Category: Environment

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Becoming More Eco-friendly

Green keyboard

Since the Industrial Revolution, environmental advocates have been promoting eco-friendly living. But, what does it really mean to be environmentally-friendly? And why is this important? In 2021, we all know we should recycle and reduce our single use plastics consumption, most people don’t understand the value of doing these things as one individual in a much larger context. While it is important to live eco-friendly lives, it is equally as important is understanding why. Did you know:

  • According to NASA, the world’s rainforests will be gone by 2100 if the current rate of destruction continues.
  • If current patterns continue, we will have emptied the world’s oceans for seafood by 2050.
  • If all life on Earth was put on a scale, the human population would only make up about one ten-thousandth of the total weight of life on Earth.
  • Landfills are composed of 35% packaging materials.
  • Rainforests are cut down at a rate of 100 acres per minute.

(Environmental Facts Source: The World Counts)

The ‘Why’ of transitioning to an eco-friendly lifestyle can be as broad as combatting global warming as a whole or as small as reducing waste in your local waterways – but, every action counts. Whatever your personal reasoning may be, we are all working together towards a common goal: improving the world for ourselves and future generations.


How To Become More Eco-Friendly

We created this guide for easy eco-friendly living that include small, everyday changes you can implement to lesson your carbon footprint:

Switch To LED Lighting

LED stands for Light Emitting Diode and are now readily available at most hardware stores. Although they can be initially more expensive, they are more efficient and last 25x longer than traditional incandescent light bulbs. 90% of the energy used by incandescent light bulbs is waste in the form of heat. LEDs use 1/4 of the energy without any waste.

Limit or Eliminate Single-Use Plastics

Things like disposable cutlery,  excess plastic packaging, and soft plastic-storage bags are all examples of single use plastic. Single-use plastics and packaging make up 35% of current landfill content. Opting for products with little to no packaging or recyclable packaging are great ways to make your daily shopping better for the environment. You can also consider sourcing a local refill store where you are able to bring your own containers to refill on things like soap, laundry detergent, or bulk foods.

Eat Locally Sourced Foods

The food with the smallest carbon footprint is locally grown, or even better – you grow it yourself! This allows you to eat seasonally delicious foods grown by people in your community. Transporting food from abroad, whether by truck, ship, or plane, uses fossil fuels for fuel and for cooling to keep foods in transit from going bad.

Wash Your Clothes In Cold Water

If you have ever wondered, ‘what’s the difference between regular laundry detergent and cold water laundry detergent?’ – it’s fairly simple! The enzymes typically used in cold water detergent are designed to perform better at lower temperatures. Doing two loads of laundry weekly in cold water instead of hot water can save up to 450+ pounds of CO2 each year.

Buy Less “Things”

Less items being frivolously purchased or less items of lower quality being purchased, only to be thrown away shortly after, reduces a great deal of unnecessary waste each year. Purchasing more expensive, high-quality items or second hand items is a great way to keep items out of landfills.

 

Resources

The World Counts / Amazing Environmental Facts 

Ways to Reduce Carbon Footprint

David Suzuki Foundation / Pledge to go zero waste and giving up single-use plastics 

 

 

Posted on by

How To Start Living Sustainably

Green keyboard

Getting started on a journey to living a more sustainable, eco-friendly life can feel incredibly complex. The idea of changing your entire way of life can seem like a huge task with an unclear way to start! It can seem impossible to live sustainably when you consider all the things that are a part of our everyday life that are NOT sustainable. Take a look around, count the number of plastic items that you find, single-use items, products made in environmentally unethical ways. Plastic is everywhere and has become more difficult to avoid.

Originally, the invention and mass dispersal of consumer plastic products were to make modern lives easier. In 2018 the EPA reported that single use and packaging plastic made up 14.5 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW). Overall, the amount of MSW has been increasing at a rapid pace, climbing 42 million tons between 1990 and 1995 alone. Plastic waste is not only harmful to the environment, it is also extremely damaging to our health. According to the Geneva Environment Network:

Humans are exposed to a large variety of toxic chemicals and microplastics through inhalation, ingestion, and direct skin contact, all along the plastic lifecycle. According to WWF on average people could be ingesting approximately 5 grams of plastic every week, which is the equivalent weight of a credit card.

So, where do we start?

WHAT DOES ‘LIVING SUSTAINABLY’ MEAN?

It’s important to understand what it means to “live sustainably”. Sustainable living is a lifestyle that attempts to reduce an individual’s or society’s use of the Earth’s natural resources and personal resources. Practitioners of sustainable living often attempt to reduce their carbon footprint by altering methods of transportation, energy consumption, and diet.

HOW CAN YOU START LIVING SUSTAINABLY?

A great place to start is to do a sustainable audit of your home and the processes that keep your home functioning. Here are 4 easy ways to improve your environmental impact on a daily basis:

1. MAKE YOUR KITCHEN MORE SUSTAINABLE

The kitchen is a great place to begin, since most single use plastic is used in the kitchen. Plastic utensils are often used to protect Teflon-coated pans. Metal or wood are better choices for the environment. Many brands are also introducing bamboo dishware and storage options. Bamboo is extremely eco friendly, it is readily biodegradable and easy to grow without pesticides of chemicals.

Recycle your Tupperware and opt for glass or metal: These include reusable metal or glass water bottles, glass storage containers and reusable stainless-steel items like cups, plates and bowls. These alternatives are easy to clean and pack to go, making living sustainably easy even with a busy lifestyle! Get rid of Tupperware and all disposable packaging. Disposable plastics are often mixed with harmful chemicals which can potentially leech into their contents when heated or when worn down.

One of these chemicals is known as Bisphenol S has been found in 81% of blood tested, due to it’s inclusion in plastic consumer products, and that it can lead to ailments such as diabetes, obesity, asthma, birth defects, and cancer.

Try using reusable produce bags or go bag-less: If you often buy fresh produce, you have a significant change of ending up with a lot of single use produce bags which often end up in the garbage. There are fantastic reusable options available, many which can be sourced locally.

Keep your cleaning routine green: a large source of waterway and ecosystem contamination comes from the chemicals that are washed down drains. Things like liquid bleach, drain cleaner, and ammonia all contribute to toxic chemicals in local ecosystems and compromising waste water systems in local communities.

2. START USING REUSABLE BAGS

Did you know that between five billion to one trillion plastic bags are being used every year in the world? Plastic shopping bags are the most harmful to the environment. Shopping with your own bag can help reduce plastic waste. You can also avoid food packaging by shopping in bulk and bringing your own containers! Many cities are seeing the emergence of bulk stores. These stores offer a huge amount of products, from shampoos to spices, without any individual plastic packaging.

Remember, if you have to use plastic bags, you should reuse them as often as possible and then recycle them when you are done. Many grocery stores have bins that allow you to return plastic bags and film.

3. WHEN POSSIBLE, MAKE YOUR OWN FOOD

After a long day at the office, cooking is not something you would want to do. We get it. However, take-out often involves a lot more plastic and single use waste than eating at home. Remember that processed or premade foods and lots of disposable packaging go hand in hand. Natural, local ingredients are healthier for your health and the environment.

4. LOOK INTO PLASTIC FREE CLOTHING

Recent studies have shown that tiny fibers made from synthetic fabrics are being emitted into the water supply of aquatic animals. It is possible to reduce the amount of tiny fibers entering our water streams by choosing clothes made from natural fibers like cotton, hemp, linen and wool. Polyester, for example, is made from synthetic material.

5. GET A GREEN CLEANING ROUTINE

You will likely find a lot of cleaning products in your cabinets that you don’t use or chemical heavy products that you’re not wanting to continue using. There are only a few products that you really need to clean your entire home which makes living sustainably simple. Keeping a citric acid based multipurpose cleaner will cover all your cleaning needs across many different rooms and situations.

The Homebiotic Surface Cleaner, which is citric acid based, allows you to clean surfaces naturally without harsh chemicals that damage your home biome. Keeping a natural, safe balance of microbes in the home helps protect against exposure to toxins that could negatively impact your health.

As an eco-bonus, Homebiotic Surface Cleaner arrives at your house as concentrated tabs that you mix using a reusable bottle, which saves plastic from ending up in landfills.

Find mold under your sink? Don’t reach for the bleach! Use the Homebiotic Surface Cleaner, which is powerful enough to kill mold, but not harmful to water systems. Wipe away mold, dirt, & grime with the Homebiotic Nano Sponge, which doesn’t cultivate harmful bacteria the way conventional sponges do.

A natural cleaning routine paired with the powerful probiotic protection of Homebiotic Probiotic Spray, your home will stay happy and healthy, protected from the sources of grime and musty odors.

Annie Leonard, a notable American proponent for sustainable living, said:

There is no such thing as ‘away’. When we throw something away it must go somewhere.

The idea that everything we consumer MUST take up space before, during, and after we use it is a great foundation for making more sustainable decisions. Living sustainably is as easy as remembering that EVERYTHING has to end up SOMEWHERE.

We don’t recommend that you start over and discard everything. Instead, we suggest that you work with what is available and, as they run out, make a list of eco-friendly, plastic-free options. Even the biggest waves, start as small ripples.

 

Posted on by

10 Health Benefits of Gardening

health benefits of gardening

Gardening is getting more attention in recent years. Unfortunately, we’ve become more disconnected from nature in the last century. We used to farm and garden all the time, but modern life made us more detached from this human practice. However, new research shows that gardening has many health benefits that improve everything from the aging brain to physical conditioning. Also, gardening puts us back in touch with the external microbiome we need to stay healthy. Let’s look at 10 different health benefits of gardening.

sunflower field1. Getting More Sunshine

Gardening definitely gets us out in the sunshine more. Getting more sun exposure has been proven to raise Vitamin D levels and boost energy and health. Sunshine makes us feel better and gives us a boost that we may not realize we were missing.

Proper vitamin D levels are necessary for our health and wellbeing. Vitamin D supports the immune system, the brain, bone health, and mental health. It reduces inflammation which prevents diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Conversely, deficiencies in vitamin D have proven to be disastrous for human health. Although health officials caution people about skin cancer due to sun exposure, sunshine is the best way to get a daily dose of vitamin D. Often, just 10 minutes of sun exposure on the eyelids can boost vitamin D levels quite a bit. This means you can wear sunscreen and get your vitamin D too. And there’s no better way to get vitamin D than during a good session of gardening.

Although health officials caution people about skin cancer due to sun exposure, sunshine is the best way to get a daily dose of vitamin D. Share on X

2. Growing Your Own Nutritious Foods

By growing our own fruits and vegetables, we can increase the number of food nutrients we’re receiving. In the last few decades, many modern farms have lost soil nutrients due to over-planting the same crops from year to year. When we grow our own vegetables, we naturally retain those nutrients because we don’t often plant the same things yearly. Small gardens are some of the best ways to grow nutritious food. Planting our own vegetable gardens naturally rotates crops which helps make the crops nutrient-rich.

3. Exposure To Beneficial Soil Bacteria

Research shows that kids who grow up on farms with lots of soil exposure have much better immune systems. As a result, they have less risk for autoimmune diseases, allergies, and asthma. This is because soil-based bacteria are genuinely beneficial for our health. Exposure to soil-based bacteria boosts and trains our immune system and enhances our skin and the gut microbiome.

There’s no better way to connect with soil-based bacteria than gardening. We usually get soil all over our hands and skin, and this is a good thing. Our culture has advocated that dirt is harmful, but this is simply not true. In fact, the more soil we can connect with physically, the better our health will be. And we shouldn’t be afraid to get a little dirt from the garden into our homes. It turns out that our homes also have a microbiome, and adding soil-based bacteria to it is a great way to improve the home microbiome and keep it naturally clean. The more diverse a microbiome is, the healthier it is. Soil-based bacteria naturally compete for food and space and therefore keep the numbers of harmful microbes to a minimum.

Our culture has advocated that dirt is harmful, but this is simply not true. In fact, the more soil we can connect with physically, the better our health will be. Share on X

4. It’s A Work Out!

Gardening is a surprisingly good form of exercise. Apparently, one session of gardening is equivalent to half an hour of jogging. You’d never think that tinkering in the soil would be such great exercise, but it’s one of the best ways to keep in shape. It’s a low-intensity activity that is good for fat burning and muscle conditioning. It’s also a full-body workout and strengthens ligaments and bones, along with working out the muscles. Lastly, it promotes good flexibility, which is especially good to prevent age-related issues. The exercise you get from gardening can prevent health issues like injuries, bone loss, heart disease, and diabetes.

5. Beneficial To Overall Mental Health

There is growing research attesting to the benefits of horticultural therapy. Not only is it a great source of exercise, but it also boosts our mood and sense of wellbeing. According to the horticultural therapist Mitchell Hewson, gardening can help people experiencing mental health and addiction issues. Gardening stimulates thought, exercises the body and mind, and encourages awareness of the present moment and external environment. The combination of these factors can help improve mental health and addiction issues. In addition, gardening has been shown to renew the desire to live, improve self-esteem, and decrease anxiety.

6. Helps Prevent Dementia & Alzheimers

Gardening appears to have a beneficial influence on the health of the brain and the prevention of dementia. One study shows that those who participate in gardening have a 36% lower risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. A different study shows the lowered risk to be around 47%. This is good news for an aging population. Not only does gardening improve the physical body and mental health, but it also enhances brain health and prevents brain-related issues. This is likely due to many factors we’ve already discussed, such as more sunshine, more activity, vitamin D exposure, and better nutrients from home-grown food.

One study shows that those who participate in gardening have a 36% lower risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Share on X

7. Helps You Sleep Better

One study looking at the elderly shows that gardening helps improve many aspects of their lives, including improved sleep. Older adults naturally have more sleep issues due to changes in the brain and circadian rhythms. However, exposure to natural settings like gardens can help with sleep due to more exposure to sunlight, vitamin D, and activity. However, the actual physical task of gardening improves sleep hygiene because it’s an excellent form of low-impact exercise. Also, as we’ve discussed, gardening can help improve mental health, which also improves sleep habits. Studies show that problems with mental health have a direct impact on sleep hygiene. Therefore, since gardening improves mental health, it also helps reduce sleep problems.

8. Improves Mood

For all the reasons we’ve discussed above, gardening can help nurture the spirit. It lifts mood, enhances vitamin D, and gives a sense of purpose. It also connects people to the external environment by improving the connection to nature. All of these factors can give the spirit a lift. This inevitably improves mental and physical health as well. When the spirit feels well, chances are the person feels well in all areas too.

An experiment conducted by NASA in 2016 showed that gardening keeps astronauts happy and healthy while they’re in the challenging environment of space. Even if they’re in small pots, planting and nurturing seeds can help boost the mood and spirit considerably.

9. Benefits The Environment

We all know that an increase in carbon in the environment is dangerous for our climate. We also know that plants and trees have an excellent effect on reducing carbon in the atmosphere. This is because plants and trees literally “eat” carbon. They absorb carbon and send out healthy oxygen for us all to breathe. The more individual gardens we have in the world, the better. Not only do gardens help participate in reducing carbon, but they also teach us about the natural environment, which helps us stay connected to the climate we live in. Without this knowledge, we wouldn’t be able to understand our role in reducing climate change.

We live in a giant microbiome called earth, and the more we know about how to take care of it, the better we’ll all be. Having a garden can teach us about the microbiome we live in and help us understand our place in things. By communing with nature through our gardens, we expose ourselves to the outside microbiome, which has excellent health benefits for us as living beings. If we never connect to the larger microbiome we live in, we’ll never be able to understand how climate change affects us and is mediated by us. Those who live in high-rise buildings and who never get out in nature are more likely to misunderstand the nature of climate change. Gardening in any form, even if it’s just potted plants on a balcony, can be a massive help to us and the climate.

10. Gardening Benefits Overall Quality of Life

This should go without saying, but it’s worth mentioning how much fun gardening is. After all, if it weren’t fun, we wouldn’t want to do it. But the truth is, the more fun we have, the more health benefits we will achieve through an activity. The “fun” aspect of gardening gives us the mood and self-esteem boost, as mentioned above. It helps us feel grounded in nature and connected to ourselves and the outside world. We also improve our physical health as well without doing things that seem like “work.” Many gardeners will confess that gardening never feels like work.

In summary

So these are 10 health benefits of gardening. Not only is gardening good for the spirit, self-esteem, and mental health, it also nurtures our physical health in many ways. It connects us to nature, gets us out in the sun, boosts physical activity, and gives us access to helpful soil-based bacteria. All of these things combined make gardening a genuinely healthy and stimulating activity.

 

References

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3372556/

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/benefits-of-sunlight#health-benefits

https://www.thehealthy.com/mental-health/self-care/health-benefits-of-gardening/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16411871/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/05/11/health-benefits-gardening/7971047/

https://www.fix.com/blog/health-benefits-of-gardening/

https://www.wholebodymicrobiome.com

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on by

5 Must Haves For Natural Cleaning

5 Must Haves For Natural Cleaning | Blog

The idea of using natural cleaning products or products with more natural ingredients in place of their readily available, toxic counterparts has seen a massive rise in popularity in the past 5-10 years. A large part of this drive is the realization over time what these chemical cleaners are not only doing to our health but the environment.

Individually many of these ingredients can cause serious mucus membrane irritation, respiratory distress, and other seriously concerning health effects. Many readily available multi-purpose cleaners are a Laundry list of these chemicals mixed together, amplifying their toxicity. So we look to natural cleaning alternatives to preserve the health and safety of ourselves, our families, and the environment.

soapy sponge - homebiotic

How natural is natural?

The rise in demand for natural cleaning products has resulted in the practice of greenwashing. Originating in 1986, the term greenwashing is used to reference companies and their products that are designed, marketed, and labeled to appear more environmentally friendly than they actually are.

The rise in demand for natural cleaning products has resulted in the practice of greenwashing. Originating in 1986, the term greenwashing is used to reference companies and their products that are designed, marketed, and labeled to… Share on X

leaf on sandy beach - HomebioticWhile there are instances of greenwashing occurring unintentionally, a more troubling trend is companies utilizing false environmental claims as a marketing strategy to capture consumers. A common form of greenwashing is the use of nature imagery to convey the idea that the product comes from natural origins.

Another common instance is when products claim to be made from “recycled” or “post-consumer” materials; however, these products are made by workers in exploitive conditions in factories that are not environmentally friendly. Almond milk, for instance, exploded on the market as a more ethical and environmentally friendly milk alternative to traditional dairy. We now know that although no livestock is required to make almond milk, the amount of power, pesticides, and water needed to create almond milk is not responsibly sustainable.

It takes 15 gallons of water to make 16 almonds. This is an issue because many of the crops used are grown in California, a state already suffering from significant drought issues and soil erosion due to lack of natural groundwater. On top of water usage, almond crops require multiple pesticides, many of which kill the already endangered honey bee population.

It takes 15 gallons of water to make 16 almonds. This is an issue because many of the crops used are grown in California, a state already suffering from significant drought issues and soil erosion due to lack of natural groundwater. Share on X

tall trees in a forest - homebioticWays To Be More Environmentally Friendly

The perfect opportunity to make a lower environmental impact is to clean up your cleaning supplies. There is a laundry list of toxic ingredients often found in cleaning products, some of which are known carcinogens. Here are some readily available options to keep your home clean:

Vinegar

USE IT FOR – window cleaner, keeping laundry fresh, removing hard water build-up, removing mold, washing floors, home-made multi-purpose cleaner

Create your own multipurpose cleaner using a 1:1 ratio of cleaning vinegar to the water. This mixture can be used on almost any surface in your house to keep harmful microbes in check. It’s important to remember that vinegar is extremely acidic and should not be used on hardwood, granite, natural stone, and used in irons.

While vinegar is completely environmentally friendly, non-toxic, and biodegradable, it’s important to know that many mass-produced kinds of vinegar are processed in very non environmentally friendly ways using petrochemicals. Be sure you’re purchasing all-natural vinegar with no chemical additives.

hydrogen peroxide for plant care - homebioticHydrogen Peroxide

USE IT FOR – killing mold, removing stains, disinfecting, plant care

Using readily available 3% hydrogen peroxide is one of the best, most effective ways to successfully kill mold. When hydrogen peroxide breaks down you are left with only water and oxygen, no additional chemicals to potentially harm yourself or the environment.

When using hydrogen peroxide it’s important to allow for about 5-10 minutes of active oxygenation to ensure an adequate amount of time to disinfect the area.

If you are purchasing oxygen bleach, typically created using hydrogen peroxide and sodium carbonate, ensure that what you are purchasing is chlorine-free. Chlorine causes significant irritation to mucous membranes and when washed into waterways it can pose a toxicity threat to organisms in the water and soil.

Tea Tree Essential Oil

USE IT FOR – laundry deodorizer, pest control on houseplants, multipurpose cleaner, antifungal cleaner

Tea tree oil is a distilled oil from the leaves of the melaleuca plant. It has long been admired for its anti-inflammatory, antiviral and antifungal properties. It poses little to no risk of dermatitis when applied directly to the skin which makes it a great option to add to your own multipurpose cleaner. Dilute a teaspoon of tea tree oil with one cup of water in a spray bottle to make a ready-to-use antiviral spray for surfaces.

castile soap - homebioticCastile Soap

USE IT FOR – laundry soap, dish soap, hand soap, multipurpose cleaner

Castile soap is a blend of oil and either sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide. All of these ingredients are biodegradable. When selecting a castile soap ensure that there are no palm oils used. The palm oil industry is responsible for a significant amount of habitat loss for orangutans and other endangered animal species.

Using castile soap is extremely easy in many instances. Washing floors or your car? Add a couple of tablespoons to a full bucket of water. To make an all-purpose cleaner mix ¼ cups of castile soap with 6 cups of water.

Homebiotic

USE IT FOR – chemical free cleaning, maintaining microbial balance, preventing grime build-up and musty odors.

Homebiotic Probiotic spray is the perfect way to end any natural cleaning routine. Replenishing the probiotic population in your home and on your surfaces helps protect against an overgrowth of harmful microbes. Microbial balance is extremely important in any biome. Without beneficial bacteria, harmful microbes thrive causing issues such as toxic exposure and musty odors. Prevent them before they become an issue by using Homebiotic.

You will likely find a lot of cleaning products in your cabinets that you don’t use or chemical heavy products that you’re not wanting to continue using. There are only a few products that you really need to clean your entire home which makes living sustainably simple. Keeping a citric acid based multipurpose cleaner will cover all your cleaning needs across many different rooms and situations.

The Homebiotic Surface Cleaner, which is citric acid based, allows you to clean surfaces naturally without harsh chemicals that damage your home biome. Keeping a natural, safe balance of microbes in the home helps protect against exposure to toxins that could negatively impact your health. As an eco-bonus, Homebiotic Surface Cleaner arrives at your house as concentrated tabs that you mix using a reusable bottle, which saves plastic from ending up in landfills.

homebiotic spray on bathroom counter - Homebiotic - how to use homebiotic spray

Resources

 

https://sustainability.ucsf.edu/1.713#:~:text=The%20main%20issues%20associated%20with,the%20world’s%20almonds%20are%20grown.

https://www.greenmatters.com/p/how-does-vinegar-affect-the-environment&ved=2ahUKEwj6hN6TzuDvAhWKt54KHYyLDyMQFjALegQIHxAC&usg=AOvVaw3pg-lcwfDMtieEwez_jPal

https://davidsuzuki.org/queen-of-green/non-toxic-disinfecting/

https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/tn2873spec

https://medium.com/disruptive-design/what-is-greenwashing-how-to-spot-it-and-stop-it-c44f3d130d5

Posted on by

Wetlands: The Secret To Climate Change

Wetlands: The Secret To Climate Change | Blog

Climate change is an important topic of discussion for the past couple of decades. There has been lots of talk about ways to prevent climate change from progressing, from turning off appliances or biking to work, but what are other factors that significantly affect the amount of carbon in the earths atmosphere? Well, world wetlands are the secret to climate change. More specifically by trapping something called blue carbon. But what are wetlands & why do we need them?

horse grazing in wetlands - Homebiotic

WHAT DEFINES A WETLAND?

Wetlands are commonly referred to as marshes or swamps, and can be found all over the world. Their main characteristic is that their habitat and composure is ever changing depending on water levels. Wetlands are made by floods or some are permanent fixtures of the landscape.

Wetlands are often also referred to as marshes or swamps and can be found all over the world. Their main characteristic is that their habitat and composure is ever changing depending on water levels. Some wetlands are permanent while… Share on X

There are wetlands all over the world. Some of the most well known wetlands are The Pantanal (runs through Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay), The Queen Maude Gulf (located in Canada) and Grands Affluents (in Chad). All of these wetlands have their own irreplaceable biodiverse populations. For example, The Grands Affluents is home to endangered species of hippopotamus, elephant and gorilla.

Some wetlands are man made! They are created in areas that need wastewater management and in urban areas where water scarcity is an ongoing issue. They are also often created in an effort to restore land areas lost to mining or development that have since suffered from wetland loss.

heron fishing in swamp - HomebioticWHY ARE WETLANDS IMPORTANT?

They are busy! Wetlands perform a number of important functions. Not only do they support a large number of animal and plant species (they are regarded as the most biologically diverse of all ecosystems), they also aid in shoreline stabilization, water filtration and purification, storage of water supplies and carbon processing. They also are able to store 10x the amount of carbon as an equivalent sized land forest.

Have you heard of blue carbon?

Marine ecosystems capture carbon. This carbon is blue carbon. Carbon is processed through photosynthesis and turned into plant material. Through this process carbon then becomes plant material aiding in water filtration and supporting this diverse ecosystem. Wetlands store 44.6 million tonnes of carbon material each year.

Greenhouse gases create a ‘green house’ like effect on the world. According to NASA:

The greenhouse effect is the way in which heat is trapped close to the surface of the Earth by “greenhouse gases.” These heat-trapping gases can be thought of as a blanket wrapped around the Earth, which keeps it toastier than it would be without them. Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxides.

This heat trapping effect is also why we know climate change as global warming. Even the slight warming of the earth can have catastrophic effects of all of it’s inhabitants and our necessary resources. This is why it’s incredibly important to minimize and balance out our carbon producing activities.

wetlands - homebioticHOW CAN WE HELP OUR WORLD WETLANDS?

The loss of wetlands, not surprisingly, comes at the hands of humans. Wetlands are often contaminated by toxins and chemicals flowing through the water within them, hindering their ability to provide proper water purification and safe ecosystems for their diverse organism population.

Developers fill in wetlands for agriculture and livestock fields, mining, urban housing or industrial factory developments.

So what do we see when we destroy wetlands? Typically we see water scarcity, endangered species, shoreline instability and breeding/nesting areas disturbed. As bleak as this all sounds, we have great news: there are things that you can do to help preserve our world wetlands!

➊ DO NOT USE HARSH CHEMICAL CLEANERS – chose natural cleaners to stop the flow of detrimental chemicals that get washed into our waterways each day. This can significantly reduce the amount of work our wetlands have to do. This will also help protect any species in our wetlands from being harmed by these chemicals. Using natural cleaning product alternatives, such as hydrogen peroxide and vinegar, or Homebiotic Surface Cleaner then follow with an environmental probiotic, like Homebiotic Probiotic Spray, to rebalance and protect your home.

➋ SOURCE SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE & AGRICULTURE PRODUCTS – do a bit of research when shopping to make sure you’re not purchasing from a producer that has created their product at the expense of our wetlands. Developers destroy wetlands to create aquaculture infrastructure like shrimp farms. So make sure you ask questions about where your food comes from and look for sustainable labeling.

➌ HELP CONSERVE WETLANDS IN YOUR COMMUNITY – keep your eyes and ears out for developments in your community that may negatively impact your local wetlands. Contact local politicians and advocate for these extremely important ecosystems to prevent them from becoming developments. Cities use the ‘protected’ designation for important ecosystems to prevent urban development.

sand piper in swamp - Homebiotic

Nature preservation as a whole is of the utmost important not only for the continuation of many different species of flora and fauna, but also to keep the earth in good health. World wetlands are the secret to climate change. They filter our water, keep our shorelines intact, reduce the carbon in the atmosphere & are a necessity to many organisms. We love world wetlands!

RESOURCES

https://www.conservation.org/blog/5-things-you-should-know-about-wetlands?gclid=Cj0KCQiA0rSABhDlARIsAJtjfCfmGOxgFJtjEhlwB_JG1euU9TA1ufXi850za1At3qkG0_Q5tKP2EsYaAp9mEALw_wcB

https://www.conservation.org/blog/what-on-earth-is-blue-carbon

https://www.thebluecarboninitiative.org/

https://ontarionature.org/programs/nature-reserves/

https://smartwatermagazine.com/blogs/agueda-garcia-de-durango/10-largest-wetlands-world

https://climate.nasa.gov/faq/19/what-is-the-greenhouse-effect/

https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/how-climate-works/greenhouse-effect