After searching for information and volunteer opportunities, I realized that the hardest part of working the largest offshore spill in U.S. history, is the unknown.They don’t know exactly how much oil has actually been released into the Gulf, or where exactly it will go. 

The spill has occurred at a critical time for the nesting shorebirds and seabirds on Breton National Wildlife Refuge, which is composed of a chain of islands and is still recovering from the impacts of the 2005 hurricane season and other weather events, so protecting birds and their nests is mission-critical. 

Brown pelicans are highly susceptible to oil spills. Their breeding, roosting and foraging sites are often close to shipping channels with heavy commercial traffic, harbors containing refineries or storage facilities, and offshore oil wells. Oil can thus harm pelicans at each of their life stages, from feeding and roosting to breeding and chick-rearing. Already, brown pelicans have been found coasted in oil from Deepwater Horizon spill. 

Sperm whales, which can weigh up to 60 tons and reach 60 feet in length, reside year-round in the Gulf of Mexico. Their strong attraction to specific areas for breeding and feeding may override any tendency for them to avoid noxious oil, and several whales have already been spotted swimming through oily, contaminated waters. 


The waters of the Gulf of Mexico and Florida’s Atlantic coast are home to five species of sea turtles: green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhead and Kemp’s ridley. All are listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The oil gushing from BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig poses several additional threats to the already precarious existence of these rare creatures. Unfortunately there’s not a lot that mere mortals can do. 

If you don’t have the opportunity to volunteer and put your hands on, at least try to be conscious about where you live and do something towards the environment: 
- Never discard fishing line, tackle and other lines and plastic substances that might entangle or be consumed by brown pelicans. Carefully pick up any discarded line you see and dispose in an appropriate container. 
- Report pelicans that are injured by collisions with power lines and other structures to a certified animal care facility. 
- Support designation of marine sanctuaries and other marine protected areas where sperm whales and other marine life are buffered from disturbances caused by shipping and industrial development. 
- Urge your elected officials to pass comprehensive climate change legislation that addresses the impacts of global warming on wildlife and our natural resources. 
- If you live on or near the Florida coast, sign up for Neighbors ensuring Sea Turtle Survival (NeSTS) at www.turtlenests.org to help protect sea turtles and their nesting areas. 
- If you live near a beach, turn off outside lights at night. Sea turtle hatchlings use light to find their way to the water. 
- Reduce the amount of garbage you produce and clean up trash you see on the beach. 
- Reduce your use of chemicals such as fertilizers and pesticides that can wash from gardens and lawns into coastal waters, harming plants and animals.

+info: www.defenders.org

 
 
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Everything from common dish soap used in the kitchen to laundry detergent or floor polish and bathroom milder removers, cause pollution. Not just when we use these products full of toxins in our homes (polluting the air with their toxic chemicals), but also when they are manufactured and transported to the stores.

Cleaning products pollute our water supply when they’re washed down the drain. They end up in our lakes, rives and oceans having a negative effect on our health as well as the health of nearby wildlife.
According to data published by the Western Regional Pollution Prevention Network, six of every 100 janitorial workers injured on the job each year are hurt by the cleaning chemicals they use.
Some of the products we already have in our fridge can be easily and efficiently used as natural cleaners. For ex:
- Baking soda can be used to scrub surfaces in much the same way as commercial abrasive cleansers. Baking soda is also great deodorizer: place a box in the refrigerator and freezer to absorb odors and/or before you vacuum, sprinkle it on your carpet.
- Lemon Juice. The acid in lemon juice neutralizes hard water deposits, dissolves buildup and dirt on wood, and tarnish on silver.
- Grapefruit seed extract and essential oils such as lavender, clove, and tea tree oil have antiseptic properties and operate as natural fungicides.
Sometimes choosing eco-friendly cleaning products are a more expensive option, so here is a better tip for the environment and your pocket: make them yourself. I make my own, and by having five dogs in the house, I want to make sure I get rid of bacteria and odors! These are some recipes that I tried and approved:

All-Purpose Cleaner: Mix 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda (or 2 teaspoons borax) into 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water. Store and keep. Use for removal of water deposit stains on shower stall panels, bathroom chrome fixtures, windows, bathroom mirrors, etc. 
Another alternative is microfiber cloths which lift off dirt, grease and dust without the need for cleaning chemicals, because they are formulated to penetrate and trap dirt. I also mix around 5 drops of lavender (or tea tree) essential oil by the time I’m cleaning in each liter of these mix to leave a nice smell…
Mold Killer: Combine 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil in 2 cups of water in a spray bottle. Shake to blend. Spray on mold and don’t rinse.
No-streak glass cleaner for sparkling mirrors and windows: combine 1/4 cup undiluted white vinegar, 1 tbsp cornstarch, and 1 quart warm water. Divide into spray bottles. For a lint-free shine, wipe dry with a sheet of crumpled newspaper or a coffee filter.
Tub and tile cleaner recipe: 1 2/3 cups baking soda, 1/2 cup liquid soap, 2 tablespoons vinegar, 1/2 cup water, a few drops of Tea tree essential oil. Mix soda and soap. Add water, vinegar and oil. Store in a squirt-top bottle and shake before using. Rinse thoroughly to avoid leaving a residue. 


Have a GREEN cleaning time!
;)
 
 

This video (in Portuguese) shows how a creative Brazilian developed during a blackout in 2002, an eco friendly way to produce lightning into poor houses and warehouses in Brazil.

Using a plastic bottle, water and a little bit of any natural disinfectant* to keep bacterias away, he made a solar panel that is solving the darkness issue in a poor city of Brazil. Each bottle is equivalent a 40 watts lamp.On the top he used a plastic film container to protect the top from the sun and also sealed the bottle in the tile hole to protect from rain.

A tip to the ones that would like an eco friendly and creative alternative, where you also save money on electricity.

* Some essential oils as lavender and tea tree are powerful disinfectant with antibacterial properties. If you also want to clean you house in a greener way, you can mix 1 to 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil for a gallon of water to wash windows, floors and toilets to scrub away the germs. You can also use vinegar and lavender mixed in the water to pre wash baby clothes and kill bacterias naturally.

 

 
 
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This past week was a busy one regarding green issues. Starting with the sad news about President Lula signing the bill that allows Amazon farmers to acquire an area of public land, and ending with a hopeful one involving President Barack Obama, who has pushed urgently for passage of legislation to confront global warming.

Hours after the House approved a climate bill that, for the first time, would force US companies to limit greenhouse-gas emissions blamed for global warming, President Barack Obama urged (this Saturday) senators to show courage and follow suit.
The 219-212 vote marks a major victory for President Barack Obama, who has made global warming and clean energy legislation a top priority for his administration.
The bill now moves to the Senate, which could have an even tougher time getting the measure passed. Groups on both sides have also vowed to continue pushing for changes as the legislation makes its way through the US Congress.

"I know this is going to be a close vote, in part because of the misinformation that is out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and our economic growth."

"My call to those members of Congress who are still on the fence as well as to the American people is this: We cannot be afraid of the future, we can't be prisoners of the past. "We have been talking about this issue for decades, now is the time to finally act." Obama said.

The US, which together with China emits about half of the world's greenhouse gases, has long faced pressure from other governments to more aggressively reduce its carbon footprint.
The Obama administration hopes the bill will bolster the country's bargaining position at a critical meeting in Copenhagen in December, where governments are expected to thrash out a new global treaty to combat climate change.
Obama hopes a cap-and-trade system will cut US emissions 17 percent below 2005 levels - about seven percent below 1990 levels - by 2020, and nearly 80 percent below 2005 levels by 2050.

"Europe in many ways over the last several years has moved more rapidly than the United States," Obama said after his meeting with Merkel. He was "impressed" with Germany's "foresight and commitment to clean energy".

"It is my hope that the United States will match that commitment today," Obama said of the House vote.


Attention for the picture of a flock of geese flying past a smokestack at the Jeffrey Energy Center coal power plant near Emmitt, Kan.

 
 
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Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva looks set to approve a bill that is due to transfer an area of public land – estimated to be around 670,000 square kilometres (259,000 square miles) – into private hands.

The government originally introduced what is called “Provisional Measure 458″ as a way of bringing security to small farm owners in the Amazon region. This bill target mainly areas of the “Legal Amazon”, Brazil's largest socio-geographic area.
This Bill has angered groups and researchers (as me, of course!) that are raising major concerns and coming in for significant criticism within society. They say the proposal amounts to an amnesty for land-grabbers, and that the original measure has been altered by Congress in a way that will only serve to encourage deforestation.

The report from Greenpeace, Slaughtering the Amazon, reveals the devastating impacts cattle ranching is having on the climate, biodiversity and local communities.

Environmental groups in Brazil are encouraging people to sign a petition and try to change Lula’s mind.Please, click here and let’s try to do so!
If you want to know more about this Bill, click here for a full article from BBC.

Image credit: Rex Features

 
 
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The annual International Whaling Commission meeting this week, Denmark has applied to include humpback whales in the hunting quota for Greenland.
Denmark has requested a hunting quota of 30 humpback whales for Greenland at the annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), which started Tuesday in Portugal.
According to documents submitted by Denmark to the IWC, the conversion rates for actual meat obtained from fin and minke whales – which Greenland currently has hunting quotas for – have significantly reduced from previous data submitted to the IWC.
Denmark, on behalf of Greenland, now claims that four tonnes of usable meat and edible products can be obtained from a fin whale, while 1.3 tonnes can be obtained from a minke whale.
Previous requests submitted to the IWC have not included the usable meat data. Instead, it listed the estimated amount of meat per whale, which was significantly higher at ten tonnes per fin whale and two tonnes for a minke whale.

 
 
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Every day we throw away many things ‘cause we ignore and don’t search for creative ways to reuse them. We could turn food containers into a bird feeder, old t-shirts and/or socks into rags, and even spend a little time to separate and donate old toys or furniture, instead of throw it and contribute for the huge pile of trash in the world!
Internet offers us so many ways to revert this process of wasting and helps us with ideas in how to save and help the environment.

Below you will find some ideas on how to reuse stuff you might have at home into useful projects:

- Turning a plastic or carton gallon jug into a bird feeder is very simple!
If you are a kid, ask an adult to help you with cuttings!
With a plastic gallon jug, clean the inside and cut big circles in each side of the jug. Right under these circles make smaller perch holes where you will insert wooden dowel rods for the birds to land. Be careful not to make them too large or the seed will fall out. Fill the feeder with seed and hang it in a nearby tree.

- With the milk carton it’s even easier: just cut openings on opposite sides of a clean carton For a perch, poke holes below the openings and slip a dowel through the holes. Fill the bottom of the feeder with birdseed mix and hang the feeder with wire. Do some research to find out where to locate different types of feeder. Each one will attract different types and sizes of birds. You'll also want to find out what types of bird feed to put in each container. Birds have very different diets and will be picky about what they will eat. It is also important to keep the feeders clean to avoid making the birds sick!

- To turn a plastic bottle into a self-watering planter, cut the top third off a two-liter plastic bottle. Ask an adult to drill a small hole in the cap. Pass a string through the hole. Fill the bottom of the bottle about half way with water. Place the top upside-down in the bottom and put in your plant. The string will wick up the water into the soil.

 

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