GO GREEN

GREEN GURU

JULY 2014
Inside:
The Ground Reality

First World Tribunal on
Rights of Nature Hears
Eight Cases for
Admissibility

Mind-boggling Solar
Roadways

FUN FACTS : The
Science of Climate
Change



Serco Global Newsletter



The Ground reality
Water tables are declining rapidly

While we witness lakes
disappearing and rivers
drying, a lot of damage is also
happening underground. For
instance, between 2002 and
2008, three states Punjab,
Haryana and Rajasthan
together lost about 109 cubic
km of water, leading to a
decline in the water table to
the extent of 0.33 m per year,
according to NASAs Gravity
Recovery and Climate
Experiment satellite images.

The National Sample
Surveys remote sensing data
suggest that as much as 75
per cent of the countrys
irrigated area is served by
groundwater wells. This is not sustainable and hassled to the lowering of the water table in
many areas and intrusion of saline water in various parts of the country.

The three Rs
So, what is the answer? The three Rs recharge, reduce and reuse- will take us a long way, say
non-profit organizations. Simple things such as rain water harvesting go a long way in helping
increase the ground water level, says Sekar Raghavan, a trustee of Aakash Ganga Trust, a non-
profit working on sustainable water practices in Chennai. Reducing water usage through better
technology such as drip irrigation or low water head fittings also offers the dual benefit of lower
water consumption and reduction in sewage volume.

India also has a long way to go in recycling. In water-starved countries such as Israel, 87 per cent
of sewage water is reused. Today, industries and a few housing townships are increasingly
taking up this option. Varun Sridharan, Director, Greenvironment Innovation and Marketing,
says that nearly 40 per cent of water in a housing project can be reused to flush toilets or reused
in the garden. This can help cut the overall amount of fresh water needed in half.

Source: TOI



First World Tribunal on Rights of Nature Hears
Eight Cases for Admissibility

The worlds first Tribunal on the Rights of Nature was held in Quito, Ecuador this January.
Headed by Vandana Shiva, physicist and internationally renowned environmental activist, this
Seed Tribunal heard eight cases to determine their admissibility for adjudication at a later
Tribunal, which will be held in another city and country later this year. The Tribunal for Rights
of Nature will become permanent, hearing cases around the world.

The cases and the persons presenting the factual arguments for admitting them for adjudication
under Rights of Nature are:

British Petroleum: Esperanza Martnez, Ecuador
Fracking: Shannon Biggs, United States
Chevron: Julio Prieto, Ecuador
Yasun-ITT: Carlos Larrea, Ecuador
Great Barrier Reef: Michelle Maloney, Australia
Minera Condor Mirador: Nathaly Ypez, Ecuador
GMOs: Elizabeth Bravo, Ecuador
Climate Change: Pablo Soln, Bolivia

The Tribunal marks the end of a five-day summit of more than 60 global leaders of the Rights of
Nature movement who form part of the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature. The
participants hail from Australia, Switzerland, South Africa, United States, Spain, Canada,
India, Romania, Bolivia, Argentina, and the United Kingdom, as well as Ecuador.

The Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature was founded at a gathering in Ecuador in 2010, two
years after Ecuador became the first nation in the world to adopt Rights of Nature in its
Constitution. At the summit, the leaders committed to redoubling their efforts to broaden and
deepen the movement worldwide over the coming year, with a series of actions that will be
detailed in the next months.

The Rights of Nature movement draws on the wisdom
and cosmovision of indigenous peoples in positing a new
jurisprudence that recognizes the right of nature in all its
forms to exist, persist, evolve and regenerate.



By Robin R. Milam
Administrative Director, Global Alliance for the Rights
of Nature


Solar Roadways: The Mind Boggling Possibilities
of Solar Roadways are Exciting







This is certainly something that you wouldnt think of right away, nor would it seem like a
viable option. But Scrott Brusaw and his team are committed to their project and as it gains
more steam, the possibility of it becomes more and more real.
Roads That Produce Power
Solar Roadways are exactly how it sounds, roadways that are made of photovoltaic solar panels.
Essentially, the vision promises to cover asphalt roadways across North America with these
specially made solar panels so that roadways are not only suitable for driving but can also
provide a great deal of electricity generation.
Scott Bursaw, inventor of Solar Roadways, began putting his idea into motion when The US
Department of Transportation released a solicitation for an intelligent pavement that could
generate power. After applying and receiving funding for his project, Solar Roadways became a
reality and a prototype was built. Scott knew that if the surface would be made of glass, it
would have to have the same traction as asphalt and be able to withstand fully loaded transport
trucks driving along them at full force. Regardless of these apparent challenges, research in glass
manufacturing led him to understand that glass can be manufactured to be as strong as steel.
Many Different Uses
The final prototype cost about $7000 to build but was a masterpiece when complete. The
roadway featured 15% efficiency solar panels, and contained LED lights throughout that would
not only light up the road but could display warnings and messages to drivers while driving. The
support structures for the panels were made up of garbage that was reduced down to pellets and
mixed with organic materials to form a structure; a feature that could have a big impact on
waste removal. Throughout the solar panels was wiring that would be capable of delivering


power directly to homes and businesses along the road. Cable TV, High Speed Internet and
phone could also be accommodated by the roadway.
With the continued use of 15% efficiency solar panels in the roadway, covering roadways in the
US now with this technology would produce more than 3 times that amount of power the US
currently uses each year. It would also cut down on the need for oil as asphalt today is
petroleum based.
Can It Become Affordable?
The cost of the roadways, given the current cost of the technologies involved, is quite high. It is
believed that as solar technology continues to expand, the cost of solar roadways would
drastically reduce. Its
important to note that
asphalt costs have gone up
greatly in the last few years.
In the late 90s and early
2000s, asphalt rose about 1%
each year in price. That
number has jumped to 12%
each year since 2006. From
about $300 per 2 lane mile
road in 2003, we are now
seeing prices near $1000 per 2
lane mile road.
The main advantage of the solar roadway concept is that it utilizes a green and renewable source
of energy for electricity production. This of course reduces our dependence on conventional
sources of energy such as coal, petroleum and other fossil fuels. When looking at the life span,
solar roadways can last 3040 years which is much greater than asphalt roads that only last 712
years.
The roadways of today are an old idea. Its time to move on. We can make better roads and
roads that produce power. Lets move on, put the fossil fuels behind us and move into the 21st
century.

Source: www.collective-evolution.com





FUN FACTS: The Science of Climate
Change
Greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour,
trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere and warm the planet.

In general, the greenhouse effect is a good thing. Without greenhouse gases,
the temperature on Earth would be too cold to support life. With too many, it
would heat up beyond survivable levels. Earth is sometimes called
the Goldilocks Planet because it is "just right."

Since 1958, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been
measured from an observatory on Mauna Loa, a volcano in Hawaii.

The pre-industrial concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was 280
parts per million (ppm). As of May 2014, it has reached 401.88 ppm and this
number is constantly increasing.

Today, the amount of carbon dioxide is higher than at any time in the last
650,000 years. And the Earth's average temperature is increasing faster than
ever before.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projects that temperatures
will rise 3.2 - 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit in the 21st century. Dramatically
reducing levels of global warming pollution may keep the rise in the lower part
of this range.


If you have any queries and
would like to contribute to the
green guru newsletter. Please
mail us or get in touch with us
on:
greenguru@marsvapours.com