The 7th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Time: 2:00 PM-3:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject: “Sustainable Development Strategy for
Speakers: Peter
Braithwaite, Head of Sustainability for the Olympics Delivery Partner, Ch2M
Hill
Meeting Number: 551 160 805
Meeting Password: SEF1234
The focus of the presentation will be to summarize the
approach that planners for the Olympic Park to make sustainability a key
feature in the design and construction of a regenerated property that will
become the Olympic Park.
Please click the link below to see more information, or to join the meeting.
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To join the online meeting
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1.
Go to https://aiche.webex.com/aiche/j.php?ED=100686252&UID=0&PW=48ec7f08077f617f70
2. Enter your name and email address.
3. Enter the meeting password: SEF1234
4. Click "Join Now".
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To join the teleconference only
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303 928 2693
Teleconference meeting number 3329706
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For assistance
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1. Go to https://aiche.webex.com/aiche/mc
2. On the left navigation bar, click "Support".
You
can contact Darlene Schuster at: darls@aiche.org
or 1-410-458-5870
To add this meeting to your calendar program (for example Microsoft Outlook), click this link:
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We've got to start meeting like this(TM)
IMPORTANT
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documents and other materials exchanged or viewed during the session to be
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recordings. If you do not consent to the recording, do not join the session.
=================================================================================
The 6th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Time: 2:00 PM-3:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject: “Center for Sustainable Technology
Practices Sustainability Guide”
Speakers: Carol English (Cytec),
Dave Taschler (Air Products), and Charlene Wall
(BASF)
Call-in number: (303) 928 2693
Toll-free number for students and retired or unemployed
participants: (800) 531 3250
Access Code/Meeting Number: 3329706
Slides are posted at: http://www.aiche.org/IFS/Products/Virtual.aspx or contact ifs@aiche.org for a copy.
The Center for Sustainable Technology Practices (CSTP), an industry
consortium of AIChE, has developed a conceptual guide
that connects the critical corporate functions of a company with important
sustainability considerations. The
Sustainability Guide can support organizations that are either interested in
integrating new sustainability considerations into their business or enhancing
existing sustainability-related initiatives. The CSTP Sustainability Guide is
flexible, may be edited, and was developed such that users can customize the
tool for use by their specific organization. In this presentation, the guide will be
reviewed, and the The Business Strategy Alignment and
Upstream Supply functions will be highlighted to show both the utility and outcomes
of the use of the guide in decision making.
=================================================================================
The 5th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Friday, August 29, 2008
Time: 2:00 PM-3:00 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject: “AIChE
Sustainability Index”
Speakers: Calvin Cobb and Beth Beloff
Call-in number: (303) 928 2693
Toll-free number for students and retired or unemployed
participants: (800) 531 3250
Access Code/Meeting Number: 3329706
Slides are posted at: http://www.aiche.org/IFS/Products/Virtual.aspx Any difficulties contact Earl Beaver for a copy.
Additional information at: http://www.aiche.org/ifs/sustainability/about.aspx
Corporate benchmarking of practices and initiatives is important to a companies progress in meetings it's goals, the investment community, and to internal management and employees. Many companies are developing corporate wide sustainability initiatives and setting goals. How to measure their improvements can be accomplished by benchmarking with external credibility. This presentation will provide an overview of different sustainability index that have appeared to provide guidance to financial investors, and the AIChE Sustainability Index (sm) which was developed to provide guidance to internal company management on comparison to their peers.
=================================================================================
The 4th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Time: 2:00 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject: “Sustainability: Ethics and Engineering
Practice”
Speakers: Earl R. Beaver, FAIChE
Call-in number: (303) 928 2693
Toll-free number: (800) 531 3250
Access Code/Meeting Number: 3329706
To prepare for
the meeting, please check the Global Footprint Network's www.footprintnetwork.org two newest
reports on Africa and
Also for the discussion, go to AIChE's website and view the "Code of Ethics" http://www.aiche.org/About/Code.aspx so that we can discuss whether changes are indicated/desired.
Attachment:
Sustainability: Ethics and Engineering Practice
=================================================================================
The 3rd SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Thursday, May 29
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject: “Livestock’s Long Shadow”
– Sustainability Aspects of Confined Animal Feeding
Speakers: Earl R. Beaver and
Louis Dupree
Call-in number: (303) 928 2693
Toll-free number: (800) 532 3250
Access Code/Meeting Number: 3329706
Background
information is available on Wikepedia or by accessing
the Food and Agricultural Organization's (FAO) report Livestock's Long
Shadow - Environmental Issues and Options. at http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/a0701e/a0701e00.htm
or at http://www.virtualcentre.org/en/library/key_pub/longshad/A0701E00.pdf.
It "aims to assess the full impact of the livestock
sector on environmental problems, along with potential technical and policy
approaches to mitigation."
The assessment is based on the most recent and complete
data available, taking into account direct impacts, along with the impacts of
feed crop agriculture required for livestock production. The livestock sector
emerges as one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the
most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global. The
findings of this report suggest that it should be a major policy focus when
dealing with problems of land degradation, climate
change and air pollution, water
shortage and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity.
In the report, senior UN Food and Agriculture Organization
official Henning Steinfeld reports that the meat
industry is “one of the most significant contributors to
today's most serious environmental problems" and that "urgent action
is required to remedy the situation." Other points the report makes
are that the world's livestock industry "generates 65 per cent of
human-related nitrous oxide, which has 296 times the Global
Warming Potential (GWP) of CO2"] and "that livestock are
responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse
gas emissions, a bigger share than that of transport."
Agenda
Introductions and instructions - Earl
Beaver
Main Presentation -
Livestock in transition
Production systems and local
economics
Livestock's role in climate change,
air pollution, freshwater use and biological diversity
Mitigating impacts by
technology, by policy, by sustainable decision-making
Discussion:
> What are the ultimate impacts of changes in the
health of water ecosystems?
> Public Reaction to Ethanol Plants, Biomass Electricity
Plants and Similarities to CAFO.
> Opposition to continued expansion of livestock for
food.
> What sustainability tools can be used to improve
outcomes? How can the Institute for Sustainability and SEF help?
Attachment:
Background review of literature (word file)
Livestocks long shadow (pdf file)
FAO news (pdf
file)
Note-takers are needed; please volunteer. Also, if
you have a short presentation or discussion of some related items for this
topic, please let Dr. Beaver know soon.
Any questions or just want to fight about it? E-mail
him Erbeav@aol.com.
=================================================================================
The 2nd SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Tuesday, February 19
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM (Eastern
Daylight Time)
Subject: “Impacts of
Freshwater Pollutants on the
Speaker: Frederick Tutman
(See Biography Below)
Log on procedure: To access the meeting
itself, please browse to http://aiche2.webex.com
a few minutes before 2 pm on February 19, 2008. Click on the webinar
name, fill in your name and email address and finally click 'Join Now'.
After a few moments, you will be brought in to the WebEx viewer where you will
be presented with a popup window that gives call-in details (phone number for
several nations, meeting number and attendee ID). Dr. Beaver will be joining and
facilitating the meeting from
Background
information:
What is happening in the
Agenda:
Introductions and
instructions - Earl Beaver
Main Presentation - Fred Tutman
Discussion -
·
What are the ultimate
impacts of changes in the health of water ecosystems?
·
What sustainability
tools can be used to improve outcomes?
·
How does this link to
earlier SEF Virtual Meetings on sea level rise, salt water intrusion and costs
to society?
Frederick Tutman -
Biography
Fred Tutman a full time
environmental advocate who serves as the Patuxent Riverkeeper. Previously, as a volunteer activist, Tutman has served as the President of the Conservation
Federation of Maryland during the 1990’s (a National Wildlife Federation
affiliate), helped found the Environmental Fund for MD, served as President of
the Patuxent River Civic Association, served on the
MD Department of Natural Resources “Outdoor Caucus” and as a
Governor appointed State Patuxent River Commissioner.
He currently coordinates an annual statewide cleanup of the
Map
Details Human Impact on Oceans
By
AP
Posted: 2008-02-16 06:52:56
NCEAS
Ocean Regions Threatened
Scientists revealed a new map on Thursday that shows marine ecosystems around the world that have been affected by human activities. Click through the photos to see the areas that have suffered the most. High impact areas are shown in red, followed by dark orange, light orange, yellow, green and blue, which signals low impact. Researchers studying 17 different activities ranging from fishing to pollution compiled a new map showing how and where people have impacted the seas.
The map was
released at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement
of Science in
"Our
results show that when these and other individual impacts are summed up, the
big picture looks much worse than I imagine most people expected. It was
certainly a surprise to me," said lead author Ben Halpern,
an assistant research scientist at the
USGS
Areas at Risk From
Scientists at the University of Arizona in September created maps based on data from the U.S. Geological Survey that show areas around the U.S. that would become flooded if the sea rose one meter. Above, the northeast is shown. Click through the photos to see other regions.
The areas most affected include the North Sea, the South and East China Seas, Caribbean Sea, the east coast of North America, the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Bering Sea and parts of the western Pacific, the study found. It said the least affected areas are near the poles.
However, the researchers said it is likely that human activities will affect polar regions more and more as climate change warms those areas.
Damage includes reductions in fish and sea animals as well as problems for coral reefs, seagrass beds, mangroves, rocky reefs and shelves and seamounts.
"There were two things we didn't anticipate," Halpern said in a telephone interview. "Every single spot in the oceans was affected by at least one human activity ... we figured there'd be places people just hadn't gotten to yet."
And "more than 40 percent is impacted by multiple different activities," he added. "The oceans are not in good shape."
Yet Halpern did find room for hope.
"There are some areas in fairly good condition. They are small and scattered, but have fairly low impact," he said. "That suggests that with effort from all of us, we can try to protect these patches and use them as a guideline for what we'd like the rest of the ocean to start looking like."
The 19-member research team mapped the varying impacts on the oceans and then through overlays of the maps they were able to compile which areas were most affected.
"This research is a critically needed synthesis of the impact of human activity on ocean ecosystems," David Garrison, biological oceanography program director at the National Science Foundation, said in a statement.
Impacts studied by the researchers included the effects of structures such as oil rigs, commercial shipping, species invasion, climate-change impacts including acidification, ultraviolet radiation and sea temperature, various types of fishing and several types of human-related pollution.
In a separate
paper in the same issue of Science, researchers reported that oxygen levels in
some of the shallow waters along the coast of
The research
team led by Francis Chan at
In the region upwelling currents bring nutrient-rich but oxygen-poor water onto shallow areas where the nutrients support an abundance of life, but they are also vulnerable to the risk of low-oxygen events.
Halpern's study was funded by the
Chan's research was funded by the David and Lucille Packard Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
In Congress on Thursday, the House voted 352-49 to approve $454 million over the next seven years for two ocean exploration programs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Rep. Jim Saxton, R-N.J., the bill's sponsor, said it would coordinate efforts to study marine ecosystems, organisms and geology.
About 95 percent of the ocean floor remains unexplored, he said. "This vast area teems with undiscovered species and natural and cultural resources."
==================================================================================
The 1st SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2008
Date: Tuesday, January 22nd
Time: 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Eastern
Daylight Time)
Subject: “Reducing non Power Plant Mercury Emissions”
Speaker: Bill Byers, CH2MHill Company
In order to view the web portion of this event, access
the WebEx viewer through your web browser at http://aiche2.webex.com a few minutes before the
meeting. Click the current topic, fill in your name and email address and
finally click ‘Join Now’.
After a few moments, you will be brought in to the WebEx viewer where
you will be presented with a pop-up window that gives call-in details (phone
number, meeting number and attendee ID). If you will be participating on both
the phone and web portions of this meeting, please login in to the WebEx view
first.
Background information:
Mercury is a highly toxic metal, causing damage to the human nervous
system even at relatively low levels of exposure. It is particularly harmful to the
development of unborn children. It collects in human and animal
bodies and can be concentrated through the food chain, especially in certain
types of fish. Once emitted, mercury contaminates both the local and global
environment as it can travel long distances through the atmosphere. Much US regulatory attention has
focused on mercury emissions for coal fired power plants, a substantial
anthropogenic source of mercury emissions. However, there are other important
worldwide sources of mercury emissions and there are actions that we can take
to reduce these emissions as well as those from power plants.
Non power plant emissions
include mercury impurities mobilized from other raw materials such as in the
manufacture of Portland cement, and emissions resulting from mercury used
intentionally in products and processes.
Topics:
· Reducing mercury mining and consumption of raw materials and products that generate releases;
·
Substitution of products and processes
containing or using mercury;
· Controlling mercury releases through end-of-pipe controls; and
· Mercury waste management.
Attachment:
Reducing non power plant mercury emissions
Questions and
Discussion
==================================================================================
The 9th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
We will conduct this Virtual Meeting using the new AIChE
webex system.
The event is being advertised to all AIChE
membership via the December AIChE Exchange (the monthly
newsletter to all AIChE members) to give the SEF
additional visibility.
The process for the attendees to login to the
meeting: 1. Go to http://aiche2.webex.com a few minutes before the
start. 2. On that page, see that
days meeting and click on it, then click "join" to be brought in to
the meeting. For this Virtual Meeting,
membership numbers, etc., will not be needed; that may be added in the future
if the SEF chooses to continue to use the WebEx system for the Virtual
Meetings.
Date: Thursday, December 20th
Time: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Subject:
“Sustainability Aspects of Brownfields and Greenfields”
Background information
Past
AIChE efforts related to Greenfields and Brownfields
What
is a Brownfield (versus Greenfields and Greyfields)?
Cost Issues Related to Brownfield
Redevelopment
Smart Growth Policies
Identifying Brownfields
Role of Insurance in Brownfield
Redevelopment
Application to Land at the Edge of
Cities and Towns
Greyfields and Infill
Dealing with Demolition and
Construction Debris
Brownfields and Historic Preservation
Looking at Brownfields
from a Community Perspective (including lenders)
Casting Brownfields
in the “Proper” Light
Importance of Location
Involving the Public in Decision-Making
Questions and Discussion
Attachment:
Sustainable Aspects of Brownfields
and Greenfields
==================================================================================
The 8th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Date:
Thursday, November 29th
Time:
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Call in
number: 800-531-3250
Meeting
number: 1300726
Subject: “Sustainable Actions an Individual Can Take”
RSVP so that we may have an accurate count. We will have 30 lines; feel free to share this invitation with groups of students and associates who may wish to use a conference telephone.
Note-takers
are needed; please volunteer. Also,
if you have a short presentation or discussion of some related items for this
topic, please let Dr. Beaver know soon.
Any questions? Just E-mail Dr. Beaver Erbeav@aol.com or Erbeav@sbcglobal.net. You may register by sending him a short reply. Virtual Meetings are free.
Our
speaker will be Robert W. Sylvester -- DuPont
Engineering Technology,
Sustainable Actions An Individual
Can Take
Bob has defined reduced personal energy use as his sustainability objective. His motivations include reduced costs, reduced environmental footprint, and reduced dependence on imported energy.
The goal is "reduce energy use while contributing to the quality of life of family and neighbors and earning an attractive return on incremental investments." Bob has significantly reduced home heating costs, miles driven and electricity consumption. He has also engaged colleagues in generating additional ideas and reconsidering their personal energy use. The talk includes several lists of suggestions including the ever popular, "Energy Saving Gifts for the Holidays."
How can you benefit from the same approach?
Questions can be sent in advance to Dr. Beaver at Erbeav@aol.com or to Bob at ROBERT.W.SYLVESTER@USA.dupont.com and visuals will be posted on the SEF website http://webpages.eng.wayne.edu/~as8971/AIChE_SEF/ and sent directly to registrants.
==================================================================================
The 7th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Date: Thursday, October 25th
Time: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
Call in number: 303-928-2693 toll free 800-531-3250
Meeting number 1300726
Subject: “Planting the Seeds of Sustainability with the Next Generation”
Important Notes:
1. Roll call
– Dr. Beaver will call names of those registered. Quickly state
your affiliation, any other participants with you and any additional
agenda items you'd like added, time permitting.
2. Etiquette –
no cell phones unless absolutely necessary; if you use a speaker phone, please
mute the microphone until you are ready to talk. Announce your name when
you speak during the call. Send Dr. Beaver an E-mail on Erbeav@aol.com if you cannot get a word
in. Dr. Beaver will monitor that Screen Name and Inst4Sust@sbcglobal.net during
the call.
3. Notetakers are needed.
4. Students are encouraged to participate. Anyone not registered should notify Dr. Beaver by
E-mail in order to be recognized in the roll call and receive additional
materials.
5. The attachments are to be used only for this
discussion. Slides are
attached. If you use any of these materials, in whole or part, please
cite the sources and respect intellectual property.
Agenda:
·
Introduction &
Statement of Topic - Beaver
·
Background
Information [See attached PDF copy of slides] – Martin Abraham
·
Main Discussion
– All
o
How have things changed
with respect to sustainability in the past ten years?
o
What mechanisms of
information transfer are used by younger generations today?
o
Are we still talking
about "sustainable development" or is it "sustainability"
that's the dominant theme?
o
Is there a different
view in profitability expectations related to Sustainability vs. Pollution
Prevention?
o
Will international
barriers be less evident in sustainability?
·
Other questions will
be discussed as time permits.
·
Summary and Critique
==================================================================================
The 6th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Subject: “Individual Drinking Water Wells”
Date: Thursday, August 9th
Time: 10:00am - 12:00pm (Eastern Daylight Time)
Call in
number: 303-928-2693 toll
free 800-531-3250
Meeting
number 1300726
Attachments:
Ineffectiveness
and poor reliability of arsenic removal plants in west Bengal, Inida
Performance
of a household-level arsenic removal system during 4-month deployments in
Bangladesh
Nanoparticles remove
arsenic from drinking water
EPA
says no filtration needed for Catskill/Delaware water supply
Arsenic
and clarifications to compliance and new source monitoring rule: a quick
reference guide
Agenda:
Background from Previous Water Meeting
- Beaver
Issues with Individual Wells in "suburban/rural" United Sates" - Louis Dupree - Attachment 1
Political Solutions in Drinking Water -All - Attachment 2 (NYC)
Arsenic Removal at Household Level in Bangladesh - All - Attachment 3 (EST)
Diatoms to Remove Arsenic -All - Attachment 4 (EST)
Arsenic Removal in India - All -Attachment 5 (EST)
Quick Reference to As Removal - All - Attachment 6 (USEPA)
Nanotechnology as Possible Solution - All - Attachment 7 (EST)
Water as a Resource
General Discussion
==================================================================================
The 5th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Topic: “Global Freshwater Resources”
Date: Thursday, May 24th
Time: 10:00am - 12:00pm (Eastern Daylight Time)
Call in number: 513-569-7897
Conferee code: 2484#.
Agenda:
Introduction:
> Example of a
large nation (US)
>
Example of a small, but wealthy nation
> Worldwide
perspective
Web
Resources -- How useful are they? How do they facilitate sustainability?
> USEPA
> NGOs
> Vendors
> International
Discussion of Individual Items from Reading Materials (Expanded Version will follow)
Global Freshwater Resources References
See http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/index.htm or request “Watershed Academy Web on CD" publication no. EPA 841-C-03-001 on 44 CDs.
Business of Water and
Sustainable Development
Chenoweth, Jonathan and Juliet Bird “The Business of Water and Sustainable Development” Greenleaf Publishing, 2005, ISBN 1-874719-30-6. See pp.20 – 50; pp. pp.142 – 154; pp. 177- 186; pp. 188 -197.-- illustrates the range of approaches that will be necessary if the percentage of the global population having access to adequate and safe water and sanitation is to be increased in line with the assertions from Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. Some of approaches will be large-scale 'Western-style' improvements involving the creation of new business models, their effectiveness assessed by traditional approaches of fiscal and social analysis. Such schemes may be instigated and partly funded by governments, but are increasingly turning to the private sector for money and expertise. In contrast, many smaller communities would be better served by following another path to improved water supply and sanitation. Because of their size, location or traditions they may achieve better results through the adoption of local small-scale solutions. Non-governmental organizations have been very active in this area, but to extend their operations many are seeking to adopt a more business-like model. All water supply and waste disposal agencies, large or small, need to support and encourage continued research into technological solutions that seek out better, more sustainable ways to use our increasingly scarce supplies of good-quality fresh water.
“The World’s Water 2006-2007” Gliek, Peter H., et.al., “The World’s Water 2006-2007” Island Press, ISBN 10: 1-59726-106-8, 2006. -- Water and Conflict: Water resources have rarely, if ever, been the sole source of violent conflict or war. But this fact has led some international security experts to ignore or belittle the complex and real relationships between water and security. In fact, there is a long and highly informative history of conflicts and tensions over water resources, the use of water systems as weapons during war, and the targeting of water systems during conflicts caused by other factors. To learn more about water and violent conflict -- Water Conflict Chronology: In an ongoing effort to understand the connections between water resources, water systems, and international security and conflict, the Pacific Institute initiated a project in the late 1980s to track and categorize events related to water and conflict.
New
Generation of Filtration Materials Helps Make Water Drinkable -- A new generation of water filtration materials is enabling
municipalities and industries in the United States and water-short countries
overseas to produce safe drinking water from supplies contaminated with salts
and other undesirable compounds, according to an article in the April 23 issue of
Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly
newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
When Can an Agency Act? -- Florida Agency Declares Water from Everglades Off Limits
On
April 3, the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) formalized a
first-of-its-kind requirement preventing water users from tapping the famed
River of Grass for new or additional supplies of water.
Permitted
users like urban water utilities along Florida's southeast coast will now have to
find alternative sources to supply regional growth.
USGS
Finds Groundwater Major Source of Streamflow in Upper
Klamath Basin -- Groundwater
discharging to streams through springs and seeps is a major source of streamflow in the upper Klamath Basin, helping to sustain
flow during the dry months of late summer and fall, the U.S. Geological Survey
(USGS) announced on April 26.
Study
Predicts Perpetual Drought for Southwest -- Southwestern North America faces a future of long periods of extreme
drought resembling the Dust Bowl of the 1930s and the dry years of the 1950s,
according to a study.
EPA
Sets Nitrogen Limits for World's Largest Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility
--On April 5, EPA announced
the establishment of new limits on the amount of nitrogen that can be legally
discharged by the Blue Plains wastewater treatment plant. The agency's action
is designed to help improve water quality in District of Columbia waters and
the Chesapeake Bay.
Freshwater Management: Global Versus Local Perspectives (Hardcover) by M. Kumagai (Editor), W.F. Vincent (Editor), Springer-Verlag Tokyo. -- The management of water supply and quality in lakes, rivers, and reservoirs has proceeded largely on the basis of local rather than global considerations. High-quality freshwater resources are now in critically short supply, not only because of local problems such as over-irrigation and eutrophication, but also as a result of large-scale impacts such as climate effects on the hydrosphere. This book explores the dichotomy of global strategies (international and generic) versus local strategies (site-specific) for lake, river, and reservoir management, and presents a series of contrasting perspectives on topics that include monitoring, modeling, water treatment, eutrophication, and restoration. The final chapter integrates these perspectives and identifies strengths, weaknesses, and complementary aspects of the two approaches to help refine future strategies for the sustainable use of the world's freshwater resource
“When the Rivers Run Dry” -- Pearce, Fred “When the Rivers Run Dry” Beacon Press, 2006, ISBN 13: 978-0-8070-8573-8. See especially pp. 3 – 32; pp. 35- 92.
…water also defines quite well our problems in moving from a world of apparently plentiful resources – a world in which if we screw up we can move on – to a world of finite resources, where we have to manage carefully to get by. We still often see water as an essentially free and unlimited resource. But it isn’t. The public policy response to water shortages is still to build a new dam or sink a new well, with little regard for the thought that there may be no more water in the river to be captured, or underground to be pumped.
Enhanced House Resolution 1495 - Everyone is encouraged to browse this “enhanced house resolution” ready to be sent to the US Senate for consideration, especially if you have never read a US House of Representatives bill which has been “adjusted” by a committee to be sent to the US Senate. Note the length, the complexity and the content related to such a bill related to freshwater resources
2007 Most
Endangered Rivers in
1. Santa Fe River,
2. San Mateo Creek,
3. Iowa River,
4. Upper
Delaware River,
5. White Salmon River,
6. Neches River,
7. Kinnickinnic River,
8. Neuse River,
9. Lee Creek, AR , OK
10. Chuitna River,
Researchers
Find New Pharmaceuticals in Texas Waters -- Baylor University researchers announced on May 1 they have found the
residue of three new human medications in fish living in the Pecan Creek in
North Texas.
Future
Scenarios for a Sustainable Water Sector: A Case Study from Switzerland -- JUDIT LIENERT,* JOCHEN MONSTADT, AND BERNHARD
TRUFFER Environ. Sci. Technol. 2006, 40, 436-442
Uncertainties about the
long-term prospects of urban water management systems have increased
substantially over the past decade due to an increasing variety of regulations,
technologies, and demand structures. In Switzerland, this uncertainty is
mirrored by growing difficulties of utility managers and (waste)water
scientists to agree on shared strategies: Water professionals demand support
for pressing management problems, while researchers fundamentally question the
longer-term sustainability of the established water management system.
==================================================================================
The 4th SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Topic: “The Shift in the View of Climate
Change” – Sequel & Counterpoints
April 12, 2007 (Thursday) 1:00 PM -3:00 PM
(Eastern Time)
The call-in number is 513-569-7897, conferee
code is 2484#.
Important Notes:
1. Roll call
– Dr. Beaver will call names of those registered. Quickly state your
affiliation, any other participants with you and any additional agenda items
you'd like added, time permitting.
2. Etiquette – no cell phones unless absolutely necessary; if you use
a speaker phone, please mute the microphone until you are ready to talk. Announce your name when you speak during
the call. Send Dr. Beaver an E-mail
on Erbeav@aol.com
if you cannot get a word in. He
will monitor that Screen Name and Inst4Sust@sbcglobal.net
during the call.
3.
Notetakers are needed. We have one volunteer.
Another is needed.
4.
Students are encouraged to participate. Anyone not registered should notify Dr.
Beaver by E-mail in order to be recognized in the roll call and receive
additional materials.
5. The attachments are to be used only for this discussion. If you use any of these materials, in whole or part, please cite the sources and respect intellectual property.
a) A limited number of slides for discussion of "The Great Global Warming Swindle" which Dr. Beaver excerpted from the Channel 4 (UK) broadcast;
b) A copy of "A Call to Cool the Hype" from the NY Times;
c)
A copy of the Lavoisier brochure (
Agenda:
·
Introduction & Statement of Topic - Beaver
·
Background Information [Including recap of
February 28 Virtual Meeting - Using PDF Presentation] – Beaver
·
The
Great Global Warming Swindle; "A Call to Cool the Hype"; The Nine
Facts
·
What "believable" sustainability tools
need to be developed now?
·
Other questions will be discussed as time
permits.
·
Summary and Critique
The 3rd SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Topic: “Nuclear Waste - Bury it or
Reprocess it”
March 27, 2007 (Tuesday) 10:00 AM -11:30 AM
(Eastern Time)
The call-in number is 513-569-7897, conferee
code is 2484#.
Important Notes:
1. Roll call – Dr. Beaver
will call names of those registered.
Quickly state your affiliation, any other participants with you and any additional
agenda items you'd like added, time permitting.
2. Etiquette – no cell phones unless absolutely necessary; if you use a speaker phone, please mute the microphone until you are ready to talk. Announce your name when you speak during the call. Send Dr. Beaver an E-mail on Erbeav@aol.com if you cannot get a word in. He will monitor that Screen Name and Inst4Sust@sbcglobal.net during the call.
3. Notetakers are needed. We have one volunteer. Another is needed.
4. Students are encouraged to participate. Anyone not registered should notify Dr. Beaver by E-mail in order to be recognized in the roll call and receive additional materials.
5. The attachments are to be used only for this discussion. An updated Reading List is attached; a series of PDF files are also attached. If you use any of these materials, in whole or part, please cite the sources and respect intellectual property.
8.
UK Bury
Agenda:
·
Introduction
& Statement of Topic - Beaver
·
Background
Information - Beaver
- Issues related to Burying Wastes
- Issues related to Reprocessing Waste
- Specifics of Yucca Mountain
- Practices and choices in various nations
·
Main
Discussion – All
- Does scientific and public literature
reflect a change in attitude today versus five years ago?
- What sustainability
decision tools can lead us to make better decisions?
- How does nuclear electricity production
integrate with overall energy plans?
·
What
"believable" sustainability tools need to be developed now?
·
Other
questions will be discussed as time permits.
·
Summary
and Critique
=================================================================================
The 2nd SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Topic: " The Shift in the View of Climate
Change"
February 28, 2007 (Wednesday) 10:00 AM -12:00
AM (Eastern Time)
The call-in number is 513-569-7897, conferee
code is 2484#.
Important Notes:
1. Roll call – Dr. Beaver will call names of those registered.
Quickly state your affiliation, any other participants with you and any
additional agenda items you'd like added, time permitting.
2. Etiquette – no cell phones unless absolutely necessary; if you use
a speaker phone, please mute the microphone until you are ready to talk. Announce your name when you speak during
the call. Send Dr. Beaver an E-mail if you cannot get a word in. Dr. Beaver will monitor that Screen Name
and Inst4Sust@sbcglobal.net during the call.
3. Notetakers
are needed. We have
one volunteer. Another is needed.
4.
Students are encouraged to participate. Anyone not registered should notify Dr. Beaver by E-mail in order to be
recognized in the roll call and receive additional materials.
5. The attachments are to be used only for this discussion. If you use any of these materials, in whole or part, please cite the sources and respect intellectual property.
Main slides (The Shift in the View of Climate)
Attachment 1 (updated) is a Word Document -- a list of references
related to the topic. The list has
two sections, the first is older items; the second part is recent items. You may want to read the abstracts and
conclusions of one or two items in each section. (Attachment 1_old)
Attachment
2 is a PDF Document
-- the findings of a Zogby survey of opinions of
Item 3 --- go to http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf and download
it. It is the February 2007 IPCC
Working Group report "Climate Change 2007 -- The Physical Science
Basis." If you have
difficulty, notify Dr. Beaver. Once
again, concentrate on the first portions and the conclusions.
Item 4 is a Word Document -- it is from The Herald a newspaper in
You may also wish to review the materials we used for the
December 2005 Virtual Meeting on the "Climate Change Technology
Program." To view or
download the CCTP draft Strategic Plan, visit http://www.climatetechnology.gov/.
Attached is a PDF document which contains the titles and abstracts of the Climate Change presentations
from the AAAS Meeting in
STL
Feb 28 (Peter Raven
is Director of the
Agenda:
Ø Introduction & Statement of Topic - Beaver
Ø
Background Information [Including February 22nd
ENV Division Virtual Meeting - Using PDF Presentation] – Beaver
Ø
Main Discussion – All
-
Does scientific literature reflect a change in attitude today versus five years
ago? Public press?
-
Why is energy conservation relatively unpopular as a program?
-
Is the line between global warming and climate change becoming blurred?
-
Is there truly a major disagreement among scientists regarding existence of
Climate Change?
-
Is there truly a major disagreement among scientists about whether human
activity has caused global warming?
- Can human intervention help?
-
What sustainability decision tools can lead us to make better decisions?
-
Do trading schemes have hope of helping?
- If there are "costs" to climate change (or global warming), are
there benefits?
Ø What "believable" sustainability tools need to be developed now?
Ø “Rising sea level is not a future issue, anymore than aging is” originally by Chris Marsh & “Functionality of coastal wetlands” originally by James Morris (Ocean Rise Slides)
Ø
Other questions will be discussed as time
permits.
Ø Summary and Critique
=================================================================================
The 1st SEF Virtual Meeting
in 2007
Topic: "Sequel: Sustainability
Issues Related to Wetlands: Natural and Constructed."
January 25, 2007 (Thursday) 10:00 AM -11:30
AM (Eastern Time)
The call-in number is 513-569-7897, conferee
code is 2484#.
We will concentrate on remaining material from the December 19, 2006 Virtual Meeting where we covered: Sustainability aspects of preserving wetlands, choosing alternatives for restoring the valuable functions that wetlands serve, effects of rising oceans on coastal wetlands and aspects related to coastline residential development. The sequel will include a brief overview of presentations of December 19 and a thorough discussion of industrial applications of constructed wetlands, choosing wetlands for treatment of wastes, species restoration and/or Brownfields restoration. Louis Dupree will be our primary speaker. Other suggestions or slides for sub-topics are welcome as are volunteers to speak for a short time.
Any questions? Just E-mail Dr. Beaver at Erbeav@aol.com or Erbeav@sbcglobal.net.
Important Notes:
1. Roll call – Dr. Beaver will call names of those
registered. Quickly state your affiliation, any other participants with you and
any additional agenda items you'd like added, time permitting.
2. Etiquette – no cell phones unless absolutely necessary; if you use a speaker phone, please mute the microphone until you are ready to talk. Announce your name when you speak during the call. Send Dr. Beaver an E-mail if you cannot get a word in. Dr. Beaver will monitor that Screen Name and Inst4Sust@sbcglobal.net during the call.
3. Notetakers are needed. We have one volunteer. Another is needed.
4. Students are encouraged to participate. Anyone not registered should notify Dr.
Beaver by E-mail in order to be recognized in the roll call and receive
additional materials.
5. The attachments are to be used only for this discussion. If you use any of these materials, in whole or part, please cite the sources and respect intellectual property.
Wetland Functions and Values (Attachment for the wetlands value discussion from http://www.epa.gov/watertrain)
6. Speakers - Louis Dupree (SEF member and Solutia Fellow [ret.]) and Dr. Beaver will be the main speakers.
Agenda: *quickly recapped
by Dr. Beaver from December 19 meeting.
Ø Introduction & Statement of Topic - Beaver*
Ø
Background
Information [Using PDF Presentation] – Beaver*
Ø
“Rising sea level is not
a future issue, anymore than aging is” originally by Chris Marsh*
Ø “Functionality of coastal
wetlands” originally by James Morris*
Ø “Constructed Wetlands” by Louis Dupree [a Word Document on SEF site]
Ø
The
Value of Wetlands - see attachment
-
How can we properly value the contribution of wetlands?
Ø
Main
Discussion – All
-
Is a constructed wetland as good as a natural wetland?
-
Does a set aside wetland equal a destroyed wetland?
-
How long does a constructed wetland continue to perform?
-
What are examples of successful restorations?
-
What are examples of industrial waste treatment by constructed wetlands?
-
How long does restoration take after a tsunami or hurricane? Does human
intervention help?
Ø Other questions will be discussed as time
permits.
Ø Summary and Critique