Earth Wise

By Randy Simon

From green business and new environmental legislation to how nature impacts our environment in ways never before considered, Earth Wise offers a look at our changing environment.... more

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How many episodes does Earth Wise have?

The podcast currently has 2,517 episodes available.

Earth Wise episodes:

June 18, 2019 Forecasting A Massive Dead Zone
The Gulf of Mexico dead zone occurs every summer, and is considered one of the largest dead zones in the world. This cyclical event occurs where the Mississippi River empties into the Gulf of Mexico, just off the coast of Louisiana and Texas.
This annual dead zone is primarily caused by excess nutrient pollution from human activities, such as urbanization and agriculture, occurring throughout the Mississippi River watershed. Washed off the land by spring rains, these excess nutrients stimulate an overgrowth of algae once they reach the Gulf of Mexico. The algae in the Gulf eventually die, and then sink and decompose in the water. The resulting area of the ocean ends up with a condition known as hypoxia, which is an insufficient amount of oxygen to support most marine life. In hypoxic or dead zones, animals that can’t swim away will often suffocate and die.
Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
estimate that this year the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico will be
approximately 8,000 square miles, which is roughly the size of
Massachusetts. The research team uses
U.S. Geological Survey river flow and nutrient data to make its forecast.
According to NOAA, the abnormally high amount of spring rainfall is a
major factor contributing to this year’s dead zone. Last month, nitrate loads entering the
Mississippi River watershed were 18% above the long-term average, and
phosphorus loads were about 49% above the long-term average.
While the 2019 forecast is slightly less than the record size of more than 8,700 square miles set in 2017, it’s still much larger than the five year average size of 5,700.
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Very large dead zone forecast for the Gulf of Mexico
Massive 8,000-mile ‘dead zone’ could be one of the gulf’s largest
Photo, posted May 22, 2009, courtesy of Michael McCarthy via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 17, 2019 Wildlife Bridges
Highway accidents involving animals are a big problem for both people and animals. About 200 people die every year in the U.S. as a result of collisions with animals. In total, one to two million large animals are killed by motorists every year. And these crashes are expensive: deer-car collisions cost an average of more than $8,000 each; elk-vehicle collisions about $25,000; and moose-vehicle collisions over $44,000.
In the United States, there are 21 threatened and endangered species
whose very survival is threatened by road mortalities. These include Key deer in Florida, bighorn
sheep in California, and red-bellied turtles in Alabama.
One solution that has been quite effective around the world in
reducing car-animal collisions is wildlife overpasses and underpasses. Crossings and fencing that guide animals over
or under highways reduce collisions by 85-95%.
These traffic-spanning bridges and tunnels have been popular in Europe
since the 1950s. The overpasses usually
look much like regular overpasses for cars but are decked out with native
flora. The underpasses, which assist
shyer and smaller animals, are typically invisible to drivers.
Washington State has recently started building wildlife bridges and
underpasses on Interstate 90. These
passes will allow elk, black bears, mountain lions, pika, and even trout to
traverse what was once a near-impenetrable barrier of road.
Some animals that are accustomed to human structures start using the
crossings almost immediately. For
others, there is learning curve. As in
many things, the early adapters are important as they provide paths and model
behavior that more reticent animals learn to follow.
Wildlife bridges are a very good thing for wildlife and for people.
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How wildlife bridges over highways make animals—and people—safer
Photo, posted July 22, 2017, courtesy of David Fulmer via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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June 14, 2019 One Million Extinctions
A group of 145 expert authors from 50 countries has produced a report based upon a review of 15,000 scientific and government sources that is the first comprehensive look at the state of the planet’s biodiversity in 15 years. The conclusions are alarming.
Thanks to human pressures, one million species may be pushed to
extinction in the next few years, something with serious consequences for human
beings as well as the rest of life on earth.
Based upon scientific studies as well as indigenous and local knowledge, the evidence is overwhelming that human activities are the primary cause of nature’s decline. The report ranked the major drivers of species decline as land conversion, including deforestation; overfishing; bush meat hunting and poaching; climate change; pollution; and invasive alien species.
The tremendous variety of living species on our plant which number at
least 8.7 million and perhaps many more – biodiversity – constitutes a
life-supporting safety net that provides our food, clean water, air, energy,
and more.
In parts of the ocean, little life remains but green slime. Some remote tropical forests are nearly
silent because insects have vanished.
Many grasslands are becoming deserts.
Human activity has severely altered more than 75% of Earth’s land areas
and has impacted 66% of the oceans. The
world’s oceans increasingly are characterized by plastics, dead zones,
overfishing, and acidification.
The main message of the 1,500-page report is that transformative
change is urgently needed. In order to
safeguard a healthy planet, society needs to shift from a sole focus on chasing
economic growth. This won’t be easy, but
we must come to the understanding that nature is the foundation for development
before it is too late.
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One million species at risk of extinction, UN report warns
Photo, posted January 1, 2014, courtesy of Eric Kilby via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 13, 2019 Our Growing Appetite For Energy
Energy consumption in the United States set a record high in 2018. Overall, energy consumption reached 101.2 quadrillion BTUs or quads last year, breaking the previous record of 101.0 set in 2007. Most of us are not too familiar with quadrillions of anything, nor with BTUs for that matter. If it is any more illuminating, 101 quads are the equivalent of about 300 billion kilowatt hours. Our energy use increased by 3.6% from 2017, which was the largest annual increase since 2010.
Wind, solar, and natural gas provided the largest increases in energy supply. In 2018, solar and wind energy were both up by 0.18 quads, representing a 22% gain for solar and a 7.5% increase for wind. Over the past ten years, overall renewable energy has doubled in the U.S., with wind increasing by a factor of 5 since 2008 and solar by an amazing factor of 48.
Natural gas generation increased by 10.7%, or a total of 3 quads over
the previous year. The growth in
natural gas use isn’t good news, but since much of it represents replacing
coal, it at least corresponds to reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
The unfortunate part of our energy consumption is that the majority of
it is still in the form of “rejected energy”.
It most often takes the form of waste heat, such as the warm exhaust
from automobiles and furnaces. The
efficiency of our cars, lightbulbs and factories determines how much waste heat
is produced and in turn how much fuel and electricity can be put to productive
use.
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US energy consumption hits record high in 2018, solar/wind/natural gas grow
Photo, posted April 27, 2015, courtesy of Mathias Appel via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 12, 2019 The Future Of Animals
Researchers at the University of Southampton have forecast a global shift towards smaller birds and mammals over the next century.
According to the research team, small, fast-lived, highly fertile, and
insect-eating animals, which can thrive in all sorts of habitats, will
predominate in the future. Rodents and
songbirds are examples of the so-called ‘winners.’ Less adaptable, slow-lived species, requiring
specialist habitats, will be more likely to face extinction. Among the so-called ‘losers’ are the black
rhino and the tawny eagle.
The researchers focused on more than 15,000 living mammals and birds and considered the following five characteristics: body mass, breadth of habitat, diet, litter or clutch size, and length of time between generations. Using this data and data from the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species, the researchers used modern statistical tools to project and evaluate the loss of biodiversity.
The study, which was recently published in the journal Nature
Communications, predicts that the average body mass of mammals will
collectively decline by 25% over just the next 100 years. Over the past 130,000 years, the average body
size of mammals only declined 14%.
This substantial downsizing of animals is forecasted to occur due to
the effects of ecological change. But, according to the study’s lead author,
the loss of these species, which perform unique functions within the global
ecosystem, may ironically wind up being a driver of change as well.
The researchers hope future studies will further explore the long-term
effects of species extinction on habitats and ecosystems.
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Web Links
Study predicts shift to smaller animals over next century
Photo, posted April 6, 2013, courtesy of Nic Trott via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 11, 2019 Meal Kits And The Environment
Meal kit services have become extremely popular in recent years. These are companies that deliver a box of pre-portioned ingredients and a chef-created recipe to your door to make home-cooked meals easy and practical for busy people. Leading companies like Blue Apron, HelloFresh, and Plated have been joined by dozens of others competing in the meal kit market. As of last year, annual sales for these things were over $3 billion and growing at more than a 20% annual rate.
A major rap against meal kits has been their environmental impact,
mostly centered around the amount of packaging waste they generate. While there is most certainly lots of
packaging waste associated with meal kits, it turns out that their overall carbon
footprint is actually rather good compared with conventional ways to make
homecooked meals.
A study from the University of Michigan looked at the cradle-to-grave
impact of meal kits, taking into account every major step in the lifetime of
the food ingredients and the packaging – agricultural production, packaging
production, distribution, supply chain losses, consumption, and waste
generation.
Surprisingly, meal kits have a much lower overall carbon footprint
than the same meals made from ingredients purchased at the grocery store – even
including their packaging. The main
reason is that pre-portioned ingredients and a streamlined supply chain lower
overall food losses and waste for meal kits compared to store-bought
meals. Pre-portioning simply results in
fewer ingredients that end up being wasted.
Meal kits also have radically different supply chain structures than
foods sold in supermarkets.
Whether the economics and culinary aspects of meals kits are
advantageous for many people is an open question, but apparently from an
environmental perspective, they are just fine.
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Web Links
Climate change has worsened global economic inequality
Photo, posted June 11, 2018, courtesy of Marco Verch via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 10, 2019 Mass Timber
Mass timber is a type of construction typically characterized by the use of large solid wood panels for wall, floor, and roof construction. Large structural panels, posts, and beams glued under pressure or nailed together in layers, with the wood’s grain stacked perpendicular for extra strength – are prized as innovative building materials, superior to concrete and steel in many ways. Mass timber has pushed the perceived boundaries of wood construction, leading to building heights and spans that traditionally have required concrete, steel or masonry for structural support. The move to mass timber has become something of a construction revolution and many see it as a significant part of a climate change solution.
The question is just how green is mass timber
construction? How sustainable is it in
terms of the forest management, logging, manufacture and transportation of wood
products involved?
A number of environmental groups are very
skeptical. There is not yet
comprehensive data on the subject. Only
recently have interdisciplinary scientists begun to study the potential climate
impacts of the wide use of mass timber.
Despite these questions, the mass timber
industry is taking off. Demand for mass
timber posts and beams has led to new sawmills opening in the U.S. Northwest
and many new jobs for loggers.
The aesthetics and economics of mass timber
are both very attractive compared with conventional large-scale construction
materials. The real unknowns relate to
the environmental impact of its widespread use.
If that can take place in a sustainable and environmentally
conscientious way, it would be very important in the fight against climate
change. Carbon dioxide emissions from
the building industry account for more than a third of global emissions,
primarily from the concrete and steel industries.
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Web Links
As Mass Timber Takes Off, How Green Is This New Building Material?
Photo, posted March 19, 2018, courtesy of Freres Lumber Co via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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June 07, 2019 Making Roads From Ocean Plastic
Like many other places around the world, India has a big problem with plastic waste. Its 1.3 billion people each use an average of 24 pounds of plastic per year and much of it ends up in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean.
Fishermen in India’s southern state of Kerala have taken on the battle against plastic waste in the ocean by launching a campaign called Suchitwa Sagaram, or Clean Sea, in which they are collecting the plastic and bringing it back to shore.
In the first 10 months of the program, fisherman have removed 25 tons
of plastic from the Arabian Sea. Once
the plastic waste reaches shore, it is fed into a plastic shredding
machine. As is the case for many of
India’s plastic recycling schemes, the shredded plastic from the sea is
converted into material that is used for road surfacing.
There are more than 20,000 miles of plastic roads in India, mostly in
rural areas. In fact, more than half the
roads in the southern state of Tamil Nadu are plastic. Such roads have become popular because they
are more resilient to India’s searing heat.
The melting point of plastic roads is around 150 degrees Fahrenheit as compared
to 122 degrees for conventional roads.
Roads made from recycled plastic are also cheaper than ones using conventional plastic additives. A mile of plastic road uses the equivalent of a million and a half plastic bags and saves about a ton and a half of asphalt. Overall, plastic roads are about 8% cheaper than conventional roads and create jobs for people in the fishing communities.
India’s plastic roads are a promising way to fight the problem of
ocean plastic pollution.
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Web Links
These Indian fishermen take plastic out of the sea and use it to build roads
Photo, posted April 25, 2016, courtesy of Bo Eide via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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June 06, 2019 Antibiotics In The Environment
Antibiotics make their way into the environment in many ways. Sources of antibiotic pollution include the waste from large-scale animal farms and the wastewater from hospitals, municipalities, and antibiotic manufacturing.
A new study has discovered concentrations of antibiotics in some of
the world’s rivers exceed safe levels by up to 300 times. In the project, researchers looked for 14
commonly used antibiotics in rivers in 72 countries across six continents. They found antibiotics at 65% of all the
sites they examined.
The antibiotic ciproflaxacin was the compound that most frequently
exceeded safe levels, surpassing that threshold in 51 places. The antibiotic
metronidazole exceeded safe levels by the biggest margin. Concentrations of this antibiotic at one site
in Bangladesh was 300 times greater than the safe level. The most prevalent antibiotic was
trimethoprim. It was detected at 307 of
the 711 sites.
Some of the world’s most iconic rivers were sampled as a part of this study, including the Danube, Mekong, Seine, Thames, Tiber and Tigris.
The project, which was led by the University of York, found that
high-risk sites were often located near wastewater treatment systems, waste or
sewage dumps, and in some areas of political unrest.
Safe levels for antibiotics, which were recently established by the
AMR Industry Alliance, range from 20,000 to 32,000 nanograms per liter
depending on the compound.
According to the research team, solutions to the problem of antibiotic
contamination should include infrastructure investment, tighter regulation, and
the remediation of already contaminated sites.
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Web Links
Antibiotics found in some of the world’s rivers exceed ‘safe’ levels, global study finds
Photo, posted October 7, 2013, courtesy of Nicola via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min
June 05, 2019 From Coal Plant To Solar Farm
The Nanticoke Generating Station in Ontario, Canada was the largest coal-fired power plant in North America. It was commissioned in 1972 and was capable of providing nearly 4,000 megawatts of electrical power into the southern Ontario power grid. At peak, the plant consumed nearly 40,000 tons of coal per day.
The government of Ontario eventually decided to phase out all of its coal plants about ten years ago but the decommissioning was delayed for a time because of the lack of replacement sources of energy. The plant began to shut down its individual generating units starting in 2010. By the end of 2013, the Nanticoke plant was shut down for good.
In 2016, a 44 MW solar power station was contracted for the site and
construction began last year. The plant
opened at the beginning of April coinciding with the one-year anniversary of
the demolition of Nanticoke’s smokestacks, which once stood 650 feet tall.
The new solar farm has 192,431 solar panels spread across 260 acres. The facility, situated on the shores of Lake Erie in Ontario, will generate enough electricity to power more than 7,200 homes.
The idea to use part of the retired coal plant’s property for a new
solar farm was spearheaded and paid for by Ontario Power Generation, the Six
Nations of the Grand River Development Corporation, and the Mississaugas of the
Credit First Nation.
The Chief of the Mississaugas called the solar project an important
economic development in the region and for tribal nations that sets the stage
for future mutually-beneficial partnerships between Ontario Power Generation
and others.
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Web Links
Canadian Coal-Fired Power Plant Transformed into Solar Farm
Photo, posted July 26, 2009, courtesy of Jason Paris via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
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2min

FAQs about Earth Wise:

How many episodes does Earth Wise have?

The podcast currently has 2,517 episodes available.