The Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch

Ever wonder where all the ocean garbage goes?

Research Teams Spend the Summer picking Through the "Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch"

By

Larry Greenemeier

60-Second Science Blog

It isn't the most picturesque of locations, but a number of scientists spent their summer taking in the 25.9-million-square-kilometer oval of the Pacific Ocean known as the North Subtropical Gyre, or "Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch," located about 1,600 kilometers off California's coast. The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) Environmental Accumulation of Plastic Expedition's (SEAPLEX) research vessel (R/V) New Horizon returned to California earlier this week after spending about three weeks studying pools of plastic debris that have collected in the gyre, in particular their impact on marine life.

Scripps researchers engaged in 24-hour sampling periods using a variety of tow nets to collect debris at several ocean depths. On August 11, the researchers encountered a large net entwined with plastic and various marine organisms; they also recovered several plastic bottles covered with ocean animals, including large barnacles. "We targeted the highest plastic-containing areas so we could begin to understand the scope of the problem," Miriam Goldstein of SIO, chief scientist of the expedition, said in a statement. "We also studied everything from phytoplankton to zooplankton to small midwater fish."

Earlier this month, a team of researchers from the Algalita Marine Research Foundation in Long Beach, Calif., returned from its own two-month voyage to the garbage patch, aboard the 15-meter Ocean Research Vessel, Alguita. Scuba instructor and underwater videographer Drew Wheeler traveled on board Alguita and blogged about his experiences for Scientific American.com.

Wheeler's conclusion: "We must stop this from getting worse by reducing or eliminating the use of non biodegradable plastic for disposable products and product packaging. If the increasing rate of plastic in the ocean does not change, then I do not see how we can avoid catastrophic changes in the health of our marine ecosystem and, as a result, to human life itself."

It's Starting.........

Trend Watch: Statewide Ban On Landfilling Plastic Bottles, Electronics, And More

by

John Laumer, Philadelphia

08.27.09

Somehow I had missed the trend of State government forcing recycling rates up on specific materials by banning landfill disposal. The Daily Southerner reports that a local "tip" in North Carolina, Edgecombe County Landfill, soon will no longer accept items that citizens and businesses are accustomed to tossing: wooden pallets; plastic bottles; used oil, yard trash, antifreeze, aluminum cans, whole scrap tires, lead acid batteries and oyster shells. Oyster shells. Who knew that was even an issue?

By 2011 the tip will also be banning disposal of electronic devices.

Per the Southerner story Plastic bottles, oil filters, wooden pallets on landfills’ new banned items list there are advantages to the new approach:

The state ban on disposing of those materials "will save space in the landfills, and it will help with the recycling part" of Edgecombe County's public utility, County Landfill Director Danny Bagley said.

What state is next?

Couple Brings a New Food Service Franchise to Long Island

by

Bernadette Starzee

Long Island Business News

Published: August 20, 2009

Laura Jankowski, a school social worker, and her husband, Walter, who worked in a car dealership and bartended part-time, were looking to start their own business and decided a franchise was the prudent way to go.

“We wanted it to be our own, but we wanted the support of a franchise that had proven to be successful,” Laura Jankowski said. Because of her husband’s background in the restaurant industry, they looked closely at food service. “We were looking to bring something unique to Long Island, that there was a need for,” she said.

In their extensive research, the couple discovered Tropical Smoothie Café, a 12-year-old franchise that now has about 280 locations. After dining in a restaurant while on vacation in Virginia, and then visiting the corporate headquarters in Destin, Fla., the Jankowskis were sold.

“It was a healthy alternative to fast food,” Laura Jankowski said, noting there were few similar options on Long Island. “And I liked how the corporate office treated its franchisees like family.”

Tropical Smoothie Café doesn’t only sell smoothies, although a menu of 40-plus smoothies accounts for about 50 percent of the Jankowskis’ business. The chain also serves up sandwiches, wraps, salads and soups, in an attractive setting with tropical décor.

The couple bought the rights to become area developers for Suffolk County in 2005 and then opened a Tropical Smoothie Café location in East Northport in June 2006.

Three locations have been opened by franchisees since, in Selden, Huntington Station and Centereach. In December 2008, the Jankowskis bought the development rights for Nassau County, as well.

As area developers, the Jankowskis have the rights and responsibilities to develop the Long Island market and provide store opening, operations and marketing support to all franchisees in that market. In exchange, they evenly split the royalties from those locations with Tropical Smoothie Café corporate.

“Ultimately, we would like to see at least 20 more cafés in their territory,” said Mike Rotondo, vice president of operations for the Tropical Smoothie Franchise Development Corp.

The total investment associated with opening a Tropical Smoothie Café franchise ranges from $254,000 to $385,000, which includes build-out, equipment, initial food and supplies and the franchise fee of $25,000. According to Laura Jankowski, the East Northport location and the area-development business have already become profitable. Tropical Smoothie posts a listing of weekly sales at its locations. The East Northport location and two of the three other local franchises consistently fall within the top 50, Jankowski said. Since nine weeks after it opened in March 2008, the Selden location has nabbed the top one or two spot week after week.

“The Selden location is in a shopping center with about 40 stores, so people come to the center for a lot of reasons,” Laura Jankowski said, noting that proximity to certain co-tenants, such as Weight Watchers and a gym, has been particularly helpful.

According to Rotondo, every site that a franchisee submits for approval is evaluated against 150 different metrics. “It is a very detailed program that takes several days to complete and takes the emotion out of making the best decision possible when it comes to selecting the right location,” he said.

To reach out to potential franchisees, the Jankowskis attend two annual trade shows as well as special events sponsored by WBLI, the radio station. However, franchisee candidates most commonly are customers that come into the store.

Two percent of sales for the Tropical Smoothie Cafe Long Island locations goes into a cooperative fund for local marketing (an additional percent goes toward national marketing). “The Suffolk County store owners meet once a month to discuss advertising and event sponsorship,” Jankowski said. The stores participate in National Flip Flop Day, a popular chainwide event, each June. In this event, which is promoted with print and radio advertising, the first 500 people who come in wearing flip flops get a free smoothie, with some of the proceeds going to a charity.

Walter Jankowski works on-site at the East Northport location, which also employs 18 part-time workers and an assistant manager. Laura Jankowski handles the financial side of the business.
While the eatery draws customers of all ages, most fall between 15 and 40. “We have recently started a Kids Eat Free on Sundays to appeal more to families with young children,” Laura Jankowski said.

How Long Island Is Setting the Standard for "Going Green"

If you have been watching the news or reading the paper, you're sure to have noticed that the latest trend is "going green." Various industries have been making news by "going green." Computer companies such as Hewlett Packard, car companies like BMW and giants including General Electric have all decided to join the "green" movement. It was only a matter of time before the real-estate industry caught on. But what do all those pictures of flowers, lakes and crystal clear skies mean?

In simple terms, "going green" means reducing the amount of energy and natural resources being consumed. In the real estate industry, the largest expenditure of energy and natural resources is office buildings. According to the U.S. Green Building Council, each day in the United States office buildings account for 42% of total energy consumption, 65% of electricity consumption, 40% of greenhouse gas emissions, 30% of both raw materials waste and landfill waste and 12% of potable water consumption. "The energy you use to light the space that you're in, the computer itself, the heating and cooling systems, all those systems are running," says Bob Rose of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency."

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that if each building owner took on the challenge to become green, by 2015, Americans would reduce the greenhouse gas emissions by amounts equal to the emissions from 15 million vehicles, while saving $10 billion. These undeniable facts and statistics jumped off the pages and inspired change through action. Some of the largest names in Long Island real estate have taken huge leaps in an effort to be more "green." From developers to landlords, Long Island has put itself on the map when it comes to "going green."

In 2003, Russell Albanese of the Albanese Organization together with Castagna Realty, the owner of Americana Manhasset shopping center, ventured to modernize an existing office building into the first green office building on Long Island. 1001 Franklin Ave. in Garden City set the standard for green buildings and revolutionized the future of Long Island's commercial structures. The building features recycled and natural materials including stone floors and recycled furniture fabric. Rainwater is collected and stored in a 5,000 gallon tank in the basement supplying water to irrigate the landscaping of the building. A state-of-the-art HVAC system reduces power use and features a high-quality filtration system designed to catch dust, pollen and impurities. The paints and adhesives used throughout the building are also environmentally responsible. Even the cleaners used to keep up the building are ammonia free and peroxide-based instead of chlorine
reducing the amount of pollutants being emitted into the air. Every detail of 1001 Franklin Ave. is carefully designed to minimize the building's environmental impact.

Since 2003, many of Long Island's landlords have been making similar upgrades and changes to their buildings' structure and function.

Long Island realizes that it is equally as important to build a green building as it is to operate it responsibly. Strict recycling programs have been implemented in buildings such as 600 Old Country Rd., owned by Vincent and Michael Polimeni. In addition to the new recycling program, new burners have also been installed to alleviate energy use. Improvements to existing structures are the key to ensuring an
environmentally conscious Long Island.

Aside from implementing changes to existing structures and building new office buildings from scratch, Long Island has been flooded with new ideas on how to solve the dilemma of environmental sustainability. Vincent Polimeni has proposed building a tunnel to connect Syosset on Long Island's north shore and Rye in Westchester County. The proposed project will save an estimated 24 million gallons of gas per year and reduce air pollution by 16.7% throughout the entire North Eastern region. Donald Trump has proposed building a green restaurant to replace the recently demolished Boardwalk Restaurant in Jones Beach.

RexCorp's Scott Rechler continues to introduce energy saving technologies in office building construction on Long Island. Rechler is also one of many Long Island developers who contribute to scholarship funds aimed at promoting a new generation of forward thinking Long Islanders.

With thousands of commercial properties on Long Island, the opportunities to build green are limitless. Revolutionary thinkers and ideas are the key to promoting a healthy and sustainable environment. Long Island's future depends on innovative thinkers. Judging by the recent surge of environmental initiatives, commercial real estate on Long Island is sure to flourish in a responsible way.