Week 9: CO2

This blog will likely be a little shorter and with less humor than some of the regular blogs that I have posted.

Week 9

1/3) List some of the indirect ways in which you contribute to global warming? What are some of the ways you contribute to air pollution?

I impact global warming through chemical impacts, such as I learned today (4 december) in class that water pollution is related to air pollution in some ways. Anyway,

• I use plastics, the production of which goes into the atmosphere
• Use paper, let me explain-I believe that some trees are harvested for paper, thenthat releases CO2; and also the machines that cuts them also puts CO2 into the atmosphere
• I use energy and fuel for driving, heat...etc. Some of this energy comes from coal, which can also contribute to global warming.
• Obviously, I drive a car which contributes to Global warming
• Chemicals can also contribute to CO2, such as sulphourous acid which creates acid rain
• Burning wood/or biomass products

2/3) How could you realistically reduce your contributions of greenhouse gases? How could you reduce your impact?

This is a seemingly hard question (at least for me). Anyway...the most obvious, and I may have written a dozen times about driving a car which puts CO2 emissions into the air...

• is to reduce driving, and either walk or take a bus and save fuel. Walking to a grocery store is hard here because they can be at least 20 minutes away up hill. Whereas in Thame, England where couple of my relatives live, you can easily walk into stores in the town. Most everything (except the mall) is there, this is what I like about some cities in Europe, where transportation by train and buses are sometimes more reliable than cars and where you can walk.
• Reduce chemical use. Hence if I wanted to use pesticides (which I never use), I would have to think twice. Could these toxic chemicals be released into the atmosphere even if you sprayed plants with them? Maybe most likely.
• Use less fuel/energy. Burning biomass can release carbon emissions as well
• Use less paper-which would actually be hard, but I could use more e-mail, since trees are harvested, and they release CO2.

3) What could Seattle/Bellevue do to reduce air pollution?

They could do a number of things. I think this is one of Mayor Nickel's goal, which is to reduce Global warming. These things could be:

• Improve transportation, such as providing a better train system or bus system (keep in mind, I don't take the trains or busses)
• Develop better and safer bicycle route

These two are to lessen cars, and encourage more people to walk, cycle or take a transportation

• Reduce pesticide/chemical use. Lawns don't always need to have heavy doses of chemicals to be kept green, although I guess cities want to make their cities welcoming
• Maybe reduce industries, since they also emit dangerous toxins into the atmosphere
• Planting more trees
• Careful planning with developments

These are some of the suggestions.

I wasn't sure whether question number 3 was related to questions number 1 and 2, since I thought they were similar to one another. Anyway, if I think of anymore answers I may write more.

Week 7/8: Fueled up and water wise (part I /IIcontinued)

I have found where the energy I use come from. This is the second question:

Week 7:

2) Where does the energy you use come from? What impact does your energy use have on the environment?

I called they Puget Sound Energy company line, and understandingly they were busy because there were power outages, with the wind and what not. Anyway they directed me to their website, which had quite a lot of information about where their energy came from. I also got the percentages of the power supply which PSE uses. Source http://www.pse.com/
Coal 34%
Hydro 45%
Natural gas 17%
Nuclear 1%
Other 1%
Wind 2%
Total 100%
I was surprised to find that some of the energy that I use also came from hydroelectricity, wind power and nuclear. Also on their website they listed the sources of their power source.

Hydro electricity:
They seem to have a couple more hydroelectricity projects coming along, one of them included Snoqualmie Falls. Anyway, their hydro power comes from Baker River Hydroelectricity Project, which has two dams and both are located on the Skagit River

Thermal:
According to PSE's website, they said their largest share of total power supply is electricity, natural and coal-fired plants comes from East Montana's Colstrip Power Plant, which provides 700 megawatts. I was surprised to hear that PSE's thermal energy came from as far away as Montana...

Wind
PSE's first wind farm was Hopkins Ridge Wind Facility in Columbia County
Their second (one having a nice name) Wild Horse Wind Facility in Kittitas County

Natural Gas
Surprisingly, the gas comes from both Western U.S. and Canada.
PSE buys most of their gas during the summer monthes when the prices are lower, and store it in an underground reservoir. However, during the winter when most of their customers use it (not surprising due to the freezing weather) PSE taps it from the reservoir.
The underground facility is in Jackson Prairie Southwestern Washington state, which is a natural gas storage facility.

There are many environmental impacts. Most of the problems are related to CO2 emissions being put into the atmosphere. Espcially when 34% of the power supply is coal, this is especially related to Global warming and the limited resources due to demands. The other is the number of resources being used, since gas is a natural resource-and hence I could be impacting the environment by using too much of it. Also, the impacts of hydroelectricity is uncertain (at least for me) because dams are an either 'take it or leave it' power supply. They can either have an impact on the environment, due to water shortages and ipacts on species, or drive communities out due to building the dams or they can be just as helpful, providing communities with energy supply. Fortunately, PSE uses a combination of power sources instead of focusing on just one power source.

Week 8

Before I go start answering the questions, I have to rant about the rain in Pacific Northwest. There are quite a lot of flooding-maybe due to the surface material and the angle (steep) of the roads and hills-thus rain and snow runsoff. Could this be an impact of Global Warming/Climate Change? Is it the Pineapple Express? Who knows.
Anyway,number 1 question is on another blog posting.

Week 8:

2) What are realistic activities you could do to cut back on your water use?

There are many ways I could cut back and I should cut back. These activities include:
-showering for shorter periods of time, instead of 15 minutes maybe 5 minutes
-Using less or no water for cleaning. Instead of cleaning a countertop with water I could alternatively use a dry cloth (like micro-fiber) to wipe. Or I could run water into a bucket, then use that water to wash/clean. However, this could pollute water (more about that later)
-Using less water for washing fruits and vegetables. I don't know how this could apply with using less water, but washing fruits and vegetables is important to get rid of dust...the same goes for rice and legumes, which sometimes need a thorough was until the water runs clear. Sometimes I have used some of the water from this to was pans, then afterwards I would rinse the pans
-Cutting back on wheat grown in the Midwest-and use local wheat grown in Washington or Oregon State. Since the Midwest doesn't have as much water (it's not surrounded by any oceans), then one of the alternatives is to use flour or produces grown in states that have more water resource
-Cut back by washing clothes at least once a week, or when you don't have any clean clothes
To save energy, you can hang them out in the sun to dry (not a job I like doing particularly).
- I have heard that if you want to wash your car, it's ideal to wash it at a car washing facility (ei: Brown Bear) since they use less water
- Buy less bottled water. Use tap water resource instead.

3) What are some of the ways you directly/indirectly contribute to water pollution?

Again, there are many ways I indirectly impact water. These can include:

• I contaminate water by using it for cleaning, dirty water goes into the sink
• Using too much of it, even when I use it for washing produces
• I use lots of shampoos and soaps, which probably drains into bodies of water
• Using energy, some of which comes from coal (34%) which is mined from the ground, not only is it hazardous to water, but humans and the environment; and using Hydroelectricity-dams are built on bodies of water, and could impact species
• Using oil/gas/petroleum for transportation, as a result these resources are transported on cargo ships and can have devastating results if spilled into bodies of water; such is the most recent examples in San Francisco (California) and in Russia. Not only does it impact species of birds, fish...but also water
• Using plastic-again, the result is the same as the examples above. Plastic degrade slowly, if not ever.

Question 4 is not really a question, but a worksheet which will be included along with week 7.

Week 7: Energy (Blog part I)

December started with two days of snow, which created a beautiful winter wonderland. Although I wondered after reading a newspaper heading which said that the snow could create potential runoffs...something along this line. It's not very romantic-but could it be the effect of climate change? Certainly it would create runoffs...Anyway I have questions to answer.
The handout will be turned in. The second question might come later. So it is question number 3 I will start with.

Week 7: Questions

3) In what ways do you indirectly use energy? How could you reduce your indirect use of energy?

I use energy indirectly in several ways. Although in the beginning I was not aware that what I did do use energy, until I learned more about energy use in class. Some of how I use energy indirectly is more for communication, others are imports from other countries and traveling.

A) I send letters, "snail mail" to my family and friends. I like sending letters the slow way since a hand written letter can be personal and heartfelt. I will say that some family friends and relatives don't have computers, hence I have to resort to sending letters 'snail mail.' I could also send e-mails for those who do have e-mail addresses and computers, and it would not only save fuel (from airplanes carrying the mail) but also paper. Like 'killing two birds with one stone," which is a very cruel saying.

B) Go Local. I could buy produces and products specifically from Washington or the Pacific Northwest. There seems to have been a small movement for shoppers to 'go local' and buy products, which come from a certain number of distances. This not only saves energy from importing products from other countries like New Zealand, but supports local companies. I will have to make an exception to certain luxury products, such as chocolates or imported Olive oil, or products which one doesn't find in the Northwest, but only from a specialty store.

C) Traveling, while we all love traveling-we could cut back once in a while. Whether it's by car or air, they use energy and fuel and also puts CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Traveling in the 'friendly skies" once in a while is alright, but not everyday.
As for car transportation, most or some people see cars as a necessity (I'm one of them), but if there is a nearby grocery store, then it could be ideal to walk or bike there. I suppose I could take the bus, but since I don't know the bus route and I'm too lazy to find where the nearest bus stops are, I like to drive the car to BCC.

D) Manufactured goods made in other countries. Manufactured goods take energy and fuel to make, hence we could either stop buying goods made in China and buy goods made in the USA, or cut back on the number of goods we buy. Although I'm not sure the latter is the most reasonable solution. Most of the goods we buy are produced in China, not only that, but they are probably flown into the US afterwards, which uses more fuel from importing goods

E) This is linked to D, but the energy to produce products takes energy. For example the energy in the factory to manufacture bottled water, or running a farm in order to produce goods takes energy from animals, humans and even technology.

F) Energy from food. When we eat the food we have eaten will be fuel. We use this energy to do quite a number of things, such as walking or studying. Enough said.

A lot of what we take for granted takes energy-it seems. I never even thought of all this even when I had last opened bottled water-or eaten an apple grown in New Zealand. This means this computer is using energy, and I'm using the energy to write this blog. I could either cut back the number of time I write blogs, or turn the computer off after I'm done (this is more logical).

Part II will follow up shortly afterwards.

Week 6: Continued and moving on

I have decided to do number 4 seperately since I haven't reserched much about the certain inorganic products.

4) Where do some of the inorganic products you are using come from?
We consume a lot of inorganic products. Most of the products we consume are plastics, however much recently there have been relative concerns over plastics containing toxins. It's strange how products have been discovered but the more one research on them, then everybody uses them, then the next minute there are concerns over these products. This could be true for GMO and it was the same for trans-fat. Anyway...moving on. Here are several products: I'm referring to my old chemistry textbook:
Conceptual Chemistry. Suchocki, John. Perason Benjamin Cummings, 2007.

a) paper-paper is made from wood pulp, which is cellulose fibers but the whiteness from the paper comes from chloride.

b) A sterling silver ring-in high school, I was in a Material science class where one of the projects we did was make a sterling silver ring. Sterling silver is an alloy, which is a mixture of two metals:
silver and copper. Both metals are natural, and yes, they can be found on the periodic table.

c) Gold coins....etc-Strike it rich! its' pure gold, unfortunately I don't have any-so I either have to be a gold miner or a pirate. Gold can be found in oceans (according to the textbook), but there is no way to get gold out.

d) Plastics: Most plastics have been discovered through experimental accidents. Let's take plastic bottles. Plastic bottles are increasingly a big controversy these days. According to Energy Story: Chapter 8: Fossil Fuels-Coal, Oil and Natural Gas. http://www.energyquest.ca.gov/story/chapter08.html. Plastic bottles come from oil! The same oil, which can be used to fuel car tanks for gas. In another website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic, plastics were based from original plastics, such as plastics from the rubber tree. The plastics we know now are a major concern because they do not degrade as well, and there are increasing concerns of level of toxins in plastic bottles.
On NPR (national public radio) today (13, november) someone was talking about the level of lead and toxins in materials such as make-up, and plastic bottles. One caller called and said that she was concerned about the company switching to plastic bottles from glass bottles. The expertise said that switching to tap water would be the best alternative. It could be said that plastics have been used because they are lighter and less likely to break than glass bottles.

I hope this covers all most of the questions for week 6.

Week 6: GMO and Soil

When it comes to the sciences there are no right answers-so it appears in discussing genetically Modified crops (GM). Even though people had opposing view points, there were no right answers to the question of GM. The topics of food, economy and world concerns all seem to be a topics of passion, of course most people do like food, I noticed this when we were discussing seafood in discussion #2, and when we talked about Genetically modified crops; and most of us probably want to understand what is happening to the economy and world situations.
During the discussion, I was expecting more debate about environmental and more on human health issues due to risks of allergens in GM, however societal concerns was a major topic throughout. Although I like the idea of GM crops helping developing nations, I am still skeptical about using GM since there is a potential that it can impact human health. I read in one of the resources I found by a biotech industry analyst Sergey Vasnetsov, "Let's stop pretending we face food shortages. There is hunger, but not food shortages." I agree. There's hunger in developing countries due proably to the political and economic issues. However, there's proably no shortage of food-yet. Hence, being the type of person who likes supporting organics, I would proably go against GM crops.

Week 6 Questions:

1) Are any of the foods that you eat GM? Are you o.k. with this? Would like to see these foods labled so that you know what you are buying?
My guess would be that there are and will be foods that are GM that I eat without knowing. Certain processed and pre-packaged foods will probably be GM without the consumer knowing. I called the company General Mills, even though I don't eat their product anymore. A pleasant sounding person answered and when I said I was during research to find out whether any of their foods contained GM, they said there was a possiblilty that products with corn and canola are GM. Hmmm...how could I convince my mother not to buy any of their products? Well, I couldn't. My parents didn't care, they were rather amused and made a joke about turning into werewolves (very funny), and then they proceeded to eat one of General Mills product.
I found a list of foods on a website that was suggested on the readings. The list contained some of the foods which were GM and some which weren't. The list is at this address:
http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/true-food-shopping-list. Maybe not surprisingly, most of the organic foods weren't GM, while most of the major brands were. I believe a student mentioned that most of the organic foods weren't GM, while others were. I was quite surprised some of the the major brand of chocolate bars, such as Snickers were GM.
Who knows what ingredients the food will have-however, there is increasing awareness about foods-whether they are organic, and even what ingredients are in them. Not many people will want unidentifiable names of ingredients-same could be said for GM, although not many people are aware of this-there will proably be a growing awareness of GM. There should proably be a label on pre-packaged foods and crops saying whether or not it's GM-I would want one any way so I knew which foods were GM. Hence, I'll go down the list of foods and say, "I'll buy this, this and this, but not that because it's GM." Don't expect me to stand outside Safeway handing out fliers about how GM impacts the environment and human health (if I was working there, I probably wouldn't get a good reputation as a good Safeway employer).

2) What are some of the ways that you personally (indirectly and directly) impact soils? What could you do differently to reduce these impacts?
The soil and I are on cordial terms. I have always regarded the soil as lowly, bottom of the list of ecoystems, I'm sorry to say. But I was wrong. Soil is teeming with living things-unseen to the naked eyes. It plays a major role in providing nutrients and root growth, and controls water drainage. Soil, I never knew, is made up of weathered rock, organic matter, water and air. There were many new knowledge that I have never known, which is what a student gets when they go to school/college-more knowledge (being a student can be fun, sometimes!). Anyway...
I have impacted soil in certain ways; mostly through gardening. When I garden, which isn't very often,

• I probably destroy the topsoil from digging a hole, sometimes cutting through the root growth, then after placing seeds or transplanting plants, filling the soil unceremoniously back into the hole.
• When I plant on a small mound, and water, the water would run down the slope-carrying some soil (which is one ofthe way soil erosion can happens, I learned)
• I proably trample the soil underneath my feet without directly knowing that the soil will be compacted
• When I weed dandelions or other plants, sometimes the soil would cling to the roots, and I don't always brush it off the roots.

These are some ways I impact soil. To reduce these impacts, I probably wouldn't garden at all (I hardly do anyway) for fear that I would be causing soil degradation. There are several ways, one of them is to do sustainable gardening, which means I should or like to do:

• Using less or no pesticides
• Planting natives, which I vouch for
• using less fertilisers and organic ones
• less water on lawns during summers and winters
• Compost and mulch
• Some gardeners have suggested reducing lawns to plant more plants

More importantly, I believe is learning about the role soil plays in the ecosystem and how we impact soil health. Since I am learning about soils, I have a little more respect for the role soil plays; the more I learn about soil, the more I think about how I impact the soil. I never knew, before I learned about soil, that soils could degrade and erode-and that there were many different types of soils, and also there were different textures depending on the size of the rocks.

Question #4 is in another blog following shortly.

Journal activity: The Giant Squid and the Y2Y

"Species are not specimens but dynamic works in progress. Communities are not colections of species so much as mixtures of organic chemicals, genes, instincts, acquired immunities, memories, social behaviors, communication techniques, and niches that are constantly evolving relative to one another." Douglas H. Chadwick (51, Yellowstone to Yukon: Freedom to Roam)

I couldn't decide what to do for a journal activity, though I had thought of doing a volunteer project, I found the activity was due earlier than I expected. Anyway for my journal project, I went to two small exhibitions, one was about the the mysterious Giant Squid, the other was called the Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) exhibitionl. I'll start with going to the Yellowstone to Yukon.
The Y2Y was a photographic exhibtion by a German-born photographer, Florian Schulz. He wanted to capture the wilderness through photography, after studying biology. His photographs were reminiscent of another favorite photographer of mine: Thomas Mangelsen, who also photographs incredible landscapes and animals. Anyway Schulz has devoted much of his time with the Y2Y photography, which seemed to be part of the project to conserve Yellowstone to Yukon.
What is the Y2Y? It is a conservation effort by a group of dedicated scientists and environmentalists, who want to make a large "bridge" between the Yukon to Yellowstone; hence it would be a large corridor for species of animals to roam. This also means there wouldn't be any large fragmented 'islands' of land where species, such as grizzly bears can not have space to roam freely, since tertiary carnivores need large amount of space to roam.
My parents also came, which they thoroughly enjoyed. And they bought a book, with Florian Schulz's photographs. The book also contains articles by scientists who talk about the ecosystem and the beauty of the lands. Hence one scientist wrote:
" Isolated populations go extinct under circumstances in which mainland populations refill the gaphs. Net result: Fragmentation of habitat into ecological islands leads to loss of diversity in each fragment." David Quammen (36, Yellowstone to Yukon: Freedom to Roam). This is crucial, since if there was a bridge between the Yukon and Yellowstone, species of animals will be able to adapt better, without disturbance and losses of diversity. One of the most positive sides was when I read that some ranchers, living close to Yellowstone are working with scientists and conservationists to 'fit in' with the biodiversity. Ted Kerasote, who wrote an article for book wrote that one rancher "avoids conflicts with grizzlies by breeding his herd earlier in the year than is traditional. He's also worked with local fish adn game department to distribute cattle carcasses....hungry grizzlies count out their dens, they can fill up on the meat of dead cattle...." (66, Yellowstone to Yukon: Freedom to Roam). I found several of what scientists wrote crucial and tied in with environmental science. I could write a lot more about what the other scientists wrote and what the project entails, but since it is a journal project, I won't pontificate and bore readers.
Florian Schulz's photos of animlas were my favorite (I prefer photos of animals to landscapes). However, I found some of his photos of landscape were amazing: my favorite being one of the "spine of the continent, southewestern of B.C." the mountains were a dark blue, but there was an icy frostiness to them-it's hard to describe without seeing a photo of it. Another photo was one of Kokanee Salmon in British Columbia. This was surprising to me, since Kokanee salmon population decreased due to the Opossum shrimp in Montana. Then I wondered could Kokanee salmon from B.C. be reintroduced into the Flathead lake?
The exhibition was one, which was insightful and though I don't like art exibitions, I think I may have gained some insightul examples of ecoystem and conservation in a real life scale.

Another exhibition is about the mysterious Giant Squid. I'll just write a small piece. The exhibition, being small had a short documentary film about the Giant Squid. I didn't see thw whole film, though I heard that scientist were trying to raise baby squids to learn more about the Giant squids.
There are few interesting facts about Giant Squids that I never knew, some of these facts I wrote down from the display board:

• The Giant Squid captures its' food using a feeding tentacle, tentacle club and suckers
• It has beak, which is made from the same material similar to the finger-nail. The beak is used to tear food into small pieces
• It uses its' arms and suckers to hang onto its' food
• Their eyes are the size of our heads...Scary!
• They are the largest invetbrates
• One of the funniest facts that I read was: a scientist was curious to know what the Giant Squid tasted like, so he tasted one which had been frozen. It didn't taste good, at all! Cross that off the seafood list!
• Scientists who study the Giant Squids are called teuthologist

I don't think the Burke Museum is hosting the Giant Squid exhibition, though they are still hosting the Y2Y photo exhibition. The opportunity to see both these exhibitions has been interesting-though fact based...I see them as a supplement to what I am learning.

Week 4/5: Teff Conservation of Ecologial communities continued

Here is another blog post for the remaining questions; 3 and 4. I will continue to write about the journal project soon.

Week 4/5 questions continued:

3) Try a new type of food-maybe a grain other than wheat, rice or corn. Did you like it? How does eating different grains maintain biodiversity?

I have always been curious about trying different foods, but I have been skeptical in the past, since I'm not really sure whether I will like them. Just very recently, I have been 'going against the grain,' to say- I am trying Teff, which is a grain from Etheopia. The size is miniscule, one would wonder how a minute grain could be 'food?' When you cook it, it looks almost like soil because of its' dark color and size, and it creates lumps (this is what I observed when I cooked it). After a while, the mixture can solidify (it's edible and soft) almost like polenta, which was how I ate it. The smell is almost smoky, almost like the smell of freshly cut tree or when I've been in a barn full of hay. The taste-hard to describe but I read somewhere that someone thought it tasted a little like chocolate-but when I tried it-it's taste was deeper than chocolate...like wood? Though it may not be the number one grain on my list, its' one I would refer back to. However, I may try Teff flour sometime. There are so many other grains such as:

• Kamut
• Amaranth
• Farro
• Millet

I have also tried Kiwi berries, which look like mini kiwi fruits but without the requirement of peeling the skin. Personally, I thought they were a little too sweet for my taste. They have them at PCC Natural Market.
Trying new grains, or any variety of foods is exciting-and interesting. It is crucial to maintain the biodiversity of food produces since species diversity plays a role in the biodiversity by providing a range of produces for consumers. Without diversity, there would not be an ecology, which could not function with just one species. Also, different species of foods can help maintain soils and habitats, and helps stabilize the ecological community.

4) What are the pros and cons of keepign animals in a zoo? What is your opinion of zoos?


When I was young, I went to zoos-and saw animals. Zoos provide children (and adults) with an experience of seeing an animal they might have never seen. One of my cousins didn't like going to zoos because the animals were behind bars, in cages. The more I thought about this, the more I agreed with her. However, I agree and support zoos who are very much in favor of conserving, researching and helping protect species. They would also have to have certain large area of land for animals and recreate habitats. Many are now pros, and there are few cons:
Pros:

• Zoos are helping and trying new ways to breed endangered species, research, conserve and protect species from being threatened
• Zoos try to recreate a species ecological niche
• They provide children with a learning experience to not only appreciate, but maybe move future generations to protect species
• zoos are learning more about species and their habits

Cons:

• Species could be in small cages; the area of the cage is relatively small due to lack of funds, or even lack of space for zoos to provide enough space
• Animals are fed by zoo keepers
• There may be a lot of noise by onlookers
• Animals may be suspectible to diseases, and they may also seem depressed at times
• The caged environment doesn't make up for their own habitats

If I was in a cage and I was looking at the onlookers, I would wonder why they were staring at me-but I'm not in a cage-I probably wouldn't like people looking at me...anyway, I have to say I would support zoos solely for their move to protect species, but not when I see animals in a caged environment. And I would gladly support zoos since they could provide children with an experience solely for seeing a fascinating animal and they would becomewide- eyed with fascination.

5) About the Marine Biodiversity Discussion...

I don't really mean to be accusatory when I say this, but I believe the discussion though interesting-veered from the subject couple of times to discussions. Many of what I heard was interesting-especially when I hear about other students' and their expericences and careers in restaurants. However, not everything didn't seem (to me) to correspond with the topic of Marine biodiversit. I was hoping to cover more topics such as pollution, and how climate chage effected seas. Seafood consumption is an important topic of choice, I know because it deals with population and insustainable fishing. I was also wanting to discuss more about what should be done to lessen polllution in seas, unfortunately I don't quite recall everything that was discussed.

I will write about the journal activity soon.
Ciao!

Week 4/5: Conservation of Ecological communities

This week's lesson was quite enjoyable, not to be sarcastic however, but we covered topics to do with habitat loss and degradation, endangered species, invasive or introduced species, pollution, and how humans have impacted the biodiversity. We have impacted biodiversity in a whole range of ways, some of which I was already aware of, but the extent and the cost of how the Endangered Species Act (ESA) list species was surprisingly slow. I never knew it took that long a process....however, humans are already learning and trying to understand from past mistakes-though we may still tamper with the biodiversity through technological advances. We still have numerous things to understand about the ecosystem.
Here is two of this week's questions: It will be backward, as this post is after questions 3 and 4.

Week 4/5:

1) How do you impact biodiversity? In what ways have you directly (or indirectly) led to habitat loss, overkill, or the introduction of non-native species or disease? What could you do to lessen your impact on biodiversity?

In many ways, I indirectly impact biodiversity. I drive a car, which burns fuel putting yet more carbon into the atmosphere; consume goods, morst of which are paper, which uses numerous number of trees; use electricity at home, use water-and ironically, I am one of the human populations, and I have dog and cats at home, who are introduced species. There are also gardening, whcih could also impact biodiversity-through the use of chemicals and introduction of new plant species and traveling from one country to another-which burns more fuel, placing carbon emissions into the atmosphere. I have placed these as indirectly impacting biodiversity, since I don't always think about what I do- most of these are necessities and taken for granted; not that I don't care that is to say, but yes I would still drive my car to BCC, and I still like my dog and cats-however, the amount of waste I consume could be reduced. In order for one to lessen the impact on biodiversity, it takes dedication; meaning:

• being aware of what I do and thinking about how it impacts biodiversity>
• buying more sustainable goods,
• consuming less, the only exception being food (though, I would try not to throw any away),
• learning still more about the environmenta and the human impact,
• being aware of my surrounding ecosystem and what it has to offer: through bird watching, conservation projects, hiking (or walking)
• Participate in conservation and community projects to do with the environment.

In another sense, I am a student, and a so called lazy one- I could say "I don't have the time," I'll still drive my car...Lessening impact on biodiversity takes leadership and a community. If one person said, "we need to stop using pesticides because...etc," and they take action, then others may follow them. I am sure there are many other ways I impact biodiversity that I am not aware of.

2) How do you feel about species extinction-is it a natural thing that we shouldn't worry about or should we try to reduce human impacts on biodiversity?

Species extinction is a cause for concern if it was caused by humans. In the past, species have gone extinct by natural disasters. However, much of species extinction could have been caused by human impacts through E.O. Wilson's example: habitat degradation, introuduced species, pollution, human population, and overharvesting (HIPPO)-global warming has been another factor causing species extinction. If a species goes extinct or endangered then the extinction or endangerment could impact other species and the ecosystems.

-For example, many species have certain relationships with one another-if we were to take the example of the clown fish and the sea anenome; and we were to demolish sea anenomes then the Clown fish population might be impacted becuase they would lose their protection from other predators.

-Another example that could cause species to be threatened would be the imbalance of food chain/web. The most recent example from previous in-class exercise would be the population of Kokanee salmon went down, due to the introduction of a species (Opossum shrimp), which ate the Kokanee's food resources. Hence the population of the Shrimp increased, while the number of Kokanee salmon decreased because their food resources decreased. Hence other consumers, depending on the Kokanee as food resources, slowly decreased in poplulation. Therefore, we could say- if a certain resource was depleted or decreased, then the number of consumers would decrease in poplution.

Certain species are dependent on certain ecosystems because there are food resources...and the species can keep its' biological community in check.

-An example, which was told in class, was about Sea Otters, who are keysone species because they eat the sea urchins, which can cover the ocean floor not allowing the kelp to grow. (if I'm correct). The kelp provides protection for other species. Sea otters have been hunted, hence the number of sea urchins decreased.

In all, I am trying to say, if we exterminate a species, then other species and biological community would also be impacted both directly and indirectly. If we were to lessen our impact, this would also take a community-there would have to be response such as controlling exotic species/ivory/medicines/fur trades, regulating hunting and fishing, a quicker (if possible) response from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and habitat protection. These could be ideal solutions, but we could also allow for education and empowering younger generations to be aware of what the world has to offer by way of biological community-birdwatching, nature programs (which I didn't use to like), hiking...etc. There are all sorts of possibilities. I don't like what we have done to species, and though cute and cuddly certain species are (think Snow Leopards, for example) I do worry about how what human impact might do to species, and whether in the future, they will still exist. The world is a fascinating place, which provides for humans but we must be careful with what we take from it. (Adapted from a quote)

Week 3 continued: Ecology

Just came back from taking the test...I'm certain I got quite a few wrong, which means I'll have to study a little more or ahead of time. Anyway I'm going to continue with week three's journal questions. Before I go ahead... on one of the examples I gave, I said Pileated Woodpecker, but it wasn't this species. It was more like a Northern Flicker. There is definitely a difference in coloring in both Woodpecker species. There are either Northern Flicker, or a certain species of the Northern Flicker in my neighborhood.

Week 3: Continued

2) Describe the ecosystem that exists in your backyard (or a nearby field, etc.) describe some of the relationships between these organisms. How do you impact your "backyard" ecosystem?

* I don't have any pictures to show what the pond looks like, so I'll try and describe the pond as best as I can.
There is a small pond ten minutes from my home where I occassionally walk to. This kind of ecosystem is relatively quiet and peaceful at times, and mostly there are numerous trees, most of them being evergreens and some are deciduous. When I walk towards the Evercreek's Pond (name of the pond), there is a strip of lawn planted with plum blossoms. In the background there are trees and blackberry bushed tangled in the foreground. I saw several snags; dead trees, which are often good places for eagles to land, or roosting places for other birds....one of the snag has a hole, which might be where there was a woodpecker (my guess). I heard a frog somewhere in the distant background and a dog barking way off in the distance. The pond has lily pads growing, though I've never seen flowers yet, and shrubs and bushes in the distance. There are small rocks nearby a step leading down to the water so the neighbors can come see the ducks. In the summer, or when it's sunnier there are dragonflies, but it was raining at the time I saw the pond, and there were a group of mallard ducks swimming. I have seen other species of ducks with my binoculars, so there can be a diverse range of species.
The trees provide a place for birds, as does the shrubs, which could be where there are nests. The berries (non-native and invasive) could provide foods and hiding places for smaller birds, such as songbirds. Snags, as I mentioned, can make good perches for birds and food (insects). Though I've seen any fish, there are herbacious food for ducks to forage in the pond. There are also insects in the pond, which can provide food for amphibians, such as frogs/toads. The pond is in a relatively sunny area, so there is enough sunlight for plants to grow and spread.
Unfortunately, since Evan's Creek Pond is in a neighborhood setting, the impact of humans could impact the pond. I could impact the pond if I were to use fertiliser or pesticides this could effect the pond itself and decrease the number of toads/frogs living in the area. If excess nitrogen were put into the ground, algae could grow and decimate living species in the water. Humans have even taken to feeding ducks leftover bread, which is not a good idea in itself, even though I have done this in the past-wildlife is best left alone from humans. I think the mallard ducks have become used to the neighboring area, that sometimes they venture onto people's lawns, and can be seen occassionally on side walks. What we do to our neighboring ecosystem can impact species.

Week 3: Ecosystem

This is going to be a blog in two parts. The third week, the class learned about the ecosystem. I have to admit I was rather confused by several definitions of ecosystem, ecological niche, habitat...they all seemed similar. Habitat is more of a living are, but a much broader definition is ecological niche, which describes the role species plays in that certain habitat...if I'm correct. Anyway I have week 3 questions, the second question will be in another post coming shortly after.

Week3:

1) Describe 2-3 examples of specific species interactions that you observed.

I'm not certain if this would count as species interaction, however I'll give this as an example because it's between species. This is the most obvious and easy, the interaction between a domestic dog and a squirrel or a rabbit. A domestic dog and a squirrel have a predator to prey interaction, since the dog is keen on "hunting" the squirrel; however he is sometimes restrained by his owner not to chase after the squirrel. This has happened with me several times, whenever my dog, Desiree could sense a wild rabbit, she would tug on the leash and pursue it. Even though dogs and cats have been domesticated by humans, they still have certain characteristics and instincts of their own genus. There have been many relative concerns about letting domestic cats outside because some people are concerned that cats may be hunting songbirds and decreasing the number of songbirds in communities. There is a right to be concerned, ironically my cat goes out as well, but he is still declawed. He will however still pursue a bird if he could.
Bird feeders are an excellent place to watch interactions between birds. I have seen that when there is a pileated woodpecker at the bird feeder eating suet, there are not many songbirds around. My guess would be because of his size, the woodpecker is quite dominant.
I have also heard on National Public Radio somone talking about frogs. The expertise said that frogs/toad (I forgot which) will make a sound primarily to attract a mate, however if he senses that there are other male frogs, he will make a different call mostly to warn others of his own male species to stay out of his territory (I believe this is what the person said, more or less).
Birds also make calls for different reasons, such as driving other birds away or to attract females. These calls, my guess are hard to discern unless one has expertise in ornithology or a bird enthousiast.
The last two examples are examples of interspecific competition between members of their own species, for mate or to drive out others from their own territory.
Even though I haven't 'seen' these examples, I have included them since they are examples of species interaction.

There is another blog shortly after.

Week 2: Cycles and Answers

I have delayed my blog a little too late. Last week we covered on energy, and natural cycles; this include Carbon, Nitrogen, Phosphorus and sulfur cylces. I have to admit, I didn't know there were different cycles, and how they worked. Chemistry has never been my best subject, but coming to understand matter and energy through environmental science has been more than interesting-it has shown me how and what energy does through real life examples. I was surprised that there were biochemical cycles. As they say: Knowledge is everything! here is week 2's questions and answers.
Week 2 Questions:

1) What are some things that you do that have a direct (or indirect) impact on the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorous and sulfur cycles? What could you do to lessen your impact?

Most of what I do have an indirect impact on these cycles. I For example: I used carpet cleaner, which definitely has chemicals to get rid of stains and odors; and when I empty the carpet cleaner, I am actually washing the residue and wastes into the sink, which could then go into a lake: I don't think about what that carpet cleaner will do to these cylcles. The residue that I washed down the sink could effect certain cycles, such as phosphorous cycles because the cleaner contained phospahte. This in turn could effect some bodies of waters, if there were excess phosphate; to grow algae. I drive a car, which has a direct impact on carbon cycle; I am burning fuel, which goes into the atmosphere, and builds up carbon into the atmosphere, which is probably one of the causes of global warming . These are just two examples. If I were to try to lessen my impact, I would say I would drive the car less, if I lived close to a specific area, such as Bellevue Community College; and I would use less phosphate soaps and bleaches, which gets gets distributed into oceans from the sinks.
Most of the things I do, and maybe for some people, it is out of necessity because we have depended on certain household cleaners to do the work for us, and we depend on our cars for transportation. It could be said, as more people are coming to udnerstand the environmental impact we have, we are trying to find more environmentally friendly alternatives, such as using alternative fuel.

2) At what trophic level do you primarily eat at? What impact does this have on the global environment?
I consider myself a vegetarian, with the exception to dairy products and an occassional fish. Thus I consider myself to be at a tertiary level because, though I try to eat primarily produce, I can still be able to eat meat, if I wanted to. As a vegetarian, what I eat could impact production and agriculture, since I eat primarily produce, which takes feeds itself from photosynthesis. Food production can have an impact on

• Land degradation: how agriculture can impact the cycles as a whole, the number of trees cleared primarily for agriculture
• Water: how much water is used for food production
• Genetic engineered produces: Farmers could have grown such products because they seem more stable...
• Amount of crops prduced to feed a population: at what levels are crops produced and the amount to feed a population depends on pollination, weather...and luck.

I like to think that humans are tertiary consumers because we have technology to produce a wide range of foods, and we can also do great harm to other consumers by way of pesticides...

3) Where does the food you eat come from (before it gets to the supermarket)? With this new information, how does the food you eat imparct our environment?

Let's take a simple example, such as Rainbow Chard. This chard was grown organically, and locally on a farm in Stanwood, Washington State in Rent's Due Ranch. This farm is grown locally, and within standards of PCC Natural Markets. Another example I can take is unsweetened cocoa powder, which I use for drinks...etc. The Equal Exchange cocoa powder was grown in the Dominican Republic, which according to the packet says it was grown in the "second most economically depressed country in the Caribbean." The company: Equal Exchange encourages farmers to grow sustaninably, "under the canopy of the tropical forest preserving the habitat of millions of migrating songbirds." With these two 'raw' produces in mind, we should also take in account a manufactured product: bread. Bread was made from wheat obviously grown on a farm. I called the Wild Wheat Company about where their wheat was grown, but I could not hear, though they did say something similarly to "Ferrato (?)" in Oregon, I've tried looking the word on the internet, but nothing came up with anything to do with bread. Maybe I will try another bakery....I have noticed that what I choose to eat are foods basically and primarily grown organically, though I have eaten foods which have not been under the organic standards. What does eating organic mean? For some, it means eating foods locally grown and without the use of pesticdes, chemicals or genetically modifed products. And mostly, from what I can determing it means eating produces which haven't been grown with the use of chemicals, fertilisers, or been genetically engineered; it also means sustainable practices; such as cage-free chickens for their eggs for example. While eating organic food is good because the use of less chemicals could mean that the environmental cycles aren't likely to be as disturbed. While organically food production is one of the best ideas, technology could play a factor at times in these practices.

4) In what ways do you use products that directly or indirectly come from living things? List a few specific items you used this week.

The majority of the products that I use are paper, which comes indirectly from trees and plants. I 'consume' paper with a diligence-for writing mostly, and paper towels for cleaning up any spills, and wiping my hands dry. I also use a lot of water for the purpose of washing and cleaning. I'm not so sure if water comes 'directly from the source,' or whether it is placed elsewhere to be cleaned (something to look up on the internet...)Anyway, I also use plastics, which comes indirectly from sources-but then it's proably man-made product. I use a lot of plastic for storing and freezing food products, and I'm also using plastics now while I'm using this computer, which is mostly made up of plastics. I also fill my car up with gas, which come directly from the ground and burns off into the atmosphere. Another product, I haven't mentioned is cotton, which is the material for t-shirts, and clothing: the material comes indirectly from the source since there is a long process to turn the produce into a material. I also use wool; actually wear them, whcih comes directly from woolen (domestic) animals. However, the wool was probably washed, dyed and then turned into yarn for knitting. Here are the lists of products I have used:

• paper: paper towels, recycled papers, notebook paper
• water
• plastics
• gas/oil
• Cotton
• wool

5) Consider how much food you waste. How can you reduce this waste?

While I try to use up most of the food products, sometimes I can't help but throw away certain food products for certain reasons, which include: the product is past its' expiration date, the food is moldy, or its' old, past its' expiration date and unopened. There are quite a few at my house, and I have wasted quite a few, until I decided to try and use up most of the food products. mostly I try to use up most of the food products that I have before, or a little after its' expiration date. The produces (broccoli stems, egg shells...) are sometimes thrown in the compost bin. Another way to reduce the piling food products is to buy less, and use up dry goods and what you have in the cupboard/pantry, with the exception to fresh produces. As one of my grandmother would have said alosng this line: when she bought or used foods past their expiration date; "I haven't killed you yet!"

While reducing products for some, including me, can be challenging, we have to keep in mind the consequences. What we choose to consume could indirectly or directly impact the environmental cycles; thus we have many options in life. Yes, we can drive a car-and no, we shouldn't use chemicals on our lawns...and the number of products we consume can also be challenging because we have chosen to be dependent on them: they are essential. However, we can try and reduce the number of paper products by using recycled papers, using computers, walking to a nearby shop (which I have done in England) instead of driving...there are many options. Also, we also have the option of eating locally grown foods by going to farmer' s market (though I've rarely gone).

Week 1: Population

3 Octobre 2007

This is the start of the many thoughts and possibly interesting news on the blog. This week, the Environmental Science discussed about population and how China's "One child policy" effected China's population, and whether more developed countries should help less developed countries amongst the few of the several topics discussed.
I will be answering questions each week based on Environmental Science.
Week 1 Questions:

1) What do you think are the five most important issues facing the environment today? Why?
There are many issues facing the environment, that we hear a lot about in the news. There are more than five I can list, but some of the major ones could be:

• Global Warming: There are many concerns involving climate change. Some people are worried about the effects of climate change; even politics have become involved in trying to reduce Global Warming. The ice is melting, more hurricanes...etc.
• Alternative energy: We, as a society, are looking for alternative ways to use energy. Whether it's from nuclear power, corn, or more recently, algae-people are looking into ways of reducing energy without polluting the environment. Some agriculture are primarily being used to grow crops for alternative fuel. Interesting....
• Organic and Local Farming=Healthy environment and health: Organic and local farming seems very popular amongst societies in more developed nations. This kind of farming is not only seemingly sustainble, but organic farming is "healthy" for the environment without the use of pesticides.
• Melting Ice: I don't know any other ways to describe this topic, however there have been news that ice bergs are melting at a certain rate, where in the future there will be no ice. This leads to extinction of certain species, one well known example being: Polarbears, who depend on icebergs.
• Health Issues: I am not sure whether this topic has anything to do with environmental science, however certain outbreaks of diseases such as bird flu could effect birds, and even humans. Thus, this means an outbreak of a disease could effect the population of species. Diseases are not only found in humans and animals, but can effect plant herbivores from an outside source.

I could go on with the list; I would like to point out even local issues are important to know. Here, in the Northwest there have been recent concerns about the Puget Sounds, the salmon and Orca population.

2) What activities or daily practices do you do that have a positive impact on the environment?

The more I think about this question, I have to admit: sadly, I don't do a lot; however I do try to use the back of recycled papers when I am solving math problems... and I call myself an "environmentalist?" It' s ironic.

3) What are some of your daily practices that have a negative impact?

Sadly to say, I have quite a few. These include: I guzzle a lot of water for showers, cleaning dishes, and for the pets. I drive a car-and sometimes I find myself saying "I should bike to BCC," (only when the weather's nice). I also use plastic bags, and I used to throw out more food, which expired. However, I try not to throw as many out and try to use the food before the expiration date.

4) What is your attitude about the impact humans (individuals and societies) are having on the environment?
From my observations, there are many opposing view points amongst people particularly amongst politicians and environmentalist. Most seem to disagree on certain view points, however they seem to agree that they must protect and preserve the natural environment, without causing damage. There doesn't seem to be one right answer addressing environmental policies, and there is a lot of trepidation when it comes to addressing environmental issues among environmentalists and politicians.
We have already done certain damages, which includes introducing invasive species, consuming resources more than is necessary etc. In all we are much of a consumer society as much as we love and care for the environment. Consumption probably wouldn't stop any time soon, since there are many goods that people want and need.

5) What are your feelings about human population? What should we do as a society to help decrease the demand for resources that a growing population requires? What could you do?
I have never thought of population as an environmental issue, but it makes sense that it is rightly so. As population seems to increase, more resources need to be met. I did worry whether there would be too many people on the planet...anyway as a society, it's probably not ideal to go around telling everybody that the population is growing and you shouldn't have children. However, we can encourage the use of contraceptives and family planning programs-both of which a society could use if they were worried about increasing birth rates. However, as more there are more urbanizations and older generations, societies should keep in mind about how they would provide resources for older generations and the growing urbanization.
As to the question: what I could do? I don't rightly know since the growing population is not something I could control, and even if I should and could use less resources, I probably would end up using more.

I think it should be said that any issues regarding the environment is not an easy one, even population, since we are part of this population, and however much we need to control it-we cannot always do so.
I will post soon.

Yoko