Category Archives: Environment

Green Ways to Travel the Globe

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According to a recent report, 87% of travelers want to travel more sustainably, but only 39% say that they accomplish the task on most or all occasions. Well, in a world that often focuses so heavily on comfort and convenience, it’s understandable. Many cultures and individuals are certainly making great efforts to lead eco-friendly lives, but many are still left wondering how to make those changes. Read on to explore a wide array of green ways to travel the globe.

Where You Go

Carefully choose your destination. Shorter distances without air travel are ideal, but obviously, that’s not always possible. So, if you’re planning to travel a little further, look into visiting destinations that value sustainability as well. It will be easier if the surrounding culture has the same eco-goals.

Places like Amsterdam are great because they do not rely heavily on vehicular transportation. They stick to bikes and their own two feet most of the time which makes a huge difference. Additionally, make sure that you’re not visiting a destination that is already overwhelmed with tourists and travelers to the point of causing harm. You don’t want to be a part of the problem.

How You Get There

It’s no secret that air travel is a non-ideal form of transportation right now, but since it is often unavoidable, there are a few small things that can help. First, do your research and choose the most fuel-efficient airline and second passport. When you do, book a non-stop, flight and sit economy.

A significant portion of a flight’s emissions is during take-off and landing, and business select or first class is responsible for three times more emissions than economy seating. And in preparation, pack lightly because an aircraft burns more fuel when it is carrying a heavier weight.

green-travel

But, if you can avoid flying, go for a relaxing train ride. Traveling by train is widely popular in places like Europe and in the United States, you can make it the highlight of your journey.  If you need to rent a car, you can check eco friendly car rental before you book.

Rentagile as a reliable source for EVs & hybrid car rentals. If you are visiting Los Angeles, Blink Mobility can help you out in electric car rental.

Where You Stay

Look for accommodations that prioritize sustainability, like those Rutherglen area accommodation. Do your research and look for places that have certifications from a third party, like the Global Sustainable Tourism Council or the Rainforest Alliance. It doesn’t mean that you won’t have the amenities that you may want or need, it just means that they abide by a particular set of global standards that aim for a more “green” operation.

Parting Shot

Even if you aren’t able to choose the ideal location, avoid air travel, or stay at a certifiably eco-friendly hotel, don’t worry. There is still plenty that you can do to lighten the load. Support the local economy, bring a reusable water bottle, carry a rain jacket, take shorter showers and go for ecotourism. Just do the best that you can, and you’ll be on the right track.

The Pros of Kiln-Dried Logs

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Armed with the knowledge on kiln drying and how it handles itself against seasoning, let us add to that the positives that come from using the logs produced through kiln drying. When kiln-dried wood is put side by side with the usually seasoned wood, it seems way more superior. If you remain sceptical of the fact, below is a list of pluses from certainly wood about using kiln-dried logs:

Benefits of of Kiln-Dried Logs

1. It Burns Cleaner

A common complaint among the many, from using the usually seasoned wood, is the fact that it leaves creosote and soot. Creosote, if you don’t familiarize yourself with it, is a sticky substance that is usually deposited by burning wood. After the fire cools down the substance is left stuck inside the fireplace or even your woodstove. When you light your fireplace again when it is there, it can catch fire resulting in a safety hazard. Moreover, creosote has been considered to be a poisonous substance that may cause several health issues when inhaled. It can cause serious effects, especially to those that have respiratory problems.

Kiln-dried logs, compared to seasoned wood, are a safer option as they do not produce creosote during combustion. This is a better investment since it burns cleaner and also because, in the case of families with children or seniors, they are safe from the effects of the creosote substance.

2. It’s Easily Ignited

Consider occasions like camping when it is usually grizzly, cold, and wet, kiln-dried wood can relieve you of this discomfort. You know that to fully enjoy a camping trip, you need wood not only to cook but to also keep you warm.

Kiln-dried wood saves your time, and effort when lighting a fire because it ignites quickly from just a spark. Kiln-dried wood can be a camper’s way to keep everyone in the camp warm because the fire from this wood is quite long-lasting.

3. It Burns For Longer

Typically firewood is not very costly, but using a lot of firewood for only a short while can be. kiln-dried wood can save you money since it will be more economical compared to seasoned wood.

By only lighting a few of these logs they can keep you warm for the rest of the night. This way, the moments spent chatting with your family or even reading a book will not be interrupted by the need to add a few logs to the fireplace. Not only are you able to save money through this but you also play a positive active role in reducing the amount of wood consumed hence the environment is protected.

4. It Does Not Produce Smoke

Imagine those scenarios in movies where stars or heroes put out their campfires to avoid being spotted by the bad guys. Well with kiln-dried logs this would not be necessary. This is because they burn clean, meaning that they do not produce smoke. Other options of wood like seasoned or greenwood do produce smoke.

Greenwood is especially known that when burned can result in pitch-black smoke, which can be very stinging to the eyes, nose, and lungs. Even when seasoned wood does not produce as much or stinging smoke as greenwood, it still produces a degree of it. Kiln-dried wood is still a better and cleaner option compared to the two.

5. It Smells Great

Regardless of whether you enjoy camping or not, the smell that is left behind cannot be ignored. This terrible smell can linger on you for days, on your clothes or hair even after attempts of getting rid of it. This smell usually comes from the wood used to light your campfire.

As noted earlier, seasoned wood and greenwood produce smoke, in which the scent from it can be smelt on clothes, or the food cooked using this wood can have a burnt taste. So why go through all this, when you could use a way better option? Kiln-dried wood does not mess with the food’s taste or even leave an awful smell on your clothes.

6. It Can Be Easily Stored

Traditionally, firewood is stored in an outside shed. This is because the wood can contain pests, as well as bug eggs hence storing it in your house, is not a good option, since it can add to developing an infestation that can be hard to get rid of.

On the flip side, kiln-dried logs are perfectly safe to be stored inside your house. Arrange them in a raised place, keep them on a platform to avoid the logs touching the floor or getting moisture in them.

The Importance of Indoor Air Quality Monitoring

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Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) refers to the air quality within and around buildings and structures, especially as it relates to the health and comfort of building occupants. Understanding and controlling common pollutants indoors can help reduce your risk of indoor health concerns. Health effects from indoor air pollutants may be experienced soon after exposure or, possibly, years later.

Health Impacts of Air Pollutants

Some health effects may show up shortly after a single exposure or repeated exposures to a pollutant. These include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Such immediate effects are usually short-term and treatable.

Sometimes the treatment is simply eliminating the person’s exposure to the source of the pollution, if it can be identified. Soon after exposure to some indoor air pollutants, symptoms of some diseases such as asthma may show up, be aggravated or worsened.

The likelihood of immediate reactions to indoor air pollutants depends on several factors including age and preexisting medical conditions. In some cases, whether a person reacts to a pollutant depends on individual sensitivity, which varies tremendously from person to person. Some people can become sensitized to biological or chemical pollutants after repeated or high level exposures.

In long-term effects, other health effects may show up either years after exposure has occurred or only after long or repeated periods of exposure. These effects, which include some respiratory diseases, heart disease and cancer, can be severely debilitating or fatal. It is prudent to try to improve the indoor air quality in your home even if symptoms are not noticeable.

Reasons for Poor Indoor Air Quality

Gas and respirable particulates in the air are the primary sources that contribute to poor IAQ. Sources can include inadequate ventilation, poorly maintained HVAC systems, cooking stoves, non-vented gas heaters, tobacco smoke, vehicle exhaust emissions, building materials, carpeting, furniture, maintenance products, solvents, cleaning supplies, window furnishings and floor rugs. You can view this study here about how indoor VOC’s likely contribute to asthma and allergies.

safer-air-quality-in-home

The actual concentrations of these pollutants can also be amplified by other external factors including poor ventilation, humidity, and temperature.

Air Genius – Best Indoor Air Quality Monitor

Air Genius is a state-of-the-art indoor air quality monitor that you should have at your house or in your office to monitor the air that we breathe. The device, developed by India-based Next Sense Technologies, uses the latest sensors to determine particulate matter, VOCs, total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs), carbon dioxide, temperature, humidity and other important parameters.

We have taken a leap in technological advancement by relaying the data automatically to the server so that you can access the data remotely and in real-time. Through this, one could take initiatives on switching on the Air purifier or by keeping the window open for allowing the fresh air. Consider one that performs volatile organic compound testing.

Typical Uses of Indoor Air Quality Monitor

  • IAQ complaint investigation and analysis
  • HVAC system performance monitoring
  • Air quality engineering analysis
  • Mold investigation and remediation
  • Health and comfort assessment
  • Airport lounges, shopping malls, offices
  • Colleges, schools and kindergartens
  • Hospitals and healthcare establishments

Manage Trees With Sustainability In Mind

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There is growing concern as forest land outside of conservation areas is steadily decreasing. There has been a disturbing reduction in primary forests of 40 million hectares in the last decade. The total area of forest within protected areas has increased by 94 million hectares in the past two decades and now accounts for 13% of the total of forests globally.

ways businesses can become greener

 

Tree healthcare for humans

Trees are well known for providing oxygen as a result of their photosynthesis process. It is in fact the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is removed during this process therefore helping to mitigate the negative effects of burning fossil fuels ie. CO2 production. The benefits to the world of this process make the existence and importance of the Amazon rainforest especially significant.

Trees benefit cities too

Not only are trees a beautiful addition to any city, they also serve a practical purpose by absorbing pollutants. Their presence makes a city appear more vibrant and more friendly. For example, San Francisco is home to 105,000 trees. Tree planting should be kept in pace with tree mortality and tree removal. A tree management plan is essential to ensure sustainability.

Tree management for woodland

Trees should be checked for health and also for the merchantability of the trees. When areas of the woodland require thinning out it is useful to produce a product that has a commercial value. This way waste management has been prioritized and has turned a Liability into an Asset.

The harvested wood/logs can be considered an asset and can be sold as fuel. Always ensure trees are removed when over-crowding is an issue to allow for tree growth of the remaining trees. The woodland is sustainable by including sufficient planting of new trees.

Arborists are trained to evaluate the health and ongoing sustainability of a tree. Oftentimes they can prescribe solutions to prolong a tree’s life, thereby protecting the environment as well as improving surrounding property values.

Most cities have tree service companies that offer trained arborists who can provide consultations. Depending on the depth of the consultation it may be free or at a very low price.

An ISA-certified arborist can make qualified decisions on whether a tree needs to be removed or if it can be saved.

Additionally, during their consultation, they will be careful to not damage the tree further. Trufast Tree Care has a certified arborist on staff for helping with these tree evaluations

Maintaining the urban trees

Your arborist can advise you of local procedures and the law regarding your trees which if not properly managed can become a legal liability. Some types of trees do not take well to heavy pruning, for example the Southern Live Oak is best not located in restricted areas where heavy pruning to clear avenues may be required. It is better to grow it in a larger landscaped area where it can grow with minimal pruning. They often reach 60 to 80 feet in height with a 60 to 100 foot spread. Check this website if you are looking for a reliable tree care service in San Jose, CA.

trees-sustainability

The branches of Live Oak tend to droop as they grow so some careful pruning will be necessary especially as this type of growth can be a problem for vehicular or pedestrian clearance beneath. Many trees are not permitted to be removed without obtaining a tree removal permit first. This is good as it provides some protection for the trees.

Other tree varieties to grow with sustainability

The beautiful red maple is a great yard tree being very tolerant and is able to grow in nearly any conditions but especially in acid to neutral soils. Plant away from paths etc. as the roots can raise sidewalks if too close. A good layer of organic mulch should be placed around the roots to feed and help retain moisture.

Presence of trees make a city appear more vibrant and eco-friendly

Another commonly found tree in the US is the Loblolly Pine. When found in plantations it provides the perfect habitat for wildlife such as deer, squirrels making it a very sustainable choice. Being a faster growing tree it requires more regular pruning.

Enjoy our future with sustainability for trees

Sustainability ensures we leave the world in a good state for future generations to enjoy, whilst still meeting the needs of the current population. Keep your trees maintained moving forward and always pay attention to the type of tree and manage accordingly. This way you can enjoy the many beautiful trees around you.

How to Properly Scale Up Your Environmental Consulting Firm?

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Environmental laws are important to keep our planet safe, especially from large industries that can unknowingly impact our world. Hence, these laws are strictly enforced, with punitive measures that are apt for its necessity. That’s why an environmental consulting firm is necessary for every business, to ensure the highest level of compliance in terms of such laws.

Now if you’re reading this article, then, most you most likely already know this. What you’re probably really interested in is how you can expand your business and cast a wider net across different states and possibly tap a global market. So here are a few things you must know to properly scale up your environmental consulting firm.

environmental-consultancy

Perfect your Fundamentals

The reason I started this article with a pretty basic definition about what an environmental consulting firm is tasked to do is because I want to remind you of the core value that such companies should impart on their clients. If you’re failing to do this, then it’s not yet time for you to scale up. Perfecting your fundamentals like proper project management and follow through is important because you should polish your current services before thinking about growing the business itself.

Any business for that matter must be scalable to an extent and for that you would need an organized business plan that can make your enterprise repeatable and enforceable no matter where you go.

Prepare a budget ready for any situation

This goes without saying but a sufficient budget is necessary if you really want to expand your business. It will take a big enough money for you to add to existing operations and to prepare for any emergency situation that may arise from it. However, if you do have a business plan and follow it by heart, you will most likely be able to use your funds more efficiently.

Know who to trust

Scaling up a consultancy firm relies heavily on how big a network you have already built for yourself over the years. This network will not only give you a reliable supply of clients wherever you go, but also a good team of suppliers that you can trust for all your operational needs.

For example, you definitely need to tap a construction materials supplier who can keep up with your demand as your business grows. You also need a good mobility partner for all transport needs such as renting your fleet that can travel far and wide to bring the materials, supplies, and manpower to any site across different states.

You can also expand by experimenting on trustworthy subcontractors that could do the job for you at a fraction of the cost. Let’s face it, it may take more managerial work but it removes a lot more responsibilities off your plate, which is pretty valuable once you’re already growing your business.

Improve your Efficiency

Improving your efficiency may be something you’d want to do before actually trying to scale up your business. But it’s also better if you can explore ways to automate processes like basic consultations and your financing. You can also try to develop an application or look for an existing software that can do most of the dirty work for you.

environmental-engineers

Know your End-Goal

What’s the point of expanding your consulting business? Do you want to make a bigger impact for the environment? Do you want to offer more jobs to people especially during this time? Or do you simply want to earn more money and make a name for yourself in the industry? To be honest, any of the aforementioned reasons are perfectly valid. However, you should once again keep in mind that your business thrives for a reason: you keep big corporations in check against possible environmental issues and make them sustainable. This means you have a social responsibility to keep that and ensure that this happens especially to all your clients.

Your end goal should guide you in how you will operate your consulting firm. There must always be an objective and an endpoint so you can properly rest on your laurels and won’t allow yourself to be a corporate slave for the rest of your life. Remember that there are ways you can let go especially if you feel like it’s already time.

Blindly pushing to expand your environmental consulting firm has serious repercussions not just for your company but also for the environment in general. So you must do your part and understand the list above so you can successfully scale up and be known as one of the best eco consultants not just in your area, but perhaps in the entire world.

4 Essential Tips for Building an Eco-Friendly Deck

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Building an eco-friendly deck requires carefully sourcing materials, strategically creating designs, and researching quality maintenance practices. If you’re interested in building a beautiful and sustainable deck for your home, follow these 4 essential tips for success.

green-deck

The Importance of Going Green

Gradually, the importance of living an eco-friendly lifestyle is gaining in popularity. People strive daily to discover sustainable changes they can implement in their lives to truly make a difference for the planet.

Reducing your carbon footprint can be accomplished in a variety of ways from simple changes, like choosing reusable over plastic, to major alterations, such as experimenting with alternative energy sources.

Analyze your life to uncover eco-friendly habits you can start forming today.

Building a deck is not exempt from green practices. By carefully planning and strategizing, you can build a sustainable deck that won’t harm the environment.

Ensure every aspect of your life aligns with your eco-friendly goals by discovering how to create an environmentally-friendly deck for your home.

1. Choose the Proper Materials

Constructing an eco-friendly deck involves selecting the proper materials for the job. Take time to search and analyze numerous potential materials to utilize for your deck project.

Potential sustainable and quality building materials to choose include:

When talking about sustainability, one needs to consider maximum durability and longevity. With long-lasting metal stair railings, you get good value for money and avoid adding more waste to the environment. Metal railings are a long-term investment. This means that, unlike wooden rails, it will take years and decades for them to rot and lose their function. This doesn’t only save you on costs but also helps protect the environment. When hiring professionals, notice their equipment and tools. For selecting industrial ladders for your decking project, find here the best recommendations.

Each material option provides different advantages and disadvantages for the earth and your deck. Research each type of building material to discover the decking that’ll suit your green project. Contemplate important information related to locality, production, maintenance, longevity, and recycling.

Create a pro and con list to determine the perfect decking material that aligns with your eco-friendly conscious.

Choosing the proper building materials for your sustainable project is the first step to ensuring you build an ecological deck.

2. Select a Conscious Design

Planning your dream deck should be completed with an environmentally-sound focus. Guarantee your deck design minimally impacts your carbon footprint by carefully considering important aspects.

How will you build your deck? Avoid excessive digging by marking the location of your support beams and only digging in the specific spots.

How will you position your deck? Evaluate your home and deck building space. Choose a location, if possible, that’s protected from the sun and utilizes the shade of trees. Arranging your deck with sufficient shade will help you avoid building additional structures in the future.

How will you decorate your deck? Select eco-friendly decorations to support your sustainable deck. Purchase recycled deck furniture, install solar lighting, and incorporate plants.

Create an environmentally-conscious design to guarantee you build a beautiful deck.

3. Perform Deck Maintenance Carefully

Preserve your sustainable deck by performing regular maintenance. Avoid harsh chemicals and select eco-friendly cleaners that’ll keep your deck beautiful and help save the planet.

Research a variety of methods for cleaning your deck. Search for natural cleaners, homemade solutions, and chemical-free products.

Natural cleaners for decks can be located online by performing a simple search. Research reviews for different cleaners to discover the best option.

Household solutions, such as white vinegar, baking soda, or hydrogen peroxide, can be combined with water to create a green cleaner for your deck.

Chemical-free products that serve as deck cleaners include oxygen bleach. Oxygen bleach will clean your deck without damaging or bleaching the wood.

Contemplate your deck maintenance options to ensure you don’t undermine the integrity of your eco-friendly deck by choosing improper cleaners. A lot of these improper cleaners are products that many people have sitting around in their homes… these items are what you would call household hazardous wastes.

4. Seek Assistance

Purchasing materials and designing a deck is a difficult process, especially if you’re inexperienced. Consider hiring a professional if you need assistance building a quality, eco-friendly deck.

Research different decking companies in your area. Ask friends and family for business recommendations. During your search, specifically review each company’s skills, style, and eco-friendly focus.

Ask questions about building materials, designs, and maintenance possibilities. Guarantee they’re aware of your desire to create a sustainable deck.

Select a decking company capable of completing your green project and talented at building quality Kansas City decks.

If you’re interested in building an eco-friendly deck, follow these 4 essential tips to ensure you create a beautiful deck while reducing your carbon footprint.

Waste Disposal Methods: Perspectives for Africa

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Waste disposal methods vary from city to city, state to state and region to region. It equally depends on the kind and type of waste generated. In determining the disposal method that a city or nation should adopt, some factors like type, kind, quantity, frequency, and forms of waste need to be considered.

For the purpose of this article, we will look at the three common waste disposal methods in Africa and the kind of waste they accept.

Open Dumping/Burning

This is the crudest means of disposing of waste and it is mostly practiced in rural areas, semi-urban settlements, and undeveloped urban areas. For open dumping or open burning, every type and form of waste (including household waste, hazardous wastes, tires, batteries, chemicals) is dumped in an open area within a community or outside different homes in a community and same being set on fire after a number of days or when the waste generator or community feels it should be burnt.

There is no gainsaying that the negative health and environmental impact of such practice are huge only if the propagators know better.

Controlled Dumping

This is apparent in most States in Nigeria, if not all and some cities in Africa like Mozambique, Ghana, Kenya, Cameroon, to mention but a few. It is a method of disposing of all kinds of waste in a designated area of land by waste collectors and it is usually controlled by the State or City Government.

Controlled dumps are commonly found in urban areas and because they are managed by the government, some dumps do have certain features of a landfill like tenure of usage, basic record keeping, waste covering, etc. Many cities in Nigeria confuse the practice of controlled dumping as landfilling but this not so because a landfill involves engineering design, planning, and operation.

Sanitary Landfill

A sanitary landfill is arguably the most desired waste management option in reducing or eliminating public health hazards and environmental pollution. The landfill is the final disposal site for all forms and types of waste after the recyclable materials must have been separated for other usages and other biodegradables have been extracted from the waste for use as compost, heat, or energy; or after incineration. These extractions can be done at household level or Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) operated by the government or private individuals.

As desirable as a landfill is, so many factors need to be put into consideration in its siting and operation plus it requires a huge investment in construction and operation. Some of these factors include but not limited to distance from the residential area, proximity to water bodies, water-table level of the area the landfill is to be sited, earth material availability, and access road.

The Greener Garden: 4 Sustainable Options To Explore

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Many of humans’ daily activities contribute to the decay of planet Earth. In fact, even when gardening, carbon emissions are released, which might add to the current problem of global warming. However, the good news is gardening can be done properly through various efforts and actions.

Minimizing environmental impacts should be your ultimate goal for a greener garden. If you’re wondering what sustainable practices could eliminate lesser waste in your garden, there are certain changes you can do. No matter how minor they are, these small steps can accumulate. And soon, you’d be able to fully adopt healthier and greener gardening methods. Here are some sustainable options you can explore to turn your garden greener.

sustainable options to turn your garden greener.

1. Reuse Materials That Can Be Used For Gardening

Recycling is a popular effort to make to go green. By incorporating used materials into your garden, you can do impactful initiatives to help save the environment.

For instance, you can declutter your home and find items you can repurpose into garden materials, like pots and plant vases. Whether you need upcycled stuff for your indoor hydroponic vertical farming or outdoor conventional garden beds, there are many recyclable things you might find in your garage or attic. Or you can also check out recycling shops and find materials you can repurpose for your garden needs. Who would have known your stunning flower pots were made out of recycled items?

You can refer to some online sources to learn how to make gardening materials out of buckets, clay pots, used pipes, and worn-out furniture. Just exercise your own creativity when recycling objects. Doing so may even allow you to expand your home’s individuality and explore new styles for your garden. This green trick wouldn’t only help the planet but would also allow you to enhance your creativity and resourcefulness.

2. Incorporate Native Plants

Choosing the right plants is a critical aspect of growing a sustainable garden. It’s therefore essential to incorporate native plants in it. These plants are a part of the balance of nature, which have existed in your region for many years. They’re easy to plant, grow, and maintain.

For example, one of the easiest plants to take care of is perennials that are already adapted to your climate, rainfall, and soil type. These require less maintenance, use less water, and thrive better than other plants. Of course, you can add trees and shrubs into your garden, but perennials are perfect to serve as a permanent garden display since they last all seasons long. You may also use self watering window boxes to conserve water.

3. Attract Wildlife

Attracting wildlife is another helpful strategy to raise a greener garden. Garden animals, such as worms, toads, and bees, could be pretty significant as they serve different roles and purposes. For instance, frogs feed on pests like bugs, beetles, or grasshoppers, which if left lingering in your garden might cause damage to your produce or plants. Another helpful animal is earthworms, which could bring more air and water into your soil. Lastly, bees pollinate flowers, which could add to the overall beauty of your landscape and garden. You can bring more life to your garden by making it bee-friendly.

bee-friendly garden

To have a healthy garden, you need more living organisms, especially in your soil. A healthy ecosystem is formed by hundreds of thousands of microbes interacting with each other and with plant roots. One way to encourage healthy microbes forming in garden beds is to use compost and organic mulch as fertilizers.

For a garden ecosystem to be resilient, the soil ecosystem must be healthy. In the plant roots, bacteria and fungi release nutrients that are carried by worms deep into the soil. These rich nutrients would make your produce fresher and more nourished, too. When you generate more living things, it would create rich biodiversity in your garden, which would, in turn, make your garden greener.

4. Shift To Organic Gardening

Organic gardening, a method of growing fruits and vegetables without using synthetic fertilizers, is an essential part of sustainability. Using fewer chemicals in your garden is not only ecologically sound but also more cost-effective. An added benefit is that organic produce would be healthy for you and your family.

You can do small baby steps by simply adding organic compost to your soil to make it healthy and rich in nutrients. And when you need to handle pests, there are natural and organic matters you can use to help you get rid of them. In fact, there are homemade pest control remedies that could work wonders in your garden.

Conclusion

Making your garden more organic and greener is enough effort to help save the environment. In addition to being beautiful and sustainable, stewarding nature enhances the garden as a whole. Hopefully, with the tips mentioned in this article, you’d be able to grow a fruitful and biodiverse garden.

What Should You Look For in an Environmental Consulting Firm?

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If you or your business has ever wanted to develop a property, chances are, you have probably worked with an environmental consulting firm, like Aegis Environmental, at some point in the process. If you haven’t yet, the chances are that you will. Environmental consulting is one of the most critical aspects of the planning process for any project. Unfortunately, it often doesn’t get the attention it deserves.

If you think you might be in need of environmental consultants for your project, keep reading to learn more about two of the most important services they can provide. Also, try to keep in mind that while these services may increase your initial costs up front, they save you time and money in the long run by ensuring things are done correctly from the start. This can also protect you from potential liabilities later on, should something go wrong on your property or with your project.

What Environmental Consultants Do

Environmental consultants offer many services that provide information necessary for any project, such as environmental impact assessments, ecological studies, and environmental and natural resource management systems. Some consultants, like the Sydney-based environmental consultants Molino Stewart, also offer stakeholder and community engagement and education services. These can be helpful in cases where developers, stakeholders, and the community may harbor different views of a project.

Most environmental consulting firms offer a very wide range of important services. However, some can have a larger impact on the success of your project than others. Not all consulting firms are made equal, but the really great ones share a few key hallmarks: a solid community and stakeholder engagement/education program, and a well-organized environmental and ecological impact assessment and management service.

Ecological Studies and EIAs

Before you can begin any construction or development project, you have to conduct ecological and environmental impact assessments (EIAs). These assessments map the flora and fauna of the ecosystems potentially affected by the project and quantify the biodiversity in these locations.

This information is required by various environmental protection acts to gain approvals for a project. The outcomes of these studies might also require management plans for vegetation and wildlife.

A good environmental consulting firm will have experts with all the proper certifications required to conduct every aspect of the study. They will also help you with the process of submitting the results and developing biodiversity management systems.  A great firm will even offer the planning and technology to implement those systems and help you through the entire approval process.

Stakeholder and Community Engagement

No matter the project or what it entails, chances are that someone, somewhere, will have an objection. Therefore, one key service you should look for in an environmental consulting firm is a good community education/outreach or a stockholder education program.

What does a good education program look like? Well, the first indicator is an adaptive education plan that can effectively target a broad range of demographics. This encompasses everything from local government councils and nearby residents to businesses and schools. This will help clear up any objections borne of misunderstandings. It will enable the community to more fully understand how your project will impact their environment and help them feel engaged in the process.

When it comes to stakeholder education and engagement, you want to look for a slightly different approach. These are people who will be directly impacted by the proposed project and hold a stake in its outcome. An effective education plan will provide subject background information that is relevant to all concerned parties. It will also include learning activities that cover the scope of the topic and clear guidelines that establish when and what is being done to address the issue.

Conclusion

You can’t overstate the importance of environmental consulting, so it is critical that you go with a good firm. It can be a little tricky to know which ones are best. Your best bet is to stick with ones that have a strong outreach and education program and a comprehensive impact assessment and management service.

Why Wastewater Treatment is Crucial in Our Society

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Wastewater treatment is essential for maintaining proper balance throughout the world’s ecosystems. Wastewater contains toxic substances that harm wildlife and humans, including (and especially) aquatic life. This toxic water comes from a variety of sources, including sewage systems.

When organic matter enters a water source, like a river, aquatic lifeforms consume it as food. As the organic pollutants break down, the animals require more oxygen for the process. This leaves less oxygen in the water overall. When oxygen levels become dangerously low, animals in the water suffocate and die.

effluent-treatment-plant

Wastewater is toxic

Although some fish and other animals can break down toxins, toxic water is a serious risk to human health and is responsible for millions of deaths each year, mostly in developing nations.

Unclean water also causes diseases like cholera and schistosomiasis. Although these diseases generally occur in developing countries that don’t treat their wastewater, they can occur anywhere.

What is wastewater treatment? How does it work?

Wastewater treatment is the process of filtering contaminants out of water that has been previously used for another purpose. This process can occur both naturally and through manmade efforts.

Our ecosystem has a natural water treatment system that involves microorganisms that eat waste material, along with different layers of substrate and soil that filter the water as it absorbs into the earth. However, this process is too slow to efficiently filter the enormous amount of wastewater produced by humans. That’s where water treatment facilities come into play.

Water treatment plants are complex systems

What exactly happens at a wastewater treatment plant? While there are different methods, some of the systems use similar components. For example, the Four Rivers Sanitation Authority in Illinois treats wastewater by first pumping it to a higher elevation for gravity to pull the water through the first part of the treatment and filtering process.

The treatment process begins by filtering out the largest debris like plastic to prevent the pumps from becoming damaged. Debris that gets filtered out is then sent to a landfill.

Next, abrasive materials like sand and coffee grounds are filtered out of the wastewater. This grit is separated and sent to a landfill.

Settling tanks are then used to filter out fats, oils, and greases. These tanks also separate solids, most of which are sent to a separate processing facility. A small amount of solids are sent to the aeration tanks to maintain the proper environment required for microorganisms to devour the solids.

The water is then processed through a second set of settling tanks and is then disinfected with high-powered bleach. Sodium bisulfite is used to reduce the amount of chlorine in the water to make it less harmful to plant life when it’s discharged into the river.

What is in wastewater, exactly?

Since wastewater comes from human use, thousands of contaminants are present, although not all are present in every batch of water. In general, there are both inorganic and organic compounds found in wastewater.

sewage_sludge

Organic matter found in wastewater includes:

  • Proteins
  • Fats
  • Oils
  • Greases
  • Synthetic compounds from detergents
  • Carbohydrates

Inorganic matter found in wastewater includes:

  • Copper
  • Lead
  • Nickel
  • Magnesium
  • Potassium
  • Zinc
  • Sodium

Most of these contaminants come from industrial wastewater and aren’t easily broken down. When these inorganic compounds collect in water sources, they build up over time, making the water increasingly toxic to animals and humans.

Other matter found in wastewater includes:

  • Nutrients: High levels of nitrogen and phosphorous create “dead zones” by feeding large algae blooms. These blooms block sunlight, causing plants to die. Bacteria then proliferate by feeding on the dead plant matter.
  • Microorganisms: Harmful microorganisms include E. coli, parasites, and bacteria.
  • Pharmaceuticals: Pharmaceuticals enter wastewater through human waste and people flushing drugs down the toilet.

Wastewater treatment can help with water scarcity

There are many places across the world that experience droughts and water shortages on a regular basis. Without treating wastewater, drinking water sources become (and remain) contaminated. This includes rivers, lakes, and streams.

Treating wastewater in these areas would provide residents with a clean source of water to use for drinking, washing clothes, and bathing. After continually treating the wastewater, it would eventually bring the rivers, lakes, and streams back to a less-polluted state over a long period of time.

However, getting a treatment system set up takes money, time, and resources. The nations that need it the most can afford it the least. However, there are people and organizations working on solutions to this problem.

It’s not an overnight fix, but hopefully, one of those organizations will soon create a successful model that works for developing nations.