O’Malley To Sign Oyster Shell Recycling Bill

http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2013/05/01/omalley-to-sign-oyster-shell-recycling-bill/

Governor Martin O'Malley from Maryland is going to sign a bill which will start an
Oyster shell recycling process. The Chesapeake Bay oyster population has dropped
dramatically since the first European settlers. The bay now consists of less than 1
percent of the original population. Oysters are a crucial part of the bay because they
are filter-feeders. The oyster shells would be collected from regular consumers and
from restaurants. The recycled shells would be brought to hatcheries because the young
oysters prefer to latch onto adult shells.

State Of The Air 2013: American Lung Association Report Reveals America's Most Polluted Cities

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/24/state-of-the-air-2013_n_3140946.html?utm_hp_ref=green

This article talked about how Americans are still live with very poor air quality. 
Over 40 percent of Americans live in counties with terrible air quality. California
has the worst air quality, and it is throughout the whole state. In the United States,
131.8 million people live in a place with poor air quality. Reducing coal burning 
power plants and cleaner diesel fuel has helped air quality, but there is still a long
way to go. 

New Diseases, Toxins Harming Marine Life

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/04/130412-diseases-health-animals-science
-environment-oceans/


Marine wildlife vetinarians have been handling a lot
of cases with dead otters. They have one by one
ruled out different types of deaths. They then found 
out that the otters were poisoned by a toxin called
microcystin which comes from human waste and 
also from fertilizer. The sewage and fertilizer runoff
into lake and rivers and end up in things like fish and
shellfish. After the fish make their way into the ocean 
the otters then eat them, get poisoned and could die. 

Recycled Blue Jean Insulation at Your Local Store

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/24752



Home Depot and Lowes online stores are now offering Jeans as
an insulation choice. Denim is a great insulator, and Home Depot
and Lowes are now recycling old pairs of Jeans and turning them
into insulation. Right now it will take about 500 pairs of jeans to
insulate a house. The price is a little bit more expensive than fiberglass
insulation, but it is a better insulator and will save you more money
in the long run. This product is also energy star rated and approved
because it is 100% recycled material. 

Breakthrough in Hydrogen Fuel Production Could Revolutionize Alternative Energy Market

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130403104104.ht

This was a very interesting article. The article focuses on different
types of energy and how much of it we use. A group of scientists have 
found a way to extract hydrogen from plants and researchers believe that
this could potentially be the next fuel/energy option. Extracting the hydrogen
would be a cheaper and a more Eco friendly fuel source. The scientists used
simple sugers to create large amount of hydrogen from the plants. 

Gas prices cut into spring break travel, survey says

http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-gas-prices-spring-break-travel-20130320,
0,6223561.story

A recent study and survey has shown that with gas prices around $4 a gallon, spring 
break travel was limited. Only 47 percent of the people surveyed said they are planning
a spring vacation. Last year 57 percent of the people surveyed said they planned a trip. 
With the extremely high gases prices, 69 percent of the people surveyed said that they 
have made at least one significant cut to their daily budget. The people who took the 
survey said they are more likely to take smaller less expensive vacations. More and
more people are going to go somewhere locally instead of traveling further away. 

N.Y. Farmers Learn Fracking May Mean Drilling If Neighbors Agree

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-03-13/n-dot-y-dot-farmers-learn-fracking-may-mean-
drilling-if-neighbors-agree

This article really showed how big of a problem fracking is becoming. A lady who
lives on an 170 acre property in upstate New York is facing potential fracking on her property. 
The land she lives on has been in her husbands family for over 150 years. Exxon Mobile has 
Offered the women Kris Vanslyke a deal to frack on her property, but she denied them. 
Recently Kris learned that she does not have to accept the deal because Exxon can build a 
well on one of her neighbors property, and pull the oil and gas out beneath her property. 
Kris Vanslyke is opposed to fracking because she is concerned about her own health, her 
drinking water, and the environment. 

Sewer main break releases wastewater into ocean

http://www.mercurynews.com/pacifica/ci_22724838/sewer-main-break-releases-wastewater-into-ocean


This article was very interesting. A sewer main in Pacifica California cracked last
Friday, and leaked over 5,800 gallons of wastewater. The sewage main cracked near
a beach, and officials said they collected 4,000 gallons of the wastewater, but the other
1,800 went into the ocean water. Scientists took water samples for high levels of
bacteria and e-coli, but test results showed no danger to the public. The city closed
down Rockaway beach while they fixed the pipe, and waited for the results back. 
Whether or not most of the wastewater was recollected or not, this still has an 
impact on the environment because the Bactria is still contaminating the waters. 

Oldest Known Wild Bird Hatches Chick at 62

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/02/130221-birds-albatrosses-oldest-wisdom-
midway-science-animals/

Back in 1956, a group of scientists marked a Layson albatross that they called wisdom. Today,
scientists believe that wisdom is around 62 years old and she just hatched another chick. Wisdom
is believed to have had at least 35 previous chicks as well. The bird was orinally banned so that
scientists could study its habitat and movement, and they did not expect a wild bird to live this
long. So birds are known to live into their 80's, but that is in captivity. Scientists have said that wisdom still looks strong and healthy also.

Air Pollution and Heart Attacks

http://www.enn.com/pollution/article/45621

This article really sums up what people have done to the environment and how we are
now going to start feeling the full affects of air pollution. The amount of coal,oil, and gas
that is being burned everyday in the atmosphere is a crazy amount. A recent study by scientist show
that not only does air pollution cause upper respiratory problems and lung cancer, air pollution is now
being linked to a cause of heart attacks. Studies have show that people who live in a heavy polluted 
area are at a greater risk and are suffering more heart attacks and heart problems.   

Life Found Deep Under Antarctic Ice for First Time?

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/02/130205-antarctica-ice-life-moons
-science-environment-lakes/


This article was very interesting. Scientist found tiny microbes deep inside Antartic ice. 
The ice is more then a half a mile thick. Scientists believe that these microbes survived
by living off rocks. Finding these microbes is important because this could lead to
finding out if Jupiters or Saturns moons have any life. The microbes that were found were 
found in a hidden lake deep beneath the ice. Scientists believe more of theses lakes
do exist throughout the Antartic. 

Warmer is not always wetter

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/347954/description/Warmer_is_not_always_wetter

This article really summarized what Earth is going through. The surface temperature
 on earth is at a record high and it is because of the human population. Humans have
 damaged the ozone layer and have released way to many different green house gases
 into the atmosphere. In wet warm climates, the average precipitation has increased because 
the earths temperature has risen. Scientists have found that as the surface temperature
 increases, so will the precipitation. There really is no other way to stop this from happening 
except for people to stop destroying the earths atmosphere. 

That Cuddly Kitty Is Deadlier Than You Think

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/science/that-cuddly-kitty-of-yours-is-a-killer.html?ref=science&_r=0

This article was very intersting. Over the last couple of years, scientists have been studying
feral and domestic cats behaviors. Cats are said to kill an average of 2.4 billion birds every year. 
Cats also kill 12.3 billion mammals every year. This number is ridiculous, and scientists originally 

thought that the kill rate was between 2 to 4 times lower. More birds and mammals are killed

each year because of cats then automobile collisions or being poisoned. The cat population

has to start getting under control because native species are starting to get threatened. 

Not Even Close: 2012 Was Hottest Ever in U.S.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/09/science/earth/2012-was-hottest-year-ever-in-us.html?ref=science&_r=0


There is absolutely no question that global warming is happening, and it is happening at a rapid pace.
2012 was the hottest year on record. Last years average temperature was 55.3 degrees Fahrenheit. 
The previous record was set in 1998 and was 54.3 degrees Fahrenheit. In 14 years, the temperature 
average increased by a full degree. During the full year, 34,008 record highs were recorded. Only 6,664 
record lows were record in this same time. If people do not start caring for earth and what
 they are doing to it, the temperature is just going to continue to rise. 

How fast is the world’s population growing?

http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/how-fast-is-the-worlds-population-growing

This article really shows that if the population increase does not slow down soon, 
the environment will be destroyed. Right now there are over 7 billion people living
in the world. A baby is born every 8 seconds and there are 200,000 babies born 
each day. 140 babies are born each minute, 80 million babies are born each year. 
A person dies every12 seconds. With the birth rate greater then the death rate, 
population is always increasing. Estimates are showing that by 2050 the worlds 
population will be 9 billion. From 1900 to 2000 the world population quadrupled in 
size. As life expectancy increases the population has no where to go but up. Humans 
have most likely have already reached their tipping point and there is really nothing that 
can be done to reverse the problems that are taking place.