Tag: water

Sea Bins – Another tool for cleaning trash from our lakes and oceans

Sea Bins – Another tool for cleaning trash from our lakes and oceans

People have designed several ingenious ways to capture trash that is in our waterways. Of course, preventing it from getting there in the first place would be the best option but failing that, we need effective ways to remove it. A post from the World Economic Forum highlights Sea Bins. Each bin can capture 90,000 plastic bags a year.

That is a lot of plastic out of our waterways but it still is only a dent in the approximately 8 million tons of plastic that ends up in the ocean yearly. The Seabin Project, maker of the Sea Bins, is a cleantech startup trying to help solve the global problem of ocean plastic pollution. Their Sea Bins act like floating trash cans, collecting garbage, oil, fuel, and detergents. The idea is to skim floating debris from harbours before it enters the ocean.

Learn more: http://ow.ly/cBY550Lp86w

Simple Ideas – Big Results

Simple Ideas – Big Results

Nets over drainage outlets in Australia prevent plastic waste from entering bodies of water. Although the mesh holes are too large to capture microplastics which are becoming a major problem, the nets capture all types of debris that would otherwise be difficult to clean up once loose in a body of water. It also captures both floating trash and items that would sink.

Other countries have used many other simple techniques to capture and remove trash including floating barriers and autonomous drones that scoop up debris into a large sack.

While none of these ideas remove 100% of debris, they each make a significant dent in keeping our waterways clean.

Nets over drainage outlets in Australia prevent plastic waste from entering bodies of water.
Every Drop Counts – Colgate wants us to pledge to save water

Every Drop Counts – Colgate wants us to pledge to save water

#EveryDropCountsClean water is a precious resource but in westernized countries we often forget how precious it is. Colgate is reminding us that an act as simple as turning the faucet while brushing your teeth could save thousands of gallons of water per year. Yes – thousands of gallons. Running the faucet while you brush can waste up to 4 gallons each time. In a two person household just turning off the faucet would save 5,840 gallons of water each year. That’s an easy way to make a big impact. So join with Colgate to make every drop count.