Recycled surfboard waste helps clean up toxic spills

Surfboard "waste" is now used to help clean up toxic chemical spills

Almost every industry generates some kind of waste, the majority of which often ends up in landfills. The surfboard industry is no exception.

The powdery dust created by shaping a surfboard from a slab of polyurethane foam has now been transformed into a new, super useful product called  SPILLINEX™, which can quickly absorb harmful chemical waste.

19 items you may not know you can recycle

The following is an excerpt from an article by Jeff Davis, otherwise known as The Go Green Guy

Recycling is one of the easiest ways to start down the road to Greener living.

Nobody is going to be completely Green, but like I’ve said before, “take baby steps! Every little step adds up. For every action there is a reaction.”

If you make positive actions, no matter how small they may seem, the overall reaction can be huge!

So why not concentrate on something that is really easy to do and maybe even get paid for some of it. RECYCLE!

Many items are recyclable that people do not seem to know about.

To discover the list of 19 items that can be recycled (some were new to this editor!), check out the full article at http://bit.ly/zP6FB4.

Imprint Mat reduces fatigue while standing

If you love to cook (like I do), those annoying aches and pains that come from standing too long are all too familiar. Other than putting up with them or taking anti-inflammatory medication, they’ve become one of those “facts of life.”

The Imprint Anti-Fatigue Comfort Mat turns that “fact” into a myth.

To learn more about how this stylish mat that reduces leg fatigue and even helps senior dogs stand better, check out http://bit.ly/zNqvJv.

Energy efficiency leaps forward nationwide

As the economy shows signs of moving in the right direction, so too does our personal and national energy consumption. A growing number of energy efficiency programs are noticeably increasing our energy savings and our usage efficiency.

According to a new report from The Institute for Electricity Efficiency (IEE), in 2010, our national energy programs saved enough electricity to power almost 10 million homes.

For the full story how on we’re gaining in our energy savings, see http://bit.ly/yhAJb0.

The devastation of shark finning

Shark finning leaves sharks to die a terrible death on the ocean floor

We’ve read about it and there’s finally been some positive legislative action to stop shark finning.

But until you actually see what the noise is all about, you have no real idea of how shockingly devastating this practice is.

Dan Rather will air a special  expose’ on Dan Rather Reports on Tuesday, January 24th. This is one show that’s a must-see. Be sure to bring the kleenex.

Can we trust the FDA?

Can we trust an FDA approved drug?

If you’ve watched or read any ads for pharmaceuticals lately, you’ve seen the long list of potential side effects and warnings. Each time I see that, i wonder at the “wisdom” of the FDA to approve medications that have proven themselves to be hazardous in so many ways.

An article posted today quotes a study from the British Medical Journal that shows  less than half of all NIH-funded clinical drug trials were published in a medical journal within two and a half years of the trial’s completion – and that one-third of trial results remained unpublished even four years afterwords!  Ostensibly this is because the drug manufacturers don’t like the negative results to reach the public.

Online mentoring programs – how to get involved

The online mentoring program with icouldbe.org has proven its success. To get your school involved in this program isn’t difficult.

Online mentoring program encourages students to stay in school (Part one)

tGuidance counselors are tasked with helping guide students through the often confusing, frustrating paths of secondary education and help them determine a plan for what’s next.

Sadly, even with the No Child Left Behind program over the past decade, there’s been a significant drop in the number of public school guidance counselors. Nationally that means one guidance counselor to between 500 to 750 students!

A stunning look at the demise of the world’s glaciers

The receding glacier at Portage Lake photo b Cool Breeze pics, flickr

Here are some stunning photographs taken by a world class photographer of the steady retreat of our glaciers. Pictures tell the tale, even if climate change deniers try to soft pedal the story.

It’s hard to argue with the time-lapse pictures  you’ll see. It’s tine for the old saying of “out of sight, out of mind” to be replaced.

A week of innovation

This week there’s a lot of hoopla coming our way from Detroit’s annual North American International Auto Show and from Las Vegas’s Consumer Electronics Show.  Some pretty fantastic and fantastical innovations being shown and written about, many of which tickle the imagination and even make you want to tear out your wallet (or plastic) to be one of the first in your neighborhood to bring some of it home.

But there are other fun, low tech innovations being introduced as well.