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Keep Track Of Your LEGOs | Earth Wise

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Plastics in the ocean are a global problem that has attracted a great deal of attention.  Most of the concern surrounds grocery bags, bottles, six-pack rings, and similar items.  Recent research looked at another source of plastic pollution:  LEGOs.

According to environmental scientists at the University of Plymouth in the United Kingdom, it can take more than a thousand years for LEGO bricks to break down in the ocean.  The iconic toys are made from a strong plastic called acrylonitrile butadiene styrene or ABS.  Pieces of LEGOs are commonly found in ocean trash hotspots and wash up on shores across the globe by the thousands.

LEGOs are one of the most popular children’s toys in history and part of what makes them so popular is their durability.  Barefooted parents stepping on one on the floor in a dark room can attest to that fact.  But the full extent of their durability came as a surprise to the researchers.

The scientists analyzed pieces of weathered LEGOs collected from beaches, confirmed their age, and compared them to unweathered LEGOs from the 70’s and 80’s.  They were able to determine the extent to which LEGOs had been worn down by ocean waves, sand, and salt over time.  And it was surprisingly little.

LEGO has acknowledged the environmental impact of its products and has launched a goal to make its bricks from more sustainable sources such as sugarcane-based polyethylene by 2030, as well as improve its efforts to recycle and reuse old LEGO plastic.

Meanwhile, we should all we careful of where our old LEGOs end up.

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LEGO Bricks Could Linger in the Ocean for 1,300 Years, Study Finds

Photo, posted August 24, 2015, courtesy of Juan Luis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Immersion In Nature Is Good for You | Earth Wise

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There is a growing body of research that shows that getting outdoors in nature can be good for people’s health and well-being. There are so many studies supporting this idea that policymakers, employers, and healthcare providers are increasingly considering this need for nature in how they plan and operate.

A new study of 20,000 people by researchers at the University of Exeter in the UK actually looked at how much exposure to nature was enough to make people say they feel healthy and have a sense of well-being.   The answer turned out to be 2 hours a week.  And the correlation was strong.  People who didn’t meet that threshold did not report the benefits.

Studies have shown that time in nature – as long as people feel safe where they are – is an antidote for stress.  It can lower blood pressure and stress hormone levels, reduce nervous system arousal, enhance immune system function, increase self-esteem, reduce anxiety, and improve mood.  Most of these studies are correlational rather than causal, but the results tend to be robust.

Given all this, cities are adding or enhancing parks, and schools and other institutions are being designed with large windows and access to trees and green space.  The Scandinavian tradition of “forest schools” – where learning takes place in natural settings outdoors -.is finding a home in the US.   Japanese researchers study the effects of “forest bathing”, a poetic term for walking in the woods.

With two-thirds of humanity projected to be living in cities by 2050, we are awakening to the idea that we need to be able to spend time in nature for our own wellbeing, even if it’s just a walk in a park.

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Ecopsychology: How Immersion in Nature Benefits Your Health

Photo, posted November 6, 2011, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Converting A Toxin Into An Industrial Chemical | Earth Wise

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Nitrogen dioxide is a prominent air pollutant produced by internal combustion engines burning fossil fuels as well as by a variety of industrial processes.  It is a toxic material associated with a number of respiratory illnesses. 

Researchers at the University of Manchester in the UK along with an international team of scientists have developed a new advanced material that can convert nitrogen dioxide from an exhaust gas stream into useful industrial chemical using only water and air.

The material is a metal-organic framework (or MOF) that provides a selective, fully reversible, and repeatable capability to capture nitrogen dioxide.  MOFs are tiny three-dimensional structures that are porous and can trap gases inside as though there were tiny cages.  MOFs have enormous amounts of surface area for their size.  One gram of material can have a surface area as large as a football field.

The material, named MOF-520, can capture nitrogen dioxide at ambient temperatures and pressures and even at low concentration and during flow in the presence of moisture, sulfur dioxide, and carbon dioxide.  Such conditions are typical of the exhaust of internal combustion engines. In fact, the process works best at the typical temperature of automobile exhausts.

Once the nitrogen oxide is absorbed, treating the material with water in air converts it into nitric acid and restores the MOF for additional use.  Nitric acid is the basis of a multi-billion dollar industry with uses including agricultural fertilizers, rocket propellant, and nylon.  Thus, there is great potential for recouping the costs of using the MOF technology and even profiting from it.

It would be great to convert a toxic pollutant into valuable industrial chemicals.

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Clean air research converts toxic air pollutant into industrial chemical

Photo courtesy of the University of Manchester.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

The Threat From Nurdles

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Just when we thought we knew all about the environmental threats caused by plastics, environmentalists have identified yet another problem.  It is called a nurdle.

Nurdles are tiny pellets of plastic resin no bigger than a pencil eraser that manufacturers transform into packaging, plastic straws, water bottles and all the other things that are wreaking havoc on the environment.

It turns out that nurdles themselves are a problem because billions of them are lost from production and supply chains during handling, shipping and production every year, spilling or washing into waterways.  There is limited information on the extent of this kind of plastic pollution and global researchers are still struggling to make an accurate assessment.  A study last year estimated that 3 million to 36 million pellets escape every year from just one small industrial area in Sweden.

Eunomia, a British environmental consultancy, contends that nurdles are the second-largest source of microplastic pollution and estimated that the U.K. could be unwittingly losing billions of pellets into the environment every year.

New research is revealing the ubiquity of plastic pellets, from the bellies of fish caught in the South Pacific, to the digestive tracks of short-tailed albatross in the north and on the beaches of the Mediterranean.

A shareholder advocacy group called As You Sow has filed resolutions with Chevron, DowDupont, Exxon Mobil, and Phillips 66 asking them to disclose how many nurdles escape their production process each year and how they plan to address the issue.  Several of the companies have responded with statements saying they are working to develop solutions that keep plastic out of our environment.

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There’s a Tiny Plastic Enemy Threatening the Planet’s Oceans

Photo, posted January 15, 2014, courtesy of Hillary Daniels via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Progress On Plastic Straws

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Earlier this year we talked about the contributions of plastic straws to the global problem of plastic waste.  Americans throw away an astounding 500 million straws a day.  But global campaigns to reduce the use of plastic straws are starting to make real headway.

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The Value Of Biodiversity

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It is often said that biodiversity is crucial for staving off extinctions.  Ecosystems are complex and are essentially defined by the interdependencies among the various animals and plants.  It stands to reason that removing species from an ecosystem can have significant effects up and down the food chain.  Extinctions are much more likely when biodiversity diminishes.

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Green Tech In 2018

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Clean power gathered unprecedented momentum in 2017.  With climate problems on the rise, national and local governments are pushing for more renewable energy and the end of fossil-fueled cars.  Corporations around the globe are making major commitments to green technology.  Despite the Trump Administration’s open hostility toward clean power and its rejection of climate science, American states, municipalities and private companies are all getting with the program.

[Read more…] about Green Tech In 2018

Coffee Power

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The residents of London are known for tea drinking, but in fact each of them consumes an average of 2.3 cups of coffee a day as well.  But now, it won’t just be commuters that are running on coffee in the morning.  London buses will in part run on oil produced from coffee grounds.

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Cities Can Help Bees

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Global bee populations have been drastically declining as a result of habitat loss, pesticides and climate change.  But studies are showing that planting flower patches in urban gardens and green spaces can make a real difference in restoring natural pollinators.   There are already positive results in cities from Chicago to London to Melbourne.

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A Decline In Flying Insects

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When was the last time you used a squeegee to remove squashed insects from your windshield?  It’s been a while, right?  It’s not just you.  This is known as the windscreen phenomenon.  Scientists and some motorists have long suspected that flying insects are in dramatic decline.  New research has confirmed these suspicions.

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The End Of British Coal

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In the 19th century, Britain produced 80% of the world’s coal.  Britain was the dominant global power in the industrial revolution with its giant blast furnaces, steam locomotives and steam ships.  And with advent of the electric age, coal once again was the power source of choice.  Even as late as the 1970s, Britain got 80% of its electricity from burning coal.

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Ditching Gas And Diesel Cars

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Electric cars represent only a tiny fraction of the overall auto market.  The numbers are growing, most certainly, but they are still quite small in most places.   The recent start of production of the Tesla Model 3 has attracted quite a bit of attention to electric cars, but in many countries, there is much more to the story than just media buzz about a new car.

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Edible Tableware

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The problems caused by plastics in the environment continue to mount.  Major companies around the world are endorsing and promoting efforts to combat the problem including the New Plastics Economy Initiative which aims to have 70% of plastic packaging reused and recycled globally, which is five times more than the current percentage.

[Read more…] about Edible Tableware

Cleaning Britain’s Air

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According to a new study by the non-profit group Carbon Brief, carbon dioxide emissions in the United Kingdom are at their lowest levels since the 1920s.  Four factors are responsible:  a record drop in coal use, the rapid growth of renewable energy, the expansion of energy efficiency programs, and the increased use of natural gas for electricity power plants.

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Solar Power And African Food Security

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Some of the poorest countries in the world are unfortunately among the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.   Malawi, for example, has 90% of its population in rural areas and 80% of its labor force is associated with agriculture.

[Read more…] about Solar Power And African Food Security

Wildflower Decline

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For about a decade now, insect pollinator populations have been in decline.  Their decline poses a significant threat to biodiversity, food production, and human health.  In fact, at least 80% of the world’s crop species require pollination, and approximately one out of every three bites of food is a direct result of the work of these pollinators.  In the United States alone, insect pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, certain wasps and flies (among many others), account for an estimated $15 billion in profits annually.    

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