Alternative Transit

As the urban legend goes, General Motors bought up streetcars throughout the country so that they could sell buses. That is only part of the real story. Providing transit had fallen on the local governments to maintain the infrastructure and the rails for streetcars and it became more expensive than maintaining the publicly funded roadways.

Changing demographics and unbearable traffic are making streetcars or light rail have a strong come back. Light-rail and streetcar stations have proven to attract significant and sustainable development. When people define American’s most livable cities they have many things in common, costs of living, low unemployment, great opportunity for higher education and alternative transportation.

Portland has earned its reputation as one of the nation’s most livable cities due in large part to its commitment to create and support a diverse, sustainable community, with an emphasis on healthy neighborhoods, a vibrant urban core, and a strong regional economy. The city consistently ranks at the top of “quality of life” ratings, is often listed as one of the places where professional and creative classes choose to live because of the smart growth, transit and walking, and award winning urban planning and environmental stewardship. (Street Smart. Streetcars and Cities in the Twenty-First Century)

Streetcars are wonderful tools to spur economic development. Kenosha, Wisconsin, built a new streetcar system for $6 million; that system has already spurred $100 million in new development with another $50 million planned. Portland’s modern streetcar system cost $57 million; it has brought $2 billion in new development. In terms of economic growth, few infrastructure investments can offer such dramatic rates of return.

While buses usually carry only the transit dependent, rail service can appeal to riders from choice --- people who have cars and can drive, but who choose to ride transit instead. Most riders from choice represent a car removed from rush hour traffic.

The Japanese corporation, Kawasaki has introduced a more environmentally friendly rail.

According to Kawasaki Rail Cars, “SWIMO stands for ‘Smooth-WIn-Mover.’ It’s the realization of Kawasaki’s vision for a vehicle that would provide a smooth riding experience with a seamless transition to non-electrified sections, and a win-win green transportation solution via Kawasaki’s innovative rail mover technology.” (www.kawasakirailinc.com)

Like all other electric trains, the SWIMO is more energy efficient and generates fewer CO2 emissions than traditional modes of rail transportation. Running on a nickel metal-hydride battery, this allows the vehicle to self-charge in-between stops, saving on wasted energy. Additionally, the SWIMO has a three-car body, a three-boogie articulated design, a low floor design and noise level, and the unique ability to run without cables. (the wires in the photo, unfortunately are electric wires for buildings) ha

Water isn't black and white, its grey

Water is essential to all life – it feeds and fuels humans, wildlife and the earth’s ecosystems that are necessary for this planet to survive. The pollution of water can negatively impact all living creatures and is the one natural resource that rises above all others and can not be substituted or mass produced through technology.

Water reuse. The good news about water reuse is that some day we will all be drinking treated wastewater, the bad news is that there will not be enough to go around. Reuse is the least familiar of all strategies. It is basically “reusing” treated wastewater for other purposes. We typically think of grey water, like taking the water from our washing machines and spraying on our lawns. Greywater is washwater not to be confused with water from your toilet which is “blackwater”. We do not do a lot of this in Texas, about 10 percent of all wastewater is reused. (Texas Parks and Wildlife, 2002) Other countries like Israel use as much as 60 percent.

If you wanted to plan a greywater system for you and your family’s use, here is how to get started.

1. Take a brief inventory of the house's greywater sources and the number of uses that they get or could get.

Laundry		gal / person . day
Dishwasher		gal / person . day
Bath		gal / person . day
Other sources		gal / person . day
Total greywater		gal / person . day

Try to determine how many gals. per cycle your appliances use--or use the short-form sizing estimator below

US clotheswashing machine (top-loading)	30 gallons per cycle
European (front-loading) clotheswasher	10 gallons per cycle
Dishwasher	3 - 5 gallons per cycle
Low-flow shower head (per shower)	3 - 7 gallons per average use
Other sink use (shaving, handwashing, etc.)	1 - 5 gallons per average use

2. Give special consideration to the final dispersion of the effluent, making sure that the soil can accept the amount of water that will be generated, treated and discharged (your local sanitation engineer can do a percolation test to determine the ability of the ground to accept water). If water shortage happens to be a particular restriction where you're located, note that greywater filtered through a soilbed will not become anaerobic and thus can be saved for [lawn] irrigation. (www.greywater.com)

3. Check with your local authorities regarding any special/local concerns and regulations. Submit your application to the local board of health or consult your local professional engineer (P.E.) for plans and documents needed for your application (usually a topo-graphic site drawing with pertinent information about your site and the proposed solution). If your local P.E. is unfamiliar with alternative greywater pollution prevention systems (e.g., soilbed treatment), provide her/him with the name of this website. (www.greywater.com)

The Amazing Shrinking Landfill

Landfills are the most widely utilized solid waste management option. What is in our landfills? Although findings differ slightly, in 2006 approximately 26 percent of materials entering landfills were paper products, 18 percent food scraps, 16 percent plastic, 9 percent rubber, leather, and other textiles, 7 percent each of yard waste, metals, and wood, and 6 percent glass. This does not, however, reflect actual landfill content at any point in time since some materials decompose faster, or compact better, than others.

Prior to landfills, most Americans lived in sparsely populated rural farming communities, burning the majority of their garbage in open dumps. Early landfills took the place of those dumps, with no effort to compact or cover up the waste. Over the last few decades, these dumps have been replaced with landfills which are more sophisticated in design and regulated in every aspect, from siting to filling to closing.

Modern landfills are constructed with a number of safeguards, including clay or plastic lining to contain leachate. The waste is typically compacted in order to increase its density and stability, and covered to prevent any attraction of pests. As organic waste decomposes it generates gases, including methane which is a greenhouse gas. As portions of a landfill (called cells) are closed, pipes are often installed to vent or incinerate the gases before they can diffuse into the ground, increasing the risk of explosion. The gas can also be collected and used to generate electricity. (1)

The number of landfills in the United States has steadily declined over the last 2 decades (but has remained relatively constant since 2002); yet, the average size of landfills has increased. Building new landfills, however, is an expensive and time-consuming process, primarily due to community opposition and regulations requiring increasingly sophisticated engineering measures to ensure safety.

Saving of Landfill Space. Not having millions of plastic bottles in the landfill results in a saving of 6.7 cubic meters of landfill space that is at a premium right now. Plastic bottles also take an average of 500 years to biodegrade.

Plastics are used to manufacture everyday products such as beverage containers, toys, and furniture. The widespread use of plastics demands proper end of life management. Plastics make up more than 12 -16 percent of the municipal solid waste stream, a dramatic increase from 1960, when plastics were only one percent of the waste stream. The largest category of plastics are found in containers and packaging (e.g., soft drink bottles, lids, shampoo bottles), but they also are found in durable (e.g., appliances, furniture) and nondurable goods (e.g., diapers, trash bags, cups and utensils, medical devices). The recycling rate for different types of plastic varies greatly, resulting in an overall plastics recycling rate of only 7 percent, or 2.1 million tons in 2009

Enough plastic is produced in the United States each year to shrink wrap Texas.

• In 1998 Americans used 2 billion pounds of HDPE to make plastic bottles for household products. That’s the equivalent weight of 90,000 Honda civics.

• Approximately 88 percent of the energy is saved when plastic is made from plastic rather than from the raw materials of gas and oil.

• Enough plastic bottles are thrown away in the United States each year to circle the Earth four times. (2)

What are the benefits to recycling plastic bottles?

One of the most important reasons why we should recycle plastics is the fact that plastics can take thousand of years to biodegrade. This means these bulky and plentiful plastic materials either continue to fill up landfills or they wind up in our streams and oceans and along the streets and meadows of our communities throughout the world. Plastics are known as the largest contributor of waste in the world.

As recycling statistics point out, plastics are not recycled as efficiently as they should be. And this very important process will never begin until we, as individuals, take responsibility for helping the environment.

Conservation of Oil. When a ton of plastic bottles are recycled approximately 3.8 barrels of petroleum is saved.

Reduction of Greenhouse Gas emissions. The substitution of recycled materials reduces the emission of greenhouse gases that are produced in the manufacturing of virgin materials.

Plastics Recycling

According to the American Chemistry Council, about 1,800 US businesses handle or reclaim post-consumer plastics. Plastics are usually collected from curbside recycling bins or drop-off sites. Then, they go to a material recovery facility, where the materials are sorted into broad categories (plastics, paper, glass, etc.). The resulting mixed plastics are sorted by plastic type, baled, and sent to a reclaiming facility. At the facility, any trash or dirt is sorted out, then the plastic is washed and ground into small flakes. A flotation tank then further separates contaminants, based on their different densities. Flakes are then dried, melted, filtered, and formed into pellets. The pellets are shipped to product manufacturing plants, where they are made into new plastic products. (3)

• 82 million tons of materials can be recycled in the United States.


• There is about 100% increase in the total recycling in the United States during the past decade.

• Each person produces 4.6 lbs. of trash per day in the United States.


• In 2005, roughly 8,550 curbside recycling programs existed throughout the United States. 8,875 programs existed in 2003.

• United States recycles about 32% of its waste today.

• An average American produced 800 kilograms of waste in the year 2005, compared to only 577 kilograms per person in Western Europe.

(1) www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/plastics.htm

(2) www.benefits-of-recycling.com/recyclingplasticbottles.html

(3) www.environliteracy.org/article.php/

Enlightening Others on the Environment

“I just don’t think about it”. WHY??

That is a common sentiment that I hear from people. It could be recycling the water bottle at the gym, turning the lights off in the bathroom, print double sided, etc. The question is “why”? Why don’t more people think about ‘it’?

When I started this assignment I was going in the direction of education alone. How do we educate? But then I found a class taught at Santa Clara University titled, Thinking Ethically About the Environment. Bingo! That’s it.

Its not to say that people that don’t think about the environment outside of themselves are unethical…… (sigh)!

The following three sentences put into perspective that may be helpful in effecting change and policy:

“Moral reasoning is not a substitute for science, but it provides a powerful complement to scientific knowledge about the earth. Science does not teach us to care. Scientific knowledge does not, by itself, provide reasons for environmental protection.” www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/focusareas/environmental_ethics

In the most general sense, environmental ethics considers three key propositions:

• the Earth and its creatures have moral status, in other words, are worthy of our ethical concern;

• the Earth and its creatures have intrinsic value, meaning that they have moral value merely because they exist, not only because they meet human needs;

• drawing from the idea of an ecosystem, human beings should consider "wholes" that include other forms of life and the environment.

Now, we have established the direction towards educating on the environment but how?

The United Nations Environment Program present some guidelines but I felt they are ineffective and too obvious.

Then I found an organization for teachers that spell out how to teach and raise the awareness of the environment. I thought the tools described below were applicable for all audiences, students and policy makers alike.

If your goal is to promote environmentally favorable behavior in your students, consider a hands-on project that will challenge students to consider the environmental impacts of their own actions.

Teaching environmental topics can bring out unexpected responses in your students. For example, when you cover the topic of Earth's resources in a physical geology course, you may find previously mild-mannered students become impassioned about the topics, or otherwise attentive and hard-working pupils dig in their heels and resist the information. But when the subject matter seems to confront one's personal lifestyle, political leanings or economic situation, then the topic may be perceived in a very different light.

What are some strategies to teach environmental topics, particularly controversial ones, without coming up against affective barriers to learning? How can you help students or policy makers learn the science and the policy without getting weighed down by feeling guilty or defiant?

Teach the science first
Even though most environmental topics are a blend of science, policy, economics and human impacts, it may be helpful to separate these into three distinct sub-topics. First, present the science objectively, using data and relevant examples. Next, discuss the policy and economic issues related to this topic. Once those subjects are covered thoroughly, students will often be interested to learn what their own personal stake may be. By setting the stage deliberately, students are more likely to be receptive to the information and are less likely to get turned off.

Teach with data
Statements like "species are going extinct at an alarming rate," "wetlands are being turned into strip malls," and "the climate is getting hotter" are emotional statements (even if true) and will elicit emotional responses. Rather than risk sounding like an alarmist, let the data speak for itself. Have people work through data sets, and they can discover for themselves the rate and extent of environmental change. In some cases, they still may end up being surprised or emotional, but it's because they reached their own conclusion, not because you told them to be alarmed.

Clearly define your role and your teaching approach
There are many ways to teach environmental issues. Before jumping into your curriculum, consider what your desired outcomes are and what approach you will take. Is your intent to teach just the relevant scientific processes, to promote an awareness of environmental issues, or to lead students toward a shift in their own environmental behavior? In the classroom, do you assume the role of environmental guardian, a free-marketer, or a devil's advocate? It's important to consciously consider what your goals are and how you can best achieve them. Lead by example, but don't preach
Preaching to the class about what's "good" and what's "bad" will likely have the opposite effect than you intended; it can be a major turn-off for students. (www.serc.carleton.edu)

Although these techniques were with the classroom in mind, every one we come in contact with is our student and the planet is our classroom.