Our well-being on planet Earth depends on three main essential drivers, i.e. Water, Energy and Natural Resources (fossil minerals and renewables including biosphere and its eco-systems) ‘WENR’. To achieve sustainability and resilience in our societies and to promote prosperity requires using and sharing our common 'WENR' capital with consideration to the complex and multi-layered NEXUS, i.e. the interactions and processes within and between these three drivers 'WENR’. Currently, Earth is facing existential threats caused by us collectively. Scaling-Up and Scaling-Out 'Science, Technology and Innovation' of the WENR-systems and coupling them to the 'Socio-Economic-Environment' pillars of our societies as defined by the UN-SDGs are one of the very few means to mitigate existing and future threats and bring full vitality in the functioning and metabolism of all life forms and processes on Earth. Sustain-earth.com is an open access online platform that allows active contributions and feeback.
Category: Other Natural Resources
Apart from water and energy resources (given in separate “Categories”) there are many other types of essential resources of natural origin, e.g. land, peat-lands, forests, mineral deposits, wildlife and biological flora and fauna, geological formation both on earth’s surface and the beneath. Major parts of these resources form our natural global biodiversity and needs protection measures through both formal and non-formal instruments.
Management of drinking water is becoming a global issue and it is not any longer a problem in the developing countries but it is, also, appearing in developed countries as well. National Geographic along with other news media, e.g. “The Guardian” are describing the accelerating demands on water resources, in particular the decreasing accessibility and affordability to drinking water. In this case it is Detroit, USA, which indeed is situated in a region rich in fresh-water resources: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/special-features/2014/08/140822-detroit-michigan-water-shutoffs-great-lakes/; http://www.theguardian.com/environment/true-north/2014/jun/25/detroits-water-war-a-tap-shut-off-that-could-impact-300000-people
According to “The Associated Press ABC 7 News” Detroit water shutoff controversy ignited nationwide debate in the USA http://www.wjla.com/articles/2014/07/detroit-water-shutoff-controversy-igniting-nationwide-debate-105641.html
A pressing and urgent question now is: how would drinking water be treated in the future and how far would we go on with privatization of drinking water. Also, how would the pricing of drinking water look like in the future and how public drinking water facilities be financed? These are typical management issues where policy-makers should be prepared to deal with.
Professionals in all sectors and on all levels around the world are corner stones in shaping the future on our planet; they are, also, leaders that can direct its path. However, for our fellow citizens to be safe, secure and share their responsibility the conservation and sustainable management of our collective natural resources on the earth requires innovation, engagement, transparency and full participation in “serve and get served”. With these objectives we can turn past difficulties, existing obstacles and future threats to solutions, admittance and prosperity.
Large-scale and long-term over-consumption of surface water and groundwater can gradually cause large areas of land to dry with gradual expansion of drought zones. Impacts of climate change, e.g. global warming, make such “irreversible” process to be even faster. Sustainable management of water resources has to take in consideration the increasing competition on the uses of water in agriculture, industry and household sectors. In order to achieve sustainable socio-economic developments both natural and human-made impacts have to be taken in consideration. In this context “business as usual” for traditional industrial uses, such as the production of bottled water, has to be replaces, or at least supplemented by, more sustainable approaches for better conservation of water resources including the mitigation of the negative impacts of climate change. Private and public sectors have to work hand in hand to bring about long-term and large-scale sustainable socio-economic developments where uses in different sectors have to be weighted and balanced against each other and with consideration to natural effects.
Sustainability issues are imperative for the survival and any technology. Lead, as other toxic compounds, has negative environmental and ecological impacts both what concerns air and water quality.
Researchers from USA and U.K. came up with new research where they claim could be a win-win solution for new long-lasting solar panels that provide emissions-free power. The idea is to use recycled lead from discarded car batteries to produce solar cells using perovskite “organo-lead halide perovskite”. This technology has rapidly progressed from initial experiments to a point where its efficiency is nearly competitive with other types of solar cells. Perovskite technology identified its use of lead as a drawback. Researchers claim that using recycled lead from old car batteries can save the environment insteed of the energy and waste demanding lead mining. Also, such technology can benefit from excess lead in the future markets because of production of new lead-free batteries.
Production of “perovskite” solar cells is relatively simple and economic as the process can be done at low-temperature with reduced number of steps as compared with the manufacture of conventional solar cells. So, it would be “easy to get to large scale cheaply”. Questions still remain (https://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2014/8/19/solar-energy/revolutionary-perovskite-solar-cells-could-be-game-changer-questions) about how this technology become sustainable: (1) would large-scale production require additional lead mining as lead-recycling is currently used to produce lead-batteries, i.e. before there is complete shift to new car-batteries?; (2) would lead used in this technology be capsulated with no leak to the environment under the life-time of solar cells?; (3) would the life-time of “perovskite-based” solar cell be as long as traditional solar cells?
“Knowledge” is needed in all sectors and on all levels in any society, however the content of knowledge for achieving “sustainable socio-economic developments” needs not necessarily to be of the same components, structure and organization. To bring about changes and developments in any society knowledge has to be “fresh” in the sense that it has to be up-dated or “refreshed” not only to mitigate historical imparities but also to meet emerging necessities and to have capabilities and instruments to deal with any future known or unknown challenges. Knowledge has, also, to be individually adapted to maximize engagement and integration of all citizens and stakeholders for the benefits and welfare of the society.
In our ICT-based “Information Communication Technology” societies there are huge capital and diversity of knowledge resources, though needs of more knowledge still remain to be among essential priorities. Problems and difficulties in many societies for bringing about changes, especially what regards sustainable developments, are not a priori related to availability and accessibility of knowledge but rather the management of knowledge in terms of structure, transfer and adaption on both vertical and horizontal levels. In this context, instruments for appropriate coupling of science and technology to society and market needs is an imperative part of structuring, transferring and adapting knowledge. This is the essence core of successful knowledge-management policies where the coupling goes through citizens and stakeholders, i.e. within and between the very building blocks in the society, i.e. “individuals” and “groups”, in all society levels and sectors.
Services, i.e. serve and get served, production and consumption have to be shaped and based on sound economic policies involving all basic sustainability requirements, i.e. the conservation and protection of natural resources. If all natural resources are consumed, wasted and/or degraded, then it wouldn’t be possible to have life any more. In a knowledge-based society difficulties don’t exist in how knowledge can be obtained and how “citizens”, as carriers, transformers and generators of knowledge, can be engaged to form and shape “consumption”, “production” and “services” for the benefit of their society. The optimum functioning of any society is therefore a balance of these components: why knowledge is needed; what and when knowledge is required; how can knowledge can be produced, transferred, disseminated and propagated.
A major part of the capital knowledge of humans is stored in “virtual memories” around the world. However, such knowledge is accessible but not necessarily affordable for everyone. The Internet provides knowledge with variable quality and in a very scattered and random way though search engines may provide certain limited structuring. Traditional sources of knowledge through libraries are still important sources to “on-line” publishing with excellent audio-visual illustrations and “open-access” versions. In social and human sciences, for example, morals and ethics can be biased by historical misconceptions with negative impacts on freedom of speech as expressed by the public on the Internet. Quality of knowledge is, therefore, essential not only for sustainable socio-economic development but also for lasting security, safety and political stability.
Issues and topics of relevance for achieving socio-economic developments around the world are being discussed and detalied in http://sustain-earth.com
According to a report by sustainability investment firm Robecosam Sweden is ranked as the most sustainable country in the world. But why? and such a status was achieved? What long-time is took to get their? and how it was possible to revert Sweden poverty to what Sweden is today?
Some reasons are its use of renewable energy sources and low carbon dioxide emissions, as well as social and governance practices such as labor participation, education and institutional framework.
Follow http://sustain-earth.com to know more about sustainability.
Water quality is often understood in its narrowest meaning where the focus is limited and reduced to portable water. Often at homes, schools, and communities as well as even among policy-makers and politicians, especially in developing countries, the knowledge is still limited to drinking water. This can be true on short-term and small-scale levels to secure affordable and accessible water resources with acceptable quality to mitigate immediate and epidemic impacts on human health.
However, this understanding has generated serious and widespread global threats with disastrous impacts on ecosystem and human health worldwide. This is evident from historical “palaeo-environmental” data that gives information on evolution of water quality and its degradation in natural water resources, e.g. rivers, lakes, reservoirs, marine coasts, wetlands and groundwater. Long-term and large-scale monitoring of the quality of natural water resources and associated impacts on eco-system and human health are IMPERATIVE and there are standard ways to do such studies. Typically, there are two approaches: (1) continuous monitoring of contemporaneous water quality status, such as those given in the present report given in the provided link; (2) full historical records on the evolution of water quality due to point/diffuse pollution sources.
Both approaches are necessary have different and important benefits. The first one is used for “Early Warning” with direct coupling to enforce regulation and laws on stakeholders regarding production of waste/pollution, also to take necessary measures and solutions to cope with the threats, and to give relevant information to the public. While, the second is important for uncovering long-term and large-scale impacts on water quality, e.g. acidification, eutrophication, chemical pollution, other industry/agriculture associated threats and climate impacts. It is, also, useful for assessing consequences of environmental and ecological impacts of pollution/waste in terms of their cycles from source to sink. This outcome of the seconds approach has feedback impacts on international laws and regulations and for implementation appropriate rehabilitation strategies.
Several man-made toxic products from agriculture and industry, e.g. mercury, lead, chromium and other toxic compounds, rob years of healthy life from millions each year. These toxic compounds are either emitted to the atmosphere or injected into water. However, arsenic from natural origins in toxic levels can be found in groundwater as well.
Here are only some examples of worst toxic pollutants. Arsenic leaching into groundwater afflicts some 750,000 people, largely in south Asia. This can can lead to abnormal heartbeat, blood vessel damage and cancer, among other ill effects. Dry waste from LEAD–ACID BATTERIES, can cause very fine lead oxide to be inhaled or otherwise absorbed into the body with negative effects on the nerve-system. CARCINOGENIC CHROMIUM used for turning hides into leather is, also, toxic. Clusters of such tanneries in countries such as Bangladesh produce vast quantities of toxic pollution in wastewater or as solid waste. Pesticide Problems in agriculture induce skin irritation and can cause cancer. Industrial wastewater flowing in an open drain with several toxic compounds, for example the Malir River in Karachi, Pakistan, boasts lead levels of 100 times higher than the health standards for irrigation water. Elemental mercury “quicksilver” used in separation of gold in slurry cause development of disorder and affects the central nervous system. SMELTER, e.g million metric tons of lead are produced annually by separating it from mined ore.
Pioneer experiments to be carried out by Norwegian scientists, at the Technological Center Mongstad, to capture carbon dioxide and turn it into food, in form of algae, for fish farming in sea water. This means reducing global warming, enhancing bio-production and conservation of fresh-water. Similar innovations where natural resources are being used as essential parts for multi-solutions of complex threats are needed in long-term and large-scale policies to mitigate the collective threats from global warming, i.e. fresh-water scarcity, food constrains and other associated impacts from climate change threats.
The new technique could, in theory, absorb the gases responsible for global warming and at the same time provide sustainable fish food. It involves, also, production of omega-3 rich raw material for fish feed from algae. Fish need Omega-3 fatty acids that can be hard to get in the farmed fish sector, however in natural habitats fish accumulate these essential chemicals by ingesting algae. Farmed fish cannot do this and instead require a food supplement.
Solar panels don’t come falling out of the sky – they have to be manufactured. As is the case in any production of electronics and computer chips, this is a dirty and energy-intensive process. Raw materials have to be mined, transported and treated, i.e. quartz sand for silicon cells and other metal ores for thin film cells. Treatment requires different steps, e.g. purification, crystallization and wafering, also deposition). Upgraded materials have to be manufactured into solar cells, assembled into modules and transported. These steps brings with them air pollution, heavy metal emissions, and they consume energy and add more greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
How electricity from solar panels is generated (existing three scenarios of energy mix), in which part of the world (solar insolation), and for which purpose (energy generating or energy guzzling equipment) solar panels are being used, these factors allow more appropriate assessment of the ecological burden of solar panel technology. Additional relevant factor for full assessment are how solar-technology is likely to develop in future and manufacturers warranties of life expectancy versus existing consumers laws/incentives. With these factors more realistic conclusions can be deduced what concerns “energy-ecological assessment” of solar panels.
Now What is New and have to be taken in consideration. First, solar cells are far from a zero emission technology, they do add pollution and carbon dioxide to the environment, and with considerable amounts. Solar panels can be a doubtful choice in less sunny regions and solar panels mounted on gadgets are completely insane. Solar cells should be recycled but who would do it, would the huge amount of waste be transported all the way around the world to the manufacture? Also, some law or incentive should be introduced to guarantee longtime of life expectancy so as the technology can survive. If possible and as an important conclusion, solar thermal power should have priority over solar PV power.
These facts mean that ALL SUSTAINABILITY factors should be taken in consideration for the best promotion of solar technology. For example, it’s much better using solar panels to make energy generating equipment instead of energy guzzling equipment (like computers, mobile phones and car electronics). It should be realized that solar panels first raise the amount of greenhouse gasses before they help lowering them. If the world collectively would embark on giant deployment of solar energy, the first result would be massive amounts of extra greenhouse gasses, due to the enormous production of the cells. Rush using a technology that is still developing and to accept it as universal solution anywhere and for anything wouldn’t be the best eco-friendly optimized solution specially that the recycling-technology of used solar panels is not yet in place. Recycling-technologies and handling of waste and pollution of all types of industries are IMPERATIVE for conservation and protection of natural resources and the environment.
Solar planels can be only used as energy resource but petroleum “oil” is not just a fuel but thousands of products can be processed and produced from petroleum (http://www.ranken-energy.com/Products%20from%20Petroleum.htm). About 54% of petroleum is used for the processing of these products and their production doesn’t necessarily yield carbon dioxide and/or pollution and recycling technologies of these products are already in place.
Poverty as dealt with in relative terms is not the same as in absolute numbers of poor people. That becomes very clear when we take in consideration the growing world population, the declining access to natural resources on the planet, the accelerating scarcity of water because of increasing competition on water resources, accelerating pressures on fertile land because of degradation in soil quality and associated increase in food prices.
Under such conditions the global market of slaves find it way and has expanded into a big multi-billion industry with many people just living under extremely bad conditions with daily threats and mistreatment. An example is Thai seafood slavery; with four simple things you can do and contribute in improving the working conditions of many people that are crying for help with voices that are not heard in cruel economic systems without fair-trade policies.
Mismanagement of freshwater resources is still taking place around the world though previous disasters that is worthwhile to learn from. The overuse of water resources is currently a major global problem and the outcome from such overuse wouldn’t be different than what happened to Aral Sea. Water management policies should be based on appropriate “Environmental Consequence Analysis” with consideration to large-scale and long-term impacts and not on short-term economic interests only.
The story of the Aral Sea is one of such lessons. In 1950’s the water of the Aral Sea were largely untouched with two rivers replenishing the sea. The Soviet Union that managed the region at that time did major water projects with the goal of boasting the economy by converting land-use from pasture to cotton fields. Along with farming and other industries considerable amounts of water were consumed from the rivers, the water feeding the sea became so scarce and gradually evaporated away.
The vanishing of the Aral Sea and the associated transformation the landscape to huge desert and salty areas is “one of the planet’s worst environmental disasters”. The Aral sea-region once prosperous fishing industry with natural land that could otherwise be used for many other purposes has been essentially destroyed, bringing unemployment and economic hardship. Such destruction brought severe environmental degradation and heavily pollution with consequent serious public health problems. The blown up sand, dust and salt caused large-scale degradation of soil fertility. In addition to these impacts, the retreat of the sea has also caused local climate change, with summers becoming hotter and drier, and winters colder and longer. Local citizens can tell about the damage brought about by short-term policies without consideration to the existing population. The local population was faced with lack of future, increasing unemployment for young people and no work for decades.
The people there have already begun to reverse the drain and restore the Aral Sea “Back From The Brink” through loans from the World Bank. Dried up wells started to be replenished and life started to be better (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEd0hz4Axp4&feature=youtu.be)
Safe water and air are essential for all life forms on earth and there are “safety limits” where water and air can turn unsafe, dangerous or even toxic. Healthy water is carrier of nutrients and healthy air is carrier of oxygen and carbon dioxide (with specific composition), both of which are required for healthy life. Healthy water and healthy air are, also, fresh and free from toxic matter “clean”, under such conditions all forms of life are healthy.
Fresh water, fresh air and healthy eco-systems are related in complex web of functioning, interactions and metabolism. Nature managed to great extent to “clean” itself, to optimize and fix all life parameters in an extremely accurate and delicate balance. Evolution of life on earth struggled for millions of years to bring about perfect living environments and climate conditions. As a reslut of such long struggle earth provided humans with healthy food. What didn’t happen over-night we succeeded to change over-night. We are competing more and more to degrade the life quality on the earth and we are succeeding.
The water and air we are polluting are the raw material and the natural resources for our life. If we ignore them and don’t take care of them, i.e. make them fresh, they wouldn’t care about us and they will ignore us. If we turn them to victims, they will also turn us to victims!
The Sahara or the Great Desert, in Arabic Al Sahra al-Kubra “الصحراءالكبرى” is one of major deserts on planet Earth, i.e. landscape that receives very little precipitation, rain or snow, less than 250 mm per year. It is as big as the USA and its sand can burry the whole world 20 cm deep. Desert land does not necessarily mean sand and sand dunes; many deserts are rocky surfaces as well. One third of the earth’s surface is desert lands that exist in polar, subtropical, cold winter and cool coastal regions. Deserts have no surface streams because of rapid evaporation, transpiration (by plants and subsequent release to atmosphere) or/and infiltration into the ground. Deserts have unique fauna and flora that are adapted to the harsh climate and environment conditions, i.e. intense sun, limited precipitation, severe temperature ranges, dry wind and low humidity.
The Sahara Desert is located in subtropical North Africa and it is the hottest place on the planet. The mystery of what created and changed the Sahara desert has revealed a turbulent past. The African tectonic plate collided with Europe and what was a huge sea turned gradually to land, with the Mediterranean as remaining sea, many million of years ago. Finding whales in the desert is not a climatological story but rather a geological evolution. Indeed, the Sahara has the highest fossil remains in the world, almost all of them are marine animals such as those found in Wadi Al Hitan, Egypt “Whales Valley”. The reconstruction of the evolution and the history of the Sahara were made possible through the remaining fossils of sea creatures in the desert itself along with geological information from deep sediment cores. Sediment cores are excellent archives for obtaining historical, environmental and climatological information. Whale bones in the desert showed that 40 millions years ago the Sahara was a sea bed, deep ocean sediment cores containing wind blown sand revealed that sea water dried up three millions years ago. Freshwater shells buried in sand showed that 90 000 years ago the “wobbles” of the earth’s axis (http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/milankovitch.html) created huge freshwater lakes and rivers and turned the Sahara green every 20 000 years. Ostrich eggshell, used by prehistoric settlements for manufacturing beads, indicated that just 7000 years ago the Sahara enjoyed its final burst of life before returning into desert.
The story of the Sahara showed that it wasn’t always a barren wasteland. Life was not static, it could shift, change, evolve and it can bloom again into green terrain, i.e. in the distant future. Ground penetrating radars showed that there are huge freshwater lakes “groundwater” under the surface of the Sahara Desert. Such fossil water can be million of years old. This gives hopes for turning the desert to green land by being reclaimed for agriculture and farming. Nubian Aquifer (Egypt, Libya, Sudan and Chad) is an example of such fossil water and is already in use. Fossil water is non-renewable resource, can only be used once and is sufficient for a short period of time depending on consumption, probably can last something like 100 years. After being consumed the desert has to wait for another 15000 years before once more earth “wobbles” turns it green again.
Note. The earth wobbles in space makes it tilt around its axis on a cycle of 41 000 years with introduction of changes in the seasons. More tilt means more severe seasons, i.e. warmer summers and colder winters; less tilt means less severe seasons – colder summers and milder winters.
This new chapter of history that tells the story of the past turbulent landscape of the Sahara gives interesting information on how the earth and desert was made.
Decisions of what type of energy resources we should invest in have long-term and large-scale impacts on the ecological quality of water and soil fertility. One issue, which is not very well searched, is the impacts of hydropower on the ecological quality of water that gives rise soil fertility. Both the ecological quality of water and soil fertility are very important for biodiversity and food production.
Hydropower is by definition a major interference in the natural hydrological cycle of surface water where erosion at up-stream high-land regions is essential process for promoting soil fertility in river catchments and river deltas in down-stream and low-land regions. In previous cases, e.g. the Aswan high-dam, the natural fertility at down-stream and delta areas was mitigated by heavy use of artificial fertilization. Artificial fertilization will not last for long-term as it is a non-renewable resource in addition to the long-term and large-scale environmental risks associated with it in terms of use and production.
In most of the energy debates the focus, so far, has been on reduction of carbon dioxide “green-house gas” so as to minimize the effect of global warming and its associated impacts. That is of course necessary but at the same time we have to consider other major impacts on the water cycle because of “Water-Energy Nexus” and in this context we have to take such aspects while we are about to implement policies for the use of “oil sand” or tar sand”. “Oil sand” or tar sand” is another case where in addition to risks for increased carbon dioxide emissions, there are clear negative impacts on water and ecological qualities.
Though the negative impacts of hydropower on ecological water quality and soil fertility may not be of the same dimensions as the benefits from hydropower, such impacts have to be taken in consideration for optimization of overall long-term and large-scale uses of “Water-Energy” resources. What we need to do is to have appropriate “Environment Assessment Analyses” and “Sustainable Actions” in place, so as to be prepared to deal with the growing degradation of water and ecological qualities.
Nomads, 30-40 millions in 1995 around the world, roaming around and moving from one place to another for pasture or hunter-gatherer is a fast disappearing life-style. Reindeer have been herded for centuries in polar and sub-polar regions, horses remain national symbols in Mongolia and camels are still the perfect choice in the Sahara. After the industrial revolution “mechanization” and with increasing dependence on fossil-fuel, urbanization became “magnets” causing considerable drainage of people to technology and modern life, even without basic knowledge about the requirements and threats of the new life.
“There’s no place like home”, but with the advance of science and technology the definition of home becomes much different in particular in the era of globalization and the Internet. The choice between staying home and being drained to new life-styles may create conflicts between generations and communities or at least cause separation and fragmentation in families.
The weather in the polar mountains can turn in just a few minutes and at the artic circle conditions can be extreme. The ways of life, learning and even childbirth are often intense. People living in the tundra are accustomed to a nomadic life. Tents are their homes, food is basic, and the deer is king. They don’t watch TV or don’t use internet. Children do go to boarding schools, but not all parents are in favor of them. A well-known writer and teacher created her own alternative education for the children of the tundra as she believes that a good education should be based on the essential skills needed to survive in the artic far north. She explains that our constitution clearly says our indigenous children must have free education but it doesn’t say free life care. In schools everything is done for the children and later on they face life without to know how to do ordinary things, as they don’t have that knowledge when they leave schools. Children become gradually separated from their roots, loose ties with other generations and when graduated from school they have to decide between going to higher education or back to the tundra. What to choose when they already separated from home and are not able to establish roots at home?
Find out more about life and education in the tundra.
To understand the importance of temperature for the sustainability of life on earth we have to examine how our environment looks like in different climate zones, i.e. at different average temperatures around the year, with different ranges and extremes of temperature. These are central in climate issues and the ongoing debate on the impacts of global warming.
How cold is cold and how hot is hot is, for several reasons, important for us to know. This is not only vital for our lives and living environments but also how the technology we are dependent on in our houses, cities and villages operates. Temperature has several impacts on biological, chemical and physical reactions/behavior of everything around us. Human bodies, for example, have an optimum universal temperature of 37 degrees Celsius for healthy functioning and few degrees change in this temperature may indicate threats and even endanger lives. For other species temperature is also important, elephants wouldn’t survive in Siberia as much as beers wouldn’t exist in “Death Depression”. However, reindeers are perfectly suited for Siberia and camels can survive the harsh conditions of Sahara, deserts and even the heat of “Death Depression”. Temperature has several impacts on water, in hot arid zones you would never find fresh surface-water as is the case of “Death Depression”, and at the very low temperatures of Siberia you wouldn’t find water running on the surface either, i.e. only snow or ice. In both cases, you would have either desert or “permafrost”, i.e. permanently frozen soils, with little on no possibility for agriculture, food, controlled animal husbandry and production.
What concerns technology, there are no need for refrigerators in Siberia and no need for warming houses by fire/electricity in Kenya or Tanzania. Construction of ventilation, water piping and sanitation facilities as well as transport, communication and health-care infrastructures can be much different in very hot and very cold areas. Costs and operation of public and private services and infrastructures would be much different at extreme temperature and weather conditions. We have to take in consideration that different extreme temperatures mean different extreme weather conditions as well. In some cases, functioning and maintenance would be costly, technically complex or even unrealistic. Also, for the agriculture, i.e. food, feed, fuel and fiber production, consumption and conservation of natural resources.
We can feel heat/cold through the “sense” of our skin that has “sensors” to tell about the how hot/cold objectives around us are. But, this is in narrow limits of temperature range “hot/cold” and with cost of damaging the skin and/or the body. Thermometers or heat/cold “sensors” are much better instruments to measure the temperature, i.e. the property that describes how hot or cold things are and in terms of absolute units. Among international units to measure the temperature is degrees Celsius, however other systems of units exist, e.g. degrees Fahrenheit in the US. Anders Celsius, Swedish scientist, came with the elegant “Celsius” scale for measuring the temperature by relating it to the properties of water at sea level, i.e. where the atmospheric pressure is defined to be normal. The zero degrees Celsius is where water gets frozen and 100 degrees Celsius is when water boils.
Additional examples of life conditions at extreme temperatures and weather conditions will be given and described on other occasions.
Global warming is something happening in the atmosphere but the earth itself is still cooling and the journey of evolution is slowly developing with new lands and oceans to be created. A paradox forcing the earth system to move in different directions, i.e. towards warmer atmosphere as forced by man and cooler earth’s interior due to natural processes. It is the very reality of our planet “Earth” where humans are struggling to survive in the middle of a paradox that they are part of it, but how long would life on earth continue to exist?
The Danakil Depression and the Rift Valley in general have secrets to tell. This so-called “Death” Depression is the hottest place on earth with an average annual temperature of 34.4 degrees centigrade “Celsius” day and night! There is already evidence of increasing volcanic activity that is happening even at a faster rate than ever known. The Danakil Depression is a junc-on of three tectonic plates with an earth crust thin enough for many processes to take place, e.g. tectonic and volcanic activities, development of new deposits, bubbling of gases, colorful acids and crystals as well as creation of salts. These are no ordinary volcano but they rather indicate active hydrothermal system near the earth’s surface with coupled interactions with the sea.
In the Death Depression where machines failed, humans succeeded and Afar camels are the perfect desert machines, as they don’t waste anything. Goats are, also, fit for these areas by being mountains and desert animals that can provide humans by milk and meat. However, the depression is unsafe and has harsh environment with fire wind, chemical minefields and no water. The unique Afar people work under such extreme desert-heat with salt mining and they are situated far away with no access to any modern services. The depression has world’s largest salt deposits by being lower than sea level, 120-170 meters below sea level,
The Hottest Place on Earth Episode 1 Part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebM7G4hyFFw
The Hottest Place on Earth Episode 1Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA5ml9aTbos
The Hottest Place on Earth Episode 1 Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-59M2uFMA80
The Hottest Place on Earth Episode 1 Part 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlaZtoOXKhM
The Hottest Place on Earth Episode 1 Part 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlYVS4hscCY
The economic benefits of phosphorus fertilization on crop production are well documented, also its importance for food security but is phosphorus fertilization free from risks and threats? or is too much of a good thing can be detrimental? If so, what are the threats and risks that are associated with the excesstive use of phosphorus.
Soil degradation is a worldwide problem especially with the inceasing damming of rivers around the world due to the need for hydro-electric power. Natural erosion that brings fertile soil to the low land and deltas are being halted as eroded materials are forced to accumulate behind artifically engineered barriers, i.e. the dams. As a consequence of damming of rivers huge land-areas loose their natural fartility and artificial fertilization is required for mitigation. This is, indeed, on short-term perspective both economically and environmentally expensive, and out-come are disastrous what regards the long-term and large-scale consequences.
Excessive use of phosphorus in agriculture for food production has negative impacts on water quality of aquatic systems (rivers, lakes and marine coasts) and groundwater due to increasing levels of P in aquatic systems that cause “eutrophication”, decreasing levels of oxygen and gradual decrease in fish productivity. Degradation of water quality of groundwater is associated with increasing agricultural waste/run-off. In all cases, there are associated costs for mitigation, rehabilitation and purification of water. http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/424/424-029/424-029_pdf.pdf
Another critical issue in securing our future food is indeed missing from the global policy agenda: we are running out of cheap and readily available phosphate fertilizer on which world agriculture is totally dependent. Supply of phosphorus from mined phosphate rock could ‘peak’ as soon as 2033, as phosphate rock is a non-renewable resource becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. http://www.soilassociation.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=eeGPQJORrkw%3D
“Sustain-earth.com” will represent an alternative and sustainable approaches for fertilization with several benefits over artificial phosphorus fertilization that can very well replace it. This alternative is WE-saving, i.e. can save both energy and water, it is environment friendly.
http://sustain-earth.com is a platform and a BLOG for integrating and marketing sustainability in education and research, and popularization of sustainability in science and technology. It supports “Open Access”. It has built-in functions and instruments for coupling education, research and technology with society, market and population needs on national and international levels. It, also, acts for promoting “Business-to-Business” and creating “Career-Development-Plans” for professionals and graduates in the emerging applications of sustainability and socio-economic developments. http://sustain-earth.com is an instruments and vehicle for developing and implementing applied sustainability in all sectors and on all levels.
LOGO of “sustain-earth.com” has three colors. Main color of “earth” is a dynamic green-product of “blue” for clean water and “yellow” for clean energy. A green main arrow representing the functioning and metabolism of “sustain-earth” through fueling life by constant clean water “blue” supported by clean energy “yellow”.
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