Posts from — May 2008

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Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s message for World Environment Day 2008, to be observed on 5 June:

Addiction is a terrible thing. It consumes and controls us, makes us deny important truths and blinds us to the consequences of our actions. Our world is in the grip of a dangerous carbon habit.

Coal and oil paved the way for the developed world’s industrial progress. Fast-developing countries are now taking the same path in search of equal living standards. Meanwhile, in the least developed countries, even less sustainable energy sources, such as charcoal, remain the only available option for the poor.

Our dependence on carbon-based energy has caused a significant build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Last year, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change put the final nail in the coffin of global-warming sceptics. We know that climate change is happening, and we know that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that we emit are the cause.

We don’t just burn carbon in the form of fossil fuels. Throughout the tropics, valuable forests are being felled for timber and making paper, for pasture and arable land and, increasingly, for plantations to supply a growing demand for biofuels. This further manifestation of our carbon habit not only releases vast amounts of CO2; it also destroys a valuable resource for absorbing atmospheric carbon, further contributing to climate change.

The environmental, economic and political implications of global warming are profound. Ecosystems — from mountain to ocean, from the poles to the tropics — are undergoing rapid change. Low-lying cities face inundation, fertile lands are turning to desert, and weather patterns are becoming ever more unpredictable.

The cost will be borne by all. The poor will be hardest hit by weather-related disasters and by soaring price inflation for staple foods, but even the richest nations face the prospect of economic recession and a world in conflict over diminishing resources. Mitigating climate change, eradicating poverty and promoting economic and political stability all demand the same solution: we must kick the carbon habit. This is the theme for World Environment Day 2008. “Kick the Habit: Towards a Low-Carbon Economy”, recognizes the damaging extent of our addiction, and it shows the way forward.

Often we need a crisis to wake us to reality. With the climate crisis upon us, businesses and Governments are realizing that, far from costing the Earth, addressing global warming can actually save money and invigorate economies. While the estimated costs of climate change are incalculable, the price tag for fighting it may be less than any of us may have thought. Some estimates put the cost at less than 1 per cent of global gross domestic product — a cheap price indeed for waging a global war.

Even better news is that technologies already exist or are under development to make our consumption of carbon-based fuels cleaner and more efficient, and to harness the renewable power of sun, wind and waves. The private sector, in particular, is competing to capitalize on what they recognize as a massive business opportunity.

Around the world, nations, cities, organizations and businesses are looking afresh at green options. At the United Nations, I have instructed that the plan for renovating our New York Headquarters should follow strict environmental guidelines. I have also asked the chief executives of all United Nations programmes, funds and specialized agencies to move swiftly towards carbon neutrality.

Earlier this year, the United Nations Environment Programme launched a climate-neutral network — CN Net — to energize this growing trend. Its inaugural members, which include countries, cities and companies, are pioneers in a movement that I believe will increasingly define environmental, economic and political discourse and decision-making over the coming decades.

The message of World Environment Day 2008 is that we are all part of the solution. Whether you are an individual, an organization, a business or a Government, there are many steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint. It is a message we all must take to heart. 

Courtesy of 7th Space Interactive

Join the Million Faces Project at Thinkfrog. We’re making it easy for you to help stop global warming - just $10 and your photo!

Just this morning I paid $4.05 per gallon to fill my car. Last time I filled it, it was $3.55 per gallon. Ouch. And while I drive a Volkswagen Golf, I tend to have a heavy right foot. I like to power up hills and get up to speed as quickly as possible - it makes the trip just a tad more fun, evening if I don’t save that much time. 

But now I’m changing my old habits to a new game: how high can I push my mpg? A little digging around has found a few things you can do to increase their mileage above your car’s E.P.A. rating:

1. Accelerate gradually. That lead foot uses a lot of gas in a very short time. In fact hard braking and acceleration can cost you as much as 30% in fuel. 30%!

2. Keep your car clean: changing filters and oil regularly keeps your engine efficient. Use the recommended oil - heavier oil equals less efficiency.

3. Remove the roof rack - that consumes about 5% more fuel.

4. Keep your tires at full pressure - they roll more efficiently. Underinflated tires can cost you 2% in fuel economy if 5 pounds low. A 2001 Department of Transportation study found that 40% of passenger cars had at least one underinflated tire.

5. Obey those speed limits. The faster you drive, the more fuel you burn due to aerodynamic drag. It ranges about 10% more to go 65 miles per hour versus 55 and 17% more to go 70 mph. I know this can sometimes be hard!

6. Park so you can pull forward instead of backing up. Backing up consumes much more fuel. I know that’s not always possible, but something to take advantage of when the opportunity is there. The little things really do add up.

7. Use cruise control on the highway - it’ll avoid unintended fluctuations in speed, which uses more fuel.

8. Combine those trips. Did you know that 90% of car pollution occurs in the first 90 seconds at start up?

9. For manual shifters, shift up to the next gear as soon as possible.

For additional info, check out the following sites: www.fueleconomy.gov and Canada’s Autosmart Guide 

When you’re considering whether to replace your car or keep it, consider the benefits of maintaining and driving your car to 200,000 miles or more. While we love what hybrids do for the environment and clearing the air in your local economy, manufacturing the lithium batteries they require produces a significant amount of carbon.

According to the June, 2008 issue of Wired Magazine, you’d have to drive your new Prius 100,000 miles before seeing the environmental benefit over driving a late 90’s Toyota Tercel. Now if you have a gas guzzler, that’s a different story. And if your car’s dying, a hybrid should definitely be on the list. It’s also not uncommon to drive a Prius for 250,000 miles or more. 

Join the Million Faces Project at Thinkfrog. We’re making it easy for you to help stop global warming - just $10 and your photo!

If you have a large lawn, it is. How so, you may ask? The all-American lush, beautiful green lawn requires continous mowing and watering and fertilizing to look good during peak months.

Did you know that power mowers pollute much more than cars? 93 times more in fact on a per gallon basis. If you’re looking for alternative mowers, consider a manual push-mower or electric mowers. The other polluter is from water runoff carrying all those fertilizers, pesticides and fungicides right into our lakes and streams. 

But many of us love our lawns and would be hard-pressed to give them up. Especially families whose kids depend on them for their Slip ‘n Slide or sprinkler dash. There is hope, however. Alternatives exist in the form of more natural. lower maintenance grasses - each part of the country has native sods requiring much less mowing and maintenance. 

Buffalo grass is one alternative and some grasses can work well at a longer length, requiring just a few cuttings per year compared to 35 or more for regular lawns. So here’s a short list of ‘greener’ lawn alternatives - more like a sedan or economy car rather than SUV.

West Coast: California Meadow Sedge (Carex praegracilis) and Seashore Bent Grass (Agrostis pallens)

Pacific Northwest including Northern California: Idaho fescue (Festuca idahoensis)

Midwest: Pennsylvania Sedge (Carex pennsylvania), Appalachian Sedge (Carex appalachia)

Northern states: Red fescue (festuca rubra)

Texas and New Mexico: Blue grama grass (Bouteloua gracilis)

Southeast: Florida meadowsedge (Carex alba-lutescens), Texas hill sedge (Carex perdentata), Texas sedge (Carex texensis)

Check your local nurseries and/or your landscape designer for sourcing. And if you like to have a lawn for looks but don’t need the functionality, consider massing low-growing plants like Irish moss, Thyme or other ’steppable’ ground covers. This list is merely a start - if you have recommendations for your area, please add them in the comments!

Here’s to a greener green lawn.

Join the Million Faces Project at Thinkfrog. We’re making it easy for you to help stop global warming - just $10 and your photo!

Of course you do - you go faster and faster and faster, then . . . .oops. That’s also what’s happening with the ice melting in the Arctic. The more ice that melts, the faster it melts and the faster the temperature rises and the more ice that melts and . . . you get the idea. 

 
The average temperature in Greenland is 7.2 degrees warmer than it was in 1991. Lakes that form on melting ice have been increasing by 13 percent yearly and the Arctic ocean at the end of Summer, 2007 had 23 percent less ice cover than in Summer  2005. 
 
So, why does the melting pick up the pace? As the ice melts, it creates dark open water that absorbs heat rather than reflecting it back - similar to what happens in cities. Imagine losing an area of land the size of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Texas combined - that’s how much ice has been lost in the Arctic - and how much more dark open water there is to absorb heat. 

The climate change models don’t account for the effects of such a rapid ice melt. While we know it’s bad - and that it’s causing the sea levels to rise - we don’t know exactly how high they’ll go. But it’s looking worse than the 2 feet projected in this century, impacting many large cities and millions of people. 

That’s why we have to save the trees and why we need you to join the Million Faces Project at Thinkfrog. Together, we CAN make a difference. Together, we NEED to make a difference. And we’re making it easy for you to start - just $10 and your photo!