Not Just Another Pretty Vase

Not Just Another Pretty Vase


Who doesn’t love a fresh bouquet of flowers? When the garden is in full bloom, there’s nothing nicer than giving (or keeping!) fresh cut flowers that are ready to display. Mother Nature will supply the blossoms — and in the “flower holding” department, we’ve discovered a clever solution with Jill-able vases.

Unlike a traditional glass vase, Jill-ables are unbreakable, collapsible and reusable. Just add water to create a sturdy, colorful vase, and simply collapse it when it’s not in use—they even store flat in a drawer, taking up no more room than an envelope. Jill-able vases come in four different colors and are made from recycled plastic, so they’re both earth-friendly and a real space saver.

Perfect for gifting and reusing, the Jill-able vase is a nice way to share flowers with a friend without adding to their clutter. It’s a particularly thoughtful choice for small apartments, kid-busy homes, classrooms, or hospital rooms. Keep a few for yourself, too, and enjoy the bounty of the season anytime.




Socks that Sustain

What can we say about these simple, organic cotton socks? A lot.

These socks tell a story about their creator, Gina Locklear, who grew up among sock makers. Gina is following in the footsteps of her parents, who built a sock manufacturing company in Fort Payne, Alabama. Throughout most of the 20th century, the majority of socks made in the United States were produced in Fort Payne. Today, competition from overseas manufacturers threatens the remaining hosiery businesses in Gina’s hometown. But she’s bringing some life back into the local industry with a fresh approach to sock-making that incorporates Gina’s passion for ecologically sensible living and green business.



Gina founded Zkano in October. She does the designing and her parents’ company, called Emi-G Knitting, makes the socks (available in athletic crew, no show and heavy weight crew syles). Each pair is made from certified organic ring-spun cotton, grown without pesticides or chemicals, and finished without metal dyes. The name Zkano is derived from a Native American word that describes “a state of being good.” That sentiment perfectly captures Gina’s goal of creating products that are good for the environment and good for the people who wear them. Her socks cost a little more than socks manufactured overseas — because they’re worth it.

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雲林地層下陷亮紅燈?! 國土淪陷 水資源濫用?! 高鐵安全拉警報?!

雲林地層下陷亮紅燈?! 國土淪陷 水資源濫用?! 高鐵安全拉警報?!
張貼者： 有話好說-南部開講 發表於： 星期六, 四月 10, 2010




















受到雲林地區地層持續下陷影響，高鐵跨越台七十八線處墩柱，角度變化首度超出警戒值1/1500，基礎地層去年的年沈陷速率達6.5公分，也超過高鐵設計標準4公分，使得軌道線型改變將直接影響行車安全，若不加強修補，高鐵行車將有安全上的疑慮。根據高鐵局和水利署的監控資料，過去7年累積高鐵墩柱下陷最嚴重地區，以跨越台78線處沈陷55公分最嚴重、雲158線處48公分、雲林虎尾站預定地41公分，這段長約6公里路段是最「淪陷」地區，預估103年後部分的地表高度將差距60公分以上，長期一定會有問題。

但是高鐵局認為，高鐵墩柱沉陷情況已逐漸趨緩，沉陷程度也在容許值內，目前高鐵結構與行車安全無虞。水利署也表示，已經針對高鐵沿線3公里範圍內的87口公有水井進行封井，雲林大部分地區下陷速率也從92年的12.2公分降至7.3公分，下陷面積也自610平方公里降為414平方公里，雲林地層下陷現象，呈現持續減緩趨勢。

然而下陷速率仍超過高鐵設計標準，中央希望雲林縣能取締一千多口的非法灌溉井，但是雲林縣認為農民權益可能受到影響，堅決不封井。農民也認為，抽取地下水灌溉是不得已措施，畢竟政府遲遲未拿出替代水源，與其他配套，他們不可能讓良田荒廢成荒地。面對中央、地方與農民三方的角力，高鐵雲林段地層下陷似乎難解。

台灣西部沿海長期地層下陷問題，在高鐵動工前就是老問題，高鐵雲林段下陷，不過是中央及地方長期漠視水資源運用的結果？雲林高鐵沿線有一萬多口井，不論封井是否可行，重點是，即使把雲林所有的井都封起來，對於阻擋高鐵地層下陷也只是杯水車薪？雲林地區一直沒有水庫，長期面臨缺水問題；但政府過去幾年仍核准了幾項重大開發案，包括耗能耗水的石化業跟面板業在內。即使未來湖山水庫完工，就能支應中部地區的用水問題？

政府基於整體經濟發展，若認為這些重度耗水耗能的產業必須存在，就須設法就用水「開源」。包括在符合環保的原則下，如何更有效地運用地表水，而不能抱著鴕鳥心態認為「撐過去」就好，任令抽取地下水。尤其在水資源更為珍貴的此時，高鐵雲林段地層下陷，突顯的是政府對於水資源政策的亂無章法？產業政策缺乏國土規劃思維？



來賓介紹

雲林縣水利處副處長 林榮川

台灣生態學會雲林工作站主任 陳清圳


台大土木工程水利工程組教授 李鴻源


中研院地球科學研究所研究員 汪中和

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