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.