Phosphorus and Plastic Pollute World's Oceans
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UNEP Year Book: Phosphorus and Plastic Pollute World's Oceans
NAIROBI, Kenya, February 17, 2011 (ENS) - Enormous amounts of the
fertilizer phosphorus are discharged into oceans due to inefficiencies
in farming and a failure to recycle wastewater, the United Nations
Environment Programme warns in its 2011 Year Book released today.
An emerging concern over plastics pollution of the oceans is
identified in the Year Book as "persistent, bio-accumulating and toxic
substances" associated with plastic marine waste.
Research indicates that tiny pieces of plastic are adsorbing and
concentrating from the seawater and sediments chemicals from
polychlorinated biphenols, PCBs, to the pesticide DDT.
Plastic pollution in the estuary de Santos, Sao Vicente, Brazil (Photo
by Instituto EcoFaxina)
"Many of these pollutants, including PCBs, cause chronic effects such
as endocrine disruption, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity," states the
2011 Year Book.
UNEP released the Year Book 2011 ahead of the annual gathering of the
world's environment ministers that opens on Monday in Nairobi.
Experts cited in the book say that both phosphorus discharge and new
concerns over plastics underline the need for better management of the
world's wastes and improved patterns of consumption and production.
"The phosphorus and marine plastics stories bring into sharp focus the
urgent need to bridge scientific gaps but also to catalyze a global
transition to a resource-efficient Green Economy in order to realize
sustainable development and address poverty," said UNEP Executive
Director Achim Steiner.
"Whether it is phosphorus, plastics or any one of the myriad of
challenges facing the modern world, there are clearly inordinate
opportunities to generate new kinds of employment and new kinds of
more efficient industries," Steiner said.
Demand for phosphorus has soared during the 20th century, and the Year
Book 2011 highlighted the nutrient in part because of the heated
debate over whether or not finite reserves of phosphate rock will soon
run out.
Floods in Queensland, Australia in December and January caused heavy
sediment flows to the ocean. (NASA image courtesy Norman Kuring, Ocean
Color Web)
An estimated 35 countries produce phosphate rock. The top 10 countries
with the highest reserves are: Algeria, China, Israel, Jordan, Russia,
South Africa, Syria and the United States.
New phosphate mines have been commissioned in countries such as
Australia, Peru and Saudi Arabia and countries and companies are
looking further afield, even to the seabed off the coast of Namibia.
The Year Book recommends a global phosphorus assessment to more
precisely map phosphorus flows in the environment and predict levels
of economically viable reserves.
"While there are commercially exploitable amounts of phosphate rock in
several countries, those with no domestic reserves could be
particularly vulnerable in the case of global shortfalls," the Year
Book notes.
There is an enormous opportunity to recover phosphorus by recyling
wastewater, the Year Book advises. Up to 70 percent of this water is
laden with nutrients and fertilizers such as phosphorus, which
currently is discharged untreated into rivers and coastal areas.
Heavy doses of nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen increase the
risk of harmful algal blooms, which can prompt the closure of
fisheries and swimming areas.
Other measures to reduce discharges include cutting erosion and the
loss of topsoil where large quantities of phosphorus are associated
with soil particles and excess fertilizers are stored after
application.
The Year Book advises that further research is needed on the way
phosphorus travels through the environment to maximize its use in
agriculture and livestock production and cut waste, while reducing
environmental impacts on rivers and oceans.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2011/2011-02-17-02.html
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By Ryan Fleming, DigitalTrends.com
Two German inventors have created an electric vehicle that recharges the battery
through a wind turbine carried in the car. To test the vehicle, the duo recently
completed a 3,100-mile trek across Australia.
It is almost like German adventurers Dirk Gion and Stefan Simmerer saw the
latest models of electric cars, and decided to see if they could go out and make
the manufacturers feel bad. In a move that will have green aficionados cheering
and gearheads gently weeping at the state of the world, a new electric car
powered by a wind turbine has just been unleashed into the Australian wilds.
The vehicle, known as the Wind Explorer, uses an electric battery similar to
those found in most of the current generation of electric cars like the Chevy
Volt and Nissan Leaf, but rather than needing to plug in every night, the Wind
Explorer comes standard with a 20-foot retractable bamboo mast that holds a wind
turbine to charge the battery. The Wind Runner can also be powered—or perhaps
more accurately “dragged”—by a kite, assuming of course that there is ample
wind. The result is a lightweight electric car that weighs under 500 pounds and
has a top speed of 55 miles an hour, all with close to zero emissions.
To test their new eco-mobile, the Germans travelled to Australia, where they
planned to drive (and sail) the Wind Explorer from the southwestern Australian
town of Albany, head east on the southern coast, and arrive in Sydney on the
southeastern tip of the continent to the cheers of a handful, and the bewildered
stares of most. The entire trip took 18 days, covered 3,100 miles and set a
handful of world records, including being the first wind-powered vehicle to
cross a continent, the longest overall distance covered for a wind-powered
vehicle on land, and the longest distance covered in 36 hours by a wind-powered
vehicle, as well as several others in the same vein. The trip across Australia
also marks the first nearly emission-free trip across a continent in a vehicle.
Even horses, which some might consider green in a sense, emit more pollution
from the methane in their waste than the Wind Explorer.
Dirk Gion and Stefan Simmerer
The Wind Explorer uses an 8kWh lithium-ion battery, similar to what most
electric cars are packing; the difference is in the means of charging the
battery. Although it has a plug to charge the battery from the power grid, the
real focus of the Wind Explorer is the wind turbine. When the car is in need of
a charge, the drivers hoist a 20-foot collapsible mast, housed in a special
compartment that runs between the driver and passenger seat, and the turbine
begins to charge the battery. Once fully charged, the vehicle averaged close to
250 miles before needing to be recharged.
The exact length of time it took to recharge the battery using a wind turbine
varies with conditions, but from the grid, it typically recharges at a rate of
20-percent per hour at maximum input.
http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/543/wind-powered-car-sets-records-in-a-3100-mile-road-test/