gigatons of melting ice and vanishing coral

its been a little while since my last posting here... here are a couple articles that stuck in my brain.

Ice melting across globe at accelerating rate, NASA says

In the past five years, Greenland has lost between 150 gigatons and 160 gigatons each year, (one gigaton equals one billion tons) or enough to raise global sea levels about .5 mm per year

measured that mountain glaciers in the Gulf of Alaska lost about 84 gigatons each year, about five times the average annual flow of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, according to NASA.

World's corals reefs are vanishing, report says

The world has lost almost one-fifth of its coral reefs according a new report released by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

It's not just climate change -- which raises ocean temperatures and increases seawater acidification -- which is damaging reefs. In some parts of the world overfishing, pollution and invasive species are proving equally harmful.

Scientists are warning that reef destruction will have alarming consequences for around 500 million people who rely on coral reefs for their livelihood.

Left unchecked, remaining reefs could be completely wiped out by 2050, the report says.

all i can say about these to articles is "this sakus".

Following The Trail Of Toxic E-Waste

Where do millions of computer monitors, cell phones and other e-waste end up? Some of it is shipped illegally from the U.S. to China, Scott Pelley reports, where it is harming the environment and the people who salvage its valuable components.

read more about it here

Umbrella stand will water your plants

from Make: technology on your time

This umbrella stand by Beligan designer Vandenhecke Mélanie would be a pretty easy weekend project. Simply attach half of a metal frame to the bottom of a planter. When you come in from the rain, deposit your umbrella on the stand and its drips will water your plants.

via Design Spotter

project niu

Project Niu is a K-12 science curriculum that provides students and teachers with hands-on, project-based experiences with the technologies used in remotely monitoring the ocean. Through deploying and tracking a high tech "message in a bottle" as it drifts out to sea, students develop an understanding of mankind's impact on the watershed while forming personal connections to the environment. The Project Niu team includes engineers and scientists at Archinoetics, LLC and is sponsored by NOAA's B-WET Hawaii Program.

see http://www.projectniu.org/home/ for more information

University of Hawaii tries out environment-friendly concrete

"Pervious concrete is designed to let water seep through to the underlying ground, and can reduce storm-water runoff and recharge groundwater supplies. While the product has existed for decades, it is relatively new in Hawai'i.

The pervious concrete is a mix of 3/8-inch rock with cement and water; no sand is used.

"A full 5-gallon bucket (of water) will disappear within seconds," when poured onto the pervious concrete, Baginski said. "It runs through it like there's almost nothing in its path.""

ilovemountains.org

What is Mountaintop Removal?

Mountaintop removal is a relatively new type of coal mining that began in Appalachia in the 1970s as an extension of conventional strip mining techniques. Primarily, mountaintop removal is occurring in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee. Coal companies in Appalachia are increasingly using this method because it allows for almost complete recovery of coal seams while reducing the number of workers required to a fraction of what conventional methods require.

The US Environmental Protection Agency defines mountaintop removal as follows:

“Mountaintop removal/valley fill is a mining practice where the tops of mountains are removed, exposing the seams of coal. Mountaintop removal can involve removing 500 feet or more of the summit to get at buried seams of coal. The earth from the mountaintop is then dumped in the neighboring valleys.”

What are the effects of mountaintop removal on families and communities?

Even government agencies that regulate mountaintop removal agree that the effects on nearby homes and communities can be devastating. In their Mid-Atlantic Regional Assessment, the Environmental Protection Agency states:

“The impact of mountaintop removal on nearby communities is devastating. Dynamite blasts needed to splinter rock strata are so strong they crack the foundations and walls of houses. Mining dries up an average of 100 wells a year and contaminates water in others. In many coalfield communities, the purity and availability of drinking water are keen concerns.”

read more about http://www.ilovemountains.org/. and watch the video

Plane House

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/?cl=8544869


That is awesome! I wonder what else you could use to build a cool house!