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Thank God, for some environmental sense that has taken over mobile companies of the world. All of these companies now offer their customers a chance to have their mobile phones recycled against a payment. This means that if you happen to have a classic phone that you would want to dump or sell off, then STOP! You can go to the specific company’s dealer and ask them to pay you the amount for giving the cell phone for recycling.

According to statistics that was held in 2005, 15 million cell phones were discarded in the US alone! And out of that only an approximated value of 4% of them were recycled, with the rest of the cell phones going to the dumps. The point to worry here is that cell phones contains dangerous substances such as Cadmium, Rhodium, Palldium, Beryllium etc which happens to poison the land fill site or even the sea, when garbage is dumped there. On the contrary if the cell phones are recycled, then the very parts could be used to make even more advanced versions of a phone.

Many schemes and methodologies have been set up to recover various parts of a mobile for gaining precious substances back. For example the metal used in the cell phones are quite precious to be wasted.

If a cell is grinded back to the powdered form the very same metal could be recycled and used to create another beautiful cell. In this way the Earth’s resources could be saved, the lands would be free from poisonous substances and even the public could earn an amount of cash by simply recycling! So many advantages over one simple act.

Depending upon the condition of the cell phone it is recycled into four categories. If it is in excellent condition then it is donated to charitable organizations where the poor and the needy would be very glad to receive a cell phone. Regular cell phones are refurbished and distributed throughout the country and some are also exported to other under developed countries. Finally if cell phones are too damaged they are grinded and precious metals are extracted. So no matter what your cell phone’s condition is, you can always have it recycled for a better use.

You can also search for legitimate online companies that provides users with the option of recycling their phones in return for some good cash. If you live anywhere besides the US or the UK then look up to the mobile company’s franchise in your city or country and visit them for a detailed information on how much you can gain on giving the cell phone for recycling. Do not sell away your phones to unauthorized dealers as that would do you no good.

Even in this century of touch phones, there are many classic phones that were strong, portable and pretty popular amongst the masses. Those classic phones are now a treasure for mobile companies. If they gain such a phone which apparently is in good condition they can pay you a very good amount for it. Do your self and your planet a service by recycling as many products as possible.

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Margaret Meade once said ‘‘We won’t have a society if we destroy the environment.” Truer words were never spoken. We owe our mere existence to the environment. Without it providing us resources we would have gone extinct years ago. Therefore, it becomes our duty to take care of it and not continue with the pattern that we have been following which has endangered the environment.

Here are a few suggestions:

1. Reduce air pollution and save car fuel by driving less. Try not to drive within the 5km radius of your home. Instead walk or take you bi-cycle. It will prove to be a good exercise also.
2. Using stairs instead of the elevator can not only be good for your health but the environment also.
3. When you are stuck in a traffic jam, turn your car off. It uses up more fuel.
4. During summer, the use of air conditioner can use up to 20% more fuel. So turn the air conditioner off when the car gets cool enough. Also make sure that the coolant I recyclable.
5. Try servicing your car on a regular basis. A car can use up to 50% more fuel and give off 50% more carbon if not tuned properly.
6. Instead of using your car daily try joining a car pool. It’s less fuel-consuming.
7. Grow your own food. Not only is it much healthier but food transportation, which is the reason for greenhouse gas emissions will automatically decrease.
8. Be kind not only to the environment but to the creatures in it. Try not eating endangered animals/birds/fish.
9. When visiting your local coffee café, take your own mug/flask instead of using their unrecyclable cups.
10. When grocery shopping, take your own cloth bag or basket and not use their plastic or paper bag. And if you do use them then save them n reuse them.
11. Adopt the key word: Recycle. From cans to bottles, papers, glass etc. keep on recycling.
12. When your not in a room or leaving the room, remember to trun off the lights, fans, switches or any other electrical items that are not in use.
13. During the day, instead of turning on the lights just draw the curtain and take advantage of the natural light at our disposal: the sun.
14. In winter, instead of using the heater try closing the windows and wearing warm clothes indoors as well as outdoors.
15. In summer, use the air conditioner to cool the room for half an hour and then let the ceiling fan take over. This way you’re saving the environment and your electricity bill.
16. If you do not have a full load of dishes or laundry, do not start your washing machine or your dish washer.
17. Save water by taking short showers and turning off the tap when brushing your teeth.
18. At work too you can do your bit by printing only those that needs to be printed. Turning off your computer, printer, and fax machine etc when you’re not using it.
19. For your garden, use a push lawn mower than an electric or gas one. Water the grass or plants in the morning or late evening and not in the afternoon when the sun is at its peak and can absorb more water.
20. Try and grow more trees. Trees absorb carbon and give out oxygen.
21. True happiness is in giving. So if you feel you no longer need something like your toys, or books, or clothes, give it up for charity instead of throwing it away.

Besides this, you can do your part by spreading the awareness word around. Get your family, friends and others involved because it takes one person to make a start and a whole lot of people can make a difference.

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It’s a well known fact that fossil fuels have toyed with our environment and this has resulted in pollution and global warming besides many other issues. Now with the awareness of environmental hazards and the entire world going green, the popularity of Bio-fuels is growing by the day

Biological Fuels or Bio-fuels are prepared from reusable or recycled materials. And thanks to the modern-day scientific research, bio-fuels are playing a vital role in contributing to the world a number of benefits. Below are just some of the benefits illustrated.

1. It’s unavoidable that the need for fossil fuel is increasing with its supply decreasing. This is where bio-fuels steps in. Because it is made up from recycled material, it works as a sustainable alternative for fossil fuel.
2. Bio-fuels emit less carbon when in use as compared to the fossil fuels. In this way it reduces greenhouse gas, toxins and air pollution as well.
3. Most of the ingredients that go into the making of bio-fuels are ‘waste products’ for example corn stalks and other agricultural bi-products. Thus solving the problem of waste material storage.
4. Bio-fuels contain biodegradable material. This makes it less hazardous to our health and environment. And incase of a leakage, it becomes very easy to clean up. Plus it costs less.
5. Bio-fuels put less strain on the earth because it is made up of recycled material. As compared to fossil fuels like coal and oil which has to be extracted from the earth’s crust by digging deep.
6. With the development of bio-fuels comes the decrease in unemployment. From farming right till the transportation industry, the demand for employees would increase.
7. Each and every country is capable of their very own bio-fuel production. This will decrease the country’s amount of dependence on other countries.
8. 3.  One of the advantages of bio-fuel is the cost. Unlike fossil fuel, its prices won’t fluctuate and it won’t be too expensive
9. 4.  Farmers worldwide could also reap the benefits of bio-fuels since bio-fuels are made up mostly of crop’s waste. Farmers along with their crop production could also increase their prices to match the growing demand.

So let us all do our bit to save our environment and our planet by switching to bio-fuels.

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Rain is the great blessing of God. When it rains it is said that God is showering all his love and blessings on mother nature. However when it is acid rain, God is cursing the cruel manner in which man is exploiting the nature. Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, i.e. elevated levels of hydrogen ions. This can occur due to volcanoes and lightning strikes but the major cause of acid rain is the release of high levels of harmful gases by vehicles and factories. Acid rain is caused by emissions of compounds of ammonium, carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.

The damaging effects of acid rain are seen on the forests, soil, and flora fauna and on human health. It is also one of the main reasons of extinction of certain life forms. There are two forms of acid disposition

1. Wet deposition: It occurs when any form of precipitation i-e rain, snow, etc. removes acids from the atmosphere and transfers it to the Earth’s surface. This can result from the deposition of acids produced in the raindrops or by the precipitation removing the acids either in clouds or below clouds.
2. Dry deposition: It occurs through dry deposition in the absence of precipitation.This can be responsible for as much as 20 to 60% of total acid deposition. This occurs when particles and gases stick to the ground, plants or other surfaces.

Harmful effects of acid rain are as follows:

• Acid rain corrodes the protective covering of leaves of the plants, which affects the photosynthesis of the plants. Due to lack of nutrition, plants become vulnerable to diseases.

• Lack of nutrition for trees may be due to acid rain getting absorbed by the soil. The harmful acids can have hazardous effects on the roots of the trees.

• Soil has abundant amount of various metals and minerals, when these metals come in contact with acid rain there can be some harmful chemical reactions and leads to soil erosion.

• Acid rains affect the pH level of the water which reduces the absorption capacity of essential nutrients of the aquatic life. This also hampers the reproduction process in fish leading to weak or brittle eggs.

• Acid rains can pollute the drinking water which leads to various health hazards. The release of various gases in the atmosphere leads to lung problems. Some scientists have related the cause of premature death to environmental pollution.

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Plastic bags need no introduction and neither do we need to go in details about how menacing they can be. Till now the entire world has got an idea of what problems are caused by this plastic bag, but sadly, we are all still using it. However, thanks to some scientists, there are now effective solutions to cope up with this menace. There are techniques being developed that will counter the plastic wastes and help to eradicate it completely after being disposed.

Mixed Plastic

Researchers at the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois has come up with an innovative way to control plastic wastes. Vilas Ganpat Pol, the scientist at Argonne proposes is that a technique is developed that converts mixture of waste plastics into microspheres of a carbon, called the carbon black. The micro-spheres will be used in paints, lubricants, tyres and also into lithium-ion batteries.

In this way plastic will be decomposed and utilized for other beneficial products. It will be effective for recycling the impending growth of plastic wastes.

Self-Destruct

Scott Phillips and Wanji Seo of the Pennsylvania State University have also come up with a technology that will create self-destructing plastics.

This means that the plastics will be more Eco friendly and easier to recycle. Polymer Poly the main element of plastic is mixed with a chemical trigger silyl or allyl to the polymer poly block and this will help in the self extermination of the bags.

The bags will be made to react to environmental triggers such as water or excess heat, and after which they would depolymerise and the bag will simply disappear thus leaving no impact on the environment.

Smart Materials

This technique involves polymers that react with fluoride ions, palladium and hydrogen peroxide and also to develop polymers that respond to enzymes. This concept is still at its initial development and requires some time before it could be taken into a large scale development. The team still has the problem of polymer sensitivity to acidity and need to be stable to be used as well as flexible to be destroyed at the same time too.

Though there are quite a number of efforts being  made to curb down plastic disposals, it will take many more decades to have all this fully implemented, as with every other environmental problems, it’s not one country or state that is involved, it’s a global issue. Let’s just see how successful science to handle plastic bag menace globally.

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If you live in a hot climate where the sun constantly heats up your home and your furniture or flooring simply fade away as a result of the sun’s heat, then an aluminum canopy is what you need. These are cheap, affordable canopies that are excellent protectors from the sun and are at the same time flexible to the looks of the home. Not only for homes, but these covers are also used for cars, and are very durable.

Aluminum canopies could be easily designed to fit in the various exteriors of the home, such as the terrace or walkways etc. The aluminum coverings offer life-time guarantee and even come with a do it yourself kit. It includes support beam, rafter beams, lattice tubes and posts.

The components are all interconnected, thus making it very easy for you to be able to install it yourself. There is nothing complex to it, however, it does require a helping hand, as it could be a little heavy.

With aluminum canopies you always have a choice of colors. You can get any color that suits your home along with affective sunlight protection. To get an aluminum canopy you can visit online stores that will provide you samples of their various designs. They offer you professional services as well as a variety of do it yourself kits. You can choose the prices, features, installation price, kit options, measuring and also get the warranty. There are also photos and designs available that can help you decide what kind of aluminum canopy you would want and the color that would suit best.

There are aluminum patio covers that take on the look of real wood with cedar embossed grain texture and high quality aluminum shield silicon polyester paint finish that keeps you free from maintenance problems. What’s best in using aluminum is its easy maintenance. It doesn’t get rusty or dirty like other materials, plus it always maintains the shine that is needed. So the next time you want to get your lawn or pathway or even you balcony shaded, you should use an aluminum canopy for best results.

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China is emerging as the world’s clean energy “powerhouse”. China has beaten up the United States as the top investor in clean energy. In 2009, for the first time China led the world in clean energy investments and Britain achieved the 3^rd position. In the past year, China surprisingly spent $34.6 billion in clean energy which is double then that of United States $18.6 billion. World’s largest economy lost the top spot in clean energy.

China had made a strategic decision to invest in wind and solar technologies. It has a huge wind turbine production sector and is the world’s largest solar cells producer. Its aim is to achieve 30 gigawatt renewable energy capability set up by 2020 but soon it will surpass the target. Britain’s advancement in this sector is due to vast government-backed offshore wind power projects and made investments into the young marine energy sector.

Britain spent $11.2 billion, gained 3^rd position followed by Spain and Brazil. South Korea moved with 250 percent growth of setup capability. Since 2005, global investments in this sector have doubled and are proposed to reach $200 billion in 2010.

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In an effort to combat the desertification and drought of several African countries, the Global Environment Facility is lending a much-needed helping hand. How, exactly? By planting a living wall of trees, 9 miles thick and an amazing 4,400 miles long across Africa. The wall will traverse 11 countries in the Sahel-Saharan region.

The Global Environment Facility, GEF, is a ground-breaking independent financial institution that addresses environmental issues to bring about lasting change. Their announcement to help the “Great Green Wall” project appropriately coincided with the United Nations’ “World Day to Combat Desertification.”

All in all, the GEF pledged $119 million to put the plan, originally adopted by the African Union three years ago, in motion. The amount that each country receives will depend solely on their size. Currently, the wall is slated to go up in Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti.

GEF has already donated $8.8 billion, and an additional $38.7 billion in co-financing to environmental projects in over 165 countries. Upon completion, the “Great Green Wall” will be a visual representation of the positive impact we can have on our own environment.

Photo Credit: Gorilla Forest Summit Lodge & Somar

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Really amazing are the innovative ways solar power is put into use. Now a team of scientists working in Sandia National Laboratories is focusing on exploring basic steps to make synthetic liquid fuel with the help of solar panels. The goal is that this will help considerably reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Conversion goals:

The team [...]
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