Our precious atmosphere

Fresh air for every breath

Continuing our coverage of the environment from the previous issue, our focus this time is on our atmosphere. But our attention won't simply be limited to the pollution of the air we breathe.

When the amount of carbon dioxide increases, it becomes more difficult for the earth's heat to be released into space. The consequence, global warming, not only causes the temperature to rise, it impacts the ecosystem and melts the polar ice cap which, in turn, raises the sea level.

In the past 100 years, the average temperature of the earth has risen 0.74 degrees. The Kyoto Protocol, a global pledge to reduce greenhouse gases, was agreed upon at an international conference in 1997 and will come into effect next year. Although it may sound like a huge undertaking, far removed from us, its outcome will affect our daily lives and our individual efforts are needed to realize its success.

In the interviews we conducted with experts, we were advised to take such steps as promptly turning off electrical devices so as to conserve energy and decrease the emission of carbon dioxide and using up the ingredients in our cooking to reduce the amount of burnable waste. These things don't seem particularly hard to do.

The former head of the Atmospheric Chemistry section of the National Institute for Environmental Studies, Kentaro Murano, 60, discussed four concerns involving the atmosphere: global warming, air pollution, acid rain, and depletion of the ozone layer.

Global warming is caused by an increase in greenhouse gases. If the temperature continues to rise, the melting of the polar ice cap will bring about a higher sea level and this higher tide may threaten to submerge some countries.

At the same time, warmer ocean temperatures might fuel larger and more powerful hurricanes and typhoons.

Air pollution and acid rain are mainly due to the noxious exhaust of sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide. In reacting with the ultraviolet rays of the sun, these oxides become photochemical oxidants that harm the eyes and throat. Once changed into sulfuric acid and nitric acid, they fuse with rain to make acid rain. In Europe, fish reportedly die in acidic rivers and trees wither as a result of this air pollution.

Although Japan has acid rain, too, Japanese soil is capable of neutralizing its acidity, which seems to have prevented serious consequences to this point. However, Mr. Murano comments, "I wouldn't be surprised to see the damage from this acid rain show up all of a sudden."

Disruption of the ozone layer weakens its function of absorbing ultraviolent rays so it has been suggested this may raise the risk of people developing skin cancer and cataracts. The use of Freon gas, which damages the ozone layer, is now tightly controlled, but it might take more than 50 years to restore the thinning ozone layer above Antarctica.

Possible measures to reduce air pollution are cutting back on the use of oil and converting factory equipment to eliminate the noxious elements from their emissions. (Yuki Sakata,14)

Efforts overseas

Spain	Cooking with the sun's warmth			Germany	Recycling among the masses

Junior high school students cook with their "solar cooker."

At one junior high school in Madrid, Spain, teacher Isaac Albeniz has sought to raise awareness among the students in regard to garbage and recycling.

Students at the school have conducted interviews to learn how garbage is separated and ways to recycle the waste. Esther Martin, 15, remarked, "We're now more aware and we don't litter anymore."

A customer returns a plastic bottle to the supermarket.

At another Spanish junior high school, students made a "solar cooker" heated by the sun that can reach a temperature of 150-200 degrees Celsius so it can cook almost anything. And in Barcelona, a new bicycle service for citizens was initiated in order to reduce car emissions. Under this program, people can ride a bicycle from one designated parking lot to another one near their destination. The bicycle must be returned within 30 minutes. With 80,000 people taking advantage of this service, it has proven very popular.

In Germany, the idea of "returnables," where bottles are reused, is quite common. By returning these used containers to a store, the beverage companies can then clean them and reuse them.

At supermarkets, the customers must pay for plastic bags so shoppers generally bring their own bags. Wrapping of items is minimal, too, so frozen food is sometimes packed without being wrapped. These practices are helpful for conserving petroleum, and reducing waste, by producing fewer plastic bags.

Vending machines, too, are not widely available so people carry their own drink bottles to school or work. (Minako Iwata, 14, and Aoi Otomo,13)

Emitting only vapor, a hydrogen car

Mr. Arima explains the Hydrogen RE vehicle. The trunk is equipped with a hydrogen tank. (photo by Yuki Sakata, 14) New types of cars not fueled by gasoline, such as the hydrogen car, are attracting attention. We visited Hiroshima prefectural office which utilizes the Mazda RX-8, powered by a hydrogen rotary engine, as its official car. Mazda invented the RX-8 in 2006. It can run 100 kilometers on a hydrogen tank of 110 liters and emits only vapor which makes it a very eco-friendly car. The RX-8 is not on the market yet, but Mazda leases eight of these cars in Japan. The Hiroshima prefectural office uses an RX-8 in its business and sometimes displays the car at environmental events to raise public awareness. Hiroyuki Arima, 41, a staff member in the Department for Environmental Policy, says, "People are very curious about this car and I think that reflects their concern for environmental issues." When we took a ride in the RX-8, in most ways it seemed just the same as a typical car. The main difference was the noise of the engine--it was a bit louder than a gasoline-powered car because the engine of the RX-8 revs at a faster rate. Other types of cars that employ hydrogen are leased by Toyota and Honda. These vehicles are powered by fuel cells that produce electricity as a result of a reaction with oxygen. In a report issued by the Japanese government providing a forecast of Japan in 2025, further advances in automobile technology, such as a car fueled by photosynthesis, are proposed. (Rikako Okada, 17) Investigating the Hydrogen RE

When a can is deposited in the machine for collection, 10 yen is returned. (photo by Moeko Takagi, 14)

Recycling and preserving energy at a school in Hiroshima

Since 1995, my school, Suzugamine Junior High School/High School, has engaged in environmental education and made efforts to conserve energy and reduce the amount of waste throughout the school. In June 2007, we received the "Hiroshima Environmental Award" from the Hiroshima prefectural office.

Every day, we separate our garbage into 14 different categories at the school's "recycle spot." Drink cans, bottles, and cups are deposited in a machine for collection and 10 yen is returned for each one. Used paper cups are recycled by manufacturers into toilet paper. About 60% of the toilet paper we use at school in a year (about 10,000 rolls) is made of recycled materials.

In addition, four machines monitor our use of electricity and gas and we can compare the consumption each day or month. Through our efforts to conserve energy, over the past few years we have cut our consumption of electricity by 7% and our consumption of gas by 27%.

This project was inspired by a student in an environmental education class who pointed out that only one garbage can prevented waste from being separated. The activity was initiated in 1999 and, in 2004, the number of categories for sorting the waste was increased. As a result, more garbage was recycled and less garbage discarded. In fact, the amount of discarded garbage dropped to 80% of the previous year's amount. (Moeko Takaki, 13)

Exploring the environmental efforts of Suzugamine Junior High School/High School

Eco-cooking to reduce waste and the use of gas

One environmental measure that everyone might try is "eco-cooking" which can reduce the amount of waste and the use of gas. Hatsue Yamazaki, leader of the Hiroshima Prefecture Nutritionists Association, explained eco-cooking to us.

The trick to decreasing waste is to "use up your ingredients." If you use the same ingredient over the course of many meals, you won't get tired of eating it. And when you consider your menu, you should first check the food in your refrigerator as this may prevent you from buying something you don't really need. These tips are both helpful for the environment and for your finances.

Controlling the source of heat is important, too. It's wasteful to let flames lick out around the sides of the pot. Moreover, healthy meals, like salad and vegetables, can be prepared without using heat at all. (Ryota Matsuda, 13)

Confining carbon dioxide in the earth to deter global warming

Tests are underway to seal carbon dioxide emissions from factories or plants beneath the ground. In the city of Nagaoka in Niigata prefecture, an experiment trapping 10,000 tons of gas emissions has been conducted since 2003. Canada has carried out a similar project involving 1,000,000 tons of emissions a year. In places such as Nagaoka, carbon dioxide is diverted into a layer of water and sand located 1100 meters under the ground. This prevents the gas from escaping into the atmosphere. Theoretically, about 2000 billion tons, or the world's annual carbon dioxide emissions for 80 years, could be sealed in the earth. However, the process has proven expensive, since trapping one ton of gas currently costs 260,000 yen. Saeko Mito, 34, a staff member of the Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth, commented, "For the future, we hope to develop technology that can reduce the cost to 2000 or 3000 yen." (Shiori Kosaka, 12)

• Greenhouse gas

  A term that refers to six types of gases, such as Carbon Dioxide, Methane Gas, and Nitrous Oxide. These gases naturally absorb the heat which should be released into space. Thus, when greenhouse gases increase in the atmosphere, a "greenhouse effect" is created which warms the earth.

• Photochemical Oxidant

  Air pollution formed by the photochemical reaction of nitrogen and hydrocarbons from car emissions or smoke from factories. When the density of photochemical oxidants is high, the consequence is photochemical smog.

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