6/17/13

6/17/13, 9:00pm, Taiyuan

This morning we went to a coal museum in Taiyuan. We had a guided tour around the museum and we learned about all the different uses for coal. There were a lot of figurines carved out of coal! I also learned about how there are different grades of coal. They rank them using percentages. The plaques next to the exhibits showed percentages of outputs (pollutants) as well as how much energy is produces. So you want a type of coal that has low percentages of pollutants and a high percentage of energy output. We also took a simulation coal cart through a fake coalmine to get an idea of what the coalmines looked like. I know coalmines are extremely dangerous though, so hopefully that exhibit doesn’t give people the idea that it is safe.

After the coal museum we drove to Hougou Village. This village had similarities to Wangwenling, but was slightly different. The architecture of the buildings was obviously very different. Many of the buildings were very old with what I think of when I think of traditional Chinese architecture. They showed us that their drainage system goes below ground and they have tunnels for it. This is so when you walk through the village you do not see the drainage system. Some of the roofs in this village had the same water funneling system that we saw in Wangwenling. The layout of the village was really interesting because there is a front gate you have to go through and then you can’t see the rest of the village from the front because of a mountain. In order to see the rest of the city, you have to go through the gate and up around a hill. It was really pretty because the houses are all on different levels so there are stone paths weaving in between buildings. A lot of the buildings were also very cool inside because the material regulates temperature. We went into a cave that was in one of the homes and it felt like it was air-conditioned. This seems like a great way to save energy!

6/16/13

6/16/13, 9:00pm, Taiyuan

This morning we took a bullet train to Taiyuan from Beijing. Taiyuan is in the province Shanxi, which is on the Loess Plateau. Once we got here we checked into our hotel and then took a bus to Wangwenling, a small village of about 200 people on the Loess Plateau. The plateau once had really dense forests but is now very bare, and is used for growing sorghum. Because of deforestation, there has been a lot of erosion in the area. This is detrimental to the surrounding communities because when soil erodes, the nutrients and minerals wash away with the water and what is left is really weak soil that is not good for crops. This is how the Yellow River got its name. There is now sediment that changes the color of the water. 

While there, we climbed through some of the hills and did soil testing for erosion. We took samples from high, medium, and low vegetation areas. For the low vegetation, we took a piece of soil from the side of the hill where it looks like the soil is most prone to eroding in rain. The sample only scored a 3 because much of the soil dissolved into the water when we did the test. The soil surrounding trees did not erode a lot, which shows that reforestation is a very worthwhile effort because while it reduces erosion by holding onto the soil, it also restores it. 

Visiting the village was extremely valuable because I’ve never been anywhere like it before. There were a lot of sustenance farms around; I believe every home had a little farm outside. We also saw some donkeys, goats, sheep, chickens, and dogs. The dogs are used mainly as guard dogs. As we got close to the houses most of them started to growl at us! To dispose of garbage, some things are pushed over ledges nearby their homes. I heard someone say that once a week they burn all of their trash. This is bad for the environment especially if they have anything plastic to burn.

We had dinner at the Village Head’s house and the food was fantastic! I love Chinese food more each day. There were different types of tofu with many vegetables. We watched one of the women hand roll little noodles out of dough for us. Everything they gave us was delicious and extremely fresh. I’m assuming most of the food served was relatively local – they probably have local markets that they go to for food. Some of what was served may have come straight from their garden. I learned that in Chinese culture, it makes the host feel bad if all the food is finished. They worry that they did not provide enough food! So if someone keeps finishing their plates, they will keep bringing them more food! This is completely opposite of American culture, because many people think it is rude not to finish all of the food provided. But Chinese people feel rude if they did not provide enough food. I think this old tradition is starting to change, however, because food is becoming scarcer with population growth and land loss. 

This area is also extremely dry, so water is valued. To wash our hands before dinner we all shared a bucket of water with a bar of soap. It was clear that water is scarce just by looking around because most of the soil was dry and crumbly. They also integrate this need to collect water into their architecture. Many of the roofs are sloped with holes in the top so the rainwater can be collected into a bucket. Much of the large-scale farming takes place on terraced land. This is when the farmers flatten out sections of hills to make it suitable for farming. There were plots of crops all over the mountains using this method.

6/15/13

6/15/13, 11:00pm, The Beijing Center

This morning I went to The Summer Palace with a group of students. The architecture was really similar to The Forbidden City, but the feel of the area was completely different. There was nature incorporated everywhere and it was very peaceful. Aside from the garden, there was not nature integrated into the main areas of The Forbidden City. 

After The Summer Palace, I went with Professor Jing, Kris, Kelley, and Adam to the 1st Beijing Sustainability Fair. It was in a nearby hotel and there was a mix of tables selling eco-friendly items. It was small, but nice to see that something like this is starting. In a few years hopefully it will be a lot bigger! The environmental fairs in Chicago are huge with guests speakers and presentations. Hopefully this type of thing will catch on in China as well. We also found two vegan restaurants in Beijing at this fair. It was really exciting to me because this is not a common thing here! When we go out to eat I usually have a few options. 

Tomorrow we are leaving for our excursion!

6/14/13

6/14/13, 9:00pm, The Beijing Center
Today in class we continued to talk about water. The topic that caught my attention the most was agricultural irrigation. Typically, irrigation wastes a lot of water. In the states, we use large systems that shower water over plants. This is extremely inefficient because a lot of the water evaporates into the air before it hits the ground. Drip irrigation is a way better alternative because it is already at the ground, reducing the amount of water needed to water the plants. Saving water is extremely important because aquifers are being drained because we're running out of usable fresh water. In class we talked about how without drip irrigation, Chinese farmers hand pour water onto crops. This would be very inefficient in terms of time, and it would also use more water. Another way to reduce water use is to switch to less water intensive crops. For example, rice uses a lot of water. Wheat takes less water, so it is a good alternative to rice.

6/13/13

6/13/13, 11:00pm, The Beijing Center

Today in class we talked about China’s water. 71% of the planet is water, 97% of which is seawater. Less than 1% of the freshwater is accessible. The rest of the freshwater on the planet is in glaciers, ice caps, and deep ground water. China tried to melt glaciers using coal ash, but it’s extremely unsustainable. The water cycle cleans water in the air because when water evaporates, it leaves slat behind. So by evaporating, salt water turns into fresh water, but it picks up pollutants when it turns into rain on it’s way back down. This is why rainwater is not usually safe to drink. China has a huge issue because there is not only water pollution, but scarcity as well with a huge regional imbalance. Southern China has 80% of the country’s water, but the north produces 66% of agricultural yields with 46% of the population. China has 640 major cities and 300 of them have water shortages. We also looked at how lakes are shrinking. It’s so sad to see and I’m sure it’s happened all over the world.

6/12/13

6/12/13, 8:00pm, The Beijing Center

Today some of the Chinese roommates took a group of us to a traditional Chinese market. It felt like being at a huge farmers market indoors. It was split up between produce, dry foods, meat, and there was a little bakery section that sold freshly made noodles and breads. Everything seemed so much more fresh than what we would typically buy in the states. There were tomatoes that were dark red, much darker than the tomatoes that I usually see. I was wondering how many of the fruits and vegetables were organic and how common it is for food to be organic here. It's hard for me to tell for pre-packaged foods since I can't read Chinese, but I feel like they wouldn't label things the same way we do in the states. In general, I think the environmental impact of the food in that market is probably a lot less than most food in the united states because there is probably less shipping involved. Most of the food in the states travels across the country, at the minimum. A lot of the food we eat is from all over the world and is overly processed. 

When we got back from the market, we learned how to make jiaozi, traditional Chinese food. We used tofu, green onions, a Chinese vegetable, and garlic. They were a lot of fun to make and tasted really good when they were done. I'm definitely going to cook them when I return home!

6/11/13

6/11/13, 9:00pm, The Beijing Center
Today in class we talked about air pollution control in a variety of countries. The UK started to control air pollution in the 1950s. The US created the clean air act in 1970. China started controlling air pollution in 1982. We also discussed the use of lead in gasoline, which was not phased out in China until 2002. A lot of class discussion is focused around policy making and the government. The burning of fossil fuels leads to the creation of ozone which leads to photochemical smog. Because ozone creation is a result of other processes, it is hard for policy to control the amount created because it is not emitted directly. Fossil fuel burning also leads to acid rain and photochemical aerosols. There's always a large barrier to controlling these outputs in general because of the structure of the government.