New Mapping Website Tracks Changes and Threats to Southern U.S. Forests
SeeSouthernForests.org provides a new way to learn about, and protect, the forests of the southern United States.
Changes over a large area are often hard to see. This can be especially true when it comes to forests where incremental forest loss often goes unnoticed until it is too late. A new website and report by the World Resources Institute seek to change this and allow people to visualize the trends and drivers of change affecting southern forests.
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New Mapping Website Tracks Changes and Threats to Southern U.S. Forests
Simple Steps to Prepare for a Green Lawn and Beautiful Garden for St. Patrick’s Day
Spring is around the corner, and you can hardly wait for the sight of flowers in your garden and a green lawn to spend time in. Why not get started now and have the most beautiful garden and lawn in the neighborhood by St. Patrick’s Day. It takes only a few simple steps to ensure your garden and lawn get a healthy start this spring.
- Decide what type of flowers and grass seeds you will need. Do you want a mixture of colors or a monotone palette? What type of soil do you have and what zone are you in? Both will affect the types of plants and grass you can grow in your area.
- Once you have decided on the type of plants you need, map out your garden and lawn. Make a sketch of your yard to get the best design you can. Play with lines and colors to make it attractive.
- Do you want lawn accessories? Things like fountains, rock formations and even a simple bird bath can add interest and form to your garden.
- Clear the land. Remove any dead growth and debris from your garden and lawn. This will help give your new plants a clean start. By removing any debris you will also lessen the chances of any pathogens in the soil and deter pests.
- Inspect your garden tools. To have a beautiful garden and lawn you must have the right tools. Discard any that has been damaged with new tools.
- Decide if you will use fertilizer or compost. You can build a simple compost container in a weekend and have fresh “black gold” all summer long from kitchen and yard scraps.
- Install soaker hoses or sprinklers to keep your new garden and lawn well irrigated. There are many products on the market that are easy to install and maintain.
After you have done these simple preliminary steps, you are ready to purchase your new plants and grass seed. Consult with a garden center, or go online to find the right plants and seeds for your area. With just a bit of planning and elbow grease, you can have a spectacular garden and lawn by St. Patrick’s Day and be the envy of the neighborhood.
Access to Information
One of our key priorities at EarthTrends is ensuring that the public have access to the type of information that can be used to understand trends, shape ideas and inform change.
Information is crucial to both development and good governance. Successful decision making can only occur if both leaders and the wider public have a complete picture of the key trends and issues impacting their nation and communities. This is particularly important when it comes to sustainably managing a country’s natural resources.
However for many, particularly in low income countries, easy access is not always a given. Limited investment, poor infrastructure and the socio-economic landscape all contribute to significant segments of the population having inadequate access to information resources.
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Population and Consumption
The air is full of carbon dioxide and other pollutants;
The ocean is emptying;We have observed record setting harvests over the last few years, and yet chronic hunger persists and has recently been increasing;
The planet is experiencing the 6th great extinction ;
All of these are the result of human activity.
This evidence illustrates that we have not responsibly managed, neither through governance nor technology, our environmental resources. In the absence of finding a sustainable relationship with our ecosystem, we might conclude that we have reached Earth’s carrying capacity. read more