Environmental News | Green Blogs | Environmental Issues | Earth Times A Table That Turns Your Kitchen Into Mini Ecosystem [UPDATED] Convenience and efficiency are king when it comes to product design. What could be more efficient than a natural ecosystem? That's the insight behind a "living kitchen" designed by the brilliant young design studio Studio Gorm. They looked at what we have in our kitchens--fruits, vegetables, organic waste--and figured: That's actually enough to create a miniature system for watering fresh herbs, composting the waste, and generating new soil. None of the elements is brand new to this product, but their integration wins points for ergonomics and ease. Maybe what's most surprising is that Studio Gorm isn't based in the Netherlands or Scandinavia--but rather in Eugene, Oregon. Check out some of Studio Gorm's other designs, including a modular furniture system of pegs and boards; an elegant Egyptian-inspired chair; a handsome adjustable lamp; and an overhead light inspired by--of all things--a falafel container.
No Impact Man Dear friends, I don't say this often but I am scared. Not scared to the point of paralysis. I was lucky when Hurricane Sandy hit. That night, the lights flickered a couple of times. But when I woke up, lower Manhattan was flooded and without power. We in the Tri-State Area didn't get Katrina. Yes, there are some good parts. But there is a lot of suffering. I hung up the phone with a friend just a few minutes ago. In a coffee shop this afternoon, everyone at every table was talking about climate change. Katrina, Irene, Sandy, droughts all summer, busted corn crops, water shortages in the southwest: it's hard to believe we aren't seeing what the climate scientists predicted. It feels ironic and sad. Fracking--the drilling for natural gas by injecting poisonous chemicals into the same rock formations that our drinking comes from. Especially when the sun shines everywhere. Of course, there are reasons for resistance. But this isn't a bitch fest. I was mistaken. You may disagree with me.
Media Turn A Blind Eye To Record Greenland Ice Melt On Wednesday, scientists announced that melting over the Greenland ice sheet has already "shattered the seasonal record" set in 2010, with four weeks left before the end of the melting season. Scientists say this record melting is driven by rising Arctic temperatures and could have serious consequences for the environment and coastal communities. But the major media outlets are once again failing to report on clear evidence that our climate is changing. Professor Marco Tedesco, whose research was sponsored by NASA and the National Science Foundation, examined satellite data from the National Snow and Ice Data Center and found that Greenland has "experienced extreme melting in nearly every region" this year. He concluded: "With more yet to come in August, this year's overall melting will fall way above the old records. That's a goliath year - the greatest melt since satellite recording began in 1979."
WebEcoist Arctic ice to reach record lows, say scientists Sea ice in the Arctic Ocean is likely to shrink to a record small size sometime next week, and then keep on melting, a scientist at the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center said on Monday. Skip to next paragraph Subscribe Today to the Monitor Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS ofThe Christian Science MonitorWeekly Digital Edition "A new daily record ... would be likely by the end of August," said Ted Scambos, lead scientist at the data center, which monitors ice in the Arctic and elsewhere. The amount of sea ice in the Arctic is important because this region is a potent global weather-maker, sometimes characterized as the world's air conditioner. This summer could see the ice retreat to less than 1.5 million square miles (4 million square km), an unprecedented low, Scambos said. Last year, Arctic sea ice extended over the second-smallest area on record, but that was considered to be closer to a "new normal" rather than the extreme conditions of 2007, NSIDC said then. Signs of climate change
Healthcare waste - Detailed guidance Overview Some wastes from healthcare (also called clinical waste) may prove hazardous to those that come into contact with them and are subject to stringent controls. Controls on the disposal of healthcare waste Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 it is unlawful to deposit, recover or dispose of controlled (including clinical) waste without a waste management licence, contrary to the conditions of a licence or the terms of an exemption, or in a way which causes pollution of the environment or harm to human health. Contravention of waste controls is a criminal offence. Section 34 of the act, places people concerned with controlled (including clinical) waste under a duty of care to ensure that the waste is managed properly, recovered or disposed of safely and is only transferred to someone who is authorised to keep it. Hazardous healthcare waste is subject to the requirements of the Hazardous Waste Regulations 2005 (PDF, 83.3KB, 11 pages) . Safe management of healthcare waste
Arctic ice cap on course to shrink to its lowest level An Arctic cyclone earlier this month was said to be a contributory factor to the decline but Mr Serreze said the lack of extraordinary weather influences made the melt more remarkable. He added it was possible that the rapid melt had played a part in severe storms in the US in recent years as it changed the nature of the planet's temperature gradients. "The ice now is so thin in the spring just because of the general pattern of warming that large parts of the pack ice just can't survive the summer melt season anymore," he said. As more of the ice cap thaws, Arctic-bordering countries including Russia, Canada, Denmark, Norway and the US were expected to start considering the ocean for trade. The first ship from China - the Xuelong, or Snow Dragon - recently sailed from the Pacific to the Atlantic through the Arctic Ocean, cutting the distance by more than 40 percent.
I.St.A.A.T.T. - Home Page Hospitals for a Healthy Environment Hospitals for a Healthy Environment is now part of Practice Greenhealth Healthcare Without Harm working to protect health by reducing pollution in the health care sector Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Assoc The Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) are issued by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and govern the transportation of hazardous materials by highway, rail, vessel, and air. Practice Greenhealth Practice Greenhealth is the nation’s leading membership and networking organization for institutions in the healthcare community that have made a commitment to sustainable, eco-friendly practices.
America Hit With Record Devastation From Wildfires Wildfire smoke: Dan Pearce via FlickrThe National Interagency Fire Center reports that 2012 just broke the record for most acreage burned by wildfires as of this date (see chart below). The previous record was set in 2006, another mega-drought year. Year-to-date statistics for acreage burned by wildfires National Interagency Fire Center That's nearly 7 million acres—or 10,893 square miles—that have burned so far this record hot and dry year. Currently 39 large fires and fire complexes are actively burning 1,401,968 acres. Night view of western wildfires, August 17 NASA image by Jesse Allen, using Suomi NPP VIIRS dataIn Northern California, where I live, fire bloomed with August's dry lightning strikes. Jeremy Couso at SusanvilleStuff.com—listening in on the late night fire scanner—learned how one such fire was thwarted by a lone man in the dark last weekend: Then came the report of a lightning fire burning in rugged terrain southeast of Eagle Lake. Fire and smoke map for August 20.