Who would have thought, sugar cane is a renewable feedstock.

   Yes, sugar cane can be used as a renewable feedstock. I was just shocked, just as you are reading this. Sugar cane is said to be a more beneficial and safer feedstock than corn. Ethanol that is produced from corn can damage the envirnoment. This type of ethanol can damage the envirnoment because this ethanol has the capability to release more gas emissions from greenhouses than regular fuels that are used daily.

    The ethanol produced by sugar cane, is the most efficient and the one that is the safest for the envirnoment. Some of the many reasons why it is the safest and most efficient is because it is a raw material that is commonly used in plastics, papers, and chemicals.  Another reason why it is the most efficient renewable feedstock that provides ethanol is because sugar cane is easy to grow and process and provides a high yield.

      The efficiency of sugar cane ethanol is better than that of the ethanol produced by corn. A sugar cane  plant can convert 2 percent of its solar energy into useable biomass. When the sugar from the sugar cane is extracted it is done with ease, so with being said the amount of energy of sugar cane is able to yield is  greater than that of corn. Each ton of sugar cane has the energy of 1.2 barrels of petroleum.

       In closing keeping in mind the information I have gathered about sugar cane ethanol, I would like to say that it does seem better than ethanol from corn. The sugar cane ethanol is also safer for the envirnoment since it does not produce green house gas emissions.  The uses of sugar cane are in items that are used daily by many people. This is just another way that the world can go green, using ethanol produced by sugar cane instead of ethanol produced by corn.
   

    




http://www.therenewablecorp.com/eco_efficiency/sugarcane_as_feedstock.htm

Cogeneration plant at UNH

    In 2006, UNH started to use a cogeneration plant for their energy on their main campus in Durham. The plant traps heat which waste produces,  the energy gained from the heat from the waste is then used as heat in the resident halls as well as the academic buildings. UNH partnered with Turnkey Recycling and Environmental Enterprise (TREE), to use their landfill for the source of the waste, that is then turned into heat. There is a 12. 7 mile pipe from the TREE plant, to the cogeneration plant at UNH Durham.
     The methane gas that is used in the process of turning the waste into heat comes from TREE. TREE has more than 300 wells in whcih methane gas can be taking from to use as energy. Whatever part of the methane gas that is not methane gas has to be eliminated, the non-methane gas is most likely going to be carbon dixide.  
   As a UNH Manchester student, I feel like I belong to the UNH family. Knowing that UNH is the first university in the country to commit to such a GREEN  project, is huge. Using other resources other than fossil fuels for energy sources is a great way in becoming greener and something that can be used to teach other colleges and people that there are other ways that you can be green. 




http://unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2009/may/bp19ecoline.cfm


http://www.aboutmyplanet.com/alternative-energy/leading-campus/

Agriculture? MOOOOOOOO..........Organic milk

    Even though organic milk is almost double the price of regular non-organic milk, it is safer in the end. The are more steps in the process of making organic milk than are in regular non organic milk making, which in turn raises the price of the finished product that is put on shelves. There are four criteria that 'organic milk' must or it is not considered to be organic, the four criteria are: no pesticides or fertizilers that are harmful(if these are used must be organic), no genetic alternations are allowed(BGH, bovine growth hormone which increases milk production by the bovine), no antibotics, and the final criteria is the cows must have access to pasture.
       Getting back to the point of why organic milk costs more, is because it takes more money to raise organic cows than regular cows. The cost of owning an organic farm is also more and you need more land to raise organic cows since they need full access to pasture whenever they please. Having an organic farm starts from the Earth, before you get into the animals and the products produced by the animals. The farmers use herbicides instead of fertilizers, since fertilizers can be toxic to the workers and the envirnoment. The animals are also fed no animal by products, and no BGH are used in the bovines. Organic farmers do not use BGH in their cows since the cows can get an infection in their udder or can have an insulin growth factor as a side effect.
     In the end is no really difference between regular milk and organic milk other than organic milk is healthier for you. Organic milk that was produced by cows that were able to graze whenever had more beneficial health effects than regular milk. The beneficial health effects of orgainc milk are the fatty acids are more helpful to the body, antioxdiants are higher as well as vitamins. So, in my opinion is up to the conusmer on which type of milk they choose to buy, spend more money and get milk that has more beneficial effects to the human body or get regular milk that has no real effects on the human body. I personal, no longer drink a alot of milk, but if I had to choose between organic or regular milk I think I would stick with regular milk since it is the type of milk that I had while i was growing up.




http://solorya.hubpages.com/hub/Organic-Milk--Is-It-Worth-Your-Money

Biological interaction with an envirnomental chemical....Cadmium

     Cadmium is an environmental chemical that is found in the Earth's crust, naturally. Cadmium is formed as a mineral; Cadmium Oxide, Cadmium Chloride, and Cadmium Sulphate. These minerals are known to be toxic to humans and the environment. Since it is present in rocks it is less harmful, it is commonly found in soil and coal, even though toxic it is found in batteries, plastics, and metal coatings.  

     How is this environmental chemical related to biological interaction?  There a few ways that it can be connected to biological interaction. Cadmium can get into to the environment, plants and animals can pick up Cadmium and can be taken in by humans.

     Cadmium can get into the environment by the use of landfills, hazardous waste leaks, and poor waste disposal methods. It can also be released into the environment by working mines and other industrial activities including factories that produce batteries, plastics, and metal coatings. Another way that Cadmium is released into the environment is when coal is burned and used for energy and the burning of household waste. Cadmium can be discharged into the sea and ocean causing shellfish to accumulate Cadmium, whihc in turn will put it into a human body. Whenever Cadmium is present in the envirnoment animals and plants can take Cadmium in.

   If Cadmium were ever to  be consumed by humans the potential for complications is great. Consuming Cadmium can lead to irration of the digestive system and can cause vomitting, just to name a few of the complications that can arise. There is also a risk to your health if a human were to ever inhale Cadmium it can cause damage to the person's lung(s). Even low levels of Cadmium can be tough to get rid off, accumulated Cadmium can cause bone and kidney disease. Human intake of Cadmium can be from:
                             ~welding and battery factories, inhaling by power stations burning fossil fuels, eating foods such as shellfish and liver, drinking water that is contaminated, and by smoking cigarettes.

         Even though it occurs naturally in our envirnoment it is still toxic to the health of humans and animals that surround the envirnoment. As  I see it, this element is NOT able to be "greenified"  or become one that can be used and have its toxins limited.


http://www.planetagenda.com/chemicals.htm