Extra Credit

Chasing Ice Chasing Ice was a movie I watched in my environmental class to receive extra credit. This movie was about a photographer named James Balog who wanted to capture climate change as it was happening. He wanted to prove that climate change is happening by capturing it on camera. He wanted to get videos of the ice melting as it was happening to show people we do have a climate change problem. He wanted visual evidence as stated in the movie. The movie stated he wanted to capture what humanity was doing to the world in a big perspective. James Balog started his project called Extreme Ice Survey by visiting the Solhiem Glacier in Iceland. The glacier resided six feet when he saw it break down. James Balog caught on camera his first glacier to disappear on camera. He then proceeded to put cameras in different places to see how glaciers melted and how they changed throughout a period f time. When he started it was in April of 2006 and went back t check the cameras he located in October. He wanted to see how things changed in a six month period, but when he went back he was disappointed that his hard work failed. Some of the cameras broke down and were no good. The cameras he used did not capture what he wanted because they stopped working, but this did not stop him. He then got some stronger cameras and started again. According to the movie, he installed five cameras in Iceland, five in Alaska and two in Montana. Six months later he went back to check up on the new cameras and they worked. They were recording what was happening during a six month period. At this time he was watching glaciers residing and thinning over time. He saw them melting into the ocean. According to the movie, he saw glaciers dying in Iceland in a period of three years starting from 2006 to 2009. He then started showing his findings to people to prove that global warming does exist. He also wanted to go back to the first glacier he saw melt to see how it was doing. The movie ended when his people recorded a glacier break down. His people waited to see what was happening to the glacier they watched it for weeks. Then one day it started melting and breaking down. They caught it on camera. The Solheim Glacier was described by his people like Manhattan breaking apart. His people caught the event on camera and said it was the biggest calving event on tape. It was awesome to see the glacier melting and the movie stated that the calving lasted about seventy five minutes. James Balog was happy to see all this events happening, but he was sad at the same time because he was worried about what he saw happening to the world.

Synthesis Blob 12

In my environmental class I was asked what are the most important environmental issues today. I think climate change, plastic pollution, and destruction of biodiversities are the most important issues today. Climate change is a big issue today because it is getting worse every year. We are losing many species in the colder areas of the earth because of it. For example, the polar bears are endangered and nothing is being done to save them. They just keep being put on the endangered list and then taken off. The ice is melting destroying their home and making hard for them to hunt. Another example, climate change is a problem because it is causing coral bleaching. In addition, plastic pollution is a problem today. We use so much plastic for everything, but so much plastic is polluting our earth and killing species. Plastic does not biodegrade it just breaks down into smaller pieces. Plastics kill species that eat the plastic. For example, the sea turtles think that a plastic bag in the water is jelly fish and they die because they eat it and it blocks their stomach. Plastic should be banned. Furthermore, the destruction of biodiversities is a big issue today. Many species are dying because their homes are being destroyed. They are being destroyed because people are trying to get the natural resources. People are cutting down trees and pushing other species to move out of their homes. Some species that can’t adapt will die and no longer exist according to natural selection. Some species that do adapt might adapt other traits. Biodiversity in some places of the world are not rich in evenness because of the invasive species caused by destruction of land and because of human impact. Some invasive species can cause the destruction of another species. For example, the brown tree snake eating the birds and eliminating the bird species. Biodiversity is important. In our society today, we can start being more aware of climate change. We can maybe try do fund environmental engineering to try and reduce the high levels of carbon dioxide. We should also try to find other ways to get our oil, coal and natural gas in a way that it would not release any more carbon dioxide. I am up for trying anything, but most important reducing what we do to cause climate change instead of just putting a band aid over it. Also, society can band plastics in order to help the environment. We should not just band it in some places of the world, but we should band it worldwide. We should also promote reusable bags. Society should try to help clean up plastic pollutions we have caused, so no more species get affected. Another thing society should do is stop destroying habitats and biodiversity. People should find other ways to get their natural resources. There should be a law that states that people can longer use plastics and can no longer impact habitats and biodiversity. If this was implemented maybe our environment would not be in jeopardy. As individual I think I should let the people around know about these issues. I think I should also lead by example and try to show that I too I am making changes to help my environment. I think also as an individual I can learn more and get involve with people who are helping the environment, so I can take an initiative towards sustainability. One thing I really been thinking about doing is stop using plastic and bottle waters. I think plastic does a lot of damage to our environment and ourselves. Lastly, another important thing I learned this semester was that we waste a lot food and make a lot of trash. This also causes damage to our environment because we are buying or throwing lots of food to the trash. That is considered to be wasting food. That food ends up in landfills while other people are starving.

Extra Credit

Waste Land Waste Land is a movie I had to watch for extra credit in my environmental class. This Movie was about an artist that wanted to make a difference in the Brazil landfills. This artist name is Vik Muniz. He is an artist that uses different materials to make art. For example, he has used diamonds, wire, string, chocolate syrup, peanut butter and other materials. He likes to make deceiving images. Vik Muniz wanted to work with people who worked in the Rio landfill. He wanted to make a difference. He wanted to make art and change people’s lives. In the movie he said he wanted to change people’s lives using the same material they worked with everyday. His focused was to work with pickers from the landfill. He worked with about six people that were pickers at the landfill. In the movie these people at the beginning they did not know what Muniz was doing and why he was filming them and wanted to know about their work and lifestyle. Most of the people he filmed did not like working as a picker at the landfill, but they had to do it for a living. They get paid twenty to twenty five dollars a day. Most people thought that their job was disgusting and that they did not want their kids working in the landfills like they do. The pickers at the landfill have to pick out the different kinds of materials from the trash and had to separate them. The women would always go for the plastic and the materials that are not so heavy for them to carry. The pickers would all agree that picking waste was not a job they wanted to do, but it provided for their familiar. Muniz photographed and filmed the pickers. He took individual pictures of the pickers and took their pictures and put them in a studio where they could see their pictures on the ground. The pickers were able to see their pictures and they put trash on the pictures. They traced their pictures with trash the materials they worked with everyday and Muniz photographed them when they were done. He put those pictures in a gallery to sell and gave the money from the pictures back to the pickers. The picker’s lives did change after they worked with Muniz. They didn’t think they could make art with trash from the landfill. It also made them be proud of their job and what they did. For some it made them have more confident and made them see that they were doing something big to save the environment. They were the ones recycling for the other people that didn’t. In the end of the movie, everyone was happy they worked with Muniz and everyone did something different with the money they receive from their photographs that were sold at the gallery. Muniz gave everyone a copy of their own photograph. Some people after the experience went through changes in their lives. One of the ladies opened a restaurant and stopped working at the landfill. Another woman also stopped working at the landfill and told all her family she worked at the landfill. At the beginning of the movie she said she was ashamed of working there, but by the end of the movie she was proud of her job. She still wanted a better job to be with her son. Another person opened a library near his home because he wanted people to be educated. In the end, most people left the landfill anyways because the landfill closed in 2012. The sad part was that many lost their jobs.

Extra Credit

Tapped Tapped is a movie I had to watch for my environmental class to receive extra credit. This movie was about tap water and water bottle. The video stated that by 2030 some places of the world will run out of water. This is because big companies like Nestle, Coke and Pepsi are going into towns taking the residents water. They are doing this to make profit out of bottle water. In the movie residents of Fryeburg County they have trying to fight with Nestle. They want Nestle to stop pumping their water. In Maine they have a law that states that whoever has the biggest pump, they can take the water and the residents are trying to change this. They are running out of water and it makes them upset that big corporations keep pumping. The residents tried to make a deal with Nestle. Residents wanted them to pay at least taxes for the water they were taking and Nestle said, “No.” Another thing that makes people upset in the movie, is that big corporations are pumping municipal water and bottling it up and then selling it for a higher price. People say they are buying their water the one that they pumped out of their own town. Communities want to have ownership of their water supply. They want to protect their water. The movie also states that the earth’s surface has seventy five percent of water, but it is sad to say that only one percent is drinkable. Another big issue that the movie talked about is that big corporations try to sell water bottles to make profit, but they do not let people know that water bottles are not that safe. This is because they are made of plastic and plastic is not good for us and the environment. Plastic chemicals have many affects to us and the environment. Also the move stated that bottle waters are not regulated like municipal tap water is. Tap water is tested, while bottle water is not and companies are not obligated to put the reports of their products to see like others do. Some people of the movie were saddened to see so many people trust bottle water instead of water that has been tested. This is because people do not know what gets into their after they are put in plastic. Plastic is bad it is made out of PET or PETE. These chemicals are not good for us. The movie also talked about how the water bottles end up in landfills or in the ocean. Plastic water bottles kill species because they eat the plastic. The movie stated that thirty million bottles end up in the landfills. People buy so many water bottles and don’t recycle them. This also is bad and affects the environment. The movie stated that big corporations try to get people to recycle the bottle. The Corporations support curve side recycling, but reality is more than half of the people do not get curve side recycling. The movie really advocated that we should get rid of plastic water bottles in general. They cost too much, they are not good for the environment and us the people.

Energy

In our environmental class we had to reduce as much energy as we could for a day. This means we had to stop using our phones and using our cars. Also, that means we had to minimize using hot water, lots of lighting, computer and a/c heater. I started my activity on Friday morning and it continued until Saturday morning. On Friday, I had to use my car for work. I only used two times that day. I drove to work and then back. In addition, I didn’t use my phone at all for the twenty four hours. It was hard at the beginning of my day, but I did it. The next day I had so many texts and people were wondering what happened to me. By the end of the twenty four hours I felt good that I didn’t have a phone. I felt relaxed that I didn’t have to answer my text and notifications all day. The other hard part was not using my computer. I have a lot of work to do and I got behind because I didn’t work on anything for a day, but it felt good to have a day off. Also, having to try to shower with cold water was something I could not do. I like my hot water and showers it relaxes me and would not change it for the world. Except when I do laundry I usually wash with cold water anyways, so that was easy for me to do. Another thing that was easy for me to do was to dry my clothes outside by hanging them. I am Mexican and I grew up drying my clothes outside. I did not have to change that. I hardly ever use the dryer. Another thing I did not have trouble with was using a/c. Only if it was really hot I would use it, but on Friday it was a little chilly at night and in the morning. I didn’t have to use a/c, so I had not problem in this area. One thing I need to practice on and even tell my husband to do as well was to turn off the lights of the rooms we were not using them. It was it constant reminder for us, but I tried hard. I know I walk into one room turn on the light and then walk to another room and do the same. I think by the end of the day I did okay. I felt okay making some changes it was hard for some of them, but I ended up doing it in the end. Like I stated before, I could never give up my long showers and warm showers. I work and go to school and that relaxes me at the end of the day. Another thing I could not do without is leaving my phone and car. For one day I only used my car twice, but on a regular basis I couldn’t especially with the hot weather. I cannot see myself riding a bike to work and night school. My phone is my Everything. I use it for everything. I don’t know people’s numbers by memory, so it helps me a lot with that and how to find places where I need to go. I also I check all my emails and sent emails with my phone. For one day it did felt good to disconnect from world, but I could not on a regular basis. Also, I don’t think I can stop using my computer and do most of my work on it and I need it just like I need my phone. On the other hand, I can change turning off the lights and appliances I am not using. I think one thing I can cut back that I been thinking about since we started talking about pollutants has been plastic. It’s been on my mind and I pay more attention of how much plastic I bring to my home and how it impacts our environment. I noticed for small things I buy at the store I collect so many unneeded plastic bags. I think in the future I will try to not use plastics anymore. Another thing I can do to help the environment is just really make sure I turn off all the things I’m not using at home and to also maybe start using more natural resources. One way I can increase energy efficiency at home is by switching to solar panels. Also by opening windows for cool air rather than a/c I think I reduce my energy. I also think switching to energy efficient lighting would be something I can do.

Field Trip To Amy's Farm

Field Trip to Amy’s farm On Saturday May seventeenth our class went on a field trip to Amy’s Farm. While there I learned that the farm has many different animals. For example, they have cows, horses, ducks, chickens, sheep, pigs, goats, and cats. Some of the animals are part of a petting zoo not for consumption. They also have turkeys, but only during Thanksgiving time. I also learned that only some animals are for slaughter at the farm. For example, turkeys and pigs are slaughtered at the farm when people want to take home to eat after they purchased the animal. Not all the pigs are killed some are kept in the farm to make more pigs. In addition, it was interesting to find out that anyone can care for the cows and have some of their milk. If you contribute to food and care for cows, the guide said you can do what you please with milk. I also learned that the cows there are milked daily. Glenda is one the cows from the farm and she makes about three to four gallons of milk a day. Donut is another of the cows there and is a smaller cow and she makes about two gallons a day. The farm also has Angus beef cows. Some of the cows are that raised at Amy’s Farm are owned by families or restaurants. They feed the cows grass no soy or corn. Also, Amy’s Farm grows produce. The farm has fruit trees, tomatoes, strawberries, kale, spinach, and many more. The farm has twelve avocado trees and also nectarines. All the seeds they use are purebred. Our tour guide said that some of the produce goes to restaurants from the community. I The farm is privately owned and it raises money to preserve land for agriculture. They use spin farming. They take up as much space as they can to grow. According to our tour guide,” Every time they plant the soil gets better.” People could also have a plot of land at the farm. Guide said it cost about fifteen dollars a month to have a plot. The farm has many volunteers that come and work here. Anyone is welcomed to go to the farm for visit or to volunteer. Overall, it was a great experienced. I enjoyed the field trip and learned a lot. I would want to go back again. It was interesting to find out many things a farm can do.

In my environmental science class I was asked to talk about climate change. I was asked to look at certain websites to find information and then answer three questions. These are the following websites I am supposed to use to answer three questions. Climate Change at the National Academies http://nas-sites.org/americasclimatechoices/ United States EPA Climate Change Site: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/index.html United Nations Climate Change Information Kit: http://unfccc.int/resource/iuckit/cckit2001en.pdf Center for Climate and Energy Solutions http://www.c2es.org/ Yale Project on Climate Change Communication http://environment.yale.edu/climate/ These are the questions I am supposed to answer: - According to evidence, is the climate changing right now? - What does evidence say about humans’ roles in the changing climate? - How is climate change likely to affect our society and our world? Now this is what I found: 1. According to the evidence right now and the United States EPA Climate Change Site, “Temperatures are rising, snow and rainfall patterns are shifting, and more extreme climate events.” Also the site states that we are having “heavy rainstorms and high temperatures that are already affecting society and ecosystems.” 2. Evidence says that humans are speeding up climate change. According to the evidence from the United States EPA Climate Change Site, says “changes in the climate can be linked to the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, caused largely by people burning fossil fuels to generate electricity, heat and cool buildings, and power vehicles.” 3. Climate change is likely to affect our society and our world having “an increase or decrease rainfall, influence agricultural crop yields, affect human health, cause changes to forests and other ecosystems, or even impact our energy supply (United States EPA Climate Change Site).” Also according to the United Nations Climate Change Information Kit Site, “Food security is unlikely to be threatened at the global level, but some regions are likely to experience food shortages and hunger. Water resources will be affected as precipitation an evaporation patterns change around the world.” Also I was asked to look up why some people are skeptical about climate change. I found out that people are skeptical about climate change because according to the Heartlands Institute Website, “Climate is always changing, and every scientist knows this. Our emissions and alterations of the landscape are surely having impacts on climate, though they are often local or regional (like heat islands) and small relative to natural variation.” Also, the Heartland Institute Website says, and “concluded concern over the possibility of catastrophic global warming was being manufactured to advance a political agenda. We then took upon ourselves the task of publicizing the scientific uncertainty behind the global warming scare and documenting the high costs of reducing greenhouse gas emissions – economic costs as well as the loss of freedom.” I agree with most of the websites listed above and I know that we do have a problem. I think that the pollution we create has a lot to do with climate change. I also think that all the oil and chemical runoffs causes climate change. All the chemicals evaporate into the atmosphere and cause the climate to change. I also think that if the world continues the way it is there might be a lot of problems in the future. I think we can face a food scare and I think we will also lose many species. Specially, animals in the ocean will be affected. I learned that climate change causes coral bleaching. I think in the future climate change will make many species extinct in all parts of the world not just in the hot spots. In fifty years I think the Earth will have a limit of resources we can use due to climate change. Works Cited United States EPA Climate Change Site: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/index.html United Nations Climate Change Information Kit: http://unfccc.int/resource/iuckit/cckit2001en.pdf http://heartland.org/ideas/global-warming-not-crisis