irritation of nose, eyes, throat and mouth
- Decreased functioning capacity of the lungs
- Coughing and wheezing, asthma attacks
- Heart-related problems
- Brain-related problems
- Dizziness and headaches
- Disturbance of the endocrine system
- Reproductive and immune system dysfunctions
- Respiratory diseases
- Lowered energy levels
- Cancer
- Untimely death
- Acid rain
- Ultraviolet radiation

Pollution is never a nice reason when you need something that would remind you that you’re living in a beautiful world. Since this problem has been plaguing humanity ever since the first products of technology have been invented, everybody has an idea of what it means to live in a polluted planet. We have all grown up in an environment that definitely deserved better from us. In other words, it’s high time that we all act so that there would be no more need for us to think that this planet isn’t that beautiful.

Filed Under: Pollution Tagged With: ,

Compost – Why It Is Good For Everybody

January 19, 2011 By admin

Compost refers to the materials hat have undergone natural decomposition. Compost has long been recognised as useful, especially in organic farming. It acts as a wonderful fertiliser, which is enough to add farmers, gardeners and all plants lovers to its list of forever fans.

Compost is naturally processed by the environment. This is done by microorganisms like fungi and bacteria which break down the used biodegradable materials into their more basic forms. That turns the materials into a veritable source of nutrients and minerals for the soil and the plants. Several factors regulate the way that a compost is made: material disturbance, oxygen, moisture, temperature, organic matter, and the activity and the size of the microorganisms.

Presently, though, many private industries like farms and businesses choose to control the way compost is made. Householders have joined this trend, too. They make sure that the end product (the compost) is better than what is naturally produced when Mother Earth takes care of the process, and by directly impacting on the arrangement of compost bins. They do this by ensuring that there is a healthy ratio of green materials to brown materials, contributing to the formation of compost that is humus-rich.

The Benefits Of Compost
Soil. Compost is like a “healing” agent to soil that is dry, brittle and unproductive. The nutrients found in compost “fixes” the unpleasant characteristics of the soil, helping it to give more life to whatever will be planted on it.

Plants. There is no debate as to whether compost is beneficial for plants. Too many people who love growing things have found it to be true. Because it is a natural fertiliser, many opt for it. It provides all the good things that a fertiliser does, but without the (sometimes) added harmful effects that come with the package.

Resource Management. Compost eradicates the need to use more materials for the creation of chemical fertilisers. Thus, anybody can really save a lot when this particular plant-friendly material is patronised, instead of its chemical and artificial counterparts.

Environment. Compost offers the environment so many benefits. First, it prevents erosion (especially when it’s used near streams and river banks). Next, it cleans up soil that has been contaminated by toxic runoffs.

Compost is one of the very good things that do not charge a lot from people. When its worth is properly acknowledged, it can mean a lot of better things for everybody.

Filed Under: Compost Tagged With: ,

Waste Water And Its Treatment

January 14, 2011 By admin

Waste water is used water. Our planet has too much of that. Houses and businesses releases a staggering amount of daily waste water that leaving it to the magical forces of the environment would mean too many complications in the future. For although nature is capable of handling waste water, nature cannot deal with a very high amount of waste water. That is the reason waste water treatment is important. Since it’s a process that basically results to recycled water, it’s one of the few things that can ensure continuation of life on this planet.

How Waste Water Is Treated
Waste water treatment normally consists of two stages: the primary treatment, and the secondary treatment.

During the primary waste water treatment, solid wastes from the water is removed. Sticks, stones and other large objects get sifted from the water so that the progress of the water into water lines would not be impeded.

The secondary treatment involves the exposure of waste water to aerobic bacteria so that pathogens and other harmful things would be eliminated. Municipal sewage treatments use chlorine during this phase. In some cases, ultraviolet light and ozone are also used.

A tertiary phase is sometimes used by some waste water treatment plants. Nitrogen and phosphorus are removed from waste water, a necessary step to prevent algal bloom when the waste water travels downstream.

Why Bother With Waste Water Treatment
There are so many benefits that come from employing waste water treatment. Some of them include:

Prevents Water Pollution. Waste water contains harmful chemicals and components that can dirty up rivers or lakes when it reaches them. Waste water treatment deletes these undesirable ingredients of waste water so that when it has been released into the natural ducts of the planet, it won’t trigger water pollution.

Preserves Marine Life. Marine life is dependent on clean water. It is hardly any news at all that fishes and other marine lives die when they’re swimming in water that no organism should be swimming in. Waste water treatment makes this possible for all the creatures living underwater. And, this extends to beneficial things for humans, too. Many of us earn our living by relying on the gifts that the ocean gives. So, harvesting healthy, unsafe-water-free animals is more realised.

Provides Recreation. Beaches and resorts are popular vacation getaways. We go to them when we need to get away from the hassles associated with living in an often stressful world. Fancy dipping your toes in water that’s impure and vile. Not such a vacation, right? Indeed.

Protects Health and Wellness. As we can’t live without water, we need to, at least, make sure that water will continue to provide more reasons for life. Untreated waste water endangers human health.

Filed Under: Waste Water Tagged With: , ,

Non-Biodegradable Waste In Landfills – Toxic To The Earth

January 11, 2011 By admin

Non-biodegradable wastes are the by-products of human existence that do not decompose naturally. They cannot be broken down into basic forms by micro-organisms, and the planet cannot use them to continue the essential life cycles that make this world a habitat for humans. They just lie around, contributing to the pileup of things that pollute the planet. They can’t be simplified into other elements without releasing harmful chemicals.

Glass, polyethylene bags, plastics, and iron nails, among other things, are examples of non-biodegradable wastes.They are harmful to the planet because they bring about water pollution and land pollution. Too many plastics on the Earth’s surface means that vegetation and food production would be affected. In the case of water pollution, the disturbing repercussions are in the form of the death of marine animals. And because they don’t decompose, most people make the mistake of setting fire to them. But burning them, as most humans are wont to do, is alarming and troubling.

Land fill sites get to house the non-biodegradable wastes that humans throw out. They are big holes in the ground that contain every rubbish that has been binned. Since non-biodegradable materials do not decay, land fills are usually filled with them. And because those kinds of materials are many, the Earth is dotted with too many land fill sites that poison the environment and ultimately, life.

But, just because non-biodegradable wastes can’t be subjected to the natural workings of the environment, it doesn’t mean that there is no way that they can taken care of properly. We should all learn to recognise the wisdom of the reduce, reuse, and recycle campaign. First, we must try to lessen the usage of non-biodegradable wastes. That’s not hard to do. Some organic and Earth-friendly substitutes can still make life comfortable. Also, if we do get to use them, we should make sure that they get reused for the same purposes. There’s no need to buy so many plastic bags if you know that you only need to put one pair of slippers on them. And, recycling them to fulfil other functions (like turning a plastic bottle into a work of art) will be very beneficial.

Everybody knows that the Earth is going through a lot of environmental issues that could lead to some very undesirable effects in the future. In fact, most people have learnt to tune out those who like saying that the end will come when we least expect it, and we’d all suffer horribly for it. But, that’s a very dangerous thing. As early as now, we need to not only know and recognise that something must be done. We need to start acting. It’s the only way that we could sleep tonight, feeling assured that we actively participated in things that could give us a better tomorrow.

Filed Under: NON-Biodegradable Waste Tagged With: ,

How To Recycle At Home

January 7, 2011 By admin

This world has grown to realise that waste management and recycling are two very important things. With news of the Earth’s progress into a cataclysmic end appearing now and then, humans have finally understood why being mindful of everything that they do is necessary. The planet does not need the added hassle of pollution and improper waste management.

Recycling is a process that contributes so much to the preservation of the Earth’s resources for the future generations. Plus, it helps decrease the buildup of materials that may pave the way for more environmental problems. The good thing is that, you can do this at the comforts of your own home.

Recycling At Home
Your home is home to so many things that can be reduced, reused and recycled. Papers, card boards, plastics, glasses, aluminium products and electronic goods can all be saved from being more reasons why the planet would continue to be this polluted. Here’s how:

Papers and card boards. Sort newspapers out and group them together. Corrugated cardboard should not be mixed with other types of papers, and they shouldn’t be soggy and wet. Magazines, glossy papers, old letters, phone books go in one container. And even plastic-lined paper cartons can be recycled.

When you prepare your papers for recycling, make sure that they don’t have rubber bands or plastic wraps. Also, the following things cannot be recycled: carbon paper, laminated paper, ordinary cardboard and laminated cardboard.

Plastics. Plastic goods are classified according to different types. Only PEP and HDPE are recyclable. Plastic bottles are usually made up of PEP plastics, and they’re valuable recyclable materials. Don’t reuse PEP-made plastic bottles. And make sure that you get the top off when you send them to recycling centres. Plastic bags are also made of HDPE so you can drop them off at recycling centres.

Glasses. Glasses are classified according to their colours. Called container glasses, they are normally accepted by most recycling centres. Compact fluorescent light bulbs are taken up for recycling, too, sometimes.

Aluminium Products. Aluminium cans and aluminium foil are very recyclable materials. You can scout around the house for products such as those, and you can get them to a recycle centre.

Electronic Goods. Computers are lovely tools to recycle. Their programs and their word processors can still be used by other people. Let your recycling centre know that you are willing to get your computer or computers recycled.

Filed Under: Recycling, Waste Management Tagged With: ,