#pollution solutions

[wachinyeya]

From Phoebe Weston at the Guardian comes the story of the Herculean effort to clean up Switzerland’s waterways, an effort that has transformed the unique European country into one that enjoys the cleanest urban swimming spots on the continent.

In the 1960s, water quality in the form of sewage treatment investment received the smallest share of attention, and rivers and lakes like the famous one at Geneva were covered in algal mats, off-colored foam, and dead fish.

A typhoid outbreak at Zermatt in 1963 led to several deaths, and hundreds fell ill. It was found that raw sewage was the cause of the epidemic, and an outcry from the public led to massive investments in sewage treatment and pollution control.

That was then. Now, as Weston’s photography testifies, the “Blue Gold” of Switzerland’s waterways are the envy of their neighbors, and people of all ages and at all hours flood the beaches to enjoy a swim, even in the nippy early spring.

“Very high water quality is important to the population,” says Michael Mattle, head of wastewater technology at the engineering company Holinger. “We take a lot of care not to pollute water on its way through Switzerland.”

According to one source, in 1965, only 14% of the population of Switzerland was connected to a wastewater treatment plant. Today it’s 98%, and the government spends €191 on water purification per citizen, compared to just €98 in the UK, for example.

Since 2016, the Swiss federal government has also been working on a massive pollution control effort for drugs and medications flushed down the toilet when they’re excreted by the body. They include, as Weston details, antidepressants, anti-inflammatories, diabetes medication, and even antibiotics.

Wastewater treatment plants basically work like a human stomach, utilizing bacteria to digest and remove organic matter from water. Alternatively, the treatment for these pollutant drugs requires flushing the water through activated charcoal which can remove 80% of the total pollutant load. What’s left are the famous PFAS compounds referred to as “forever chemicals” by the media.

That 20%, operators at the wastewater plants say, should be the focus of regulatory legislation, not treatment infrastructure.

Weston also reports that the EU, and Switzerland’s near neighbors, are visiting to learn about and hopefully replicate the country’s success, with the EU considering new legislation that would require any sewage treatment plants that serve areas of more than 10,000 people to treat for the pollutant pharmaceuticals mentioned above.

[hometoursandotherstuff]

[idontfuckingknw]

Petition for Anti- pollution

We're SERIOUSLY going to kill not only ourselves, but millions of others, including people, animals, AND the environment if we don't get the pollution and stuff fixed. We're killing our home, our planet, we don't get a second chance if we kill earth, guys, we really, really don't.

Pollution, fossil fuels and oil? That's going to get us all killed, and fast too with how global warming and climate change is picking up.

[brightattire]

भारत के 50 सबसे प्रदूषित शहरों में 19 बिहार के

देश के सर्वाधिक 50 प्रदूषित शहरों में बिहार के 19 शहर शामिल हैं. इनमें बेगूसराय, छपरा और पटना देश के सर्वाधिक 10 प्रदूषित शहरों में हैं. प्रदूष�� का स्तर बेगूसराय में 265, छपरा में 212 और पटना में 212 माइक्रोग्राम प्रति घनमीटर रहा. राज्य के अन्य 16 शहरों की हालत भी खराब है. इस बात का खुलासा नयी दिल्ली की संस्था सेंटर फॉर रिसर्च ऑन एनर्जी एंड क्लीन एयर (सीआरइए) ने किया है.

[montereybayaquarium]

Even out in the open ocean, Laysan albatrosses like Makana can’t escape the effects of plastic pollution. These incredible seabirds often mistake floating plastic for food, with devastating consequences for themselves and their chicks.

That’s why Monterey Bay Aquarium is participating in the final meeting of the Global Plastics Treaty, which kicked off today. We’re advocating for a strong treaty to protect wildlife, our health, and the future of our planet.

[reasonsforhope]

Masterpost: Reasons I firmly believe we will beat climate change

Posts are in reverse chronological order (by post date, not article date), mostly taken from my "climate change" tag, which I went through all the way back to the literal beginning of my blog. Will update periodically.

Especially big deal articles/posts are in bold.

Big picture:

Mature trees offer hope in world of rising emissions (x)

Spying from space: How satellites can help identify and rein in a potent climate pollutant (x)

Good news: Tiny urban green spaces can cool cities and save lives (x)

Conservation and economic development go hand in hand, more often than expected (x)

The exponential growth of solar power will change the world (x)

Sun Machines: Solar, an energy that gets cheaper and cheaper, is going to be huge (x)

Wealthy nations finally deliver promised climate aid, as calls for more equitable funding for poor countries grow (x)

For Earth Day 2024, experts are spreading optimism – not doom. Here's why. (x)

Opinion: I’m a Climate Scientist. I’m Not Screaming Into the Void Anymore. (x)

The World’s Forests Are Doing Much Better Than We Think (x)

‘Staggering’ green growth gives hope for 1.5C, says global energy chief (x)

Beyond Catastrophe: A New Climate Reality Is Coming Into View (x)

Young Forests Capture Carbon Quicker than Previously Thought (x)

Yes, climate change can be beaten by 2050. Here's how. (x)

Soil improvements could keep planet within 1.5C heating target, research shows (x)

The global treaty to save the ozone layer has also slowed Arctic ice melt (x)

The doomers are wrong about humanity’s future — and its past (x)

Scientists Find Methane is Actually Offsetting 30% of its Own Heating Effect on Planet (x)

Are debt-for-climate swaps finally taking off? (x)

High seas treaty: historic deal to protect international waters finally reached at UN (x)

How Could Positive ‘Tipping Points’ Accelerate Climate Action? (x)

Specific examples:

Environmental Campaigners Celebrate As Labour Ends Tory Ban On New Onshore Wind Projects (x)

Private firms are driving a revolution in solar power in Africa (x)

How the small Pacific island nation of Vanuatu drastically cut plastic pollution (x)

Rewilding sites have seen 400% increase in jobs since 2008, research finds [Scotland] (x)

The American Climate Corps take flight, with most jobs based in the West (x)

Waste Heat Generated from Electronics to Warm Finnish City in Winter Thanks to Groundbreaking Thermal Energy Project (x)

Climate protection is now a human right — and lawsuits will follow [European Union] (x)

A new EU ecocide law ‘marks the end of impunity for environmental criminals’ (x)

Solar hits a renewable energy milestone not seen since WWII [United States] (x)

These are the climate grannies. They’ll do whatever it takes to protect their grandchildren. [United States and Native American Nations] (x)

Century of Tree Planting Stalls the Warming Effects in the Eastern United States, Says Study (x)

Chart: Wind and solar are closing in on fossil fuels in the EU (x)

UK use of gas and coal for electricity at lowest since 1957, figures show (x)

Countries That Generate 100% Renewable Energy Electricity (x)

Indigenous advocacy leads to largest dam removal project in US history [United States and Native American Nations] (x)

India’s clean energy transition is rapidly underway, benefiting the entire world (x)

China is set to shatter its wind and solar target five years early, new report finds (x)

‘Game changing’: spate of US lawsuits calls big oil to account for climate crisis (x)

Largest-ever data set collection shows how coral reefs can survive climate change (x)

The Biggest Climate Bill of Your Life - But What Does It DO? [United States] (x)

Good Climate News: Headline Roundup April 1st through April 15th, 2023 (x)

How agroforestry can restore degraded lands and provide income in the Amazon (x) [Brazil]

Loss of Climate-Crucial Mangrove Forests Has Slowed to Near-Negligable Amount Worldwide, Report Hails (x)

Agroecology schools help communities restore degraded land in Guatemala (x)

Climate adaptation:

Solar-powered generators pull clean drinking water 'from thin air,' aiding communities in need: 'It transforms lives' (x)

‘Sponge’ Cities Combat Urban Flooding by Letting Nature Do the Work [China] (x)

Indian Engineers Tackle Water Shortages with Star Wars Tech in Kerala (x)

A green roof or rooftop solar? You can combine them in a biosolar roof — boosting both biodiversity and power output (x)

Global death tolls from natural disasters have actually plummeted over the last century (x)

Los Angeles Just Proved How Spongy a City Can Be (x)

This city turns sewage into drinking water in 24 hours. The concept is catching on [Namibia] (x)

Plants teach their offspring how to adapt to climate change, scientists find (x)

Resurrecting Climate-Resilient Rice in India (x)

Edit 1/12/25: Yes, I know a bunch of the links disappeared. I'll try to fix that when I get the chance. In the meantime, read all the other stuff!!

Other Masterposts:

Going carbon negative and how we're going to fix global heating (x)

[crabussy]

for the record I think wind turbines are beautiful and are not a stain on any landscape and the sounds they make are beautiful and whenever I see one I am filled with love for human innovation and hope for the future of clean energy and if they needed to be built close to my house I would go YAYY ^_^ WAHOO ^_^ WIND TURBINE!!

[nando161mando]

A Powerful and Prolonged Heatwave is Affecting Eastern Europe and The Balkans, With Temperatures Reaching Unbearable 42-44°C (~110°F)

[eugenedebs1920]

Yes yes… We’ve all been told ‘this is the most important election blah blah’. Yet, it’s definitely up there 😬 Scientists created a grouping of planetary thresholds in order to sustain life on Earth. It is 6 out of the 9 thresholds have been breached. The ocean soaks up so much of our waste & is reaching a tipping point. The article is real informative but shocking. This year it shouldn’t be about taxes and “kitchen table” politics. This election is about the future. This election is about SCOTUS allowing the poisoning of our planet, and frankly our society. It’s about moving forward with remedying decades of neglect & polluting. KamalaHarris will address these issues. Do you think DonaldTrump, a man who thins climate change is fake, will do the same?

https://apple.news/A5xFzsV5MSsuHnvc8tAC9CA

[wachinyeya]

Charcoal-like Substance Can Clean Industrial Pollution by Converting Toxic Heavy Metal into Essential Nutrient https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/charcoal-like-substance-can-clean-industrial-pollution-by-converting-toxic-heavy-metal-into-essential-nutrient/

Researchers from the University of Waterloo have discovered that a special form of charcoal is highly effective at absorbing chromium and transforming it from a toxic industrial waste form into the form seen in nutritional supplements.

Chromium is a heavy metal that exists in two forms. One form, chromium(III), is a safe micronutrient that our body needs. The other, chromium(VI), is a dangerous carcinogen linked to ovarian, lung, and liver cancer, and reproductive problems. The dangerous form is usually created during industrial processes such as leather tanning, stainless steel production, and mining, but it can also occur naturally in the presence of manganese minerals.

Biochar, a form of charcoal produced by heating agricultural waste without oxygen, is being studied as a potential tool for cleaning up chromium pollution at industrial sites, using the natural filtering ability of organic carbon

[hometoursandotherstuff]

[montereybayaquarium]

Socks, food, and the ocean—they all have one thing in common: microplastics.

To tackle the microplastic pollution problem, researchers and policy experts from the Aquarium and @mbari-blog created an open-source library dedicated to helping researchers trace these tiny culprits back to their source. Check out the webcomic below to learn more!

You can read more about the library on our website. Together we can take down plastic pollution! 💙🌍

[mythigal1966]

This toy is made from cigarette butts! #shorts

[penguinofspades]

Beware of Gogo Dodo.

For he is Judge,

Jury,

And Executioner.

[nando161mando]

Capitalism solution to climate change.