News
Weekly Linkfest – Edition 005
Welcome to round five of our Weekly Linkfest, where we share the good, the bad, the ugly and the just plain interesting from what we’ve seen this week.
I would greatly appreciate readers getting involved in this weekly linkfest. Please email editor (at) permaculturenews.org with links (and ideally a summary sentence outlining the key point of each link) to noteworthy articles and news reports on the internet.
Off we go:
Good News (coz we all need it):
- A company in the netherlands has proposed making an island the size of hawaii solely out of the plastic waste floating in the sea – trying to turn a terrible environmental problem into a positive. Since the plastic island won’t have any soil on it initially, maybe there will be some soil creation work for permies??
- www.breathingearth.net is a graphical representation of the births, deaths and amount of CO2 being released in each country while you’re watching. I struggled to work out whether this was good or bad news but I think from an awareness point it’s a good thing.
- Window farming has taken off in new york city and spreading across the world, bringing food production about as close to the kitchen table as you can get.
- www.magenn.com is the home of a new kind of high altitude wind generator that overcomes some of the challenges of wind power such as location and consistency of wind. The Professor of Global Ecology at the Carnegie Institution for Science, Ken Caldeira, says "There is enough energy in high altitude winds to power civilization 100 times over; and sooner or later, we’re going to learn to tap into the power of winds and use it to run civilization."
- Paul Stamets has proposed BP use oyster mushrooms which break down oil, to clean up the gulf spill. Audio.
- A really simple way to reuse your plastic bottles and keep your plants well hydrated even when you’re not around.
- Even if you can’t be in a natural building that breathes and doesn’t give off dangerous chemicals, you can clean the air in your house naturally using certain plants.
Bad News (coz we need to understand the challenges if we’re to design our way out of them):
- More motivation to use more natural products in the home with the Formaldehyde link to leukemia confirmed.
- Here is the account of 20 people arrested at the G20 that tell of ‘inhumane’ treatment at the hands of police, while our world leaders met to discuss how to sustain the unsustainable.
- Australia has struck a deal to export millions of tonnes of coal to Vietnam for long into the 21st century. This has the tick of approval from the same government that says it’s committed to climate change. Sadly, or funnily, or both, the Australian company that’s behind the deal is called Environmental Clean Technologies.
- Rather than moving to renewables, China is set to tap more unconventional gas to ease energy shortages. "Energy issues have become one of the major bottlenecks for China’s economic development. The exploitation of unconventional gas will be a key solution…" Unfortunately as we’re about to find out, energy issues will be a major bottleneck for the whole world’s economic development until we find a way to prosper without growth.
- With all the easy oil gone we’re being told we should expect (accept) more environmental damage as spills become more common.
- Matthew Simmons, who was the Energy Adviser to George W. Bush, has come out saying the casing on the gulf oil spill bore is gone – meaning the current attempt to stem the flow of oil with relief wells will not work and could mean the only way to close the hole is detonate something to disturb the sea bed. However the consequences of doing so are unknown and could make things unimaginably worse. Also watch videos of sea bed leaks.
Just plain interesting or odd (coz we’re curious creatures):
- This one shows global air travel in yellow dots over a map of the world.
- If you’re not one of the 8 million people that’s seen this already, you have to watch ‘BP coffee spill‘ for a laugh. Sad it’s so true.
- The journey of trash through Pacific currents.
- This is a guy that makes living furniture!
- US National Debt clock gives you a better idea of what it actually means to be in debt 13 something trillion dollars.
Don’t forget to send me your links for next week’s linkfest!! – editor (at) permaculturenews.org
High altitude wind generator – looks awesome. Do landowners have rights to fly such objects at 1000 ft? In other words, does this technology lend itself to decentralization of electrical production and political power? Or do you have to go through a mountain of permitting and regulation?
Here’s Paul Stamets’ page on what they’re doing with oyster mushrooms and oil
https://www.fungi.com/mycotech/petroleum_problem.html