USA

Environmental Debt

- Adam Clare

E Magazine is reporting that Guatemala and the United States of America have signed a landmark agreement that switches debt into forest conservation.

“Environmentalists around the globe are toasting a deal announced last week in which the U.S. government has agreed to forgive $24.4 million in debt from Guatemala to free up the money for use in forest conservation efforts there. Two leading international conservation nonprofits, the Nature Conservancy and Conservation International, were instrumental in putting the “debt-for-nature” together, and each organization also provided $1 million toward Guatemalan conservation initiatives to help sweeten the deal.”

Walmart pays workers $78 million

- Nikki Slabbert

Friday the 13th turned out to be very lucky for Michelle Braun and Dolores Hummel, both former employees of the popular Wal-Mart Inc. chain. The two workers sued the chain after they were forced to work during their break times. The jury found in favour of current and former employees in Pennsylvania to the tune of $78 million for wages lost between March of 1998 and May of 2006.

This was a blow to Wal-Mart’s already tarnished image. The chain has been accused of treating and paying employees poorly. Mike Donovan, attorney for the two workers, was thrilled with the outcome: “The message of today’s verdict to large retailers is that they can’t say one thing to their employees and do another.”

This is not the first time Wal-Mart has been in hot water, in December a Wal-Mart branch in  Bentonville, Arkansas was ordered to pay $172 million to employees who were denied meal breaks.

Water from Air

- Adam Clare

A company has created a way to extract water from plain old air. This is a great tool to help people in areas where water is scarce or hard to make potable. It can be a great help in areas hit by a disaster too.

“We figured out how to tap it in a very unique and proprietary way,” Sher said. “We figured out how to mimic nature, using natural salt to extract water and act as a natural decontamination.

“Think of the Dead Sea, where nothing grows around it because the salt dehydrates everything. It’s kind of like that.”

The 20-foot machine can churn out 600 gallons of water a day without using or producing toxic materials and byproducts. The machine was displayed on Capitol Hill last week where a half-dozen lawmakers and some staffers stopped by for a drink.

“It was very interesting to see the technology in action and learn about its possible implementation in natural disasters,” said Rep. E. Clay Shaw Jr., a Republican from Florida whose hurricane-prone district includes Fort Lauderdale.

The research and development into this technology was need-driven by the US Army wanting a way to keep soldiers fueled to fight. It’s unfortunate that this device is created out of a need to kill than a need to help live. That being said, this technology has lots of potential to help many people in need around the world.

Secret Rooms Gain Popularity

- Adam Clare

shhhhThe New York Times is running a story about the growing popularity of installing a
secret room into houses. I’ve always wanted a secret hideaway room that has the bat computer and a map printed on the floor.

““Most people don’t even recognize that it’s there,” said her father, Eric Beghou, who owns a consulting company with his wife, Beth. “When the home inspector came by to examine the house, our builder shut the bookcase, hiding the room. The inspector went up and down the stairs a couple times — he knew that something was unusual — but he couldn’t figure out what was there.”

Soon, however, inspectors and other guests may get wise to hidden rooms like the Beghous’. Although hard data is not available, architects report an increase over the last five years in the number of clients installing concealed rooms.”

Pets in the USA to be Saved in Emergencies

- Adam Clare

Greg James writes in to let us know that the US Government has passed a bill to protect pets in emergencies.

Greg lets us know that the ASPCA supports this:

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, it has become overwhelmingly apparent that provisions need to be made for our trusted companions in major disaster and emergency situations. The Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act (PETS) would amend a federal law called the Stafford Act. It would require the director of FEMA, in approving standards for state and local disaster preparedness plans, to ensure that the plans take into account the needs of individuals with household pets and service animals. The bill would also allow the director of FEMA to make financial contributions to state and local authorities for animal emergency preparedness purposes, including establishing shelters to accommodate people with pets and service animals.

Many Katrina evacuees and disaster victims were forced to leave their pets behind when they evacuated their homes, because no provisions had been made to evacuate companion animals along with their families. The emotional trauma of those forced to leave their pets behind and the suffering of tens of thousands of animals was compounded by the health and safety risks that resulted from so many abandoned animals in one area. Conversely, many pet owners, knowing their companion animals could not accompany them, chose to stay in their homes with their pets, further complicating human rescue efforts. The PETS bill would help ensure that this situation does not repeat itself if another major disaster strikes!

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