Sustainability

Monthly Archives: December 2017

Fate of the Earth Considered Again

Partisan politics has absolutely nothing to do with this terrible threat.

When Jonathan Schell wrote The Fate of the Earth for The New Yorker,and then a book of the same title in 1982, many were shocked into recognition of what an all-out nuclear war would mean. But with the passage of time, and all the loose talk about nukes and North Korea these days, maybe it is time to revisit a few things, for the forgetful. The need for this recall was especially brought to mind by a report about fancy nuclear shelters being bought by some of the well off; one that would even let six live in it up to a year with no outside help.

https://www.alternet.org/right-wing/fate-earth-considered-again

New Study Links Living Near Forests to Healthier Brains

A lady walks her dog through a winter forest with the morning light streaming through the trees and illuminating the pine trees behind.

Evidence keeps mounting that, in stressful times, there is much to gain by surrounding yourself with plants and trees.

http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/new-study-links-living-near-forests-to-healthier-brains-20171130

South Australia turns on Tesla’s 100MW battery: ‘History in the making’

The world’s largest lithium-ion battery has officially been turned on in South Australia promising to usher in a revolution in how electricity is produced and stored.

Tesla boss Elon Musk has made good on his promise to build the 100-megawatt facility on deadline or provide it free after blackouts last year that critics of the state’s Labor government blamed on pro-renewable policies.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/01/south-australia-turns-on-teslas-100mw-battery-history-in-the-making

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Refillable glass bottles are making a comeback

According to the Beer Institute, Americans consume an average of 32 gallons of beer every year. (To no one’s surprise, Nevada tops the list at 44 gallons per year. California is more restrained, below the nation’s average, at 26 gallons per year.)

While this avid consumption is good for the growing beer market, the lack of an established bottle refilling program makes it exceedingly wasteful, too. But Caren McNamara, founder of Conscious Container, based in Truckee, sees a solution: bringing back the practice of reusing and refilling glass bottles.

https://www.newsreview.com/reno/bottle-it-up/content?oid=25360238

Seafood lovers eat 11,000 pieces of plastic each year with just one portion of mussels containing up to 90 particles, scientists warn

If your diet includes seafood it could mean you’re swallowing up to 11,000 pieces of plastic a year, scientists have warned – and it’s going to get worse.

Researchers found that the average portion of mussels contains around 90 plastic particles, while six oysters contain around 50 particles.

This means someone eating the equivalent of two portions of mussels a week would swallow up to 11,000 plastic fibres in a year.

 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5138133/Seafood-lovers-eat-11-000-pieces-plastic-year.html#ixzz509a9by6i 

‘Zero tolerance’ plan eyed for plastic pollution

A plan for zero tolerance of plastic pollution of the oceans may be agreed by nations at a UN environment summit.

Governments are being asked to move towards a legal treaty banning plastic waste from entering the sea.

At the moment ships are prohibited from dumping plastic overboard but there’s no international law against plastics flooding into the sea from the land.

Experts say ocean plastics are an obvious subject for a global treaty: plastics present a large-scale threat.

Plastic pollution doesn’t recognise international borders.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-42190678

Could perennial grains be the next climate-saving superstars?

A new cereal grain more than 40 years in the making is finding its way into the marketplace in several forms, including a new product from food giant General Mills. Some believe it carries the promise of a whole new type of staple crop — one that requires minimal plowing, fertilizers or pesticides — that also could become a weapon in the battle against climate change.

https://www.greenbiz.com/article/could-perennial-grains-be-next-climate-saving-superstars

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