It’s not all bottles and straws—the patch is mostly abandoned fishing gear.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the world’s largest collection of floating trash—and the most famous. It lies between Hawaii and California and is often described as “larger than Texas,” even though it contains not a square foot of surface on which to stand. It cannot be seen from space, as is often claimed.
Continue reading… “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch isn’t what you think it is”
You probably do some form of recycling if you live in the U.S. You probably separate paper from plastic and glass and metal. You rinse the bottles and cans, and you might put food scraps in a container destined for a composting facility. As you sort everything into the right bins, you probably assume that recycling is helping your community and protecting the environment. But is it? Are you in fact wasting your time?
Sweden burns half its rubbish to generate energy.
People in Sweden generally waste as much as people in other countries, around 461 kilograms per person each year. But only one percent of that waste is ending up in landfills, thanks to the country’s innovative “recycling” program. (Video)
Continue reading… “Sweden now recycles 99 percent of its garbage”
A lone child in the valley of garbage
Manshiet Nasser is a neighborhood located in Cairo, Egypt. People refer to it as the City of Garbage because trash from all over Cairo end up there. It is not a landfill. Rather, people who live there survive on sorting through garbage and selling whatever is useful. They claim that 80% of the waste is recycled and resold. (Amazing pics)
Continue reading… “The City of Garbage”
It’s just an idea: Recycled island.
Recycled island is a research project on the potential of realizing a habitable floating island in the Pacific Ocean made from all the plastic waste that is momentarily floating around in the ocean.
The proposal has three main aims…
“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”
Whoever said “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” might not have been speaking literally — but these seven dumpster divers prove that a little luck, a lot of patience, and a high tolerance for ickiness could mean big financial rewards.
Continue reading… “7 People Who Made Millions From Trash”
British Airways set to fly on fuel from garbage
British Airways is planning to establish Europe’s first green jet fuel plant that would turn rubbish into carbon-neutral aviation fuel by the year 2014. According to the Independent, British Airways would establish the plant, in collaboration with the US bioenergy company Solena.
Continue reading… “British Airways Set To Fly On Fuel From Garbage In 2014”
Rubbish in the Pacific
Aboard the Alguita, 1,000 miles northeast of Hawaii — In this remote patch of the Pacific Ocean, hundreds of miles from any national boundary, the detritus of human life is collecting in a swirling current so large that it defies precise measurement.
Continue reading… “Expanding Islands of Trash Afloat Around the World’s Oceans”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehD7v33Foww&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Co-funded by the European Commission, the $3.9 million (USD) Dustbot project aims to build a moderately-sized robot to navigate the narrow streets that garbage trucks can’t reach. The pictures were taken from Dustbot’s trial run in Peccioli, Italy. (Pics)
Continue reading… “The Dustbot: Robot Trash Collector”
There’s a new trash can in Philadelphia. Several in fact. These brand new solar trash cans are being installed on philly sidewalks and are entirely powered by the sun. Continue reading… “Solar Powered Trash Compactor”
In Back to the Future, Part II, Doc Brown figures out a way to run his time traveling Delorean on regular garbage thanks to “Mr. Fusion.” What an awesome idea. And now, one that you can make a reality by building your own Mr. Fusion on your car. And you don’t even need to be a mad scientist to do it. The Mr. Fusion of today is called a gasifier, and it allows you to use, yes, gasification to run your car. Continue reading… “Mr. Fusion”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.