Author Archives: Tessa Fountain

Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity

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 A way to use mathematics to explore sustainability is through calculations of the Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity.  Ecological Footprint is defined as the demand humanity has on Earth’s resources while Biocapacity is defined as the supply of Earth’s resources available for consumption.  To calculate the Ecological Footprint, one must examine how many resources it takes to provide for the demands of humanity while Biocapacity is found by calculating the amount of biologically available resources for humanity.  Through a comparison of the two, we are able to see that the earth is in a state of “overshoot.” This is because Earth’s Biocapacity is less than the Ecological Footprint, meaning that we are consuming resources faster than they can be resupplied.  Through calculations and comparisons like these, we are able to quantify the environmental issues of our planet, which can then be utilized towards making a solution.  Our overconsumption of resources, such as fossil fuels, is why we are in such a state of overshoot, so we must understand the effects of our actions and move towards use of renewable resources to get out of this state.

 

https://www.footprintnetwork.org/

Wind Power

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Wind energy is a form of non fossil-fuel energy that, if utilized more, could help us to get closer to a more sustainable future.  Wind energy uses wind turbines in order to produce electricity out of kinetic energy created by wind.  However, wind energy has a lot of aspects that can be seen as issues, which is why it isn’t used more broadly today.  To start, the cost of installation of wind turbines is always an issue, as the larger they are, the more energy they produce, but they are in turn, more expensive.  Commercial applications are difficult as well, as wind turbines usually need to be in rural areas for them to generate as much energy as possible (and are very large, so difficult to install in less rural areas,) but then have to send their energy off to more populated places.  Finally, wind energy is unreliable because the amount of wind produced in a day cannot be controlled, so the amount of power produced may not be consistent.  Although wind turbines are becoming less expensive as prices drop and they become more available (in 2016, wind energy was 16% of all energy produced by renewable sources), we have a long way to go before wind power replaces fossil fuels.

https://www.irena.org/wind

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Globally

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Climate change and the long term effects that come with it is something that most people agree is an issue that needs to be combated.  The global temperature increase is mainly caused by human activities, which produce gasses that trap heat in our atmosphere.  These greenhouse gasses have increased from human activity, and, as seen by my graphs below, are still increasing, furthering climate change.  When most people think of a greenhouse gas, they think of carbon dioxide being emitted into the atmosphere.  As seen below, between 1990 and 2015, the net emissions of carbon dioxide increased by 51% globally.  This is a real issue, as three-fourths of total global emissions come from carbon dioxide, so it is a major contributor to global warming.  Carbon dioxide was not the only greenhouse gas that has increased globally; as seen below, methane increased as well.  Methane was actually the gas in the data set that increased the least, only 17%, but as you can see from the graph, even the gas that increased the least still consistently increased in recent years.  Other gasses that are not pictured in the graphs but increased include nitrous oxide and fluorinated gasses.  No matter how you look at it, the way these greenhouse gasses have consistently increased globally is a sign we need to make real changes to combat this issue before it gets even more out of hand.

Food Insecurity in the U.S.

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The issue of food insecurity is one that is very prevalent in the United States.  Food insecurity, according to the USDA, can be defined in different ranges; either low food security or very low food insecurity. Low food security is when the quality or variety of one’s diet is undesirable, with not much, if any, reduced food intake.  Very low food security is different from low food security in that reports of reduced food intake are made as well as the issues that are seen in low food security.  Food is something that those who have never faced food insecurity often take for granted, however, for people who have faced it, it is a major issue, while affecting different groups of people in the United States disproportionately.  As seen in the graph below, 10.5 percent of U.S. households in 2020 were food insecure and, of these households, 6.6% had low food security and 3.9% had very low food security.

However, as I mentioned before, different households were more likely to have experienced food insecurity than others in the United States.  For instance, as seen in the graph below, rates of food insecurity were much higher in Black (21.7%)  and Hispanic (17.2%) households, showing how food insecurities disproportionately affect people of different races in the U.S.  Households helmed by a single woman with children were also much more likely to become food insecure, with 27.7% of them being food insecure.

Nutrition is a major factor into one’s health and those who are food insecure are less likely to have the nutrition one needs to live happy, healthy lives.  Until food insecurity for everyone is solved in the United States without the disparities in different groups as seen above, food security and insecurity will remain a major contributing factor to health problems for many in the U.S.

 

https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-u-s/key-statistics-graphics/

Food Waste: A Major Problem

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Often when we throw out leftovers, or walk through a grocery store with many unsold items set to expire the next day, we don’t think anything of it.  To many people, food waste is just another part of life; however, it is actually a major problem which is growing every year.  Wasted food is defined as food not used for its intended purpose; common examples include uneaten prepared food and plate waste.  While some uneaten food is donated to feed people, much of it ends up in landfills.  The amount of food wasted each year is great, as according to the EPA, “ about 63 million tons of wasted food were generated in the commercial, institutional, and residential sectors, with about 32 percent being managed by animal feed, bio-based materials/biochemical processing, codigestion/anaerobic digestion, composting, donation, land application, and sewer/wastewater treatment” in 2018.  So, just how much food is 63 million tons? According to an estimate from The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2011, about ⅓ of all food produced for human consumption is wasted.  Food waste is a large global issue and continues to be pervasive to today.

In order to combat the issue of food waste, there are some methods that can be employed in our day-to-day lives.  For instance, to help quell food waste at home, you can pay extra attention to what you buy in the grocery store; do not buy in bulk unless you know you can consume all of the items before they go bad.  Learn how to store produce correctly, so it lasts longer and less food has to be thrown away. Plan what you are going to eat during the week before you go shopping, so none of your food goes to waste.  If we all try to employ these habits in our daily lives and are a little more conscious when it comes to food waste, we can help to minimize a major sustainability issue.

 

https://www.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/sustainable-management-food-basics

https://www.epa.gov/recycle/preventing-wasted-food-home

 

Climate change and human health

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While we often think about the environmental effects of climate change, we don’t always consider how those environmental changes can affect human health.  Global warming is one of the most prevalent issues associated with climate change and while many people have noticed the effects of this issue, not many know the health issues that come from this increased global temperature. According to the EPA, unusually hot summers with high temperatures and heat waves have become more and more common over the years.  With this increase in hot weather comes an increase in heat related deaths. For instance, the rate of heat related deaths in the United States has increased from 1979-2018.  In 1979, the rate of deaths was 0.240 per million people.  In 2018, that increased to 1.635 per million people, making the total change 1.395 per million people and making the percent change between 1979 and 2018 a 581.25% increase.  With a growth factor of 6.81, you can see the large increase in deaths caused by heat in the last 40 years alone.  Climate change, especially global warming, can have an extreme adverse effect on human health, which we are already starting to see.  If we don’t do something to keep the global temperatures from becoming even more extreme, we can expect to see the rise in heat related deaths become even higher.

 

https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-heat-related-deaths

Water Waste and How to Combat it

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When people consider waste in regards to sustainability, they often consider physical garbage far before they consider water waste.  Water waste, however, is a major sustainability issue as, even though it doesn’t take the water out of the water cycle, but instead removes the water from being accessible and usable by humans.  It is also wasteful since it overly expends the energy used to deliver the water, such as in the overuse of the dishwasher or washing machine.   On the whole, water waste could lead to humans having less usable water readily available and can also take such water away from the environment.  As per the DOH, the average person wastes 30 gallons of water every day; some of this waste is due to human tasks, such as overly long showers and leaving faucets on while they are not being used.  Other reasons for water waste include issues such as unrepaired household leaks.  According to the EPA, the average household can waste 180 gallons of water a week from household leaks alone, which is 9,200 gallons of water wasted every year.  While this waste is very common, there are many methods that people can implement in their day to day life to combat this issue.  First and foremost would be to check their households for the aforementioned leaks and have them repaired to prevent any further issue.  Other simple tasks include turning off the tap when brushing teeth, which would save 8 gallons of water a day, and therefore 2,290 gallons of water a year.  One last common occurrence that would save water in the average household is running the dishwasher only when completely full; this alone would save 320 gallons of water per household per year.  Water waste is a common, overlooked issue, but by changing the way we implement some household tasks, we can save many gallons of water from being wasted every year.

 

https://www.epa.gov/watersense/how-we-use-water

https://www.epa.gov/watersense/statistics-and-facts

https://www.wtamu.edu/~cbaird/sq/2014/09/23/does-wasting-household-water-remove-it-from-the-water-cycle/#:~:text=Rather%2C%20wasting%20water%20hurts%20humans,away%20from%20the%20natural%20ecosystem.

How humans most contribute to carbon dioxide emissions

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Carbon dioxide is an important greenhouse gas and since the industrial revolution, has been rising in levels in our atmosphere contributing to global warming and climate change.  According to the EPA, as of 2019, carbon dioxide accounts for 80% of greenhouse gas emissions that stem from human activities.  Knowing this, it means that, to reduce these emissions and mitigate global warming, we must be conscious of which activities we do that contribute to carbon dioxide emissions in our atmosphere the most.  Combustion of fossil fuels is by far the human activity most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions; from transportation to energy use, fossil fuels are used often by human beings and are therefore responsible for the majority of carbon dioxide emissions.  Transportation, in 2019, was responsible for 35% of carbon dioxide emissions; as fossil fuels such as diesel and gasoline are combusted to act as fuel for transportation, they contributed the most to carbon dioxide emissions.  From cars to planes to trains, most forms of transportation rely on the combustion of fossil fuels and are the greatest way in which humans contribute to carbon dioxide emissions.  The second and third most important ways in which humans contribute to the aforementioned emissions are through electricity, which is responsible for 31% of emissions, followed by industry at 16%, both also due to the use of fossil fuels for energy.   By adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere through these processes, humans have contributed to an increase in the greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere.  While this is an issue as it is a main contributor of climate change, to help address this issue, we first need to become aware of what human processes have contributed the most to the addition of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere so we can figure out solutions and alternatives to the burning of fossil fuels.  From this data, we can see that focusing on energy efficiency will be the best solution in regards to mitigating our contributions of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

 

https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases#carbon-dioxide

Intro – Tessa Fountain

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Hi! My name is Tessa Fountain and I am from Millbrook, New York.  I am currently undeclared, but am thinking about majoring in English.  To me, sustainability is really about trying to make the Earth a place where life can be sustained and can thrive for years to come.  Currently, I don’t believe that we, the people of this planet, are generally doing enough to ensure the futures of future generations.  On a personal level, I know that we can all make changes to try and live more sustainably.  Some of these changes that I am aware of and try to implement include: following the three R’s (reduce, reuse and recycle), trying to buy less single use items, trying to compost and reducing or eliminating intake of animal products.  While a lot of the issues and pollution of our planet are caused by larger corporations, on a personal level, I think we can all try and act in a more sustainable way and can try harder to bring awareness to these issues.