Drop the Mic, Walk Away

Thursday morning came, and with it, we were lucky enough to have Professor Giovanni De Giudici present to us about the militarization of Sardinia as well as nano-particles and the impact that both have on the environment.  It was an extremely interesting lecture and I was most intrigued with his discussion of nano particles and how they act differently than the larger conglomerates that we tend to see in day to day life.  It is a topic that I would be interested into reading more about.  After he presented, our final lecture was given to us by Professor Giovanna Cappai who discussed the different ways to manage waste to energy bottom ashes and how those ashed can be used for carbon sequestration from the same combustion processes.  It was interesting to see the use of a bi-product helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  It showed a more sustainable side to waste to energy facilities that interested me.  After our morning lectures wrapped up, we were assigned specific parts for the mock trial and then we all went home to prep.

On Friday morning, we went to class and began our mock trial.  I was the moderator and among us others role played parts such as shepherds, farmers, citizens, government officials, and consultants.  Overall, I think the simulation went very well and that it mimicked how a real situation would transpire.  The conclusion that everyone came to a consensus on was that regulation is the number one priority with further testing to be done to determine whether remediation is necessary or not.  After the trial, I went home to reflect upon the situation further and complete my reflection paper.  Aside from this blog post, I have written deeper reflections into the situation if anyone is interested in reading them.  Upon completion of my reflection, I worked on the project until we all went out to dinner.  We traveled up the hill into the fort to explore and found a pretty cool restaurant with a view.  The night went on and everyone found their way to different parts of the city to continue exploring.
   

On Saturday, we started off the day with free time, which meant laundry for me.  After laundry, I continued to work on the project until we took off for Sella del Diavolo.  Luckily for me and the rest of the fair skinned people, the sun was hidden from view as we started our hike.  We walked around the mountain and had a spectacular 360 degree view of  the city.  The view was definitely one of the best I've had so far.  We made our way back down the hill and then back to Cagliari as we all hunted for food when we got back.  After dinner, we all came back and hung around before we all went off to do our own things.  

Today, I woke up and grabbed some breakfast before coming back and completing my blog.  In the interest of time, I want to complete this blog this morning so that I can enjoy our excursion this afternoon as well as have time to come back and work on the project further.  This afternoon we all are going to Sarga di Santa Caterina in Orroli to experience some traditional Sardinian culture.  I imagine that there will be a lot of food, music, and dancing and that the traditional costumes that we have seen before will be adorned.  I am excited for the trip and all that comes with it.

Now that this journey is approaching its final legs, this blog will be wrapping up.  The memories I have made here will truly last a lifetime and are more far reaching than my blog can portray.  I wan to thank everyone that made this trip so utterly amazing, especially Annalisa, becasue without her hard work, none of this would have happened for my friends and I.  With all of that, I will be dropping the metaphorical blog microphone and walking away...

To the adventures that come...

Various views from the top of Sella del Diavolo

Ragazzis on Boats

To tip off the week, the group and I went sailing around Villasimius and made a few stops at some of the beaches along the way.  To date, it was one of the most memorable and fun experiences that we have had.  The water was crystal blue and you could see the bottom all the way from the surface no matter how deep the water was.  At our first stop, we swam in a little cove and passed around the snorkel masks to watch the fish and explore.  We stayed for about an hour and then headed back to the boat for some lunch.  We were served a generous amount of pasta and other food.  As we ate, we fed the occasional seagull as it passed by mid air or threw some bread to the fish and watched as they swarmed.  We made way for another small beach where some of us swam to shore and hung out exploring the rocks.  We stumbled upon some crabs and sea urchins.  After the beach, we swam back and headed home to conclude our day.

On Tuesday morning, I woke up early to finish my homework assignment and get the third and final project rolling with the rest of my group.  After lunch, we had two guest speakers; Dr. Tiziana Lai who spoke to us about ELV in Italy and Ing. Alessandro Murgia from the Sardinia EPA who talked to us about mining remediation across the island.  Both presentations were pretty interesting and it was cool to compare what we have learned from studying on our own or other guest speakers to what they presented.  After class, we headed back to continue to work on our projects.

Today, we went to Teulada for another one of our beach visits.  If you can believe it, the water here was even clearer than the water around Villasimius.  We did similar things like swim around and snorkel and explore the shoreline and rocks.  I caught up on some sleep and sun and had a blast.  Thankfully, Annalisa brought us food which I think everyone was extremely grateful for.  Tomorrow is back to school as our amazing experience here in Cagliari gets closer to the end.  I try not to think of it.

Various beach photos from Monday and Today:

 Villasimius

 Villasimius

 Villasimius

 Villasimius

  Teulada

Pula Hoop

The end of this week ended with a bang as we had another technical visit, a fully loaded school day, and a weekend off to continue exploring this amazing island.  On Thursday, we visited Campidano Ambiente and were lucky to have Professor Massidda talk to us about the companies waste collection practices and all of the associated details, difficulties, and successes.  He gave a very good presentation and I applaud him for being the one brave soul to present to us in English.  After his presentation, they were so kind as to give us an informational CD as well as provide us with lunch.  The desert tray was demolished immediately.  In the afternoon, we worked hard to finish up our next project and study for our upcoming test the next day.

Friday came and with it a busy day of school.  The morning started off with the group presentations.  I am very happy that I had the chance to work with Mike and Kestral and together, I felt really good about the way we presented.  I would have to say that I was genuinely interested in this project and was happy to report all of our findings to the class.  After all of us wrapped up presentations, we had a brief guest lecture on composting and then headed off to lunch.  When we got back, we took our midterm exam and everything went smooth.  That night we went to an Erasmus party near campus where they were fundraising for Nepal.  It was pretty cool but by the end of the day I was ready for bed.

Come Saturday, Ted, Maggie, Audriana and I went souvenir shopping in the morning.  I put a solid dent in my list and even got some stuff for myself.  After the morning shopping, we got lunch and I had my first bite of horse meat.  It was pretty tasty but unlike Annalisa, I wouldn't say its my favorite.  We then headed to Poetto again for an afternoon in the sun.  Come nighttime, we grabbed dinner and all watched as Juve lost the Eurocup.  I don't really care about soccer but it would have been fun to have a "local" team win and see the city's excitement.

Today, Sunday, Kestral, Erika, Emily, Lindsey, and myself went to Pula, a town near Cagliari.  We visited the archaeological park at Nora and went on a tour of the old Roman ruins.  It was super cool to see all of the ruins and listen to all of the history behind them.  It was pretty fascinating.  We also were able to climb to the top of one of the old towers.  Below are some of the pictures from this weekend and today.

 Sunset outside of our window Friday night 

 Preemptive Juve champions flags 

 Old mosaic flooring of one of the bathhouses that the Romans used

 The amphitheater on site 

 One of the towers 

  View from just below the tower

I wanna gooo to Poettooo

The beginning of this week has already kicked off to a good start.  We went to class, had some free time, went to Poetto, traveled to Consorzio Industriale Provinciale Medio Campidano Villacidro, and the Cascate di Sa Spendula in Villacidro.

On Monday, we had a guest lecturer come in to talk to us about remediation of contaminated sites.  It was a good reinforcement to what I have learned in some of my other classes and definitely caught my interest.  After class on Monday, we had some free time where my group and myself continued to work on the second project.

On Tuesday, the group and myself went to Poetto Beach.  While everyone was off sailing, I enjoyed a nice nap on the beach.  After lunch we all met up and continued our day on the beach where we caught some sun and played in the water.  It was an extremely relaxing day that everyone appreciated.  At night, we went out to dinner and then crashed and had a solid nights sleep.

Today, we started off the day by visiting Consorzio Industriale Provinciale Medio Campidano Villacidro, a waste management facility that has many facets to its repertuar, including anaerobic digestion.  The biogas that the facility produces from the anaerobic digestion is done in two stages, one for hydrolysis (the more robust phase), and one for methanogenisis.  Both stages produce methane due to the fact that the microbes that partake in both processes can not be totally excluded from one another.  The total process produces anywhere from 60 to 80 percent methane out of the total gas volume.  As compared to a landfill gas recovery system, this is roughly 10 to 30 percent higher.  The facility also has three landfills, a composting facility, and a waste water treatment plant.  It is interesting to note that the facility does its best to be sustainable by using certain end products from one waste management stream to facilitate the next.  For example, the effluent from the waste water goes to creating the biological suspension used in the anaerobic digestion.  The facility also had a wind and solar farm to produce energy that was then sold back to the grid.  It was interesting to note that the main reason for low efficiency at the current time being are due primarily to monetary issues and a recessed economy.  After our tour of the facility, we headed up to a park also in Villacidro where we hiked (kinda) to see a waterfall.  After our quick trip, we came home and here I am writing the blog.  Below are some pictures from the beginning of this week.
 

 Poetto Beach 

 Various organic wastes next to the composting facility 

 The view from inside the structure that houses the methane gas that comes from the landfill.  The outer bubble is used as a protective barrier.  The inner bladder was not filled.  

 The biofilter on site

 The wind farm and solar farm 

 The waterfall in Villacidro 

The Unreal Reality that is Sardinia

The end of this week was extremely eventful! Starting on Wednesday night, we all went to Republik in the hopes of seeing Eli and Dylan play on stage. Unfortunately, they did not end up playing, but plenty of other good artists came on and everyone had a great time per usual. Luckily, we were able to sleep in on Thursday morning before classes started in the afternoon. After a lazy morning, we all hiked up the hill and went to class. On top of Annalisa's lectures, we were visited by Aldo who gave us a lecture on hydrogen recovery as well as providing us with tiramisu. I'm pretty sure that was the first time I have ever had tiramisu and I have to say that it was pretty tasty. After Thursday classes wrapped up, we did work, went out to dinner, and got packed up for the away trip.

Starting on Friday morning, we boarded the bus and headed for our first stop, The Museo Della Vita E Delle Tradizioni Popolari Sarde in Nuoro. Here, we learned about the traditional costumes and dresses that people from Sardinia wear for various occasions such as weddings, ceromonies, and carnival-esc parades. It was interesting to see how intricate the costumes were and it was also interesting to see how heavy the costumes were fabric wise. I couldn't really imagine wearing any of them in the heat of this island. I was also happy to note that we were not at any of the festivities where these costumes were worn due to the fact that it sounded like the people come after you harassing you in various ways. After the museum, we went to the Church of Santa Maria Della Solitudine. The story behind the church and the famous Sardinian author was fascinating. It takes some real courage to do what she did and go against the grain, especially at such a young age. Once we were done visiting Nuoro, we went up meet with the shepherds for lunch. We ate a variety of cheeses and meets and all around it was a pretty solid lunch (With the exception of the firewater). While lunch wrapped up and Eli was off being harassed by older women, the shepherds performed and danced with us. As if our day wasn't eventful enough, we went over to Orgosolo to look at some of the art that was all over the buildings. The whole town was a pretty interesting place...if there wasn't something painted on the walls, it was filled with gunshots. I also finally bought some knives as souvenirs for my dad and grandpa there so it was definitely a productive trip. Finally, after a full day, we headed up to our final destination of Hotel Enis Monte Maccione to eat dinner and crash.

Come Saturday morning, some of the group and myself woke up at 5:00 am to hike the mountain and watch the sunrise (I missed out on the hike the day before because I was playing with the world's cutest kitten). We got to the top of the mountain and the view was pretty breathtaking. One good view led into the next as we departed for the Gulf of Orosei. We boarded the boat and headed for the Grotte del Bue Marino. I'm a secret geology nerd so adventuring into the ocean-side cave was extremely awesome. After the cave, we spent the rest of the afternoon, going from beach to beach and enjoying the crystal clear water. There's not many words that can describe the beauty of the beaches and water. I don't think anyone wanted to leave when the final boat came to come pick us up.  After the beach, we got back to Cagliari and returned to normality. Overall, this weekend was incredible and I know I will take away memories that I will never forget. 

 The Museo Della Vita E Delle Tradizioni Popolari Sarde in Nuoro displaying a traditional costume where a shepherd dresses as a sheep.

The front of the church door in Nuoro, Church of Santa Maria Della Solitudine. "Grazie Nardada"

 Lunch with the shepherds

 Orgosolo

 Cutest cat ever

 Monte Maccione

Monte Maccione

Grotte del Bue Marino 

Cala Luna

Cala Mariolu

Chillin' and Landfillin'

In the past three days since my last blog post, we have completed our first project and visited a sanitary landfill as another one of our technical visits!  Having the first project done is a huge relief and now I can continue to focus on the work ahead.  Overall I feel as though our group did well on the presentation and report and I'm totally stoked about it.  I loved my group but I'm also looking forward to working with new people and getting to know everyone a bit better.

On Tuesday the group and myself visited a sanitary landfill and co-generation plant operated by Ecoserdiana.  This was the first time that I have ever visited an operational landfill so it was extremely cool to see the work that was going on.  The area was comprised of six different landfills the majority of which had been closed and one of which was in use.  The one in use is specifically for designated waste as well as the fly ash and bottom ash from the waste to energy facility that we visited earlier in the trip.  The landfill no longer accepts municipal solid waste, only the designated waste and ash.  I found the magnitude of the total area to be immense; much larger than some of the examples I remember doing in class this past semester.  I also found it interesting to note that the leachate that they produce is sent to the waste water treatment plant that is operated by the same entity that operates the waste to energy facility (Of which the ash is sent to the landfill).  This is a very symbiotic relationship that seems to be somewhat sustainable, at the very least financially.  It was also interesting to note that the current landfill was being built upon an existing MSW landfill that had been closed.  This is an efficient use of space.  The landfill also utilizes horizontal biogas collection pipes as well as joint collection pipes located at the bottom.  The joint collection pipes collect both leachate and biogas by means of gravity and vacuum respectively.

When we went to the co-generation plant, we saw that the amount of methane that comprised the total biogas was roughly 55 percent.  This is a pretty good amount of biogas for a landfill, especially upon closer of the MSW section.  Beyond the biogas plant, there was also a solar farm.  It was interesting to note that the solar farm produced 1/4 the amount of electricity but only took up 1/20 the amount of space.  This fact only highlights that biogas generation should not be looked at as a means to an end, but a supplement to other forms of energy.  Beyond using the combustion of methane for electricity, the plant also used the heat from combustion, hence the term, "co-generation".  By doing this, the process of using methane is 90% efficient.  Overall, the visit was extremely informative and provided finer detail to accompany what I have learned in the classroom.  The trip also allowed me to see the co-generation plant and learn about how the methane is utilized as efficiently as possible.

Below are some pictures of the landfill:

Closed landfill used for designated waste.  The reason it is green as opposed to dried out is because of the impermeable layer on the top, through which water cannot percolate.  

 A shot showing various equipment as well as the working face of the open landfill used for the disposal of fly ash, bottom ash, and designated waste.

   Another shot of the landfill and the land being worked on next to it on the other side of the impermeable berm.  

Oh the places you'll go...

The end of this week ended with a handful of cultural visits to round out the technical visits that we had at the beginning of the week.  This Thursday, we began the day with a visit to the San Benedetto Market.  This market is the largest open market in all of Europe, and yes, it was very large.  The market consisted of two floors of the freshest meats, fruits, cheese, and fish that I have ever seen in one place.  To top it off, when I was purchasing some fruit from one of the vendors, he smiled at me and ended up giving it to me for free.  The act was actually pretty flattering and the rest of my day was made.  To finish off the day, I got some laundry done and grabbed some dinner at the local cafe.

Friday began as a normal school day but the afternoon session ended with a guest speaker.  She came and talked to us about her company and the logistics of waste management collection.  It was pretty interesting to be able to ask a professional about various logistical issues associated with the problem.  She was extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions.  To top Friday off, I tried my first Kinder Egg.  As a candy critic, I would have to give it a 3/5.

On Saturday, the real adventure of the weekend began.  We all boarded the bus and headed to the Geomining Park of Sardinia.  When we first arrived, we were stunned by the spectacular view of the "Pan Di Zucchero", a stunning geological formation off of the coast.  After a handful of pictures, we headed into the old tunnels that connected the mining area to the area where the boats docked (Porto Flavia) to collect the various ores. I'm a secret geology nerd so this portion of the trip was extra awesome.  After the tour of the old mining tunnels, we had a spectacular lunch on the water.  The usual order of various seafood and pasta was served which I was happy about.  After lunch, we headed to some old ruins, which I believe was the Temple of Antas in Fluminimaggiore (So much happened this weekend so it is difficult to remember the many names we learned).  It is spectacular to think that the ruins pre-date Christ and are still standing.  After the trip to the ruins, are already full day concluded with arriving at the agriturismo "Sa Perda Marcada where we were greeted warmly.  We had a divine dinner and concluded the night by looking up at the stars.  Without the light pollution, the view was spectacular.

Sunday started off with another exceptional meal...eggs.  Thanks to Annalisa's special request we had an American staple thrown into our breakfast and I think that everyone who tried them truly appreciated it.  After breakfast we relaxed a bit and then got to preparing our own food for lunch.  We rolled our own gnocchetti and prepared our own unique desert.  After eating our own meal for lunch, we headed off to Piscinas Beach where the water meats the desert.  The ocean borders the famous sand dunes with the mountains looming in the background.  The water was awesome to swim in and the current was unreal and actually pretty fun to play in.  After the beach we headed home and called it a weekend.  This weekend was truly a sensory overload in the best of ways.

 San Benedetto Market

 Pan Di Zucchero

 The old ruins

 Whata cutie 

  The homemade gnocchetti 

 Piscinas Beach