A peer-reviewed article tallied, in financial terms, all the problems and all the benefits from El Niño in the US. Yes, the weather pattern caused storm damage, but it raised winter temperatures, which lowered heating bills and cut the number of people who died from the cold. It also reduced flood damage in the spring, created fewer transportation delays, and diminished the number of hurricanes in the Atlantic. While the total damage in the US … [Read more...]
How Good Are Your Survival Skills?
If you knew you were going to be stranded in the wilds of Alaska, what 5 items would you want with you to ensure your survival? … [Read more...]
Eco-Home Made From Straw and Wood Should Please the Three Little Pigs
Designed by a group of young French architects from Studio 1984, the “Nest” is a compact home concept that is reminiscent of a traditional barn. The eco-home, which was conceived as part of the Archi<20 competition for low-cost, environmentally-friendly architecture in France, incorporates a simple quadratic structure that has been built using pastoral materials such as straw and wood. Could you live in something such as this? … [Read more...]
Do You Know Your Greens?
Do Your Kids Get Enough Outdoor Time?
PhotoFlow – Solar and Rainwater Collection System By NOS
In many countries around the world the supply of electricity and clean water is often sporadic and of poor quality. Consulting and design company NOS is looking to address this problem with PhotoFlow, a two-in-one concept design that combines solar power generation with water collection and storage. The PhotoFlow design is composed of eight identical triangular photovoltaic panels that are mounted on a 400 liter recycled polyethylene water tank. … [Read more...]
Do You Know Your Oils?
Might black wind turbines prevent bird collisions?
Four turbines at the Smøla wind farm in Norway are to have one rotor blade painted black to see whether increasing the visual contrast of the turbine against its background might help to reduce bird strikes. Energy company Statkraft, which operates the farm, says that several white-tailed eagles (also called sea eagles) are found dead on the ground having flown into turbines at the inland wind farm. As well as testing black rotor blades, the … [Read more...]
Is solar getting dirtier?
In 2009, Mat McDermott wrote about the need for greater oversight in the manufacturing of solar panels, which pose many of the same problems as other types of electronics. A report from Silicon Valley Toxics called for manufactures to take more responsibility for their entire production chain and end-of-life recycling. The 2013 report from Silicon Valley Toxics found that the industry has yet to turn around its manufacturing practices. The … [Read more...]
Carbon Neutral Hi’ilani Ecohouse gives something back to nature
US architectural firm Studio RMA recently completed the Hi’ilani EcoHouse: a two-family, low-energy property located on an attractive plot on Hawaii's Big Island. The building draws much of its required energy from renewable sources, and Studio RMA strove to offset the CO2 produced during construction by planting extensive forestry. Hi’ilani EcoHouse was constructed using non-toxic termite-proof Structural Concrete Insulated Panels (SCIPs), … [Read more...]
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