Is that a banana in your water?

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/03/110311-water-pollution-lead-heavy-metal-banana-peel-innovation/

SUMMARY:
In recent studies, scientists have found that banana peels are able to take heavy metal contamination out of rivers. Metals like lead and copper are found in rivers and can cause damage to the brain and nervous system.   Because of this, scientists needed to find a way to take it out. Before the discovery of banana peels, scientists used silica, cellulose, and aluminum to extract metal from the water. They do not use them any more because they can be potentially toxic and have their own side effects. Bananas are a safe and easy way to outperform the competition. Scientists have also made filters out of banana peels and it also took the metals out. Other plants like an apple, sugar cane wastes, coconut fibers, and peanut shells are also able to remove toxins from the water.

REFLECTION:
I think it is incredible how scientists found out that banana peels take out metals in rivers. This could be very helpful in having more fresh water to drink because we would not have to worry about having contamination. in class, we learned about how there is only so much water in the world that we can drink. If people everywhere found out about this and actually did it, we could have a lot more fresh water. I am wondering how the banana peel attracts the metal from the water. Also i am wondering how many bananas they have to use for it to actually work. I think that people should use this technique in taking metals from the water because it is safe, and we pretty much have an unlimited amount of bananas.

QUESTIONS:
1) Do you think it is a good idea to use bananas to take metals out of the water?
2) Do you think putting bananas in the water is healthy for the fish?
3) If there was metal on the banana peels, would it be unhealthy if a fish ate it?
4) What are other ways to take metals out of the water?

The Global Water Crisis

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/03/global-water-crisis-nations-avert.php

Sorry guys everything like got put to a link and I couldn't undo it so just don't worry about it.

By the year 2030, half of the world's population will be living in areas with a water shortage. About two years ago, 120 nations met to discuss this issue. They realized that countries need to stop having wars over water resources. Many countries are also having wars because of the fight for water. They said that the water shortage is one of the triggers of conflict between countries. This issue really hasn't been resolved and it is only going to get worse. There are about 6.6 billion people in the world today. By 2050, there will be 2.5 billion more people. A lot of these people will be born into countries that already have a water scarcity problem today.

I had no idea that a main problem with the water scarcity issue is the wars on top of water resources. It is probably because no one has taken much action to this. Knowing that in a few decades people will be born into countries that already have a water scarcity problem today is scary. The fact that countries are fighting over water now is really scary to think about what it will be like in years to come. We watched the "Water for Life" video with Jay-Z on the struggle for water in African countries. Walking miles and miles everyday just to get a jug of water is so hard to even imagine. Now thinking about how this could become in a few decades in really saddening.

1. How do you think you could help the water scarcity issue?

2. By what year will half the world's population by living in areas with water shortage?

3. Do you think this problem will ever be solved?

4. Why do you think the problem with conflicts over water resources hasn't been stopped?

Melting Polar Ice Sheets Overtake Glaciers As Main Cause of Sea Level Rise - One Foot By 2050 Possible

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/03/melting-polar-ice-sheets-main-cause-sea-level-rise.php?campaign=th_rss

Greenland and Antarctic ice caps are melting extremely fast because of the climate and resulting in higher sea levels. The rate at which they melt seem to be increasing greatly along with the already high rates, losing 36.3 gigatonnes a year. That was with data from the past twenty years. In 2006 there seemed to be a loss of 402 gigatonnes each year from mountain glaciers and ice caps. With numbers like that continuing to grow, the sea level could rise over a foot by 2050.

This scares me a lot. The fact that the sea level is rising that much that fast soon enough we wont have any glaciers and ice caps, they will just flow into the ocean. All of the habitats and a huge amount of fresh water are going to be destroyed eventually. In class I know we talked about all of this fresh water and we can't do anything with it and eventually it will melt into the ocean wasted. There has to be some way that we can stop the melting of the ice caps or at least find a way to prevent the fresh water from mixing in with the oceans' salt water.
1.what do you think we could or should do to help this problem?
2.what do you think is affected buy the melting ice caps?
3.what do you think has cause the melting to become so rapid?

Water Supply in CA Town Contaminated with Toxic Chemical Used to Make Explosives

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/11/water-supply-ca-town-contaminated-toxic-chemical-explosives.php?campaign=th_rss

by Bryan Merchant, Brooklyn, NY, 11/22/2010

Summary:

Arnold Schwarzenegger dclared a state of emergency in California due to contaminated tap water. Typically in America when you want clean water, you can go to the sink, but that is not the case in San Bernadino County. The water supply contains the chemical, perchlorate, which typically is used in the making of explosives and rocket fuel. When the contaminate was found in many city wells, customers began fearing for their health. The perchlorate levels in some areas were three or four times the state limit. The city, however, has still not been able to find the source of this contamination.

Reflction:

I think that it is very sad that Californian water is being contaminated with these chemicals. It seems very rare for there to be a violation in water quality in the United States. In my personal life, I have always felt very comfortable with the water. I always now that I can go to my sink and have clean water. And I am very fortunate for that. However, it is a little discomforting that even in California, perchlorate has been found in the water. And the fact that in some places the water level exceded the state MCL by three or four times, is crazy! I am also puzzled with the fact that the EPA has not found a source of the conataminate. If perchlorate comes from making explosives, why would that endup in city wells? That is a little discomforing.

Questions:

1. Do you think that these contaminates are a big problem?

2. How do you thnk the water entered into the wells?

3. In the future, how can we keep contaminates like these out of our water in wells?

There's Gotta be Something in the Water

Summary:

You probably already know that the water in China is extremely polluted. However you probably didn't know that one fourth of the water in China has been deemed unusable even for industrial processes. Also a full one halve of the water is completely undrinkable. Whats more is that close to 200 major metropolises of China have experienced acid rain. Something even more unheard of is that those numbers are improvement. Though we all know the reason is all of the industry in China; the chemical plants, paper mills, manufacturing operations and cement factories.

Reflection:

To be honest this is probably one of the weirdest things I've ever heard of. I mean can you ever think of a time where you couldn't drink the water that came out of your faucet. I went up to my uncle's cabin in upstate New York and the water was "hard" but we could still drink it if we had to. In China it has gotten to the point that you have to boil the water first to be able to drink and that still is a little questionable. Personally though I still think it's their own fault, I guess that is what you get when you have that much industry.

Questions:

1) How much of the water is completely unusable?

2) How much of the water usable for industrial processes but not drinkable?

3) How many major metropolises saw acid rain?

4) Why do you think it has gotten this bad and do you think it will get any better?