Biosolids - Human Waste as Fertilizer

It's easy to harshly pass judgement on the idea of biosolids - they are, quite plainly, treated sewage.  The idea may seem gross or unsanitary to some, but it's important to remember that learning more should come before decision-making and opinion-forming.

For this reason, it is important to answer: What exactly are biosolids?
As stated above, biosolids are treated sewage, particularly nutrient-rich organic materials that are produced from the treatment of domestic sewage, in a treatment facility of course.  These materials can be processed and recycled to be used as fertilizer, resulting in productive soils and stimulated plant growth.  Biosolids can also be returned to the environment in other ways.

An in-depth look at how biosolids are treated.
(Click here for bigger version.)

The domestic wastewater generated from sewage treatment facilities is used to create biosolids.  Before even reaching the facility, it is possible for pre-treatment to begin, as this is sometimes mandatory for industrial facilities (to make sure they are void of any hazardous contamination).  The incoming wastewater is monitored; if the sewage can be treated and recycled, it is put through biological, chemical, and physical processes to remove solids and separate water.  Disease-causing and -transferring organisms  are controlled through sanitization.

It's the wastewater treatment process that's the reason why we have biosolids in the first place.  This treatment improves the quality of waters around Canada, due to regulations on dumping waste in bodies of water.  The wastewater now must be treated; biosolids recycled or buried in landfills.

Illustrating a positive of biosolids.

POSITIVES:

• Crop production can be improved due to biosolids used as fertilizer
• Water quality is protected
• Landfill space is conserved
• Cost effective and creates jobs (good for the economy)

NEGATIVES:

• Health hazard due to possible dangerous chemicals
• Contamination could easily occur due to improper treatment
• Decreases property value
• Odour (described as "distinct" and "like a sewer")

Actress and Halifax native, Ellen Page,
expressed her take on biosolids in NS.

Although the treatment processes biosolids are put through in order to ensure the safety of their use, the lack of knowledge on the material and its exact composition makes many people uneasy.  The use of biosolids caused a "stink" in August of last year when used in Halifax.  Ellen Page, a Halifax native, even came out to speak on the issue, saying: "It's taking industrial waste, waste from hospitals, businesses, households, full of man-made chemicals, highly toxic, proven carcinogens, radioactive material, and they're putting it on our soil.  They're putting it into our ecosystem."  The actress represented the views of many Haligonians, saying she would like to see more research and public input on biosolids.

I feel mixed on the use of biosolids.  I think that I would like to see more research and learn more about waste treatment in general before making a decision on their use. However, I think that biosolids, if completely safe, have a lot of potential in making improvements in the world, and a lot of negative feedback on the use of biosolids most likely comes from bias or misconception, especially the Western view that the use of waste in anything is gross and unsanitary.


Sources:

• "Biosolids: Fertilizer or Pollution?" Lynchberg College Virginia. Apr. 2008. Web. 3 June 2011. <http://www.sencer.net/Outreach/pdfs/DCSymposium08/Posters/LUbiosolids.pdf>.
• "Biosolids Management." City of Toronto. Web. 3 June 2011. <http://www.toronto.ca/water/biosolids/index.htm>.

• "Biosolids.com | About Biosolids: Biosolids Benefits." Biosolids.com. 2002. Web. 03 June 2011. <http://www.biosolids.com/benefits.html>.
• "CWWA - FAQ - Biosolids." CWWA/ACEPU. 2010. Web. 03 June 2011. <http://www.cwwa.ca/faqbiosolids_e.asp>.
• News, Cbc. "Biosolids Cause Stink in HRM - Nova Scotia - CBC News." CBC.ca. 16 Aug. 2010. Web. 03 June 2011. <http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/story/2010/08/16/ns-biosolids-stink-halifax.html>.

My comments can be found on these entries:
http://kennedy-a.blogspot.com/2011/05/biosolids-eco-friendly-choice.html#comments
http://biologyisnotbohring.blogspot.com/2011/06/sounds-interestingwhat-is-that-style.html#comments

Technology is a Life Saver!

We often talk about the time we spend texting, talking on the phone, watching television, surfing popular social networking sites, and playing video games.  We reflect on how they have impacted our lives.  Sometimes we forget the amazing technological inventions that make our cellphones and computers seem insignificant.  Outstanding advancements have been made that not only increase our understanding of how the body works, but are - in some cases - capable of saving people's lives.

A modern stethoschope (top) and
sphymomanometer (bottom).

Inventions that most people are familiar with are the stethoscope and the sphygmomanometer.  Invented in 1816, the stethoscope is used to listen to a patient's heart, chest cavity, and pulse points.  Doctors/nurses commonly listen for irregular heartbeats, congestion in the lungs, and restored blood flow during blood pressure checks. It is also considered the most informative, reliable tool used in diagnosing cardiovascular disease.  The sphygmomanometer is used to measure blood pressure - the modern version comprised of a band that wraps around the upper arm, pump, and component that displays the reading.  Blood pressure can be monitored over time by physicians with this.  The ability to do so brought hypertension (chronic high blood pressure - a life-threatening condition) to the attention of physicians.  The stethoscope and sphygmomanometer are very important contributions in understanding the circulatory and respiratory systems.


Endoscopy is a procedure in which the inside of a person's body is examined using an endoscope.  Consisting of a long, thin tube, with a light and video camera attached, an endoscope allows the images of the inside of the patient's body to be seen on a screen.  Doctors can watch the recording of this to look at the interior surfaces of the patient's tissues/organs.  Breathing disorders, chronic diarrhea, internal bleeding, stomach ulcers, and urinary tract infections are most commonly diagnosed or investigated with the use of an endoscope.  Endoscopes may also retrieve foreign objects or enable biopsies.

Sir Doctor Frederick Banting

Insulin is injected to control blood sugar in people with diabetes.  It works by assisting the movement of sugar from the blood into the body's tissues and stopping the production of sugar by the liver.  Before the discovery of insulin, lives of diabetics were quite grim.  There was no medication to regulate blood sugar levels.  Near-starvation diets of a few hundred calories a day were found to extend some diabetics' lives by a couple years.  These diets resulted in extremely malnourished and underweight patients.  It was a Canadian, Frederick Banting, and his assistant, Dr. Charles Best, who discovered insulin.  Banting even received the Nobel Prize in  Medicine in 1923.


I am extremely thankful for modern medicine and the advancements that continue to be made in the field.  I know that a greater understanding of the internal systems of the body may one day save my life and I think it is important for everyone to reflect on this.  It is also important to recognize that many of our loved ones may not be here without the current technology and knowledge the medical field is equipped with.


Sources:

• "Frederick G. Banting - Biography." Nobelprize.org. Web. 09 Apr. 2011.<http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1923/banting-bio.html>.
• "History of Stethoscopes and Sphygmomanometers." Howard Hughes Medical Institute | Biomedical Research & Science Education (HHMI). Web. 09 Apr. 2011. <http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/museum/exhibit98/content/b6_17info.html>.
• "Insulin Injection." National Library of Medicine - National Institutes of Health. 01 Feb. 2009. Web. 09 Apr. 2011. <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682611.html>.
• Pollick, Michael. "What Is a Stethoscope?" WiseGEEK. Web. 09 Apr. 2011. <http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-stethoscope.htm>.
• "What Is Endoscopy? What Is An Endoscope?" Medical News Today. 12 June 2009. Web. 09 Apr. 2011. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/153737.php>.
• Wickford, Hannah. "Diabetes Before Insulin Was Discovered." EHow. Web. 09 Apr. 2011. <http://www.ehow.com/facts_5498585_diabetes-before-insulin-discovered.html>.

My comments can be found on these entries:

• http://graceelkhechen.blogspot.com/2011/02/proud-to-be-canadian.html?showComment=1304612846779#c1227991365935696560
• http://bioblogstuff.blogspot.com/2011/03/its-wonderful-life-thanks-to-technology.html?showComment=1304613254596#c3983764069762809184

Feeding a Growing Population vs. Conserving Biodiversity

Not only does sustainable agriculture have significant positives for humans, its counterpart - industrial agriculture - proves to be very damaging in several ways.

Sustainable agriculture is one of the steps to creating a healthy planet once again.

Sustainable Agriculture
In my opinion, when it comes to the sustainable vs. industrial debate in agriculture, sustainable agriculture is the morally correct option. Animals are raised in much more humane ways when they are on sustainable farms - they are not given chemicals or other unnatural products and are not kept in tiny crates their whole lives.  It's not only the animals who live healthier and happier lifestyles in sustainable agriculture. It is also healthier for consumers to eat food raised using this method, due to the lack of chemicals and more nutrients.  Farmers and rural communities also benefit as fair wages and working conditions are available for farmers, which in turn lets rural communities prosper.  The environment is protected through sustainable agriculture, as it takes an ecological approach and takes into the account relationships between organisms and environments. Sustainable agriculture is designed to not have the negative impacts on the planet that industrial agriculture does - specifically by lack of harmful chemicals, not over-working plots of land, and using natural resources at an acceptable rate to meet demands.

An industrial chicken farm.

Industrial Agriculture
The method of industrial agriculture is very damaging to animals, consumers, farmers, farming communities, and the earth. Animals are raised in inhumane conditions, spending the majority of their time in tiny crates. They are often pumped with chemicals; there is little to no respect for the animals in industrial agriculture. Consumers benefit from cheaper prices for their food, however, the quality, taste, and nutritional value of the food is not at the same level as food raised by sustainable agriculture methods. Many workers have been replaced by advanced machinery, taking away many job opportunities. Furthermore, farmers and other workers are often underpaid to maintain cheap production costs (and in turn, cheap selling prices and hefty profits). Farming communities are hurt by industrial agriculture as there becomes less demand for their goods due to the takeover by industrial agriculture. Rural communities are often unable to thrive due to competition, especially in profit and speed of production.  Finally, the planet is negatively affected due to heavy use of chemicals, unnatural substances, rapid depletion of natural resources, and an overall disregard of the environment's well-being.

Hundreds of pigs are crammed into inhumanely sized cages in
industrial farms.

Biodiversity
In order for more effective mass production, industrial agriculture restricts biodiversity by only breeding what is considered to be more efficient or higher quality. Eliminating diversity within a species is very dangerous, as that species becomes more vulnerable to being wiped out completely. This is another issue that has arisen from industrialism in farming.

In my opinion, the benefits of sustainable agriculture greatly outweigh and outnumber the benefits of industrial agriculture.




Sources:
http://www.sustainabletable.org/intro/comparison/
http://lifemorenatural.com/?p=1155
http://www.idrc.ca/es/ev-67637-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html
http://www.sustainabletable.org/intro/whatis/

My comments can be found on these entries:
http://kennedy-a.blogspot.com/2011/03/sustainable-agriculture-vs-industrial.html?showComment=1299594781887#c5726667570789859416
http://jessy3149.blogspot.com/2011/01/blog-post.html?showComment=1299777075314#c8603703915155182406

Designer Babies

Have you ever wished you had a different eye colour, hair colour, or skin tone? You’ve probably already accepted that no one gets to choose what they look like. But what if we did?

As technology has progressed in recent years, a new term has surfaced: “designer baby”. This is defined as: “a baby whose genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering combined with in vitro fertilization to ensure the presence or absence of particular genes or characteristics”. This selection involves a process called pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), which entails the creation of embryos by in-vitro fertilization. They’re then grown to the eight-cell stage, where one or two cells are removed; then scientists can look at the DNA for them for defects. Only “normal” embryos are put in the womb. This process makes it possible for certain traits to be determined by parents, at a price (it’s quite the costly procedure!). A clinic in LA even started offering eye and hair colour selection in 2009, but quickly retracted this due to a strong negative reaction from the public.

Of course, the popularization of this process has the potential to drastically change society as we know it. It would impact ethical and moral ideas about the conception of babies, children who have predetermined characteristics, and parents responsible for selecting these traits. It could become a common procedure done by almost anyone (even those who disagreed at first, due to pressure from others). Wouldn’t it be odd to have baby books with spaces for lists of traits chosen for you and the name of the scientist who engineered you? This may seem far-fetched now, but it’s realistic to say that in the next few decades, this could become true to life.

My Opinion:

I believe that when people decide to have a child, they should willingly accept all of its traits, good or bad. I think people who wish to select the certain physical and personality traits of their children shouldn’t be having children at all. Doing so is like telling the world you’re only going to love your child if they measure up to your meticulous standards. It’s disappointing to see that humans may have become this shallow.

I think designer babies would suffer emotionally. I think they’d question their parents' love for them and feel increased pressure to live up to standards made for them before they were conceived. Even if their genetic makeup was chosen in order to benefit someone else, there could still be emotional distress involved. For example, the novel My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult expressed feelings of a (fictional) designer baby, Anna, who struggles with being designed to save her sister, having limited control over her body because of this and feelings of guilt when she wishes to discontinue procedures. Parents may be doing such things in the best interest of their children, but is it worth it when their children are likely to be hurt anyways? I think not.

Sources:

• http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/genetic/designer-children.htm
• http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/genetics/article6978400.ece
• http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-designer-babies.html
• http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s2515351.htm
• http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/agar.html
• (Click images for their sources) 

My comments can be found on these entries:

• http://jessy3149.blogspot.com/2010/11/i-asked-for-blue-eyed-baby.html#comments
• http://graceelkhechen.blogspot.com/2010/11/designer-babies-future-generation.html#comments

International Barcode of Life and its Role in Biodiversity

Negative consequences of human interaction are frequently publicized. Biodiversity, specifically, is extremely important to the survival and well-being of our planet and is often the victim of negative human interaction. However, many people realize the importance of taking the necessary steps to work toward an environmentally friendly future. Scientists have come together from all over the world to do so, their co-operation unquestionably deserving of acknowledgment and interest.

The University of Guelph’s researchers proposed a new system of species identification through a paper in 2003. This technique used a very short genetic sequence and was similar to a supermarket scanner’s way of using black stripes to identify a product. The single mind behind the first proposal of the idea was researcher and faculty member of U of G, Paul Hebert (pictured right). A positive response and brisk advancement led to what would set the stage for the official activation of the International Barcode of Life in October 2010. 

The International Barcode of Life (iBOL) project is a global campaign involving 26 countries' scientists and technicians. A reference library for all multi-cellular life is being produced with the use of DNA barcode technology. The collaboration will be the accumulation of DNA barcodes from over five million specimens from five hundred thousand species. iBOL’s main mission is the extension of coverage of its barcode reference library, as well as the provision of community access to this information and the creation of new technology that will guarantee it can be accessed globally. The activation of this project by scientists at major international research facilities is giving biodiversity science the attention and major investments it was not receiving previously. Once the identification system is put into operation, it will be able to put forth societal impacts and interaction with biodiversity. This means that resource management, conservation, education, research, and pest and disease control will be more effectively and closely monitored. It is also predicted that a crucial role in the regulation of trade in protected or endangered species and products will be played by barcoding. The barcode system will also utilize organisms to seek out early warning signs of change or damage in an environment, improving the circumstances for all species in possibly dangerous situations. Our capability of not only knowing, but also more intimately observing biodiversity is being revolutionized by DNA barcoding.
 
My Opinion

I think it's amazing that this library can be compiled and DNA can be scanned in such a way. Before discovering this project, I had no idea that this was even happening. I'm glad that more attention is being given to all species, and not just a select few that are already in danger. I believe that this system can be used affectively to improve the relationship between ecosystems and humans. It may also bring to light situations or problems that were never properly recognized before. I hope that this project will increase human awareness on the impact they have, specifically on the ecosystems in their own community. 

References:

• "Background – A Brief History of Species Identification." IBOL. International Barcode of Life, 2010. Web. 01 Oct. 2010. <http://ibol.org/about-us/background/>.
• "How IBOL Works." IBOL. International Barcode of Life, 2010. Web. 01 Oct. 2010. <http://ibol.org/about-us/how-ibol-works/>.
• "What Is IBOL? – What Is the Purpose of the International Barcode of Life Project?" IBOL. International Barcode of Life, 2010. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://ibol.org/about-us/what-is-ibol/>.
• "What Is DNA Barcoding? « Barcode of Life." Identifying Species with DNA Barcoding « Barcode of Life. CBOL, 2010. Web. 01 Oct. 2010. <http://www.barcodeoflife.org/what-is-dna-barcoding/>.

My comments can be found on these entries: 
http://jessy3149.blogspot.com/2010/09/david-suzuki-foundation_26.html#comments
http://biomeggs.blogspot.com/2010/09/human-intervention-is-bad-and-good.html#comments