Today, there is a huge amount of recycled products available in the market, from paper bags to fabric purses; bottles to foot wear. The reason behind the popularity of recycled products is that these products contribute in optimum usage of natural as well as artificially made materials. These products indirectly contribute in reducing air, land, and water pollution and in reducing the depletion of natural resources.
However, there are many people who are not convinced by the idea of re-using anything. As a matter of fact, it is interesting to know that everything on this earth is recycled by nature. For instance, used water that reaches the ground is recycled through a natural phenomenon and is thus made fit for drinking again.

Tidal energy is one of the most reliable and predictable source of renewable energy. There are two ways of creating tidal power: tidal dams and ocean currents. Dams are based on using a barrage at a bay or estuary with a large tidal range. Power is generated primarily at ebb tides as the barrage creates a significant head of water, much like a hydroelectric dam. Tidal turbines take advantage of fast-flowing ocean currents to create energy. The horizontal axis ocean turbines are the more common ones and are only half the size of the wind turbines, which are producing 1 MW of power.

The ocean’s energy is created when the sun’s heat warms up the ocean surface water. The Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) is a method that takes advantage of this temperature difference for generating electricity. There are three types of electricity conversion systems: closed-cycle, open-cycle, and hybrid. Closed-cycle systems use the ocean's warm surface water to vaporize a working fluid, which has a low-boiling point, such as ammonia. The vapor expands and turns a turbine. The turbine then activates a generator to produce electricity. Open-cycle systems actually boil the seawater by operating at low pressures. This produces steam that passes through a turbine. The hybrid combines both closed-cycle and open-cycle systems. OTEC is a successful system of power generation that has been in use since 1974. This system makes it wise thing to invest in tidal energy.

Fair trade online store shopping is utmost convenience for all. It helps in reducing the harmful impact on the environment by the purchase of eco-friendly products. The benefits of purchasing fair products online include:
·Online shopping leads to reduction in the amount of fuel emissions, which contribute to global warming.
·One can access just about every fair trade product online that makes selection easier for the consumers
·One has information about the kinds of products purchased by the other consumers through the process of online rating
·The use of natural resource is reduced like paper as all the transactions are done online, including the receipt

Effects of Pollution on Animals - Air Pollution

• Acid rain destroys fish life in lakes and streams
• Excessive ultraviolet radiation may cause skin cancer in wildlife
• Ozone in the lower atmosphere may damage lung tissues of animals

Effects of Pollution on Animals - Water Pollution

• Nutrient pollution (nitrogen, phosphates etc) causes overgrowth of toxic algae eaten by other aquatic animals, and may cause death.
• Chemical contamination can cause declines in frog biodiversity and tadpole mass.
• Oil pollution can negatively affect development of marine organisms can also cause gastrointestinal irritation, liver and kidney damage, and damage to the nervous system
• Mercury in water can cause abnormal behavior, slower growth and development, reduced reproduction, and death
• Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) may cause declines, deformities and death of fish life
• Too much sodium chloride (ordinary salt) in water may kill animals

Effects of Pollution on Animals - Soil Pollution

• Can alter metabolism of microorganisms and arthropods in a given soil environment; this may destroy some layers of the primary food chain, and thus have a negative effect on predator animal species
• Small life forms may consume harmful chemicals which may then be passed up the food chain to larger animals; this may lead to increased mortality rates and even animal extinction.

* Air Pollution

• Acid rain can kill trees, destroy the leaves of plants, can infiltrate soil by making it unsuitable for purposes of nutrition and habitation
• Ozone holes in the upper atmosphere can allow excessive ultraviolet radiation from the sun to enter the Earth causing damage to trees and plants
• Ozone in the lower atmosphere can prevent plant respiration by blocking stomata (openings in leaves) and negatively affecting plants’ photosynthesis rates which will stunt plant growth; ozone can also decay plant cells directly by entering stomata

Water Pollution

• May disrupt photosynthesis in aquatic plants and thus affecting ecosystems that depend on these plants
• Terrestrial and aquatic plants may absorb pollutants from water and pass them up the food chain to consumer animals and humans
• Plants may be killed by too much sodium chloride in water
• Plants may be killed by mud from construction sites as well as bits of wood and leaves, clay and other similar materials
• Plants may be killed by herbicides in water; herbicides are chemicals which are most harmful to plants

Soil Pollution

• May alter plant metabolism and reduce crop yields
• Trees and plants may absorb soil contaminants and pass them up the food chain

The following tips will help you understand just how easy it is to apply the '3R' principle. All you have to do is think ahead.
Reduce

• Take no more new bank notes and lai-see packets than necessary.
• Bring your own bags to reduce consumption of plastic shopping bags.
• Adopt simple packaging and minimize gift wrapping to avoid wastage of resources.
• Choose more durable products. Think twice before shopping to avoid purchasing unnecessary items and cause wastage.
• Send electronic greeting messages instead of paper greeting cards as the former can deliver the same message with less resource.
• Use reusable tableware during gatherings and parties and avoid excessive food.

Reuse

• Reuse lai-see packets and bank notes for lai-see.
• Store holiday decorations, such as plastic Christmas trees and ornaments for reuse in the following year. Good quality decorations could be reused many times.
• Donate unwanted gifts to needies through charitable organizations.

Recycle

• Separate all recyclable materials, such as metals, plastics, waste paper and other recyclables from waste stream and put them in recycling bins to facilitate recycling.