The Nay Sayers say it is a myth, a figment of the imagination, that there is nothing to worry about. They say there is no need to amend our ways, global warming is not real. Whatever is happening is just by the way and not caused by global warming; these things are just happening, like in the regular course of things nothing drastic needs doing! These are all climatic cycles the earth has been going thru over the ages, and that ITS NOT OUR FAULT! Ice ages come and go.
On the other end of the spectrum are the doomsday prophesiers (a view most famously championed by Al Gore in the film, An Inconvenient Truth) who say the problems are far more serious that we think that the global warming is worse than we thought; its potential consequences far worse than previously imagined; that SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE NOW lest we destroy the very planet that is our home.
It’s difficult to make out what is the truth between these extreme positions, but what stares us in the face is evidence such as this: we are experiencing hotter summers than our parents did. Glaciers are melting, ice caps are shrinking. Sea levels are rising; there is an unusually high incidence of cyclones and tidal waves. Drought and excessive unseasonal rainfall are a reality.
The fact is there are valid arguments on both sides, yes the earth has constantly undergone cycles of climate change and ice ages have come and gone. Perhaps reports of global warming tend to err on the side of sensationalizing the actual situation. However, none of that can be an excuse for us to do nothing about reducing our carbon footprint or leading less wasteful lives. If you don’t believe in global warming, don’t; just don’t use your disbelief as an excuse to live a lifestyle that negatively impacts our earth that destroys habitats of other creatures that we share the earth with and imperils ecologies and entire species! Fact is no part of the earth is safe from man’s voracious greed and avarice. If we are unable to reverse the damage that we cause to our earth daily, at least let us try to limit it by thinking long and hard about the choices that we make every day and how those choices impact the environment around us. And if my impassioned plea touched any of my readers out there in the slightest, I am a very satisfied woman!
It is a button the world has already hit, each country bringing disaster among themselves. I have chosen to look upon this particular incident below purely because it is current news. I will over time look at other countries as well.
We have read about the recent tragedy which stuck South Asian Countries. The huge cyclone which struck Burma, Myanmar and surroundings. Subsequently the news also was Burma’s junta which is the military refusing foreign aid into the country. By which of course now we see Burma list among the top-read news listings for the wrong reasons.
Burma had mangrove forests along the coastlines. The mangroves are salt tolerant and are found along the coastlines, beside rivers and on the deltas. The mangrove forests have over time served as a buffer between rising tide and storms and the residential areas. The plant’s root systems have been shown to dissipate wave energy.
A study published in December 2005 states healthy mangrove forests helped save a substantial number of Sri Lankan villagers during the tsunami disaster of that year. It states that “while two people died in the settlement with dense mangrove and scrub forest, up to 6,000 people lost their lives in a nearby village without similar vegetation.”
In Bangladesh, another South Asian country, the country itself almost is all on a delta. A few decades ago the country has hit by a typhoon which killed almost three-hundred thousand people. They learnt since then and today the mangroves forests are a protected area.
The affected countries clearly haven’t realized that. A recent assessment found that 3.6 million hectares of mangrove forests worldwide are gone, Asia having lost 1.9 million of it. Burma among other countries witnessed large scale conversion of mangroves into shrimp and fish farms. Let’s hope they realize their natural barrier is their best insurance.
Biofuels, biofuels, biofuels it’s everywhere these days. You find politicians making headlines on it, environmental groups protesting against it, scientists publishing various reports on the helpful/harmful nature of the fuels, car companies advertising their ‘biofuel compliance’. Phew! That’s a lot of them! So, I decided to see for myself what these biofuels are about. You’ll be surprised.
So what is the ‘bio’ in biofuels? Biofuels don’t really pollute any lesser, it is a convoluted concept. What is also a convoluted concept the carbon credits/carbon emission system which I’ll talk about in another post? The biofuel concept goes like this; Biofuel is plant derived fuel. Where ethanol is derived from various crops and mixed with regular fuel in different percentages. Like bio-30 or bio-60 means that much percentage of plant-derived ethanol is present in the regular gasoline/diesel.
The biofuel consumers don’t pollute any lesser. The theory is the carbon consumed by the plants is offset by the carbon emitted by the vehicles. A theory. Tailor made to appeal to some politician to sell to the masses. There is pressure already to drop this biofuel business (click on link for more)
Here’s how it really works.
The problem is in production of biofuels. The problems are the crops used for Biofuel processing; deforestation to gain land for plantation and the one which really pinches is regular farmers quitting farming vital crops to grow ‘biofuel friendly’ crops. The last point is understandable only, only from an economic point of view. The farmers pick what pays them best, but what of the masses? They stop producing vital crops which result in a shortfall of food!
The other hugely debated aspect is choosing the correct crop to be harvested for biofuel processing. Many of the methods currently used for biofuel production are more environmentally adverse than producing conventional forms of energy, only a select few are not. Ethanol for fuel is made through fermentation, the same process which produces it in wine and beer. So there can be several methods, but which has the least environmental impact should be picked.
The UN Report (click link to see) on biofuels says quote:
“Environmentalists have warned that the biofuel craze can do as much or more damage to the environment as dirty fossil fuels”
“Changes in the carbon content of soils and carbon stocks in forests and peat lands might offset some or all of the benefits of the greenhouse gas reductions”
“Liquid biofuel production could threaten the availability of adequate food supplies by diverting land and other productive resources away from food crops”
What/Who is causing these concerns? The politicians are of course. The biggest problem with politicians is that they are never in office long enough for the boomerang to come hit them back in the face. They see public concerned about the environment, so they come up with a convoluted theory, encourage the private sector to put their money in it by offering them governmental sops, so what happens? Rise in commodity prices, strain on water supplies, large deforestation and farmers moving away from harvesting vital crops.
The developing countries are the ones most heavily hit by this phenomenon, while some countries divert food (click for more info) to produce bio fuels like in the US 20% of the corn produced is diverted for biofuel production.
Last word from a political leader “It is a sign of the lopsided priorities of certain countries that they will resort to measures that will produce fuel at a cheaper cost in order to meet the transport requirements of a section of their population,”
“The pursuit of such policies at a time when many in the world could barely afford to eat was “outrageous and… must be condemned”.
Earth Day which was on 22nd April has just gone by. I have not stuck to the New Year Resolutions that I made, so I thought I would make some Earth Day resolutions which would be good for me as well as the Earth. Even a few changes you make in your day to day life can make a difference. Read on and tell me if you are going to join me in this worthwhile exercise.
I shall recycle: That recycling is good for the environment is a no brainer. The mantra you can live by is reduce, reuse and recycle. Buy less to begin with, reuse whenever possible so that you minimize waste and recycle whatever you can. When you buy stuff at the store, carry your own bag or at least ask for a paper bag rather than a plastic one. Remember you will use a plastic bag for five minutes and it will take nature 500 years to biodegrade it.
I shall drive less: Walk to wherever you can, or use your bicycle, leaving the car at home. Whenever possible, use public transport. If you are thinking about getting a new car, at least consider an electric vehicle or a hybrid at least.
I shall take the train not the plane: If you read my post about the best train journeys, then you will know, that according to me, trains are the best way to travel because you get a feel of the place you are traveling thru, the people, the culture, the look, sounds, even the smells of the place. It is also the best way to travel environmentally speaking because it has the least negative impact on the environment.
I shall plant Trees: Ideally, you can try planting a tree for every 10 books you buy (textbook, notebook, count them all). I know this is not at all practical or even feasible, but try planting one tree a year. You can choose earth day to do this worthwhile activity. Or read e-books as a way to reduce the demand of cutting trees for making paper.
I shall reconnect with nature: Get together with likeminded friends or family and explore your neighborhood. Organize a camping or trekking excursion; explore parks, woods, and historical sites. Let this be how you spend your leisure time rather than staying indoors watching the TV, using heating or cooling and other appliances.
I shall eat smart: Reduce the amount of frozen or canned foods that you eat (canning uses energy and material and increases garbage and freezing uses energy and packing material), instead eat fresh, seasonal produce.
Any more that you want to add to my list?
Look at the attached videos. Isn’t it amazing? Imagine owning a phone like the shown Nokia 888? The Sony concept cannot be far behind seeing their prototype. It is a marvellous concept; it would redefine our lives in many ways. Nokia, a company founded in 1865 is today the largest provider of mobile phone technology. This design was launched in the Museum of Modern Art“Design and The Elastic Mind” themed exhibition. Really the mind needs to stretch to accommodate this into our thinking!
This latest innovation ‘Morph’ technology has to be the most cutting edge and transitional breakthrough the world has yet seen. So far we all have been conditioning ourselves to work with technology, learn and adapt to the newer things, newer operations and functionality. Here with the Morph concept the gadget adapts itself to your lifestyle. Isn’t that fabulous? It would be god sent to all technology-adverse people. Operation of this technology based product will be as natural as flipping through a magazine and as convenient carrying as wearing a watch. No buttons to be scared of, all touch sensitive!
Some remarkable features of this new technology are;
• Flexible and versatile adapting shape and colour to however you may want to use it, as a wrist watch or a regular phone or a tablet any which way your imagination takes you!
• Solar powered. No need worrying to find a plug point.
• Superhydrophobic surface which repels dirt, water and even finger prints thereby reducing corrosion, wear and improving longevity.
• An absolutely cutting-edge-unheard-of new feature is the environment sensor. Which can tell you if something you want to eat can be consumed or not, it can tell you on the pollution levels of the air around you and various other things one can set the bio-chemical sensor to identify to them. Whatever you may want to know on your environment.
Statistics indicate Nokia sells 18 phones every second of every day which is an enormous number making it easily the world’s largest mobile phone maker and with more than one billion handsets shipped is the world’s largest mobile computing platform. It would be fantastic if billions of people could be touched by this amazing piece of technology.
evawhite on July 21st, 2008
Biofuels
The problem is in production of biofuels. The problems are the crops used for Biofuel processing; deforestation to gain land for plantation and the one which really pinches is regular farmers quitting farming vital crops to grow ‘biofuel friendly’ crops. The last point is understandable only, only from an economic point of view. The farmers pick what pays them best, but what of the masses? They stop producing vital crops which result in a shortfall of food!
The 
