By 2050, there could be as much plastic in the ocean as fish. At Solgaard, our goal is to pull 1 million pounds of plastic from the ocean by the end of 2020.
Taking plastic out of our oceans is one small part of fighting climate change. The more we know, the more conscious we can be. Our news series, Headlines, is a regular 2-min read meant to catch you up on the latest environment and climate change news from around the world. Our hope is that reading these headlines will inspire you to dig deeper and take action. It’s time.
Keeping Tabs on Climate Change
Photo by Thomas Kelley on Unsplash
Protect The Whales, Protect Us
It turns out, protecting the whales is not just the right thing to do, it’s essential for the survival of our own species. A study released this month found that whales, especially great whales, capture a significant amount of carbon dioxide from our atmosphere. We’re talking big numbers here: 33 tons of CO2 on average per whale, the equivalent of what it would take thousands of trees to capture.
Scientists have discovered that these gentle giants not only absorb CO2, their poop plays a role in oxygen production also. How? Tiny organisms that live in watery environments called Phytoplankton. These microscopic creatures account for every other human breath, producing about 50% of our planet’s oxygen. Phytoplankton need nitrogen and iron to grow and thrive. Enter whale dung, rich in those exact substances.
Increasing whale populations is a natural solution to limiting greenhouse gases and global warming. No-tech, no-brainer.
Taking Action
Greta Says: We’ll Strike Again
Over 7.6 million people in 185 countries took to the streets to strike for climate action during the global climate strikes in September. A month later, Greta Thunberg, the 16-year old Swedish environmental activist who made waves with her emotional speech at The UN Climate Action Summit last month, is still marching and has announced that the next big global strike will take place on November 29th, 2019.
She’s been striking from school on Fridays since 2018 and says that she won’t stop until world leaders take action. The upcoming global strike will come just days before world leaders and young climate activists meet in Santiago, Chile, for the UN’s Climate Change Conference. Greta will be there herself, alongside other teen activists, some of who will sail across the Atlantic to attend.
Laying Down The Law
Not The Last Straw
The second phase of Los Angeles’ plastic straw ordinance came into effect this month. The new law doesn’t completely eliminate the existence of plastic straws in restaurants, but rather prohibits restaurants from offering them. So, customers who still want a straw, can ask for one.
Here’s what you can do about it: Don’t use straws, bring your own, or choose establishments that use straw alternatives (we hate to burst your bubble, but paper straws aren’t much better than plastic ones). The best thing to do is BYO Straw. For those of you who’ve got our Shore-Tex™ Daypack, reach inside the pouch because we’ve put a reusable steel straw in there for you.
