#dutchessncli

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Consumerism, nobody wants to take the blame, yet we all do it no matter how much we buy. What is consumerism? Consumerism is defined as the preoccupation of society with consumer goods based on a belief that it will make them happier. Yet in order to have these goods what is the price that the environment must pay? In order to have these goods humans must use their natural resources such as wood, ore, fossil fuels, and water. We have to create factories in order to make these goods, yet factories create pollutants and waste. Even after people are done with these goods they throw them away, and that fills up landfills at a drastic and alarming rate. You can make a big change in ending consumerism just by really thinking whether or not you need something instead of you wanting something and by recycling any recyclable products once your done using them can also help.

For more information go to: globalissues.org/article/238/effects-of-consumerism

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NCLI Reflection by Angie

On July 9th 2014 I started working for Cornell Cooperative Extension Dutchess County No Child Left inside. I wanted to be a part of this job because they worked on things involving the  environment and that was something I was into. I wanted to learn more and I did. There were soo many things I never experienced and never knew that my boss taught me. We got to teach little kids, write blogs, go on hikes, camping and work on leadership skills, all things I’ve never done before. She gave me an experience that I will cherish forever.

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In Reflection

By Patrick   

My time with NCLI is nearly at an end, and as such the time has come to reflect on my experiences. I have found NCLI fantastically enjoyable, and I have learned a lot from it. It was a great opportunity in many ways. I was able to do many things I already enjoyed, such as working with children, hiking, and other outdoor activities. I was also, however, exposed to many new things, such as multimedia projects like this tumblr blog and leadership training. I learned a lot about what effects we have on our environment and what steps we can take to reduce them. There were other things I learned too, often just interesting tidbits of environmental knowledge, and I deeply appreciate those as well. Overall, NCLI was a fantastic part of my life and I’ll miss it when it’s gone.

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Ozone Layer Depletion

The ozone layer is one of the layers in the Earth's atmosphere. Its the layer that protects us from ultraviolet radiation from the sun. There's an issue that's happening in the ozone layer called Ozone Layer depletion. That is the gas thinning in the ozone layer, most people know it as a “hole” forming in the ozone layer. The ozone layer depleting is an issue because the UV rays are reaching to the Earth's surface and this can cause people to get skin cancer and a weak immune system if they are over exposed to the UV rays. It also affects the earth's crops and marine animals. The cause of the depletion is by refrigerants, insulating foams,solvents and pesticides. being released into the atmosphere. The only way to stop the depletion is to get rid of all the substances making it deplete. If there is no more ozone depleting substances being made it is thought that the ozone layer can recover by 2050. For more information check out http://www.epa.gov/ozone/science/q_a.html

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The greenhouse effect is a significant contributor to current global climate change. The greenhouse effect is the process by which radiation from the Sun is trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere. When the Sun’s radiation reaches Earth, most of the radiation has a high enough frequency to pass through the atmosphere with relative ease. That radiation is then absorbed by the Earth, and much of it is reemitted. The Earth, however, reemits the radiation at a lower frequency, particularly in the range of infrared light. This infrared light cannot pass through the atmosphere as easily, and is especially blocked by what are called greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide, water vapor, and methane). The trapping of the radiation in the atmosphere warms the planet.

The greenhouse effect is integral to human life. Without it, the Earth would be much too cold to sustain life as we know it. However, the effects are continually increasing as greater amounts of greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere. Human activities that result in the emission of these gases strongly contribute to global climate change.

If you want to know more, click here.

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The first weekend in May the NCLI Crew had the fantastic opportunity to go on a weekend long backpacking trip in Massachusetts on the Alford Springs reservation, which is a part of the larger Berkshire Natural Resource Council,  better known as BNRC. We had two great guides named Mike and Matt, who not only provided a good bit of comical entertainment, but also led us on our hikes each day and gave us useful lessons on the ecology of the area and many opportunities nature has to offer there. While on a hike, we had the chance to do some trail work there by clearing large branches off the trails as well using some of that brush to build small habitats for the threatened New England Cottontail, which you can read more about here. As a whole, the NCLI crew had a great time camping out and roughing it on the trails, eating as much GORP as possible. A big shoutout to BNRC and Mike and Matt for taking us out there.

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Fracking is the method of drilling holes deep into the ground to extract oils and natural gas. You drill 2 miles vertically into the ground where the oil is, then you'll drill horizontally for a mile. You then pump the oil out. Some issues with this include that it can cause cracks in the ground, causing earthquakes. The cracks also cause the oils and gas to leak out into water bodies, causing the water to be polluted. Some of the fluids get left behind on the ground. This causes an issue because it isn't biodegradable. When the fluid evaporates into the air, it leaves harmful VOC’s  (volatile organic compounds) in the atmosphere. Learn more about fracking with this cool website: http://www.dangersoffracking.com/

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ReCommunity is an organization that works with community partners to recycle waste for the good of both the environment and economy. They have 32 facilities in 14 states to which recyclable materials are brought to be separated. Because the facilities are able to sort the recyclables efficiently, ReCommunity collects single stream recycling, which means that homes and businesses can put their recyclables of all kinds together in a single bin. Since this is easier for most people than having to sort their own recycling, it increases participation. Dutchess NCLI recently got the chance to tour ReCommunity’s Beacon facility; we learned about the processes used to sort the recyclable materials and got to see the work being done up close. Not only was the facility very cool, but they provide a good service to communities.

To find out more, click here.