PUR Water Filtration is partnering up with model Cindy Crawford to help promote the use of filtered tap water and reduce consumption of the bottled kind. The campaign, which is launching this May, is called "Thirsty for Change" and will include Crawford designing her own eco-chic reusable water bottle - with all proceeds from the sales going towards Children's Safe Drinking Water; a program which is dedicated to providing safe drinking water to impoverished children around the world. Said Crawford,
"Like me, many moms today are concerned about the environment. We all want to live a little greener and do our part for the planet and for the health our families. The good news is that even small changes can make a huge impact on the environment. And that's great news for my family because changes that fit easily into our hectic routine are the ones that are going to stick.
That's why I would like to share some easy, green tips for other moms out there. They've worked in my house. I have learned that getting the whole family involved shows the kids that being eco-friendly can be fun!"
I didn't know about this program for safe drinking water, so being inquisitive, as I am to a fault, I looked it up.
According to their website, "To date, the Children's Safe Drinking Water Program (CSDW) has provided enough product to produce more than 500 million liters of clean drinking water for children and their families in need around the world."
Isn't that a fantastic number!? It was established in 2003 and has already helped so many children in impoverished countries.
Millions of children die each year due to drinking water from lakes and rivers contaminated with pollutants, parasites, and viruses. Studies show the PUR water can reduce diarrheal illness in children by up to 50 percent.
If you would like to donate to this cause, or learn more about it please click through to CSDW.org and see how you can get involved.
This topic piqued my interest and so I thought I'd look into a bit further. What exactly is Hydropower Kinetic Technology?
Well, this it is the ability to produce zero emission renewable power (energy) from the movement of water. There are two types of kinetic energy involved here, one is wave based and the other is current based. To harness these energies water currents pass through a turbine and the turbine then rotates on a shaft that is connected to a generator. Make sense?
"Hydro Green Energy, LLC (HGE) is a Houston, TX-based renewable energy project developer and equipment manufacturer that designs, builds and operates hydrokinetic power systems."
The problem here is in the costs. How you can place a number on the future of the planet is beyond me, but people need to make a living. I think we all need to work together to find more cost effective ways of renewing energy. As with all great things, the cost in the beginning will probably be excessive, but don't you think after a period of time it will all have been worthwhile?
In June of 2007, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued preliminary permits for the first-ever water energy projects in the state of Mississippi. The permits provide Hydro Green the exclusive right for three years to develop projects.
Yes, it's true, as part of a public project there will be a waterfall constructed underneath the Brooklyn Bridge. I'm not sure the logistics have been figured out for this...though I am sure they have figured on it being a tourist attraction.
The hope is for $55 million in extra tourism revenue for the Big Apple. Installing them will cost about $15 million, says Danish artist Olafur Eliasson, but apparently that amount will be paid by New York's Public Art Fund.
Eliasson said the "scaffolding will have a floating barrier at the bottom to stop small boats going underneath and a "shark cage" under the water to stop fish being sucked into the pumps that will take the water to the top."
My concern would be for the effect this will have on the body of water. I understand keeping the fish safe, but if you have that much water falling into the river in a location under a bridge which has never before seen such a force of water...I would be worried about where the sediment will be pushed and how that will effect water flow. In addition, can the Brooklyn Bridge support these changes or will this cause cracks in the foundation?
I have to admit I would definitely want to see and photograph the waterfalls. And I in no way want to be one of those critical, skeptical people who only sees the negative, but I do wonder how this will pan out long term.
