E-Waste and its Negative Impacts on Environment

E-Waste negative impacts on soil, water, and on humans

Billions of people are using a lot of electronic gadgets, therefore, it is natural that a lot of e-waste produce. Americans throw away an estimated 50 billion dollars in e-waste material every year. The World Health Organization is warning that the amount of e-waste around the world is growing significantly but what is e-waste and why many health risks are associated with electronic waste. E-waste includes all discarded electric or electronic devices and danger produced from e-waste may come from direct contact with harmful materials and heavy metals such as lead cadmium and chromium from inhalation of toxic fumes and the leaching of toxic materials and their accumulation in the food chain.

According to researches the huge amount of lead in e-waste if released into the environment could cause severe damage to human kidneys and blood as well as to the central and peripheral nervous systems. Even some current recycling activities can pose a risk of injury to death. Recycling of some valuable elements contained in e-waste such as copper and gold however these are often extracted using fairly primitive methods such as burning cables to remove the plastic and extract the copper. These methods expose workers to toxic fumes according to the WHO several organizations have highlighted the need for interventions in the field of e-waste. A lot of organizations target children as they are the most vulnerable to harm from exposure from e-waste as children are still growing harmful substances that can affect their development to a greater extent so what can you do to help combat e-waste. You can sell or donate your old electronics you can maintain electronics properly so they last longer you can recycle and dispose of e-waste properly before buying a new electronic device. Consider reusing an old one you can store data online to clear storage space and help your electronics last longer. You can buy energy star-rated electronics there is good reason to follow these few simple rules by recycling 1 million-plus cell phones more than 35 thousand pounds of copper 33, seven hundred plus pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold can be recovered.

That material is not only worth money but recovery will also help to reduce the amount of mining necessary but why is it so hard to follow these rules because nowadays electronics are made to be replaced it's called “planned obsolescence” take for example how Apple's latest operating system made extensive use of haptic features that required the latest iPhone and so forth. These kinds of features are very common in today's electronics and so you are forced to replace them and one has to wonder what happens to the old appliances? Can they be fully recycled now that parts of them that are no longer needed? This situation is further aggravated by the economics of gadgets very often it is cheaper to buy something new than to fix something old and so we find ourselves with two unfortunate situations the first is the dangerous increase in mining activities for procurement for the materials needed for the production of gadgets and the second is large amounts of electronics in landfills leaking toxicity. And it is sad to know that this waste could easily be reduced by reuse, repair or resale according to the researches. The whole idea of pushing consumers to buy products quickly by making older ones obsolete and is causing havoc on our planet. It's a complicated issue that requires a complex solution one such solution would be to require electronic sellers to provide buy-backs and return systems for used equipment export limits could also be introduced where the quantity exported has to equal to that reused or recycled. There are plenty of resolutions that can be conceived if we just put our hearts into it and for the sake of our environment.

How Do Shopping Bags Affect the Environment

How Do Bags Affect the Environment? If you want to know about this then you are at the right place. Here you will also find about Plastic bag pollution and the environment.

All of us want to make greener choices and help the environment but sometimes what’s best for the planet can be contrary. Like, single-use plastic shopping bags seem to rapidly be going extinct. They’re now banned by stores, towns...even entire countries! And in their place are durable, reusable, supposedly greener bags so problem solved, right?

Well, when we look at the entire lifecycle of a product, what’s best for the environment. There are different kinds of bags out there, but here, we’ll focus on five of the most popular: single-use plastic bags, single-use compostable or biodegradable plastic bags, paper bags, and different kinds of heavyweight bags: thick, reusable plastic ones, and the cotton tote bag. From that record, you might think you know which bag is best. But sometimes, our insight does not line up with reality. And that becomes fair when you look at Life Cycle Assessment. A Life Cycle Assessment is a study that looks at the environmental impact of a product during its lifecycle. How a product is formed, used, and disposed of and its impact on climate, and the environment. The climate change bit was pretty straightforward. They added up all the greenhouse gases emitted throughout the lifecycle of these bags. All greenhouse gases are not equal; each has a unique potential to warm the planet. But for easy comparison, all gases are converted to equivalent amounts of carbon dioxide. Meanwhile, the total environmental impact was a lot more complex. Here, the researchers looked at different effects — everything from ozone depletion to toxicity, to water and resource use... and a lot more. By putting a number on these things and adding them up, they could compare an expensive scope of impacts. The drawback is that this is a big oversimplification, and they couldn’t fit in some valuable variables. We’ll get to those later. But for now, the big question is, what did this study discover? Well, the first of all to consider is what it took to form the bags because producing them is the stage with the biggest impact. Single-used plastic bags are made of petroleum also known as oil. And the majority of the impact there came from changing the oil into the plastic material itself. For biodegradable plastic bags, a material called a starch-complexed biopolymer, a plastic that includes plant starches. Overall, the production of these bags releases a similar amount of greenhouse gases as making plastic bags that aren’t biodegradable. But there are also some extra effects of the agriculture involved in making the plant starches, like more fertilizer, water and pesticide use. So just from a production point, biodegradable plastic is actually not good as single-use stuff. Similarly, to make a paper bag, you need to begin with a tree. The process of turning pulp into paper can emit a lot of greenhouse gases! This depends on what kind of fuel the mill uses. Now, if we’ve been holding out for the reusable bags. See, thick, reusable plastic bags are also made from oil, so there’s a bigger impact. Heavier bags also need more fuel to transport them to the store. And cotton tote bags? These might seem like a green choice, but growing cotton requires a huge amount of water, land, fertilizer, and pesticides. On top of that, processing cotton is an energy-demanding process. So, when it comes to making the bag, single-used plastic wins by almost every measure. In this analysis, paper edged out single-used plastic lightly when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, but others disagreed and calculated that paper bags can be bad. And either way, when it comes to the production units, the worst material by far is cotton. Using a bag doesn’t cause pollution, but it does affect how we compare these materials. Like, you don’t use your nice cotton bag one time and then throw it away. Here, the easiest way to compare different materials is by looking at how many times you would need to reuse them to balance their impact, compared to using a new plastic bag at any time. If we just consider the impact of climate change, biodegradable paper and plastic bags are roughly the same as single-use plastic bags. Meanwhile, heavier reusable plastic bags need to be reused at least five times to make up for their climate change impact compared to single-use plastic. And cotton bags need to be reused at least 150 times. To offset climate change impact relative to a single-use plastic bag, they found you’d need to use a paper bag 3 times, a reusable plastic bag 12 times, and a cotton bag 130 times. But! If we look at the total environmental impact, all those numbers change if we add in the other categories with ozone effects, toxicity, runoff, and everything else. In that case, to be greener than a single-use plastic bag, biodegradable plastic bags, reusable plastic bags and paper need to be used about 50 times each. And cotton bags need to be reused 71 thousand times! That means even if you grocery shop two times per week, you need to use that same cotton bag for the next 40 years to have the same impact as using over 7 thousand single-use bags! And this estimate was even higher for organic cotton because organic crop yields are likely to be lower. You’d need to reuse that bag 20 thousand times! So there’s fairly an issue with some of these materials. Like, the numbers for reusable plastic bags are well within the expected lifetime. But for biodegradable plastic, cotton, or paper bags, the number of times you’d need to reuse them is well beyond how long you would hope an individual bag to last.    It’s hard to get good data on what part of plastic bags is recycled, but we know it’s low, possibly around two to three percent. And bags that aren't recycled remain in landfills, clog sewers and pollute waterways. Plastic bags are especially bad since they’re easily flown by the wind and strewn across a large area. They also take a long time to break down and act as a direct threat to wildlife. They can become wrapped around creatures, mistaken for food, and eaten up. Regardless, biodegradable or compostable bags are supposed to solve this problem. Paper bags are biodegradable, so the impact of litter is not so high. And they’re recyclable! But when left to break down in a landfill, they release methane, a greenhouse gas. For the bulky reusable plastic and cotton bags, the disposal should be a smaller part of the overall footprint since optimistically they’ve been reused many times. Both can be recycled, but that doesn’t mean that they are always recycled. For example, only around fifteen percent of textiles are a broad category that includes cotton bags — the greenest bag. The best material depends on many others factors, including your individual habits, like how many times you reuse each type of bag and how you discard your bags. Overall, making single-use plastic bags has a relatively low impact on the environment, but waste is a huge problem with no good solution. The best choice for the end of a plastic bag’s life is to reuse it as a trash bag. Meanwhile, making paper or biodegradable plastic has higher impacts, but these materials lower the problem of litter. And the heavier reusable plastic bag is a great option if you reuse them enough. Cotton tote bags have by far the biggest impact on the environment. They look very trendy when you’ve got them on your shoulder. They need to be used thousands of times to counteract their footprint. So, the point is we’re not saying plastic bags are good. They’re not. But it is significant to remember that all the alternatives have an impact, too.

It’s not worth going out to buy a stylist's new reusable product if you already have one that works. And when you can’t use a bag anymore, do whatever you can to make sure it doesn’t become waste. It’s also worth keeping in mind that despite all the debate grocery bags get, they’re only a small part of the impact on this planet. But looking at the entire life cycle of any product can be a useful way to inspect nearly any aspect of our lives. From the clothes we wear to the food we eat, to how we get around by thinking through the effects of daily choices, individuals and corporations can get a better idea of the best way to reduce footprint.

How Do We Stop Consumerism

This world is sinking in stuff. The stuff we pack into our wardrobe, store in our garage and acquire in shopping malls, and boutiques. Stuff that gets thrown out and washes up on shore, and stuff that causes billions of tons of carbon dioxide to split into the atmosphere every year. But all this stuff isn’t really necessary to live, indeed often we are not so happy because of it. So why do we buy all of this? But more importantly, how do we stop this uncontrol consumerism fueled by capitalist growth? Today, we try to answer those questions by shaping out a possible route through which we can end consumerism and craft a more ethical way of living well on this planet. When a brand launches a nice pair of jeans, buying for status, acceptance, desire, or because of an advertisement are all implanted in our conception of success and mental well-being. Under capitalism, we buy the right things as a way for us to follow acceptance from and connect with our peers. The blast of ads we encounter every day drives us to purchase those new items is not an inherently biological trait. Our hunt for harsher overconsumption is a symptom of capitalism. An economic system was dependent on constant growth to create profits. For a business to succeed, outcompete others, and ultimately rake in more profits, it must grow. One of the masterminds of this profit imperative is advertising. A way to make new products seem fresh, exciting, and even essential for your lifestyle. That new iPhone, headphones, and basically all of the fast fashion are the perfect example of this phenomenon. This advertising is not telling you what the company’s products are, but instead, what you could be with their company’s product. In short, capitalism needs to make more and more s remain effective. But more consumption and more income do not associate with more happiness. Studies reveal that after our basic materialistic needs are met, any additional consumption does little to improve happiness. In addition to its impact on individuals’ self-conception & mental health, capitalist overproduction, and subsequent overconsumption especially massive waste, emissions, and pollution. A country’s rise in emissions correlates strongly with its growth in GDP. Same with energy consumption and production. The capitalist growth model is unsuitable for a zero-carbon world. A fact that has been on display in the failures of decoupling strategies that try to use renewables aids over a gaping wound. And we can see it in the fact that even though renewable capacity is at an all-time high, so too is fossil fuel capacity. We’re emitting more than we ever have. Decoupling strategies just don’t adequately address the overwhelming scientific evidence that recognizes we need drastically reduce emissions quickly if we are to stay below 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming.

So, what other choices do we have if the capitalist growth/profit economy can’t exist alongside a zero-carbon, environmentally ethical one? The degrowth Solution Under the pressures of capitalism and consumerism, certain people are grasping for some form of release valve. Whether it be minimalism, slow living or zero waste living those with the privilege to do so are working to carve out some respite from the unhappiness of capitalist alienation. All of these lifestyle choices correctly recognize the detrimental effect of capitalist consumption on life and the environment, but they lack a structural approach that recognizes the importance of both the individual and the system. This is where degrowth comes in. Essentially, degrowth calls for a realignment of the economy from one based on overconsumption and “obsessive accumulation” to one that produces goods to satisfy real needs like housing, education, health, transport, and arts. At its core, degrowth seeks the dramatic contraction of rich countries to increase well-being for poorer countries. It now takes the Earth one year and some months to regenerate what we consume in a year, and by we, it means the richest 10% of the world, who are responsible for 50% of carbon emissions. So, degrowth completely reimagines living well in countries like the US or Germany. It means buying less, reducing meat consumption, repairing and no second homes on an individual level, but ultimately degrowth cannot function as just individual lifestyle choices. Systemic pathways, like subsidizing all housing retrofits, shutting down the 100 companies that are responsible for 71% of the emissions of the world, redistributing all food waste, dramatically expanding public transportation methods, localizing food production as much as possible, eliminating unnecessary marketing, and a robust emphasis on low carbon, care-oriented jobs like educators, therapists, and in-home care providers, are just some of the many ways to simultaneously improve the well-being of all while drastically reducing the Global consumption levels. You don’t have to live in cave degrowth doesn’t mean going back to the stone age, but it does mean a drastic reduction in energy and material consumption from the largest historical emitters like the United States. The simple truth is that to both avoid global warming above 1.5 degrees Celsius while simultaneously establishing a decent living for the majority world, consumption levels of the world need to decline. One study modeled those countries with the highest per-capita consumers could cut their energy consumption rate by 95% and still live well with a combination of efficient technologies and alternative lifestyle choices. In addition, they found that a global reduction of energy consumption by 60% is not only feasible but also could be done in a way that brings a comfortable lifestyle to every single person on this planet. And if you’re thinking that a 60% reduction or even a 95% reduction would mean living in caves, you’d be wrong. The new reality would look like life for all people and experience well-being instead of relying on extra stuff to manage our emotional health. It would be an economy based on mutual repair and care.But this economic matter cannot happen under a state capitalist economic model. Indeed, degrowth to be handed down in policy from the ruling class it would look the same as severity measures or even the conditions we’re now living through now in the pandemic. Because, under capitalism, no growth means recessions, the consequences of which inevitably fall on the working class and the marginalized. This is why degrowth is just one piece of the puzzle. Towards ecosocialist degrowth: While degrowth does a sufficient job recognizing the inherent destruction of our current capitalist growth/profit system, it needs to be in conversation with ecosocialism. Ecosocialism cannot work without degrowth, and vise versa. A synthesis of the two creates a constant path away from capitalism. The appropriate means of production by laborers and the masses, and the subsequent full democratic control of the workplace and the state is essential to implement any measure of degrowth. Reducing consumption must bubble up democratically from the many, otherwise, it can quickly fall into harsh measures of economic oppression. This is why ecosocialism is essential, it allows for the reconstruction of the economy not based on profit and ultimately endless growth, but one based on needs—ultimately handing the working-class agency and liberation. Why does work need to defines our life? Why is it so much easier to buy than to repair? Faced with the realization that capitalist decoupling is not working as we continue to increase global consumption, an ecosocialist degrowth intervention must happen. After all, what could be more alluring than life with more time to be with the people you love and do the things you want to do.

Non-Toxic Paints: Healthier for You and Environment

Non-Toxic Paints: Healthier for You and Environment

Why should non-toxic paint matter? why should it matter to us the reason is that it matters to us because we don’t want to introduce anything into our home that is unhealthy whether it be food, skincare products, any building materials, or the paint that comes off and you inhale, smell and surrounded by.

There are several ways in which you can make your painting project into a sustainable painting project. From purchasing low VOCs paint to careful cleanup, eco-friendly paints are simple. 

Buying low and no VOCs paints before we go any further what is volatile: a material that changes from solid or liquid into gas the more volatile a compound the easier it will sublimate or evaporate into a vapor. Organic relating to or derived from living matter although VOCs are organic that can also be human-made as well as naturally occurring compound made up or consisting of two or more existing parts or elements. Volatile organic compounds can be found in many things including fossil fuels exhaust fumes adhesives paint. As the paint dries the moisture evaporates thus releasing VOCs into the air and not only, they are bad for the environment but they are also harmful to animals including us humans while a small acute dose of VOCs has little impact. The biggest concern is long-term repeated exposure which leads to a variety of health problems. Low VOCs paints may cost a few more money per gallon and these low VOCs paints are as good quality as other paint. 

Purchase paint applicators made from renewable and recycled materials. There are many green painting applicators in the market available now but a little bit costly.

Carefully measure to determine how much paint you need for your project. Carefully measuring will prevent leftover paint and will help to prevent wastage. 

Choose latex or acrylic paints. According to new research acrylic and latex paints are the best for the environment. Oil paints contain the highest level of fumes and chemicals. 

Scrape excess paint from cans, brushes and rollers. A wall scraper or stick works well. Scraping before washing will make the applicators easier to clean and work. Wash your paint applicators indoors and not in a drain on the street or outside in your yard. The paint could harm your soil so first scrape your brush in the open place then wash it.

Do not pour paint thinner down the drain because these thinner and oil-based paints contain toxic chemicals. Add litter or shredded newspapers or some rough paper right into the paint can. This will absorb the liquid. You can then discard the paint can in regular waste. If your place has a hazardous waste drop-off center, then take the thinner or thinner to this center.

Dispose of paint properly by converting extra acrylic paint to a solid by removing the lid. This will allow the solvents and water to evaporate. Then discard in the regular trash bin. If a recycling center exists in your place, then recycle the empty paint can there.

Tightly sealed paint cans and should be stored upside down. This will help elongate the life of the paint extra.

Donate unused paint consider donating your extra paint to a local shelter house.

Environmental Impact of Coffee Production

The liquid that fuels millions around the globe. Coffee providing caffeine and warmth to early-morning risers and late-night workers alike. There’s little doubt that coffee is an essential commodity, but all this consumption means it also holds with its environmental consequences. So today, we are going to investigate the true cost of coffee by asking two questions: What’s the impact of growing coffee on the environment? And why do we grow it this way we do? Five hundred billion cups of coffee are consumed worldwide every year. And in the United States, where the coffee flows like water, drinkers consume roughly 400 million cups a day.

The demand for coffee is undeniable. It’s the second most traded product next to crude oil. But there’s something hidden in these large numbers: an absolute split between the geography of coffee consumers and coffee producers. The countries that import the most coffee, like Germany, United States and France, are primarily situated in Europe and North America, while the biggest producers are situated in the Global South, with countries like Vietnam, Brazil and Colombia exporting the bulk of the world’s coffee. Essentially coffee plantations have spread out across the majority world to stuff the coffee addiction of the Global. So, when considering the environmental impact caused by coffee, it’s not just the visible waste of unnecessary cups that we need to address, it's also the impact that covers how coffee is grown. So, in a very simple way, there are two ways of cultivating coffee: sun-grown and shade-grown. Sun-grown coffee is just a simple way to describe the relatively new industrial coffee farming systems. These production methods were getting started in the 1970s and 80s which hunted to industrialize supply chains to increase yields and turn down prices. But as many of the coffee-growing countries like Brazil and Colombia change over to this new industrial way of farming, which depends on chemical resistant and sun-tolerant coffee strains like Robusta coffee, they began to experience the ecological concerns of this globalized system. Sun grown coffee depends on large feeds of closely planted crops of coffee that are grown without the protection of shade trees, drench in chemical herbicides and pesticides, and then harvested in one fell dive using expensive technology, which is not unlike the monocropping approach applied to corn and soybeans in the US. As a result of technification, smallholder farmers in some cases are forced out of coffee production altogether, because they are unable to keep up with the crushing combination of high input costs of big machinery and the low prices caused by competition with larger mono-crop farms across the world. This industrialized coffee system can lead to numerous environmental problems like mountainside erosion, soil degradation, chemical pollution in waterways, as well as deforestation. Sun-grown coffee is one of the most sprinkle crops in the world. This not only causes ecological damage in the form of runoff and species loss, but it also harms the health of workers at farms where the chemicals are computed over safety equipment. Essentially, sun-grown coffee farmers are stuck in an order that demands high yields and low prices at the expense of the community and the environment around them. But there is another method of growing coffee. In fact, it is how coffee has always been grown up until recently. Under the protective shade of other trees. Shade-grown cultivation is the traditional system of growing coffee. This system prioritizes a biodiverse landscape to build a healthier habitat for coffee plants. Indeed, coffee plants prefer shade when they grow in the natural environment. This type of growing system allows for a much more diverse, and ultimately stable, method of growing coffee. By allowing the coffee plant to bloom in its ideal habitat, it requires fewer chemicals and the trees that are intercropped with coffee not only provide shade but have the potential to carbon sequestration from the atmosphere. If more farmers adopt tree intercropping systems like those used on coffee plantations, they could potentially sequester 17.2 gigatons of carbon dioxide over the next 30 years. This carbon sequestration happens because intercropped trees on a coffee farm in many ways look like forests. As a result, this means they have the added benefit of attracting countless pest-loving birds that act as a natural insecticide for the coffee. And unlike sun-grow monocultures, clearing forest land for shade-grown coffee production is unnecessary. Alongside all of these environmental benefits, intercropping with nut or fruit trees means a more diverse and ultimately a more stable livelihood. This means that if a coffee crop fails one year, it won’t necessarily spell collapse. So, yes while overall yields might be a bit lower than an industrial system, shade-grown coffee means more economic security, less mechanization, and a healthier ecosystem. On the top of the list, the coffee just generally tastes much better. Ultimately, the industrialized system, while good for higher yield has pushed coffee-growing into an environmentally destructive activity. Shade-grown coffee clearly demonstrates that coffee doesn’t have to damage the soil or its environment, in fact, traditional coffee growing has been around for hundreds of years. The important thing here is to observe where and how this transition to an environmentally destructive practice is happening. So, let’s be simple and clear, this didn’t just happen naturally. When we looked toward the environmental impacts of coffee then, the answer is not as simple as just buying single-origin, shade-grown varieties. This is an important part of the solution, but we must simultaneously understand that for more ecologically sound systems to prosper, they need a global economy that actively seeks to support and fund them. One that prioritizes environmental health, communal well-being, and quality goods and stands in simple contrast to the current global capitalist system which seeks high production, low prices, and growth regardless of social and environmental cost.

Sustainable Building Material

When you think about sustainable construction you probably think about things like green roofs or just greenery and natural kind of area and things like solar panels or some kind of renewable energy source connected to the building and then also having a garden or something like that. But what makes a housing development sustainable; sustainable housing is really energy-efficient and it utilizes things like a smaller area and also good insulation and of course, you have really good materials sourcing really utilizing things that are reusable or reused also sustainable development has minimal impact on the natural environment. 

As the awareness is creeping about how we damage the earth by irresponsible and unsustainable practices, building designs are also changing. The impact has come about from considerable environmental damage and the depletion of natural resources.

The building construction cannot take place in isolation and a large number of factors have to be taken into account.  This makes use of natural elements, finding eco-friendly alternatives and using them wisely. This also means efficiency in construction.

Careful planning and team works are required since the outcomes of decision implement design should succeed in the right manner. Hence the right planning is crucial also takes into the scope maintenance and future renovations.      

During the construction process, on-site pollution and effluents have to be kept in check. Materials like cold-formed steel are environmentally friendly. Apart from being lightweight, the steel is longer lasting and fire-resistant. Moreover, cold formes steel is a recyclable material.

Saving energy means less use of fossil fuel and electricity consumption. The situation should deliver maximum daylight to save on generated energy. The implementation of solar energy generation technology results in sustainable building construction.

For foundations, concrete has become a preferred material. The volatile organic compound emission is low, besides the material management is less wasteful. A solid insulated foundation is provided by concrete mixture to the sustainable building. Concrete blocks can be prefabricated in the industry. These are then transported to the site of construction and installed there.      

Steel framing is becoming much-used framing material due to its many benefits. Cole-formed steel tops the list as it is more advantageous and eco-friendlier. This type of material offers faster installation in the case of floor walls and ceilings.

In a colder environment, creating effective heat barriers results in saving on energy this means that a well-insulated home will consume less energy.  

The right approach to sustainable building construction has become the need of the day. With the threat of global warming, increasing daily, it has become imperative to prevent greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide to reach the atmosphere. There will be an increasing focus on sustainable construction in the coming years and for a good reason as future managers, we must understand the concept of sustainable construction and learn how to apply it to construction for sustainability now and in the future.