Assessment Plan

In my environmental science class I was asked to determine which factors I would assess to know how green my college campus is. So I started thinking about the energy RCC uses. The first thought that came to my mind was electricity and the energy we might use on campus. If we could change how we get our electricity I think it would help the planet and the school to save money. I also researched to see if any other college campuses were going green and I wanted to know what they were doing. In my researched, I found out that in two thousand and twelve UC Davis made an approach to go green. According to the UC Davis News and Information website, they became the first California campus to have interior lighting. This means that they changed the way they used electricity in order to go green and now they are using “Smart lighting”. This not only minimized the amount of energy they were using, but also helped them save money. This helped reduced their electrical bill. I liked what UC Davis did and I thought maybe RCC could also changed the way they use their electricity in order to go green. In addition, I also found out that North Lake College in Dallas County is assessing their college by doing different things. For example, the school has students groups or clubs that are involve. Some of the things they do are collect storm waters and also monitor the lights at the campus and they audit the energy in school buildings. Furthermore, I assessed the way we use electricity at RCC. There are more than a hundred classrooms and rooms at RCC imagine how much the electricity bill cots? I also thought about how many classrooms or offices abuse this resource. This could cause a strain in our environment if electricity is being misused. How can I Assess sustainability at RCC? First, I would find out exactly how we are abusing electricity and I would like to go to every classroom with the help of volunteers to help me keep track for three weeks how we use our electricity at RCC and also how many classrooms are misusing it. I would put charts in all the classrooms and offices that specify at what times the lights and any other devices that need electricity go and off. I would ask everyone that is in charge of a classroom or office to please write down the times lights are staying on and by whom they are being turned off and on. This will apply as well with computers and other electrical devices. This will give us a clear view of how we are using our electricity in all the buildings at RCC. I would ask Mr. Wolde-Ab who is the interim president at RCC if I can do this observation to assess how green is RCC for three weeks. . Secondly, if Mr. Wolde-Ab allows for me to start my investigation, I will ask for students and staff volunteers to help me monitor the electricity at RCC. I would ask the staff to please write on the charts I provided and also to monitor their classrooms and offices. In addition, I would ask students volunteers to go around and check the charts that will be in all the rooms to see if they are getting filled in. I will try to get students to volunteer, but I know that sometimes as students we do not like to help. For this reason, I will ask staff to make their students help in going to check charts by giving them extra credit. I will ask students and staff to write in the chart what electrical devices were being used or on when they checked their assigned classrooms. Students will only be able to check classrooms, while staff can check offices. I believe that charts can help me determine how green RCC is. This is an example of what my charts would look like. Works Cited http://news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=10248 http://www.northlakecollege.edu/about-us/sustainable-campus/Pages/Sustainability-Initiatives.aspx

Go Outside and Observe

For my environmental science class I had to sit outside in my backyard for twenty minutes and observe the sphere around me. I needed to make observations of the biotic and abiotic things around me. I sat on the floor of my patio in my back yard. I sat on the cement, so I was down on the floor. While I was sitting on the ground I observed a trail of ants. Some of the ants had food and they seemed to be carrying it somewhere. They were all in a line. They were heading towards the grass. I was amazed how they stayed together and they all followed the line. I also observed some birds on top of a tree that is in my back yard. They were making noises. There were only two of them or maybe more. I could only see two. They were just up on the tree, not doing anything in particular just making some noises. At the moment I did not know what kind of birds they were, but after my observation I researched them. According to what I researched, they might be the California Towhee bird. The birds I saw look like these birds and make sounds like these birds. I was amazed on how loud they are. They were short and fat. Also, coming towards my leg there was a scary looking animal. I got scared got up and moved from my spot. I thought it was going to bite me. I been bitten by one of those animals before, but I did not know its name, so I also researched it. It turns out it is an Earwig or pincher bug. These bugs scare me. They have hooks and they pinch you. The pinch is not as bad, but they are scary looking. I was also looking at another tree we been having in our back yards for years. It was kind of windy in the afternoon when I did my observation, so I paid attention to how it was moving and what was on the tree. This tree is green and it has yellow round fruits hanging from its ends. I did not know its name, so I also researched it because my brothers and I love to eat the yellow round fruits. The tree sometimes has too many of the yellow fruits we eat and they also fall on the ground if we do not eat them. From my research I found out it was a Loquat tree. Overall, I saw more living things than non-living during my observation. I did not notice any relationships within the species I saw. I liked doing this outside observation because it was relaxing and it got me thinking about the things around that we do not really notice that are there. I am still amazed how many times a day I’m outside and I never pay attention to the noises birds make or where ants take their food. Also, I never knew the name of the tree that is outside in my backyard until I did this assignment for my environmental class. It is good once in a while to go outside and observe our surroundings and see what we can find. Below you will find pictures of the species I observed. Picture from these sites: http://sdakotabirds.com/species_photos/california_towhee_1.htm http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101209/full/news.2010.662.html http://blueskypest.com/pest-control/earwigs/ http://www.amoils.com/health-blog/this-fruit-tree-is-perfect-for-a-mild-climate-bird-loving-garden/

Environmental Science in the News

For my Bio 36 environmental science class I was asked to look up online news or an article that interested me and pertained to our class. I was interested on this article called Study: Southern butterfly species growing in Mass that came from that Boston news page. I found this article in my environmental class website. The news article mainly talks about the growth and decline in population of butterflies in the Boston area. The butterfly species were observed and researched for about two decades. Massachusetts Butterfly club followers and researchers from Harvard University worked together to study the species that were in certain areas of Boston. According the Boston news article, “the study found that warm-climate-adapted butterfly species have grown by an estimated 1,000 percent, while cold-climate-adapted species, which have long been native to the Bay State, have declined -- some by up to 90 percent.” This shows that butterfly species like more the warmer climate than the colder climate in Boston. It seems that species are growing and reproducing in the warm parts while the ones that live in the colder climate areas are decreasing. Link to the article: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2012/08/20/study_southern_butterfly_species_growing_in_mass/ In addition, I believe that this article is reliable. I found this article in my environmental class website. It provides a good source of information for those who live in Boston. It provides worldwide news and information to events that are happening in the city. I believe Associated Press runs the website. This is because in the article, Associated Press is written on the page. Also, Associated Press is considered to be a nonprofit news organization or agency. According to the Boston article they claim that, “Seventeen of the 21 northern butterfly species in Massachusetts, including the Atlantis Fritillary and the Acadian Hairstreak, were found to be in population decline.” As I was reading the article I did not find any logical fallacies. The article was interesting for me. This is because I am a fan of butterflies and I enjoyed reading about their findings. Workcited http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2012/08/20/study_southern_butterfly_species_growing_in_mass/

Chemical Hazards and Human Health

Today I am going to discuss two types of chemicals that are in our regular household products. These two chemicals are in most of our household products and pose a threat to our health. One of them is called Triclosan. Triclosan is found in our soaps, dental care products, cosmetics, deodorant, and other products. This chemical is added to products to reduce bacteria or the spreading of bacteria. It was first used in hospital settings and now is used in most products we use. According to the FDA website, Triclosan alters hormones. There were studies that were made and it concluded it did affected hormones. Also, another studied that was made concluded that Triclosan may be bacterial resistant to antibiotics. Triclosan is also considered a pesticide. In addition, the Mercola website reports that some studies have been made with animals and they have seen health risks, but they have not been tested on humans because it is not allowed. This means they do see risks in animals and think it will have risks also in humans. The FDA says the same thing and has ordered companies to prove that their products do not harm humans. The only thing that they are certain due to studies is that humans have high levels of this chemical. Also, in the Mercola website I found that a Toxicological study revealed that Triclosan does affect estrogen. Furthermore, I went into my bathroom and looked at the ingredients in my antibacterial soap Dial and it contained Triclosan. There are ways to avoid using these products. According to the Mercola website, we can avoid buying soaps with Triclosan by simply just buying the regular soaps. We should not buy the antibacterial soaps. You could also make your own soap at home the only problem is that you may not always find the ingredients you need. It depends on the type of soap you want to make. The ingredients you might need probably won’t be found in your pantry. If you are trying to make your own soap you will need to buy herbs and other ingredients. If you make your own soap it can take up to ten minutes or more. You can save also money on making your own soap, but once again it depends on the ingredients you are using. I looked up how much regular soaps cost at Wal-Mart. Some soaps cost two dollars or three dollars. When I looked how much antibacterial soaps cost at Wal-Mart, I found out they cost more. Antibacterial soaps are about three to four dollars more than regular soaps. The other chemical that is found in our household products is Alkyphenols. Alkyphenols are found in hair products, cleaning products, and others. It is considered an endocrine disruptor. The household product that has more Alkyphenols is found on laundry detergents. I checked my Downey laundry detergent at home and it did not have Alkyphenols, but in the internet I found that Downey does contain Alkyphenols. According to the O Ecotextiles website, Alkyphenols “have been shown to be toxic to aquatic organisms and an endocrine disruptor in higher animals, and therefore they pose a risk to humans.” It also mimics estrogen and the O Ecotextiles website also says, “It is harmful to normal hormone secretion and can reduce sperm count in men.” Also, according to the Berkley Green website, Alkyphenols were tested and concluded that they can cause breast cancer cells. There are ways to avoid using detergents with Alkyphenols. There are detergents that are considered green. One of them is called Planet Ultra Liquid Laundry Detergent. The prices on these detergents range from seven to thirteen dollars. The regular detergents that we are used to using cost about twenty dollars or more. In my opinion it might be better to switch to the healthy detergents. There are also ways to make your own detergent at home to avoid all the chemicals companies put in our detergent. One example I found, is that you can make your own detergent using one bar of regular soap, borax, and washing soda. You can find most of these ingredients in your house. It is easy to make and people have stated it saves them money. It is an option to avoid chemicals. Works Cited http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm205999.htm http://www.forbes.com/sites/melaniehaiken/2013/12/16/antibacterial-soaps-may-pose-health-risk-fda-says/http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/08/29/triclosan-in- personal-care-products.aspxhttp://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/prove-those-antibacterial-soaps-are-better-safe-fda-tells-makers-f2D11744235 http://www.motherearthnews.com/natural-health/homemade-soaps-zmaz98jjzhow.aspx http://wellnessmama.com/462/how-to-make-nautral-homemade-laundry-detergent/ http://www.breastcancerfund.org/clear-science/radiation-chemicals-and-breast-cancer/alkylphenols.html https://oecotextiles.wordpress.com/tag/alkylphenol-ethoxylates/ http://www.berkleygreen.com/toxipedia/