التنزه والبيئة

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يحب الشباب الخروج من البيت والاستمتاع بوقتهم. وفي نفس الوقت هناك الكثير من المحاضرات البيئية التي تحدث. ومن احدى مشاكل الجمعيات هو قلة الحضور وضعف المتطوعين. من هنا أتت لي فكرة دمج التنزه مع التوعية البيئية. فبدل عن دعوة الشباب الى حضور الجلسات وهم في الوقت عينه يريدون الترفيه بعد الدراسة او العمل، دعونا نمزج الاثنين. وذلك يكون عبر النشاطات البرية والمائية. مثلا المشاركة او التحضير للمشي في الطبيعة وخلالها نقوم بالتكلم عن أهمية التنوع البيولوجي الذي يحيط بنا والحفاظ عليه. وننبه الى أهمية عدم الدوس على النباتات البرية لان ذلك يؤثر على الدورة الايكولوجية في المنطقة.

ويمكننا هنا دمج اهداف التنمية المستدامة كهدف 15 المتعلق بالحياة البرية. يمكن للناشطين البيئيين التواصل مع عالم نباتي والقيام برحلة التقاط فطر فيتعلم المنتسبون أنواع الفطر وما يمكن اكله منها وفوائدها للطبيعة.  كما يمكننا التخطيط للرحلات البحرية الجماعية والتكلم خلالها عن هدف التنمية المستدامة 14 والذي يتعلق بالحياة تحت الماء. والتطرق من بعدها الى تأثير اعمال الانسان على هذه الحياة وكيف يمكن لكيس بلاستيكي ان يقتل سلحفاة بحرية.

ومن احدى الأفكار هو التواصل مع التجمعات، أي تجمع للغطاسين وتجمع اخر للمشاة ومحبي التسلق والقيام بأنشطة مشتركة. وبذلك نكون نحن ذهبنا الى الناس وطرحنا افكارنا وناقشناها معهم.

كما يمكن الناشطين البيئيين القيام بحملات تنظيف للغابات او المتنزهات او الشواطئ واخراط الكشاف واليافعة في هذا النشاط فننشئ جيلا واعيا يهتم بالنظافة والحفاظ على الطبيعة. ونمنح الشباب فرصة للتواصل مع شباب اخرين مثلهم مهتمين بالاكتشاف فتخلص صداقات وجماعات مهتمة بالحفاظ على البيئة.

ولقد نشأ في الآونة الأخيرة ما يعرف بالسياحة البيئية. ومن الممكن للناشطين البيئيين ان يستفيدوا من هذا الموضوع فيشجعوا على السياحة البيئية الداخلية وينظموا أنشطة تعليمية تساهم في تنمية المجتمع الإقليمي وتمكين اقتصاده ويروجوا للمكان عبر الصور الفوتوغرافية التي يلتقطونها. ومن الجيد والمميز تشجيع هذه السياحة وخلق مسارات بيئية للتنزه والمشي والتفاعل مع المجتمع المحلي لان ذلك يؤدي الى تذوق المأكولات المحلية والتعرف على أنواع الطيور والحيوانات البرية.

وعلى المدى الطويل تؤدي هذه الانشطة الى خلق الوعي وتوقف رمي النفايات وسط الأشجار وعلى الشواطئ وسنخلق بلدا نظيفا نتغنى بجماله. فالحفاظ على البيئة مسؤولية حكومية ومجتمعية أيضا.

خمسة أشياء يمكنك تعلمها من كونك متطوعًا بيئيًا

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هناك مقولة تقول “إذا كنت جيدًا في شيء ما، فلا تفعله مجانًا”. ومع ذلك وفي عالمنا المادي اليوم، ستندهش عندما تكتشف أن الأشياء التي تجعلك تنمو وتتطورهي كل الأشياء غير المال. إنها التجارب التي تبنيها والفرص الجديدة التي تجربها والذكريات التي تصنعها، والحياة التي تعيشها، والتغيير الذي تحدثه في العالم. إحدى هذه التجارب التي تغير الحياة هي:التطوع البيئي.

environmental-education

وفيما يلي  خمسة أمورٍ  رائعة يمكنك تعلمها من كونك متطوعًا بيئيًا

1. كيف تعزز مهارتك

بشكل عام فإن أي عمل تطوعي يساعدك في سبر أغوار نفسك بشكل أفضل، ويعزز مهارتك الشخصية والتفاعلية والمهنيه كذلك بشكل كبير، فإنك عندما تشترك في أي برنامج تطوعي فإنك تعزز المهارات التالية:

القيادة: إن التطوع يعطيك الفرصة لكي تواجه المواقف التي لا بُدّ لك أن تواجهها، وتساعدك على إيجاد حل لها لوحدك، ويغرس بك شعور المسؤولية والمُلكية ويبرز القائد بداخلك. هنالك الكثير من القادة الذين كانوا معتادين قبل تجاربهم التطوعية أن يقولوا “لا استطيع قيادة الناس، أنا لم أولد قائداً!” لم يكونوا يدركون أنهم يستطيعون، وقد ساعدهم التطوع على كيفية اكتساب مهارة القيادة عندما واجهوا الامر الواقع.

الثقة: عندما تتولى القيام بمهام مختلفة وتدرك بأنك قادر على عمل او تنفيذ مشاريع لم تكن تتخيلها، وتتعامل مع مواقف معينة لأول مرة، فستدرك حينها بأن إمكاناتك أكبر مما كنت تعتقد، وسوف تعمل بثقة أكبر وسوف تعرف أنه لا يوجد شيء لا تستطيع فعله إذا بذلت كل جهدك.

المهارات الشخصية: إن كان بإعتقادك أنك إنسان إنطوائي ولا تعرف كيف تتعامل مع الناس، فإن هذا الامر سيتغير بمجرد أن تتطوع بشيء يحرك شغفك، حيث أن التطوع يساعدك على التوسع بشبكة علاقاتك والتعرف على الاخرين الذين يشاركونك شغفك، وهنا فأننا نتحدث عن حياة مليئة بعلاقات حقيقية وثمينة سوف تقوم بصنعها.

إكتساب  الخبرات المهنية: يعد التطوع في مجال ترغب به طريقة رائعة لبدء مهنة إذا أردت أن تواصل مسيرتك المهنيه بهذا المجال، لأنك ستتعرف على طبيعة وبيئة العمل وتفهمه جيدا قبل المواصلة به.

إدارة الوقت وإدارة الذات: وهذا الامر مهم جدا خاصةً إذا كنت ستسافر خارجاً للتطوع، حيث أنك سخرج من نطاق “منطقة الراحة” الخاص بك. ستتعلم كيف تعتني بنفسك، وستتعلم كيف تدير وقتك لتناسب عملك التطوعي بكل ما تفعله بحياتك. لأنك تؤمن بقضيتك، واخترت أن تقوم بذلك من غير التزام خارجي وسوف تجد أي طريقة للقيام بالتطوع بالرغم من كل الظروف.

2. تعلم القصص

إن القصص لا تقتصر على البشر فقط، ولكل منا قصة! فالتطوع البيئي يأخذك لعالم يتجاوز البشر، وسيجعلك تدرك أن كل شيء في الطبيعة له قصته الخاصة به. سوف تتمكن من فهم الكوكب الذي نعيش عليه بشكل أفضل، وستدرك حينها بما ندين به له. لا توجد في حياتك تجربة أعظم من هذه التجربة لتتعلم منها، فكل أسرار الطبيعة ستنكشف لكل من يبحث عنها.

education-for-sustainable-development

3. مساعدة من يفعلون الخير للكوكب

عندما تبحث عن برنامج تطوعي صديق للبيئة، فإن هنالك خيارات متعددة، حيث أنه بامكانك التسجيل في حملات تنظيف مصادر المياه في منطقتك، أو العمل مع المنظمات المدافعه عن البيئة، أو حتى إيجاد حلول صديقة لإدارة النفايات والصرف الصحي، وكذلك التطوع مثلاُ في مزارع حضرية ومساعدة المزارعين بنفس الوقت.

4. إدفعها للأمام (تقديمها للاخرين)

إن التطوع غير مقتصر على الذين يريدون تعلم شيء جديد وحسب، بل أنه وسيلة رائعة لدفع أو نقل المعرفة والخبرة لأشخاص يسعون اليها، بإمكانك أن تتطوع لتصبح دليلاً للرحلات، أو تعليم الاخرين عن أسرار البيئة وكيفية المحافظة عليها بطرق أفضل، إن تمكين الاخرين من اكتساب معرفتك وخبرتك التي اكتسبتها خلال سنوات تطوعك هو من أسمى الامور التي يمكنك القيام بها.

5. كيف تحدث فرقاً

ما هو إرثي؟؟؟ كثير من الناس يخافون ترك هذا العالم بسبب عدم تركهم إرثاً جيداً ليذكره الاخرون به، بعض الناس يسعى للشهرة، وبعضهم يسعون للنجاح والمال، أما أكثرهم حكمة فهم من يبحثون عن طرق لترك وإبقاء العالم مكاناً أفضل لمن يليهم، وما أفضل طريقة لذلك إلا تركه أفضل “حرفيا”؟

environmental education in Middle East

تجربة تغيير الحياة بالتطوع البيئي

من أهم الصفات الرائعة ويتمتع بها تقريباً كل المتطوعين هي الشغف، شغفهم بتعلم شيء جديد، شغفهم للنمو والتطور وأيضا شغفهم بإحداث فارق وتحدي العالم أجمع.

وبغض النظر، إن كنت ترغب في تعلم مهارة جديدة أو تقديم خدمة لمجتمعك أو حتى تنظيم رحلة شاطئية مستدامة ومعرفة المزيد عن الارض وكيفية المحافظة عليها، فإنك ستجد كل ما تتمنى في تجربة التطوع البيئي، إنها تجربة ستغير حياتك وتجعلك ترغب في المزيد.

ترجمة: ماجدة هلسه

أردنية متعددة الإهتمامات، لديها من الخبرة ما يقارب السبعة وعشرون عاماً في مجال المالية والإدارة في المؤسسات المحلية والدولية، وتعمل ماجدة حالياً مع التعاون الدولي الالماني كموظفة مالية. ومع ذلك كله وعلى الصعيد التطوعي، فإن لديها شغفاً كبيراً بالترجمة في كافة المواضيع والمجالات، وقد بُني هذا الشغف بالخبرة الشخصية والعملية على مدى هذه السنين.

Note: The English version of the article is available at this link.

What You Need to Know Before Installing Solar Rooftop Systems

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Middle East is blessed with ample sunlight all throughout the year. In addition, most of our homes boast of spacious rooftops that bathe in sunlight during the day. These are ideal circumstances for harnessing the energy produced by the Sun and convert it into electricity for domestic use.

This can be achieved by interfacing the energy with the help of an inverter. This inverter would convert the DC energy generated by a rooftop solar plant into AC energy and make it usable for our electrical appliances.

But while rooftop solar plants are excellent for generating electricity from the sun, there are a few factors that you should keep in mind before installing solar rooftop systems. Let’s take a look at a few of these factors.

installing a rooftop solar plant

Types of Rooftop Solar Plants

There are three kinds of rooftop solar plants that you can choose from.

1. On-grid Systems

An on-grid rooftop solar plant is directly linked to the main grid supply. This system enables electricity to be used from the grid when the rooftop solar plant is unable to generate the required amount of energy. However, a well-planned rooftop solar plant can efficiently generate enough power without using grid supply, enabling significant cost saving.

In fact, on-grid rooftop solar plants can also generate excess electricity that can be supplied back to the grid and earn you compensation through a process called net-metering.

2. Off-grid Systems

The off-grid system is one in which the rooftop solar system is not connected to the main grid. This system is self-contained and has its own battery. The battery is charged by the solar energy generated by the rooftop solar plant, which is then used to power different appliances.

When there is no grid supply or when the supply is exceedingly irregular with frequent breakdowns, this system comes in handy.

3. Hybrid Systems

The third option is a hybrid rooftop solar plant. This system combines on-grid and off-grid power sources. Although a battery is included  in this type of system, the advantage is that once the battery has been fully charged, the extra power generated is fed into the grid, creating added profits for the user.

The Nature of Your Rooftop

The next thing to keep in mind before installing solar rooftop systems is the nature of your roof and how feasible would it be to install a rooftop solar power plant over there. Here are a few things you need to consider:

  1. How much sunlight is available throughout the year
  2. Available area on the rooftop
  3. Whether the orientation of the roof is towards the sun or not

The cost of a rooftop solar plant is influenced by the nature of your roof. Certain rooftop layouts may require additional elements and those elements might add to the cost of your rooftop solar plant.

How Much Area to Use?

The availability of sunlight and the space available on the roof determines the maximum energy that can be generated through your rooftop solar plant. The type of system you opt for (on-grid, off-grid, or hybrid) can help you decide how much space needs to be allocated on your roof for installing solar panels and producing electric power.

rooftop-solar

Costs

The homeowner can conduct a cost analysis and determine the amount of electricity required in order to be profitable. This could involve satisfying the homeowner’s energy requirements as well as the amount of energy that can be transferred to the grid to create additional profits.

Aside from these factors, another factor that you need to keep in mind before installing a home solar plant is the brand. While there are several companies that offer these systems, you must opt for reputable brands in order to get your hands on a system that not only offers superior quality but also lasts longer.

Air Quality in Abu Dhabi: Perspectives

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The air quality topic has taken relevance in the media lately, perhaps because 95% of the world’s population is breathing unhealthy air, or because in a year it can contribute to the deaths of more than 6 million people [1]. We are starting to realize that those beautiful sunsets which we enjoy across the Middle East are the result of pollutants and dust; and most likely each one of us know of someone with asthma or any other respiratory disease whose condition worsens under poor air quality.

air quality in abu dhabi

Poor air quality is more common in the big and developed cities instead of impoverished rural areas far away, which is the case of other environmental pressing issues like limited access to water and energy. It is in these cities where you, the reader, is most likely to live in. The unique characteristics of each region influences its ability to disperse or aggravate the situation.

In the Middle East, the harsh natural conditions combined with increasing emission of pollutants are threats to maintain a clean air. Herein, a brief air quality outlook for Abu Dhabi is provided, presenting perspectives on the sources of emissions, current state, as well as some of the responses from the administration in terms of policies and measures.

Impact of poor air quality

Poor air refers to air entering your body not only carrying oxygen to energize your cells, but also pollutants. These pollutants can be miniscule particles of dust or harmful chemicals, the most common being sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, ozone, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds and hydrogen sulfide.

The effects on human health range from nauseating odors to heart and lung diseases, and even cancer, depending the vulnerability and exposure of the receiver [2]. This same poor air is metabolized by plants and animals, and some of the pollutants even end up being deposited in oceans, water bodies and soils through the rain.

Influencing factors

The accumulation of pollutants in the air is influenced by the capacity of the environment to disperse those pollutants, and the rate at which new pollutants are received by the atmosphere. Three factors have been determined to be the most influential for the air quality of an area: The terrain, the meteorology, and the emissions.

The first two are responsible for the wind, the rain, heating effects amongst other phenomena that creates atmospheric conditions of stability, influencing the mixing and dispersion of pollutants. However, as you may have inferred, there is very little that we can do to modify these.

The third factor, emissions, are divided into natural and anthropogenic origin. Natural emissions are the product of natural occurring events and are virtually inevitable, such as the dust from the desert. Anthropogenic emissions on the other hand result from man-linked activities such as combustion of fuel or industrial processes. As we are in control of these processes and can modify them, it is the focus of the air quality management efforts.

Air Quality in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi’s conditions are defined as arid, indicating very little precipitation and large barren areas. The combination of winds over desert raises dust and sand particles capable of travelling long distances. Therefore, the background levels of particulate material (PM) are significantly high in Abu Dhabi, especially after a dust event has occurred. These dust events are more common during the summer months due to stronger winds.

In addition, anthropogenic emissions have increased exponentially since the 60’s because of the rapid economic growth experienced by the emirate. The oil exports initiated a new age for Abu Dhabi; soon new industries had to be run, millions of expatriate workers arrived, magnificent development projects were envisioned, and with these, an increased demand for water, electricity, transportation and land use. Emissions from industrial activities, energy generation and transportation are the main pressure on the quality of the air in the emirate [3].

The air quality of a site is evaluated against standards defined by the national authority based on international guidelines or local studies. Standards are given in terms of maximum ambient concentration of a given pollutant at which not harmful effects on human’s health are expected. This is usually micrograms of a pollutant per cubic meter of air.

Abu Dhabi hosts a network of 20 monitoring stations constantly feeding real time information [4]. The results from such monitoring was summarized in the latest State of the Environment Report covering the period 2007 to 2015 [3].

Compliance with the UAE Standards and Trend analysis per pollutant in the Abu Dhabi Emirate [3]

Particulate matter [5] and ozone seem to be the pollutants of concern for the emirate; although the increasing trend of the other pollutants may indicate the need for additional measures of control before it reaches undesirable levels.

The PM results don’t come as a surprise, as it is not difficult for an Abu Dhabi inhabitant to perceive the dust, even in their homes with doors and windows closed. This dust originates mostly from sand from the desert surroundings, infrastructure development and construction activities, but also from combustion of fuels and transformation of other pollutants. I personally notice less dust on the environment during the weekends when the construction works are paused.

Ozone is not emitted directly by a source, but it is the result of the interactions between other pollutants, UV radiation, oxygen, etc. This complex process of formation difficult the task of identifying and managing precursor agents. Some suspected sources include oil and gas activities, petrol stations, fuel combustion during transportation and even vegetation.

It is also important to note that air quality conditions are perceived in a localized manner, rather than the same conditions across the whole emirate. As such, areas in proximity to industries, power plants, refineries, highways, construction sites, etc. are more likely to present poor air quality.

Arab region is among the worst performers in air quality

Also, the impacts on one’s health are consequent to other factors such as pre-existent health conditions or age. As an effort for managing the impacts, the Environment Agency has released an app with live air quality indicators geographically represented available to the public [6].

What is being done?

With a demand for resources increasing rapidly, the threat on clean air is unceasing. The authorities have recognized air pollution as the primary environmental threat to public health in the UAE [3,4]. The efforts from the administration include:

  • Strengthening the regulatory framework for air quality and monitoring compliance,
  • Maintenance and extension of the monitoring network,
  • Integrated efforts from all influential institutions and departments in Abu Dhabi and in the UAE for knowledge exchange and implementation of measurements for resource efficiency and public awareness,
  • Continuous reporting and warnings accessible to the public,
  • Active research for sources and pollutants identification,
  • Motivating for transitioning to cleaner and more efficient sources of energy,
  • Improving the quality of fuels used for transportation and promote lower emissions vehicles, among other measures.

The longer the wait for effective actions to be implemented, the more resources will be required to mitigate or contain the negative effects of pollution. The administration has embarked in the complex task of maintaining economic growth without compromising the environmental resources and is starting to turn into green growth strategies for such end.

Role of the Public

As citizens we also have a responsibility to play as those harmful pollutants result from creating resources to supply our needs. Citizens can help by reducing electricity and water consumption at home, use lower emissions vehicles, prefer local products or ensure appropriate waste disposal, to name a few.

If you or someone of your family is sensitive to air pollution, maintain informed about outdoor conditions and limit the exposure if required, limit the access of dust into your household and replace frequently the air filters in your ventilation system.

It is important to remember that air quality and climate change are strongly linked. Most of the activities that release pollutants also release greenhouse gases or aggravate the heating effect on the atmosphere. On the other hand, expected climate change effects in the Middle East include increased temperatures and reduced precipitation. Having less rain diminishes the natural cleaning of pollutants in the atmosphere, and higher temperatures increase the need of energy for cooling, which if supplied from fossil fuels, causes more emissions.

Conclusion

The harsh climatic conditions of the region and a rapid increasing demand for resources are an unceasing threat for clean air. It can be said that the air in the emirate of Abu Dhabi is of good to moderate quality, with localized areas of attention, and being particulate matter and ozone the pollutants of concern. Attention is also required to other pollutants that although at safe levels, have shown an increasing trend in concentration during the past 10 years.

The goal of a clean air requires the combined efforts and commitment of the administrative institutions, the industrial sector, the research bodies and the citizens. It is necessary to turn the traditional development model into a green growth strategy capable of maintaining economic objectives without compromising the environmental resources and the welfare of the citizens of the region.

 References

[1] Health Effects Institute. 2018. State of Global Air 2018. Special Report. Boston, MA: Health Effects Institute.

[2] DEFRA. 2018. Air quality: explaining air pollution – at a glance. Available online at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/air-quality-explaining-air-pollution/air-quality-explaining-air-pollution-at-a-glance

[3] Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi. 2017. Abu Dhabi State of the Environment Report.

[4] Here reference is made to PM10, or particulates with a diameter smaller to 10 µm.

Halobacterium – A Model of Life in the Dead Sea

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Biodiversity is one of the Earth’s greatest treasures that spellbound biologists for centuries. It is widely agreed that biodiversity is essential to increase appreciation for the value of biodiversity, since the ecosystems services, through biodiversity, play a fundamental tile in maintaining and enhancing the well being of the world, it is well-known that human health, wealth, security and culture are affected by any changes in the ecosystem. Still, additional research is required to understand the relationship between the ecosystem and biodiversity.

Microorganisms can exist even in the most inhospitable habitats with extreme conditions. Despite their size, these unicellular organisms have a huge impact on different aspects of human life such as health, industry and agriculture. Furthermore, microorganisms play a vital role in biogeochemical cycling and ecosystem functioning; therefore, understanding their role in the environment will provide us with knowledge that can be applied towards preserving and sustaining our natural ecosystems.

halobacterium

 

Halobacterium – Native Flora of the Dead Sea

For the majority of mankind’s history and from the anthropocentric view, the Dead Sea has been considered the model of an absolutely lifeless body of water. However, this concept was proven inaccurate with the discovery of halophylic Archaea, the native flora of the Dead Sea.

An example of a well-adapted and widely distributed halophylic microorganism is Halobacterium sp [HS]. HS exhibits a highly acidic cytoplasm saturated with potassium Chloride, with potassium acting as antifreeze to keep the cell metabolism functioning. With HS being able to withstand very high levels of salinity, they can be used to engineer a new type of crops.

HS serves as an excellent model system for the study of archaeal genetics. Halophiles have recently been targeted for their potential use in environmental and biotechnological applications. With few exceptions, little is known about the applications of extremophiles that can be a great source of novel commercial applications. Before HS proteins application becomes widespread, many key features of HS genes regulation need to be identified.

Promises and Challenges

The Dead Sea presents an interesting challenge to the biologists in term of the microbial ecology and understanding the biological processes. Microbes that live in the Dead Sea serve as an excellent example of the development of several unique biochemical and molecular mechanisms to adjusting to a hostile environment.

Since little is known on the contribution of the different genera and species of halophilic Archaea to the community in the Dead Sea, it will be of a great significance if further holistic studies will be conducted to solve the major puzzle of the microbial population dynamics and explore the possible connection between HS to the other different communities of the Dead Sea.

Toxic organic compounds frequently contaminate industrially produced highly saline environment, therefore microorganisms that are able to degrade organic compounds under high saline conditions would be valuable for their ability to “clean” out these environments.

biodiversity in dead sea

Based on the fact that Haloarchaea possesses some degree of organic degrading capacity. Dong-Jin Ha et al suggest the usage of HS as a biological treatment tool for highly saline industrial waste effluents that contaminate the environment. Their study evaluated the usage of HS in order to degrade the IPA (isopropyl alcohol) that is used in a number of industries, including pharmaceuticals, textile production, and cosmetics. Their results indicate that the GAPDH isolated from HS may be valuable in industries involving IPA processing.

Furthermore, by blending the genes of halophiles with crop genes, scientists will be able to engineer new crops that are able to grow in soils with higher than average salinity. This will allow, to some extent, the use of water with above average salinity to water the crops.

Further studies aiming to explore HS operon regulation and gene expression will generate new horizons for their application. There is a great advantage of understanding the molecular mechanisms of the HS regulatory systems, since it will make manipulating many proteins production an easy mission creating a new generation of novel and unknown value based products, as well as environmental and other possible utilities.

To conclude, the Dead Sea and its surrounding environment have been extremely degraded due to unsustainable anthropogenic activities. The significant strong ethical, cultural, environmental and economic benefits from conservation of the Dead Sea make it essential that the current economic practices taking place at the Dead Sea Basin be reconsidered.

CDM Enhancing Africa’s Profile Among Investors

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The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is an extremely simple concept. Companies in developed economies can continue with their polluting ways so long as they pay for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions elsewhere in the world. Substitute Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Zimbabwe and a string of other African countries for ‘elsewhere’.

CDM may not figure highly on the financial radar screens of many entrepreneurs and business people across the globe. They’re probably much more exercised over the merits or otherwise of business banking services, But maybe they should be looking at CDM, not least because entrepreneurial activity and green make interesting bedfellows these days.

solar-africa-greenpeace

The rationale behind CDM is a fascinating one. It’s predicated on the belief that it’s far harder and costlier for industrialized countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions than developing countries. That’s because developing countries usually start from a less-cluttered and less-regulated historical background. However, projects demonstrating reduced greenhouse gas emissions must also meet sustainable development and additionality criteria in order to qualifying for CDM support.

Put simply, this means any project or venture must clearly show that the use of resources not only meets human needs but also doesn’t harm the environment at the same time. And any greenhouse gas reductions made as a consequence would have happened anyway, with or without CDM funding. The international treaty, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), was the forerunner to the legally binding Kyoto Protocol, adopted by almost all countries of the world.

Under Kyoto, the most highly industrialized countries are required to achieve quantifiable reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Less-developed countries, which are much more likely to suffer disproportionately from the effects of any climate change, don’t have such targets. According to the UNFCCC secretariat, the CDM and other market-based mechanisms, adopted as part of the Kyoto Protocol negotiations, allows emission-reduction projects in developing countries to earn certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2. These CERs can be traded and sold, and used by industrialized countries to meet a part of their emission reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol.

The mechanism, says the UNFCCC secretariat, stimulates sustainable development and emission reductions, while giving industrialized countries some flexibility in how they meet their emission reduction limitation targets. The UNFCCC announced at the beginning of February 2013 the number of CDM projects registered had reached the 6,000 mark. Last week, the UNFCCC secretariat and the East African Development Bank (EADB) signed a partnership agreement to establish a regional collaboration centre in Kampala, Uganda, in an effort to increase participation in CDM projects.

It is the second such centre in Africa, the first one being opened several months ago in Lomé, Togo, by the UNFCCC in collaboration with the BanqueOuestAfricaine de Développement. UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres, said, “The two regional collaboration centres in Lomé and Kampala are designed to help Africa increase its attractiveness and potential for CDM. Our goal is to build capacity, reduce the risk for investors in such projects and help make the continent an increasingly attractive destination for CDM projects.”

The office in Kampala will be operational from May 2013. Besides hosting the office, the EADB is also expected to provide personnel, as well as administrative and logistical support. EADB Director General Vivienne Yeda lauded the partnership between the two organizations and said, “This partnership with UNFCCC is key for us at EADB as we invest in sustainable development and seek to ensure sustainability in all our operations. We hope that the new office will help increase the regional distribution of CDM projects in East Africa where there is an acute need for sustainable development.”

The Kampala office is expected to enhance capacity-building and provide hands-on support to governments, non-governmental organizations and businesses interested in developing CDM projects in more than 20 countries in the region. Among the countries that can seek support from the new office are Egypt, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Libya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

How Mindfulness Can Support Sustainability

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Though the two may seem to lack connection, mindfulness and sustainability can actually go hand-in-hand. This may be especially true if you wish to adopt new sustainability practices or change various habits that affect the environment. So, how do they go together, and what can you do if you need help with mindfulness?

About Mindfulness

To understand how mindfulness can support sustainability, it may be helpful to first define mindfulness as a standalone concept. The American Psychological Association or APA dictionary describes and defines mindfulness as, “awareness of one’s internal states and surroundings.” Mindfulness is a common tool employed in the mental health field, and it is commonly used in interventions like cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

How Mindfulness Can Support Sustainability

Mindfulness is helpful for grounding oneself, helping us think before we speak or act, and modifying habits, thinking patterns, and behaviors to make them more beneficial and adaptive. This is where it has the potential to support sustainability efforts and any behaviors we’d like to adjust or take on to better support the world around us.

Use Mindfulness To Support Sustainability

How can you put mindfulness into action? Here are some mindfulness-oriented questions to help guide you toward a more sustainable life:

What do I really need?

Mindfulness can help you center yourself, which means that you can better get in touch with what you really need. Sometimes, we over-purchase items or make choices while in the moment that don’t align with our values. This could be out of habit, or it could be that you purchase items to self-soothe that are actually unnecessary, not within your budget, or that won’t be used. If you are about to purchase something that does not align with your sustainability values, you might ask yourself this question.

Is there a better way?

Is there a way to meet your needs that better supports your values in sustainability? Maybe, you can purchase something that is used instead of buying a new item. Or, you may be able to do something like carpool with others, walk, or use public transit instead of driving on your own, depending on who you are and where you live.

What’s my current impact on the world around me?

Take inventory of your habits and how they may impact the environment. Habits to consider may relate to:

  • Food packaging and storage. For example, disposable plates or containers used at home when re-usable items would be ideal and practical, takeout containers, bags, or cups when re-usable cups and bags would be ideal and practical, and so on.
  • General recycle and waste. For example, throwing away cardboard that could be recycled.
  • Water and energy usage. Common examples may include running water when it isn’t being used and less environmentally friendly ways of transportation.

Note that not everyone has the access to make certain efforts. Sometimes, food packaging, as a common example, is unavoidable. Look at the changes you can make as a unique individual with your own circumstances in mind. Writing to organizations and corporations who can make a large difference in the environment – perhaps, far more than the impact of an individual – may be an option, as can signing petitions. Implementing sustainability practices may be somewhat of a confidence booster because you’ll know that you’re doing something positive for the world around you.

Small Changes Are Valuable

Small changes matter when it comes to preserving the environment. You are only one person, and while you cant do it all, your efforts toward making the world a healthier, more livable, and more sustainable place matter. Also, make sure to employ self-compassion.

Inclusive Mental Health And The Environment

You can involve the people around you (family, friends, acquaintances, and even other people within your community at large), join local efforts and organizations that work toward sustainability, and educate yourself and others on ways to support the environment that are within your personal financial and physical capacity.

Get Help With Mindfulness

You can learn more about mindfulness through free web resources, books, and other forms of media. However, if you need help practicing mindfulness, have trouble implementing the new habits you want to include in your life, or want a safe space to talk about the environment and any other topic that affects your daily life, therapy is an excellent option.

Mental health providers who offer talk therapy have a range of specialties and work with various populations. Regardless of how you find support and work to put good into the world, take pride in your effort, and don’t hesitate to reach out to a professional if you need help or want a safe place to talk at any point in time.

Things You Should Know About Oceans and Marine Biodiversity

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Seventy per cent of the Earth’s surface is covered by the oceans. Its coral reefs are its rainforests and they teem with life, from minute plankton at the bottom of the food chain to giant whales, the largest animals that have ever lived. The biodiversity of the deep sea is greater than that found on land and estimated to be between 50–80 per cent of the total. This rich marine biodiversity is suffering the same fate as its land-based cousins. Oceans play a major part in maintaining the CO2 balance, but like terrestrial ecosystems they suffer when this balance is disrupted.

Global warming is now creating this imbalance, as about 35 per cent of anthropogenic CO2 dissolves in the sea, which is more than it can cope with. This is causing the seas to become more acidic and is one more reason for the bleaching of coral reefs, causing the marine life that depends on them to be threatened.

Bleaching of Coral Reefs

Coral flourishes in optimum conditions in a symbiotic relationship with the algae that live in them and when these conditions are threatened by temperature changes and pollutants the coral turns completely white and dies off. At a local level there is a concern about poor fishermen threatening coral reefs with dynamite fishing, but even when this is hopefully dealt with the wider industrial-scale destruction of the coral reefs will continue.

The Great Barrier Reef, described as Australia’s natural wonder, is in mortal danger. Bleaching caused by climate change has killed almost a quarter of its coral this year and many scientists believe it could be too late for the rest. A survey of the reefs of the Maldives Islands in the Indian Ocean ‘found bleaching on a devastating scale.’ The survey found 60 to 90 per cent bleaching in some sites.

What can we do about this? As usual in these matters the finger always points to those of us who think we just sit at home causing no harm to anything or anyone. These events may occur in ocean habitats far away from where we live but the inter-connectedness of the natural world, and us to it, holds each one of us responsible for its welfare. And as The Nature Conservancy points out, ‘You don’t have to be a scientist to have a positive impact on coral reefs’.

Of the ten easy steps it proposes to protect coral reefs, six we can accomplish ourselves. They are conserving water, reducing pollution, putting a stop to the use of chemical fertilizer in our gardens and vegetable patches, disposing of waste sensibly and planting a tree. The tree connection should be obvious by now: the carbon the trees absorb would otherwise have found its way into the ocean.

Menace of Industrial Fishing

Industrial fishing methods now threaten existing fish stocks and it is estimated that there are enough trawlers to fish three planets the size of the Earth. Factory ships circle the globe, fishing with nets that stretch for forty kilometres. They not only do immense damage, as they scoop up everything from the sea bed, but they also deprive local fishermen of their birthright.

The catch is then cherry-picked for the most saleable items and the rest is thrown back into the sea, either dead or dying. Much of these dead discards are juvenile fish that cannot be sold and get dumped with little or no thought given to stock replenishment. Treating young fish like this leaves little scope for future fishing and future generations.

Tuna and cod are so overfished that they are now reaching non-recovery levels. According to the UN, 75 per cent of the world’s fish stocks have been depleted to non-commercial levels. One of the consequences of this type of mindless predatory fishing is that it doesn’t leave much for the small fishermen, who have relied for generations on local catches for their protein. The poor suffer once more at the grasping hands of the rich and powerful.

West African nations have some of the richest fishing grounds in the world; yet, their food security is under threat. European and Asian fishing fleets have moved into West African waters over the past thirty years after depleting their own fish stocks. Sub-Saharan Africa is now the only region on Earth where per capita fish consumption is actually falling, partly because foreign fishing fleets have removed so much fish. The same is true for the Indian Ocean fisherman of East Africa, and in this instance when the fish ran out, they turned to piracy.

indigenous-communities-deforestation

The Scourge of Deforestation

One doesn’t have to be a gardener to know that when a plant or weed is pulled out of the ground a ball of soil attached to its roots comes with it. Magnify this a few million times and one gets an idea of what happens to the soil when a huge area of forest is clear cut or torched. The soil at the base of the trees is not just disturbed but totally destabilized. When the rains arrive, as they always do, the trees are no longer there to protect the soil and a whole ecosystem – that has taken millennia to form – is washed away.

This loosened soil then finds its way to the rivers and lakes and chokes them with nutrient-rich silt that kills the fish local people have relied on for their food supplies, and in extreme cases can divert rivers from their original course. Wooded slopes that are deforested can also be the cause of mudslides, which can bury whole villages and are now occurring with increasing frequency.

Vanishing Mangroves

Mangroves are coastal forests found in the tropics and sub-tropics and are part of coastal ecosystems. They thrive in saline environments and are a protection against coastal erosion. They are also a protection against storms, and although no data is yet available it has been proposed that much of the damage caused by the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004 could have been prevented had the mangroves in the coastal zones remained intact.

About 35 per cent to 40 per cent of mangroves have been lost in the past thirty years. Nothing is free from commercial exploitation: 28 per cent of mangroves, amounting to 1,344,000 acres (544,000 hectares) was lost to shrimp farming in this period.61

The Iraqi Marshes atrocity shows us the consequences of using nature as a weapon. Generically known as wetlands, marshes and swamps are natural ecosystems that teem with life. These wetlands are losing their biodiversity as are the forests. Wetlands host indigenous bird species and provide resting places for millions of migratory birds. For example, waterfowl migration from Alaska and Northern Canada to southern wintering grounds have been reduced by more than half from 145 million to 64 million mainly due to human encroachment.

Note: The excerpt has been published from Fazlun Khalid’s latest book Signs On The Earth: Islam, Modernity And The Climate Crisis, published by Kube Publishing. The book can be purchased through the Amazon website.

The Top 4 Advantages of Solar Lighting

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Large companies and homeowners alike enjoy the many benefits that only solar lighting can provide. Solar lights are ideal for areas that are off-the-grid, where energy is costly or if the company is looking to showcase their eco-friendly approach to energy. Installing solar lighting is considered one of the most cost effective projects to date as they do not require trenched grid power and the actual costs of installation are minimal.

solar-lights-parking-lot

There are many ways to take advantage of solar lighting solutions. Some are as small or simple as a singular LED bulb or a solar lantern, while others are more advanced needing a battery and integrated panel. These lights are generally employed to light driveways or even 150′ spaces with floodlights. Solar is the best option when power is not available in a location or too costly to install. Using solar lights also eliminates concerns around a power surge.

Of course, there are numerous advantages for choosing solar lighting over traditional methods.

1. Great Way To Go Green!

Solar power is the number one source of renewable energy; therefore, solar lighting is a great way to transition to going green. It takes absolutely nothing from grid power and is naturally produced. The LED lighting uses a battery that charges up on solar power during the day, and at night it dips into the power supply to illuminate the desired area. This is a process that repeats daily without using any other form of energy.

2. Cost Effective Installation

Installation is considered low cost, in any case, lower than trenching grid power. There is no underground running conduit to the light poles like you would see with traditional power, however, poles, albeit much taller, are still employed in a safe manner.

Installation is safe and not as difficult as it is considered low voltage power and the only wiring is located at the top of the poles. In some instances, it may carry across to nearby poles. Standard electric trenching is rife with difficulties, but that isn’t something experienced with solar power installation.

3. Virtually No Maintenance

The greatest thing about solar lighting is that it’s virtually maintenance free. This is especially the case as LED bulbs last for 20 years or more. If properly installed, the system’s batteries will need some maintenance only every 5-7 years.

solar-powered-street

Visually checking and cleaning the glass grid is also recommended to prolong its lifespan along with checking the light fixtures themselves. Most other components can last 30 years or more without any maintenance whatsoever.

4. No Energy Bills

The most convincing aspect of solar power is the ability to reduce energy bills to zero. Though a commercial system can cost a lot of money upfront, the savings by utilizing solar power will pay back dividends on this investment. In addition, commercial solar energy systems also receive significant monetary incentives to make the switch to solar energy.

If you care about the environment and wish to reduce your footprint, solar lighting is a great option! It works just as well as traditional power while cutting your energy bills down to zero and providing a constant stream of LED lighting. Whether you have an expansive backyard or a large area in need of illumination, there are a wide range of solar lights to meet your requirements.

Do you have other alternatives you like for your lighting needs? Just let us know as we’d love to hear from you.

نظم تقييم المباني الخضراء في الشرق الأوسط

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الأبنية الخضراء لا تساهم فقط في بيئة أفضل وطرق بناء مستدامه، ولكنها تجلب ايضا الكثير من المنافع والفوائد لمالكي المباني ومستخدميها. فتكلفة الانشاء أقل، وتكلفة التشغيل أقل، وسبل الراحه أكثر، والبيئة الداخلية أكثر صحة، والعمر الأفتراضي أطول وتكاليف الصيانة أقل في المبنى الأخضر.

توجد العديد من النظم لتقدير وتقييم المباني الخضراء حول العالم، مثل LEED  و BREEAM . فالاستدامة الان تعد هامة جدا في منطقة الشرق الأوسط ودول مثل قطر والامارات لديهم انظمتهم الخاصة بهم لتقييم المباني لتشمل السمات الاجتماعية والبيئية والاقتصادية والثقافية في العمارة الحديثة

نظام تقييم الاستدامة الشامل (قطر)

ان نظام تقييم الاستدامة الشامل (GSAS) المعروف رسميا باسم نظام تقييم الاستدامة القطري (QSAS) تم تطويره في عام 2010 بواسطة منظمة الابحاث والتطوير الخليجيه (GORD) بالتعاون مع مركز T.C. Chan  في جامعة بنسيلفنيا ويهدف الي انشاء بيئة حضرية مستدامة لتقليل التأثيرات البيئية للمباني وفي نفس الوقت تحقق احتياجات المجتمع.

توصف GSAS  كأكثر نظام تقييم شامل للمباني الخضراء في العالم بعد تحليل دقيق لأربعين كود للمباني الخضراء من حول العالم. أهم مميزات نظام GSAS  انها تأخذ في الحسبان السمات الاجتماعيه والاقتصادية والبيئية والثقافية للمجتمع، والتي تختلف في مناطق العالم. الكثير من بلدان الشرق الأوسط مثل السعودية والكويت والأردن والسودان، أبدو اهتمام شديد في اتخاذ GSAS  ككود موحد للمباني الخضراء في المنطقة.

 

المعاير الخاصة بشهادة GSAS  تنقسم الي 8 أقسام:

قامت قطر بادراج QSAS في كود البناء القطري 2010 والان يجب على كل مشاريع القطاع العام والخاص الحصول على شهادة GSAS. تضم GSAS 140 آليه تقييم للاستدامة، وتنقسم إلى 8 أقسام تشمل الاتصال الحضري والموقع والطاقة والماء والمواد والبيئة الداخلية والقيمة الاقتصادية والثقافية والإدارة والتشغيل. كل قسم من النظام سوف يقيس خاصية معينه في التأثير البيئي للمشروع. كل قسم ينقسم إلى معايير محدده تقيس وتحدد موضوع بعينه. ثم يعطى درجة لكل قسم حسب درجة التوافق.

نظام التقييم اللؤلؤي (أبو ظبي)

ان نظام التقييم اللؤلؤي PRS  هو نظام تقييم المباني الخضراء لإمارة أبو ظبي، صمم ليدعم الاستدامة من التصميم للتنفيذ إلى التشغيل يشمل المجتمعات والمباني والفيلات، ويعطي ارشادات ومتطلبات لتقييم الاداء المتوقع للمشروع من منظور الاستدامه.

ان نظام التقييم اللؤلؤي هو مبادرة من الحكومة لتحسين الحياة لمن يسكن في أبو ظبي من خلال التركيز على العادات الثقافية والقيم الاجتماعية، نظام التقييم مفصل بدقه على مناخ أبو ظبي الحار والذي يتميز باحتياج الطاقه العالي لتكييف الهواء، معدل البخر العالي، سقوط المطر القليل، وندرة المياه الصالحة للشرب.

الأقسام المتنوعة في نظام التقييم اللؤلؤي

يوجد في نظام التقييم اللؤلؤي العديد من مستويات الشهادات، بدءا من واحد الي خمس لؤلؤات. مطلوب على أقل تقدير شهادة بلؤلؤه واحده لتطوير أي مشروع داخل أبو ظبي. يقسم النظام اللؤلؤي الي سبعة أقسام منها اعتمادات اجبارية واعتمادات اختيارية. للحصول على دجة لؤلؤه واحدة يجب على الأقل ان تتحقق جميع الاعتمادات الاجبارية.

نظام الأرز لتقييم المباني (لبنان)

نظام الأرز هو نظام أقل شهرة لتقييم المباني، وهو أول نظام مباني خضراء لبناني كمبادرة لكود دولي مع نظام اعتماد تديره جمعية المباني الخضراء اللبنانية (LGBC). انشأ هذا النظام ليدعم نمو وتبني استخدام المباني المستدامة في لبنان، مع تركيز على التقييم والتقدير البيئي للمباني التجارية

نظام الأرز لتقييم المباني تم تطويره بواسطة خبراء لبنانيين من LGBC بالشراكة مع مؤسسة التمويل الدولية، ويهدف الي تحقيق أقصى قدر من الكفاءة في التشغيل وتقليل الأثر البيئي. نظام الأرز هو منهج قائم على الأدلة لتقييم المباني ومدى استدمتها. النظام يحتوي على مجموعة من التقنيات والاجراءات ومستويات استهلاك الطاقة التي تتوقع LGBC   رؤيتها في المباني الخضراء

يقوم مقيم معتمد من قبل LGBC بأخذ جرد لاستهلاك الطاقة والمياه، التقنيات والاجراءات المستخدمة في المبنى، ثم تقوم LGBC بعطاء درجة للمبنى بناءا على مدى جودة استهلاكه وموافقته للتقنيات والاجراءات الخاصة بنظام تقييم الأرز.

ترجمة: طه واكد – مهندس مدني مهتم بشؤون البيئة – مصر

شريك مؤسس في مشروع دقيقة خضراء  –  معد وكاتب حلقات دقيقة خضراء عاليوتيوب

للتواصل عبر taha.waked@gmail.com   أو admin@green-min.com

Gas Flaring and Venting in MENA: Need for Urgent Action

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Every year global oil producers waste precious natural gas by flaring and venting equivalent to the combined gas consumption of Central and South America. The top twenty major gas flaring and venting countries in the world include Russia, Nigeria, Iran, Iraq, Angola, Venezuela, Qatar, Algeria, the United States, Kuwait, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Mexico, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Congo, the United Kingdom, and Gabon.

Gas flaring and venting have been known to be associated with crude oil processing in oil fields. Newer oil wells are equipped for the recovery of both oil well gas and crude oil and hence the gas is an additional resource of the oilfield. Currently, gas flaring and venting are subject to strong restrictions not only for economic but especially for environmental reasons. Under the Kyoto Protocol, there are incentives for the construction of plants that have minimum environmental impact and which, at the same time, do not waste precious resources.

Current Situation

In most developed countries, gas flaring and venting has been almost totally abandoned because it is a waste of an important resource and the infrastructures required to utilise the gas in-situ are not difficult to implement. On the other hand, in many developing countries the gas is often not required at the production site and the costs of transportation are very high thus gas flaring and venting is widely used.

The World Bank, through its Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership, estimates that globally at least 150 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas are flared or wasted every year, adding about 400 million tons of greenhouse gases in annual emissions. This is equivalent to almost all the potential yearly emission reductions from projects currently submitted under the Kyoto Protocol.

In many of the countries responsible for the majority of gas flaring and venting, taxation and accurate measurement ensures that correct duty is being paid and the impact on the environment is minimised, but unfortunately this is not always the case.

Gas Flaring in MENA

The contribution of the MENA region is fundamental in order to have a decisive global impact on flaring reduction and associated gas utilisation over the long run. Gas flaring in the Middle East and North Africa region is about 50 billion cubic meters annually, which makes it the second flaring region in the world after Russia and the Caspian region which is almost about 60 bcm. Sub-Saharan Africa flares about 35 bcm. The amount of gas flared in the Middle East alone, almost 30 bcm, could feed a 20 million ton liquefied natural gas plant and substantially reduce environmental pollution in the region.

Data from the World Bank show that some countries in the Middle East and North Africa region have increased gas flaring over the past 12 years or so. These include Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen while others such as Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Syria, and UAE have decreased gas flaring.

Published data shows that annual gas flaring equates to one quarter of annual gas consumption in the United States, 30 per cent of the European Union’s annual gas consumption, and three quarters of Russia’s total annual gas export. In Africa, one of the most predominant gas flaring continents, the annual 35 billion cubic metres of gas flared is equivalent to half of the continent’s total power consumption.

Time for Action

There are incentives to implement practices that are more feasible and less costly such as natural gas reinjection into the reservoir, small-scale natural gas liquefaction plants on the production site, the generation of electricity in-situ, the distribution of natural gas to neighbouring urban areas, its use for transportation, etc. while costly operations, such as the construction of pipelines, are carried out only when the natural gas extracted justifies the high costs. Natural gas is a limited and valuable resource and ideally no gas would ever be lost however, the reality of working in fossil fuel production means this is not possible.

Regardless who is flaring the gas, the incentives for investment in flaring reduction must be appropriate and clear. To the greatest extent possible, regulations need to encourage willing buyers and willing sellers to make beneficial economic use of the great volumes of flared and vented gases each year.

Gas flaring and venting reduction regulations and technologies adopted by the countries should be site-specific. No single option is best for all oil fields. Each oil field has its own characteristics, size, local market conditions and infrastructure needs and each country has its own political, institutional and financial frame work.

Precise measurement of gas flaring is therefore the next best thing, as it gives the industry the means to collate data, build an accurate picture of gas flared and plan better ways to reduce loss and create best practice in the future, also more stringent measures are necessary to implement tough control on these matters.

Environmental Justice in the 21st Century: A Case Study

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The world has changed a lot since the environmental justice movement first began, and while we’ve made progress in some areas, we still face many of the same struggles. The environmental justice movement asserts that everyone has the right to equal environmental protection. It also promotes equal access to the decision-making processes that affect having a healthy environment. While we’ve made some strides towards these goals, but certain groups, including people of color and low-income people, are still disproportionately affected by poor environmental conditions and hazards.

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Warren County’s Quest for Environmental Justice

Warren County, North Carolina is often referred to as the birthplace of the environmental justice movement. The movement started to take root in the early 80s when the state government device to dump 6,000 truckloads of soil contaminated with toxic PCBs in the county, dismissing concerns that the contaminants from the soil could impact drinking water supplies. When the trucks started to arrive, residents and their allies protested and stopped the trucks. Over six weeks of nonviolent protests, more than 500 people were arrested.

In the end, the people of Warren County weren’t able to stop the government from dumping the contaminated soil in the landfill sited in the county. The event, however, received national attention and laid the foundations for the environmental justice movement. While the Warren County protests weren’t the first protests of their kind, they were the first to capture such widespread attention.

The event led to several studies which confirmed the existence of environmental injustice and discrimination. In 1983, a study by the U.S. General Accounting Office found that three of the four hazardous waste landfills in Region 4, which consists of eight states, were sited in predominately African American communities. In 1987, the Commission of Racial Justice of the United Church of Christ published a report that found that race was the strongest variable for predicting the location of toxic waste sites. In 1990, the EPA created the Office of Environmental Equity, which later became the Office of Environmental Justice, within the agency. Other environmental groups also began incorporating environmental justice work into their activities.

Current State of Environmental Justice

Despite the progress that has been made, environmental injustice continues to be a significant issue. In 2018, an EPA study found that people in poverty and non-white people are more likely to be exposed to fine particulate matter, a known carcinogen. Other recent studies have also found evidence of environmental injustice, and climate change is expected to have a disproportionate impact on low-income people. Recent events, such as the protests at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access Pipeline and the slow recovery of Puerto Rico after Hurricanes Maria and Irma, have emphasized that environmental injustice is still an issue.

In many ways, environmental justice is the same today as it was in the early 80s. While we have made some progress, there are still lots of barriers to achieving the movement’s goals.

One change is that the movement has grown from small groups within the affected communities to having a role within large non-profits, government agencies and other institutions. Environmental justice advocates today must know not just how to work on a community level but also how to advocate within the context of large organizations and government agencies.

Environmental justice advocates also have some new tools available to them. The internet is a potentially valuable tool. Social media provides a new avenue for getting the message out. Anyone can now sign up for a free social media account and share their thoughts with the world. The internet also makes it easier for people to get informed about environmental issues, although low-income people are still less likely to have reliable internet access.

Food for Thought

Although the environmental justice movement has made some progress since it began, there’s still a long way to go before we achieve environmental justice for all. It’s important that everyone takes an interest in this issue and gets involved so that we can protect the environment and make sure everyone has access to a safe, healthy place to live.