Archive for the ‘water’ category

Whale burps and ocean balls in Lake Superior

January 18th, 2011

Recently, it was discovered that whale burps were discovered along Minnesota’s north shore near Duluth. 

My first reaction to hearing this story on the radio was “what the hell is a whale burp?”  Well, it is not a few air bubble that rise up and pollute the air with the smell of Old Milwaukee and Beer Nuts.  That was my first guess, or at least what I hoped it was, but I guess I was wrong.  “Whale burps”, also called “Surf balls” (which brings up a whole other set of hilariously odd visuals), are quite simply balls of vegetation and debris that wash up on shore.

The balls found in Duluth contained natural items, but also plastic and unnatural waste.  Obviously, if these whale burps are containing plastic, it is not great for the environment and would appear that these burps are nature’s way of trying to get rid of its debris.  That they are only now appearing in Lake Superior is concerning to me and wonder if this is just a random occurrence or if it is a symptom of too much garbage in Lake Superior.

I am not sure what the ramifications of “whale burps” are on the environment and not even sure if they really mean anything, but that our lakes and oceans are spitting out debris is certainly something to be concerned about.

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Cleaning up the beach in San Diego

February 25th, 2010

Soon, we will be on vacation and although I know that we will create some additional waste on the trip, I still want to make sure to continue on my green quest.  This week’s green challenge is to find some green tasks to do while we are on vacation.  I think I know at least one thing we will while we are in San Diego… pick up garbage off of the beach.

We have been going to San Diego for several years to visit my parents and go on at least one walk a day.  I figured that we could take a bag on a few of our walks and pick up garbage to either put in the proper receptacle or recycle.  Although the Mission Beach area is a nice beach, I am sure there will be plenty of garbage to pick up.

Garbage on the beach might end up in the ocean or vice versa.  There is even a large area of garbage in the ocean that is called the great garbage patch.  This pile of garbage is the size of Texas.  Well, Ashley and I may not be able to clean up the entire ocean, but possibly we can take one small step to try and be part of the solution.

I am really looking forward to this trip and I hope that we can do a little to help with the environment also.  If you have any green activities you could suggest or interesting things in the San Diego area, please let me know in the comments area below.

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Household cleaners and the poisons among us – a week in review

December 21st, 2009

If there is one thing that I have learned about household cleaners this week that shocks me, it is how potentially dangerous they are.  Most household cleaners are full of poisons that are toxic, potentially cancer causing and all around nasty stuff.  It has become difficult for me to understand the logic in spreading a thin layer of poison over everything in the name of supposed cleanliness.  We have made some changes and will hopefully explore this topic even more in the weeks to come.

We took the remaining “bad” cleaners we have and gave them to people who may be able to use these items.  I don’t really like the thought of passing poisons on to others, but since these families will use the cleaners anyways, I would rather it go to use rather than be wasted.  So, we have given away most of our traditional cleaners.

We have begun using cleaners that are supposed to be green alternatives.   Ashley has been using cleaners that are green and has experimented with homemade cleaners prior to this blog.  I have stopped using the other cleaners and will try to work with what we have.  Also, I would like to try to make more of our own cleaners since that seems to be the healthiest and most environmentally friendly option.

Beyond the potential health issues, there is also an environmental impact to using these cleaners.  Poisons end up going into the garbage and down the drain.  This stuff ends up in our landfills and the ground.  The containers are also wasteful and end up wasting space in the landfills.  If we can start using more homemade concoctions, this will help reduce our waste.

It has been a good week once again and I have learned quite a bit.  Please let me know your stories or tips on household cleaners below AND stay tuned for next week’s task.

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