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Sun, 2009-03-22 04:36 — mdmcdonald

The mission of this Working Group is to enhance our understanding and relationship with the environment and ecology.

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This working group is focused on issues of Environment and Ecology to ensure resilience and sustainability for all.
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admin Albert Gomez Anthony ChrisAllen Kathy Gilbeaux Maeryn Obley
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Ecocities Emerging

Fri, 2012-08-03 23:27 — Kathy Gilbeaux

 

submitted by Jerry Erbach

Ecocity Builders

Mission and Vision

Ecocity Builders reshapes cities for the long-term health of human and natural systems.

We develop and implement policy, design and educational tools and strategies to build thriving urban centers based on “access by proximity” and to reverse patterns of sprawl and excessive consumption.

Ecocity Builders and associates’ definition of “ecocity” is conditional upon a healthy relationship of the city’s parts and functions, similar to the relationship of organs in living complex organism. We are concerned with city design, planning, building, and operations in an integral way and in relation to the surrounding environment and natural resources of the region, utilizing organic, ecological and whole-systems lessons to actually reverse the negative impacts of climate change, species extinction and the destruction of the biosphere.

We believe the form of the city matters, that it is within our ability, and indeed crucial, to reshape and restructure cities to address global environmental challenges.

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Global
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Cities
Climate
Ecosystems
Environment
Resilience
Sustainable Development
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NASA - Satellites See Unprecedented Greenland Ice Sheet Surface Melt

Thu, 2012-07-26 21:05 — Kathy Gilbeaux

      

nasa.gov - July 2012

Extent of surface melt over Greenland’s ice sheet on July 8 (left) and July 12 (right). Measurements from three satellites showed that on July 8, about 40 percent of the ice sheet had undergone thawing at or near the surface. In just a few days, the melting had dramatically accelerated and an estimated 97 percent of the ice sheet surface had thawed by July 12. In the image, the areas classified as “probable melt” (light pink) correspond to those sites where at least one satellite detected surface melting. The areas classified as “melt” (dark pink) correspond to sites where two or three satellites detected surface melting. The satellites are measuring different physical properties at different scales and are passing over Greenland at different times. As a whole, they provide a picture of an extreme melt event about which scientists are very confident. Credit: Nicolo E. DiGirolamo, SSAI/NASA GSFC, and Jesse Allen, NASA Earth Observatory
› Hi-res of left image
› Hi-res of right image

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Global
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Climate
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How Climate Change is Increasing Cholera Outbreaks in Northern Europe

Tue, 2012-07-24 22:52 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Rising temperatures: The Baltic Sea represents the 'fastest warming marine eco-system examined so far anywhere on earth'

(SEE LINK TO STUDY BELOW)

 

  • Vibrio bacteria, which is normally found growing in warm and tropical waters, now thrives in the Baltic Sea

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  • Bacteria strains will multiply as seas warm, predict researchers
  • The bacteria causes illnesses from cholera to gastroenteritis

    dailymail.co.uk - by Claire Bates - July 23, 2012

    Climate change could be driving an increase in illnesses such as cholera and gastroenteritis in northern Europe, scientists have warned.

    •  

    A rise in temperatures in the Baltic Sea has triggered the growth of the water-borne bacteria Vibrio.

    An international team examined sea surface temperature records and satellite data in the Baltic, as well as statistics on Vibrio cases in the region.

    (READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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    Global
    General Topic Tags: 
    Climate
    Disease
    Ecosystems
    Environment
    Health
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    Swimming With the Trash: A Marine Drone Seeks to Scoop up Plastic

    Thu, 2012-07-12 23:09 — Kathy Gilbeaux

    submitted by Albert Gomez

          

    good.is - July 11, 2012

    While there's been plenty of media pointing out or raising awareness about the disaster submerged right beneath sea level— the mountain-sized patch of plastic and other garbage that's been collecting in oceans around the world, particularly in the Pacific—there's less attention to some of the solutions that are currently in the works. Part of the reason is that the problem seems so huge (indeed, it's beyond the point of return) and so distant that it's not necessarily the easiest to conceive of steps to take action against.

    Yet a crew of big-thinking designers has a concept for a trash-skimming and sensor-equipped "marine drone" that could detect trash in the ocean and scoop it into its net to be recycled. The drone is designed to navigate the ocean for two weeks at a time and would use an infrasound system to keep fish at bay.

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    Global
    United States
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    Oceans
    Waste
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    We Were Wrong on Peak Oil. There's Enough to Fry Us All

    Thu, 2012-07-12 00:24 — Kathy Gilbeaux

                      

    'The great profusion of life in the past – fossilised in the form of flammable carbon – now jeopardises the great profusion of life in the present.' Illustration by Daniel Pudles

    guardian.co.uk - by George Monbiot - July 2, 2012

    The facts have changed, now we must change too. For the past 10 years an unlikely coalition of geologists, oil drillers, bankers, military strategists and environmentalists has been warning that peak oil – the decline of global supplies – is just around the corner. We had some strong reasons for doing so: production had slowed, the price had risen sharply, depletion was widespread and appeared to be escalating. The first of the great resource crunches seemed about to strike.

    (READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

    Country / Region Tags: 
    Global
    United States
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    Energy
    Environment
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    Injection Wells: The Poison Beneath Us

    Fri, 2012-06-22 20:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

          

    A class 2 brine disposal well in western Louisiana near the Texas border. The well sat by the side of the road, without restricted access. (Abrahm Lustgarten/ProPublica)

    propublica.org - by Abrahm Lustgarten - June 21, 2012

    Over the past several decades, U.S. industries have injected more than 30 trillion gallons of toxic liquid deep into the earth, using broad expanses of the nation's geology as an invisible dumping ground.

    No company would be allowed to pour such dangerous chemicals into the rivers or onto the soil. But until recently, scientists and environmental officials have assumed that deep layers of rock beneath the earth would safely entomb the waste for millennia.

    There are growing signs they were mistaken.

    (READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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    Global
    United States
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    Environment
    Waste
    Water
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    Patient Outcomes and Environmental Monitoring System (POEMS)

    Sun, 2012-06-17 23:15 — Kathy Gilbeaux

             

    GHRF, and Nepal and Bhutan affiliated NGOs, along with Ministries of Health and Agriculture are partnering to utilize mobile and information technology tools to warehouse health and environmental data together to allow multi-level assessments and cross-correlation of outcomes to assess health and environmental impact. 

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    Global
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    Environment
    Health
    Technology
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    Food Waste Recycling

    Sat, 2012-06-16 10:29 — Kathy Gilbeaux

    submitted by Albert Gomez

    environmentalleader.com - by John Evans - June 11, 2012

    U.K. - Sending our rubbish to landfill sites continues to be a major topic for debate as proposals for wind farms and incinerators are becoming more common.

    At present, the Local Government Association estimates that we offload twice as much rubbish into landfill sites than Germany does, although Germany has a larger population. Due to the fact that land available for landfill sites is running out, pressure from Brussels and Westminster is making the use of these sites more expensive, which in turn is increasing the pressure to recycle our waste.

    (READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

    Country / Region Tags: 
    Global
    General Topic Tags: 
    Waste
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    Global Environment Outlook 5 (GEO-5) - UN: Humanity Speeding Down "Unsustainable Path"

    Sat, 2012-06-09 21:10 — Kathy Gilbeaux
    Country / Region Tags: 
    Global
    General Topic Tags: 
    Climate
    Environment
    Food
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    Situation Report

    Coke, Ford, Heinz, Nike and P&G team up on plant-based PET resins

    Thu, 2012-06-07 12:19 — Corey Watts

    submitted by Albert Gomez

    www.wasterecyclingnews.com - June 5, 2012 - by Jessica Holbrook, Plastics News

    Major corporations are teaming up to accelerate the development of PET made entirely from plant-based sources.

    Coca-Cola Co., Ford Motor Co., H.J. Heinz Co., Nike Inc. and Procter & Gamble Co. have formed the Plant PET Technology Collaborative, a group aimed at supporting the development and use of plant-based PET material and fibers.

    According to a news release, the collaborative will support new technologies and focus on researching and developing commercial solutions for plant-based PET. The collaborative also will work to develop common practices and standards for using plant-based plastics, including life-cycle analyses and universal terminology.

    (READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

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    Global
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    Environment
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