Sustaining Success
The ocean's powerful winds make the coast an ideal location for a wind turbine. Ironically, it's that ocean air that presents a challenge to any turbine on or near the sea. The moist, salty air combined with a turbine's metallic materials can result in corrosion, a destructive process able to bring any power-generating source to a halt.
The University of Delaware and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) have created a new avenue to connect science with resource management by launching a series of workshops where environmental academicians and regulators can share current research and discuss research needs.
Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), will be the featured speaker in the DENIN Dialogue Series at 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 6, in Clayton Hall.
The University of Delaware Sustainability Task Force is seeking two undergraduate students and two graduate students to join the task force co-chairs -- John Madsen and Kathleen Kerr -- at the ACPA Sustainability Institute in Boulder, Colo.
Creating environmentally friendly high technology jobs for Delawareans was the focus of the "Creating the Clean Energy Economy" conference, held Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 13-14, at the University of Delaware's Clayton Hall.
Suggestions
Waste
The Clean Air Council, which works to help people in Delaware and Pennsylvania reduce the amount of waste they produce, offers the following recommendations to reduce waste:
- Put someone in the house in charge of waste reduction.
- Use items such as Tupperware instead of plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
- Use sponges and cloths instead of paper towels and tissues for cleaning up spills and housekeeping.
- Use a reusable lunch box instead of brown paper bags.
- Buy food, detergent, etc. in bulk/concentrate whenever possible to cut down on packaging.
- Use the back of paper as scrap for grocery lists, etc.
- Get off junk mail lists by requesting a name removal card from:
Mail Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, NY 11735
- Don't bag grass clippings--leave it on the lawn, its good for the grass.
- Repair old household items rather than throwing them away.
- Avoid disposables--juice boxes, paper cups/plates, razors, plastic ware.
- Give away rather than throw away books, clothes, furniture, etc. to friends, charities, or second hand stores.
- Avoid products with wasteful packaging when shopping.
- Start a compost heap with food and yard waste.
- Use reusable, rather than disposable products.
- Use recycled products and ones with recycled packaging.
- Purchase products that are durable and less toxic to the environment.
- Reconsider waste producing activities.
- Express preferences for less wasteful/environmentally friendly products to businesses that you patronize.
