Urban Heat Islands

January 14, 2019 By in Air Pollution Tags: 11 Comments

A number of my friends decided to visit the beautiful island of Hawaii this month.  Daydreaming about spending time on the beach or hiking Oahu’s “Stairway to Heaven” made me think about a different kind of island: The Urban Heat Island. Urban heat islands aren’t literal islands, though. Certain cities are referred to as urban heat islands because metropolitan temperatures tend to be higher (as much as 3 degrees Celsius annually) than local rural areas. Madison, Wisconsin is no exception to this concept.

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Beaver Lake Nature Center

January 7, 2019 By in ecology Tags: 4 Comments

 

Just like Main Street and University Avenue, it seems like very state has a “Beaver Lake”. There’s Beaver Lake Arkansas, named after homesteader Wilson Beaver. There’s also Beaver Lake Wisconsin, Beaver Lake Illinois, and Beaver Lake New York. These photos are from Beaver Lake Nature Center in New York. Although beavers do roam this 661-acre reserve, the lake was named for its animal-like shape.

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Carbon Capture and the Ethical Dilemma

January 3, 2019 By in industry Tags: 5 Comments
black ship on body of water screenshot

Photo by Chris LeBoutillier on Pexels.com

Carbon capturing technology exists. The question among philosophers is whether or not using such tools is morally sound. Removing carbon from the atmosphere with machines makes consumerism appear less harmful than it really is. On the other hand, natural climate solutions (NCS) are a less costly and more ethical alternative to geoengineering that involve restoration and protection of our organic environment. NCS’s are simple solutions such as halting rainforest destruction or rebuilding drained wetlands. Which solution is the right one? Continue reading →

One Fen, Two Fen, Red Fen, Blue Fen

December 15, 2018 By in ecology Tags: , 13 Comments

Say! What a lot of fens there are. Parallels have been drawn between race, ethnicity, and Dr. Seuss’ poem about fish in the past. But to me, wetlands emulate the essence of the poem. Of wetlands there are many types, including bogs, fens, marshes and swamps. A list of wetland types by WWF gets into even more detail. Some I was even unfamiliar with: pocosins, billabongs, and mires to name a few. Let’s delve into the distinctions and why they matter.

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Jess Turner- Definearth

November 9, 2018 By in Uncategorized 1 Comment

Green Power Garden State.

on the mountain Pic by Jess Turner

This is a fellow blogger who also has a passion for the environment named Jess Turner, a 22 year old environmentalist from New York. She grew up in her grandmother’s 15 acres of woods. She says that her appreciation for the environment was shaped by her life experiences. From being president of her school’s environmental club to spending long days building a brick walkway through the garden. Her passion as a writer has led her to run a blog and a website both titled, definearth.  She even has an interview that is published in Women in Higher Education Magazine titled, Creating Diversity in STEM: An Interview with Dr. Letitia Thomas.

Jess Turner has worked as a research assistant in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Syracuse University with Dr. Charles Driscoll. She studied the efficiencies of solar cookers and did research at University at Buffalo’s Civil, Structural…

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