Algae: Biofuel Of The Future?

Algae are tiny biological factories that use photosynthesis to transform carbon dioxide and sunlight into energy so efficiently that they can double their weight several times a day.

As part of the photosynthesis process algae produce oil and can generate 15 times more oil per acre than other plants used for biofuels, such as corn and switchgrass. Algae can grow in salt water, freshwater or even contaminated water, at sea or in ponds, and on land not suitable for food production.

On top of those advantages, algae — at least in theory — should grow even better when fed extra carbon dioxide (the main greenhouse gas) and organic material like sewage. If so, algae could produce biofuel while cleaning up other problems.

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle

Preventing Forest Fires With Tree Power

ScienceDaily (Sep. 23, 2008) — MIT researchers and colleagues are working to find out whether energy from trees can power a network of sensors to prevent spreading forest fires.

What they learn also could raise the possibility of using trees as silent sentinels along the nation’s borders to detect potential threats such as smuggled radioactive materials.

The U.S. Forest Service currently predicts and tracks fires with a variety of tools, including remote automated weather stations. But these stations are expensive and sparsely distributed. Additional sensors could save trees by providing better local climate data to be used in fire prediction models and earlier alerts. However, manually recharging or replacing batteries at often very hard-to-reach locations makes this impractical and costly.

The new sensor system seeks to avoid this problem by tapping into trees as a self-sustaining power supply. Each sensor is equipped with an off-the-shelf battery that can be slowly recharged using electricity generated by the tree. A single tree doesn’t generate a lot of power, but over time the “trickle charge” adds up, “just like a dripping faucet can fill a bucket over time,” said Shuguang Zhang, one of the researchers on the project and the associate director of MIT’s Center for Biomedical Engineering (CBE).

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle

Ghana: Ghanaians Urged to Protect Environment

The Akyem Abuakwa Youth Movement (AAYoM), a on- partisan and religious youth-oriented human resource development capacity building organisation, has called on Ghanaians across the country, to cultivate the habit of planting, at least, one tree every year.

According to them, in order to preserve the trees, and other natural resources that were preserved by our predecessors, there was the need for Ghanaians to make it a point to replant those trees which were cut, for the sake of the survival of generations to come.

Quoting the popular cliché, when the last tree dies the last man will die, the Movement appealed to the good people of Ghana, not to lose sight of the fact that in our quest for survival, we should not endanger the existence and survival of the next generation, by degrading the environment.

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle

High-tech images of Des Moines will direct tree-planting

The nonprofit group Trees Forever plans to use cutting-edge, high-definition images of Des Moines to guide the planting of hundreds of thousands of trees over the next several years.

Trees Forever will unveil the technology and discuss urban forestry issues during a symposium Wednesday in Des Moines.

The University of Vermont analyzed the new laser images collected by plane by the city of Des Moines to show what areas of the city would be good bets for tree plantings. The U.S. Forest Service picked Des Moines as one of three cities in the agency’s northeast U.S. region to use the new images.

The imaging is “a gee-whiz thing,” said Iowa urban forester Randy Cook of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Called LiDAR, or Light Detection and Ranging, the technology uses laser pulses to develop ultra-detailed maps that show land cover and terrain.

The DNR has been working with other agencies to create statewide images that will aid road-building, hazardous spill responses and more.

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle

American Express today announced the launch of the American Express Root For Our City Challenge, an initiative to help make eight U.S. cities cleaner, greener and more beautiful. The company is committing $1 million toward tree planting projects and is encouraging the local communities to participate in helping their city secure the largest portion of the grant money.

The American Express Root For Our City Challenge is part of the company’s commitment to community improvement and the environment. Cardmembers may vote for their city with each purchase at a participating merchant in the eight cities, which include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. At the conclusion of the American Express Root For Our City Challenge on October 31, 2008, the city with the most votes from purchases by Cardmembers at participating merchants will receive the largest share of the $1 million grant.

“Trees make a huge difference in our cities. They help to offset carbon emissions, beautify an area and create a positive impact on the local economy,” said Kathy King, vice president of marketplace development, American Express Merchant Services. “Our goal with the Root For Our City Challenge is to engage people across the nation in a collaborative effort to help green the urban settings in which they live and work.”

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle

American Express today announced the launch of the American Express Root For Our City Challenge, an initiative to help make eight U.S. cities cleaner, greener and more beautiful. The company is committing $1 million toward tree planting projects and is encouraging the local communities to participate in helping their city secure the largest portion of the grant money.

The American Express Root For Our City Challenge is part of the company’s commitment to community improvement and the environment. Cardmembers may vote for their city with each purchase at a participating merchant in the eight cities, which include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. At the conclusion of the American Express Root For Our City Challenge on October 31, 2008, the city with the most votes from purchases by Cardmembers at participating merchants will receive the largest share of the $1 million grant.

“Trees make a huge difference in our cities. They help to offset carbon emissions, beautify an area and create a positive impact on the local economy,” said Kathy King, vice president of marketplace development, American Express Merchant Services. “Our goal with the Root For Our City Challenge is to engage people across the nation in a collaborative effort to help green the urban settings in which they live and work.”

Read on
The painting is by Nancy Merkle