Plain water is the only thing visitors are allowed to consume inside the huge cavern at Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico. Cheetos are a no-go, and the recent park visitor who dropped a bag full of them created a "huge impact" on the cave's ecosystem, park rangers said Friday in a Facebook post.
"At the scale of human perspective, a spilled snack bag may seem trivial, but to the life of the cave it can be world changing," the park said in its post about the garbage found off-trail in the Big Room.
"The processed corn, softened by the humidity of the cave, formed the perfect environment to host microbial life and fungi. Cave crickets, mites, spiders and flies soon organize into a temporary food web, dispersing the nutrients to the surrounding cave and formations. Molds spread higher up the nearby surfaces, fruit, die and stink. And the cycle continues."
To read more, tap the link in @cnntravel's bio.
📸: Edwin Remsberg/VW Pics/Universal Images Group/Getty Images
Sustainable construction is entering the mainstream with new models proving that low carbon design and resource efficiency in construction can operate at scale. The 113‑home Zero Bills neighbourhood in Epping Forest integrates energy generation and storage into the fabric of housing, redefining sustainable building design through a decentralised microgrid that removes household energy bills for at least ten years. This approach demonstrates how net zero carbon buildings can merge renewable building materials, circular economy strategies and life cycle thinking in construction into practical delivery.
UKGBC’s latest Trends Report identifies a shift from climate declarations to tangible delivery, with sustainable building practices judged by disclosure and performance metrics including life cycle cost. This data-driven transition aligns with emerging frameworks for BREEAM v7 and net zero whole life carbon assessments, enhancing accountability across investors and developers.
Water management is being reframed as critical infrastructure in sustainable urban development. Integrated sustainable drainage systems are now core to eco-friendly construction, mitigating both drought and flood risk while advancing green infrastructure and whole life carbon optimisation. The move from isolated interventions to systems-based eco-design for buildings is reinforcing resilience within local planning policy.
Government investment through Great British Railways and bus network upgrades is generating a procurement pipeline that can embed carbon neutral construction and sustainable material specification. These programmes present opportunities to demonstrate circular construction strategies, environmental product declarations (EPDs) and low embodied carbon materials in major works.
International collaboration through InnovateUkraine extends UK expertise in environmental sustainability in construction to post-conflict resilience. The £17 million investment will foster modular, low carbon building systems designed for rapid deployment and rebuild, advancing circular economy in construction principles and end-of-life reuse in construction.
Global data from the United Nations reinforces the urgency of decarbonising the built environment. The environmental impact of construction—through embodied carbon, operational emissions and unaccounted waste—carries quantifiable social and economic costs. Zero Bills housing and similar models show how sustainable design, life cycle cost evaluation and whole life carbon consideration can transform the industry from aspiration to accountable delivery.
Whole Life Carbon is a platform for the entire construction industry—both in the UK and internationally. We track the latest publications, debates, and events related to whole life guidance and sustainability. If you have any enquiries or opinions to share, please do
get in touch.
eco
WLC Assistant
Ask me about sustainability
Hi! I'm your Whole Life Carbon assistant. I can help you learn about sustainability, carbon assessment, and navigate our resources. How can I help you today?
