On Tree Hugger, I found the website http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/10/paper-coupons-destroy-13-million-trees-every-year-99-never-even-get-used.php?campaign=th_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+treehuggersite+%28Treehugger%29&utm_content=Google+Reader. It's tells you about the amount of paper coupons that don't get used but, continue to destroy numerous trees every year. That statistics show that 13.62 million trees are cut down for the 99% of the coupons that go into newspapers but never get used. That amount being produced has increased more than 300 million since 2009. The pictures above expresses all the points i have made and shows just how out of hand that problem has become.
I can't believe that that many people throw the Sunday paper out without using the coupons with the economy doing so poorly. Food bills continue to increase for families, so why not use the coupons that the newspaper gives you? The amount of trees being knocked down is an environmental issue, its a waste of natural material that need to be preserved. Not only does this effect the environment but, it effects the ecosystems living there. With the trees being cut down it is destroying their habitat and a possible food source. In my household, my family trashes the coupons received along with the Sunday paper. After knowing all of this i will ask my parents to use them so that there is a benefit out of this mass amount of waste.
~How can this be stopped?
~What is keeping this from stopping?
~How would the the trees not being cut down benefit the environment?
~Why do people continue to increase the amount of coupons in the Sunday paper if they know how much is wasted?

The Seaweed and Shellfish Pollution: Using Natures Filters to Help Curb Pollution and Fish Farm Waste

- Yarish and his seaweed that he uses to clean out our lakes.
-When run off from fertilized areas and sewage treatment plants reach rivers and lakes it causes a huge problem. This is a water pollution problem called eutrophication. Eutrophication causes unhealthy levels of nitrogen and phosphurus in the water, these extra nutrients cause whats called an algal bloom. This is when algae grows rapidly in lakes and rivers. The algae deprives the water of oxygen making a dead zone where animals are unable to live. A man named Charles Yarish found a way to extract these extra nutrients using shellfish and seaweed. These two species can take out organic and inorganic nutrients from water. He recently began cleaning up the Bronx River. His efforts are helping us all.

- I never knew run off could be so harmful to our lakes and rivers. The human population is the cause of this. We should use less fertilizer and grow crops more naturally. If we did this then Yarish wouldn't have to be working so hard to extract the extra nutrients from our lakes and rivers. Lakes and rivers are a major source of freshwater for me and all human beings. They are a huge part of our life and if they are polluted we will soon run out of freshwater and won't be able to survive.

- If we did not use fertilizer would this still be a problem?

- Will we be able to clean out our lakes and rivers before they are to polluted?

- Does extra nitrogen and phosphurus have any effect on global warming?

Japan tsunami debris floating toward Hawaii

10/25/11 Written by: USA Today, Published by: A Gannet Company

Summary

Up to 20 million tons of debris is floating in the Pacific Ocean from Japans tsunami and could reach the shores of Hawaii by early 2013. A Russian training ship spotted some debris in the ocean. The ship also spotted a Japanese fishing boat that was traced back to a place in Japan. Researchers projected that the debris will reach the continental U.S. by 2014. It also said that the debris is located in a 2000 mile long by 1000 mile wide area. They don't know how much debris sank and how much is still floating. Scientists want boaters to go to debris they sight and give them data about what is in there. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/story/2011-10-25/japan-tsunami-debris-hawaii-usa/50914576/1?csp=34news&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+usatoday-NewsTopStories+%28News+-+Top+Stories%29

Opinion/Reflection

I cannot believe that there is that much debris in the ocean. Ive heard about debris floating around in the news and other things but I didn't hear that it was this bad. We need to find some way to clean all of this up because it could affect animals and humans in Hawaii first and then the US. The good part about all of this is that they are getting good research out of it and they know where its coming from and how it got there. We talked about debris like this in class one time about how pollution came together in a huge pile and is still floating.

Questions

1. How are we going to get rid of this debris?
2. What will we do if the trash reaches the U.S?
3. Has this affected any of the marine animals in the area?
4. Is this debris affecting the global climate change?