Co-Op City

I'm not going to pretend to know everything there is to know about "borehole thermal energy storage", but I have to say, at first glance, I am really in love with this idea. Buying cooperatives and collective bargaining are discussed in all sorts of policy circles (health insurance being a popular recent example), but it seems like they are a particularly good fit here. By reducing the up-front costs, the return on investment for the infrastructure becomes that much shorter. I'm also guessing that there is an increase in efficiency in terms of overall power generation per cell when a whole neighborhood's worth of panels are operating in circuit, thus providing more bang for the buck in terms of reduced utility bills. And just think of the added resale value.

With so many buildings already managed as co-ops, how do we get this off the ground in NYC and start selling some juice back to ConEd?

I ♥ NY Water

The New York City water system in a word is AMAZING. It serves 1 billion gallons of water to over 8 million residents on a daily basis. Just take a minute and let those numbers process in your brain. If you can't, let me help you. It's a lot!
There are 2 major watersheds that provide clean drinking water to New York City. First is the Catskills/Delaware Watershed (known in the biz as the CatDel system) and the Croton Watershed. The CatDel water is brought to the city by two main aqueducts- the Catskill Aqueduct and the Delaware Aqueduct. The Croton Watershed is closer to the city and has a shorter distance to travel. It is brought in by the New Croton Aqueduct.

What I find most amazing about the system is that it was constructed in stages beginning in 1905. The engineers had the foresight to create such an advanced system that uses gravity to bring water from the Catskills to NYC through the Catskill Aqueduct. The water in the Catskill Aqueduct travels at about 4 feet/second, all propelled by gravity!


New York City is unique also because they have been granted a Filtration Avoidance Determination (FAD) that allows them to not filter their water. Under the EPA Surface Water Treatment Rule a system can only be granted a FAD if they meet source water quality limits for coliform and turbidity also meet coliform and total trihalomethane MCL's (maximum contaminant levels). Trihalomethane is a disinfectant byproduct (DBP) from the chlorination process. The CatDel system has a FAD in place but the Croton system is now required to filter their water. A new innovative UV filtration plant is being installed. It will filter up to a quarter of the New York City water supply. The plant will be able to filter 20 million gallons a day. This plant is expected to be up and running by 2012.
To read more about the intricacies of the NYC water system click here to visit the DEP website.

Where to Draw the Line?

Risk assessment is an inexact science. In fact, let's just go ahead and call it an art. Or maybe it would be more accurate to describe it as a knock-down, drag-out, bare-knuckled brawl between government and industry. Because without a formula to dictate when a state or the feds should step in and declare that something is or is not a carcinogen, that is exactly where we end up. Take styrene for instance.

Polystyrene is one of the oldest "commodity plastics" around, found in everything from beverage cups to bike helmets. Now, citing evidence from its Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California is invoking the precautionary principle, and is planning to declare styrene - the raw material monomer of the polystyrene molecule - a carcinogen. As you may have heard, the plastics industry has taken its share of lumps lately (see: "Phtheory on Phthalates" below...) and they are none too happy that a mainstay of theirs is about to be labeled as a dangerous, cancer-causing chemical. They fear that consumers will not understand the difference between the occupational risks of styrene exposure in a manufacturing setting, versus those posed by consumer products.

It's anyone's guess where the California Supreme Court will go with this. They could invoke an injunction preventing the OEHHA from making their declaration, or allow it to go forward. Whatever the outcome, each side will cite reams of epidemiological and experimental data in their support, while furiously poking holes in each others' studies.

Without having read all of said evidence, it's difficult to guess who has the stronger leg to stand on. However, there is alot to be said in favor of the precautionary principle. After all, sometimes the weight of evidence is strong enough to take action, even if some questions remain. This may be the case with styrene and this is certainly the approach being taken by European governments under the REACH program. Oh, and don't be surprised when we see similar legislation about BPA and phthalates, too. Sorry, plastic.

I think honey is the bees' knees!

Today I stumbled across this article from March. Frankly, I am surprised this is the first I am hearing about it. Apparently, in addition to growing their own organic garden the Obamas are also harvesting their own honey from a hive of honeybees. Not only am I a big fan of honey (tastewise), but I think this is important because the world's honeybee population is inexplicably disappearing. I wish the Obamas' initiative was more publicized in order to bring more attention to this baffling problem. The disappearance of the honeybee is alarming because it is confounding scientists and also because they are excellent pollinators and many crops depend on them for survival. Click here to read an article from the New York Times about the disappearance of honeybees. Even Haagen-Dazs ice cream has started a "Help the Honey Bees" campaign. Their products are at risk without the world's best pollinators.

On a honeybee sidenote, there is a honey purveyor who sells his honey, produced right here in NYC, at farmers' markets around the city. He has also started an amazing non-profit called Bees Without Borders. This organization teaches beekeeping to people in impoverished countries so that they can become beekeepers and sell the honey for a profit. Honey is a better commodity than crops because it doesn't spoil. In a word, genius!

PlaNYC is a Little Hungry: Enter FoodPrintNYC

Spoiler alert: this luddite has figured out how to link to things and I'm gonna pull out all (ok, some of) the stops people.

Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC, which calls for reduced carbon emissions in the next few decades, is missing an important slice of the proverbial pie: FOOD. A recent resolution proposed by NYC Council Member Bill DeBlasio and supported by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and many of the city's food advocates seeks to add the carbon footprint of our food system to the list of fronts on which NYC should fight the good fight against climate change.

Kerry Trueman wrote about FoodPrintNYC and the importance of supporting this initiative on the Huffington Post today. Not only does she clearly outline the need to examine NYC's food system in the name of environmental sustainability as well as food justice, but she's friggin' funny! Read her post here. And, New Yorkers, do yourself a favor: buy a local peach this week. I defy you to eat that thing without dribbling.

If you like what you read in Sunday's Magazine...

Peter Singer's article in this Sunday's Times Magazine - Why We Must Ration Health Care - spelled out the economics and history of our insurance morass in under a dozen pages what I only kinda got in a semester's worth of Health Econ 101. As a plus, Singer trades the economists' frustrating unwillingness to address morality for a healthy dose of utilitarianism, plainly pointing out the inconsistencies in the ways we will and won't talk about the $$$ value of life.

If you like what you read, here are some more writings by Singer on animal welfare, global poverty and more.

Enjoy,
Jessie

How does your garden grow?

As students of both public health and the environment we like to practice what we preach. So the 4 of us are sharing a rooftop garden (more like a bin) this summer. I went today to pluck some of our bounty and I bring you these lush pictures.




As you can see we are growing basil, mint, lemon thyme, three types of chard and cherry tomatoes. So far, the mint has proven to be the most prolific.

The Phtheory on Phthalates

Click here to check out Nicholas Kristof's op-ed piece today.
It is an interesting discussion on phthalates and their effects as endocrine disruptors.
We want to hear your opinions on the phthalate debate.

Public Public Health Data

The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has launched the Environmental Public Health Tracking Portal, giving the public user-friendly and transparent tools to explore the exposure and health outcome data that describe us (with no unique identifiers, of course). A 2001 report from the Pew Environmental Health Commission identified the lack of a linked, nationwide tracking system for environmental exposures and potentially related health outcomes as a barrier to closing important gaps in environmental health. As a result, the CDC has funded NYC and 16 states (including NY) through their national tracking program to create public data portals that draw together myriad data sets describing four core areas. 

The Portal allows users to create charts, maps, reports and tables, follow trends across time, and explore relationships between exposures and outcomes. There is even a specific function to look at disparities between neighborhoods and income levels throughout the city, and data are comparable with the national and state portals.

It is a work in progress, but we can no longer feel adrift in a dearth of environmental data. And we will no longer have to shirk in fear of being asked to back up our policy recommendations with reliable (and awesome) data graphics. Rock on, DOHMH. 

Jessie

Diesel Day Camp

A category of air pollution all its own, particulate matter, or PM, is among the most damaging things a person can inhale. The smaller the PM, the greater its ability to lodge deep in the most sensitive parts of the lung, where it can inflict maximum damage. The most dangerous PM are those bits less than 10 microns in diameter, known as PM10, and worse yet, those under 2.5 microns, known as PM2.5 - exactly the type of particles produced as a byproduct of diesel exhuast. The list of consequences as a result of severe acute and chronic exposure to PM is long - including increased mortality from cardiovascular diseases and lung cancer, and impaired pulmonary function and development. It is these developmental effects that are particularly troubling in light of a proposed warehouse construction project in Mansfield, NJ.

The developers behind the proposed Margolis Warehouse Distribution Facility - effectively a 200 acre campus of loading docks and idling zones in Mansfield Township NJ - claim that they have "no intention of trying to hurt anybody" despite the fact that the proposed site would be moving in next door to...wait for it...Liberty Lake Day Camp, a summer getaway for 600 4-to-14 year olds.

What we are left with then, is a classic environmental health policy quandary, pitting developmental and economic interests against those trying to protect public health. There are sticky questions of zoning involved as well, which even the owners of Liberty Lake acknowledge may mean that the eventual siting of a warehouse was always an inevitability. Maybe the better question then is why the camp was built within coughing distance of the NJ Turnpike in the first place...still, that's no reason to make a less than ideal situation that much worse. Won't someone think of the children?!?!?

Corporate Responsibility: Just Do It!

This weekend someone brought to my attention a new innovative idea involving multi-billion dollar corporations. It is called BICEP, Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy. The founding members of this venture are Levi Strauss & Co., Nike, Starbucks, Sun Microsystems and Timberland. Most of the founding members and other members are all companies that are usually singled out for corporate greed and corporate irresponsibility. So, it made me very pleased to see that they are taking a real interest in their role in climate change and sustainability instead of just switching the plastic cups to paper in their coffee break room. On their website they recognize that most of the involved companies are not the biggest emitters but they do acknowledge that every company will be affected by climate change. Therefore, everyone has a responsibility to help reverse the effects.
I don't necessarily agree with all their principles, particularly cap and trade. However, it is definitely a step in the right direction and an example for all corporations.

by: Simona (Blogger 2)

Waxman-Markey-Madoff?

Dr. James Hansen, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, is none too pleased with the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. On The Huffington Post yesterday, he wrote:

"For all its 'green' aura, Waxman-Markey locks in fossil fuel business-as-usual and garlands it with a Ponzi-like 'cap-and-trade' scheme."

Read the full post here to experience the full extent of Dr. Hansen's displeasure and disagreement with the Waxman-Markey bill, which he also refers to as a "monstrous absurdity hatched in Washington after energetic insemination by special interests." Ouch.

Fiery rhetoric to be sure, but with good reason: this guy knows his climate science. A better way to stabilize levels of CO2 in the atmosphere, according to Hansen, is a carbon fee-and-dividend approach.

posted by: crw

Worst. Term. Ever.

Uh Oh. It's been approximately 170 days since W left town, and while he will never be known as an "environmental president," perhaps we are only now starting to feel the effects of his legacy. Last week the US Supreme Court, led by Bush appointees Chief Justice John G. Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, closed out what has been described by the Georgetown University Law Center as the "worst term ever" for environmental causes . Environmentalists were dealt no fewer than 5 major losses during the term: continuation of US Navy sonar exercises in whale habitat off the coast of California; corporate liability limitation for toxic spill remediation; protection of US Forest Service rule-making; easing of Alaskan mine waste dumping restrictions (as if mining didn't already generate enough waste....); and the allowance of cost-benefit analysis by nuclear energy facilities to determine how much marine life can be killed by cooling infrastructure. Each of these cases reversed federal appeals court decisions, and each has potentially important implications for public health.

Unfortunately, the appointment of a new Justice to fill the void left by the retirement of Justice Souter is unlikely to have much of an effect on future environmental cases heard before the Court. An Obama appointment - Sonia Sotomayor or otherwise - would have likely replaced Souter's dissent in each of the above cases, not swung any of the affirmations away from the conservative bloc.

For the conceivable future before this Court, it's probably straight back to the drawing board for plaintiff's attorney's, environmentalists and public health advocates.

Posted by - CMP

Fed Up with Factory Farming

If you haven’t seen Food Inc. yet- run, don’t walk to go see it! This film explores not just the “disgusting” factor of agribusiness but all the other more sinister sides to it as well. Factory farming deals in illegal immigration, bullying, scare tactics, and major public health issues.

I don’t want to ruin the movie for you but there were two parts that I found especially heinous. The first was the segment about the company that “washes” their meat. In order to kill all deadly bacteria the meat is put through a giant washing machine-like apparatus that washes the meat with ammonia. Now I ask you, when you go to the Piggly Wiggly and buy a package of meat is ammonia on the ingredient list? I think not. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry the health effects of ammonia are manifold. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/mhmi/mmg126.html

The second part that really got my goat was the segment about Monsanto and their “witch hunt” against farmers who clean their seeds to replant again the next year. A recent law allows a company to patent their genetically modified organisms (GMO). GMO’s can be created to withstand inclement weather, certain pesticides and also certain pests. Farmers are required to get these seeds straight from the company every year and cannot replant from year to year. I am not entirely opposed to GMO’s. I think in places that face severe famine GMO’s would be the answer to their prayers. I am however, opposed to granting patents to the companies that create these GMO’s. These companies can sue anyone that may even have one seedling on their farm that perhaps migrated by wind or animal. As shown in the film, Monsanto goes after these little farmers and causes them so much legal trouble that these farmers have no choice but to settle and perhaps lose their farms. This is only one of the many reasons that family farms just cannot be successful in the United States. The government, with their subsidies and now with the patent laws in favor of big corporations just make it so inhospitable for small family (mostly organic) farms.

These are just some of the issues discussed in the movie. This little “review” doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of all the issues the US currently faces in regards to factory farming.

by: Simona- Blogger 2

Welcome to the blog

Hello Readers. Welcome to our blog.
We will be providing you with news stories, opinions and musings about environmental issues and how they pertain to public health. We welcome comments and ideas and we look forward to having discussions with our readers. So please enjoy and forward to your friends.