Over 520,000 registered members have already contributed over 500 million results to researchers. All of these computers combined have provided more than 380,000 years of computing time toward important research. A few clicks and your PC will be helping to advance this great cause. Enjoy the video below and head on over to the World Community Grid website to donate your idle computer time.

Today, the Worldwatch Institute published an article detailing a decline in offshore drilling opposition in sharp contrast to the year 1982 when the drilling moratorium was enacted. Further expansions by George H. W. Bush in 1990 extended the moratorium to include the coasts of Florida, California and New England. With the presidency of Clinton in 1998, the ban was again extended until the year 2012.

During this time, the United States government has went as far as to buy back drilling leases off the coasts of Florida from such companies as Chevron, Conoco, and Murphy. In 2002, the Bush Administration paid $115 million to these companies to drop the offshore claims they held at the request of Florida Governor Jeb Bush. Further settlements were proposed to entities such as the Collier family to relinquish mineral rights held in the Everglades. The government offered $350 million in tax deductions and $120 million in cash for mineral rights that the National Park Services and Department of Interior estimated at $20 million and $43 million, respectively. Besides, opening a few areas within the Gulf of Mexico in 2006, expansion of offshore drilling leases has been mostly stagnant.

Recent oil prices and focus on acquiring less foreign oil has begun to change the consensus on expansion of U.S. offshore drilling. Reports by Rasmussen show that 67% of voters favor offshore drilling while 64% feel more drilling will lower high gas prices. It seems clear to why the majority of Americans now support an increase in offshore drilling. Effects on the pocketbook speak very loudly, but this is not the only reason for the change in attitude towards the long held view of offshore drilling, being environmentally unfriendly.

Lumped alongside the bill to lift the offshore drilling ban, are a few healthy nuggets of environmental stewardship. Consumer tax credits for fuel-efficient and clean energy vehicles, renewable energy tax credits, development of alternative fuel sources, and mass transit funding are just a few of the environmental benefits outlined in a plan that many hope will see a vote during this year’s session. Though most environmental groups still oppose lifting the offshore drilling ban, many feel the added benefits are so beneficial to providing clean energy and healthy environment, that a compromise can be made. If a vote is not exercised before the conclusion of Congress this fall, any decision will be left till next year while also including the next President of the United States.

Though Republicans do not feel the Democrats’ plan goes far enough to expand new energy sources, past attitudes of “no new leases”, has swayed with restrictions requiring current leases be explored further, and the added tax incentives for renewable energy energy sources. Safer drilling practices, higher oil prices, and increased pressure on providing an energy independent America, may soon make new offshore drilling a reality along thousands of acres of U.S. coastline.

The earth’s most abundant resource, and still we have trouble finding adequate clean drinking water for nearly 1 billion people worldwide. Climate forecasts can play a role in planning for meteorological events that contaminate and pollute water reserves. With pollution levels rising and frequent flooding throughout the world, advanced warning and proper monitoring could help alleviate some of the growing problems of the water management needed to provide clean accessible water to all.

2 September 2008 – The chief of the United Nations meteorological agency today called for weather forecasts to play a greater role in planning for economic development and poverty reduction because of the impact climate change has on water resources.

Michel Jarraud, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), told the World Water Congress that the agricultural, energy, tourism and health sectors are among those most affected by the impact of climate change due to drought, deterioration in water quality, increased run-off and an increase in the salinization of ground water as a result of rising sea levels.

“Mainstreaming climate change in decision-making processes will therefore be central to all development and poverty alleviation efforts,” he said at the meeting, held in Montpellier, France.

Source: un.org

In other water news, water management corruption in impoverished nations leads to a further deteriorating system for providing water to those that are in desperate need. Corruption is said to increase the price for water services by 10-30% worldwide. Many of the people hurt the most by this are those cannot afford basic necessities, let alone the price that comes after bribes and corruption has ran its part.

Africa’s largest water transfer effort, the Lesotho Highlands Water Project, plans to supply water to the industrial heartland of South Africa and to generate energy for impoverished Lesotho. The multi-billion dollar investment offers economic growth and greater water security for underserved communities in the region.

The project also presents water officials with countless opportunities to become rich on the side. In 2002, Lesotho courts sentenced the project’s chief executive to prison for accepting bribes from 18 multinational companies that were vying for construction contracts.

The Lesotho case is a rare example of justice. Across the globe, the water sector is particularly prone to corruption, and the world’s poor are usually the ones who suffer the costs.

The pervasive nature of dirty water politics is blamed for much of the stalled progress in improving access to water resources in this year’s Global Corruption Report. It is the first report to assess how corruption affects the water sector worldwide.

The widespread corruption noted in the report reflects the large challenge of solving the world’s water problems. As growing populations compete for shrinking water resources, the opportunities for corruption will increase and the damaging effects will become more severe.

Source: worldwatch.org

Yesterday, PSEG Global LLC, announced a partnership with energy storage expert, Dr. Michael Nakhamkin, to form Energy Storage and Power LLC in order to promote a new generation of Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) technology.  CAES is an innovative process of trapping energy generated by nearly any mass electrical generation technique, and storing it in the form of compressed air, in reservoirs secured within the earth. 

CAES technology functions by compressing air during off-peak hours, that is then pumped underground into air tight mines and reservoirs.  Later during peak energy consumption periods, the compressed air is released and heated using small amounts of natural gas to power a turbine which creates electricity.  This process removes the need to use natural gas to both heat and compress the air during peak periods.  Electrical rates can be better balanced to deal with hot summers and cold winters. 

More balanced electrical rates are not the only benefit to using this technology.  Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, can be used to initially compress the air before it is pumped into the ground.  This gives the electrical grid more freedom from the disadvantages of the intermittent processes of generating electricity from solar and wind technologies.  Energy can thus be stored for future use during the night in the case of solar plants and in periods of calm in relation to wind farms. 

The drawback to Compressed Air Energy Storage currently lies in the fact that it still contributes to emissions by requiring natural gas to heat the air being pumped from the reservoirs.  Though this amount of natural gas is smaller than traditional gas power plants, CAES can not claim to be a true environmentally friendly technology, just yet.  Since natural gas is a finite resource, this is not a viable long term solution in its current state.

PSEG and Dr. Nakhamkin hope to build upon past successes of CAES and develop a technology that is scalable to the current needs of cities and renewable resources projects.  With future innovations, it may be possible to utilize this technology in conjunction with alternative energy sources to create a truly emission free, renewable source of cheap energy.

This technology could prove to be a beneficial addition to areas such as Iowa that already generate large amount of wind energy. Current project plans of the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities hope to design a CAES system with a 200MW capacity fed from a 100MW wind farm. This could prove wind power is a viable resource and reliable technology to further promote.

Marine turtle populations have declined drastically over recent years and now of the known 7 species, all are considered protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). By acknowledging the bleak situation we have created for sea turtles, multi-national programs have began to collaborate resources in an effort to protect the nesting grounds and ocean habitats needed for a recovery of marine turtle populations.

Many factors have contributed to the decline including the over harvesting of eggs, destructions of habitats, pollution, fishing nets, and contact with ocean vessels. These actions combined with the low survival rate of hatchlings due to predators, have escalated the need to provide a working program to address the situation.

In the Philippines and Indonesia, Green turtle eggs are being poached and collected at unsustainable record highs. Entire ecosystems deteriorate with the loss of sea turtles as eggs and even decaying hatchlings help provide nutrients to areas that lack other natural means of plant production. Also, marine grasses are dependent on grazing animals such as sea turtles, to maintain a healthy production of wide spread grass beds, as opposed to taller blades that block out sunlight to the ocean floor. These sea beds provide shelter and sustenance to many other marine animals and the decline of the sea turtle has consequences for them all.

Some species, like the Pacific leatherback, are at a critical level with fewer than 500 females coming home to nest on the beaches of Mexico and Costa Rica. Alongside natural threats, poaching appears to be the top cause of their decline. Because some females take 30 years to mature, the effects of over harvesting and fishing can take years to remedy.

Although sea turtles have struggled recently, many conservation groups are putting in time and resources to help their plight. A new agreement has been laid out to coordinate efforts to increase and protect turtle populations. 27 signatories to the agreement are giving a broader picture of efforts and accomplishments being put forth to meet population goals.

The United Nations Environment Programme’s, Douglas Hykle, states “Participating countries have made progress in many areas, but there is still room for improvement. Many have yet to clearly describe their resource needs and to mobilize sufficient funding for domestic implementation; and only a few are carrying the burden of supporting international coordination efforts.”

One effect of sea turtle conservation can be seen in the increase in population of the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle. Though, down to just 700 nests in 1985, the Kemp’s ridley turtle has made a comeback thanks to efforts by the Mexican government to curb illegal harvests and lower the effects of shrimp trawlers.

Loggerhead turtles, off the coast of South Africa, have increased greatly over the past four decades with some 1,750 nests compared to a low of only 250. Loggerhead and other sea turtles are important because they have been known to carry as many as 100 different species of plants and animals in and upon their shells, being directly responsible for the survival of many different marine species.

Over the course of Earth’s history, many animals and plants have become extinct and it is only natural. Recently, though, dramatic changes created by humans are forcing the rapid decline in many vital species of marine plants and animals. As outlined above, many of these animals are vital to the health and future of thousands of other marine species. By acknowledging the problem exists, we can begin to address beneficial steps to change the course of current events. The Bali conference that is taking place shortly, will help to further examine the recent UNEP report about sea turtles and being to change the communication of participating countries and organizations.

Found on DesMoinesRegister.com
The green slime or pond scum that comes from algae could be valuable after all. Renewable Energy Group of Ames says it has developed a process that takes the oil from algae and turns it into biodiesel fuel.

“Algae oil would give us a third option as a biodiesel feedstock after soybean oil and animal fats,” said Daniel Oh, chief operating officer of Renewable Energy Group.

That would be a breakthrough of seismic proportions for the biodiesel industry. The soybean oil that has been the basic oil feedstock for biodiesel has doubled in price in the last 18 months, robbing operating biodiesel plants of their profitability and forcing shutdowns or delays at other facilities.

Researchers around the nation are trying to skim energy from algae.

“People who have made fun of green slime and pond scum won’t do it in the future, when they find out not only how valuable the oil is but also the byproducts,” said Jimmy Simpson, an algae researcher at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield…….

Read the FULL story at the Des Moines Register.

Native fish species have evolved over time to counter threats of bacteria, fungus, disease, and other native predatory species.  By adapting to the gradually changing environment, many of the species present today have became extremely robust in dealing with external pressures.  Until fairly recently though, native U.S. fish species have had little reason to adapt to the habits and threats of other species half way across the globe.  Now, with the addition of new species to U.S. waters, fish and plants have new challenges that they are not equipped to handle.

Recently, the Associated Press, has published information concerning the introduction of red lionfish from the Indian Ocean, into the coastal waters of Florida and the Caribbean.  Though a magnificent looking marine fish, the red lionfish population is beginning to swell and create problems for smaller native reef fish.  With poisonous spines and a voracious appetite, lionfish will consume any fish and crustaceans small enough to fit inside its mouth.

Not only is the lionfish a disaster for local marine life, the sting from the poison spines can be extremely painful for any person unlucky enough to get in its way.  This poison is a great defense for the fish, as very few larger species are able to consume the red lion, and rarely will a predator make the mistake twice.

Fisherman and divers in areas experiencing an increase of red lionfish, are being encouraged to catch and report any sightings.  These actions may help to control the outbreak, but it is very unlikely to have a profound effect on the numbers.

Since water quality and composition varies greatly around the world’s oceans, with the exception of the red lionfish, marine animals rarely become a problem that cannot be controlled by natural processes.  On the other hand, fresh bodies of water are much more susceptible to damage by “out-of-town” animals.

Salmon along the Snake and Columbia rivers, are quickly declining in population due to non-native species consuming large amounts of the food sources and eggs.  The spread of parasites is also of great concern.

Quite ironically, the bass and walleye causing these problems, were introduced by biologists to provide a better environment for sport fisherman. Since recreational fishing provides funding in the form of licensing and taxes, stocking these game fishes was not thought to cause harm. Now, efforts to reduce the number of these game fish, have proven unsuccessful. The rate of reproduction out numbers any progress made my biologists and anglers to decrease the numbers of bass and walleye.

These new species are very well tailored to life within new reservoirs created by hydro electric dams.  While bass, shad, and walleye flourish in the large open waters, salmon prefer the swift flowing waters of rivers and streams.

While developing ways to create clean energy and new opportunities, we must be sensitive to the outcomes of any changes made to the current surrounding habitats. Though hydro power is an abundant source of power, and man made reservoirs can increase the volume of water for fish and crustaceans, not all animals are effected the same. When non-native species find local waters well suited to their survival, many native species can be lost in the transition. Proper research and a little bit of restraint will help to keep native species thriving. Most of these situations can be avoiding by following local laws and regulations governing the release of non-native species into water sources.