It's Big, It's Emissionless, It's... Critical Mass!

     Some have described it as an ‘unorganized coincidence.’ Participants usually define it as a spontaneous gathering. People coming together with their bicycles (although some don’t shy away from coming with their skateboards or roller blades), to ‘cycle’ the streets for a few hours is better known as 'Critical Mass'. Anyone can join in. The routes are often chosen on the spot and as the group moves along.

     An event like ‘Critical Mass’ is special in that it is an important reminder of the non-fuel commuting alternatives which can now be utilized more often with the improvement of the weather. The small town streets of Athens tend to become overcrowded with cars during school period. In this sense, 'Critical Mass' is also a way of reclaiming the streets, and working to make them a safer, friendlier, and more sustainable environment by exemplifying alternative modes of transport.

     ‘Critical Mass’ is not an organization one has to become a member of in order to participate. It is a way of unifying a community behind an idea, and it differs from city to city and from country to country. ‘Critical Mass’ has also been described as a protest movement and has been seen as controversial in many parts of the world, although such a description might be inaccurate with regards to its intentions. It could, instead, be called a movement of raising awareness about the lack of a sustained policy in favor of using other ways of transport besides motor vehicles and favoring car owners when organizing infrastructure. It is because of such problems that cycling has become more and more dangerous especially in the big cities.

     ‘Critical Mass’ is a global phenomenon, in a sense, but one which has been appropriated and adapted by people around the world to express the problems in their communities. It is a way of becoming aware of the traffic difficulties and road safety in a community, and to better traffic's impact on the overall environment. In addition, there are other potential benefits to consider when taking your bike out for a ride more often and reasons to feel good about it. Bicycles do not impact an area's carbon footprint and have a low overall impact on the environment. They are energy efficient forms of transportation, which are great to use especially for short trips, as well as providing healthy exercise and a sustained work-out routine.

     The weather has not been very inviting when it comes to outdoor activities in the past few months. But, if there is a chance for sunshine and warm temperature, joining the local 'Critical Mass' this Friday at the College Green monument would be a smart choice.

     The gatherings are held on Fridays at the end of every month. If you want to become more informed on ‘Critical Mass’ in Athens, you can join the Facebook page, which describes the activity as: “a bicycle parade through the streets of Athens, Ohio to celebrate and advocate these self-propelled contraptions that bring countless benefits to society. We ride for fun. We ride for awesomeness. We ride to save the world.”

Athens Critical Mass is a great chance to stay active and socialize, as well as end in a fun way the OU 2011 Earth Month!

'The Battle of Chernobyl'

     Hey everyone, we have a new blogger for Athens Sustained! His name is Alex and he is a grad student here at Ohio University. Read on to see what he has to say about nuclear energy and the Earth Month screening of 'The Battle of Chernobyl'.

     As a part of the process of raising awareness about global environmental problems, Earth Month 2011 continues here at OU with a screening of the film documentary ‘The Battle of Chernobyl.” The event is scheduled on April 26, 2011, to commemorate the 25^th anniversary of the nuclear disaster. The screening will start at 7:30pm, at the Scripps Auditorium.

On April 26, 1986, in an area of what was then the Soviet Union (present-day independent Ukraine), an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant released large quantities of radioactive material in the atmosphere and forcing the evacuation of over 350 thousand people from the contaminated areas. Today, around 7,000 people work in the decommissioning of the power plant as well as in preventing access to the contaminated 19-mile area around Chernobyl and preventing spread of the contamination. 

     Released in 2006, 20 years after the nuclear disaster, ‘The Battle of Chernobyl’ is a detailed presentation, with the aid of extensive archival footage and interviews with witnesses, on the circumstances and events as they unfolded beginning on April 26, 1986. The movie was directed by Thomas Johnson and released by the Paris-based ‘Play Film,’ a company which produces documentaries as well as short fiction and feature films. It has won numerous film awards on both sides of the Atlantic.

     ‘The Battle of Chernobyl’ offers interesting insights on the potential long-term destructive power of nuclear energy and its impact on the life of the local population directly affected, including forced evacuation and the radiation-related illnesses. The documentary gives its audience the opportunity to explore the details of one of the largest environmental tragedies of the last century and the long-term legacy costs it has inflicted on the nation affected.

     This is especially interesting as nuclear power plants are an increasingly seen as an important source of affordable energy. Nuclear energy is praised for delivering a clean alternative for energy production to other heavily pollutant materials such as coal. This is mainly because of the lack of carbon dioxide emissions, a key component of global warming. However, such an approach does not take into consideration the tons of radioactive waste produced each year. Radioactivity diminishes over time, in a process that can last, in the case of waste from nuclear power plants, for thousands of years. During this time, the material needs to be preserved in complete isolation to avoid the contamination of the environment.

     In the United States, nuclear facilities produce around 20 percent of electricity needs with 104 operating reactors. Ohio is one of 31 US states to house nuclear facilities. Here, nuclear power generates around 10 percent of the energy and facilities are concentrated in the northern part of the state, although (according to the Columbus Dispatch) there are plans to build a third plant in Piketon (Pike County). Most of the energy used is still produced using coal. Renewable energy facilities account only for 1 percent.

     The latest nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan has once again drawn attention to the safety problems often linked with production of nuclear energy. There are many possible sources of energy, but the ability to use them always entail specific obligations. ‘The Battle of Chernobyl’ can be considered a ‘warning’ for people to treat nuclear energy with respect and to maintain awareness of the potential problems. When you do not know how to use it properly, it can have terrible consequences. Whether nuclear energy is the future remains an issue for debate. However, attaining knowledge, positive or negative, is essential to understand the advantages and the disadvantages. We are all users of electricity. The people of Ohio, including students, are potential beneficiaries of nuclear energy. In this case, we all must also understand the dangers which can arise from its misuse.