Mission Unplugged!

Welcome back! This weeks blog assignment is probably one of the most difficult to achieve. I had to be on no usage or as little usage of power possible for 24 hours. As a daily routine, when I wake up in the morning, I usually turn on my music and get ready for school. That includes, using the restroom light, my hair curler, my blow dryer, & my stereo. Some occasions, I even have my cell-phone plugged in to charge while being used to listen to music. That is power usage on steroids!! This time, instead of using all the energy I sang instead of listening to music, I did not use any source of electrical equipment to get ready in the morning (which is not only healthy for the environment but for my hair too!), and instead of getting ready in the bathroom with the light on, I went to my living room and brought a mirror. The light is always good in my living room anyways. I was not capable of riding a bike to school or to work. I am on a tight schedule as it is so a vehicle is very much needed. I did unplug my television in my room and my computer. Giving up all my hair equipment and light was fairly easy. It was not hard at all to get rid of unnecessary energy. But, I did come to realize a lot of other people depend on it. When I go to work, all around me are equipment used to run the business. My family members also use energy for the video games they play, or to watch the soap opera for an hour a day. I was able to disconnect a few lamps around the house until we needed them at night and as for the living room television, I disconnect it when people are not home. So, someways will be able to change occasionally, but most people are very dependent on unnecessary energy. The toaster is never going to be connected if not in use and the microwave as well. We also have two refrigerators and I have suggested we use only one since the second refrigerator is not really used. Hopefully, the refrigerator is removed. This blog has made me realize I do not need so much of the energy I use. I just thought I need it....

Tap or Bottled?

Hello again! Returning from a very much needed spring break today with a new blog. Tap water versus bottled. My teacher assigned a blog where we must research where tap water comes from, who protects it, who protects bottled water, and some drawbacks of bottled water. So, let me share with you what I have came aware of. Tap water from Riverside, the city I live in, comes from snow and rain that lands on local mountains and foothills. The water goes through underground aquifiers. The water is naturally purified through the process of percolation. Every time a storm occurs, the process of purificatin is repeated. Riversides water distribution is one of the cleanest in the nation and exports as much as 26 billion gallons of water. 
The federal agency that protects tap water is Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA sets legal limits on levels of certain types of contaminants in the drinking water. The federal agency that is responsible for bottled water is Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The regulations they set forth are correct labeling and make sure the water is safe for consumption. But, bottled water, even though is easy to get, may not be the safest choice. Water bottles have created an enormous problem in our landfills. Our landfills have been filled with empty bottled waters that should be recycled, but instead are being tossed into dumpsters.  Another drawback occured in October of 2008. Five years ago, a scientist named Olga Naidenko found contaminants in bottled water that exceeded the level permitted in tap water. Four out of ten brands had bacterial contamination and the rest had 38 different contaminants. That means, atleast 8 contaminants in each of the other 6 left over brands. Cancer causing agents have also been found in water manifactures that allowed testing done to there water. With all the research I have found, I am more than positive tap water is a better decision. It is filtered through a natural process and is not stored in an unfriendly container for our environment. Make your decision with the research I found!!