by Andrew Leonard
[Originally published on Salon.com]
According to the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, the gas sulfur hexafluoride, commonly employed to clean reactors in silicon production, is considered by the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change to be "the most potent greenhouse gas per molecule; one ton of sulfur hexafluoride has a greenhouse effect equivalent to that of 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide."
The manufacturing of solar power panels consumes a lot of silicon, presenting us with a nasty paradox. If solar power production is ramped up as part of a global effort to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions produced by burning fossil fuels, the chances of accidental releases of sulfur hexafluoride in the silicon production process will only increase, which, says the SVTC, could "greatly undermine the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions gained by using solar power."
January 18, 2012 - The Sewage Sludge Action Network - a project of the Center for Community Alternatives - is currently recruiting interns to assist the organization move forward with a number of initiatives related to protecting human and biological health from sewage sludge hazards. Students at Duke and Carolina are encouraged to apply. Please