December 2008 Archives

By Izah Morales INQUIRER.net IF you’re tired of reading about the fertilizer fund scam issue, then maybe it’s time to turn the leaf and make your own organic fertilizer in the backyard. During a walk at the La Mesa Ecopark, I noticed vermiculturist Rogelio Moreno mixing soil with worms, which they called Vermicompost, an organic fertilizer. The worms were digging holes and gliding in the soil. While some people would feel icky about worms, Moreno considers them as “angels of the Earth.” “Ang kagandahan ng mga bulate, ang kanyang pupu, malaking katulungan sa mga farmers. Binubuhay nito ang lupa. [The worms’ feces are a big help to farmers because it enriches and enlivens the soil.],” says Moreno. Moreno willingly taught me how to make vermicompost. First, you should collect biodegradable garbage like dried leaves, fruit and vegetable peelings and animal feces. Then place them in an empty bed or container. Cover the garbage with dried leaves and straw. You can use all kinds of leaves except for mahogany, eucalyptus and nymph leaves, says Moreno. To avoid the foul smell, add coco dust. Then water the bed everyday. Add the worms on top of the compost. After five days, you will notice that the worms have gone down. Cover it with a net. You will know that you have a fertilizer when the feces are fine. After two months, you can collect the fertilizer. Moreno says a farmer can earn P 9,000 from one fertilizer bed. Organic fertilizer will not only make your plants healthy but will make your pockets wealthy.

THE Congressional committees on government reorganization and appropriation approved the creation of a “Climate Change Commission.” The committees are consolidating several proposals related to the creation of this new commission, including House Bills 400, 1775, 3291, 4051 and 4853. These proposals were from Representatives Roilo Golez (2nd District, Paranaque City), Orlando Fua (Siquijor), and Carmelo Lazatin (1st District, Pampanga), Rex Gatchalian (1st District, Valenzuela) and Ignacio Arroyo (5th District, Negros Occidental). The consolidated measure will require local government units (LGU) to implement climate action plans based on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The consolidated measure will also create a Climate Change fund for financial assistance to “priority adaptation” and “mitigation projects” identified by the commission. LGUs will also benefit from the Climate Change fund. Congressman Fua said the creation of a Climate Change Commission intends to lessen the impact of this global phenomenon to Philippines. "Sea level rise will exacerbate inundation, storm surges, erosion and other coastal hazards thus threatening vital infrastructure settlements and facilities that support livelihood of island communities," Fua said.

Agence France-Presse PARIS -- Men significantly outnumbered women in the "out-of-Africa" migration some 60,000 years ago that eventually populated the rest of the world, according to a new study. Africa is known to be the cradle of human evolution, and recent studies show that the people inhabiting other continents originate from a relatively small band of Homo sapiens who moved through the Near East, into Europe and beyond some 50,000 and 70,000 years ago. But until now no one had figured out a way to determine what the sex-ratio of this so-called founding population might have been. A quartet of researchers led by Alon Keinan at the Harvard Medical School thought that the secret might be locked inside differences in genetic code across distinct geographic regions. They knew that the percentage of X chromosomes in a given population varies depending on the proportion of men. The "X" and "Y" chromosomes determine sex -- men have one of each, while women have two X chromosomes. The other 22 chromosome pairings in the human genome are all the same. It was also known that this ratio affects the rate at which mutations randomly spread through the X chromosome over dozens or hundreds of generations as compared to the mutation rate in other, non-sex, chromosomes. Keinan and colleagues reasoned that if X-chromosomes changed more quickly than expected, then it almost certainly meant that our common ancestors who wandered out of Africa were predominantly male. To test their theory, they compared the genetic makeup of Africans first with northern Europeans, and then again with Asians. "The results point to a period of accelerated drift on chromosome X that largely occurred after the split of West Africa and non-Africans, but before the separation of North Europeans and East Asian," the conclude. Genetic drift is a term that refers to random mutations in genes, as opposed to changes that occur through natural selection. Keinan acknowledged that if a small fraction of the women in the migratory exodus from Africa had given birth to all of the children, there might still have been parity in the number of males and females. But this seemed highly unlikely, he said, adding that his findings were "in line with what anthropologists have taught us about hunter-gatherer populations in which short distance migration is primarily by women and long distance migration primarily by men." The study was published in Nature Publishing Group's journal Nature Genetics.

Agence France-Presse PARIS -- Volcanic eruptions have periodically cooled the tropics over at least the last 450 years by spewing out particles that girdle the world at high altitude and reflect sunlight, according to a study released Sunday. The research adds a chunk of regional evidence to earlier work that found major eruptions -- such as Krakatoa, Indonesia in 1883 and Huaynaputina, Peru in 1600 -- contribute to cooling on a worldwide scale. A trio of scientists led by Rosanne D'Arrigo of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, New York, looked at ocean temperatures in a belt extending from 30 degrees south across the equator to 30 degrees north. They compiled temperature records reaching back nearly half a millennium from three sources: ice cores, tree rings and coral reefs. They found the longest sustained period of cooling of sea surfaces -- to a depth of one meter (3.25 feet) -- occurred in the early 1800s following the eruption of Mount Tambora on the Indonesia island of Sumbawa. Tambora blew its top in 1815 and was the most powerful eruption in recorded history, ejecting about 50 cubic kilometres (12 cubic miles) of magma, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). However, links between volcanic activity and cooler ocean surfaces weakened in the 20th century, apparently as a result of global warming from the burning of fossil fuels, the researchers say. Another study, also published online in the journal Nature Geoscience, points to a previously unrecognized potential driver of climate change. Intensive, chemical-laden agriculture could trigger the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) from river systems, Henry Wilson and Marguerite Xenopoulos of Trent University in Ontario Canada argue. The researchers examined organic, meaning carbon-bearing, matter that had dissolved in 34 rivers in Ontario. Some of the rivers were pristine and others were heavily polluted by runoff from agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers, insecticides and herbicides. Pollution from these chemicals meant the organic material was likelier to release its carbon into the atmosphere, the study found. This factor should be taken into account by climate modelers, the study suggested.

By Jennifer Gonzalez Agence France-Presse CLEVELAND -- Doctors hailed a groundbreaking transplant to replace 80 percent of a woman's face, saying Wednesday it is a means for the severely disfigured to "face the world" without humiliation. It was the world's first near-total facial transplant and the fourth known facial transplant to have been successfully performed to date. "We need the face to face the world," said lead surgeon and researcher Maria Siemionow of the Cleveland Clinic. "There are so many patients there, in their houses, where they are hiding from the society because they are afraid to walk to the grocery stores. They are afraid to go to the streets, because they're called names, and they are humiliated. "So we very much hope that for this very special group of patients, there is a hope that one day they will be able to go comfortably from their houses and enjoy the things which we take for granted." Doctors released few details about the patient, save to say that she had been disfigured to the point where she could not eat or breathe on her own as a result of a traumatic injury several years ago which left her without a nose, right eye and upper jaw. The hospital said the woman, who did not wish to be identified, had exhausted all conventional reconstructive surgery. They hoped the operation would allow her to regain her sense of smell and ability to smile and said she had a "clear understanding" of the risks involved. The woman is doing well and showing no signs her body is rejecting the new face, doctors said. Facial transplants are controversial because they carry heavy risks and are performed to improve a patient's quality of life rather than as a life-saving operation. There are also concerns that the operation could eventually be used for purely cosmetic purposes or as a means of altering someone's identity. Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic stressed that such operations should be limited to a medical context in order to free severely disfigured people from the suffering associated with social isolation. "The relief of suffering is at the core of medical ethics, and provides abundant moral justification for this procedure," said the clinic's chair of bioethics Eric Kodish. "A person who has sustained trauma or other devastation to the face is generally isolated and suffers tremendously. The damage to the quality of life cannot even be put into words." Leading medical ethicist Arthur Caplan agreed that this suffering was sufficient to "risk possibly killing someone to improve their appearance for a better quality of life." "If there is nothing else to be done, it actually makes sense for them to take a risk that involves death," Caplan, the director of the center for bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania, told AFP. "It's ethically justifiable." Doctors in France performed the first partial face transplant in 2005 on a 38-year-old woman, Isabelle Dinoire, who was disfigured in a dog attack. In 2006, a Chinese man underwent a facial transplant including the connection of arteries and veins, and repair of the nose, lip and sinuses. A bear had mauled the 30-year-old farmer as he looked for stray sheep. A 29-year-old French man underwent surgery in 2007. He had a facial tumor called a neurofibroma caused by a genetic disorder. The tumor was so massive that the man couldn't eat or speak properly. The Cleveland Clinic became the first US hospital to approve the procedure four years ago. The latest operation was the first facial transplant known to have included bones, along with muscle, skin, blood vessels and nerves. "Multiple layers of tissue from the bone to the skin to the muscle, this all had to be - kind of like a jigsaw puzzle - fit into the appropriate position and put in," said plastic surgeon Daniel Alam. The woman received a nose, most of the sinuses around the nose, the upper jaw and even some teeth from a brain-dead donor. Doctors paid special attention to maintaining arteries, veins, and nerves, as well as soft tissue and bony structures, as they recovered the donor's facial tissue. The surgeons then connected facial graft vessels to the patient's blood vessels in order to restore blood circulation in the reconstructed face before connecting arteries, veins and nerves in the 22-hour procedure.

By Agence France-Presse PARIS -- Scientists have discovered a huge, gravity-sucking hole at the heart of our galaxy. The stunning observations, to be published later this month, offer the best proof yet that supermassive black holes -- among the most enigmatic and powerful forces in the universe -- really do exist. By tracking the orbit of 28 stars inside our own Milky Way for more than 16 years, scientists in Germany were able to trace the most detailed portrait ever obtained of these invisible monsters. Black holes are believed to be concentrated fields of gravity so powerful that nothing -- not even light -- can escape their grasp. The only way to perceive them is by observing their impact on neighboring celestial bodies. This one is known as Sagittarius A* (pronounced "A star"). "The stellar orbits in the Galactic Centre show that the central mass concentration of four million solar masses must be a black hole, beyond any reasonable doubt," Reinhard Genzel of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics near Munich, Germany said in a statement. One "solar mass" is equivalent to our Sun. Researchers were also able to calculate with far greater precision Earth's distance from the centre of the Galaxy: 27,000 light years. A light year is the distance light travels in a year, about 10 trillion kilometers (6 million miles). "The centre of the Galaxy is a unique laboratory where we can study the fundamental processes of strong gravity, stellar dynamics and star formation," Genzel said. Sagittarius A* give us the most detailed view we will ever have of a supermassive black hole because of its proximity to Earth, he said. The interstellar dust that fills the Galaxy blocks our direct view of the Milky Way's central region in visible light, so astronomers used infrared wavelengths to penetrate the dust. The position of the stars was measured with a precision six times greater than in previous studies, equivalent to seeing a coin from a distance of roughly 10,000 kilometers (6000 miles). Observations were made using the SHARP camera at the European Southern Observatory's New Technology Telescope in Chile, and instruments aboard ESO's Very Large Telescope. The research is to be published in an upcoming issue of The Astrophysical Journal.

By Anna Valmero INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines --WWF aims to convince over 10 million Filipinos to switch off lights on March 2009 in support of the organization’s call for action on climate change. Worldwide, the 2009 campaign aims to reach out over 1 billion people, of which 760 million is in the Asia-Pacific. “The year of 2009 is a special year for climate change. It is when all countries come at the Copenhagen meeting to decide the successor treaty to the Kyoto Protocol and set targets for greenhouse gas emissions to help reverse the effects of drastic climate change accelerated with human activities,” said David Valdes, WWF Philippines president and chief executive officer. “Earth Hour 2009 is a vote against climate change,” said Yeb Saño, WWF Philippines climate change and energy program head. The action is to call the attention of policymakers that people are aware and that authorities are needed to immediately act on the matter, he said. The Copenhagen meeting in 2009 will spell the big difference as policymakers draft a law that raises targets for carbon reduction and pressure countries like India, China and the United States to join the treaty, he said. Valdes said the Kyoto Protocol has not been very effective in curbing greenhouse gas emissions as developed countries like the United States have not ratified the bill. He added Kyoto Protocol targets are very low, when today the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is 50 percent above than the level in 1990. A consensus of 1,000 global scientists said 30 percent reduction in green house gases must be achieved. If greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced, sea levels will rise by 2050, posing danger to communities near the sea. “It would spell doom for the Philippines which is an archipelagic country,” said Saño. For 2009, WWF aims to have three metro cities -- Manila, Cebu and Davao -- shut off lights for one hour, along with the rest of the country. All SM malls, including the country’s largest Mall of Asia, will participate in the event. “It is notable smaller countries like us are the one active on taking action on the matter. Developed nations are always saying the targets are too high but we either act now or we pay the effects of global warming later,” said Saño. He said the current financial meltdown is not an excuse to take action because “at stake is the future of our planet.” Both Saño and Valdes lauded the recent passage of the Renewable Energy bill, which took 19 years in the making. They however said that local policy makers pass a law enforcing energy efficiency and energy conservation to be adopted across all sectors --from business to households. Both said it is also crucial the local government focus on projects like development of sustainable mass transportation and renewable energy sources to help reduce the country’s reliance on imported fossil fuels. Earlier in March 28 at 8:30 p.m., about 50 million worldwide participated in the initiative. About 76 cities in 62 countries, including nine cities in the Philippines, will join Earth Hour 2009. Cities in the country expected to participate include Manila, Cebu, Iloilo, Baguio, Davao, San Fernando, Puerto Princesa, Legaspi and Cagayan de Oro. In March 28, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., the cities of Pasay, Manila and Paramour switched off lights along the entire Roxas Boulevard seaside strip and Makati held its own. The whole province of Palawan and Tawi-Tawi also participated. The participation of over 1 million Filipinos helped save 80MWh of energy, of which 56MWh is savings in Luzon alone. The Earth Hour lights-out initiative started when over 2 million in Sydney in 2007 as public awareness campaign on curbing the effects of climate change.

By Agence France-Presse TOKYO -- A Japanese research team said Thursday it had created a technology that could eventually display on a computer screen what people have on their minds, such as dreams. Researchers at the ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories succeeded in processing and displaying images directly from the human brain, they said in a study unveiled ahead of publication in the US magazine Neuron. While the team for now has managed to reproduce only simple images from the brain, they said the technology could eventually be used to figure out dreams and other secrets inside people's minds. "It was the first time in the world that it was possible to visualise what people see directly from the brain activity," the private institute said in a statement. "By applying this technology, it may become possible to record and replay subjective images that people perceive like dreams." When people look at an object, the eye's retina recognises an image that is converted into electrical signals which go into the brain's visual cortex. The team, led by chief researcher Yukiyasu Kamitani, succeeded in catching the signals and then reconstructing what people see. In their experiment, the researchers showed people the six letters in the word "neuron" and then succeeded in reconstructing the letters on a computer screen by measuring their brain activity. The team said that it first figured out people's individual brain patterns by showing them some 400 different still images.

THE prestigious scientific publication Science Magazine has featured the Philippines' establishment of strong science, research and development programs through coordination among government offices, science and engineering firms. The story, "Philippines Plans Research Revival" written by Dennis Normile also cited the activities of the Congressional Commission on Science and Technology and Engineering (COMSTE) in its December issue. COMSTE is part of major initiative of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and members of Congress under Senator Edgardo Angara and Cavite Representative Joseph Abaya. The Science Magazine article highlighted the “Balik Scientist” program of the DOST, which encourages repatriation of Filipino scientists and engineers by offering them positions in the country's science and technology communities. The article also featured heads of science and engineering departments, such as DOST Secretary Estrella Alabastro, COMSTE Executive Director Fortunato de la Peña and Mapua Institute of Technology President Reynaldo Vea. Returnee Filipino doctor Edsel Salvana was also cited in the article. Salvana graduated from the University of the Philippines but worked abroad, particularly in the Medical College of Wisconsin and Case Western Reserve University.

By Richard Ingham Agence France-Presse POZNAN -- With political efforts to tackle global warming advancing slower than a Greenland glacier, schemes for saving Earth's climate system that once were dismissed as crazy or dangerous are gaining in status. Negotiating a multilateral treaty on curbing greenhouse gases is being so outstripped by the scale of the problem that those promoting a deus ex-machina -- a technical fix that would at least gain time -- are getting a serious hearing. To the outsider, these ideas to manipulate the climate may look as if they are inspired by science fiction. They include sucking carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the air by sowing the oceans with iron dust that would spur the growth of surface plankton. The microscopic plants would gobble up CO2 as they grow, and when they die, their carbon remains would slowly sink to the bottom of the sea, effectively storing the carbon forever. Another idea, espoused by chemist Paul Crutzen, who won the 1995 Nobel Prize for his work on the ozone shield, is to scatter masses of sulphur dioxide particles in the stratosphere. Swathing the world at high altitude, these particles would reflect sunlight, lowering the temperature by a precious degree or thereabouts. More ambitious still is an idea, conceived by respected University of Arizona astronomer Roger Angel, to set up an array of deflecting lenses at a point between Earth and the Sun. Like a sunshade, they would reduce the solar heat striking the planet. Put forward in various forums and magazines, these so-called geo-engineering proposals have been dismissed by science's mainstream as a distraction or crackpot, with the risk of further damaging the biosphere. And even if such schemes are safe, they could cost many times more than reducing the heat-trapping pollution from fossil fuels that causes the problem, say these voices. But as the enormity of the problem looms ever larger, geo-engineering is shedding its untouchable status. "The notion of deploying geo-engineering research and even commercializing geo-engineering is enjoying a level of respectability in science policy circles that would have been unthinkable even three years ago," says Jim Thomas of Canadian-based watchdog group, ETC. One reason is "the level of panic" surrounding greenhouse-gas levels, which are growing at around three percent a year and are now more than a third greater than before the Industrial Revolution, says Thomas. Another, he suggests, is "an astonishing switch" by former climate skeptics and conservative lobby groups in the United States. After years of denial or contestation, these powerful forces have now suddenly accepted that global warming is a problem. They have seized on geo-engineering as a solution that would make it unnecessary to slap costly curbs on big polluters, he argues. The scientific establishment is still far from endorsing geo-engineering. Indeed, the UN's Nobel-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in its landmark fourth assessment report last year, cautioned of the potential risk and unquantified cost of such schemes. All the same, geo-engineering is now getting a serious look by scientists and several names are cautiously saying it would be worthwhile to at least launch small-scale experiments to see how they pan out. This year, Britain's de-facto academy of sciences, the Royal Society, raised eyebrows when one of its journals published geo-engineering papers, which were balanced by a review by a top climatologist, Stephen Schneider of Stanford University. The Royal Society is carrying out its own analysis of geo-engineering, although it also makes clear that this act is not a sign of its approval. The report will be published in the first half of 2009. In an interview with AFP on the sidelines of the UN climate talks here, IPCC chief Rajendra Pachauri agreed geo-engineering "is getting a closer hearing, and you are getting people who are very respectable advocating it in several cases." "But the very fact that it's undergoing scrutiny is a good sign, because [it reveals] all the implications and all the side effects that you might be saddled with," he said. David Santillo, a senior scientist with the Greenpeace Research Laboratories at the University of Exeter, southwestern England, said scrutiny is fine, but it should not be taken as acceptance. "There is a danger that the more these things get talks about, the more people assume that there is some inherent legitimacy with the proposals that are being put forward. That simply is not the case," said Santillo.

By Agence France-Presse CHICAGO -- Scientists have discovered a more efficient way of building a synthetic genome that could one day enable them to create artificial life, according to a study released Wednesday. The method is already being used to help develop next generation biofuels and biochemicals in the labs of controversial celebrity US scientist Craig Venter. Venter has hailed artificial life forms as a potential remedy to illness and global warming, but the prospect is highly controversial and arouses heated debate over its potential ramifications and the ethics of engineering artificial life. Artificially engineered life is one of the Holy Grails of science, but also stirs deep fears as foreseen in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel "Brave New World" in which natural human reproduction is eschewed in favor of babies grown in laboratories. The J. Craig Venter Institute succeeded in synthetically reproducing the DNA of a simple bacteria last year. The researchers had initially used the bacteria e. coli to build the genome, but found it was a tedious, multi-stage process and that e. coli had difficulty reproducing large DNA segments. They eventually tried using a type of yeast called Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This enabled them to finish creating the synthetic genome using a method called homologous recombination, a process that cells naturally use to repair damage to their chromosomes. They then began to explore the capacity for DNA assembly in yeast, which turned out to be a "genetic factory," the Institute said in a statement Wednesday. The researchers inserted relatively short segments of DNA fragments into yeast cells through homologous recombination method. They found they were able to build the entire genome in one step, according to the study set to be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "We continue to be amazed by the capacity of yeast to simultaneously take up so many DNA pieces and assemble them into genome-size molecules," said lead author Daniel Gibson. "This capacity begs to be further explored and extended and will help accelerate progress in applications of synthetic genomics." Senior author Clyde Hutchison added, "I am astounded by our team's progress in assembling large DNA molecules. It remains to be seen how far we can push this yeast assembly platform but the team is hard at work exploring these methods as we work to boot up the synthetic chromosome." Venter and his team continue to work towards creating a living bacterial cell using the synthetic genome sequence of the Mycoplasma genitalium bacteria. The bacteria, which causes certain sexually transmitted diseases, has one of the least complex DNA structures of any life form, composed of just 580 genes. In contrast, the human genome has some 30,000. Using the genetic sequence of this bacteria, the Maryland-based team has created a chromosome known as Mycoplasma laboratorium. They are working on developing a way to transplant this chromosome into a living cell and stimulate it to take control and effectively become a new life form.

By Anna Valmero Environmental group Greenpeace Philippines brought and lit a solar-powered lantern at the Senate of the Philippines in celebration of the passage of the Renewable Energy Bill. Senator Miguel Zubiri received the six-foot tall (six-meter in diameter) lantern from Greenpeace members. “This is a parol that is totally off-the-grid as it spearheads the use of renewable energy for it to be lit,” said Zubiri, as he lauded the effort of Greenpeace to design and bring the lantern to their office. He said the lantern shows people can have power coming from green energy sources. Zubiri said the lantern would be placed outside the canopy side of the Senate building until end of December. The lantern is made of rattan and is adorned with over 60 meters of yellow and green light emitting diodes (LEDS). Amalie Obusan, climate campaigner of Greenpeace Philippines, said they used LEDS because they are more power-efficient light sources than ordinary Christmas light bulbs. Two solar panels are used to run the LEDs installed in the lantern. The panels are attached to four batteries, which stores a total of 100 amperes of electricity. The batteries are then attached to a 1,000 -watt inverter which converts the stored energy to 12V of power, which lights the lantern. “The lantern is a reminder to our senators that renewable energy is the clear answer, the true hope, for a secure future free from severe impacts of climate change,” Obusan said. She said the passage of the renewable energy bill is laudable but stressed the need for the government to commit to climate change mitigation efforts. This activity is part of the official Global Day of Action for the Climate celebration slated on December 6. This year, the celebration coincides with the United Nations climate meeting in Poland.

By Anna Valmero Necessity is the mother of invention. For Antonio Mateo, he invented the "Direct Rainwater Catchment System Module" to help solve the impending water shortage in the country over the next five years, specifically potable water. Mateo said the lack of clean drinking water has been a problem for kids in remote areas who do not have the convenience to buy distilled water from purifying stations. He cited how kids from the mountains, like the recent death cases in Baler, die from drinking unsafe water. Most of the kids in the mountains do not even reach the age of five, he lamented. Having been involved in water system technology development for 20 years, he said it is imperative to invent a module that will allow Filipinos to access clean water resources, especially rainwater. The use of rainwater even at 50 percent utilization would allow savings and would secure surface and groundwater sources, said Mateo. Using the module, demand on fresh water needs supplied by utility companies in urban areas or by groundwater wells and streams in rural areas will be reduced. His family, for instance, uses rainwater for 80 percent of its total water supply for household use over five years now. “Rainwater harvesting is a method of collecting, storing and processing rainwater for human consumption and use,” said Mateo. It allows the provision of fresh water at or near the point of its use, such as the individual household, farm, industrial and commercial establishment. The concept is nothing new; rain harvesting has been used a long time ago, said Mateo. “Rainwater harvesting seeks to put rainwater to good use rather than be wasted through floods or natural runoff,” he said. He mentioned that the perennial rains in the Philippines can help supply water in many areas, thus benefiting people. Mateo said that rainwater passes 14 out of the 16 parameters of potable water. Rainwater just needs to address two factors -- reduction of acidity and purification from disease-causing microorganisms -- for it to be potable, Mateo said. According to Mateo, the rainwater becomes non-potable because when it falls on catchments such as roof, it usually washes adhering pollutants such as, dirt, soot, insect and animal manures -- which all goes into the rainwater storage tanks or cisterns causing microbiological contamination. Added to these are dissolved solids in the atmosphere that initially comes with the first rainfalls. To extend the use of rainwater for drinking, Mateo said the module can purify rainwater of sediments using different layers of ceramic filtration and remove, if not kill disease-causing microorganisms, such as E. Coli via a purifying chamber with non-pathogenic solution. In rural areas, the purifying chamber can be replaced with malunggay seeds, Mateo said. The seeds are disinfecting and cleansing agent. Through three stages of rainwater purification of the module, he said rainwater can be used for watering plants and irrigation, bathing and flushing toilets and finally drinking. Mateo said the rainwater harvesting industry will grow over the next five years. Currently, he is looking for suppliers who can mass-produce the module design. He built the prototype with P100,000 budget. Future plans for enhancement of the module include operation of the catchment’s roof by hydraulics or pneumatics, which can spread out when humidity changes as detected by sensors.

By Izah Morales Was there a time that you wish to spend class outside the classroom? Now, you don’t have to sit and feel sleepy while listening to an hour and a half lecture of ecology in class. The Eco-Academy at the La Mesa Ecopark brings learning outside the classroom. “Nature is your classroom. You’re involved in the activities not only in lectures. You learn from your surroundings. What you learn is how nature works,” said Antonio de Castro, environmental advocate and one of the members of the Eco-Academy Project Development team.
Elizabeth Protacio-De Castro, associate professor of the Department of Psychology at the University of the Philippines Diliman, described learning in the Eco-Academy as interactive and hands-on. Each activity is accompanied by a module. The modules include watershed, basic organic planting and gardening, waste management, vermiculturing and composting, organic farming, rice planting, global warming, climate change and biodiversity conservation. “The distinct facility is the La Mesa resource. Not all universities can provide an education on how to conserve a watershed. By coming to La Mesa, you understand how important water is,” added Marianita Girlie Villariba, resident gender educator of Education for Life. According to Protacio-de Castro, inculcating deep respect and appreciation for nature is key to other values. “The grace and beauty of God’s creation is most perfectly found in nature. If the students can learn this, all of the other values will come -- the caring the sharing, the nurturing,” said Protacio-de Castro. During the launch of the Eco-Academy multi-purpose hall, Congresswoman Ana Rosa Susano called for global environmental awareness among the youth. “We need to explore more knowledge on how to keep the environment healthy and to be more aware of the pollution not only in the city but all over the world,” said Susano. Aside from the experiential learning from the Eco-Academy, the La Mesa Ecopark also features the electronic jeepneys from the Department of Tourism (DOT), which would serve as a green vehicle for visitors. “Having electronic jeepneys will allow them to see these new technologies that we can use so that there is a balance between development and environmental protection,” said Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano. The La Mesa Ecopark has recorded 148, 437 student visitors from 804 schools nationwide in 2006 and 2007. Bantay Kalikasan established the Eco-Academy to further environmental awareness through education and advocacy. It hopes to operate the academy by first quarter of 2009.