Great Research

Pollution and Profit

Manu Saunders3 Comments

Finally, some great news for those trying to keep their backyards free of coal seam gas wells. In world-first research, two scientists from Southern Cross University, Dr Isaac Santos & Dr Damien Maher, have found evidence of extremely high levels of atmospheric methane near coal seam gas (CSG) fields. Using a high-precision methane detector, Santos & Maher took thousands of air samples between Lismore (in northern New South Wales) and Tara (in southern Queensland), creating a pretty clear picture of methane levels across the region.

Tara is the largest CSG field in Australia and has been a hub of gas production for a few years now, whereas the Northern Rivers region (near Lismore) has lots of ‘natural’ or non-CSG methane producers, such as natural wetlands, sewage treatment plants, an airport and plenty of cattle. In northern New South Wales, the scientists found atmospheric methane concentration never rose higher than 2.1 ppm (natural background levels are around 1.8 ppm). However, around Tara, the methane levels went up as high as 6.9 ppm, with no recorded values below 2 ppm in this region. Continue reading →

Eyes wide open

Manu Saunders8 Comments

A few years ago, a couple of ecologists were on holiday in Ecuador and visited the Yasuní National Park. While they were absorbing the beauty of one of the most biologically-intense places on Earth, they saw an amazing sight – a thickset solitary bee delicately drinking tears from a river turtle’s eyes.

Confused? As it happens, most of the salt on Earth is concentrated in the ocean, so many terrestrial herbivores struggle to find enough nutrients to satisfy their cravings. This is why some herbivores frequent ‘salt-licks’ and why you often see butterflies or moths hovering on faeces or carcasses. Continue reading →

Climbing the walls

Manu Saunders3 Comments

I’ve been caught up in the labyrinth of teaching for the last couple of months, while the deadline for The Unwritten looms frantically closer, so finding the time for writing anything ‘creative’ has eluded me.

Happily, I found the little seed of inspiration I needed in a recent study about growing ‘green walls’ on city streets. Green walls are one of the best applications of the 20th century sustainability cult. Of course, like most trending ‘green’ things, green walls have been around for ages – Nature invented climbing plants, after all, but the first man-made creations could have been in the legendary hanging gardens of Babylon. ‘Green walls’ have grown happily for centuries, in various forms, without the aid of a gratuitous label, or the endorsement of a strategic advisory panel. Any English manor house worth its salt (or any of its Continental counterparts, for that matter) had at least one wall crawling with ivy, or another equally thigmotropic plant, on its property. Continue reading →

Clean Out the Closet

Manu Saunders1 Comment

I was reading about a study published last year that highlights the kind of scientific sleuthing that got me hooked on research in the first place.

A group of researchers sampled marine shoreline habitats across six continents and found that shorelines near densely-populated areas had higher levels of microplastic debris. This type of debris is not often considered in pollution debates, usually because we’re too caught up with the obvious Uglies like plastic shopping bags and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which I have discussed in ‘All Hail the Goddes Disposability’ (see also ‘A Ghost of an Idea’ and ‘The Hare and the Tortoise’). Microplastic debris, on the other hand, includes tiny polyester or acrylic fibres that escape from their parent bodies through normal break-down processes … or from household laundry. Continue reading →

The Elephant and the Honeybee

Manu Saunders2 Comments

Here’s a win-win story about a notoriously destructive human-wildlife interaction, and the little insect that just might save the day.

Elephants, as delightful (and Vulnerable) as they are, can cause a lot of damage. They have been seen as a pest in some parts of Africa and Asia for years, particularly feared for destroying crops and houses and even killing people in wild rampages through farming villages. This human-wildlife conflict has escalated severely in the last few decades, as human populations increase and human settlements and infrastructure encroach further into elephant home ranges. And you could excuse the elephants for having plenty of rage, built up from years of poaching, hunting and abuse at the hands of humans.

Elephant carcasses left to rot, killed only for their tusks. (Source: National Geographic, 2010)

Continue reading →

Modern Luxury, a new oxymoron

Manu Saunders2 Comments

I was reading an article (Everything Old is Green Again) in Conservation Magazine the other day which confirmed something I have suspected for quite a while – older buildings are often more energy-efficient than any built today.

The story uses the example of the Monadnock Building in Chicago, once the largest office building in the world. Completed in 1893, Monadnock had very thick brick walls (around 2m wide) to keep heat in during winter and out during summer, transoms and bay windows to allow natural light in, and windows were usually positioned to allow cross-breezes.

The Monadnock Building in Chicago - energy-efficient before it was on trend. (Photo Source: Wikipedia)

These features were very common to most commercial buildings of that period, before we decided that quicker, cheaper construction meant more cash to go around the table. Continue reading →

Engineering Nature

Manu Saunders1 Comment

Humans are the greatest ecosystem engineers.  We’ve already altered most of the world’s land surface through mining, agriculture and urban development; we’ve modified marine ecosystems through introduced species, commercial fishing and shipping infrastructure; chemical pollutants from our greywater entering waterways are creating inter-sex fish; and light pollution from our cities, and even from ski-runs, is altering behaviour, reproduction and circadian rhythms of resident wildlife.

Now even the mere sound of our existence is reworking Nature.  Noise pollution from development, airports, mining, and road traffic has always been an issue, not just as an annoyance to our own communities, but as a threat to nearby wildlife.  Animals and birds can abandon their habitats through fright, or be driven out because the human-made noise makes it too difficult for them to find food or mates.  Many birds and even whales have been forced to change the volume, sound frequency or timing of their calls to ensure they are heard above the din of human existence. Continue reading →

Eco-superiority

Manu SaundersLeave a comment

A recent study suggests that people are more likely to buy ‘green’ or eco-friendly products to foster a personal image of superiority or prestige, rather than because they actually care about the environment.  That’s not a ridiculous notion, considering what else humans will do for kudos (think Balloon Boy’s father).

The rise of equality and the increase in invincible and overly-capable technology has created an animal (Homo sapiens) desperate for individuality and recognition.  Anything from food, (no longer just an essential accessory to survival!), to reality television is grasped by those in need with the steely grip of exhibitionism.  And the latest necessary label is Green.

This produces an ironic concept.  ‘The environment’ really does need attention.  Unfortunately, a large proportion of the population aren’t genuinely understanding or concerned about it.  Yet it seems many of these people ARE concerned about what others think of them.  So, with a bit of emotional blackmail, this demographic is convinced that their prestige will increase if they take on a label they don’t fully understand or care about.  And thus ‘the environment’ benefits.

What does this imply about a) environmental awareness and b) human behaviour??

© Manu Saunders 2010

In search of wilderness…

Manu SaundersLeave a comment

The human relationship with ‘wilderness’ is an intriguing one.  For centuries, we have shown simultaneous apprehension and admiration for the wild, untamed Nature that surrounded our own carefully controlled environments.

From the anthropomorphic gods of ancient mythologies to modern-day idolising of big game hunters and ‘survival experts’, we have an uncanny ability to keep that which we admire at an arm’s length.  Show someone a picture of a stunning mountain range, an adorable wild animal baby or a serene tropical island, and they’ll wax lyrical on the astounding beauty, the majesty of nature, the sense of peace it creates within, rhubarb rhubarb rhubarb…  But, put that person into said picture and it’s suddenly not so appealing—there’s insects and spiders crawling around, it’s raining, that animal has teeth and claws, it’s hot, I have to pee behind a bush, there’s no toilet paper, I need a drink, there’s no food, I’m getting bitten… Continue reading →