Just in case you were wondering about the crazy weather lately.
How do you feel about drinking water that was once used for number one and two in your toilet? Well, pretty soon it might not matter. Like this article states:
…nearly 1 billion people lack access to clean water, and by 2025, 1.8 billion people are expected to be living in areas that experience extreme water scarcity.
And the article continues:
With more straws dipping into our water reservoirs—and the very real possibility that climate change could further dry out the West—we can’t afford to waste it down the toilet. If water recycling is good enough for astronauts, it should be good enough for us too.
As our population continues to increase rapidly and we, as the world’s “superpower,” continue to quibble about issues of climate change, the Earth will continue to change.
A federal court actually rejected a challenge by the shipping industry of EPA regulations on ballast water. Essentially, the EPA sets the standards on the water ships are able to release. This is coupled with any additional state regulations that are set in order. Obviously, the businesses would rather not deal with regulations and dump their ship’s water anywhere, which can lead to invasive species and what not that can harm the domestic waters. It’s great to see that common sense and not money prevailed in this situation. This is great news.
I know you have all FELT the heat wave that has been pervading through a vast majority of the United States, but have you SEEN it? Check out this visual showing how the heat wave has moved over the past few days. National Geographic has an article posted going over the in’s and out’s of this heat wave.
Duh moment.
Me: I suppose I didn't realize that Michigan had so many nuclear power plants.
Jared: Yeah, I don't know if I like the idea of that.
Me: Yeah, this one here is one of the oldest ones in the country; built in 1971 in Palisades, MI.
Jared: In Fermi you can actually go out and catch mutated fish in Lake Erie.
Me: Man, if one of these things exploded, we would be screwed. How can we honestly be so stupid?
Jared: Are you familiar with the tobacco industry?
Me: Touche.
I wish I lived in a society that looked like this. This is a photovoltaic system in Austria. Nothing like clean and safe energy; not to mention, I don’t think the Sun will be closing up shop anytime soon either.
I’m not sure how many people find real news among the text out there, but here’s a tiny article about yet another oil spill. Oh, wait, but this one is from over a year ago. Needless to say, it’s there because even after a year, we still haven’t managed to manage the consequences. Doesn’t look good for the next year either.
I thought this was a pretty powerful indication that maybe, just maybe, our priorities are slightly mixed up. Why are we still utilizing a source of energy that 1. is becoming extremely expensive, 2. will eventually run out, and 3. kills our environment when mismanaged (which is obviously inevitable, considering we’re humans).
