as we move toward urbanization, montreal is a leading city when it comes to this type of innovation. while traveling the city, there are many examples of architecture that have adopted new, green practices, but one of the most striking lies in parc frederic-back.

located in the north-west corner of the city, parc frederic-back is a beautiful piece of urban greenery that spans over 350 acres. this park lies in the middle of the saint-michel environmental complex, the green space is being utilized in a unique way. the park lies on top of the remains of a former quarry and landfill site. creating green space on any old landfill is a win for environmentalists. the most notable aspect of the park are the hundreds of biogas-capturing spheres that dot the land. not only do the spheres collect gas from the earth that is then turned into sustainable energy, they also glow in the dark.

the land has an interesting history tied to it. it has not always been a beloved, manicured green space. its original form was as a limestone quarry for 60 years. it was not loved by the saint-michael community, the neighborhood it is located in. the surrounding residents hated the deafening blows into the earth, and numerous quarry accidents angered them. local protests took place to end work at the quarry. the cries for change were heard, and in 1988 the city of montreal acquired the land from the miron family. it was not yet acquired to be made into a park. according to the city of montreal, it was turned from quarry to landfill by the city, and until 1995 it collected the city’s garbage. during the 90’s, it’s environmental transformation took place. during the renovation, the city called it the “most ambitious environmental rehabilitation project ever undertaken” in an urban area in north america, as reported by the cbc.

one of the first steps to creating an eco-friendlier space was creating a recycling center. the waste treatment and disposal centre was created. then, came the most notable aspect of the park, the alien-like spheres that define the land. montreal-based architecture firms, lemay and morelli, designed the balls for the urban rehabilitation. they created 250 spheres to collect the methane gas that is still being emitted from the remains of the landfill below the surface. about 40 tons of garbage from the landfill still generates fumes and is collected, according to world architecture. from there, the cbc article explains the gazmont power station starts converting into electricity biogas extracted from production wells, which is then sold to hydro-quebec.

the spheres are not only proof of montreal’s dedication to environmentally friendly and sustainable urban planning, but they were created with park-goers in mind. they are safe to be around, and they are interactive. they collect light from the sun on their fiberglass surface, and at night they give off a soft, green glow. when a light source at night, such as a park-goer waving a flashlight, runs across its surface, a multi-colored bright light follows the pattern drawn on by the person. it leaves behind the drawn light pattern and impresses novice flashlight artists. 

marrying an old landfill and a popular park may seem counterintuitive, but the collaboration has created a unique, beloved park in the middle of the saint-michael neighborhood. the transformation of this former brownfield is a feat for the city of montreal, and an example as other cities push to create more urban green spaces. 

if you’ve ever seen a viral doomsday movie, you’ll know that microbes are able to evolve and adapt to their environments very quickly. this is partly due to their quick growth, and partly due to the fact that they can actively pass “good” genes to other microbes around them. however, their adaptation skills can be manipulated in a positive way. their rapid evolutionary growth also allows scientists to engineer ordinary microbes to do extraordinary things for the environment.

here are five ways microbes can help us be more sustainable:

recycling efficiency

as bacteria assimilate to a plastic filled world, some have evolved enzymes that break down the chemicals in common plastic and turn it into food. ideonella sakaiensis is able to break down a thin film of pet plastic in a little over six weeks. these bacteria are so easy to find that even 16 year olds have isolated certain strands of plastic eating bacteria that decompose a toxic plasticizer.

however, this doesn’t mean it’s now ok the throw your plastic water bottle into the ocean. more genetic research must be done to make the enzymes strong enough to break down plastic in larger amounts. yet, it does give hope for making our recycling practices more efficient.

electricity generation

renewable energy isn’t always clean, in the literal sense of the word. in biogas generators, specialized methanobacterium thrive in vats of cow manure and organic field waste. these are the same bacteria found in the stomachs of ruminants, which produce methane gas through anaerobic digestion. methane is generally regarded as bad for the environment, but when captured it can be used as a substitution for energy from natural gas. it’s basically composting on steroids.

in germany, microbes produced 50 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2015. that’s enough to power 500 billion incandescent light bulbs, which is almost 6,000 times the entire population of germany.

carbon dioxide fixation

through a process called carbon fixation, microbes are able to metabolize greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and store them as sugar in plant matter. the most common microbes that do this are called mycorrhizal fungi, which live in symbiosis with plant roots to store up to 70 percent of organic carbon from leaf litter.

scientists are beginning to understand how to nurture plants with specific fungi to maximize carbon fixation. through specialized mycorrhizal fungi partnerships with trees, canada is already burying 20 mtco2e per year, which is the carbon equivalent of almost 22,000 pounds of coal burned.

pollution cleanup

scientists are able to ‘program’ bacteria to break down heavy metal pollutants in contaminated soils through a process called bioremediation. this process can be done on-site, and the products are usually harmless – carbon dioxide, water, and cellular biomass.

the practice is fairly common, and it is used to remedy pollution from industrial waste in groundwater to large oil spills. dechloromonas aromatica is used to break down benzene, a common ground and surface water contaminant, while pseudomonas putida is used for the bioremediation of naphthalene, a product of petroleum refining.

fertilizing crops

droughts, flooding, and temperature changes are all common symptoms of climate change. however, research shows that soil bacteria controls a large part of crop drought resistance and growth efficiency. bacillus sp. and paenibacillus sp. microbes most likely have contributed to plant adaptation in harsh conditions, such as dry mountainsides, by aiding in resource acquisition. the efficiency of a plant’s resource acquisition lies heavily on water uptake, so using these microbes on crops can have similar drought resistant effects.

initiatives in africa explore the use of a nitrogen fixing bacterium that would help plants with the uptake of nitrogen, the limiting nutrient in most crops. the program involved more than 230,000 small farmers in 11 different countries. using natural microbes to fertilize makes crop efficiency practices more accessible throughout areas hit hard by climate change.

in many cases microbes are already helping the planet in underrated ways. technological developments and advanced genetic engineering make microbiological innovation a major player in climate change mitigation.

ecovolt helps industrial beverage producers, particularly breweries, wineries, as well as food processing plants, generate energy from their wastewater streams, decreasing their carbon footprint & turning environmental liabilities into sources of revenue.

faisalabad, the third largest city in pakistan, has begun developing 10 biogas plants this november, under the supervision of pakistan domestic biogas programme (pdbp). these plants will have the capacity to hold 50 to 100 meters of biogas and will be used to generate electricity. in the united states, the american biogas council signed a contract with envitec biogas, a german-based company, to begin plant development in new york. 

_{originally posted december 27, 2010}

lets make learning about the environment a less dreadful process and lets think about creative ways we can get our point across to different crowds. very few environmental videos i watch make a lasting impression on me, so this was my attempt to make an impression on you. i think its time to explore other ways we can communicate the importance, the possibilities and the beauty of saving the earth. working with mother nature is one of the most pure ways to live your life. how our species decided the earth comes second to our greeds and needs is beyond me. i would be lying if i told you i never littered or left the water running when i brushed my teeth, but i try and thats all we can make people do. i encourage you to make a conscious effort to be a more conservative user as well as explore new resources such as cow manure. before the internet, a bunch of environmentalist activist got together an decided they needed to make a holiday for the earth. they promoted through word of mouth, drawings, posters and any way they could. today we have more way to reach people then ever, we just have to figure out how to use the tools we have. the enviromental revolution these activist started is still in effect today, we are the next generation. this is the first of many enviromental videos, blogs, comedy skits, road-trips and movies to come. stay tuned