A New Zealand council （市议会）has announced a month-long road closure in order to allow a sea lion and her pup to reach the ocean safely.

John Wilson Ocean Drive in Dunedin will be closed after the New Zealand sea lions made their home at a nearby golf course （球场）and started "regularly crossing the road to get to the beach," according to a Facebook post from Dunedin City Council.

“You can still visit the area on foot or by bicycle, but please give the sea lions lots of space," continued the post.

Locals applauded the decision, and one even called for the closure to be made permanent.

“No dogs should be on the beach, either," wrote Gaylene Smith. "We need to protect our beautiful sea life?"

Dogs are known to attack sea lions, and Chisholm Links Golf Course, where the sea lions have made their home, also posted advice to dog walkers in a Facebook update.

"We’re lucky to have sea lions on our coastline and we need to share the space with them, as this is what makes our coastline so unique!" wrote the course on Facebook.

The council went on to explain that New Zealand sea lions are endangered, and are one of the world’s rarest species of sea lion.

There are an estimated 12,000 New Zealand sea lions left, according to the Department of Conservation. Under local law, anyone who kills a sea lion could face up to two years in prison or a fine of up to NZ$250,000 (US$178,000).

Wind turbines (风力发电机) work especially well out in coastal waters, where ocean winds can be very strong. Offshore wind farms cost more to build than onshore ones. Offshore equipment must be heavier than onshore equipment. It has to stand up to very heavy winds, big waves and strong currents. Sending people to install, operate and repair equipment at sea is costly. But once set up, offshore wind could pick up bonus tasks.

According to Haris Ishaq, an engineer at the University of Victoria in Canada, one of the best add-ons to wind farms is making hydrogen gas, which means making a clean power source in a clean way. A device called an electrolyzer (电解器) can split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The electrolyzer needs fresh water, not salt water. To remove the sea salt, Ishaq’s team proposes removing the salt through a special technique, which is supposed to run on the electricity produced by the offshore wind farms.

Ishap’s group also proposes adding a second bonus task to wind farms—to capture (捕获) CO₂ from the atmosphere. Atmospheric CO₂ levels are higher than ever, resulting in a worsening greenhouse effect. A process called direct air capture, or DAC, can remove CO₂ from the air. The DAC devices need electricity to run. Fans move air across a solid material that captures CO₂ and releases everything else. When the solid material is heated to 100° Celsius, it releases the stored CO₂. The same solids can then be reused to grab more CO₂. The electricity made by wind turbines would power the devices’ fans and the electric boiler, to heat the carbon-collecting solid. To store the CO₂ released, Ishaq’s team proposes injecting it into a type of deep-sea rock. That rock reacts with the gas, turning it into more rock in 10 to 25 years.

Ishaq’s team modeled wind turbines, electrolyzers and DAC units on computers to confirm their proposed system is a good idea. The next step is to test a small version of this set up on a floating platform in the ocean.

Environmentally Friendly Denmark

What Are They Doing and

How Is It Helping?

THEY PREFER TO CYCLE On average, Danes living in Copenhagen cycle almost 2 miles a day. Danes are far more likely to own a bike than they are a car, in fact 40% of Danes own a car and 90% a bike. Source: Cycling Embassy of Denmark

THEY DON’T WASTE FOOD Danes are very good at avoiding wasting food. Supermarkets offer 80% reductions at the end of the day to try to minimize waste. An app called “TooGoodToGo” also allows restaurants to give away unwanted food at closing time.

THEY ARE AWARE Danes are mindful about knowing where their food has come from. It is not uncommon for children to be taken to witness killing and dissections of animals at zoos so they understand where the food on their plate began its life. Source: New Yorker

THEY EAT ORGANIC Danes eat more organic food than any other country in the world. This is because organic food is not significantly more expensive than other options, making it a good choice for everyone. Source : The Local

THEY USE CLEAN ENERGY By 2050, Denmark wishes to become independent of fossil fuels. This is far from unreachable as earlier this year the country ran entirely on wind energy for a whole day.    Source: The Danish Ecological Council