The Plastiki seen here sailing into Sydney, near the famous Sydney Opera House landmark. Photo: Adventure Ecology.
Plastiki, the world’s first 60-foot catamaran made from recycled plastic water bottles sailed triumphantly into Sydney Harbor last Monday (26th July 2010, Sydney time) after an epic 8,000 mile journey across the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco.
On October 10th, 2010, thousands of people from across the globe will join hands and contribute towards documenting life on this planet for one full 24 hour period. The result will be compiled into a full length documentary “One Day on Earth” film that will showcase the human experience as we know it today. It will be a virtual time capsule that will essentially capture the drama, triumphs, tragedies, and conflicts happening within that one day period in every part of the world – where a participant of the project is able to film an event from his own unique perspective.
Avant-garde wall decoration – beautiful wall clock created from a discarded Mac G3 computer motherboard by Kalovski Itim.
My good friend, the blogger Kalovski Itim, recently introduced an interesting computer recycling idea on Facebook – a beautiful, fully-functional wall clock recycled from a Mac G3 computer motherboard. If you’re a geek looking for a creative piece to decorate your wall or if you’re looking for something to give to a geek friend for a special occasion, this might just be your lucky day.
“Smart was green before green was smart.” A PSA video by SMART, the textile recycling industry trade group.
What do you do with your old clothes? Well, if you live in New York City, you’ll likely deposit them for recycling, starting this September. NYC is introducing a unique used textile recycling initiative that might likely become a model for other cities to emulate.
Paper or Plastic? In this video from National Geographic, Edward Norton describes a simple easy step everyone can take to help clean up the environment.
California may very well be on the way to be the first state to ban single-use plastic bags from grocery stores, pharmacies, convenience stores, and other commercial establishments statewide. California Assembly Bill 1998 went through another hurdle last week when it passed out of the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee by a 5-2 vote.
It’s not necessary to become a nerd to know how wind power works
Wind is a result from the uneven heating of the Earth by the sun and the fact that temperatures will always be attempting to reach an equilibrium (heat is definitely moving to a cooler area). With the rising price of energy and the destruction of the environment from standard fuels, it is increasingly equitable to harvest this renewable resource.
The benefits of wind energy are that it’s virtually free (once you buy the equipment) and there is no pollution. The disadvantages include the fact it isn’t a consistent source (the speed varies and many times it is insufficient to generate electricity) and it typically requires about one acre of land.
South Carolina has joined the ranks of about 20 or so states that have enacted laws to encourage and promote electronic waste recycling. SC Governor Mark Sanford recently signed HB 4093, a bill specifically crafted to encourage statewide recycling and to significantly reduce the amount of e-waste that gets dumped in the state’s landfills.
Thirty-one persons in California were arrested in April of this year for committing recycling fraud against California taxpayers. The state’s attorney general estimates that the fraudsters illegally collected $3.5 million in redemption money by hauling in truckloads of cans and bottles from the neighboring states of Arizona and Nevada. They are now detained and charged with conspiracy, grand theft, and unlawful recycling.
When it comes to environmental discussion, waste management is an environmental concern that many feel needs to be addressed. Many also feel that clean energy innovations are needed to ensure a greener earth. Yet, what many fail to realize is that the solution to the garbage and clean energy problem may be garbage itself.
Recycling phones has become fashionable in recent years but, going by the current numbers, we still have a long way to go. This week is the National Cell Phone Recycling Week in the United States, an event spearheaded by the US Environmental Protection Agency, to encourage more Americans to recycle their used mobile phones.