Good News for Planet Earth
With the recent sad demise of RedCycle in Australia putting a damper on things, we decided to research some happier environmental news stories! We have collated our favourite initiatives of 2023 so far, on what is being done to make the world a better place.
Read on for our favourite happy environmental news stories:
- Rain Triggered Self-burying Seed Carrier: Scientists have developed a new biodegradable seed carrier design, this clever little device drills seeds into the ground to help them grow! These seeds can be dropped from a drone (aerial seeding) and used to reforest large or inaccessible areas post-fire, or to restore wildlands.
When a seed lies on the surface, it can be damaged by weather conditions or eaten by wildlife, resulting in low germination rates. The seed carrier has three coiled tails attached, which unwind when moistened and can carry seeds as large as those of whitebark pine trees. The seed carriers had an 80% success rate of getting seeds into the ground on flat land, reducing the risk of them blowing away or being eaten by animals.
2. Notpla: edible food packaging made from seaweed, that can be used to replace plastic for things like juice, ketchup sachets and water. They saved 36,000 disposable plastic cups from being used in the London marathon with their edible ‘Notpla Ooho’; it’s essentially an edible water bubble. Seaweed is highly renewable as it is fast growing and doesn’t require freshwater or fertiliser.
3. Australia is to make an area the size of Germany into a marine park in the Southern Ocean. The plan is to triple the size of Macquarie Island protection zone to shield ‘remote wildlife wonderland’. The island between Tasmania and Antarctica is home to many seabirds, penguins and seals, and forms an important feeding and breeding ground.
Species including royal penguins, southern rockhopper penguins, subantarctic fur seals, southern elephant seals, black-browed albatrosses and grey petrels will be protected. The expansion would also increase the amount of protected area in Australia’s oceans to 48.2%.
