Author: Amos Han (Page 2 of 3)

I was at the Sustainability Committee meeting as a group today (with my EGRS 480 group) and one of the topics mentioned was the Lafayette Eco-Reps Program. The goal for the program would be to save college money and reduce required labor from Plant Operations. In addition, this would be in line with an increased interest in sustainability. The program would have incentives where students can get paid as a stipend or work study, or get a class credit. Faculty and staff would consist of department eco-leaders and Green Office Certification. There would be programs within dorms and one campus-wide project a semester. For now, the initiatives includes dorm recycling, energy/water use, farmers’ market, freshman orientation connection, green move-in/out, cleanup events, sticker and logo program, and field trips.

Unfortunately, like all projects proposals, there are challenges. The challenges include funding, recruitment and the searching of an advisor. The plan for the future would be to research on other eco-rep programs and create comprehensive goals and structure. Moreover, there would be a dialogue with administration in order to secure funding and legitimacy of this program.

Leftover Animal Fat Becomes Sustainable Soap

Believe it or not, leftover animal fat can turn into soap. Specifically, this soap is made of fat from duck, water and NaOH (sodium hydroxide). To make things even more sustainable, the packaging is made of recycled paper.

When I was in late elementary school, I was addicted to simulation games. SimCoaster was one of them, and it was a simulation of an amusement park. Once I ran the park, unfortunately, a lot of people were getting sick and the park was becoming a mess. Solution? I got a tip where plants can cause a healthier environment. I then proceeded to plant trees and other plants throughout the park and especially near rides. The park became a lot healthier and cleaner.

In real life, not only that having plants nearby can keep people healthy, but also have a more attractive landscape, regardless of what type of location. The following link can provide reasons why trees are beneficial:

http://www.treepeople.org/top-22-benefits-trees

The reasons include cleaning the air, providing oxygen, and even improve people’s psychology (and therefore reducing violence).

A lot of us think of cruises as a dream vacation. Unfortunately, cruise ships cause substantial air pollution. Carnival Cruise Lines has been taking corrective action by learning a lesson from the power plant and automobile technologies. Over the next three years, Carnival had a goal of reduce SO2 and trap soot in a filter on up to 32 cruise ships. In addition, while docked in ports, the ships would no longer idle and instead be connected to an electrical grid. This will not be an easy and cheap task but at least Carnival is moving closer towards sustainability.

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2013/09/06/deal-with-epa-requires-company-to-install-power-plant-technology-on-cruise-ship/

I came across this link that shows detailed facts and statistics about recycling in the United States and the world.

http://www.cpmfg.com/2012/04/11/the-best-recycling-programs-in-the-us-around-the-world-infographic/

First, it shows the recycling rates by country (Switzerland being the best at 52%, compared with 31.5% for the United States). Followed by the top 10 greenest US/Canada cities, with San Francisco leading at 83.8% (compared with New York City at 79.2%).

The next comes the total MSW (municipal solid waste) generation in 2010 (the largest percent being paper at 28.5% of all waste).

Recycling and composting more than 80 millions tons of MSW is the equivalent of saving more than 1.3 x 10^15 BTU of energy or 229 million barrels of oil.

Lastly, it shows top ten recycling colleges in the US, and it is a shame that Lafayette is not on the list. Hope it will someday.

During class today, I did bring up the observation in New York City where there are large piles of garbage cans. In a city that attracts a lot of tourists throughout the world, the garbage pile damages the reputation of NYC. This is a concern. I personally not have a picture of it, but I did find a news article: http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20140218/williamsburg/new-yorkers-raise-stink-over-mountains-of-trash-piling-up-after-snowstorms

The news articles also mentioned that the garbage trucks focus more on snow removal during snowstorms. Focusing on snow removal is actually a good thing but mountains of trash leaves nothing but complaints from New Yorkers. First, it smells. Especially in the summer. Second, my concern is that this can be a health risk. And third, as Prof. McGuire brought up, this can attract rats, which then rip off the garbage bags and cause the sidewalks and streets to be littered with trash.

Here is another link: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/24565851/sanitation-dept-promises-to-finally-haul-away-piles-of-garbage-from-upper-east-side

Thankfully, NYC Sanitation Department is taking action. We all know that safety is our #1 priority but we should also factor in our health too at a similar level as safety.

We all are aware that trains are among the most sustainable present-day motorized transportation these days. Amtrak has its own page about how it commits to sustainability: http://blog.amtrak.com/2014/01/amtrak-commits-sustainability/

It has received a sustainability score of 85, which is a B. Yes, the sustainability score has a very similar scale as academic grading. As a matter of fact, it remains one of the more environmentally friendly form of transportation, where only 2,435 BTUs are used, compared with 2,826 BTUs per airliner and 3,538 BTUs per car.

Here is a link to the 2012 sustainability report:  http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/883/945/Amtrak%202012%20Environment%20and%20Sustainability%20Summary_Final.pdf

http://e360.yale.edu/feature/leveling_appalachia_the_legacy_of_mountaintop_removal_mining/2198/

I watched this video of this documentary of mining in Appalachia. It shows the consequences of mining. Since the mid-1990s, the coal industry used mountaintop removal mining to extract coal. This resulted in over one million acres of forests being destroyed and nearly 2,000 miles of streams. In 2007, an energy company known as AT Massey Energy applied for permits for mining…6,450 acres of Coal River Mountain in Raleigh County, WV. This mining not only destroys the mountains, but also destroys the beautiful scenery, with polluted air contributing to this mess. Locals have been trying their best to join together protest against mining. 7 episodes of flash flooding due to violently fast downstream water and heavy rains have caused damages to tens of thousands of homes. When mining happens, top of mountains explode. What used to be a beautiful landscape now looks dead.

Effects on drinking water: There have even been local concerns about the effects of drinking water. A water sample was taken and it turned out to be acidic, with the pH level of 4.86. Color of water appears black.

Unfortunately, the US Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 did not work out well as mountains were unable to be protected and full-scale mountaintop-removing coal mining were allowed.

Coal cut companies turned out to not care about the environment and the community. They only care about money.

This mining practice is not only contributing to the climate change, but also affecting the lives of future generations.

Young people (people in my age group and slightly younger) are known to stay up late at night. Not only that it can have potential health-related consequences, it appears unsustainable. Do you know why? The more you are awake during darkness, the more artificial light you will need and the more energy would be used. Since I like to go to bed early and get up early, there are times when I hardly see complete darkness, like in June.

On a piece of paper I get every year about recycling information at my house, not only that it shows the information on when recycling is collected and which recyclables are collected on what day, it reminds people that the town government gets paid whenever people recycle, while our tax dollars pay for garbage collection. As a result, in order to reduce taxes, an increasing number of people have been paying attention to recycling.

If you want to travel from continent to continent, you may not think about it but there is a major concern here. From New York City, it takes 7 hours to fly to Paris, 9 hours to Italy and 14 hours to Seoul, Korea. Unfortunately, that’s the only way to cross the ocean. Actually, there is still a ferry that travels between New York City and Southampton, England but it takes a week to get there. Regardless of the mode of travel, very long distance travel is expensive, nearly unaffordable. Here are some environmental concerns. A one-way flight from JFK to Incheon International Airport (near Seoul, Korea) has an average carbon footprint of 2.5 tons, according to this calculator: http://www.carbonbalanced.org/calculator/flights.asp . This means for a family of four traveling from NY to Seoul together on a round-trip flight would have a carbon footprint of 20 tons. Not only that people are going to Asia and Europe for leisure, they often travel to visit family and even go to business meetings.

Hopefully someone will come up with a more sustainable way of traveling between continents. I want to see my extended family members in Seoul more often but I do not want to pay $2K for an airline ticket and have a very large carbon footprint.

If you see one of the posters right outside Prof. Cohen’s office, you will notice that there is a diagram titled “Eat Smart, Your Food Choices Affect the Climate” that shows each food and consuming 4 oz of certain food has a carbon footprint that is equivalent to a certain number of car miles driven. For example, at the best choice, eating 4 oz of lentils is equivalent to driving about 0.1 miles, while at the worst case scenario, eating lamb would be equivalent to driving about 7 miles.

http://www.earthfirst.net.au/eat-smart-how-your-food-choices-affect-the-climate.html

If you are a young adult, especially if you are pregnant, you should think twice when going to the city or at least being exposed to a lot of emission-spewing vehicles and industrial areas. As air pollutants enter women’s system, it reaches their unborn babies. As a consequence, the babies’ IQ level gets damaged. It was proven that the mothers of children whose IQ test results were lower were exposed to PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), while the mothers of children whose IQ test results were higher were not as much exposed to PAHs. This often results in poor school performance and eventually damages higher-level learning, such as college years and job training.

In my opinion, despite longer commutes, if my job was in the city, I would personally take a longer commute from the suburbs or rural area to reduce my exposure to PAHs.

http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/air-pollutants-and-childrens-iqs

One thing I notice about Lafayette during the past four years I’ve been here is that the campus is getting greener, prettier and more attractive. There are less roads accessible to vehicles, therefore increasing pedestrian safety. I even remember that the western end of High Street was a dead end right by Watson Hall; however, the stretch of road between the main entrance of AEC and the dead end by Watson Hall was torn down and turned into Anderson Courtyard. I personally think that March Field should turn into a quad. As in more paths and trees to look more attractive. It used to be a football field in the past but these days most people treat it like a quad rather than a sports field.

http://www.history.com/topics/water-and-air-pollution

I came across this link while writing an essay response to one of the questions on my first assignment for Prof. Nicodemus’ class, EGRS 352: Energy Technology and the Modern World. However, I’d like to share this with VAST 203. The photo I came across that website shows a lake full of pollution. It appears that almost all the garbage on the lake are recyclable materials. In my opinion, people should volunteer to not only pick up those bottles, aluminum, etc. but also take them to the recycling center to be recycled.

Here in the United States, we rely on cars to get around. Some of us, including me, drives a large SUV that only averages about 13 miles per gallon. While I enjoy driving an Escalade, I do have some concerns. I sometimes have a guilty feeling when I find myself driving alone (without any passengers and cargo). Since the Escalade is a nice car, I do get positive attention from friends. I also noticed that a large number of Lafayette ski team members drives SUVs, including a few Suburbans.

Since the US (especially outside the Northeast) do not have great public transportation system like Europe and East Asia, we have no choice but to drive. Some of us must drive SUVs due to carrying a lot of cargo or even due to having large families. Whether their SUV is for personal use or business, households prefer to keep the number of cars to a minimum to minimize costs of owning cars. Therefore, this leads people to drive their SUV alone. I do know someone who sold their SUV and switched to a sedan due to costs; I personally pay $80 to fill up my Escalade.

Petroleum is running out at a fast pace, unfortunately. While the gas mileage of cars have improved over the past few decades, the great news is that SUVs are being included too. I have seen an advertisement for a Hybrid Escalade, running on roughly 20MPG.

https://www.google.com/search?q=trash+mountain&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=gxf5UtGDOKrlyQGRuoGAAw&ved=0CD4QsAQ&biw=1279&bih=636#facrc=0%3Btrash%20mountain%20ocean&imgdii=_&imgrc=_

YUCK…the above link is the Google Images result of Trash Mountain, which shows a consequence of garbage dumping. Not only that it is harmful to the natural environment and hurting especially the oceans, it also ruins the beautiful landscape.

We all have been here. We are complaining about gas prices these days. I can still remember when, as recent as a decade ago, the gas prices were between $1.00 and $2.00 per gallon. Now we pay around $3.00-3.50  a gallon in the northeast. I drive an SUV and it costs me $80 to fill up my gas tank. However, I think the gas prices are relatively low. In spring 2012, I took “VAST 270: Energy Resources and Tech” taught by Prof. Hornfeck (yes, VAST 203 is my second VAST course) and I can recall Prof. Hornfeck saying that our gas prices are actually low, considering the high demand for gas resulting in a major shortage. I believe that higher gas prices would deter larger number of people from continuously getting gas and get them to use a more efficient form of transportation (public transportation, bicycle, walk…). In Europe, while public transportation system is very good, the fuel prices are expensive. € 1.50 per liter, which is equivalent to $7.75 per gallon.

http://www.google.com/doodle4google/index.html

The headlines for the above link is:

“Draw your own doodle about: If I Could Invent One Thing to Make the World a Better Place…”

I just came across this on Google and there are too many things in my head. But definitely something that is sustainable. Perhaps anything with an unlimited life and is environmentally friendly. One thing I am thinking is that there would be a special machine that transfers computer-generated heat into a heater to preserve extra heat when needed. This way, buildings can significantly reduce the use of electricity and gas on heaters during winter. I do know that Johns Hopkins University’s one library do not need a heater due to a large number of computers into a library. Unfortunately, when the library is closed and all the computers are shut down, heat may be lost. When the computers are on while the library is closed, then this is nothing but a waste of electricity. Class, what is your idea?

During class, we watched the video called the Story of Stuff. It basically tells the detailed truth about what has been going on in the world that has been environmentally unfriendly and the consequences of it. Specifically, human activity is causing deforestation and resulting in natural products to diminish in a rapid rate. The rapid change in technology would make consumption even worse. Due to the nature and shape of the chips that make up the new technology, you can’t take out an old computer chip from a computer to make new devices. Therefore, lots of brand new devices must be made. In addition, the charger for fifth generation iPod/iPhone is completely different than the previous generations; therefore people are not only forced to spend extra money on new chargers, but also that consumption becomes greater. Factories that turn natural resources into everyday items, including technology, would need to release toxic pollutants into the air, resulting in climate change, as well as destroying more natural habitats, resulting in more animals and plants becoming endangered. If this practice continues, the world would eventually end up coming to a standstill. Furthermore, humans would eventually be endangered, similar to what happened in Easter Island, according to Jared Diamond (author of Easter’s End).