Green Building Design Must Guide Our Future Building Policies

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 11:57:39 +0000

Green building design will become a much sought-after specialty as the Western world is forced to address the affordability of its housing for the average home owner. As we concentrate on the rates of consumption and the sizes of our homes to address some of the many problems of climate change, we expect to find solutions that can both meet our expectations while reducing our impact on the environment.

Trend To Larger Homes

When countries experience financial booms, home sizes typically grow larger, demanding more and more energy to support the lifestyle. Thanks to the mineral resources boom, there has been a noticeable trend to larger size homes in Australia, which has been coupled with a trend to smaller sized families living in those homes.

We are developing patterns of living that are increasingly unaffordable and definitely unsustainable. In a paper entitled ‘Affordability through Modesty’ Dr. Linley Lutton clearly shows we are heading the wrong way. He looks at how we may start to undo the damage of wasteful patterns of development and increase density while making homes more affordable. The use of low energy or green building designs are a step forward in making homes future-proofed against the climate change problem.

Pressure For Continual Growth

One hot political issue worldwide is population growth.The fact that modern economies are based largely in continual population growth to maintain their economic growth is a major problem in itself. Given the destruction of natural habitats and depletion of the earth’s resources, if one looks at it logically, it is a self-defeating strategy.

It stands to reason that this approach will come to an end. Are we going to wait until we have destroyed the natural world beyond repair and thus create mass extinctions of human populations? Or are we going to look ahead and take intelligent steps to make this a truly sustainable world for life on earth by striking the right balance?

Dr. Lutton has shown in addressing climate change, what many specialists in the solar energy industry have known for a long time. Our large building companies have been simply responding to the increasing expectations of the populace and putting pressure on government planning agencies to allow them to do so. In the end nobody wins.

The Meaning Of Sustainability

In 1987 the World Commission on Environment and Development, a U.N. body entrusted to report the environment and the impact of buildings on the environment, first termed the concept of true ‘sustainability’. Although at that time the term ‘sustainability’ included ‘ecological’ and ‘ecologically sustainable development’, the accepted meaning of ‘sustainability’ has since been corrupted and watered-down.

In his talk ‘Project Homes Big House-Small House’, Dr. Lutton describes the issues in explicit terms and offers solutions as an urban designer and planner. His presentation looks at successful models of the past and how we have destroyed the whole notion of public interest through unbridled consumption.

Green Building Design Is More Than Solar Panels

If we are to have any chance of addressing climate change we must realize that it is not sufficient to place a number of solar panels on the roof or hook up to a nuclear reactor. True green building design goes much further than this. Over 50% of greenhouse gases in the modern economies are produced from our built environments and its associated infrastructure. We simply will not solve the potential catastrophic future resulting from climate change if we do to change our building culture. Over half of the built environment comprises housing and therefore, the way we live, the patterns of our housing development and our rates of consumption, will determine greatly our future existence on this planet.

We need to change the way our society thinks in relation to our housing.

As we adapt our built environment to live more economically, with less consumption of materials, we need to integrate green building design principles and utilize solar and low energy technologies to complete the picture.

In so doing we should, over time, reduce our dependence on carbon-polluting energy sources by over 50%. Reducing the peak load demand will enable a more economically viable transition to new clean energy sources.

Functions Of A Sewage Treatment Plant

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 05:00:09 +0000

Sewage treatment is very important in our society. It’s an area that’s often misunderstood if understood at all. Nevertheless, treatment plants have a number of important functions.

How to identify a sewage treatment plant

A sewage treatment plant is also known as a domestic wastewater treatment plant. Basically, what the process involves is cleaning up the sewage which is released from domestic and commercial sources. Normally this doesn’t involve cleaning up waste which is released from particularly dirty sources, for example, heavily industrial companies or factory farms of nuclear reactor coolants.

The functions of plants

In modern sewage treatment plants there are three main stages: primary, secondary, and tertiary.

*Primary: In this first stage the easy-to-remove substances are taken out from the wastewater. For example, fats and oils are skimmed from the surface, rocks and pieces of grit are strained, and any large pieces of rubbish can be raked out.

*Secondary: In the second stage the main aim is normally to take out as many biological contaminants as possible. The secondary treatment is the stage at which the largest technical differences within sewage treatment can occur. This is because there are a number of methods in which biological contaminants can be reduced in wastewater. Having said that, generally microorganisms are used to get rid of any unwanted elements.

*Tertiary: In this final stage the objective is to make the water as clean as possible before it re-enters the environment. Usually this is achieved by artificial or man-made natural filter systems. Sometimes treatments are also used to get rid of any phosphorus or nitrogen found in excess. Then, the remaining water is disinfected. Chlorination or UV treatment is usually used for this process.

Important considerations

The sludge that’s left over from cleaning the wastewater has to be dealt with separately and differently to the water that is released. This is an important additional function for treatment plants. In general, this is taken care of by using anaerobic and aerobic methods which utilize bacteria. Composting can also be used to break down any biological contaminants of the waste.

Treatment plant myths

Many people are under the impression that the water which comes out of a plant is clean. This is a common misconception: the function of a plant is to make the water cleaner, but it’s not clean enough to drink. It could be used in irrigation. What a plant is trying to do is to simply speed up a process which would naturally occur given more time. This means that a plant can create water which is safe to enter back into the water system as it’s so heavily diluted. The river then continues the water purification, acting as a form of fourth stage.

A sewage treatment plant has major functions. It’s an important part of dealing with waste, be it domestic or commercial, and helps maintain a clean water supply.

Green Building Design Must Guide Our Future Building Policies

Sun, 05 Jun 2011 10:34:01 +0000

Trend To Larger Homes

Pressure For Continual Growth

The Meaning Of Sustainability

Green Building Design Is More Than Solar Panels

We need to change the way our society thinks in relation to our housing.

Functions Of A Sewage Treatment Plant

Sun, 05 Jun 2011 05:00:17 +0000

Sewage treatment is very important in our society. It’s an area that’s often misunderstood if understood at all. Nevertheless, treatment plants have a number of important functions.

How to identify a sewage treatment plant

The functions of plants

In modern sewage treatment plants there are three main stages: primary, secondary, and tertiary.

Important considerations

Treatment plant myths

A sewage treatment plant has major functions. It’s an important part of dealing with waste, be it domestic or commercial, and helps maintain a clean water supply.

Green Building Design Must Guide Our Future Building Policies

Sat, 04 Jun 2011 20:20:01 +0000

Trend To Larger Homes

Pressure For Continual Growth

The Meaning Of Sustainability

Green Building Design Is More Than Solar Panels

We need to change the way our society thinks in relation to our housing.

Functions Of A Sewage Treatment Plant

Sat, 04 Jun 2011 05:00:08 +0000

Sewage treatment is very important in our society. It’s an area that’s often misunderstood if understood at all. Nevertheless, treatment plants have a number of important functions.

How to identify a sewage treatment plant

The functions of plants

In modern sewage treatment plants there are three main stages: primary, secondary, and tertiary.

Important considerations

Treatment plant myths

A sewage treatment plant has major functions. It’s an important part of dealing with waste, be it domestic or commercial, and helps maintain a clean water supply.

7 Things You Should Know About California Water Laws

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 00:17:11 +0000

There are very specific California water laws that regulate how and when H2O can be used in this state. Due to California’s climate and topography, H2O conservation is vital to the survival of many California H2O districts that often experience a H2O shortage. Water is life in California. As such, H2O education is very important. Here are just a few things members of the H2O industry as well as all regular citizens of California should know about the laws that govern the usage of this valuable resource.

1. Water Conservation Is Now the Law in California

Governor Schwarzenegger signed a bill into law in 2009 known as the Water Conservation Act. This act now regulates how water must be conserved in both an urban setting and an agricultural setting.

2. Water Suppliers in the State Must Adhere to this Act

If certain entities do not adhere to the rules outlined in this act, there can be serious consequences. This goes for both agricultural suppliers as well as urban ones. Suppliers that disobey the act may be restricted from obtaining grants or loans for H2O in California.

3. Water Use Is Now Monitored in California

The act also mandates that both urban as well as agricultural H2O supplies must report to the Department of Water Resources about how much H2O they have used during different spans of time. This is done to make sure that these H2O suppliers are attempting to achieve the targets set forth by the department for better H2O conservation.

4. California Is a State with a Water Rights System

Due to common H2O shortages, many California laws have been passed to create a system that determines exactly who has the right to use what bodies of water in the state. This system is designed to allocate H2O to where and for what purposes it is needed most.

5. Most Water in the State Must Be Put to Beneficial Use

California’s water rights system requires that H2O must be put to what is described as a “beneficial use” to be appropriated. This is done to prevent the needless wasting of the precious resource. Beneficial uses include things such as the raising of fish for a food source, the use of water to fight fires, recreational uses, consumption by the citizens of a city or town, and industrial uses.

6. Groundwater Is Often Not Actively Regulated

Specific rules regulate many different bodies of water in the state. However, ground water is one exception that is largely unregulated. However, if the ground water percolates to the surface, there are specific rules that determine how and when it can be appropriated.

7. Riparian Water Rights Can Supersede Other Water Rights

Certain water rights may supersede the rights of others to appropriate the use of that water. These are known as riparian water rights. These rights often exist for individuals or entities that own land that borders a water source.

Gas Detectors Serve A Crucial Role

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 05:00:25 +0000

If you have ever worked in an environment where there was a danger of gas leaks, then you know exactly how important it is to be able to get an accurate assessment of any potential leak. No one wants to be around if a gas leak is happening, no matter what kind of gas we might be talking about. This is why gas detectors are so absolutely critical in a wide range of settings and markets these days.

There are a variety of types made, but in all situations they serve a very important function that can often save lives. Some of these units are designed to detect natural gas leaks, something that can be quite the life saver. Those that focus on combustible gas detection are the ones that most people will know of because they are used in emergency leak situations where the source of a leak must be spotted quickly so the leak can be fixed.

We all know that a gas leak stands the chance of leading to an explosion in the right circumstances so obviously it is very important to make sure that leaks are fixed up just as fast as they possibly can be. With gas detectors it is much easier to trace that leak and be able to find out what must be done in order to get it fixed. These detectors are often employed by firms that deal with servicing gas lines, but they have many other users, as well.

Handheld gas detectors are often a good choice for those that need to do inspections and most of these will have a type of flexible tube that is used to get into hard to reach areas to help detect leaks. When using today’s gas detectors, it is often a situation where the gas could be explosive. This could be gasoline, propane, fuel oil or natural gas, but that is not all that many of these units are capable of detecting.

By having this kind of value, it is a lot easier to be able to get a more accurate assessment of the situation because the indicator lights and alarm sounds can lead you to the spot that allows you to pinpoint the leak itself so that a fix can be made quickly. These gas detectors today are much easier to find and buy, even for the curious person who would simply like to own one. By knowing that you can get them cheaper online, you can save yourself or your company serious cash.

In the old days, most of these units would have been bought out of catalogs, but with online shopping, you can search for what you want. This usually ends up giving you a very good deal for your money.

Practical Action To Reclaim A Safe Climate: Air Transportation

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 09:34:15 +0000

Despite the jaundiced view of some frequent flyers, flying somewhere is probably the sexiest, most exciting thing most people can imagine. The annual holiday is usually the most anticipated event of the year. Being flown somewhere on business by your company is confirmation of how much they value your services.

Building new airports is high on the agenda for developing countries and expanding existing ones in developed countries is seen as vital to ‘maintain competiveness’.

It is also remarkably cheap. Aviation fuel is protected from being taxed by an international agreement, which means that on a cost per mile basis, flying is cheaper than virtually any other form of transport. It is now possible to fly from London to Dublin for less than the cost of the taxi from Dublin airport to the city centre. Flying to cities in the east and north of Europe has become cheap enough to allow groups of people to go for the weekend for stag or hen parties. A growth in flying is predicted by virtually every government in the world, with the UK volume expected to double by 2030, which will lead them to provide more airports so that this growth can be achieved.

Flying, however, is the single most intensive source of carbon dioxide produced by all human activities. There may be more GHG emissions from car transport in total but in terms of the number of people participating in the activity, flying is the largest polluter. Not because the engines are less efficient than other fossil fuel engines: modern jet engines achieve a similar efficiency in terms of passenger miles per gallon as car engines do (in fact, one UK low cost airline even ran an add claiming that its planes were less harmful than a Toyota Prius on a passenger mile basis but they did withdraw it when it was pointed out that the comparison between a full plane and a car with just a driver was hardly realistic). The simple problem with air travel is the enormous distances aeroplanes allow people to travel. A typical international flight will carry a passenger in a few hours the number of miles they might drive in a year. The greenhouse effect of just a single return flight from the UK to the US, or about three return flights around Europe, is likely to be equivalent to ALL of your other activities throughout the entire year.

Just how much of global greenhouse gas emissions aviation is responsible for is a contested figure and I have seen it range from 1.6% to near 10% with the differences mostly accounted for by the differing assumptions used about the ‘forcing effect’ (i.e. the additional damage aircraft exhaust causes because it is emitted high in the atmosphere rather than at ground level).

Whatever the true figure, it is a big contribution from what is a minority activity and even for that minority, it is only a minority of their time that is spent on a plane. In the UK, for example, more than half of the population took no flights in the past 12 months and the ‘frequent flyers’ taking three or more per year number just 11%.The average American flies about twice as often as the average European, but they in turn fly 10 times more than the average Asian. Overall that means that maybe 2-4% of the world’s population is responsible for up to 10% of emissions from an activity they spend about a day a year doing! Anyway you look at it, flying is environmentally very expensive.

Apart from the sheer carbon intensity, there are two other big problems with flying. The first is that there is no practical substitute technology on the horizon. Jet engines might become slightly more fuel-efficient but any increase will be limited to a few percentage points. The second issue is the forecast in growth will quickly eat up any efficiency gains.

This causes even quite clever people great difficulties with reconciling what they know they should do with what they would like to do. Consider Tony Blair when discussing climate change on 30 October 2006:

‘Unless we act now, not some time distant but now, these consequences, disastrous as they are, will be irreversible. So there is nothing more serious, more urgent or more demanding of leadership.’

Just two months later, Tony Blair was asked if he should show leadership by not flying to Barbados for holidays: His response? ‘a bit impractical actually’.

Or consider the Mayor of London’s support, expressed during a visit to New York in September 2009, for a BA campaign called ‘Face to Face’, which seeks to get more people flying. When asked how this fitted with the Conservative Party’s call for a reduction in unnecessary air travel, his spokesman said the mayor supported video conferencing as a tool for business but was keen to bring tourists and business leaders to London.

The aviation issue is unlikely to be solved in the short-term by economic levers. It is simply perceived as too populist an issue for any democratic government to tackle in this way. Taxing aviation fuel at the same rate as car fuel in the UK would add about 260 to the price of a London to New York ticket compared with an available return fare including taxes of 216.

If the political will and economic incentive is not present to solve the issue, is it possible that the public will fall out of love with the aeroplane? Of course it is.

It would only take a couple of handfuls of celebrities to publicly turn their back on flying as a mode of transport to start making it “unsexy”. Or, how about if Sir Richard Branson, the high-profile and well-respected entrepreneur founder of Virgin Atlantic decided to carry through some of the thinking? What do you think would be the effect of Sir Richard saying to the world something like this: ‘You know, it has been a great party and we love flying. But, we have spent $500 million trying to develop bio-fuels and it still hasn’t worked. The carbon cost of flying is simply too great, so I am closing down Virgin Atlantic airlines and opening a fleet of sailing clippers instead’?

When it comes to reclaiming a safe climate, we simply need to change the way we think about things. Climate change is a very real and present danger. The biggest threat it poses is to human wealth and health. Unchecked, the children who are on the planet now will grow up into a world with empty seas, fierce storms and floods wrecking havoc with our build environment and where we have lost the ability to grow sufficient food. Tony Blair might have found it “a bit impractical” to forgo that Caribbean flight but when it comes to fighting climate change the single biggest impact you can have is, when it comes to flying and just say no.

What Are Some Problems With Water Resources?

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 05:00:08 +0000

It seems rather interesting that everyone is worried about water resources when on our planet we have two thirds of our landmass covered with water. We are overflowing with water, but the problem is humans and plants need fresh water, not salt water. And only a small percentage of the water outside the ocean is fresh, in clouds, ice, or ground water. We know our freshwater is in lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and under the ground.

Unfortunately, due to the increase in population we are using up the groundwater faster than it is getting replenished. We are finding it difficult to maintain adequate amounts of water in our reservoirs for our drinking water and civilization, while still allowing water to flow out of various dams which have hydroelectric power. Our water resources are tied to energy and agriculture, and life as we know it.

In fact there was a very interesting article recently in “TerraDaily – News About the Planet” online which was published on May 31, 2011 and titled; “20 Former World Leaders Discuss Looming Water Crisis” by Staff Writers (posted in the Water World Category). The piece stated:

“An impending “water crisis” and agreed to establish a panel that will tackle a worldwide leadership gap. Panel would raise the issue to political prominence averting future with worldwide H20 supply offering 21 recommendations for global H20 management and place H20 at the forefront of the global political agenda.”

Freshwater supplies are a problem everywhere on the planet, it’s a vital resource, and thankfully it replenishes over time due to the weather patterns and weather flow. We all know about how evaporation works from the ocean, and how the clouds flow over the landmass and then allow rain, which hopefully will fill up our lakes, rivers, and reservoirs.

Unfortunately sometimes that rain comes to far and few between, or it comes all at once in a giant deluge causing massive flooding. Massive flooding also causes the wrong type of run-off to get into freshwater supplies, making it unusable.

In many nations such as the Middle East they have giant desalination plants. And this is something we are going to need to do the United States as well, as much of our population lives fairly close to the ocean, and uses almost all of the runoff water for our cities.

One of the most important flows of any civilization is water, that is to say the flow of water. The quality, quantity, and distribution systems are paramount, and they spell abundance or the end of any great nation. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this.