Watershed Management

Sustainable is a word that is widely employed to describe a desirable future for the world and its peoples. The simplest definition of sustainability is ‘not cheating on our children’; to that should be added, ‘not cheating on our neighbors’ and ‘not cheating on the rest of creation’. 

Referring to "What We Going to Do" post, out of the five areas, Water Resource Management is going to be focused on the following.

Effective watershed management includes both planning and implementation components. While the development of a watershed plan is a critical step in the process, the plan must be successfully implemented before results can be seen. The watershed management process uses a series of cooperative, iterative steps to characterize existing conditions, identify and prioritize problems, define management objectives, and develop and implement protection or remediation strategies as necessary. (Watershed Management Process, 2012)

To protect the water sources through watershed management, Integrated Watershed Management provides a framework to integrate natural resource management with community livelihoods in a sustainable way. This action area addresses the issues of degradation of natural resources, soil erosion, landslides, floods, frequent droughts and desertification, low agricultural productivity, poor water quantity and quality and poor access to land and related resources from an integrated watershed management perspective. Therefore, we will address the new and upcoming challenges and opportunities for the respective organization and climate change at the watershed level focusing on three eco-regions – humid, sub-humid, and arid and semi-arid areas. 

The approaches include

• Development and implementation of regional research programmes/projects in collaboration with local partners and organizations, regional and research institutes,
• By building on past experience and creating new experience from different Eco-regions, new methods, technologies and options.
• Dissemination and sharing of knowledge through vibrant networks, workshops, training, exposure visits, resource books, how to do manuals, posters, feature articles, leaflets, CD's, multimedia tools and etc.

Objectives

1. To develop, test, and pilot equitable methodologies for watershed services in the region/organization.
2. To develop and test, through assessments and research, suitable watershed management strategies that address adaptation to climate change.
3. To build capacities of watershed managers to help scale up good watershed management practices.
4. To support policy development in integrated use of watershed resources.

Reference List

Watershed Management Process. (2012, March). Retrieved 2013, from EPA: http://water.epa.gov/type/watersheds/datait/watershedcentral/process.cfm

CSR Projects That We are Planning.

Environmental issues related to gem industry are mainly soil erosion and sedimentation, destruction of river banks, ground water depletion and pollution of surface water bodies, causing damage to the public and the private property…etc.  In order to minimize the damage and risk that can be resulted due to the environmental issues, we are planning three campaigns.

·         Tree plantation

·         Workshop

·         Awareness programs.

Tree plantation

Planting trees can be one of the best things we can do for soil erosion. When we consider what trees do for the environment, they’re pretty amazing. They provide food and homes for squirrels and birds, shade for the forest floor (and for people!), and oxygen for the atmosphere — not to mention the fact that trees get rid of carbon dioxide (a major greenhouse gas) in the process of releasing oxygen. (Curriculum Guide, April 2010 )

Tree planting is something positive which we can do for the environment. It also makes good economic sense since trees provide jobs, add value to property, and protect and enhance the environment. In most cases, planting trees is also an unselfish act since the benefits will mostly be enjoyed by future generations.

Workshops

The workshop will educate people by involving them learn ways to implement environmentally-friendly strategies at their organization and save money. We thought why not introduce an element of environmental responsibility to managers and employees who work in the organization.

We are planning to organize a workshop for managers on 21^st of February and the technical staff on 28^th of February.

Awareness Programs

To come and employee interested in living sustainability beyond the workplace can choose to participate in the Environmental Awareness Program by extend employees learning opportunities outside of the workplace and in side of the workplace.

Employees in the organization have the unique opportunity to work with top staff, and companions create a vibrant, interesting, and fun community.

The Environmental Awareness Program is open to managers and employees of organization who concerned about environmental issues. The programming in this community will support learning on current issues and how organization affects our environment. (miami university, 2013)

We are planning to organize sustainability day, March, 01, 2013, to promote sustainable actions and concepts across organization.

References.

(April 2010 ). Curriculum Guide. new york: Horticultural Society .

miami university. (2013). Retrieved february 06, 2013, from sustainability at miami: http://www.units.muohio.edu/sustainability/get-involved/studentsenvironmental-awareness-program-living-and-learning-sustainability-campus

The use of Solar Thermal Power

We all have been using sun’s energy since years for numerous purposes but only recently we have started using the sun’s energy for generating power. About 70% of the light that hit the earth gets reflected back to space and only the remaining 30% light is enough to meet up our needs for years to come. So, solar energy is the energy that we get from the sun. We get enough energy from the sun that it could meet up our power demands, if only we could harness it properly. The energy that is absorbed by the earth is used for drying clothes, used by plants in the process of photosynthesis, taken in by the ocean where the heat creates wind and heat currents and for heating up homes (Solar energy, 2013). When we get the solar energy from the sun it gets trapped and stored and can be used in various ways to generate power. Solar energy can be used as direct or indirect, active or passive. 

Basically there are 2 ways in which we can harness sun’s energy:

• Solar Thermal:

Solar thermal is also known as solar water heating. In this process, solar energy is used directly to generate heat. Solar panels are used to trap the heat from the sun and are used to heat water in the glass panels. Glass panels are painted black so that they absorb maximum energy from the sun, then water is pumped through these pipes. These panels are positioned in such a way to maximize the absorption of heat throughout the day and can help in reducing the electricity bills.

• Photoelectric Cells:

This method converts the sun’s energy into electricity. Photovoltaic cells are most popular form of converting solar energy into electricity. These cells are silicon based pieces of materials that absorb the sun’s light. When the sunlight enters the cells, it causes the electrons to move. These electrons move in a certain direction which is known as current. This electricity is in the form of direct current. The electrical output from a single cell is small, therefore individual solar cells are arranged together in a PV module and the modules are grouped together to form an array. This power is then used to charge cells or inverters and this electricity can be used to provide sufficient power for common electrical appliances.

Most of us don't think much about where our electricity comes from, only that it's available and plentiful. Electricity generated by burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, emits carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides gases scientists believe contribute to climate change. Solar thermal (heat) energy is a carbon-free, renewable alternative to the power we generate with fossil fuels like coal and gas (Trimarchi, 2013).

The main benefit of solar energy is that it doesn’t cause any or little pollution, is a free energy source and is available in abundant quantity. If utilized to its full potential it can help us in overcome our dependence on fossil fuels and also can help us greatly in reducing the global warming.

Reference List

Solar energy. (2013). Retrieved January 2013, from Conserve Energy Future: http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/HowSolarEnergyWorks.php

Trimarchi, M. (2013). How Solar Thermal Power Works. Retrieved January 2013 , from How stuff works?: http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-tech/energy-production/solar-thermal-power.htm

Waste Management

Waste management issues are becoming increasingly crucial for the promotion of environmental sustainability, waste management has huge potential to turn problems into solutions and to lead the way towards sustainable development through the recovery and reuse of valuable resources; the creation of new business and employment opportunities, including for the informal sector; reduced emissions of greenhouse gasses from waste management operations (Links between waste management and environmental sustainability, 2013)

In a world with finite resources, achieving a state of Zero-waste may eventually become an imperative. In nature, there is no waste. Waste for one process is food for another. Each organism in a forest plays a unique role in repetitively cycling nutrients, water, and energy throughout the system.

The primary goal of effective waste management is prevention, followed by reuse and recycling and appropriate disposal. Waste management prevents harm to human health and the environment by reducing the volume and hazardous character of residential and industrial waste. Improving proper waste management will reduce pollution, recycle useful materials and create more green energy (Malburg, 2010).

Waste management is a process by which our garbage is stored, treated, transported and disposed. Household waste is managed differently than industrial waste however, the goals are the same. Waste must be stored to prevent releases before it is transported; waste must be treated to reduce its volume and hazards; waste must be transported safely and quickly to prevent hazardous releases and waste must be disposed in properly designed landfills.

Waste hazards can include those that have toxicity and flammability as well as chemical characteristics that render the waste harmful to the environment and/or humans if not management properly. Proper waste management improvements will ensure that garbage does not ruin our waterways, public drinking water systems, agricultural lands or residential areas. Implementation costs can be prohibitive but making improvements to waste management often is an efficient way to cut costs in other areas.

Recycling of waste materials is the process that includes the collection, processing and manufacture into new products, and the sale of the new products produced. There are numerous products that can be recycled instead of thrown away as waste materials, such as aluminum and steel cans, glass bottles, paper, scrap metal, and the techniques of recycling will be unique for each material. Initially, the recycled materials could not be easily sold, but with the results of marketing efforts and government strategies, the recycled materials have established their place in the markets. In this regard, organizations should establish programs for the recycling of their empty packaging.

~ Reference List

• Links between waste management and environmental sustainability. (2013). Retrieved January 2013, from UN News Centre: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=43426#.URHEGGfLU5E

• Malburg, S. (2010, November 01). Stash the Trash: Ways to Improve Waste Management. Retrieved January 2013, from Bright Hub: http://www.brighthub.com/environment/science-environmental/articles/61325.aspx