Freshwater Jellyfish

The freshwater jellyfish, Craspedacusta sowerbyi, are indigenous to the Yangtze River Valley in China, as well as the Amazon river. It was first found outside of these habitats in England around 1880, and since 1908 have been found in about thirty US states. This species most likely gets to places other than these through shipments of plants and animals. As of now through research, these jellyfish are found on all continents except Africa. They can be found in lakes, reservoirs, quarries, and other freshwater bodies of water. They are able to reproduce sexually as well as asexually, which often times will result in an abundance of the species in one area. These jellyfish do no change the local ecosystem drastically as they are about the size of a penny and don't really have the ability to harm much. The biggest change the jellyfish have on the ecosystem is that they impact the zoo plankton species structure, and they may consume small amounts of fish eggs. The sting the jellyfish produces can kill or paralyze small fish, but the jellyfish can die just as easily if an animal runs into them. Under lab conditions, the jellyfish killed and fed on striped bass larvae, although they are not considered a threatening predator to eggs or small fish. The freshwater jellyfish are not considered dangerous to humans because they only contain a very small amount of toxin and their sting will only affect small creatures. Due to the lack of harm to humans as well as the environment, there is not much anyone is doing to reduce their appearances. A factor that may contribute to the sudden abundances of freshwater jellyfish is global warming, as they appear in large amounts when temperatures are suitable for a population outbreak. They are said to be found in many Maine lakes, but have only been collected from Androscoggin Lake in the Androscoggin and Kennebec counties.


http://www.state.me.us/dep/blwq/doclake/jelly.htm
http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=1068 
http://www.jellyfishfacts.net/freshwater-jellyfish.html 

Re:sponsibility-an alternative way to recycle

Alternative ways to recycle can make a huge impact on the world we live in. Re:sponsibility is a new biotechnology company that produces high-quality products that are in time, aimed to minimize the footprint we make on our environment. The main areas this company focuses on are: less waste and fewer resources, energy efficient, sustainable packaging and disposal, and less hazardous materials.




There are many other ways to recycle alternatively that many people would never think of. For example, the University of Nevada has researched chickens, and discovered that "chicken feather meal" can create a form of developing bio diesel fuel. There is also the commonly heard of traveling on vegetable oil, where cars run off of used vegetable oils. Each of these alternative ways of recycling will in time, reduce the footprint we leave on the earth.

http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/garbage-energy/

http://www.invitrogen.com/site/us/en/home/Products-and-Services/greener-product-alternatives.html

Wastewater, Reused

Many people believe that recycling only pertains to paper and metals, but in fact, water is also commonly recycled. Recycling water is a beneficial way to reuse treated wastewater and convert it into water that can be reused for irrigation and industrial purposes. Since water is beginning to be seen as scarce around the world, recycling water is very important. The water that is recycled in these plants however, is not used for drinking. Instead of having to waste clean, drinkable water for things such as irrigation and agriculture, this non-drinkable, recycled water can be used for those things. In turn, this will allow the safe drinking water to be limited to just drinking instead of irrigation, and will hopefully have an effect on the dwindling water supply.

(http://www.epa.gov/region9/water/recycling/)

Recycling Water

Aluminum: The Never Ending Cycle

Recycling your aluminum cans goes a lot further than you may realize. Aluminum is the only 100% recyclable material, and is the only material that can be recycled to no end. The energy saved when you recycle one aluminum can would be enough energy to run a TV for three hours. In about one month, that one can you recycled could be back in your shopping cart, containing a new juice or soda. One important concept of aluminum, is that it pays for itself. It may cost money in the beginning to make the aluminum, but aluminum is able to be recycled for hundreds of years. Overtime, the cost to make an aluminum can will be surpassed by the amount of times that aluminum can be recycled.

This video shows the a quick view of the aluminum recycling process at a plant in California, while also giving some interesting facts about recycling aluminum.

HowStuffWorks - Recycling Aluminum

http://www.professorshouse.com/Your-Home/Environment/Recycling/Articles/Recycling-Aluminum-Cans---Fun-Facts/

The Three "R's"

In the process of recycling, there are three important rules to follow: reduce, reuse, recycle. Reducing may be as simple as carpooling with a neighbor, or  focusing more on what you're buying, so you don't buy items with excessive packaging. Canceling your name on a mailing lists can save huge amounts of paper, as much of the time the junk mail you receive ends up in the trash. Reusing  is just as simple as it sounds. If you're going to throw away something, think about whether it might be useful to use again. For example, many plastic containers can be used again to store leftovers or other food items. This picture to the right shows an old egg carton being used as a place to grow plants.  Not everything you throw away is going to be useful another time, but being aware of the idea is an important part of recycling. Lastly, recycling is the final step to the three R's. This idea follows much of what I mentioned in my previous blog. Separating your own wastes into categories such as plastic, metals, cardboard, etc., is a crucial part to an overall reduction in our waste. There are many places around the country that are looking to do more curbside pickup, to try and get everyone on the right track to recycling. (FactMonster)

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuTJWbUW2vZ97IQL2DRYiY-NUsVtOhd3Sghy1jDJzxAMtf2qqrD_Td9AljNsFKL1S92owNjLQoT57mvkm3nvmWPrbeasqoseXMTh4T_yMvAgH_ZjRd7KTs5NnyTp5CPIZ6JEKBgMkUEXLt/s800/image045.jpg

Interesting Fact:

-In a study that involved recycling 35,116 tons of material, it was found that the reduction in green gas emissions was equivalent to taking 22,140 cars off the road.

Why Recycle?

Many people will say, 'I don't need to recycle, I'm only one person. It won't affect anyone if I don't recycle.' In actuality, every person impacts the world of recycling in many ways. Recycling has many positive affects: saving energy and money, creating new jobs, reducing pollution, and improving the wildlife habitats. (AboutMyPlanet) Everyday I see people throw paper into the trash bin instead of the recycling bin. Recycling paper can save an enormous amount of energy and money. How? When creating paper, the tree needs to be cut down and then processed into paper. It's much easier (and less polluting) to take waste materials and turn those into paper. Producing recycled paper uses 80% less water, 65% less energy, and cuts down pollution by 95%, compared to producing new paper.  By using less materials, we don’t create as much waste. This allows us to preserve natural resources, that we may have an abundance of now, but do not have an endless supply of. Next time you’re throwing something away, think about how your contribution can help the environment.



Green tip of the week: Use filtered water rather than buying bottled water. The industry that creates bottled water produces about 1.5 million tons of plastic per year. (AboutMyPlanet) That's a ridiculous amount! Buy an Eco-friendly water bottle, and refill that using filtered tap water.