PENT Env Geol 2

WATER & WATER POLLUTION

97 % is salt water 3% is fresh

FRESH WATER

1. Ice in glaciers
2. Groundwater
3. Great Lakes, Lake Baikal, L. Tanganika
4. All other lakes & rivers

80 % of illnesses

Are water related

34,000 deaths daily or

3.5 million / year die from drinking contaminated water - 

mostly in Asia / Africa less than 5 years old

Can happen anywhere if we don’t wash hands after going to the bathroom

First day in Mexico, Caribbean for tourists: diarrhea! 

Above Data

Obtained from World Health Organization

Or WHO for short

They are based in Switzerland, part of the United Nations

Fresh water

Canada has 20 % of world’s fresh water

   (10 % of that is legacy from Ice Age)

   Canada has 25 % of world’s wetlands (bogs, swamps, marshes)

    but

    Canadians are the biggest water users: 350 litres /day

 (Manitobans 400 l/d)

  ---- outside N. America it is 10 -100 l/d------ 

Wetlands

“Nature’s Recyclers”

Host to 200+ bird species

50 mammal species, reptiles, amphibians, insects

Shelter for migrating birds

Since 1700’s 14 % of original wetlands drained for agriculture, 

development, golf

Most provinces protect wetlands today

Our water needs

Each day we need 2.4 litres of water to drink (has been questioned, 

maybe wrong)

About 6 glasses of water per day (may be obtained by food we eat, 

may not be necessary to drink actual water)

It is a matter of replacement

Our blood is 83 % water

Groundwater

26 % of Canadians depend on it

PEI, Frederington, Kitchener, Waterloo, Carberry….. also depend on it

    Need a well to access it

   ½ in the USA depend on it-- problem in the future due to shortage

  1/3 of the world depend on it

Nature’s “Hidden treasure”

Needs protection

Inter-connected pores in soil/rock

Moves like a river, but slowly

If remove too much, ground sinks

If polluted, it takes time to treat or fix

Groundwater pollution

If a gas station closes, the tanks leaked into the ground, has to be cleaned

Industrial chemicals

Septic systems, lagoons

Mine drainage

Pesticide in farms / manure

Landfills

DNAPLs (dense, non-aqueous phase liquids) sink fast

Water treatment/ waste treatment

Manitoba has ~ 400 water plants

and ~ 200 sewage lagoons

In Canada, 85 % of sewage is treated

(Sweden is 99 %)

Canada home usage

35 % bathing

30 % toilet

20 % laundry

10 % drinking & cooking

  5 % cleaning

Hydro Producer

60 % of Canada’s Energy is generated by

   hydro-electricity

  It is world’s largest hydro producer

  has over 600 large dams

  Quebec, B.C., Manitoba

How to treat water before drinking

Ancient Greeks: boil & strain with a cloth

Today, boil for 1 minute

Add bleach (Javex): 2 drops/ litre of water

Activated charcoal or reverse osmosis

Ozone (strong oxidizing agent)

UV light – a few seconds exposure (Wpg)

Purification tablets with Iodine or chlorine for travelers

Bad experiences

1993, Milwaukee: 100 died from crypto.

1996, Collingwood, Ont.: 171-day boil

              water advisory from crypto.

 . 1990’s, Dauphin, Man.: giardia, many sick

 . 2000: Walkerton, Ont. E.coli from manure

             seeped underground via wells; up to

             9 died

Why water treatment ?

From 1850 people in London, England suspected disease could 

be transmitted by drinking contaminated water

Cholera & typhoid were starting after flooding

“Water-borne diseases” are caused by mixing wastewater with drinking water

World-wide problem, it will always be there

3 types of waterborne diseases

1. Bacterial: E. coli, salmonella

2. Protozoan: cryptosporidium, Giardia

       (micro-organisms)

3. Viral: Hepatitis A, gastro.

E. coli

Lives in human / animal intestine, produces vitamins, we can’t live without it

  (but its business is not in the stomach!)

Wash hands helps to eliminate it

Cooking meat well will get rid of it (if it is there)

Acceptable limit in lakes: 200 units/100ml

Water treatment

1. Intake         2. Pre-treatment (alum,

                                           lime, chlorine)

3. Mixing      4. Coagulation / flocculation

5. Filtration        6. Chlorination (uv /ozone)

7. Distribution

City Water tank (Huge structure, not used)

Wastewater treatment

Primary: Screening forms sludge

                  goes to Digester (oxygen-free)

                  product removed, CH4 produced

  Secondary: Aeration (lagoons) oxygen 

                   bacteria break it down

                   sedimentation forms sludge with

                   heavy metals

Final: Disinfection with chlorine or ozone

Usually, P, N, chemicals not removed

Disposal to landfill

Produces methane (energy source)

Result is reclaimed water

Basically, cleaned by bacteria

Wastes

Manitoba: 75 lagoons need upgrading

                    25 on the “watch” list

Should I care?

             - too much N, P in lakes, algal blooms kill fish, stink up shores, toxins

             - Wpg pumped raw sewage 6 times in last 2 years

             - in last 2 years 30 spills of sewage

Montreal, Halifax, Victoria: some sewage into the sea

Around Wpg: soil has clay that can’t absorb from septic systems – 

result is sewage spills onto surface, lake or river

G.W. Bush’s name given to a sewage treatment plant in Calif. -  

a fitting tribute: it would take years to clean up the mess

Composting toilets

Uses NO water

Just air blows in (may also have sawdust

Waste turns into a rich, garden-ready compost & an organic liquid 

fertilizer called “compost tea”

Decomposition faster than in sewage treatment

At rest stops across N. America / UK

Waste disposal

85 % can be recycled and composted

Open dumps: smelly, attract birds, animals

Sanitary landfills: covered with soil daily, but end up as mountains. 

Leachate rich in metals squeezed out of garbage

Hazardous waste: batteries, paints, chemicals, solvents, used oil

Kamikatsu, Japan

 “zero waste” town

They compost all their food waste

Sort garbage into 34 categories for recycling

Many locals are enthusiastic participants

40 % not happy about all aspects

37-storey tower generates own power & recycles water

In Vancouver, BC built by British architects

Captures rainwater on the roof

Filters & re-uses water from sinks/toilets

Generates own power

Uses wind for ventilation

Positive action for the environment- video

Water-saving devices

Composting: 30 % of wastes is food

Hazardous waste

Conservation of water

Conservation of energy

ENERGY - alternative energy resources

Majority of current methods of energy production are not
environment-friendly
Fossils Fuels : gasoline, oil, diesel, coal
Burning them to produce energy is only
   ~ 30 % efficient (70 % wasted)
   However, most important is

EMISSIONS - global warming - glaciers melt

“dirty oil”, “power that destroys”

   When burning, a lot of CO2 is released

Plus sulfur and mercury are released

The heat of the engine forms nitrogen oxides as well 

Sulfur can be collected in power plants

All emissions have very negative health effects (asthma?  cancer?)

Tar Sands

Currently destroying world’s 3rd largest watershed

Governments love megaprojects

They make money while employment numbers are kept low

At the same time, Fort Chip, down the river, has the highest cancer
 incidence in Canada

Why fossil fuels are still around

Oil companies are bigger than governments

They suppress the negative health effects

Since they have destroyed battery cars from the 1990’s, people are left
with the impression that there is no alternative

“They can’t be all that bad, if they are allowed to continue”

However,

Mr. Ford designed engine to run on ethanol                                                

Mr. Diesel designed engine to run on peanut oil                                      

Both taken over by oil companies, about 100 years ago, when oil was first discovered

Emissions have filled the air with CO2 from 250 ppm to 400 ppm today

CO2 emissions

There are alternatives!

Such as electrical (battery) cars

Even hybrid cars use less gasoline and have less emissions (all taxis in Wpg)

However, they are still too expensive

Everyone is waiting for the first electric car to come around (only rentals in Europe)

Do you think oil companies will let the electric cars out?

Energy at home

Kilowatt – hours (KWh) for appliances

big spenders are hair dryer, cloths dryer, air conditioner (magnetic fields
produced by them may cause leukemia)
They contribute a lot to the electricity bill
  New appliances are more efficient displaying KWh performances

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

                 

1. SOLAR                                      

2. WIND                                             

3. GEOTHERMAL                              

4. BIOFUELS                                       

5. NUCLEAR                                     

6. HYDROELECTRICITY                        

7. METHANE                                 

8. other INNOVATIONS

Renewable sources of energy 

solar – wind – geothermal – biofuels – currents (tides, rivers, ocean) 

Other sources: Nuclear  (atomic fission) 

New potential sources: Methane hydrate   atomic fusion

  How much power do we need?

Current Manitoba Power Production is

                 5,000 MW (Mega-Watts)

SOLAR

Ancient Greece, China : houses faced south for light / heat               

A Solar House : Trombe wall (rock / brick) a Canadian invention   

Solar calculator

Solar cooker

Solar water heater

How does the solar work

Sun provides heat + light, also electricity

Photovoltaic cells convert sunlight to electricity in calculators, 

watches, telephones, etc  

Use silicon layers with insulator in between

Many methods of making solar collectors on line

One cell produces small amount of electricity. 

For bigger amounts use many in series

Solar cooker

Apartment block in Winnipeg

Siphoning heat from roads & parking lots : Holland

Collects heat from a 200 m stretch of road & a parking lot

Powers a 70-unit 4-story apartment block 

Feldheim, Germany

Goes off the grid

Solar, wind & biofuels for various uses

Electricity bills 30 % lower

Electric car charging infrastructure

Flooded with visitors

Solar House (Canadian invention from the 1970’s): video

How many are using it?  Not many..

Big windows should face south (N. America)

If not, rotate house (!)

Make new windows towards the south

WIND

need generator to convert movement into electricity                      

Power is proportional to the cube of speed, so double the speed 

will get you 8 times the power

 (Spain gets 15 % of its power from wind, but in March 2009 

got 40 % due to high winds)

To produce energy

Minimum speed is 10 km / hour

    Canada : ~ 3,000 MW

                    (mostly Alberta, Ontario)

 Much bigger new projects in Europe (Denmark, Germany, Spain)

Manitoba projects

1. St. Leon 63 turbines, 99 MW (80 m tall, blades 40 m long)  

farmers get ~ $ 3,500 / year 2. St. Joseph, 189 turbines 300 MW

                           (was biggest in Canada)

GEOTHERMAL

ground heat -use a heat pump, refrigeration in reverse - a Canadian invention                 

Bury a pipe in yard below frost line and circulate glycol solution to absorb 

heat from the ground

Uses 40 – 70 % less energy

Has 400 % efficiency

The inventor

Bill Loosely, Ontario --  see video 

Iceland’s Geothermal Power 

The ground is warm (near volcanoes)

Drilling is dangerous due to high heat (pressure can blow up well) 

Use steam that turns turbine & converts power into electricity. 

Hot water at 80 ‘C is piped straight into homes 

Plus, an unexpected spin-off : blue lagoon from the hot water produced from 

the steam factory. 

It is like a spa with assortment of salts, bacteria with therapeutic properties

Springhill, Nova Scotia 

Abandoned coal mines filled with water act as radiators. They heat / cool factory 

right above it. 

15 geothermal pumps installed 

Electricity bill cut by 2 /3

BIOMASS (like wood)

renewable fuel, any source of organic C 

Mostly plants                         

In Manitoba : use switchgrass, straw, wood chips, etc in stoves in the form

 of pellets to heat a house

BIOFUELS : Biogas + Biodiesel 

Biogas : methane from manure 

                   an Inventor:

Harold Bates : uses digester to heat up manure, collects gas into a tank, uses

 a converter to run his gasoline car with methane. Can switch over while driving  

More power, no CO, 98 % efficient burning, cooler engine, acts as an anti-freeze 

– see video

Biogas : ethanol

wheat, barley, corn is distilled into sugar, then fermented into ethanol
with by-product protein for livestock
Brazil uses sugarcane and cars run on a minimum of 25 %, max. 100%
USA have some FFV run on 85 % ethanol
No ethanol pumps in Canada yet!
Ethanol plant in Minnedosa

   Sweden: 1 in 5 cars runs on ethanol. Why not in Canada?

USA: Obama’s new priority to get  more pumps on 85 % ethanol

Canada: everything but oil is suppressed by the Harper Government – 

we even pay for ads praising the Tar Sands!

Some controversy using food-growing production for cars instead for food

A bit of the plant is wasted, because they only use the sugary/starchy parts 

( no leaves, stalks)

However, they can use enzymes to turn leaves & stalks into sugars

The ultimate biofuel?

From algae

They contain up to ¼ vegetable oil

Don’t need land to grow

Only need sunlight, wastewater and CO2

In experimental stage

Biodiesel

Made from canola, soybean, palm oil

Make-your-own-diesel with used oils, mix them with kerosene & convert to biodiesel

get soap as by-product

or

Take used oils from restaurants or your kitchen and put straight into diesel car / truck

Hydroelectricity

Manitoba has lake reservoirs built on top of flooded forests 

Problem: Methane & CO2 emitted from decaying vegetation – no research

New dams have NO lake reservoirs

NUCLEAR

first atom bomb (fission) 1945 from Great Bear lake U 

escalated to H bomb (fusion) 1952 – Bikini

Sakharov in Soviet Union independently 

Later, nuclear reactor for energy production. U fuel has only 3 % U (too low to explode)

first atom bomb (fission) 1945 from Great Bear lake U 

escalated to H bomb (fusion) 1952 – Bikini

Sakharov in Soviet Union independently 

Later, nuclear reactor for energy production. U fuel has only 3 % U (too low to explode)

Problem: nuclear waste              Accidents : 3-mile Island, 1979 water pump failed

 & shut down, but reactor overheated Most accidents caused by over-heating   

               Chernobyl, 1986 experiment, valve jammed, not seen, overheated, 

explosion, into the air over Europe, graphite burned! Concrete poured over.  

30-60 died from radiation, 600,000 evacuated late.  400 atomic bombs worth 

of contamination. Final toll will be 10,000? 30km area still evacuated

Nuclear Reactor

Fuel bundles in reactor for 1 year 

water is heated & drives turbine 

Need a coolant (water) to cool the steam 

U is the heaviest element 

U is attacked by neutrons that result in fission (break up)                        

Fission gives off neutrons that attack other atoms. Chain reaction takes over

Canadian nuclear reactors

Called Candu: short for 

               “Canadian Deuterium U”

   They slow down the chain reaction with heavy water (rich in deuterium)

However, problems…

Chernobyl, to be covered in steel in 2007 (so that it can be cleaned). 

Aliens reportedly neutralized reactor? 

Chalk River, Ont.: almost accident, valve leaking since 1972! 

On the other hand:

   152 reactors under construction worldwide

A nearly nuclear accident

B52 bomber blunder : Aug. 29, ’07 

Left Minot for Louisiana transporting 8 atom bombs for disposal

By mistake the bombs were left hanging from the airplane (as if they were

 going to be released en route..)

Plane flew over many big cities

At the destination, the plane was searched for bombs, but nothing was found 

inside- they were outside!

About 70 workers were prosecuted / fired for their mistake

But wait, don’t army people just obey commands ? even if they think it is

 wrong- cannot refuse or argue (that would lead to a court martial !)

Other sources of energy 

Methane hydrate “the ice that burns” at the ocean floor from organic remains

Underwater currents & tides: 

   Water is denser than air, like a windmill

   Amount of energy 10X that from wind

   (Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia’s only power plant powered by tides)

Water wheel, Syria built 5th cent.

Energy alternatives 

me Now: hydro, natural gas

Change to: solar, wind, geothermal, pellets

Water heater now: hydro, gas

Change to: solar

Cars, trucks now : fossil fuels

Change to: ethanol, methane, hybrid, biodiesel, electric

Efficient house, Wpg: “zero energy home”

“Green roofs”: they insulate house

“One-chimney” town: Sweden

    waste heat from the mine piped to all    homes

“Idle-free” school girls, Stonewall, Man.

Innovations

diant floor heating: eliminates forced air & reduces energy costs by 30 %

   (in new arenas, schools, apartments)

Smart car: cheap to run

Front-wheel drive. First designed in the mini car by Alec Issigonis (my uncle).

 Honored by the British Parliament

Long Plain Sewage "Palace"

Long Plain River Bend: landslide

Visits: Portage Water Treatment Plant
           Take water from river, pre-treatment, add chemicals (lime from the Tower),
filter,
            ozone to kill living things, then fluorine & chlorine

           Long Plain Waste Treatment Plant: State of the Art operation! ("the cadillac")
           Two sewage lagoons, add substance with bacteria to break down sewage
            No emission of gases like hydrogen sulphide (rotten eggs) & methane
            uv to kill bacteria prior going back to river

AIR POLLUTION: a life and death issue


W.H.O. data:
 3 million die / year from outdoor pollution                          
1.6 million die / year from indoor pollution 

Chemicals

WHO concerned about children

Chemicals climb the food chain and 

   concentrate on people (we are at the top)

    All countries share same air

               “the polluter pays”

    better throw less things away & recycle

Can be tracked by satellite

Particulate matter is visible 

Researchers track how pollution moves from one place to another

Example: a survey of 20 cities with more than 10 million showed that 15
 of them had pollution levels 5 to 10 times higher than WHO guidelines

ACID RAIN 

Probably, the first form of pollution that people noticed
Gases of S,N,C from burning fossil fuels make rain as acid as lemon juice

   Name coined in 1856 in the UK
   Textbook cases in Flin Flon & Sudbury
    (both have improved a lot since)

In 1984: 50,000 deaths in USA & Canada from acid rain                     

Problems in southern Ont. & Que. 

Less problems in UK & Sweden 

Sulphate & nitrate particles get lodged in the human lungs & cause major health problems

CFCs & OZONE LAYER

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) banned from fridges/air conditioners

The Montreal Protocol adopted in 1987

Elimination of freon

Responsible for depletion of ozone in the Ozone Layer (high up in the atmosphere)

Ozone Layer blocks uv from the Sun

Increase of uv leads to skin burning, etc

Skin diseases

Big increase in melanoma (black spots on skin). Can lead to death

Permanent “Ozone Hole” over the Antarctic – was it always there?

Depletion also noticed over the Arctic

Consult the “uv index” of the weather report for your area, reported daily 

Can be high on cloudy days

Punta Arenas

World’s most southern city (inside Antarctic ozone hole)

Belongs to Chile

Still has numerous tanning salons!

(Don’t need them, get a tan for free!)

However, people don’t get it

“a good tan makes my cloths look better” 

Recently visited by a BU Prof who came back with a burnt nose!

In Manitoba

There are 470,000 cars (1994) which contain air conditioning

Each car has about 3 lbs of CFC

Cars since 1995 are CFC-free

Still, those freons in old cars will leak the CFCs if we don’t do anything to prevent it

A single CFC molecule can destroy 100,000 molecules of ozone

POPs

Persistent Organic Pollutants

also known as “ The Dirty Dozen”, “chemical time bombs”

Best known: DDT, PCBs, dioxin, furans

They bio-accumulate in fatty tissue

DDT: was thought to be “the ideal insecticide”, but it is toxic to many

 more organisms than those it was intended to kill !

The Inuit (Canada, Greenland, Russia)

Cheered when a worldwide ban was agreed in the 2001 Stockholm Convention

“we were quite alarmed, shocked & outraged that we were being poisoned

 from afar”: Inuit

Alarming concentrations in fatty tissue & breast milk. Lots of medical 

problems, esp. in reproductive organs

Pollutants enter humans from animals we consume

 Canada fought a 10-year battle to get the industry & Governments to agree to the Treaty

There are many exceptions from the ban

For instance, India keeps the DDTs against malaria

Dioxin: one of the most toxic chemicals known

An amount the size of a grain of rice is the acceptable dose for a million people

also produced in forest fires, incinerators, even smoking a cigarette

Chemical industry is claiming that it is a natural chemical !

PCBs

Also found in burgers & steaks

Even if cooked well

Indoor air pollution: what is causing it

Mold & mildew that grow any place that is warm & humid (shower, kitchen, 

basement

Animal dander & saliva: cats & dogs (dogs live inside houses only in N. America 

& England). Unacceptable in the rest of the world

Pollen from trees, flowers, grass & some house plants

Dust, may contain bacteria

Tobacco smoke

RADON GAS IN SOIL

First detected in early 1980’s during a routine check in basements in Uranium City, Sask.

Fans were installed in houses with high levels (one of them was mine)

Radon gas is a decomposition product of uranium that occurs naturally in the 

ground (esp. in areas with lots of granite)

Canada-wide survey of houses found Winnipeg to have the most radon in the soil, 

followed by Saskatoon & Dauphin.

Levels are not particularly high

Radon gas can lead to lung cancer

Not good news for smokers: radon in combination with the chemicals in cigarettes 

can lead to lung cancer faster

How does it get into a house?

Found in the soil and/ or construction materials of the basement floor

It may leak through cracks on the floor

Ventilation disperses it

Famous example of a Mass. worker who raised alarm when entering a nuclear plant. 

He had brought it from home!!

COAL FIRES

Coal mines that have shut down years ago

Left over coal inside a hole in the ground can be ignited by oxygen from the air

The fire will burn for ever and ever!

CO2 emissions from coal fires maybe as much as total car emissions from N. America!

Most coal fires in China

Arctic Haze, Asian Brown Cloud

Pollution from human activities, factories, deforestation, etc forms dark cloud that

 drifts with the wind in certain seasons

The Arctic haze – Northern Canada -comes from Russia’s industrial emissions

US pollution may damage UK health: recent report 

Global Dimming

Too much cloud cover

Less sunshine

Leads to depression

Carbon Monoxide

Product of partial combustion of carbon compounds

Replaces oxygen in blood

One would feel ready to sleep, but one would die if you fall asleep – 

you are being poisoned slowly !

Dangerous if garage attached to house and car is running

Many deaths every year in Canada

Indoor Arenas

Many skaters faint

NO2 & CO from exhaust of zamboni (ice machine) stay around at ice level

Children use up oxygen faster then adults, instead they breath in those gases

Symptoms: dizzy, headache, stomach, cough, eyes & throat irritated

May cause death

DU Weapons: A NATO idea

Weapons equipped with depleted uranium tips (produced from nuclear waste)

Depleted means it is from nuclear waste

First used in the 1999 War against Yugoslavia (Shame to Canada)

Pilots did not know about the U and took no precautions 

Many pilots got leukemia and died

At the target area, soil, water & food became contaminated (thyroid problems)

Problems with radiation

Thyroid malfunction

Probably an epidemic of thyroid problems in the Balkans today (Yugoslavia 

& surroundings) could be due to those DU weapons unleashed by NATO 

forces for 2 months into the environment or Chernobyl disaster or both

TB

It is like air pollution because it spreads by air

Anyone can be infected

Avoid crowded areas like buses & trains in rush hour in cities (Winnipeg included)

People thought the disease was eliminated, then a stronger strain came back

Video on TB

Old days almost cured by expensive drugs

People have to be monitored to take drugs regularly

Lac Brochet was the worst epidemic in Manitoba a few years ago – secrecy by Government 

Bhopal, India, 1984

“ Worst industrial accident in history”

Pesticide factory of a USA multinational

Explosion released a super-toxic cocktail of gases that blinded thousands

At least 15,000 dead and ½ million injured / affected

Birth defects on next generation. Covered up by Government & company

Basically, “corporate greed” was the cause

Suzuki compiled the story into a documentary

Amazing corruption uncovered

Many scientists worldwide are doing tests to find out how to cure the victims, 

after so many years

CLIMATE CHANGE (or Global Warming)

In recent Years

Excessive rains with flooding and landslides are common
Hurricanes have become stronger and bigger
Tornadoes are appearing all over the world for the first time
Excessive heat with deaths of old people
Wind has picked up speed, often of hurricane strength
Increased humidity with health problems, etc, etc

Headlines in last few years

“The Great Alaskan Thaw”
Warming world drying wetlands
Is world’s wettest place getting drier? (India)
Climate set for sudden shifts
Forecast is for more extreme weather
Americans are increasingly acting on their own initiative, they can raise the money (for now)
Climate crisis near “in 10 years”

How far off is the next ice age?

World scientists urge CO2 action

Greenland ice cap under threat

Tree planting over global warming

Living at the mercy of the sun

Hurricanes & global warming – a link ?

Alaska : 5 villages relocated

Alaska video: “boiling lakes”, CH4 traps 20X more heat than CO2

NW Passage : 1st time ice-free since 1 m.y. ago

Siberia Peat Bog & permafrost: melting

The UK completely covered in snow, in last 3 years

Paris faces 8 million rats due to warm weather

    (4 for every citizen)

It was climate change who led to human evolution – the Ice Age
However, today…
“Human activities threaten the earth’s ability to sustain future generations”.
 Report by the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment: 1,300 researchers from 95
nations over 4 years
    (like an audit of nature’s condition)

Graph of CO2 versus time - •As far back as 400,000 years

2011

UU     Unprecedent increase in rainfall

Should not come as a surprise

How many have cut down on emissions?

Kyoto Accord asked countries to limit emissions by 20 %. Canada signed 

& then, only country to un-sign!

Canada’s emissions have increased 30 %

We need to pay for damages inflicted to other nations because we pollute the air a lot

Australia (the lady PM)

First country to propose a tax on emissions

It is for industry at the moment- voted in

25 $ per tonne of CO2

Each Canadian emits 15-20 tonnes per year, pay a $500 fine?

Each USA person emits much more than Canadians

“Weather bomb” over Lake Winnipeg, Oct. 2010, was the equivalent of a hurricane

In the middle of Australia where the temp. can exceed 50’C, road surfaces 

are not made with asphalt –it would melt- but with a rubber mixture. 

We have to start doing the same…?.

Pope warns of climate change, June 18, 2015-he knew we had this course on!

We are part of nature, not above it

Symptoms of sickness everywhere

Abandon fossil fuels as soon as possible

David Attenborough’s video

“Can we save planet Earth?” by the CBC, 2006

Need to reduce emissions

“It is up to us to change the climate”

Suggestions for action: 

                       - unplug appliances not in use

                       - drive less

                       - use renewable energy (solar…)

                       - buy local produce

The "Carbons" in the west and the "Tan's" in the east

Recent award

Plaster on the Andes!

People complain of extreme heat

Glaciers have long melted

Painted the mountain white gained them the award of $ 200,000 (they didn’t expect)

Amazing initiative

Few years later: the glaciers returned!!!

Alaska video

Teams of young scientists sent to monitor changes

Studied glaciers, forests, animals, permafrost

Amazed at melting glaciers. Walked below one glacier – very dangerous!

Bubbling gas in swamps: The effects would be scary to contemplate..

Arctic ocean acidifying rapidly (2013)

PRESENTATIONS / SUBMISSIONS


Earthquakes: get prepared by taking parts in drills & find safe places in a house
videos on “liquified soil” from Japan: ground “moves” under your eyes – amazing!

“The Great Pacific Garbage Patch”: There are 5 “gyres” or spirals
in the oceans trapping plastic garbage. A 20-year old has a solution to clean it up!

Flood in Sandy Bay, 2011: sandbagging and organization to help in the recovery

Chile 1960 Earthquake (Valdivia): how the worst earthquake unfolded. 

In the future, damage can be prevented by making buildings stronger, esp. 

schools and getting better prepared in a house environment

Grassy Narrows Mercury Pollution: Contamination from Pulp & Paper Mill 

since the 1960s persists even after 79% of the community showed signs of Hg

 poisoning. Solution: stop logging in the area. The 12-year blockage against

 logging has won the community an exceptional environmental award,

 but the logging continues!

ENVIRONMENTAL  HEALTH or Geomedicine

New science!
“Geographical distribution of disease”, or “location matters” – as regards disease 

The handout

Abundances of 

                 Organic

                 Electrolytes

                 Trace elements

Medical problems associated with them

Foods where one can find them

Hippocrates (400 BC)-Father of Medicine- observed the probable reason
for getting sick 

London doctor (1854) –John Snow-traced sick to a contaminated water pump
(water washing through cemetery with plague victims)

Other examples:

Japan, Eastern USA: 

              In the mountainous areas

“hard water” results in “less stroke”

   (rich in Ca, Mg)

                  In the lowlands

“soft water” results in “more stroke”

   (low in Ca, Mg, high in sulphate)  

Kentucky & Ireland

Famous for their horses.  Why? They have stronger bones because the
 soil is rich in Ca (rock is limestone)

Northern Central USA 

    “goiter belt”: diet low in Iodine 

    Iodine is only found in the sea & seafood

   (remember all life is marine in origin)

 Problem fixed with “iodized salt” 

Every package of salt you buy, it says so on the label

Other example

Marco Polo’s horses died in China after eating plants rich in Selenium (Se)

In other words, the horses were poisoned by the plants –
 they were not used to high Se

Chemical Elements

Life is created from the chemical elements

Tissue made up of the first 20 “bulk” elements (99 % of body wt)
in the Periodic Table of Elements

This includes the

“Organic” elements

 H,O,C,N,P,S

Next we have the

  “Electrolytes” :

 Na, K, Ca, Mg 

They are dissolved in the ocean, 

Sea water is similar to our blood 

That is where all life on this planet started

Weathering has brought all these elements to the oceans. Life incorporated 

these elements into the bodies 

Also needed are the 

16 “Trace” elements 

They have to be present in the “right” amounts

If less, we get sick

If more, we also get sick

Local example

Fluorine in water at Gypsumville has caused some medical problems

Legacy of the meteorite that crashed there

Pollutants

Other elements not found in original life

They are products of human activities

We call it progress, development, technology, etc

But they have given us a lot of medical problems, numerous fatal ones

The 4 “Heavy” elements

 are toxic (Pb, Cd, Hg, Al) also As

  [ lead, cadmium, mercury, aluminum, arsenic]

Today, pollution brings added concentrations of these that living things are not used to

   The pollutants pass through the food chain to humans 

Where do the Heavy Elements come from?

Industries, such as glass, pulp, textiles, fertilizers, petroleum

Most are heavy, so they accumulate in the body once they get in. 

Therefore, their concentration increases up the food chain

Affected parts by heavy metals

Pb: kidneys, nervous system, fertility, heart

Cd: kidneys, skeleton

Hg: nervous system, fertility, heart

Al: skeleton, nervous system

As: heart

Mercury (Hg) 

 known as

“the last major toxic substance without an

    emission control plan” 

“ a traveler without a passport” 

Europeans started collecting it at landfills

Minamata disease 1st noticed in Japan

Minamata disease in Brazil, 1999

advisories in 40 USA states 

Norway House: advisories since 1990’s

Grassy Narrows, Ont. : worst case in Canada

   (40 people with dizziness, vision, birth defects, examined by 

doctor from Japan) 

Dr. Sam

tested hair of BUNTEP students- no results (analytical problems came up)

Mercury biomagnifies in water

Can get problems with nervous system, learning disabilities, immune 

system, heart, Parkinson’s 

Lead (Pb)

Fall of Roman Empire: attributed to poisoning of the ruling class by lead

 Pb was used in drinking cups in the ruling class only (lead is bright and shiny). 

The Romans found deposits of Pb in the UK.

Without knowing, they got poisoned slowly

Same thing happened to the members of the Franklin Expedition who were

 looking for the NW Passage in the 1800’s

In the Franklin expedition they brought tin cans of food. In those days the 

cans also contained lead – discontinued since

One can say that the Lead story is a bit of a success story, but the battle not won yet

Children more vulnerable as Pb is more easily absorbed into growing bodies

Eliminated from house paint in 1978 & gasoline a few years later (in N. America)

  Cadmium (Cd)

Itai! Itai! (it hurts!, it hurts!)

Eats away at the bones

If you shake hand, the bone will break Cd found in industrial wastes 

Affects middle-aged women

Present in Flin Flon

Aluminum (Al)

Aluminum from acid rain gets into the food chain

Poisoned from aluminum cooking pots – banned in Europe, but still 

in use in N. America! – don’t use old thin ones!

Arsenic (As) 

Has been called “devil’s water”, if present in water

Caused early death & disfiguring 

People drank such water for years in many parts of the world & still today 

– no clean water around

Didn’t know the cause of medical problems

Routine test of sand in playgrounds in Ontario found an alarming concentration

Pressurized wood is treated with an arsenic compound to extend the life of the wood

Discontinued since

Asbestos

“Does not burn, does not melt”

Still many uses in car brakes, insulation…

Dangerous only if particles broken & inhaled

Emperor Charlemagne used it to convince his guests that he has 

supernatural powers!

Lethal if mixed with smoking

Animal Plagues

Diseases pass from flees, rats, etc

Many major plagues in the Middle Ages

In North America, there is still plague passed from squirrels

Notices in parks: “do not feed squirrels”

Epidemic in Canada

Cancer, asthma, respiratory  Is Canada losing the battle? 

 Looking for cure rather than prevention                            

However in Europe: just prevention Eliminate junk food, pop drinks,

 processed foods, large consumption of salt, white sugar & white flour

North Americans are manipulated by Big Companies through smart

 advertizing, Hollywood, Disney

Examples: Big Sugar, Big Tobacco, Big Pop, Big Oil, Big Car Manufacturers, etc

“Big sugar”: Industry video

Pop drinks loaded with sugar

Banned in Quebec, Ontario schools and will be across the country

Sugar obtained from sugarcane worked by black “slaves” in the Caribbean

 (it should be brown then, instead it gets painted white to look nice & clean!)

They get $ 2 for cutting a ton of sugar cane

Their pension is $ 1 a day !

WHO : only 10 % of energy should come from sugar

Industry: clean your teeth with sugar!!!

The industry wins the battle by false advertising

Big business advertising pop drinks

Aimed at children

Even recruit “stars” like Gretzky 

They have succeeded

In the meantime, health costs are escalating …

Solutions

Epidemic of diabetes in N. America & elsewhere (like the South Pacific islands)

U B.C. low-carb diet project for 1 year sponsored by Health Canada 

(My Big Fat Diet)

England’s project of sending “junk-food Brits” to Pakistan for 1  month 

to get a taste of some of the world’s best diets

Low carb diet, Alert Bay, B.C.

   Epidemic of diabetes in peoples of First Nation

Up to 100 participants monitored by a doctor and a nurse. “Starch is out” 

They lost ½ ton !

Some threw away their diabetes medication afterwards

Video: My Big Fat Diet

Traditional diet versus “modern” diet

People should eat whatever your parents / grandparents ate, more or less

Brits in Pakistan: junk food versus most healthy diet on the planet

Brits dieting on junk food spend 4 weeks in rural village

Monitored by a doctor

The 20-year old was thought to be 50!

The 51-year old was thought to be 77-78!

Excellent results, everyone thrilled

Examined by doctors on their return

Deadly “fat in the liver” much reduced

Mediterranean Diet

Very few cancers

Olive oil itself cuts risk by 10 %

Peas, beans & lentils cut by another 12%

Diet: Fruits/vegetables/nuts/fish – no meat

No 1 veg healthwise is artichoke, No 2 is broccoli, etc, etc. Food values 

are known since ancient times

Fibre-wise: most important is almonds