Indium and it's awesomeness

So if you examine that thing called the Periodic Table of Elements a little closer you will notice that there is an element located between Cadmium and Tin called Indium. As the 49th elements on this table it is considered to be a post transition metal. Discovered in 1863, through the exploration of Zinc ore. Used as a thin layer of lubrication and more recently as screens on touch smart cell phones. Here is the electron shell configeration:

1s2
2s2		2p6
3s2		3p6		3d10
4s2		4p6		4d10
5s2		5p1

Now this wonderful ground breaking element does not come without some strings attached. This element is toxic in many stages of its life. There are 3 main times where it is considered toxic to humans: 1) the manufacturing stage 2) the laying of Indium film stage and 3) the recycling stage. The only time Indium is really safe for human contact is when it is already in the completed stage.

Fun Fact:
Japan uses 45% of the world's Indium!

"The squeaky wheel gets the grease"

So in the history of environmental policy the game plan when it comes to making legislation is more reactive rather than proactive. It takes a dramatic event, I choose an event that is not a single incident of disaster but a long trending disaster of carbon dioxide emission. 

The Kyoto Agreement

The Kyoto Protocol  is an amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), an international treaty created to bring countries together to reduce global warming and to deal with the effects of temperature increases. In Japan in 1997, scientists decided to do something about the giant hole in the ozone layer due to the growing industrial nature of every country around the world. Over 55 countries agreed on the terms of controlling the carbon dioxide emissions from large industries, these countries who agreed to this treaty were responsible for over 65% of the world’s CO2 emissions. The United States was a part of this agreement until George W. Bush withdrew his support in 2001.

This agreement’s goal was to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions and for the scientific minds across the global to unite and attempt to better understand how carbon dioxide emissions can be controlled and altered to help the environment. One of the downsides to the Kyoto Agreement was the great cost. In 2001, 178 countries accepted this concept while the United States backed out due to the grand total of this project being over 400 billion dollars. Bush said it would bankrupt the economy and harm the job market due to the 4.9 million jobs that would be lost due to this treaty. 

What is the Oldest Environmental Policy?

What is the Refuse Act, Alex. (sometimes I like to pretend I am on jeopardy so just go along with it) Anyways, the Refuse Act of 1899 was created by the federal government to stop sewage dumping into rivers. The rivers that were most effected by this legislature were the Mississippi River and any other major navigable river. To my knowledge and two hours of research, this seems to be the oldest form of environmental policy. If you do not believe me here is a link to a credible sight aka the Refuse Act facebook page.... That is right, even this has it's own Fabo!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Refuse-Act/124419224269608