Multicolored balloons flying to the sky. Jakkree Thampitakkull / Getty Images
We get it. Balloons are fun and make great decorations. But we hate to burst your bubble—balloons can be a big problem when they are deliberately released into the environment.
The litter is not only a blight on landscapes, waterways, trees and power lines, but balloons and balloon strings can entangle, choke or kill marine life and other animals. That's not to mention the wasteful use of helium, a non-renewable resource.
The Associated Press reported Wednesday that much like recent efforts to ban plastic straws and plastic bags, balloons could similarly be on the way out as the general public becomes more environmentally conscious.
"The issue of straws has really broadened the marine debris issue," Emma Tonge of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration told the AP.
Recently, South Carolina's Clemson University decision last month to end its 30-year football gameday tradition of releasing 10,000 balloons into the air. Earlier this year, New Shoreham, an island town in Rhode Island, outright banned the sale, use and distribution of balloons.
Releasing balloons is not just an environmental problem, it could also be illegal. States such as California, Connecticut, Florida, Tennessee and Virginia as well as a number of U.S. cities already have laws that restrict launches.
Balloons are usually made of latex, which is considered biodegradable. However, the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) pointed out on a web post that it can take months or years for the rubber to break down, meaning animals have plenty of time to come in contact with the debris.
"There's an awful lot of confusion over balloons especially what they're made of and how they break down," said MCS Pollution Campaigns Officer Emma Cunningham in the post. "Some people believe that because latex is natural balloons made of it are harmless once let go. This just isn't the case. Latex may last for up to four years in the marine environment."
Balloons made of other materials such as Mylar can last even longer in the environment because they are made of plastic, which never fully degrades. Not only that, California's Pacific Gas & Electric reported that metallic balloons caused 203 power outages in the first five months of 2018, up 22 percent from the year prior, according to the AP.
Even the Balloon Council, which represents retailers, distributors and manufacturers, established "Smart Balloon Practices" to educate consumers on the proper handling of balloons and to stress the importance of never releasing helium-filled foil balloons.
In 2015, U.S. Fish and Wildlife posted an article that advocated for alternatives to balloon releases and included photos of balloon litter impacting wildlife, including a bird strangled by a balloon string and a dead sea turtle that ingested a balloon.
"The pictures are hard to look at," the post states, "but they make clearer than any words why we all should find alternatives to letting a balloon go."
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Kevin Russ / Moment / Getty Images
By Kang-Chun Cheng
Modoc County lies in the far northeast corner of California, and most of its 10,000 residents rely on cattle herding, logging, or government jobs for employment. Rodeos and 4-H programs fill most families' calendars; massive belt buckles, blue jeans, and cowboy hats are common attire. Modoc's niche brand of American individualism stems from a free-spirited cowboy culture that imbues the local ranching conflict with wild horses.
<p>To many, wild horses are icons of freedom and independence. While prevailing science says they are an invasive species that arrived with the Spanish conquistadors nearly a half-millennium ago, <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/environment/2020/04/27/native-horses-indigenous-history/" target="_blank">some say they are Indigenous to this continent</a>. Regardless of their origins, more than 95,000 wild horses are roaming across public lands in the West. The <a href="http://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/WHB-Report-2020-NewCover-051920-508.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">population goal</a>, based on available forage and water, is closer to 27,000. With no effective natural predators, unmanaged populations can double in four to five years (and triple in six to eight years).</p>
<p>These growing numbers have instigated and intensified <a href="http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1455&context=hwi" target="_blank">ecological and social challenges</a> in rural Western communities: Wild horses destroy fences, compete with cattle for grazing, alter native plant communities, affect wildlife behavior, and challenge watershed function.</p><p>They also cost the U.S. a lot of money. To manage wild horses, the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management have to cover both on-range populations and off-range holding costs. The estimated lifetime cost of keeping a wild horse in off-range pastures or holding facilities is $50,000 per animal. In 2019 alone, the bureau spent nearly $50 million caring for wild horses.</p>
<p>National wild horse advocates often love their equines from a distance; many are convinced that any sort of wild horse management is inhumane. But locals, including Native American populations, will tell you that they have struggled to coexist with the proliferation of horses for generations and that management is necessary. Ranchers insist that unchecked propagation of wild horses overruns the sagebrush landscape that their cattle graze on and share with various native and migratory animals and birds. At the same time, wild horse supporters push back against cattle ranchers' powerful economic interests.</p><p>Tensions over the management and allocation of resources in these regions run high. But solutions for assuaging these conflicts are already in play, including fertility control, roundups to adopt wild horses, and land acquisition. Long-term resolution will likely depend on a strategic combination of all three, along with a shared understanding among community members, public servants, and advocacy groups about what a healthy ecological balance looks like across the sagebrush landscape of the West.</p>
The History of Horse Management
<p>Before the 1950s, feral horses were largely unregulated in the U.S. They were released, grazed, captured, killed, sold, and otherwise <a href="http://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/WHB-Report-2020-NewCover-051920-508.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">managed by local inhabitants</a> as they saw fit. Around that time, Velma Bronn Johnston, aka "Wild Horse Annie," started raising public awareness of the "perceived inhumane capture and treatment of free-ranging herds."</p><p>Thanks in part to Johnston's efforts, the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was signed into law by President Nixon in 1971. It declared that the animals "shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death; and to accomplish this, they are to be considered in the area where presently found, as an integral part of the natural system of the public lands."</p><p><a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/341/6148/847.full" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">This act</a> has been amended four times since its conception to accommodate the fluctuating opinions and conditions around maintaining a "thriving natural ecological balance on the public lands"—an admirable although highly subjective goal. Achieving it involves juggling competing interests: those of local residents, permanent grazers, hunters and fishers, advocacy groups, conservationists, and Indigenous tribes.</p><p>The Bureau of Land Management must manage these many conflicting interests. Modoc County's <a href="https://www.fs.fed.us/wild-horse-burro/territories/DevilsGardenPlateau.shtml" target="_blank">Devil's Garden Plateau Wild Horse Territory</a> epitomizes the challenges of this task. Officially deemed wild horse territory, the garden consists of 258,000 acres and is wholly within permitted livestock allotments. It is also home to wildlife such as cougar, antelope, migratory birds, and aquatic species dependent on delicate high-desert riparian areas.</p><p>The presence of wild horses has been shown to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014019631530094X" target="_blank">decrease native wildlife species diversity</a> for both birds and mammals. Pronghorn antelope are an icon in Western grasslands, known for their annual 350-mile migration along historic routes estimated to be 5,800 years old. This awe-inspiring trek is one of the longest large-mammal migration corridors remaining in North America, but 75% of <a href="http://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2004.00548.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pronghorn migration routes</a> have already been lost because of disturbances from the accelerated leasing of public lands and energy development. Horses also affect the pronghorn's yearly migrations by <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014019631630218X" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">monopolizing watering holes</a>, thus preventing native species from drinking.</p>Indigenous Support for Ecological Balance
<p>Ken Sandusky, a public information officer who has worked for the Forest Service in Modoc County for 13 years, lives by his station's mission statement: "Caring for the Land and Serving People." In his work, Sandusky aims to include the broad range of stakeholders and often acts as a tribal liaison. Sandusky himself is a member of the Choctaw tribe of Oklahoma, but as a Modoc native, is more culturally in touch with the local Klamath tribe.</p><p>When it comes to rangeland health, he says, there's a tangible split in what that actually means. "It depends on what you are measuring the outcome against," Sandusky explains. Range managers may perceive progress from a year-to-year basis, but to many Indigenous tribes, the baseline for "progress" goes back generations, to pre-contact times. "They have long memories," he says. "Tribes see damage that is a hundred-plus years in the making."</p><p>While individual perspectives on wild horses may vary among cattle ranchers, as a whole, herders are in favor of stricter wild-horse management to lessen grazing competition for their livestock. Indigenous tribes in Modoc, too, are largely supportive of wild horse management. But they also challenge the sustainability of current cattle grazing management. Local tribes collect wild onions, wild roses, grasses for basketry, and wood for bows and arrows—materials that are incontrovertibly affected by unmanaged grazing, regardless of the species.</p><p>Still, Sandusky, along with other public servants at the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management, express concern about the dogma of wild horse advocates. "They tend to forget or intentionally ignore how they don't hold a monopoly over public opinion," he said. "Stakeholders can get myopic and good at keyhole storytelling."</p>
A Willingness to Try New Things
<p>"Americans don't know what's happening on these lands," says Suzanne Roy, the executive director of the American Wild Horse Campaign, an advocacy organization. The Bureau of Land Management, she says, "is run by and for the livestock industry. They come from a ranching background. The term 'rangeland' management itself illustrates how livestock management is the dominant perspective."</p><p>Roy is particularly concerned about how resources are being allocated: "Policies of land management agencies don't reflect the desires and interests of the public." To illustrate, most Americans associate public lands with national parks and environmental conservation; only 29% of respondents to a recent poll considered livestock grazing an acceptable use of those lands.</p><p>Grazing on public lands certainly aligns with the financial interests of cattle ranchers and helps explain why they insist on increased wild horse management. Cattle can <a href="http://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RS21232.pdf" target="_blank">graze on public lands</a> for $1.35 per animal per month, while grazing on comparable private land costs ranchers $23 per animal per month (American taxpayer dollars make up the difference). To be fair, though, small-scale ranching would not be viable without public lands.</p><p>The campaign hopes to work toward more equitable resource allocation and improvements to overall habitats for horses and wildlife generally. "There are workable solutions to this issue," Roy says. "Common pushback from rangers is that new conservation strategies will 'destroy our way of life,' but change doesn't have to be bad."</p><p>The <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0362331994900264" target="_blank">social conservatism</a> intrinsic to human cultures makes change seem daunting and people reluctant to try new tactics even in the face of suboptimal systems. Roy uses a case in adjacent Marin County to illustrate: Until 2001, the county ran a USDA program focused on killing apex predators (e.g. coyotes, mountain lions, and cougars) in defense of livestock. Unfortunately, this strategy fails to take into account the science of predators. Killing one mountain lion, for example, creates a vacuum and will eventually lead to increased competition for this newly available territory. In 2001, Marin introduced a country-run program that promoted nonlethal methods such as fox lights, guard dogs, and fladry to deal with predator incidents while compensating ranchers for sheep and lambs lost to predation.</p><p>Ranchers were initially livid, concerned that bans on shooting and trapping hindered their rights, making them defenseless against livestock predation. But 15 years later, a majority agreed that this form of humane <a href="http://www.projectcoyote.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Camilla-Fox-Thesis-FINAL-January-2008.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">adaptive management </a>has successfully reduced both livestock losses and the total number of predators. Ensuring its continued success, the program requires active participation on behalf of all stakeholders and long-term commitment from the local government for support.</p><p>As one fifth-generation sheepherder, Gowan Batiste, explained in an interview to the <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/mendocino-county-rancher-and-others-calling-for-non-lethal-wildlife-management/ar-BB16CJ8g" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ukiah Daily Journal,</a> "Livestock is a food of desperation for predators; the more you harass them and make life difficult for them, the more likely they are going to come into conflict with humans."</p>Keeping Wild Horses in Check
<p>When it comes to wild horses, many solutions are already in the works. Through annual autumn wild horse roundups, known as gathers, the Double Devil Wild Horse Corrals has become one of the U.S.'s most successful adoption sites. The California Cattlemen's Association, a nonprofit trade association and organization popular among ranchers in Modoc, urges its members to support the wild horse gathers in Devils Garden, saying they are humane, good for the horses themselves (since competition for scarce water and forage resources may instigate aggression and <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1439-0310.1981.tb01930.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">herd violence</a>), and necessary to support local ranchers and Modoc's agriculture-reliant economy.</p><p>Another popular solution for controlling wild horse populations is a fertility-control vaccine called PZP, given to female horses on the range <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ur7w3UPTCsk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">using dart guns</a>. Mares are tracked on foot or with game cameras while drones are used to locate more elusive herds. The PZP vaccine has been endorsed by the American Wild Horse Campaign as the "<a href="https://americanwildhorsecampaign.org/fertility-control" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">most promising strategy</a>" for managing wild horses in their habitats and is also recommended by the National Academy of Sciences. Importantly, a dose of the vaccine only costs $30.</p><p>Lastly, land acquisition and <a href="https://americanwildhorsecampaign.org/equitable-share-resources" target="_blank">grazing lease buyouts</a> can promote equitable sharing of public lands and available forage. Acquiring key pieces of land adjacent to or within federally designated wild horse habitat areas can reduce conflicts over resource allocation.</p>A Global Search for Solutions
<p>Pastoralists all over the world face similar land-use conflicts, despite huge variations in climate and culture. The ongoing situation across rural California resonates with that of Fulani cattle herders in Niger and Sami reindeer herders in the Arctic.</p><p>Herders everywhere are accused of having too many animals or are perceived as selfish and irresponsible by their own communities. Overgrazing is certainly an issue, but it's not simply the number of animals that matters: The <a href="https://savory.global/holistic-management/" target="_blank">amount of time</a> animals spend in a certain area is critical to rangeland health. And in the context of such allegations, the ecological value of grazing is frequently omitted. Grazers, both wild and domestic, <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/issue/food-everyone/2019/02/04/restoring-the-range-can-beef-be-earth-friendly/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">are key to regulating soil health and allowing for species diversity and coverage, </a>as well as efficient carbon sequestration.</p><p>Part of the problem in these heated grazing debates is that moderate viewpoints are drowned out by extremist agendas—those who prioritize wild horse populations at all costs and those who want all of the horses gone, period. "The majority of people don't really have strong views about the horses," Sandusky says. "But the ones who do can get really into it." These unwavering views make it difficult to find compromises that account for all stakeholders.</p><p>"There is no biological problem, merely a social one," says professor Nicholas Tyler, a pastoralism expert at the University of Tromsø in northern Norway. Tyler maintains that in the case of horses and cattle in the West, as with so many others, the so-called equilibria argument is specious and quasi-biological. "Certainly a lot of horses will influence the species composition," he says. "Remove the horses, things change. Add horses, things change again. There is nothing magical about that."</p><p>But Tyler takes it one step further: "There never was, is, or will be a balance. There are shifting equilibria, which is something quite different," he says. "It is up to the community to decide which state of that equilibrium it prefers."</p><p>Regardless of one's views on what the ideal or preferred proportion of horses, cattle, and wildlife should be, holistic strategies could lead to increased cooperation and knowledge exchange as part of mitigating the current tension. One study examining the mutual dependence of extensive land-use and conservation management in Eastern Europe makes the case for a new profession: the "<a href="http://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ehs2.1215" target="_blank">conservation herder</a>."</p><p>This idea combines age-old <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Dq_U-yCBfI" target="_blank">traditional herding knowledge</a> with a newfound awareness of herders' role in providing ecosystem services. Conservation herding could support pastoralists through the continued sale of their meat and milk production as well as government subsidies for biodiversity management.</p><p>Refreshing pasture management techniques and adapting traditional herding strategies to current rangeland vegetation conditions will provide the necessary backdrop for such solutions to take. Perhaps most importantly, reconciliation of a livelihood that has been traditionally judged as anterior to conservation causes may be exactly what a place such as Modoc needs to move forward. As a society, we tend to not address issues if there are no easy answers or if they cannot be solved by the next news or election cycle. Sandusky says: "Some of us don't have that choice."</p><p><em>Kang-Chun Cheng is a freelance environmental photojournalist based in Nairobi, Kenya. Her background in ecology, with a focus on community-based natural resource management and traditional knowledge, informs and enhances her perspectives as a photojournalist. She is fascinated by the shifting dynamics and values between society, culture, and nature, and use photography as a tool for storytelling. She has been documenting the impact of technology and climate change on traditional reindeer herding culture in Norway and Finland since 2017. She loves rock-climbing, cooking, and knitting. Her work has previously been published in Earth Island Journal, the Valley News, Northern Woodlands, China Africa Project, and others.</em></p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/environment/2020/11/27/wild-horses-west-land-management/" target="_blank">YES! Magazine</a>.<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/r/entryeditor/2649074750#/" target="_self"></a></em></p>
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By Anne-Sophie Brändlin
COVID-19 and climate change have been two of the most pressing issues in 2020.
<p>So why not spend your lockdown binge-watching environmental documentaries that come with an impactful message about the fate of our planet?</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from </em><em><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/9-environment-docs-to-watch-during-the-coronavirus-lockdown/g-55499117" target="_blank">Deutsche Welle</a>.</em><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/r/entryeditor/2649073757#/" target="_self"></a></p>
1. My Octopus Teacher (2020)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="43d618cfe4dea9f32fdb2880868a6f5f"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3s0LTDhqe5A?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>No person has ever gotten as <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/my-octopus-teacher-movie-2647785692.html">close and intimate with a wild octopus</a> as South African filmmaker Craig Foster, who decided to head out to an underwater kelp forest in the Atlantic Ocean every day for an entire year to capture the life of the mesmerizing creature. An unusual, touching friendship develops that will likely change the way you see your relationship to animals and the planet.</p>2. David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet (2020)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bab38965d072e9023c9c36b1ccf622c9"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/64R2MYUt394?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/David-Attenborough">David Attenborough</a> is the godfather of environmental docs. In his 94 years, the Briton has visited every corner of the world, documenting nature in all its variety and wonder. His latest film is a witness statement, in which he reflects upon the devastating changes he's seen in his lifetime. He also gives a vision of the future in which we work with nature, rather than against it.</p>3. The Human Element (2019)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f426ed5154f3133a6f8cb5d8d39cf211"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/k34FhplukXQ?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>This doc follows environmental photographer James Balog on his quest to portray Americans on the frontlines of climate change whose lives and livelihoods have been affected by the collision between people and nature. Balog captures how the four elements of earth, water, air and fire are being transformed by a fifth element — the human element — and what that means for our future.</p>4. Before the Flood (2016)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="619d7c35d25e9cfc6e239bc1bd7d1ea2"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D9xFFyUOpXo?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>In <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/leonardo-dicaprio-before-the-flood-2057070140.html">this doc</a>, actor Leonardo DiCaprio teams up with National Geographic to travel the globe and witness the effects of global warming that are already visible, such as rising sea levels and deforestation. Featuring prominent figures such as Barack Obama, Ban Ki-moon, Pope Francis and Elon Musk, the doc offers solutions for a sustainable future and shows how we can challenge climate change deniers.</p>5. Tomorrow (2015)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8fdcf7de6bd422b6ab96134ce49366d9"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NUN0QxRB7e0?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Need an optimistic view on how to tackle the climate crisis? Then this upbeat French doc seeking out creative alternatives to our current form of agriculture, energy supply and waste management is for you. It introduces everyday sustainability innovators from across the world, such as urban gardeners and renewable energy enthusiasts, to inspire the rest of us to make local changes</p>6. Racing Extinction (2015)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6ec29ed8282004cb6ccc6e0eae7de1ae"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MwxyrLUdcss?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>In this film by Oscar-winning director Louie Psihoyos, a team of activists expose the illegal trade of endangered species and document the global extinction crisis, which could result in the loss of half of all species. By using covert tactics and state-of-the-art technology, they take you to places where no one can go, uncover secrets and show you images you have never seen before.</p>7. Virunga (2014)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6922c47a9603f24dd431f6e5282f7cb5"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wxXf2Vxj_EU?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the only places in the world where you can still find wild mountain gorillas. But the park and its inhabitants are under attack from poachers, armed militias and companies wanting to exploit natural resources. This gripping doc follows a group of people trying to preserve the park and protect these magnificent great apes.</p>8. Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret (2014)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9b7e7a93c26b3a3fc4f8a8374d98e2f2"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nV04zyfLyN4?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>This crowdfunded documentary explores the impact of animal agriculture on the environment and investigates why the world's leading environmental organizations are too afraid to talk about it. The film has caused controversy by suggesting that animal agriculture is the primary source of environmental destruction and the main emitter of greenhouse gases, rather than fossil fuels.</p>9. Years of Living Dangerously (2014)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="585f966df408ae57e3e31747a6c0a66b"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/juXzfwvVHZQ?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>In this Emmy-winning documentary series, celebrity correspondents travel the world to interview experts and scientists on the climate crisis and its effects. But rather than focusing on its star power, the two-season series also shines a spotlight on ordinary people affected by the climate crisis and shows how we can save our world for future generations.</p>From Your Site Articles
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Artist's impression of an Othalo community, imagined by architect Julien De Smedt. Othalo
By Victoria Masterson
Using one of the world's problems to solve another is the philosophy behind a Norwegian start-up's mission to develop affordable housing from 100% recycled plastic.
<p>Since 1950, more than nine billion tonnes of plastic have been produced globally, of which only 9% is recycled, according to <a href="https://www.othalo.com/october-5-press-release-norwegian-c" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">building tech company Othalo</a>, while almost a billion people live in slums.</p><p>It has partnered with <a href="https://unhabitat.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">UN-Habitat</a> – the United Nations program for human settlements and sustainable urban development – to create components to build three demonstration homes to help tackle Africa's housing shortage.</p>
<p>"In sub-Saharan Africa alone, the immediate need for low-cost housing is 160 million units," the company says.</p><p>This is expected to increase to 360 million by 2050 as a result of rapid urbanization. But with today's plastic waste, Othalo believes more than one billion houses can be built.</p><p>In 2021, the first factory producing elements such as partitions for walls, ceilings and floors from recycled plastic will be built in Kenya.</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="915a481fc53353483c30c0c161b10097"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uu0inpxmCzw?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
Sustainable Homes
<p>UN-Habitat says an <a href="https://unhabitat.org/un-habitat-aims-to-use-plastic-waste-to-support-housing-for-all" target="_blank">estimated 60% of people living in urban areas of Africa are in informal settlements</a>. At the same time, between 1990 and 2017, African countries imported around 230 metric tonnes of plastic, "which mostly ended up in dump sites creating a massive environmental challenge," the agency adds.</p><p>UN-Habitat deputy executive director, Victor Kisob, said the aim of the partnership with Othalo was to "promote adequate, sustainable and affordable housing for all."</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg0NDc5NS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzMTYzNjYzNH0.2CbfdMTXXQP4Vmie56i-OgiW69VgLHRXL8ky4qI48Ng/img.png?width=980" id="78bba" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="d53bddf04ac55d4eda2bc1690954fe4d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Artist's impression of an Othalo community, imagined by architect Julien De Smedt. Othalo
<p>Othalo's process involves shredding plastic waste and mixing it with other elements, including non-flammable materials. Components are used to build up to four floors, with a home of 60 square metres using eight tons of recycled plastic. A factory with one production line can produce 2,800 housing units annually.</p><p>Following successful laboratory tests, Othalo's factory in Estonia has started producing components to build three demonstration homes for Kenya's capital, Nairobi; Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon and Dakar, the capital of Senegal.</p><p>Othalo founder Frank Cato Lahti has been developing and testing the technology since 2016 in partnership with <a href="https://www.sintef.no/en/" target="_blank">SINTEF</a>, a 70-year-old independent research organization in Trondheim, Norway, and experts at Norway's <a href="https://en.uit.no/startsida" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">University of Tromsø</a>.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg0NDgwNS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNjQwNjc4OH0.Gt1tcWTTglKeGrsxBC9C1YxZfBMYbr5gSw7J-JB07ew/img.png?width=980" id="d0165" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ebfc38fb8b318b7709ff1fa213b4efa7" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Othalo founder Frank Cato Lahti. Othalo
<p>Almost <a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/publications/2018-revision-of-world-urbanization-prospects.html" target="_blank">seven out of every 10 people in the world are expected to live in urban areas by 2050</a>. More than 90% of this growth will take place in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean.</p><p>"In the absence of effective urban planning, the consequences of this rapid urbanization will be dramatic," UN-Habitat warns.</p><p>Lack of proper housing and growth of slums, inadequate and outdated infrastructure, escalating poverty and unemployment, and pollution and health issues, are just some of the effects.</p><p>Mindsets, policies, and approaches towards urbanization need to change for the growth of cities and urban areas to be turned into opportunities that will leave nobody behind, UN-Habitat says.</p>Pioneers of Change
<p>Reimagining cities and communities for greater resilience and sustainability was a key topic at the<a href="https://www.weforum.org/events/pioneers-of-change-summit-2020" target="_blank"> World Economic Forum's Pioneers of Change Summit 2020</a>.</p><p>The digital event brought together innovators and stakeholders from around the world to explore solutions to the challenges facing enterprises, governments and society.</p><p>Opening the summit, <a href="https://www.weforum.org/events/pioneers-of-change-summit-2020/sessions/opening-plenary-8f731cbc65" target="_blank">Stephan Mergenthaler, the Forum's Head of Strategic Intelligence and a member of the Executive Committee</a>, said: "We need to change the way we produce, the way we live and interact in our cities to make this transition to net-zero emissions a reality…</p><p>"And as this year has illustrated so dramatically, we need to make every effort that we keep populations healthy, if we want to avoid jeopardizing all this progress."</p><p><em>Reposted with permission from </em><em><a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/11/un-africa-recycled-plastic-housing/" target="_blank">World Economic Forum</a>.</em><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/r/entryeditor/2649069252#/" target="_self"></a></p>From Your Site Articles
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Pexels
By Brett Wilkins
Despite acknowledging that the move would lead to an increase in the 500 million to one billion birds that die each year in the United States due to human activity, the Trump administration on Friday published a proposed industry-friendly relaxation of a century-old treaty that protects more than 1,000 avian species.
<p>As part of the administration's race to rush through as many <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/10/17/critics-say-deregulatory-rush-shows-even-if-defeated-trump-white-house-willing" target="_blank">regulatory rollbacks</a> as possible before President-elect Joe Biden enters office on January 20, the U.S. Department of the Interior released an <a href="https://cdxnodengn.epa.gov/cdx-enepa-II/public/action/eis/details?eisId=314796" target="_blank">analysis</a> that sets the stage for modification of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's interpretation of the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA).</p><p>One of the nation's oldest <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife">wildlife</a> protection laws, the MBTA saves the lives of millions of birds each year and, <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/protect-migratory-bird-treaty-act" target="_blank">according to</a> the Natural Resources Defense Council, "is credited with rescuing the snowy egret, wood duck, and sandhill crane from extinction."</p><p>The proposed rule shift would let energy, construction, and land development companies off the hook for "incidentally" killing birds, even though the Interior Department's analysis concludes that "increased bird mortality" will "likely result" from the change. </p>
<div id="9a9a2" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7590e6f05b37dd0a4b9418801291fd87"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1332369258869895168" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Breaking news! 🚨 “This is another step by the #USFWS to jam through a rule to cement an interpretation of the… https://t.co/NDzj3q6vmb</div> — Defenders of Wildlife (@Defenders of Wildlife)<a href="https://twitter.com/Defenders/statuses/1332369258869895168">1606496560.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Under the MBTA, ExxonMobil was compelled to pay <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archive/opa/pr/2006/June/06_enrd_341.html" target="_blank">$125 million</a> in criminal penalties after the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska and BP was <a href="https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?ID=FC61EB52-BF8A-45AA-C04D802711C4EF55" target="_blank">fined $100 million</a> following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and spill that leaked over 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, killing an estimated 100,000 sea birds.</p><p>It is precisely such penalties that corporate bird-killers are seeking to dodge in the future through the proposed rule change, which Trump administration officials including Daniel Jorjani, a former <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/koch-brothers">Koch brothers</a> adviser who is now the head lawyer at the Interior Department, have pushed for years.</p><p>During his 2019 Senate confirmation hearing, Jorjani <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/climate-desk-interior-attorney-gave-false-information-to-congress-about-contact-with-koch-foundation" target="_blank">lied</a> to Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) about whether he had been in recent contact with the Koch brothers or any of their business interests. Before joining the government, Jorjani was formerly a highly paid <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/senate-confirms-former-koch-crony-as-interior-departments-top-lawyer-2019-09-24/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">operative</a> at several organizations linked to the brothers and their fossil fuel empire. </p><p>Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity, <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/senate-confirms-former-koch-crony-as-interior-departments-top-lawyer-2019-09-24/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said</a> last year that Jorjani "opened the floodgates to bird killing by the oil and gas industry and other campaign contributors of the Trump administration," and accused him of being "part of a pattern in which Interior is basically run by the Koch Foundation for the benefit of the Koch Foundation."</p><p>Earlier this year, a federal court <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/08/12/major-victory-court-tosses-out-trump-interiors-gutting-century-old-protections" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">rejected</a> a 2017 Interior Department opinion authored by Jorjani seeking to loosen MBTA protections. Judge Valerie Caproni of the Southern District of New York wrote that Jorjani's interpretation of the law "runs counter to the purpose of the MBTA to protect migratory bird populations" and "is simply an unpersuasive interpretation of the MBTA's unambiguous prohibition on killing protected birds."</p><p>Environmentalists condemned the Trump administration's latest attempt to protect polluters and wildlife-killers from prosecution at the expense of avian lives. </p><p>"This is another step by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to jam through a rule to cement an interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act that a federal court has already declared illegal," Defenders of Wildlife president and CEO Jamie Rappaport Clark <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/11/27/migratory-bird-treaty-act/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said</a> in a statement. "At a time when North America has already lost three billion birds, the rule will further undercut our nation's ability to conserve birds so many people care about deeply."</p><p>Rappaport Clark was referring to a 2019 <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/366/6461/120" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">study</a> published in the peer-reviewed journal <em>Science</em> that found since 1970 the continent has lost over 2.9 billion birds, or nearly 30% of its avian population.</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="85647ea176c7aee6efa734714a5874eb"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cdzU84AyCdI?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>According to a 2005 <a href="https://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/documents/psw_gtr191/psw_gtr191_1029-1042_erickson.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">study</a> published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture:</p><blockquote>From 500 million to possibly over 1 billion birds are killed annually in the United States due to anthropogenic sources including collisions with human-made structures such as vehicles, buildings and windows, power lines, communication towers, and wind turbines; electrocutions; oil spills and other contaminants; pesticides; cat predation; and commercial fishing by-catch.<br></blockquote><p>"Many of the deaths from these sources would be considered unlawful under federal laws such as the Endangered Species Act, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act," the study stated. </p><p>A <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/09/16/ecological-disaster-massive-scale-hundreds-thousands-dead-migratory-birds-southwest" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recent surge</a> in bird deaths in the U.S. Southwest has been attributed to a combination of human-caused climate factors including heatwaves and wildfires. </p><p>If there is a silver lining for bird lovers, it is that the incoming Biden administration will be able to reverse any Trump-era rule changes, although doing so could take years.</p><p>Eric Glitzenstein, litigation director at the Center for Biological Diversity, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/11/27/migratory-bird-treaty-act/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">told</a> the Washington Post that the new rule "will inevitably meet the same fate as the illegal opinion on which it is based."</p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/11/27/under-cover-thanksgiving-trump-administration-pushes-relax-rules-protecting-birds" target="_blank">Common Dreams</a>. </em></p>
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U.S. returns create about 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. manonallard / Getty Images
Many people shop online for everything from clothes to appliances. If they do not like the product, they simply return it. But there's an environmental cost to returns.
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<p>Meagan Knowlton is a sustainability manager at <a target="_blank" href="https://www.optoro.com/impact/environmental-impact/">Optoro</a>, a company that helps retailers process and resell returns. Optoro estimates that each year, returns in the U.S. create about 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions.</p><p>That's about the same amount of carbon pollution produced by 3 million cars during an entire year.</p><p>"And that's just from putting returns in trucks and moving them around, back from the consumers … and then on to their next homes," Knowlton says.</p>
<p>That home might be another customer. But sometimes retailers cannot resell returns at a profit and unsold items may end up in landfills.</p><p>"We estimate that at least 5 billion pounds of landfill waste are created every year in the U.S. from returns alone," Knowlton says.</p><p>To reduce that waste, Optoro helps retailers find new places to resell or donate returned merchandise.</p><p>Knowlton says consumers can help by considering the environmental costs of returns before they buy.</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2020/11/free-returns-come-at-a-cost-to-the-climate/" target="_blank">Yale Climate Connections</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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