A new study has found that the American health care sector accounts for 8 percent of the country’s carbon dioxide emissions.

The study, conducted by University of Chicago researchers and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, measured how much carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases the health care industries (hospitals, scientific research, pharmaceuticals, etc) released. It is the first-of-its-kind calculation of health care’s carbon footprint.

Using the environmental input-output life cycle assessment (EIOLCA) model of environmental impact developed by the Green Design Institute at Carnegie-Mellon …

Tags: carbon emissions , carbon footprints , green hospitals , health care , hospitals , pharmaceuticals

6 Comments |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

At first, it seems extremely eco-friendly, the biannual Compost Giveaway Events every fall and spring in San Francisco hosted by the city’s Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC).

Residents are offered free compost to produce soil for community and school gardens and local backyards. It’s the green and organic thing to do.

The problem is the mulch isn’t made of food scraps and manure but a combination of toxic sewage sludge from waste water treatment, green waste, yard waste and wood chips.

What’s in sewage sludge? Stuff that’s foul and harmful to people and …

Tags: agriculture , biosolids , compost , eco , fertilizer , food , garden , giveaways , green , heavy metals , Mayor Gavin Newsom , mulch , organic , pathogens , PCB , pharmaceuticals , pollutants , Public Utilities Commission , San Francisco , sewage sludge , soil , toxic

4 Comments |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

Last year, it was widely reported that drinking water in many major metropolitan areas was contaminated with trace amounts of drugs. All types of drugs – everything from over-the-counter pain medications to antidepressants to prescription medication for high blood pressure and heart disease.

The drugs we ingest pass right through our bodies and are expelled in our urine. These drugs aren’t removed in the water treatment process and the water is released into our rivers and lakes, which serve as our water supply.

The chatter eventually died down with assurances …

Tags: contamination , drugs , groundwater , pharmaceuticals , pollution , tap , water

1 Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark