In this Issue...	February 2006

Quote of the Month

New Feature: International Spotlight
	We Wish to Make the World  Cleaner, Better and Kinder by Ekaterina Kalinina, Middle School 1198, Moscow, Russia

New Feature: EarthTeam Animation
	Claymation by Cormac Craigie, Piedmont Middle School

New Feature: EarthTeam Animation
	Poetry with audio by David Vaesa, Environmental Science Academy, Martinez

Ask Dr. Green
	The world's ultimate hypocrite asks a question by Samantha Page, guest doctor, San Mateo HS

Photography and Artwork
	Baxter Creek Daylighted by Josh Martarella, Stone Valley Middle School, Alamo
	Snow Beginning to Fall and Coyote by Mara Constantine, Acalanes HS, Lafayette
	South Creek  and Redwoods by Brian LaBrie, Stone Valley Middle School
	Lavabed, Sunset, and The Lone Oak Tree, by Josh Martarella Stone Valley Middle School, Alamo
	Interaction by Olivia Thomsett , Berkeley HS
	Get Spotless by Cassidy Gooding, De Anza HS, Richmond
	A Good Thing by Emma Claudeanos and Audrey Geis, Berkeley HS

Articles
	Ponderous Paper Problems by Katie Salazar, Northgate HS  Walnut Creek
	What I Saw by Esmeralda Ponce, Richmond HS
	Pittsburg High Students Experience Volunteeringby Britney Stewart, Genaro Corral, and Nasher Shaibi, Pittsburg HS

Poetry
	by Ryan Pineda, 6th grade, Stone Valley Middle School, Alamo by Tiffany Mao, Monte Vista HS, Danville

Letters to the Editor- Check out this months letter

We Wish to Make the World Cleaner, Better, and Kinder

By Ekaterina KalininaSchool 1198. Moscow, Russia

A group of School 1198 students-members of the “Noosphera” Ecology Club (Ekaterina Kalinina, Mikhail Kopylov, Olga Charaeva)  and the teacher Irina Vladimirovna Charaeva attended an international environmental conference in Visaginas, Lithuania. The theme of  conference  was «The Air We Breathe». The students met with the delegations from Finland, Latvia, and Lithuania. 

All environmental clubs made their presentations. A group of Finnish students from “Meri-Pori” lyceum   introduced their project “A Pine-Tree Needle”. The project teaches how to use the needles of pine trees as an indicator of air pollution in many European cities.

The “Noosphera” Club told about their cooperation with the Moscow State University (soil testing), Kids Nuclear Academy, measuring the level of noise in the watershed of Ramenka River, etc.

The Environmental Club “Noosphera” was started in a Moscow school in 1996. Several students united their efforts trying to help the environment of the big city. The focus of the Club is to develop environmental awareness, to educate students, parents, and residents, and to encourage everyone to become more responsible and human.

The most important and successful project was The Ramenka River Watershed Project.

One of the students shows the picture of the old windmill that was once on the bank of the river. In the background you may see a poster with the Club’s emblem – a green leaf and a school logo.

The Environmental Club “Noosphera” was started in a Moscow  school in 1996. Several students united their efforts trying to  help the environment of the big city. The focus of the Club is  to develop environmental awareness, to educate students, parents, and residents, and to encourage everyone to become more responsible and human.

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Presentation

Participants of the Conference

Russian Delegation

   

Ask Doctor Green

Dear Dr. Green,

I just got my license and am facing the inevitable decision of what kind of car to get.  Well, in my case there isn’t really a decision. My mom, the formidable Miss Tea Party Gossip Queen USA, told me that I’m getting the old and “safe” Suburban. I don’t want to be driving around a clunky gas-guzzling medium, so I was wondering if there is any way that I could drive my car guilt-free by compensating to the environment in a different way. I feel like a complete charlatan because I have always thought that the most aggravating spectacle was a Suburban being driven by the leisure of one human being.

               – Ultimate Hypocrite: Environmentalist with an SUV

Dear Ultimate Hypocrite: Environmentalist with an SUV,

I appreciate that you have sympathy towards the large impact that heavy SUVs have on global warming.  On average, SUVs emit 40% more CO2 than a reasonably sized vehicle. I see that your mom mentioned the word “safe.”  If this is the real reason that she wants you to be driving the Suburban, you may want to inform her that manufacturers don’t work to appease those interested in safety. In fact, just recently, research at U-Penn's Children’s Hospital has demonstrated that "children riding in SUVs have similar injury risks to children who ride in passenger cars." Upon the study of 4,000 children-oriented accidents, researchers have learned that rollover risks countervail any advantage of a larger motor vehicle. In approaching your halfway ignorant mother, I advise you to take a trip to www.vehix.com and research a car known for safety and, shall we say, a tad more environmentally conscious.

On the other hand, if mom’s concern isn’t primarily to create an automobile asylum but more to avoid the hassle of simply passing down a pre-purchased car, then becoming carbon neutral is another alternative that might be of interest.  Becoming ‘carbon neutral’ signifies that you have neutralized the effect of your personal greenhouse gas emissions so that they no longer contribute to the dangers of global warming. This is a much more popular idea in Europe (what do you know?) than in the US, which is why you probably haven’t already heard of the concept.  If you check out   http://www.carbonneutral.com/pinfo/carbon-neutral.asp, the Carbon Neutral Company, you can gather an approximate measurement of your average production of CO2.  The Carbon Neutral Company is able to generate “equivalent carbon dioxide savings achieved through forestry schemes that reabsorb carbon dioxide and climate friendly projects that cut down CO2 emissions, such as those which use renewable energy sources.”

I pray that you take this information into consideration. I want to be able to forgive you for being, as the journalist Keith Bradsher reports, an "insecure and vain” SUV driver.

With love and oxygen,

Dr. Green

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2001/0212.mencimer.html
http://www.terrapass.com/terrablog/posts/000122.html
http://www.self.org/cnc.asp
http://www.carbonneutral.com/pinfo/carbon-neutral.asp

 

Dear Dr. Green,

I was painting my fake nails and like I totally took a whiff of this horrible, strong scent! I was painting in the bathroom in which my brother had just spent some time, so I’m not sure that I actually smelled something that could be risky to my health. Please help me identify whether or not the nail polish contributed the strong aroma.  I am probably just completely wrong – there is no way that pretty nail polish could hurt someone! And if I have detected something, is there any alternative to nail polish that could prevent me from embodying the horrible exhibition of unkempt nails?

– Totally Reeking

Dear Totally Reeking,

First and foremost, the best and most immediate solution is to stop painting your nails within your very own domicile.  Painting in your house can increase the toxic level of air flow inside your house. This can take a toll on you later, considering that most of your time spent is within your own quarters. Painting outside will not only allow the toxins to diffuse into the atmosphere (which, don’t get me wrong, is not great either), but it will eliminate a lot of the strong scent.  As trite as it may sound, if you find it overwhelming to try and improve the world’s air quality, at least you can try to increase the quality of the air of your own residence. You may also find this interesting despite the fact of whether it applies to you. In recent studies, a high 71% of 123 nail polish products examined contained ingredients known to be, suspected of being or possibly linked to birth defects, including toluene, dibutyl phthalate and ethoxyethanol acetate. 

You mentioned something very intriguing when you pondered the idea of alternative nail products.  That has yet to be invented by the environmental community, but hopefully someone with a lot of ambition will read this and eventually put it on the market. Or, perhaps, you could quit using nail polish all together, increase air quality, and merely accept the unprepossessing appearance of your digits.

To riotous cheers and reproductive dears,

Dr. Green

 http://www.simpleliving.net/news/print-archives.asp?id=267

"Lava Bed"

"Lone Oak"
Photos By
Josh Martarella
Stone Valley Middle School, Alamo
(click on photo to view large image)

"Sunset"

 Ponderous Paper Problems

By Katie Salazar, Northgate HS, Walnut Creek

We’ve all heard that the bleached-white printer paper school districts and business associates are addicted to is bad for the environment. Most of us environmentally-savvy-activists opt for the cream-colored recycled papers or the lovely-overpriced-handmade-petal-accented stationary sold in craft outlets and Papyrus stores. But do we really know the extent of the paper-bleaching-evils?

Rustle the Leaf website once again reveals facts that many of us haven’t been exposed to yet. I learned facts on their “5 Things Everyone Should Know About Chlorine-Bleached Paper” lesson plan that made my skin crawl and my school supplies shutter with shame. Almost all paper products, including many of the recycled papers, are processed and bleached with toxic, ecosystem-harmful, chlorine-based chemical compounds!

A single sheet of copy paper can use up to 13 ounces of water in chlorine-based processing. The average chlorine-based pulp mill releases an appalling 50 million gallons of toxic water each day and in North America there are more than 80 of these mills. The poisons released by these mills are released into our environment and are responsible for devastation of all types of life spanning almost every ecosystem.

These chlorine by-products are called organochlorines and can lead to disrupted reproductive cycles, endometriosis, spontaneous abortion, birth defects, and impairment of brain development and function. Children are at the highest risk as they ingest more food and water than the average adult — making them more susceptible to the negative effects of these toxins.

There is a simple solution to this problem: use oxygen-based bleaching compounds. Although many argue that this is a more costly alternative, one must consider the long-term benefits. Less water would be used in an oxygen-based bleaching mill and the nation would, as a result, eliminate most of the expenses of cleaning up polluted coastlines, rehabilitating waterways and ecosystems, and treating diseases all caused by the more “cost efficient” chlorine-related toxins. Also, pulp mills that do not use corrosive chlorine chemistry have lower maintenance costs overall.

Interestingly, ECF (Elemental Chlorine Free) papers are even bleached with chlorine dioxide and are no safer for the environment than any of the others. Someone looking to buy only the safest non-organochlorinated paper should look for TFC & PCF certified products.

Try contacting the Chlorine-Free Products Association (CFPA) for more help on ferreting out the “good” paper products for all your printing needs by calling (847) 658-6104 or visit Rustle the Leaf’s lesson plan at http://www.rustletheleaf.com/0105_Lesson.pdf for more interesting factoids concerning the devastating effects of chlorine-bleached paper. And if you decide to print out the lesson plan, please remember to use paper that’s chlorine free!

Baxter Creek Daylighted By Joshua Martarella 6th grade, SVMS (click on photo to view large image)

Pittsburg High Students Experience Volunteering

By Britney Stewart

My experience with doing the (environmental) clean up was nothing but fun and enjoyable. I was able to be in a group with people I knew and didn’t know. I participated in cleaning up my school. I was ashamed to see that people leave their trash all over the place. To me even when I think about littering, I just can’t do it because I will be nagging at myself all day about why or how come I didn’t just throw it away. When I first came to the clean up, I thought it would be boring.  It wasn’t; it was the total opposite. We would sing, try to shoot shots with the trash into the trash bag – it was sooo  much fun! I enjoyed it the most because we were able to make cleaning up fun and we were able to make a little bit of a difference to our school.

By Genaro Corral

I’ve only been on the Dow wetlands field trip. When we got off the bus, we walked down a long dirt road. Luckily that day was perfect to plant because there were plenty of clouds out.

I think it was really important that we were planting native plants back into the wetlands. We were restoring ruined soil and adding plants to make the soil rich with nutrients again. The best part of the whole field trip was that while you were planting, even though you might have been tired, you were helping the land. You were contributing to keep the earth healthy.

By Nasher Shaibi

When I went to Oakland to the Martin Luther King Regional Shoreline I had some fun. I thought it was going to be a useless trip, but it was actually pretty cool. We met people from Berkeley High, Oakland Tech, and some other schools. There were plenty of people there and also some famous local people were there. There was a young boy giving a speech from M.L.K and an older boy named Zack who received an award for his project testing the water that the air planes serve.  He demonstrated that the water is contaminated.    

The weather at Oakland was alright, a little windy, but it didn’t ruin our trip. I cleaned the San Leandro Creek with my group from school and also some kids from Berkeley High.  Both times we switched up jobs, I still stuck with collecting garbage rather than planting because following the creek help me sweat some calories off.

Some garbage we found by the creek included dime sack baggies, bottles, tires, wrappers, little pieces of foam, candy wrappers, and cigar tips. Also there were needles and broken glass, but anytime we found a needle we had to call for someone to put it in a special “sharps” box, so they could dispose of it in a safely.

Poetry

Four Poems by Ryan Pineda, 6th grade, Stone Valley Middle School, Alamo
Erupting Volcanos Active volcanos begin to rumble Lava and ash leap into the air Spewing rocks and cinders Destructive and powerful	Earth Full of life and tranquil Everlasting and everchanging A host for every creature Changing spinning and beautiful
A Dying World Destroying, cutting, building Flushing out creatures and destroying nature Ignorant, guilty people Will destroy their world	Sunlight Touching your skin like a mother’s soft hand Wrapping you in a blanket of golden sunlight ‘Warming, tingling radiant sun Lighting up rooms with their light and filling you with happiness Quietly the sun goes to sleep

Nature by Tiffany Mao, Monte Vista HS, Danville The sunlight shining, almost blinding The fresh air, the soft breeze sighing Sifting and blowing through my hair  – Nature is everywhereThe sycamore planted in the winter Once leafless and bare Now full of life And it will continue to strive And tower above us all Until it grows that tall Remember the acorn I planted For mere funNow sneaking out of dirt – That base of the trunkThe first signs of green Although tiny it may seem It’s six in the morning My eyes tightly shut The birds are already humming The whistling, the chirping So beautiful, so stirring Listen, can you hear? Music to my ears Nature

South Creek, South Dakota

Photos By Brian LaBrie 6th grade Stone Valley MS Alamo (click on photo to view large image) Redwoods in Northern California

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,
I'm an adult who reads The Green.  I really enjoy the variety of articles and the desire to save the earth that motivates them. The photographs are beautiful. Keep up the good work.

Here's another Christmas tree story that illustrates the difficulty of deciding the correct course of action:  A tree farm was abandoned, which allowed the pines to grow over 50 feet tall.  The trees are along a creek and are shading out the native trees like buckeyes, willows, walnuts and oaks.  We wanted to cut the abandoned Christmas treesdown. But first we asked our wildlife biologists to check out the grove to make sure we wouldn't be harming any wildlife.  They discovered that a huge number of raptors roosted in the trees each night.  Lots of different species of hawks and owls now called the x-tree farm home. So do amphibians like newts and frogs, that have lots of the shade they need to protect their delicate skin. So the grove was left alone. 

Do students think it would have been better to cut down one part of This non-native grove of trees to see if it had an impact on the raptors remaining in the other trees?  Or would it have been better to try thinning part of the forest to see if that lessened the impact on wildlife while allowing more sunlight in to stimulate the growth of the stunted native trees below?  Or could we just read some research about the probable impacts based on a study else where and assume that it would apply to our grove as well?

No land management decisions are easy.  There is always, always a trade off between benefits and harm.  The trick is in maximizing the benefits and minimizing the harm.  We need as much information as we can get and may have to experiment on a small scale before we jump into any management decision, whether it's removing non-native trees or deciding on whether to buy a live or plastic Christmas tree.  But we need all the facts, not just the ones provided by people who stand to make money by selecting the facts that line their pocketbooks.

  –– Bob Flasher

(The writer is a ranger for a local agency that manages open-space land. – ed)

"Get Spotless "
By
Cassidy Gooding
De Anza HS, Richmond
(click on photo to view large image)