You can turn pee into water with a special kind of machine. As insane as it sounds, the trick has been performed by inventor Dean Kamen. Already a big name in the world of water filtration, Kamen has again gathered a lot of attention thanks to the Slingshot machine he has created.

Running on cow poo, the Slingshot is a filtration system that can turn any water-containing liquid, yes please read pee, into drinking water. The ideation is simple. Vapor compression distillation enables this little wonder to convert all kinds of liquid, from sea water to puddles, into clean and distilled water. It does not need a filter and since it can run only on cow dung, it can easily be installed in developing countries and many rural areas.

Kamen also gives a free gift with the Slingshot, electricity. Yep, the machine also generates electricity as a by-product. Cool, two benefits from one fully eco-friendly machine. Do check out Kamen’s video on the Colbert Report.

Via Treehugger

Ask eco experts and they will tell you that the toilet flush is the single largest user of water on a daily basis. Saving water here would make a huge difference. Till now all attempts to save water have failed mainly because of the redundant mindset that sticks to ‘fixed’ and not ‘variable’ volumes of water to flush away. Now a two year old and a sumo wrestler will have different requirements, right!

Some popular water saving methods in the toilet include — lowering the cistern water level by adjusting the ball float inlet valve saves 10%; bricks, bottles and hippo bags, 11%, cistern dams, 11%, dual-flush toilets, 27%, triple-fish toilets, 24% and many many others. But there is a new ‘Interflush’ method that stands apart from the crowd because it saves 47% of water.

The ‘Interflush’ kit is fitted atop plastic WC siphons and connected to the flush handle spindle. This allows the user to stop the flush just as soon as the pan is clean and clear; there by saving water. Now, it does not require double flushing; also, blocked drain lines are eliminated.

Via EnergySavingWorld

Green activists have taken up cudgels against Starbucks now. The coffee-giant that boasted of eco-friendly credentials came under the scanner when investigations by Sun revealed that veryday 23.4m litres of water goes down the drains of 10,000 outlets worldwide due to a company policy that tells the employees to keep the tap running non-stop. Facts show that this much water is enough for the 2 million population of the drough-ridden Namibia to survive for a day.

Actually every Starbucks outlet is equipped with a cold tap behind the counter that trails down into a sink which they like to call “dipper well”. It is here that the utensils are washed. And as per the company’s health and safety rules, staff is especially asked not to turn the water off as they believe that a constant flow of water prevents the breeding of germs in taps.

Water companies as well as the green experts regard the wasting of water for hygiene as nonsense. It is a crzy thing to do indeed, considering the problems the world is facing with the shortage of this vital natural resource. Australia is suffering the worst drought in a century for over seven years now.

Via ENN

With the West in a water crisis, it’s not surprising to see a machine that pulls water from ambient air at West Coast Green. Though not an innovation, these machines require a lot of energy which has been dealt with by Element Four who have addressed the issues of energy use for creating water. The unit uses just 300 watts; a relatively low amount for these machines, the Watermill senses its environment and acts accordingly.
The Watermill checks its environment every three minutes to determine the dew point and keeps itself operating at just a few degrees below that dew point. This way, it maximizes efficiency of the energy it uses to operate by maximizing the amount of water it can pull from the air 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
It can pull an average of 13 quarts of water each day, which is plenty of potable water for an average family of four. The water is essentially distilled, but a filter can be added to restore organic minerals if the user wishes.

And if that wasn’t all, a solar powered version of the machine is in the works and will be available in about six months. So, this one is sure to tackle the water needs and the environmental issues with utmost efficiency.

Via geekologie

Ultra Green Paper

Paper not made from tree is sure to attract everybody’s interest. A Chicago paper company has come up with what they call Ultra Green paper. And the best part is that no trees are cut or water is used for the manufacturing. Made from inorganic mineral powders derived from limestone and calcium carbonate, Ultra Green neither uses chlorine nor becomes yellow or brittle even when exposed to sunlight for long.
Isn’t that just too good to be true? Wait, there’s more. The paper is resistant to water, grease and oils and can easily be used outdoors without any fear of decomposition. On top of this, it is priced 30 per cent below the regular paper because it saves on the water and tree costs. So it seems like a win-win situation for both the producers and the consumers.
By the way, the Environmental Defense calculated that if one ton of Ultra Green paper replaces a ton of traditional paper, 20 trees will be saved.
Via enn

The expected look of a synthetic tree

Scientists in the US may have found a quick solution to problems of an endangered environment with what they like to call a Synthetic Tree. From the looks of the scientific study involved, this tree will be able to help in soil remediation and heat transfer. Simulating the process of transpiration the tree bolsters the theory that transpiration in trees and plants is a physical process only. Yes, not looking one inch like a real tree, the synthetic tree would function like one. It will draw carbon dioxide out of the air, as plants do during photosynthesis, and retain the carbon which is one of the most damaging gases for the environment.
The expected results look promising. The tree can help in a passive heat transfer for cars and buildings. The scientists also expect it to build better soil remediation systems by pulling the contaminated fluid out of the soil without the use of more liquid. In the same way, the technology can also draw water out of dry soil without having to dig a well.
We have our fingers crossed.
Via zeenews

In early man days stones were employed to produce fire and in that era it was considered to be a quite radical discovery which saved human life. However, in this day and age we are bestowed with numerous contemporary utilities that we believe that we don’t necessitate exploitation of stones any more in our lives.
But contrary to our perception a remarkable contemplation involving the application of stones has been instigated in recent days. Delving into this novel concept I found out that extraordinary kind of Swedish rocks named Nordic Rocks which are naturally excavated out in an uncontaminated form can be proficiently bring into play as an eco-cooling medium.

Packed in leather pouches, these ultra cool rocks would be available to us in set of ten cube shaped rock pieces. These stones entail a freezing of at least one hour before putting them into our drinks for chilling purpose. Slowly but surely these freshly exposed Nordic rocks would accomplish cooling job without melting in thereby avoiding the possibility of grimy water amalgamation in it at all.

Furthermore the reusability aspect of these voguish cooling parts formulates the whole concept to be an eco friendly one.

Via TrendHunter

There are quite a few projects across the world that are trying to turn the desert in to farming space both because the remaining planet is struggling to find new land for agriculture and the number of mouths the world needs to feed is growing at a blurring rate. This has forced engineers and designers to turn to deserts to try and eek out anything that is possible. One of the theoretically simple solutions has always been to desalinate the water from the oceans and to make use of the newly available fresh water. But it is one thing to write that day and a whole different ballgame in execution.

The Sahara Forest project would marry huge greenhouses with concentrated solar power (CSP), which uses mirrors to focus the sun’s rays and generate heat and electricity. The installations would try and turn deserts into lush patches of vegetation. The greenhouses work by using the solar farm to power seawater evaporators and then pump the damp, cool air through the greenhouse. This reduces the temperature by about 15C compared to that outside. At the other end of the greenhouse from the evaporators, the water vapor is condensed.

Some of this fresh water is used to water the crops, while the rest can be used for the essential task of cleaning the solar mirrors. The greenhouse produces more than five times the fresh water needed to water the plants inside so, in addition to producing water to clean the CSP mirrors, some of it can be released into the local environment and that would be a very sensible thing to do. I guess before thinking about if we can make Mars inhabitable or Venus human-friendly, I guess we must look at the vast stretches of land right here on earth that could use a facelift. Sahara Forest Project is a brave venture in that difficult direction and we wish nothing but the best for the ingenious men at the heart of it all.

Via Guardian

A well renowned Electronic wares and goods manufacturing firm named Haier has recently gained an overt approbation and regard by World’s leading green organization called Greenpeace as of the remarkable green feats conducted by it in the current year Beijing Olympics. This hyper eco active consumer electronics firm has embodied around 30 diverse green artifacts like refrigerators, air conditioners and added white goods etc. in this year Olympic Games. And in today’s point the most up-to-date contraption grasping mega green factor is the lately introduced solar powered air-conditioners which would employ only natural coolants like water to chill the surrounding areas.

What’s more these exceptionally designed air conditioners would be enclosing only minimal quantity of hydro fluorocarbon content making the settings unreservedly unsoiled. Hence in view of Haier’s green and ecofriendly endeavors to make ambiance sparkling and spotless I undergo that its shots are profoundly be worthy of global admiration.

Via GoodCleanTech

The Pacific Island countries now have the support of the United Nations and Samoa Plan. The two bodies have come together with an Inter-agency Climate Change Centre that will help the Pacific Island countries to fight global warming.  To appreciate the effort, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said, “I am glad that we are taking matters in our hands. Climate change is not science fiction. It is real and needs our attention.”
Reports suggest that there has been a rise in sea level in the Pacific Island region. This is not a very good news for the hundreds of people who depend on fishing for their livelihoods. A change in sea temperature can alter the temperature of aquatic species that people eat. For example, warmer waters can harm the rate of metabolism, growth, reproduction and immunity in shell fish.
Via ens