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Carolinas’ historic flooding from Florence makes strong case for…
Michelle R. Matisons Waste Management & EnvironmentalLess than two weeks ago, Hurricane Florence came ashore, impacting the Carolinas and Virginia. Just when you thought the rain had ceased, the region is expecting more. This amount of rainfall is historic, coming in second among storms, with 17.5 inches of rainfall compared to Hurricane Harvey’s 25.6 inches in a 14,000-square-mile area. That’s 8 trillion gallons of rain for the Carolinas — with more on the way. Georgetown, South Carolina, for example, has been evacuated as the area is expected to flood due to multiple rivers converging.
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Mosquitoes are eating people and plastic, bringing materials up the food…
Scott E. Rupp Waste Management & EnvironmentalAs humans, we often think of mosquitos as blood-sucking parasites that do nothing but buffet lunch on us, cause us pain and irritant to our skins, and leave us itching and sometimes bloody when we squash them between our hands. But, the little flying blood buzzards are more than that, including plastic-ingesting insects that are polluting their own bodies while they gnaw on the man-made material and bring it up the food chain. Authors of a paper — published in The Royal Society journal Biology Letters — found that when a mosquito larva eats microplastic, that plastic can remain in the insect's body into adulthood. So, the microplastic can then be transferred to whatever might eat that mosquito, including birds.
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Plastics, bioplastics augment and replace metal parts in farming machinery
Bill Becken EngineeringQuietly and without much fanfare, plastics and bioplastics are finding their way into the production of agricultural equipment, such as tractors, combines, plows and balers. Over the past decade, major manufacturers such as John Deere and International Harvester have transitioned both cosmetic and functional components from sheet metal to plastics and bioplastics, with very good results. Manufacturers have discovered a nifty truth, especially regarding bioplastics: They more than cut the mustard.
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US’ largest nonprofit integrated healthcare system to be carbon neutral…
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationKaiser Permanente, the largest U.S. nonprofit integrated healthcare system, is putting plans in place to be carbon neutral by 2020 as part of a larger environmental initiative. The healthcare company is walking the walk in regard to its mission to provide the best care outcomes, as recent reports suggest that the healthcare industry accounted significantly to carbon dioxide generation that could lead to hundreds of thousands of deaths if not otherwise addressed.
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Florence lands in Carolinas, killing 23 people
Michelle R. Matisons Waste Management & EnvironmentalHurricane Florence, which has since been downgraded to a tropical depression, landed in the Carolinas over the weekend, delivering predicted damage. So far, the storm has killed 23 people as North and South Carolina brace for more rain in the coming days. There are close to a half-million people without power as of the morning of Sept. 17. Rain is still falling across the two states, and flooding is so severe that towns, like Wilmington, are cut off, requiring emergency services to airlift food and water into the city.
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Can the US do ‘slow’ urban development?
Lucy Wallwork Construction & Building MaterialsThe Cittaslow ("Slow City") movement, launched by a group of small Italian towns in the late 1990s, professes to "do for urban planning what the Slow Food movement has done for agriculture." It calls for a slower form of city- and town-making based on values of environmental sustainability, craft, seasonality, and the revaluing of local history and heritage. As their manifesto states, the movement strives for "towns where men are still curious of the old times."
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Dutch nonprofit installs potential solution to Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Michelle R. Matisons Waste Management & EnvironmentalAre you growing tired from all the debates going on about increased air pollution due to relaxed environmental regulations? If so, you can always turn your attention to ocean pollution for a change of pace. One notorious accumulation of floating trash can be found in the Pacific Ocean; The Great Pacific Patch is twice the size of the entire state of Texas, and it remains a great concern for many searching for solutions to the ocean plastics problem. Plenty of people have proposed solutions, and now a Dutch nonprofit has stepped forward to offer the most comprehensive cleanup yet.
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California signs new clean energy law while fires still burn
Michelle R. Matisons Civil & GovernmentAutumn weather has arrived in many places, bringing with it all of the usual changes, but you may not know this from the ongoing wildfire saga that continues summer burning conditions into fall. All eyes are now on the Delta fire, which started burning on Sept. 5. The fire exploded onto Interstate 5, a major highway that runs from Canada to Mexico, causing the interstate’s closure over the weekend. As of the afternoon of Sept. 10, that highway has been reopened. Cal Fire reports already spending $432 million through August, leaving only $11 million in the current budget. Legislators have been asked to approve an additional $234 million for ongoing expenses.
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California marches toward 100 percent renewable energy by 2045
Scott E. Rupp Waste Management & EnvironmentalCalifornia is racing toward a 100 percent renewable energy mandate with passage of SB 100 by the state’s Assembly, which will require — if ratified into law — the state to receive 50 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2026; 60 percent by 2030, and 100 percent by 2045. Eligible renewables specified in the state's Renewables Portfolio Standard include solar, wind, geothermal and some hydroelectric generation. The current law requires the state to get 50 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2030.
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Puerto Rico’s rising Hurricane Maria death toll a political matter
Michelle R. Matisons Civil & GovernmentWhy do death tolls matter? Puerto Rico’s experience after Hurricane Maria reveals that deaths are deeply political — and financial. Just as we approach the one-year anniversary of Maria hitting the island, officials added 2,911 names to the list of the dead — from 64 to 2,975. What changed? More growing public frustration on an island already vulnerable to exploitation from its arguably antiquated status as a U.S. colony.
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