Leveling Out Sea Levels

Some of our current energy sources are proving to be harmful to the planet and man's way of life. Climate change becomes more of a pressing issue as we learn more about its anthropogenic causes and what is or isn't being done to reverse or level out the effects. Unprecedented weather extremes, such as increased drought or storm intensity, as well as the rising of the sea level are the main problems we face that must be solved. The best solution would be to find the root of the problem and eliminate it from the start. However, in a world currently run on carbon based energy there is no immediate end to its use in sight.

A new idea is being studied at the University of Colorado: the use of microbes as energy. Yes, bacteria!  As they metabolize food, microbes have been shown to generate electricity. The use of microbial fuel cells can be implemented to generate energy from ever abundant wastewater and mud. Taken a step further, microbes were found to have desalination capabilities. The metabolic process generates enough hydrogen waste to run the desalination process. Solar desalination is also being studied as an energy efficient way to run the process.

Desalination of sea water could lead to a solution to the problem of rising sea levels, as well as a solution to droughts that will result from climate change. The microbial fuel cell provides clean energy, getting to the root of the problem and providing some short term solutions to projected damages.