v.west88's blog

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Okay, so Christmas isn't for another 153 days, but who doesn't love a little holiday spirit during the summer months. So as we look ahead to the cold, winter months, the question of which is better suited for the environment...real Christmas trees or artificial ones.

The National Christmas Tree Association pinned real trees versus artificial ones on which Christmas tree is more environmentally friendly. But before you go placing bets, here's some basic information about the Christmas tree tradition. » read more

Getting rid of junk mail would save a lot of trees. That's a fact, but marketing departments everywhere cringe at the thought of removing the mailing tradition. The belief that the return on investing in direct mail is to great to remove this marketing scheme from our everyday lives.

A resolution between group of direct-marketing companies, along with some of their corporate clients, are banding together to make an unsustainable practice at least a little greener.  » read more

David Hamilton paid nothing for his bed. The king-size wooden bed frame was found by Hamilton while scavenging. He found the mattress at Freecycle.com, a free online exchange site. In total, he paid £3, equivalent to $6 dollars, all on screws to hold the frame together.  Hamilton considers himself a freegan.

The art of freeganism is quite simple. Scrounge whatever you need by performing in the age old act of dumpster diving. The anti-consumerism movement is sweeping the United Kingdom by storm. » read more

The Bengal Tiger population at the Suklaphanta Reserve in Nepal has been on the decline. In 2005 there was 20 to 50 Bengals living at the Eastern Himalayan site according to a WWF survey. Now, there is only about 6 to 14 Bengals. The reason for this decrease....poachers.

The estimates are based on the results of a long-term WWF camera trap study which ironically captured images of armed men on poaching expeditions rather than expected Bengals (Pictured to the right). » read more

Marine life calling the Antarctic Peninsula home are being threatened by a common friend, the iceberg. New data suggests this environment along the Antarctic Peninsula is going to get hit more frequently by the icebergs. This is due to an increase in the number of icebergs rubbing the seabed as a result of shrinking winter sea ice.

Nearly 80% of Antarctica's marine life is found on the sea floor and the icebergs are crushing these animals and plant life. » read more

Kamfers Dam in Kimberley, South Africa is the nesting spot for the Lesser Flamingos in South Africa and is 1 of only 6 breeding ground for the birds in the world! South Africa recently nominated the wetlands at Kamfers Dam a Natural Heritage Site because of the support it provides to the major population of Lesser Flamingos as well as other water birds.

50,000 plus Lesser Flamingos call this S shaped island home. This population produced nearly 9,000 chicks this year alone. » read more

With about 7 weeks left in summer (but who's counting) the urge to start planning  for the major move from home to dorm is upon us...well at least me. Entering my junior year I decided to take a look at ways college students could help the environment by making their dorm rooms just a tad bit greener. I found a great list of ideas online that helped jump start research into living greener at school.

You live, eat, sleep, study, and breath in your room at college. » read more

The International Institute for Species Exploration (easily referred to as the IISE, based out of Arizona State Univeristy) released its list of 2008’s newest species. This list covers land, sea, and well, things that have been in the Earth’s ground for well over 75 million years. Here’s the IISE’s top 10 list of new species that grace this planet.

1. Electrolux Sleeper Ray
» read more

At the end of 2006, worldwide capacity of all wind turbines was close to 75 gigawatts, which represents around 1% of all electricity use in the world. Three quarters of that wind powered use comes from Europe. And the leaders with nearly 20% of their electricity coming from wind turbines are The Danes. Germany and Spain are placed 2nd and 3rd respectfully with about 10% of their energy being powered by the wind. » read more

There are numerous claims that rechargeable batteries are the way to go, but are they that much better than our everyday alkaline batteries? And are they truly worth all that extra money?

It's a guarantee that batteries will die. After providing power to everything from cameras, to remote controls and your kids toys, there comes a point when batteries must move on to battery heaven. This year alone, one person will throw away an average of 8 batteries and Americans together will purchase close to 3 billion dry-cell batteries. » read more