Hanna Wäger

First Observation

You can’t research about one resource without researching about the other. They are all connected with each other and are all part of the larger ecosystem. Therefore, one drastic change with one resource automatically leads to a change with the other resource.

Through
Research
conclusion: 

Main focus: Waterpollution
(Oil Spill, Plastics, Chemicals, Brining,...)

Documentaries / Videos

FACTS & FINDINGS

EARTH – BLUE PLANET
- 326 million trillion gallons of water total on earth

→ 97% salt water

→ 2% frozen fresh water

→ 1% liquid fresh water (is mostly underground)
→ 7/10 people on earth have running water in their homes

→ this century water consumption has increased sevenfold
- climate change makes available water much more erratic

→ snow and rain fall are much less reliable
- several major cities (for example Cape Town, Sao Paulo, London, Beijing, Istanbul, Tokyo, Barcelona and Mexico City) all face their Day Zero in the next few decades


→ fresh water is not used responsible enough, for example Mexico City looses closely half of its drinking water due to leaking pipes


→ we dump 2 million tons of sewage and agricultural & industrial waste into our fresh water every day


→ only 8% of water is used for personal use, 70% goes to agriculture, 22% goes to the industry


→ 98% of water used for 1 bottle of Coca Cola is used for it's production, not the drink you get


→ 2500L of water go into the making of 1 cotton shirt
- about 15,000 litres of water is needed for 1kg of beef (considering an animal of 3 years)


→ 63 billion gallons of oil are used every year to supply just the U.S. With plastic water bottles

→ more than 90% are used only once 
- almost every piece of plastic ever made still exist on our planet in one form or the other
- ~8million tons of plastic is dumped into the ocean every year

→ 70% of all ocean plastic sinks
- worldwide, we use an estimated 1 trillion plastic bags each year → nearly 2 million a minute (use time of a typical bag is just 12 minutes)

→ Groundwater is like a saving account which is okay to draw from in a draught but not on a daily basis

→ Taking groundwater also makes the soil to sink -> mexico city is literally sinking

WE ARE FACING A GLOBAL WATER CRISIS

Water -> Liquid gold?

REFRERNCES & RELATED ARTOWORKS

(Documentary: A Plastic Ocean)

The water is the world largest source of protein.

More than 2.6 Billion People depend on the Ocean for their primary source of protein.

An estimated 90 % of all Seabirds have eaten plastic at some point in their lives.

Worldwide we use 1 trillion of plastic bags each year an estimated of 2 million a minute.

MARINE POLLUTION INCLUDE:

OIL INDUSTRY CONTRUIBUTION, NUCLEAR WASTE, AGRICULTURAL CAUSES, SEWAGE POLLUTION, MINING, OCEAN NOISE POLLUTION, LIGHT POLLUTION, LITTER & PLASTIC POLLUTION, ....


ALTERNATIVE TO PETROL/ EXTRACTION OF PETROLEUM

Biodiesel

Biodiesel is a renewable fuel which can be made from vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled restaurant grease. Believe it or not, this can then be used in diesel vehicles already on the road because its physical makeup is similar enough to petroleum diesel, but it burns much more cleanly. Biodiesel is also much safer. Not only is it easier on the environment if spilled, but it has a flashpoint of over 130 degrees celsius, compared to 52 for normal diesel. Pure biodiesel, known as B100,  reduces carbon dioxide emissions by more than 75% compared with normal diesel.

Electricity

Electric cars have been around a while but so far have struggled to enter the mass market. Many hybrid vehicles now use electricity to reduce fuel consumption and thus reduce fuel costs. While the power grid might be readily available in the west, charging stations for these vehicles remains limited. In the United States, for example, there were only roughly 8,800 charging stations in 2014.

Ethanol

Ethanol is an alcoholic renewable that is made of the same kind of alcohol you find in alcoholic beverages. Ethanol is then mixed in various degrees with traditional petrol. The production and use of ethanol could reduce greenhouse gas emissions anywhere between 52 and 86 percent. Additionally, the infrastructure already exists to deal with ethanol, because it is the equipment used to store and dispense gasoline, just with modifications to some materials. The drawback, however, is that ethanol has less energy than petrol, meaning you need more of it to get the same results.

Hydrogen

Hydrogen has virtually no greenhouse gas emissions. Power is generated in a hydrogen fuel cell, which will only emit water vapor and warm air. The difficulty is that hydrogen fuel must be extracted from water, hydrocarbons or other organic matter. The process of doing this involves either natural gas or high levels of energy which, of course, come from power plants. Storing hydrogen is also a challenge, because it requires high pressures, low temperatures, or chemical processes to be stored compactly.

Natural Gas

Natural Gas is already widely used for a number of purposes around the world. It is an odorless mixture of hydrocarbons, most of which are methane. Natural gas is considered a fossil fuel, but an alternative known as renewable natural gas does exist. Biomethane is produced from waste, either from livestock or even landfills through a process called anaerobic digestion. In this series of processes, microorganisms break down biodegradable material. A major advantage to renewable natural gas is that it is chemically identical to its fossil fuel brother, meaning the existing infrastructure is perfectly useable.

Propane

Propane, or liquefied petroleum gas, is clean-burning and high-energy, making it a tempting alternative. Propane vehicles are typically more expensive than those running on petrol, though inversely propane is often cheaper than petrol. Nevertheless, propane’s reduction of greenhouse gasses is only about 10%.

It's hard to clean up mass pollution once it has occurred, so the best plan is prevention. Several changes can take place to help keep industry in check and encourage sustainable practices in the US and across the globe such as:

→ Stricter government regulations on industry and manufacturing is one large scale solution. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has enacted several laws to help protect beaches, reduce pollution from ships, reduce marine debris, and prohibit ocean dumping.

→ Implement renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar power, to limit off-shore drilling. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) tracks renewable ocean energy projects and offers analysis on how renewable energy can impact oceans throughout the United States.

→ Limit agricultural pesticides and encourage organic farming and eco-friendly pesticide use. There are several federal laws and regulations that help prevent the sale and use of substandard pesticides. The Endangered Species Act requires federal agencies to evaluate the impact of pesticides on endangered species and their habitats, including those in the ocean.

→ Proper sewage treatment and exploration of eco-friendly wastewater treatment options, such as recycling sewage sludge to carbon-phosphorous fertilizer, are other solutions. Under the Clean Water Act, the EPA offers assistance for recycling biosolids and regulates sewage sludge to help minimize metal concentrations in water.

→ Cut down on industry and manufacturing waste and contain landfills so they don't spill into the ocean. The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments passed in 1984 set standards for landfills and placed restrictions on where landfills may be located.

https://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Solutions_for_Ocean_Pollution

Take these steps to help reduce the amount of chemicals and toxic materials from leaching into the ground and ultimately, the ocean:

→ Reduce your use of fertilizers and avoid using chemical pesticides in your yard. 

→ Eat organic whenever possible to help ultimately limit the demand for chemical pesticides. 

→ Clean your home with lemon juice, baking soda, and vinegar instead of toxic cleaners. 

→ Properly dispose of motor oil, light bulbs, medications, and other hazardous items. 

Large Scale Solutions for Ocean Pollution

What can we do as individuals?

According to NOAA, carbon emissions lead to ocean acidification which harms some types of marine life. Reduce your carbon footprint by:

→ Carpooling, walking, or riding a bike and using high-efficiency appliances 

→ Carrying a reusable shopping bag instead of plastic bags 

→ Storing food in reusable containers instead of those you throw away 

→ Avoiding products that come with excess packaging 

→ Not littering 

→ Reducing, reusing, and recycling




These steps can help keep coastal areas clean and friendly to marine life:

→ Cut apart each plastic ring of a six-pack holder to prevent marine life and other wildlife from becoming trapped and strangled.

→ Eat local sustainable seafood and avoid imported seafood.

→ Don't buy jewelry or other items made from coral, tortoise shells, or other marine life.

→ Volunteer to clean-up an area of beach if you live nearby.

→ Visit the beach; tourism improves coastal communities.

→ Lobby your politicians on environmental issues.
Donate to an organization that protects the ocean.

Reduce Carbon Emissions

Protect Beaches and Marine Life

Help Reduce Ground Leaching