Crafting Sustainable Rum is Largely a Matter of Catch and Release
After a few Mojitos, it's easy to forget that making rum is an industrial process. Photo credit: Distillery Serrallés, USA
In the first part of this series on rum production, we took a look at the environmental impacts and industry pitfalls inherent in traditional distillation. To make a long story short: The manufacture of one of the world's favorite spirits has been everything but clean and responsible.
Fortunately, some producers have begun to address these issues and the innovative systems they have implemented ...Read the full story on TreeHugger
Image via 
A beach that's barefoot-friendly. It is less common these days than we would want. However, it's not an impossible task to return them to their former pristine states. Renowned surf filmmaker Jason Baffa and Barefoot Wine teamed up to create One Beach, a really beautiful film that highlights how artists and creative-types are coming up with brilliant ways to clean up beaches. Check it out after the jump. ...
Image: 
Boats on the Mediterranean near Kaş, Turkey. Photo: Jennifer Hattam.
Onlookers gazing out over the 
Photo: 
Image: 
Images via screengrab
Um, so this is a kind of horrifying wake-up call. A website called Slavery Footprint will run a few questions by you to tell you just how many slaves around the world are at work providing you with the things you wear, the things you eat, even the sporting equipment you play with. Scariest part is just how many there are working for even those of us who try to be conscious consumers. ...
Images via YouTube Video
It's technically not a good thing to anthropomorphize animals, but it's really hard not to when you see this killer whale doing its darndest to sound like a boat's motor. An orca whale approached a motor boat and precisely imitated the noise of the engine -- to communicate? To mock? To say, "Keep it down"? To play? We aren't sure why, but it's amazing to watch. ...
Image: 
Photo: NASA, Public domain
Nitrate pollution around the costs of Japan and Korea could change the makeup of local marine life, both for plants and animals, according to scientists in both the U.S. and Korea. "This is the first evidence of increases in nitrate in ocean waters not in an enclosed estuary like the Chesapeake Bay," said Raymond G. Najjar, professor of oceanography, Penn State. "These are large, very deep bodies of water and it is surprising to see increased nitrate in these large seas."...
Image: 
photo: 
Burning Falla. Photo Credit: Manuel Molines
During the 
