https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna en-us 2017-01-18 19:05:16 UTC 2017-01-30 15:50:34 UTC hello@padlet.com 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148126991 As a result of climate change, the agricultural industries in Africa have taken a hard hit. Increasing surface temperatures and reduced rainfall proves to be a challenging feat to these farmers. Many farming communities still lack basic tools that would help ease the process such as fertilizer and irrigation. Fertilizer is usually imported to these regions and it's very expensive so most people have to go without it. However, Sam Rigu, a former Maize harvester, discovered a way to use corn husks to create fertilizer. Corn husks are typically thrown away as garbage after the corn is separated from them. Now, Rigu collects these scraps from local farms and sells them fertilizer. In turn, not only does Rigu make a profit, but the small business farms are now able to produce more crops and make more money too. There are many other rising entrepreneurs like Rigu popping up all over Kenya. The small business farmers are finding new ways to adapt to the climate change happening around them.]]> 2017-01-19 15:56:05 UTC https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148126991 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148756149 Antartica is one of the fastest warming regions on the planet. With the icecaps melting at unprecedented rates and shortening winters, Antartica's whale populations are being affected. Although humpback whales favor open water to feed, Minke whales are suffering since they rely on the presence of ice for survival. Unlike humpbacks, they use the ice as protection from orcas. The smaller, sleek bodies of the Minke whales are an adaptation which allows them to navigate icy fjords where they can access food sources that other larger whales cannot reach. Now, the minke whales are forced to compete with many other whales for krill. As a result, the Minke whale population is rapidly declining while the humpback population is increasing. Although the humpbacks are thriving now, the krill population will eventually begin to decrease since they depend on the ice to reproduce. Once the krill population begins to decline, this could have devastating effects on the entire Antarctic food chain, not just the whales. ]]> 2017-01-23 15:54:30 UTC https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148756149 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148764943 Scientists have recently observed mass deaths in the Tufted Puffin populations. They attribute this catastrophe to warming ocean water. The stretch of ocean in the Bering sea has experienced record high water temperatures which has caused the ocean food web to shift. Puffins feed on pollock fish. However, due to the warming waters, pollock have been seen is smaller numbers. Therefore, the puffin are starving.]]> 2017-01-23 16:14:22 UTC https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/148764943 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/150136658 Engineers at Cornell University have recently come up with a new technique to test for micropollutants in lakes, rivers, and other potable water sources. This technique is vastly outperforming conventional methods. Conventional methods narrowly investigate one or two contaminants at a time, but the new method developed by Cornell is an analytical method that is designed to measure as broad of a range of contaminants as possible. The new technique assessed 18 water samples collected from New York state waterways. A total of 112 micropollutants were found in at least one of the samples, including pharmaceuticals, pesticides and personal care products. This new technique represents a broad range of chemical micropollutants that are unlikely to be found using conventional water testing means. 

]]> 2017-01-30 02:40:40 UTC https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/150136658 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/150136757 Pollution from the controlled fires that burn across Brazil's São Paulo state during the sugarcane-harvesting season have had a negative impact on infant health nearby, but the health of those same infants likely benefits from the economic opportunities the fires bring to their parent. This, in turn, creates a very interesting dynamic regarding the fires. The pollution from the fires has led to earlier birth and smaller babies, and fetal mortality has also increased. In Brazil, and worldwide, more attention should be paid to the impact of pollution from fires. Usually, all the focus is centered around big cities and polluting emissions. ]]> 2017-01-30 02:42:32 UTC https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/150136757 17pollockj https://padlet.com/17pollockj/4k0s67edvpna/wish/150136820 Scientists have been working on a rapid assessment technique for determining which US coastal salt marshes are most at risk of being affected by erosion and were surprised to find that all eight of the Atlantic and Pacific Coast marshes where they field-tested their method are losing ground, and half of them will be gone in 350 years. The only way that these marshes have a chance to recover is if water levels recede and more ground is recovered, but that is a very unlikely scenario. Most of New Jersey’s marshes had estimated lifespans of about 170-350 years until they will be completely gone. 

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