Wim Kruiswijk: Finding Messages in Bottles

For decades Wim Kruiswijk has lived on the Dutch coast walking the beach before people arrive and after they have left. His treasure: messages in bottles. Over the years he has collected thousands, and turned beach combing into meaninful friendships. He’s also become extremely knowledgeable about why people write messages and bottles, as well as what else is happenning to the environment along the coast. Today on the podcast, in assocation with the For Keeps podcast, we pay a visit to Wim Kruiswijk to learn about his incredible experiences with messages in bottles.

Threatening NYC Water

Some of you may recall a great guest I had on the podcast last year, Al Appleton, the man who saved the NYC water system.

I thought of Al today as I read about how NY state has loosened restrictions on drilling for gas in the NYC watershed are. Using a method called horizontal drilling under the Catskill Mountains, there are proposals to drill for gas. This despite the risk that drilling would bring of spilling toxic chemicals into New York City’s drinking supply. Interfering with the water system could also force the need for building a water treatment plant which would cost an astronomical amount. This despite the fact that over a decade ago, concerned citizens and watershed experts like Al Appleton eliminated the need for building such plants byContinue reading “Threatening NYC Water”

bmtv88 Your Lawn, Our Ocean

This video entry is to explain some recent goings-on as well as tell about a good friend who gave up growing a green lawn in suburbia. Around the same time he was telling me this, I had also visited the Jersey shore where there were reports of an dangerous explosion in the Jelly Fish population. The causes? Nitrogen from all the fertilizers people use on their lawns that washes into the ocean. Another cause, warm water from the Oyster Bay nuclear power plant nearby.

My focus here is more on the fertilizer and energy wasted on lawn care versus the price we pay collectively for the damage done to the environment.? This situation was very well illustrated by a recent edition of On Point from NPR.? Wherever you live, I encourage you to stop watering the lawn, stop fertilizing, take a stand in your everyday life and change this rediculous and dangerous suburban tradition.

bm205 Global Shipping and Its Pollution

The typical mainstream discussion about global warming contains mostly conversations about political deals, automobile usage, and where they’re putting a new wind farm. Yet one area that rarely gets written about is that of the shipping industry, where most of the world’s goods are transported. What kind of pollution risks does the industry bring and what are ship designers saying about it? Damian Tatum joins me from New Orleans to discuss this and more.

COmmon Dreams Article on CO2 emissions from shipping
Friends of the Earth Press Release also related

We Discuss:
– What ships are built on the gulf coast
– What kind of pollution to ships generate
– Who regulates the ships
– Are there steps that ship designers are taking to address climate change needs
– Why isn’t it discussed?
– Is there need to worry
– What Companies are involved
– Will the public get concerned?