It may look small, but it give huge impact

There are many things that we can start from our home that can help us living in a better environment. The thing might look small, but the impact is huge. Here are some ideas how to help everyone. Happy trying people!

1. Switch off anything that uses electricity
if you don’t want to use the electricity,don’t waste,just switch off. Stick to a routine of shutting off as many electrical appliances as possible when you leave a room. If it will be at least 36 hours before you use it again, unplug it. Even when an appliance is off, it may still use power. Most of the electricity we use was generated by fossil fuels. The burning of these fuels puts lots of CO2 in the atmosphere which could be a cause for global warming. So, be efficient people!

2. Turn off the water when you're not using it.
As for example, while brushing your teeth, washing dishes, and even while taking a shower, please turn off the water. Preventing the wastage of water and curbing water pollution is one of our primary duties. Turn off the taps, do not let the buckets overflow! The use of bath showers and heavy-flushes in toilets leads to an excessive usage of water.It helps to save the water and even your water bills!

3. Use only as much toilet paper as you need, and don't use a mile of it for one little wiping.
Be reasonable people. Go easy on the paper towels, too. More importantly, to protect virgin forest from being cut down unnecessarily, use paper products made from 80-100% recycled paper, preferably with a high post consumer content. And as we know also, paper process also contribute to the global warming, since it use so much energy, during the process.

4. Avoid using plastic whenever you can; it is a poison of the earth.
It sound simple, isn’t it?but it DO helps. Just bring your own bag when u feel like to shop. Buy or make a few reusable fabric bags.Plastic bag never breaks down, and has led to the poisoning and death of numerous sea creatures. Use resealable, reusable containers instead of plastic wrap or plastic bags.

5. Close doors after you leave a room.
When you leave the house, or even when you have dinner downstairs, try to close the door to all the rooms you don't normally use or need. Doing this often will save a lot of excess heating that is needed to make your home warm. Something simple anyone can do:)

6. Plant a tree in your neighborhood or near your home.
Plants help suck up harmful CO2 gases. If you can't plant one because your house doesn’t have yard,you can try potted plants. Might look small, but it can contribute a lot.

All of the above mention are just simple things that you might wonder if they even make a difference, but that simple things, DO make a difference to our beloved environment. Real action, perfectly defined. So, is there anybody out there can helps me to add some other tips?

The Nitrogen Effects From Cow Manure on Humans

People have been milking cows for thousands of years. Until the late 1800s, all milking was done by hand, and the size of dairy herds was limited by how many cows the available farm workforce could milk in a day. When small hand-milked herds were dispersed over the landscape and wandered in pastures and wild lands, the impact of nitrogen from manure on humans was minimal. Innovations in milking technology through the 19th century and the advent of commercial refrigeration in the 20th century allowed for vast increases in dairy herd size. Massive herds and confined feeding operations create millions of tons of nitrogen-rich manure in one concentrated area.

Dairy cows consume nitrogen in their feed. About one-third of the nitrogen they consume is released into the milk they produce. Excepting a tiny fraction absorbed by the body, the remaining two-thirds is excreted in urine and feces. The nitrogen in this dairy manure can pollute waterways through runoff, damaging human water supplies or fisheries; or it can be converted to ammonia, causing air pollution effects damaging to human health.


According to the Union of Concerned Scientists' 2008 Report "CAFOs Uncovered: The Untold Costs of Confined Animal Feeding Operations," there are nearly 10,000 CAFOs in the United States. Dairy CAFOs are operations with over 1,000 cows. Dairy farms of this size produce hundreds of thousands of tons of manure in a small area. Even if a CAFO dairy farm has sufficient acreage to spread manure adequately, that manure will first be gathered into holding ponds or tanks, where nitrogen from the manure is likely to escape in the form of water or air pollution.


There are two primary types of nitrogen effects on humans from dairy manure. The first is water pollution. Nitrogen-rich manure is likely to run off of farm operations in rain water and enter lakes and ponds. The second type of effect is air pollution. Through bacterial interactions, nitrogen in dairy manure is converted to airborne ammonia, which is dangerous for humans to breathe.


Excess nitrogen in waterways causes oxygen depletion which damages water quality which affects human recreational and commercial fisheries use. The nitrogen functions as a nutrient in the water, causing excessive algal growth. Decomposition of that excess growth draws dissolved oxygen from the water, which can lead to short-term fish kills or a gradual loss of oxygen-loving species like trout. According to a report of the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, components of cow feces and urine interact through the process of bacterial degradation, converting to ammonia.According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,Ammonia impairs air quality in itself and also interacts with other substances in the atmosphere to create fine particulate matter responsible for haze and human respiratory problems. Improperly managed manure has caused acute and chronic water quality problems.While manure can contribute pollutants such as excessive amounts of nitrogen and phosophorus, organic matter, sediments, pathogens, heavy metals, hormones and antibiotics to the environment.

The best way to deal with this manure is to de-concentrate the animals and likewise de-concentrate their waste. Sustainable, pasture-based systems allow for the animals to distribute their waste in amounts that the soil can absorb, without using large quantities of water for washing or fuel to power trucks for transportation and spraying. By shopping at small, local sustainable farms and supporting pasture-based methods of waste management, we can all encourage change and promote healthier and more environmentally-friendly farming.

Water Pollution- revealing the real polluters

I attended an evening talk yesterday. It was a talk organized by Water Resources Technical Division of IEM. The speaker was YM Tunku Khalkausar Tunku Fathahi, Principal Assistant Director of Department of Environment Malaysia, DOE. The talk begin with the introduction of river basin, function of DOE in river monitoring, classification of rivers, i.e. Class 1 to Class V. We were also presented with water quality data for the year 2009. As expected, the number of rivers in “polluted” category increases by 1% compared to year 2008.

DOE had a programme called River Pollution Prevention and Water Quality Improvement Programme, in short PPPKAS since year 2001. The programme includes detailed study on water quality of selected river basins and action plan to be taken to mitigate and improve the water quality to Class II.

The most important remark by the speaker based on PPPKAS report– Sullage from residential, restaurant, food court, and wet market are the major polluters. So, watch out!! If there is a drain from your house connecting to the drains that flow to the rivers and water from your house flowing into the drains, you are actually polluting the rivers. Speaker also urged all the audiences to come out with ideas or technology to overcome the problems.

The speaker also mentioned that only 10-12% of point source and non-point source identified are under DOE jurisdiction, the balance is under other government agencies mainly the PBT, JPS, land office, DVS, etc. Thus, DOE can only control the polluters under their jurisdiction and in my opinion, control of water quality will be in vain if one of the agencies didn’t play their role.

An integrated planning should be in placed to tackle the water quality issues. So far, DOE only look at the compliance rate of the polluters which I think it is not helping to solve the problem entirely as the pollutants loading will not remain the same when new development is introduced.

I would suggest to DOE to carry out study to predict the maximum pollutants loading along the river basin to the desire Class II and then work together with other government agencies to limit the new development at the area. Besides that, more parameters of pollutants such as heavy metals should be included in deriving the classification of rivers quality. At this moment, only 6 parameters is use. River that has a BOD value that complies to the river classification doesn’t mean that it is safe as it might have high value of heavy metals.

Last but not least, rivers belong to all of us. As a normal citizen, we should also play our role in make sure that our rivers are clean, i.e. use less hair shampoo, use organic kitchen cleaner, divert waters from house to the septic tanks, clean the drainage surrounding us, and inform PBT of clog drains and etc. Ohaiyoo, lets start our duty as “environment protectors” now!

Recycling Construction Waste

Read into an article entitle "Material Waste In The Malaysian Construction Industry" by Abd. Aziz and Naser Elromni from School of Housing, Building and Planning, Science University Malaysia really attrack me since construction produce excessive waste and it is really common in Malaysia. Even excessive waste is common in the construction process, it receive lack consideration by contractors or the industry.

As we know, most construction waste goes into landfills and increasing the burden on landfill loading and operation.Waste from sources such as solvents or chemically treated wood can result in soil and water pollution. Some materials can be recycled directly into the same product for re-use. Others can be reconstituted into other usable products. Unfortunately, recycling that requires reprocessing is not usually economically feasible unless a facility using recycled resources is located near the material source. Many construction waste materials that are still usable can be donated to interested parties. This keep the material out of the landfill and supports a good cause.

The most important step for recycling of construction waste is on-site separation. Initially, this will take some extra effort and training of construction personnel. Once separation habits are established, on-site separation can be done at little or no additional cost.

Common construction wastes that can be recycled are;

• Apliances and fixtures
• Brush and trees
• Cardboard and paper
• Lumber and playwood
• Masonry
• Metals
• Plastics; containers, bags and sheeting
• Roofing
• Windows and doors
  

Iron Fertilization

Iron fertilization is a geo-engineering technique used to stimulate phytoplankton growth in the ocean. Phytoplankton can capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and thus help to reduce the adverse effects of global warming. Experiments from the laboratory has suggested that every tons of iron can capture carbon between 30 000 to 110 000 tons. Iron is an essential element for photosynthesis of plants to convert carbon dioxide into organic compounds.


Since 1993, about 13 small-scale experiments involving iron fertilization have been conducted. Those experiments involved the fertilization with about a ton of iron added over a few hundred square kilometers of the ocean area. As expected, these experiments have stimulated the phytoplankton blooms which theoretically, can capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that is the main cause of the global warming.
However, controversy remains on the impacts of this technique. For example, iron can deplete the oxygen in the ocean. This will happen by the decomposition process of the dead plankton which utilizes oxygen. A study also has suggested that iron fertilization also can stimulate toxic algae. This type of algae produce neurotoxin called domoic acid which is known to cause toxic to other oceanic species.
Further studies have to be conducted in the near future in order to answer the critics and questions on the impacts, safety and effectiveness of iron fertilization. Some aspects such as the size of experiments, profits, environmental effects and amount of carbon sequestration must be counted for the previous efforts to be worthwhile.

Waste Reduction: No longer an option but a necessity

Malaysians are generating waste products at a rather alarming rate, much faster than the natural degradation process and they are using up resources at a speed exceeding the rate these materials are being replaced.

Recycling has almost drawn the universal acceptance as a form of waste disposal but yet our national domestic recycling rate still hovers at around a mere five per cent. A report done by NGO found that about 7.34 million tonnes of solid wastes were generated in Malaysia, enough to fill up 42 buildings the same size as that of the world-renowned Petronas Twin Towers. Thus waste reduction and recycling is no longer an option but a necessity in efforts to protect both the environment and our life quality.

Waste reduction seems to be a very simple concept, but there are many different ways to consider it and to start implementing processes that will ensure it works. Waste can be reduced in almost everything we do in our personal lives, but is also a very important consideration for manufacturing companies and everything they do. Here is some more information about waste reduction in manufacturing.
There are many different processes that can be used to reduce the amount of waste used in any organization or process. First is called resource optimization. This involves using raw materials more efficiently to decrease costs and the impact on the environment. One interesting example is the use of fabric and the way that a garment is designed using computers to make the most out of every piece of fabric that goes onto the production line. This is done by having a computer program arrange the various pieces of a pattern in such a way that it gets the maximum amount of use from a small piece of fabric as possible.

Another aspect is the reuse of scrap material. This is only useful in some cases, but the most common use is that of scrap metal. The properties of most metals allow it to be melted and used again for the same purpose. This process can be challenging to implement and can also be costly, but should always be weighed against the alternative of purchasing more material. The decision to reduce the amount of material is almost always a conscious decision and there are numbers behind the idea to back up the actions.
Other parts of the process, like product design, can also be improved resulting in lower costs. This may require a significant amount of time to be invested in the process and management of the system before it is actually implemented, but it will help give returns on the investment as the process is carried out. The design of the product and the process that will be used to produce it is very important in making the most of the manufacturing process.

Improving the durability and quality of products can also reduce the amount of waste. Many consumers believe that this method is rarely if ever used because most companies are only interested in the short term profits that will come from producing materials to sell to the public. But, making a product more durable and making it last longer will use less material over time and require that people purchase less of the product or a similar product in the long run. It is rare to find companies with this view, but they are out there and many more are joining the cause to create less waste

Brighter Future for the Environment

Reading through an old newspaper I came about an article of CFL lamps which stated that by Jan 2014, the traditional incandescent bulb will no longer be available to Malaysian consumers. So part of the article mentioned the environmental impact of CFL and incandescent light bulbs. In a recent announcement, Power, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin said the government would stop all production, import and sales of incandescent light bulbs in an initiative to promote more efficient use of electricity thereby reducing the nation’s power consumption.

Well from the Wikipedia I got to know that a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), also known as a compact fluorescent light or energy saving light (or less commonly as a compact fluorescent tube), is a type of fluorescent lamp. Many CFLs are designed to replace an incandescent lamp and can fit into most existing light fixtures formerly used for incandescent.

So let’s get to know what a CFL is and how it operates and what to do when it breaks. All CFLs contain mercury, a neurotoxin that can cause kidney and brain damage. Just why is mercury present in CFLs and why are other elements not used? The simple reason is that mercury is the most efficient element for the generation of ultraviolet light. While the amount of mercury used in a CFL has decreased in recent years, a small amount is still needed. According to the Australian Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency website (www.environment.gov.au), CFLs have less impact on the environment than incandescent lamps even though they contain mercury. The reason – coal fired power plants release mercury as well. It estimates that a 20W CFL releases about 2.7mg of mercury into the atmosphere during its life time and equivalent use of 100W incandescent lamps releases 13.4mg! So… even with the 5mg of mercury contained in CFLs, there is less mercury to pollute the environment..

And how do the CFLs work? The CFLs produce light differently than incandescent bulbs. In an incandescent, electric current runs through a wire filament and heats the filament until it starts to glow. In a CFL, an electric current is driven through a tube containing argon and a small amount of mercury vapor. This generates invisible ultraviolet light that excites a fluorescent coating (called phosphor) on the inside of the tube, which then emits visible light.

What to do if a CFL breaks

1. Ventilate

-open a window, shut-off the air conditioning and leave the room for at least 15 minutes.

2. Clean-up

Wear gloves and never use your bare hands. Do not use a vacuum cleaner or broom if possible-scoop up glass fragments and powder with a piece of paper or cardboard, and place them in a sealed container or plastic bag. Use sticky tape to pick up small fragments. Bedding or clothes that come in contact with mercury should be thrown away and not washed.

3. Disposal

Double-bag all the broken pieces and cleaning materials in a sealed bag and dispose of them properly. It would be better to take them to a recycling center capable of handling hazardous materials, but in the absence of such, it should be marked as clearly as possible.

4. Wash your hands

To state the obvious, this is to make sure that there is no residual mercury.

5. What not to do

· Do not use a vacuum cleaner or broom-the vacuum will put mercury into the air, and a broom may just spread it around.

· Never pour it down a drain

· Never wash mercury-contaminated clothing or items as it may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.

See the extra effort we have to take to sustain the environment..Phew..let me know what you think..