sábado, 27 de marzo de 2010

Earth Hour



Mission, History & Earth Hour 2010
On Earth Hour hundreds of millions of people, organizations, corporations and governments around the world will come together to make a bold statement about their concern for climate change by doing something quite simple—turning off their lights for one hour. In the U.S. where we are already feeling the impacts of climate change, Earth Hour sends a clear message that Americans care about this issue and want to turn the lights out on dirty air, dangerous dependency on foreign oil and costly climate change impacts, and make the switch to cleaner air, a strong economic future and a more secure nation.

Participation is easy. By flipping off your lights on March 27th at 8:30 p.m. local time you will be making the switch to a cleaner, more secure nation and prosperous America. View the toolkits, to find out what else you can do to get involved including leading the Earth Hour movement in your community.

Set Your Clock
On Saturday, March 27, 2010 at 8:30 p.m. local time, Earth Hour will once again cascade around the globe, from New Zealand to Hawaii

Sparking a Movement
Since its inception three years ago, Earth Hour’s non-partisan approach has captured the world’s imagination and became a global phenomenon. Nearly one billion people turned out for Earth Hour 2009 – involving 4,100 cities in 87 countries on seven continents.

Last year, 80 million Americans and 318 U.S. cities officially voted for action with their light switch, joining iconic landmarks from around the world that went dark for Earth Hour, including:

•Empire State Building
•Brooklyn Bridge
•Broadway Theater Marquees
•Las Vegas Strip
•United Nations Headquarters
•Golden Gate Bridge
•Seattle’s Space Needle
•Church of Latter-Day Saints Temple
•Gateway Arch in St. Louis
•Great Pyramids of Giza
•Acropolis and Parthenon in Athens
•Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janeiro
•St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City
•Big Ben and Houses of Parliament in London
•Elysee Palace and Eiffel Tower in Paris
•Beijing’s Birds Nest and Water Cube
•Symphony of Lights in Hong Kong
•Sydney’s Opera House

martes, 9 de marzo de 2010

the secret is out. spread the word

The Secret is Out. Spread the Word.
The Cove exposes the slaughter of more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises in Taiji, Japan every year, and how their meat, containing toxic levels of mercury, is being sold as food in Japan and other parts of Asia, often labeled as whale meat. The majority of the world is not aware this is happening as the Taiji cove is blocked off from the public. The focus of the Social Action Campaign for The Cove is to create worldwide awareness of this annual practice as well as the dangers of eating seafood contaminated with mercury and to pressure those in power to put an end to the slaughter.

And it’s been working. The film has been making waves since it premiered last year. Critical praise and audience awards worldwide have focused international attention on Taiji and the annual dolphin drives off the coast of Japan. Under intense pressure, Taiji called for a temporary ban on killing bottlenose dolphins. The film, which was originally rejected, was shown at the Tokyo Film Festival due to public outcry. Residents in Taiji are being tested for mercury poisoning, and for the first time Japanese media are covering the issue.

Close to a million people have signed on to the campaign, but this is just the beginning. The fisherman are clearly rattled, but haven’t stopped killing dolphins.

miércoles, 3 de febrero de 2010

Lo que esconden las pinturas convencionales

Hola a todos desde el Blog verde. Os voy a ir poniendo articulos que considere interesantes y que nos enseñen un poco más en la vida diaria. Un besoteeeeeeeeee

Este articulo es sobre las pinturas convencionales y fue Publicado en el Boletín Salud y Medio Ambiente nº 38 de la Fundación Ecología y Desarrollo


Las pinturas convencionales esconden sustancias tóxicas dañinas para la salud de las personas y del medioambiente, especialmente los compuestos orgánicos volátiles (COV: minúsculas partículas que se despegan día a día de las pinturas). Las pinturas naturales garantizan un ciclo de vida respetuoso con la naturaleza y nuestro bienestar respetando los criterios medioambientales logrando unos resultados similares.

Según la Federación de las Industrias de Pinturas, tintas, colas y adhesivos francesa (FIPEC), existen cuatro grandes familias de compuestos para pinturas:

- Los aglutinantes, que aportan consistencia y transparencia a la pintura.

- Los disolventes, que dan fluidez a la pintura para permitir su producción y aplicación. Sus componentes orgánicos volátiles son especialmente nocivos (white-spirit, tricloroetileno, o la acetona).

- Los aditivos, que modifican ciertas propiedades de la pintura o aportan otras nuevas (aditivos antiespumantes, absorbentes de ultra violetas, fungicidas, secantes etc).

- Los pigmentos que aportan propiedades ópticas como la opacidad o el color o propiedades anticorrosión, resistencia al fuego etc. Los más peligrosos contienen metales pesados como el plomo, cadmio, cobalto o cromo y contaminantes que resultan tóxicos incluso en pequeñas dosis.

Pinturas de agua

La mayoría de consumidores creen que las pinturas al agua no presentan ningún riesgo. Esto es en parte cierto dado que la gran proporción de agua en su formula las hace menos agresivas para la salud si se comparan con las pinturas en “fase disolvente”. Sin embargo, no hay que olvidar que este tipo de pinturas, aunque menos dañinas, también contienen un porcentaje variable de disolventes, pigmentos y coadyuvantes que son fuentes de riesgos, según el Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Seguridad francés, que estudió la composición y los riesgos toxicológicos de las pinturas al agua así como y las medidas de prevención contra los mismos.

Elegir una pintura ecológica

Las materias primas para la elaboración de las pinturas naturales provienen en su mayoría de recursos naturales renovables y no son tóxicas. Las pinturas naturales y ecológicas no emiten prácticamente ningún COV y por lo tanto, son inofensivas para la salud.

Su fabricación es mucho menos dañina para el medioambiente que la de las pinturas de síntesis: las pinturas naturales son ecológicas y biodegradables. Su fabricación necesita poca energía y produce pocos residuos. Su impacto sobre el medioambiente es mínimo. Las pinturas naturales y ecológicas se aconsejan para las estancias en las que pasamos mucho tiempo: habitaciones, despachos, guarderías, escuelas, hospitales etc. Este tipo de pinturas no contaminantes se aconsejan especialmente para las habitaciones donde hay recién nacidos o niños.

Los riesgos derivados de los pigmentos, aglutinantes y aditivos son los mismos sin que importe el tipo de pintura, aunque el riesgo debido a los disolventes es:

- Elevado en el caso de pinturas en fase disolvente (sintéticas).
- Moderado en pinturas en fase hidrosoluble.
- Débil en las pinturas solubles en agua.

El éter de glicol tiene un efecto nocivo sobre la fertilidad del ser humano. La toxicidad de los pigmentos minerales depende de la presencia de metales en su fórmula: el contenido en cromo puede ocasionar irritaciones cutáneas, de las mucosas o respiratorias como el asma. El plomo y sus derivados pueden causar afecciones renales, del hígado o del sistema nervioso (saturnismo). La acumulación de compuestos de cadmio puede afectar a los pulmones, al tubo digestivo, a los riñones y los huesos. El cobalto pueden causar problemas de piel, respiratorios (asma o eczema). El Centro Nacional para la Investigación del Cáncer, (CIRC) los califica como posibles agentes cancerígenos para el hombre.

Los pigmentos son microcontaminantes tóxicos incluso a bajas concentraciones. Arrojados a los desagües o en la tierra, contaminan el agua y la cadena alimentaria. Además, se concentran progresivamente y pueden provocar intoxicaciones crónicas o agudas. Los gases liberados por estos pigmentos durante su combustión son cancerígenos

Cuando aplicamos este tipo de pinturas en el hogar, cierto número de productos nocivos se expanden en el aire e impregnan los tejidos y moquetas de nuestro hábitat. Su presencia puede durar meses y pueden causar diversos tipos de irritaciones y una disminución de la capacidad respiratoria. Debido a su inflamabilidad se deben tomar medidas de precaución en su almacenaje y posterior uso. La “toxicidad” de las pinturas sintéticas implica un tratamiento específico de sus residuos.

Una pintura natural respeta el ciclo de vida, garantizando un medioambiente menos contaminado en sus diferentes fases desde la elaboración hasta la aplicación en los hogares. Las pinturas naturales se fabrican libres de derivados del petróleo, de disolventes, de dióxido de titanio y de agentes contaminantes en sus embalajes.

En su mayoría, los componentes de las pinturas naturales son: aceites vegetales, agua, tintas vegetales, goma natural y caseína. Este tipo de pinturas ecológicas evitan los (COV), compuestos orgánicos volátiles en su producción y generan los residuos mínimos. Indicadas para las personas alérgicas, las pinturas ecológicas logran actualmente unos resultados similares a las convencionales.

Publicado en el Boletín Salud y Medio Ambiente nº 38 de la Fundación Ecología y Desarrollo

lunes, 12 de octubre de 2009

styrofoam is not biodegradable


Styrofoam is not biodegradable, which means it's here forever. Next time, get your coffee to go in a reusable coffee mug or thermos. Skip the fast food, and use glass and metal storage containers whenever possible.

miércoles, 7 de octubre de 2009

THE ISSUE OF ORGANIC VS. CONVENTIONAL

There has been much talk of organic products lately and there seem to be as many opinions as there are participants in the discussion. Thus, there is truly no easy way to judge whether organic is really the best way to go. However, the more information one possesses, the easier it is to make a decision for oneself.



Here are some issues surrounding the organic vs. conventional battle:



•Organic products are better for the Earth—this is one of the most important reasons to go organic since the certification criteria demand organic products to be grown promoting biodiversity, minimizing pollution and using agricultural methods promoting cultural, biological and mechanical means instead of synthetic materials. This means eliminating all chemical pesticides and fertilizers (that are harmful not only to humans but the animals and the environment in general) as well as incorporating methods improving the soil, e.g. using cover crops, manure and crop rotation, conserving water and energy, grazing animals on mixed pastures etc. However, transporting organically grown products emits nearly the same amount of greenhouse gasses as transporting conventionally grown food, which nearly defeats the purpose. Hence, the best way out is to find a local farmer’s market and find out what methods the farmers use to grow their produce. Chances are, most small farmers are responsible enough to use environmentally friendly methods.


•Organic food is better for the consumer—this is not quite so clear. While some organic products may contain more nutrients (e.g. organically grown kiwis have more disease-fighting polyphenols than their conventionally grown counterparts), others actually suffer a decreased amount, e.g. organic tomatoes may have less antioxidants. Thus, the jury is still out on that one.


•Organic packaged food is not better for the consumer—this is true in case of any processed, packaged food, be it organic or conventional. Usually processed food items are full of trans fats (to prolong their shelf life) and sugar, which is metabolized exactly the same way, regardless of its origins. Unfortunately, some companies use “organic” as a marketing device packing their products with organic high fructose corn syrup, which clogs the arteries the same way conventional HFCS does. And believe or not, HFCS made form organic corn falls under the FDA’s guidelines for organic!


•Organic produce taste better—again quite difficult to judge since so much depends on when the fruit or vegetable was picked. If it was picked in the height of the season after it had a chance to grow and ripen in the sun, then it will definitely taste good (whether organic or not). If, however, it was picked before it ripened and then traveled for miles to find its way to the supermarket, the taste may have a lot to be desired, even if we’re talking about organic products. Here, again, the best way to go seems to be finding a farmer’s market and purchasing your produce locally.

HOME MADE RAIN BARREL SYSTEM

HOME MADE RAIN BARREL SYSTEM

lunes, 5 de octubre de 2009

printing


The printing press is often claimed to be one of the greatest inventions of mankind. It has given us a way to store and pass knowledge, ideas, and adventures to each other and to future generations and that truly is an accomplishment worth some major press, but there is a negative side to the printed word which comes in the form of lost resources and gained waste. Books are one of the most obvious products of paper and print, but are not the most numerous by a long shot. Every day we print miles worth of paper, glossy or matte, just to turn around and toss it in the trash tomorrow. Newspapers, magazines, pamphlets, and games all add up to one big stack of clear cut trees. Here are some tips to make your quick information fix a little more eco-friendly.



Newspapers may be being replaced slowly by the internet but there are still more than ten million tonnes of newspaper thrown into landfills every year or about 30% of the newspapers printed. Consider getting your news and Sudoku fix online and you’ll be saving yourself a lot of money over time and you don’t have to sort through all the sections that you don’t want. Think about how many sections in the newspaper you actually read, chances are you aren’t interested in the whole thing anyways and news online is updated as it happens. If you just can’t give up the physical news fix consider subscribing, you’ll save money, time, and a lot of fuel in trips to the newsstand if you drive, and always make sure you recycle your newspaper when you’re done.



Magazines are an impulse buy for many people including myself on occasion, but if you find yourself buying the same magazine a few issues in a row consider taking out a subscription. More than 50% of magazines on newsstands are never sold and end up hauled off to landfills or recycled which is really a waste of time and energy. If more people subscribed stores would order less magazines. A lot of magazines also have online versions which often have more information than the physical magazine and less annoying advertisements. If you don’t like the online option try your local library, they usually have a great selection of current and past issues. If you buy magazines you could also consider donating them to the library when you’re done or to local schools for crafts projects just make sure any with adult content don’t make it into art class that could get awkward.



A lot of puzzle books contain a variety of different games that some people never end up using and even if they contain only one type of puzzle it is rare for a person to finish all the games in a book. Once the book is finished with it is tossed out and can’t be reused by someone else. The best way to avoid this is to find your puzzles online and either complete them there or print off only the ones you want and take them with you to finish. This could end up saving a lot of paper and time in the end.



The printing press was truly one of our most useful inventions and led to the opening up of education for a lot more people than was previously possible, leading to very rapid progress and innovation all over the world. However we live in a world today where information is spread and shared like a virus because of the internet and a lot of what we print on paper can be found online instead. It is easier to access, requires no disposal, costs little to nothing, and less resources are used in the process