Sustainability
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Des microorganismes capables de capter le CO2 et de produire de la biomasse
L'énergéticien allemand RWE et l'entreprise de biotechnologies Brain AG développent actuellement un projet de recherche sur la culture de microorganismes, les procédés et moyens de synthèse de transformation du dioxyde de carbone. L'objectif est d'obtenir des microorganismes capable de "manger du CO 2 " et de produire de la biomasse. Après deux ans de recherche en commun, 29 microorganismes ont été sélectionnés sur les 3.000 testés au départ. Ces microorganismes se nourrissent de CO 2 , issu notamment des fumées des centrales à charbon de RWE à Niederaussem (Allemagne), à une température de 60°C, facilement obtenue à proximité de ces centrales thermiques. Ces microorganismes sont ensuite capables de transformer le CO 2 en biomasse qui, une fois sèche, pourra être utilisée comme matériau isolant pour les bâtiments. La transformation de cette biomasse en biomatériaux ou en produits chimiques intermédiaires est également une piste étudiée.The price of gold has hit all-time highs recently, touching $1,800 an ounce as the stock market swooned last Wednesday.
Why Are Rhino Horns Twice as Valuable as Gold?
Top 10 Snakes | Top 10 Lists | TopTenz.net
You are here: Home / All / Top 10 Snakes The limbless cousins to the lizards are some of the most maligned animals on Earth, though most species are entirely harmless to man and all are a valuable part of nature’s balance. Even without arms and legs, they can come in a remarkable assortment of forms adapted to a surprising variety of environments. The “tentacled” snake is the only member of the genus Erpeton, and the two tiny “tentacles” of its namesake are a completely unique feature for detecting prey. It preys mostly on small fish, hunting in murky water with its hed bent backwards like a crowbar.
Top 10 Strangest Flying Animals | Top 10 Lists | TopTenz.net
You are here: Home / All / Top 10 Strangest Flying Animals Plenty of animals fly; this is no surprise to anyone who actually comes from Earth . However, there are plenty of “flying” animals that are really gliding versions of other animals. You don’t expect your average rodent to come drifting from the skies, let alone some of the other creatures in this list. No, we typically think of flies (it’s right there in the name), birds and maybe bats when we think of flying animals.You are here: Home / All / Top 10 Birds That Could Kick Your Ass When you think about birds, you probably think of small, cute animals flying through the air, swooping down to reach their nest. Maybe you think of those “pretty” song birds in the morning. I, personally find them annoying. In any case, the image of a bird generally doesn’t produce anything terrifying. However, not all birds are cute, and not all of them are nice, so to speak.
Top 10 Birds That Could Kick Your Ass | Top 10 Lists | TopTenz.net
Build a Recycling Organizer from Corrugated Plastic
It can be difficult to organize oddly-shaped storage areas. Do-It-Yourself blog Man Made DIY came up with the design for this corrugated plastic recycling organizer to fit the bottom shelf of a pantry that is only 10 inches deep. The organizer can be constructed quickly with around $35 in hardware. Corrugated plastic, most commonly used in making lawn signs, is sturdy and easy to work with. After measuring, cut the plastic with a sharp utility knife, temporarily hold the pieces together with duct tape, reinforce the corners with corner brackets , and use silicone caulk to seal the seams and make the organizer waterproof. You can find corrugated plastic sheets at any big-box home improvement store; here is a link to purchase a 15 pack of 3ft square sheets , but you only need two sheets for the project so definitely buy them individually in person to save money.Simon Dale, with the help of his father in-law, has single-handedly built this low impact Hobbit house in the woodlands of West Wales. The eco-house, which rose from a muddy hole in the ground and took three months to complete, came in at under US$5,000 (GBP3,000) - demonstrating that you don't need to be architectural school graduate to come up with the goods. There's no need to be envious, however, because Dale will give you the plans and know-how to build your very own. Dale calls himself a "have a go architect" and he is proud of his family home made from local oak wood, stone and mud retaining walls, and straw baling for insulation. "Some past experience, lots of reading and self-belief gave us the courage of our conviction that we wanted to build our own home in natural surroundings" says Dale. The house has been built from local and natural materials, with a goal of having as little impact on the environment as possible.
Low-impact Hobbit home only cost US$4,650 to build - Image 3 of 19
Livraisons et développement durable: le casse-tête du dernier kilomètre | Slate
» Retrouvez notre dossier «La ville de demain» La population européenne s’urbanise de plus en plus. Selon les projections les plus récentes, 85% des habitants de l’Union européenne vivront en ville en 2050, contre 70% en 2000 et 50% en 1950. Avec de lourdes conséquences, on le sait, en termes de pollution et de congestion du trafic. Comment livrer la marchandise en ville Les élus ont tenté ces dernières décennies de lutter contre ces nuisances, notamment en encourageant fortement le développement des transports en commun de voyageurs. La règlementation européenne du transport de marchandises n’a de son côté cessé de se durcir depuis 10 ans, permettant de réduire de plus de 70% les émissions polluantes des poids lourds, et le processus se poursuit.
Une société française d'ingénierie indépendante spécialisée dans le traitement de la pollution industrielle, a annoncé lundi la disponibilité de son bioréacteur à lit bactérien et oxygénation séparée pour le traitement d'effluents réputés peu biodégradables. Basé sur une technologie brevetée, le bioréacteur BioFIX de Bio2E a pour objectif de répondre au défi des industries confrontées à des charges organiques résistantes et à l'accroissement des coûts pour le traitement de leurs déchets. Basé sur une technique novatrice de dégradation biologique optimisée séparant la phase d'oxygénation et le traitement sur lit bactérien qui offre une surface d'échange liquide - bio film très importante et des sélections bactériennes résistantes et efficaces, BioFIX propose une solution performante de dégradation d'actifs chimiques .
Un bioréacteur réducteur de rejets industriels à moindre coût > Environnement - Enerzine.com
(Photodisc) Researchers working in South Africa are using a rolled-dice trick to solicit honest answers from farmers suspected of illegally killing leopards and hyenas. The trick uses randomized response , a method developed in the 1960s to eliminate people’s bias toward giving evasive answers.
How Rolling Dice Helps Save Leopards
Of all mankind's impacts on nature, perhaps none is more pervasive than the systematic elimination of large animals. Of those that lived 20,000 years ago, many are gone: There are no more saber-toothed tigers or dire wolves or woolly mammoths.
More Than Charismatic: The Ecology of Big Animals | Wired Science | Wired.com
Beehive Fences Keep African Elephants Away From Crops | Wired Science | Wired.com
The comeback of Kenya’s elephant population is a huge conservation success story, as well as a huge problem for the country’s farmers. But scientists have found a new ally in the struggle to keep elephants from trampling crops: honeybees. Like many animals, elephants are afraid of bees. So scientists recruited farmers in northern Kenya to test different types of barriers and found that fences made of beehives were far more effective than traditional thorn-bush fences at thwarting nighttime elephant raids. “The farmers in the area are desperate for a solution,” said zoologist Lucy King of the University of Oxford, lead author of a study on beehive fences in the July 5 African Journal of Ecology . “They haven’t had much help from anyone else.Most products sourced from tropical timber destroy the forest – and a sustainability logo may not be a reliable guide for your green conscience. While a report this week celebrates a 50 per cent increase in the area of tropical forests that are sustainably managed, other studies suggest this assessment is open to question. The area of tropical forests that are sustainably managed is up from 36 million hectares in 2005 to 53 million hectares, according to a report from the International Tropical Timber Organization published this week. The ITTO's members include most of the countries involved in the tropical timber trade.
'Sustainable' timber is not always what it seems - environment - 07 June 2011 - New Scientist
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