Veronika Wild

  -Thank you to Cluan S.for this lovely graphic Tropical Rainforests flourish around the Equator because they like high, even temperatures and abundant rainfall. When the area is large enough, some such as the Amazon, generate rainfall themselves. Large leaves on tall trees intercept the rain and allow it to percolate gently into the earth.  As the sun warms up each day, they slowly release this moisture back into the atmosphere through transpiration. The trees with their layered understoreys act like multistorey apartments for a whole range of species, some ground dwelling, some preferring the intermediate levels and others the canopy. Despite covering only 2% of the earth's surface, tropical rainforests contain around   50 - 80% of its biodiversity.   They also do a great deal for humans.  Rainforests are considered the lungs of the earth, with the Amazon alone producing around 20% of the world’s oxygen. They influence weather and climate – they buffer...

  Do you know what this is?  Saw this at my local tip shop recently and wondered what it was. It's a Reverse Vending Machine (RVM) – you put stuff in – in this case your empty soft drink bottles, and it will put money in your bank account or send it to a charity on your behalf.     There are others around the state and they are popping up in many other parts of the world , usually in supermarkets. Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Singapore, Russia, other parts of Australia, some Japanese and Chinese cities, some states in the USA and Canada already have them.  The downside is that  they are rather expensive - our state government funded this one, but perhaps if the beverage makers wanted to avoid bans or postpone developing alternatives they should be funding these.  *See Caveat at end. Bottles, cans and cartons in - money out In Other Recycling News Good to see Amazon sending small electronic parts in small recyclable bags. What a difference compared ...