Blue Living Ideas » Derek Markham

Laundry + Bicycle = Bicilavadora

Derek Markham — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 16:10:25 +0000

Washing laundry is a difficult time-consuming task in the developing world, and doing laundry in open streams or lakes can add to water pollution. The task also falls solely on women -- 8 hours a week is typically spent washing each piece of the family’s clothing and then wringing them out by hand. Washing machines [...]

[Laundry + Bicycle = Bicilavadora from Blue Living Ideas]

Brazil Approves Enormous Hydroelectric Dam in Heart of Amazon

Derek Markham — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:25:39 +0000

Brazil has approved an environmental license for the construction of a huge hydroelectric dam in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, bringing criticism from environmentalists for potential damage to the river basin and displacing indigenous peoples, even though the project is touted as a carbon neutral way to meet the region’s power needs. According to Brazil’s [...]

[Brazil Approves Enormous Hydroelectric Dam in Heart of Amazon from Blue Living Ideas]

Tilapia Takes a Toll on Fiji’s Native Fish

Derek Markham — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:34:40 +0000

The native fish of the waterways of Fiji are battling an invasive species, one advocated by many sustainable fish farming proponents: tilapia. A new study by the Wildlife Conservation Society found that streams with tilapia contained 11 fewer species of native fishes than those without, leading to speculation that the introduced species may be feeding [...]

[Tilapia Takes a Toll on Fiji’s Native Fish from Blue Living Ideas]

Analysis Finds Hundreds of Pollutants in U.S. Tap Water

Derek Markham — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:29:27 +0000

An analysis of 20 million tap water quality tests (from water utilities) over the last five years in the U.S. was undertaken by Environmental Working Group (EWG), and found 316 contaminants in water provided for public consumption. Of those contaminants, only 114 of them have enforceable standards from the Environmental Protection Agency EPA). “The nation’s tap [...]

[Analysis Finds Hundreds of Pollutants in U.S. Tap Water from Blue Living Ideas]

World’s Longest Toilet Queue: Come Together for Sanitation and Clean Water Access

Derek Markham — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:59:08 +0000

4,000 children under the age of five die every single day just because they lack toilets and water, 884 million people don’t have clean water and 40% of the world’s population (2.5 billion people) don’t have a safe toilet. This is a global crisis, and one that doesn’t get much play from the media or [...]

[World’s Longest Toilet Queue: Come Together for Sanitation and Clean Water Access from Blue Living Ideas]

Bournemouth, Europe’s First Artificial Reef, Enhances Ecology and Surfing

Derek Markham — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:53:01 +0000

Europe’s first artificial reef, at Boscombe Seafront, is now officially open. Bournemouth Reef is part of a larger redevelopment scheme to regenerate and revitalize the area. A local Economic Impact Assessment has suggested that the reef will create a value of £10 million per year, generating a huge stimulus for equipment retailing, surf training schools, [...]

[Bournemouth, Europe’s First Artificial Reef, Enhances Ecology and Surfing from Blue Living Ideas]

Rocket Science Investigates Sonar’s Effect on Whales

Derek Markham — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:42:58 +0000

How does the use of mid-frequency sonar by the world’s navies affect marine mammals? Rocket science may help biologists to understand the effects of these systems by allowing them to virtually look inside the head of whales. An industrial sized X-ray scanner, the same kind that NASA uses for detecting flaws in solid fuel rockets, is [...]

[Rocket Science Investigates Sonar’s Effect on Whales from Blue Living Ideas]

Silver Nanoparticles Can Mutate and Kill Fish Embryos

Derek Markham — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:40:49 +0000

Nanoparticles of silver are in more than 200 different products on the market as anti-microbial agents, but scientists are now questioning whether the practice is safe for our environmental and personal health. Nanoparticles, silver in particular, get washed down the drain and into our waterways, exposing fish and other aquatic life and raising big concerns [...]

[Silver Nanoparticles Can Mutate and Kill Fish Embryos from Blue Living Ideas]