clothing

Microplastics And Florida’s Birds of Prey | Earth Wise

June 19, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Plastic debris comes in all different shapes and sizes, but those that are less than five millimeters in length are called microplastics. Some microplastics come from larger plastic debris that degrades into smaller bits over time. Another type of microplastics – called microbeads – are intentionally manufactured tiny plastic beads that are added as exfoliants to some health and beauty products.

According to a new study published in the journal Environmental Pollution, researchers have confirmed and quantified the presence of microplastics in terrestrial and aquatic birds of prey in Florida for the first time. This research is important because these birds of prey, including ospreys, hawks, and owls, are critical to maintaining a healthy ecosystem. The accumulation of microplastics in their digestive systems could lead to a myriad of health issues, including starvation.

Working with the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey in Florida, the research team from the University of Central Florida was able to examine the stomachs of 63 deceased birds. The team found microplastics in every bird it examined, extracting nearly 1,200 pieces of plastic in total. Microfibers represented 86% of the plastic pieces.

It’s common for plastic microfibers to enter ecosystems through the wastewater from washing machines. A 2016 study found that 700,000 plastic fibers come off in a typical wash. While there are lots of variables, synthetic fabrics account for 60% of the material used in clothing worldwide.

To help cut down on plastic in the environment, the research team suggests removing plastics from open landfills, purchasing only natural fabrics and clothing, and modifying water treatment facilities to capture microplastics.

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Microplastics found in Florida’s birds of prey for first time

Photo, posted April 15, 2016, courtesy of Andy Morffew via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Online Shopping And Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Earth Wise

April 3, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

These days, consumers have multiple choices for how to shop for even the most mundane products. There are both traditional and online ways to buy most so-called fast-moving consumer goods, such as cleaning supplies and packaged foods. Price, quality, convenience, and time-frame guide our choices.

In the past, these things were always purchased by going to “Bricks & Mortar”, that is, physical retail stores. But now, we can order them from physical stores and have them delivered directly by the store – which is known as “Bricks & Clicks” – or we can order them online from an e-tailer and have them delivered by a parcel delivery company or the post office, so-called “Pure Play” online purchasing..

The carbon footprint of these three approaches depends on multiple factors according to a new study published in Environmental Science and Technology. The study looked at the impact of transport, warehouse storage, delivery, and packaging.

Overall, the greenhouse gas footprints per item purchased at Bricks & Mortar were higher than those of Bricks & Clicks but lower than that of Pure Players. But the results were highly dependent upon how many items were actually being purchased, and where the consumers lived. The type of items also mattered. For example, clothing purchased from a pure-play online source is much more likely to be returned than if purchased in a store.

Bricks & Mortar shoppers could reduce their footprint by 40% by walking or biking to stores, and Pure Players could cut emissions by 26% by switching to electric vehicles for the delivery of products from parcel distribution centers to consumers’ homes.

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Comparing greenhouse gas footprints of online versus traditional shopping

Photo, posted July 15, 2017, courtesy of Elaine Smith via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Lifestyle And Carbon Footprint | Earth Wise

March 23, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Many studies have shown, to no great surprise, that affluent lifestyles lead to larger carbon footprints. Households in Switzerland enjoy a high standard of living and a team of researchers there has been studying the consumption and travel habits of Swiss citizens to better understand the impact of various factors on carbon footprint. Key factors include household composition and income, and whether the households are in the city or the countryside – even though, in the end, people’s lifestyles do not differ greatly from one environment to another.

A team of researchers at EPFL’s School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering analyzed data from Switzerland’s household budget survey for 2008, 2011 and 2014. They combined that data with an environmentally extended input-output analysis to assess households’ carbon footprints by measuring their direct and indirect emissions.

Overall, households in the countryside have larger carbon footprints than those in the city, mainly because they travel more and use more energy in their homes. But urban households have larger carbon footprints than their rural counterparts when it comes to food, clothing, cultural activities and air travel.

A household’s composition directly influences its carbon footprint. A two-person household has the largest per-capita carbon footprint, and it falls as the size of the family grows since many of the same resources are shared by more people.

Income levels play an important role. People consume without much thought because they can afford to and enjoy doing it. But there is a trend towards people becoming more conscious of their levels of consumption and trying to be more responsible in Switzerland. Overall consumption has actually declined over the years studied.

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Our carbon footprint is highly impacted by how we live

Photo, posted December 19, 2017, courtesy of Alexander Kozik via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A Squid Skin Blanket

June 25, 2019 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Ultra-lightweight space blankets have been around for a long time. Marathon runners wrap themselves in them to avoid losing body heat after a race. They are very effective, but the amount of heat that they trap is fixed. There is no way to regulate how much heat is trapped or released using a space blanket.

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a next-generation, adaptive space blanket that allows users to control their temperature. The inspiration for the design was the skins of various species of squids, octopi and cuttlefish. The ability of these aquatic creatures to camouflage themselves by rapidly changing color is due, in part, to skin cells called chromatophores that can instantly change from tiny points to flattened disks.

The Irvine researchers have developed a material that contains a layer of tiny metal islands that border each other. In the relaxed state, the islands are bunched together, and the material reflects and traps heat, much like a conventional Mylar space blanket. But when the material is stretched, the islands spread apart, which allows infrared radiation to go through and heat to escape.

The researchers envision many other applications for the novel material, including adaptable insulation for buildings and tents that can be adapted to different weather conditions. There is even the possibility of clothing that can be adjusted to suit the comfort of each person.

The new material is lightweight, easy and inexpensive to manufacture, and is durable. It can be stretched and returned to its original state thousands of times. Some day we might all be wrapping ourselves in imitation squid skins.

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