Algae photo via Shutterstock

by Greg Seaman

The award-winning LifeStraw® personal water filter is now available to consumers in the U.S. and Canada for the first time. The portable filter—used since 2005 amid harsh conditions in developing countries—removes bacteria and parasites from water, and is ideal for outdoor activities, overseas travel, and emergency preparedness.

LifeStraw enables users to drink water safely from contaminated water sources. Several advancements have been made to the original design, and the LifeStraw Personal Water Filter now features:

• Reduces turbidity and filters down to 0.2 microns
• Removes 99.99999% of waterborne bacteria ( including E. coli and Salmonella)
• Removes 99.9% of waterborne protozoan parasites (including Giardia and Cryptosporidium)
• Filters 1000 liters (264 gallons) of water
• 100% chemical free (contains no iodine, no BPA)

The video below talks a bit more about the LifeStraw and demonstrates its use.

LifeStraw® is an elegantly simple but technologically advanced innovation. The filtering tube measures about nine inches long and one inch in diameter, and weighs less than two ounces. Designed for rugged use, the filter is made of durable plastic, is chemical-free, and does not
require electrical power, batteries or replacement parts; it is powered by user-generated suction.

Anyone who can use a drinking straw can use a LifeStraw®; the user simply draws unfiltered water through the LifeStraw®, and blows air back through the straw to flush and clear it after drinking.

Disaster Preparedness and Disease Prevention

“Because LifeStraw® takes up virtually no space in a camper’s backpack or a traveller’s luggage, it offers easy access to safe drinking water when they’re away from home,” explained Paul Chen, North American regional director for Vestergaard Frandsen Inc., maker of LifeStraw®. “We also encourage families to consider including LifeStraw® in their disaster preparedness kits as safe drinking water can be hard to find in an emergency,” he added.

Disasters including earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes and floods often result in limited or compromised access to water systems. When water contaminated with bacteria or parasites is consumed, the outcome can range from gastrointestinal discomfort to serious diarrheal illness or even life-threatening disease.

Swiss-based Vestergaard Frandsen is a global leader in the development of disease control technologies. The company originally introduced LifeStraw® as an emergency response tool but also found practical applications for non-emergency needs in developing countries. In 2010,
Vestergaard Frandsen distributed thousands of LifeStraw® personal water filters to victims of the Haiti earthquake and Pakistan floods.

Rigorous laboratory testing of LifeStraw® conducted by the University of Arizona found that LifeStraw® performance exceeded U.S. EPA water filtration requirements for bacteria and parasites, including Escherichia coli, Cryptosporidium, and Giardia lamblia (‘Beaver fever’), and other waterborne pathogens.

LifeStraw® has received accolades from media and the business community. In 2008, it won the Saatchi & Saatchi Award for “World Changing Ideas.” Time named LifeStraw® the “Best Invention of 2005.” Esquire called it “Innovation of the Year.” Forbes praised LifeStraw® as “one of the ten things that will change the way we live.”

Buy LifeStraw

Consumers in the U.S. and Canada can purchase LifeStraw® at Eartheasy.com (www.eartheasy.com/lifestraw) for $19.95.

Retail businesses and volume accounts can purchase LifeStraw® at wholesale through Eartheasy.com, which is the master distributor for USA/Canada. Wholesale inquiries should be directed to info@eartheasy.com or by calling 888-451-6752

In celebration of the U.S. retail launch, Eartheasy will donate one LifeStraw® for every ten sold; donated product will be distributed to crisis-affected people in developing countries through Vestergaard Frandsen’s partnership with Rotary International’s Rotary 1090 Foundation.

Carbon for Water

See the LifeStraw® program in action in the award-winning documentary “Carbon for Water” which is currently being shown in film festivals throughout North America.

Watch the trailer for Carbon for Water

Warren Buffett is investing in renewables, including hydropower.

Greg Laden talks about one of the dire consequences of global warming – fewer ice fishing contests.

1200 acres of rooftop gardens for New York City means reduced rainwater runoff and less pressure on storm drains.

Even deep ocean canyons feel the effects of heavy storms.  This can be both good and bad for the wildlife on the canyon floor – nutrients associated with shallower areas get washed into the depths, but so does sand, which can potentially bury or suffocate animals.

The Texas drought is officially over for the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, but not the rest of the state.  It wouldn’t take much to knock DFW back into drought conditions, so many municipal systems are maintaining water restrictions.

The New York Times has this story about a central Texas town that has to truck water in.

New fishing limits are being put in place in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands because previous limits were not helping fish populations to recover.

Residents in rural Nevada are asking Las Vegas to try more water conservation measures rather than take rural Nevada’s water.

The state of Florida is trying to weaken environmental regulations that restrict runoff from agriculture.

This TED talk is just over three minutes long and explains the method.

http://www.ted.com/talks/sonaar_luthra_meet_the_water_canary.html

Stagnant water in Port-au-Prince, Haiti via arindambanerjee / Shutterstock.com

A lot of thought was put in to the green design of Red Caboose Winery. Excessive heat can spoil the flavors of a wine. Geothermal wells, thick stone walls, and a hillside built around the outside of the storage room keep the indoor temperature even year round. Solar panels on the roof provide electricity.

The winery also has a rainwater harvesting system in place. Red Caboose Winery relies on wells to supply their water. During a regular Texas summer, the rainwater supplements irrigation and reduces pressure on the well. The severe Texas drought still going on makes rainwater harvesting even more of a necessity.

Just 3.1 inches of rain can send 19,000 gallons across the roof of the winery. Several tanks store the rainwater for later use.

The tanks are installed on a platform so that the water flow will be assisted by gravity. The platforms are not very high, maybe six inches to a foot. There are two platforms and I eyeballed the height when I visited.

Red Caboose Winery entertaining area and hillside surrounding wine storage rooms

The vines grow on a gentle slope and the winery, with rainwater storage tanks, is at the top of the slope.

Use of rainwater has several advantages. One already mentioned is that it leaves more water in the well for later use. Another is that rainwater has a neutral pH, which affects the health of the vines and the flavor of the wine (and their wines are quite good).

A third advantage is in case of fire a large quantity of water is waiting to be used.  The local fire department appreciates that.

Rainwater harvesting is a win-win for the Red Caboose Winery.

The series started with “Living with Water: Red River living since settlement”, which examined the history of the river in relation to the people who have lived along it.

In historical times, trappers and early settlers mentioned the spring flood. The first pictures of Red River flooding were taken in 1897, during the second largest flood on record.

After the 1950 flood, large earthworks were put into place to prevent widespread flooding. They had mostly contained the river until the 1997 flood.

The last three years have seen very high water conditions.

The second installment, “Living with Water: Geology behind the flooding Red River”, looks at the regional topography. The area is very flat, which means that once the waters overflow the riverbank, they just spread out for miles.

The soil is clay and absorbs water slowly and the river flows north into colder areas, which slows the drainage in springtime.

All this has consequences for flood planning. Every prevention measure affects another area and must be planned for.

The videos are less than three minutes each, but very informative. Living with Water promises to be an interesting series.

Dam along the Red River via Shutterstock

The goal of the contest is to spread awareness of frog extinctions. Frog deaths and illnesses are often a first sign that something has gone wrong in an ecosystem.

Anyone can enter and it’s free to enter. Four categories are organized by age – under ten years old, 10-13 years old, 14-17 years old, and 18 and older.

Grand prize winner will receive $100 cash, $50 worth of merchandise in the Save the Frogs! gift center, a critter skimmer, and an official judge for next year’s art contest.

Category winners will receive $35 cash and $30 worth of merchandise in the Save the Frogs! gift center.

The video below shows Save the Frogs! art that has been submitted in the past.

Red-Eyed Tree Frog photo via Shutterstock

The White House formally withdrew its nomination of geochemist Scott Doney to be chief scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  In December 2010, Senator Vitter had placed a hold on the nomination to protest President Obama’s moratorium on Gulf of Mexico drilling after the Deepwater Horizon spill.  According to the State of the Union address, that moratorium might be nearing an end.

Sustainablog suggests we all save water by taking Navy showers.  They even link to a handy calculator to find out how much money is saved.

Beavers help repair some of the storm damage from the severe weather of the past week.

Maybe you heard that the sea was glowing green near a Scottish nuclear power plant?  CleanTechnica has the details on this one.

NOAA is improving its estimates of recreational fishing hauls.

Newt Gingrich wants a colony on the moon, but where will we get enough water for everyone?  Asteroid Vesta may have lots of water just underneath its surface.

Oil on the beach at Grand Isle, Louisiana by Katherine Welles / Shutterstock.com

With so much of Florida barely above sea level, even a small change in sea level has the potential to impact Florida’s population.

Much of Florida’s agriculture depends on canals to drain storm runoff and unusually high tides. Unfortunately, in recent years, more and more storms and tides have been overwhelming the canals.

Similarly, beachfront cities need higher seawalls and improvements in their municipal drainage systems. Freshwater aquifers need protecting from saltwater intrusion or cities need to drill wells further inland to supply people with drinking water.

The four counties – Miami, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach – are working together for regional solutions under the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact. Canals need to be updated the length of the system, rather than just a small area. Aquifers are another feature that crosses county lines.

Working together, the members of the Compact are effecting change across a wide region that will help agriculture, industry, and tourism adapt to an uncertain future.

South Beach photo via Shutterstock

Twenty-three projects will receive the $98 million – $71 million will come from low-interest loans and $27 million will be in form of grants.

The projects include a wide variety of efforts to improve drinking water and wastewater. New pipes to drain storm water runoff, replacing old water mains, trees and swales to control runoff, and upgrading and expanding existing sewage treatment systems are just some of the projects funded with this investment.

With so much of the nation’s water infrastructure in need of repair and replacement, this $98 million is a step in the right direction.

Complete list of the 23 water infrastructure projects included in the $98 million investment

Sewer tunnel via Shutterstock