Environment Archives - Page 3 of 5

Reducing Our Meat Consumption – An Environmental Necessity

Last updated on November 18th, 2017 at 03:44 pm

There are predictions in a new report that the greenhouse gases produced by meat and dairy consumption will rise by around 80% if we continue along our current path. The report states that the global consumption of meat must be reduced if we are to avoid serious environmental repercussions. These include food scarcity as well as the overall environmental atmospheric impact that our current consumption points too. There are of course lots of concerns about the modern diet and how it impacts our health and environment. For example read about the use of a new drug called Selincro which is being tested to treat alcohol abuse.

The report was produced from a collaboration of research between Aberdeen and Cambridge Universities which suggests globally the American diet seems to be the blueprint for the world. This for many countries will mean a huge increase in the consumption of meat and dairy produce.

The problem is that there are many was to produce the food we need to live. However the efficiency of rearing livestock for meat is easily the most inefficient. The report suggests that the standard measure of energy of producing food is less than 3% in the case of producing meat, which is extremely low and inefficient. As our demand for meat increases so does the pressure to convert scarce resources like land away from traditional arable consumption simply to produce feeds for the animals.

The problem is not with the methods employed by farmers, but simply our choice of food stuffs. There is no method by which meat production can ever be as efficient as producing vegetable or other traditional crops.The danger is that the environmental damage caused by increased meat production makes all food production more costly and difficult too.

Of course there are many scare stories about human behavior affecting the environments. At the moment in Europe there is a huge rush to buy high powered vacuum cleaners as the overall power will be restricted later this year, the implication is that this is a ‘green initiative’ designed to reduce energy consumption although it’s easy to be sceptical about this initiative. There is a lot more evidence around food production though and although most developed countries for the most part are able to finance and support this ‘meat and dairy’ demand, it wouldn’t take much in the way of climate changes to make it completely unsustainable in many parts of the world.

There are a series of environmental discussions taking place at the moment on the UK TV network primarily the BBC and Channel 4, if you wish to watch these then this link might be useful which enables full access to most UK and US stations which broadcast online irrespective of your physical location.

Joe Hameers

Author and Blogger at http://dnsproxy.co.uk/

India Perhaps Ready To Change

Last updated on July 2nd, 2014 at 11:05 pm

It’s come as a bit of a surprise to some but it looks like the Indian Government may be on the verge of a major change in it’s climate change policy. In it’s new 5 year plan there is an agreement to a global emissions cap prior to the more developed countries making their biding pledges for reducing emissions rapidly.

The Indian Government had previously stated in climate change meetings that rich and developed countries must take the lead. But it looks like the country now will be prepared to carry out a reduction of climate change domestically under it’s own steam. There previous stance was that both financial and technological support from richer countries must come first.

It’s potentially a huge breakthrough if true. One of the big problems is that countries like India are preventing any form of true global agreement. However the reality of climate change is that countries must proceed to do much more with or without this global agreement.

The positive economic aspects are perhaps partly responsible for this big shift. The benefits of aggressive energy efficieny drives given a real incentive due to the recent huge power cuts across the entire country. Accelerated roll outs of renewables and addressing the high pollution industries that exist across India.

However as usual in this area – there is rarely a concensus and the USAs lead negotiator has suggested that the 2C warming target perhaps should be scrapped. This was a very depressing statement and roundly condemned by the Eu and many others. However if you want to get a feeling of how the US feels about global warming then check out their main News channels. You can find information on how to get a US IP address on this site – http://www.proxyusa.com/ this will allow you to access these programmes, there’s also quite a bit on the Canadian media which you can access through this method. You will quickly see that the economy is way higher up the agenda in the US than global warming is (although arguably they are not alone in this!)

Fracking in France

Last updated on September 3rd, 2024 at 09:25 am

News on Fracking Developments in France

There have been some incidents which have briefly pleased those of us who care about the environment. One of those which gave me hope personally is the commitment from the president himself that hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) as it’s known is banned completely in France. Unfortunately the pressure is growing from the powerful energy explorers, oil and gas companies and other profit driven companies who are happy to destroy our environment to enhance their balance sheets.

The process involves blasting millions of gallons of water, chemicals and sand into the rock formations below our feet to release oil and gas reserves. It sounds crazy when you explain it – actually fracturing the rock. The idea is that it allows access to the gas which would have previously been inaccessible.

$howfrackingworks$

The fact that when this happens methane gas and various chemicals are poured into the ground and can easily contaminate the water table or sources of water seems to have been overlooked. Some studies have reported that methane in drinking wells near a fracing site can be 17 times higher than normal. Of course much of the damage will probably long term as we slowly poison people and the planet with yet another mad polluting idea to extract gas and oil. A high proportion of the toxines used in Fracking are left in the ground, and not before you ask none of it’s biodegradable.

Shale Gas within Paris Boundaries

The problem is that although this is a terrible practices with probably more dangers than we can think of, France probably sits on one of the most valuable resources of shale gas in the huge Paris Basin. This is the tactic companies like Total and GDF are taking, evaluate the reserves that France is sitting on before decisions are made. Of course this will put huge pressure on any ban being upheld as billlions of dollars will probably be adequate compensation for destroying and poisoning the land and people.

The debate is happening now in France and you can keep up with developments in the French Online media from anywhere in the world. Le Monde has a great web site with lots of news and debate, their are a few decent online media channels too – my favourite is M6 Replay which has news and entertainment channels all accessible on the internet. Unfortunately these can only be accessed in France so if you’re outside you are going to need a French proxy – here’s an example. This is a computer based in France that allows you to route your web browsing through, this gives you the appearance of a French IP address and then you can watch anything without issues.

More Information – https://cipec.org/uncategorized/m6-replay-oui-french-proxy-server

The River Risk in the USA

Last updated on July 3rd, 2014 at 01:51 pm

I was watching a programme the other day on the BBC, it was a science show being syndicated across radio and the TV station. I’d listened to the initial broadcast which was on the World Service about the river pollution and problems in the UK and how they had started solving them. Unfortunately I thought I’d missed the BBC show as initially I was blocked from the BBC Iplayer site because of my location. Fortunately I was able to spend a few bucks after someone showed me this web page which explained how to access British TV online and I was able to stream it across the internet without problems. They certainly had their problems but some strong legislation has ensured that the quality of UK rivers has improved greatly over the last decade or so.

However there are similar concerns being raised in the US now, where the environmental group American Rivers has recently released it’s report on the most endangered rivers in the United States. I was surprised to hear that one the biggest worries is that of the Colorado river. Now I’ve just been on the Colorado during a visit to Las Vegas, and it looked mightily healthy to me. However apparently the report has suggested that outdated river management techniques is sucking the mighty river dry – apparently the mighty Colorado River doesn’t even make it to the ocean before running dry.

Here are the top ten most endangered rivers according to the report.

Colorado River (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming)
Flint River (Georgia)
San Saba River (Texas)
Little Plover River (Wisconsin)
Catawba River (North Carolina and South Carolina)
Boundary Waters (Minnesota)
Black Warrior River (Alabama)
Rough & Ready and Baldface Creeks (Oregon)
Kootenai River (British Columbia, Montana and Idaho)
Niobrara River (Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming)

There’s some incredible rivers there, but apparently these are really at serious risk. One of the big problems is that the current water management techniques are ill suited to modern times.

You can take a lot more water out of a river when the rainful is plentiful than you can in the current climates. Global warming is going to claim a lot of victims and unless we all globally try and reduce our consumption of water – some of our most loved rivers will be amongst them.

Reference – American Rivers Report

Additional – http://www.iplayerabroad.com/

The Eco Choice for Jewelry

Last updated on July 2nd, 2014 at 10:30 pm

For anyone who is keen to minimize their environmental impact on the planet – jewelry can be a tricky area. After all there’s no essential need for that necklace or silver ring, but lets face it we all need cheering up sometimes. So perhaps you’ve decided you might want a new gold or silver piece of jewelry – how can you reduce the impact of your purchase?

Well of course the obvious first question is regarding the raw materials – the metals used. Mining for silver and gold can cause huge environmental impact if it’s not done properly. There are many jewelers who try and use only recycled silver for example. These come from secondary refiners who deal with recycled and scrap silver from other sources other than directly from a mine.

It is difficult to check the origin of precious metals though and it’s unlikely you can guarantee the origin of any item completely. Silver to use our example is often mined as a by product of industrial mining of other products. Most commonly the production of copper and zinc will produce a certain amount of silver ore as a by product.

The reality is though that if everyone only used recycled silver then the price would soon explode to an unsustainable level. However there is another option that probably has the minimal impact on the environment. That is simply to look at the many sources of antique jewelry in existence. There are stockists who deal in antique silver items for example, like this place – http://anythingsilver.org/ whose environmental impact is long since passed.

Using existing items means there’s no requirement for raw materials, no production impact from mining or producing the item. It of course is dependent on finding the right piece but this can normally done from the comfort of your home and an internet enabled laptop. It’s an attitude that’s growing in popularity, if you look across the world’s media sites then you’ll see this for yourself. There’s many more shows about reducing your effect on the environment, there’s even quite a few on Canadian TV – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REwJq5iQn0Q, and also surprisingly in the US.

Help the Environment by Gardening and Making Compost

Last updated on April 5th, 2016 at 03:48 pm

The world today is very reliant upon fossil fuels, so much so that we’re killing our atmosphere very rapidly. There are many things that you can do to counter the negative way we treat our planet, and one of those ways is through gardening. A garden will help soak in the carbon dioxide and give us oxygen. The more plants, trees and greenery there are, the better off we are. Not enough people are into gardening, so it’s best to at least consider making an effort in starting a garden.

One of the best gardens that you can have is a greenhouse garden. Greenhouses give you the opportunity to plant any type of seeds you want any time of the year. This is because you can control the temperature and water vapors of a greenhouse, allowing for almost any type of plant to grow within in it at any time. A greenhouse garden will also allow your plants extra protection from the weather, and also from insects and pests trying to get to your plants. Looking online will show you a variety of greenhouses for sale.

Gardening in general, whether it’s through a regular garden or a greenhouse garden is very good for you and the environment. You can plant and eat your own fruits and vegetables, and you’ll be doing the Earth a favor as well because the plants will give out oxygen and absorb the carbon dioxide.

So what else can you do to help the environment that can also help out your gardening? Make your own compost at home.

The only problem in making compost is making it for one home. This means you need to gather the right ingredients to make the compost. An ideal compost pile will need two-thirds “greens, “nitrogen-rich materials, and on thirds “browns,” which are carbon-rich materials. “Greens” are fresh plant materials: vegetable scraps, clippings, and grass. “Brown” materials are dead plants: fallen leaves, straw, and old plants.
You can gather your grass clippings, leaf bags and horse manure and collect as much of it as you can. Once you’ve done this, you can start layering them into a pile, and start soaking them as you make the layers. Do this in a circular bin, a wooden bin, a large trash can or right on the ground.

Next, you’ll add your “greens’ the mix, along with coffee grounds, and make the pile as big as you need it to be. It’s very important that your pile stays moist. Make as much or as little as you want. Remember, the more that you make, the more that you’ll have to use. You can make a pile that will last a week or even a pile that will last a whole year. It’s all up to you. Just remember, you’re helping out the environment by doing so.

Safe Environment Means Safeness Of The People

Last updated on April 5th, 2016 at 03:43 pm

Who among us wouldn’t like to live somewhere safe and calm? People are always dreaming to live a safe environment and do not harm anyone. Microsoft Dynamics GP would explain more about how important to have an environment that would let you feel the safety of the place to live. If we try to see the current situation of our environment today, we would see that there are places wherein the environment are clean and safe from any harmful substances or wrong doings done by the people. There are also some places wherein the environment is suffering from wrong doings and activities of the people. It is bad to here that the people who are responsible on the safety of the environment are the ones who are doing the destruction of the environment. We should realize and ne aware that we are the ones who can benefit on the environment as human being and we are also the ones who are putting ourselves at risk. When you find out that there are activities that would absolutely destruct the environment then we should stop it as early as possible. Microsoft Dynamics GP is based on data mining and can help people realize how environment sustains our life and how does it becomes vital to the lives of every individual. A safe environment usually means safeness of the people living in it.

Microsoft Dynamics GP is now ready to explain how people should threat the environment. Let us check on some human activities that would destruct the environment such pollutions. Yes, pollution is now a big and serious problem that was encountered by our environment and until now. So, it is important that these pollutions must stop as it threatens the lives of human beings as well as the living things in this world. Microsoft Dynamics GP would let people realize their wrong and correct it. The people are the ones who are responsible on the welfare of the environment and we should take good care our environment. Pollution becomes a serious problem since from the time that it was not discovered and still continually in dangers the living things as well as the human beings. Meaning, we must be responsible as to what are the things that we do and we should have to make sure that it doesn’t harm anybody.

Microsoft Dynamics GP guides many people today to stop water pollution, air pollution, noise pollutions and whatever kind of pollution it might be. To live a safe environment assures to have a healthy living. It can be useless if we live as to what we want to be but our environment is gradually destroyed. Always remember that our environment plays a big role in our daily lives. If in time that we find out our environment is now at risk of being totally destructed, we are also putting our lives in danger as well. No matter what kind of solutions and activities to stop destroying and destructing our environment as long as we are not doing anything that can harm the living things, the environment and the people surround us. Let us protect our environment and we are also protecting our welfare at the same time.

Source: Microsoft Dynamics GP

How Will China Repair it’s Environmental Reputation

Last updated on April 5th, 2016 at 03:20 pm

Believe it or not there is environmental legislation in China, it’s called the Environmental Protection Law and was created 34 years ago. However the title is fairly misleading, as one of the main things it doesn’t do is protect the environment in any real way. China’s focus for the last three decades has pretty much been growth at all costs – increasing National wealth was seen as way more important than protecting the environment.

However even the most ardent supporter of this policy would have to think twice as their citizens struggle for breath in the appallingly polluted atmosophere than the people of China have to breathe every day in it’s major industrial areas. The air is not the only problem, there are frequent scares on water and food quality – of course they’re all linked. China has poisoned it’s environment in exchange for money – it’s that simple.

What is the real costs of this growth – is it all just about money? Well there have been several alarming studies that have tried to rationalise the real costs. For example in the majority of the world – life expectancy is growing every year – in Northern China you can expect to live 5 1/2 years fewer due to the poisoned air. The pollution has definitely increased strokes and heart disease and almost certainly cancer. These are conservative estimates, there are sure to be more health implications to be revealed over the coming years.

The problem is how do the Chinese start to repair this without admitting they’ve sold their nations health in exchange for economic prosperity. Of course they won’t – criticism both online and offline is always dealt with. You’ll see only positive messages on both domestic media and international stuff released by China. I saw an advert on one of the Netflix channels last week with footage of how China is now growing in an environmentally friendly way. The advert was aired on the US version of Netflix, which I am fortunate to be able to access.

The reality is irrespective of how China is portrayed, they need to change course and quickly. There is an environmental disaster starting in that country and to proceed on with it’s growth at all costs will ultimately cost billions and the lives of many of it’s citizens. The Environmental Protection law needs to be updated so that the legislation does some of it’s titles implications, they need to do it fast.

Edit:

Just a note to say that the same Chinese advert now seems to be on many European channels too, I’ve seen it airing on ITV and Channel 4 in the UK and being promoted on YouTube and on French media – here.

Fall in the Artic Sea Ice Levels

Last updated on January 30th, 2024 at 02:34 pm

The amount of sea ice has fallen considerably in the Artic over the last few year. Even if we look back at the end of March, there seemed to be somewhat of a recovery in volume. In fact the levels were beginning to show an unlikely return to the average levels (over period 1978 -2012), and a ten year high.

However this seems to be something of a false dawn, as at the end of August we saw some reports from the National Snow and Ice Data centre which suggested all was not well. Their report showed that the extent of the ice was approximately 1.5 million square miles which is actually the lowest level ever. The previous low was recorded during the Summer months of 1979 but it should be pointed out that the data being analysed was only available since 1979.

It was most unusual because the minimum ice count is normally recorded in the months of September/October – it will be interesting to see if further levels are recorded. Unfortunately because of the small samples of data it is difficult to see how significant these falls are. There’s also a lot of confusion about how much the decline is down to a natural cycle and factors such as weather conditions, ocean currents and cycles. Many of course believe that a lot is down to man made factors and global warming due to the greenhouse effect.

The ice is also important to our environment, it reflects solar radiation back into outer space. If this does not happen then the sea does become warmer and the cycle of ice falls will accelerate even faster. There is also the worry that the ice traps lots of gas like methane under the sea bed, this if released could also speed up the global warming effect.

If you want to keep up with all the latest developments and information about global warming, it’s best to do so from a non-bias and independent source like the BBC. There is lots of information on their web site including the excellent Bite Size series which is a great introduction for kids. For adults there are lots of programmes on the BBC Iplayer which explore both sides of the argument from the Newsnight, Horizon and Natural History departments. If you have difficulty accessing the BBC Iplayer due to being outside the UK try this site – http://dotslash.hubpages.com/hub/Watching-BBC-IPlayer-Abroad. It contains links and information about how you change your IP address to make it look lke you’re in the UK, very useful information.

Was the Superstorm Caused by Us ?

Last updated on September 2nd, 2024 at 03:12 pm

It’s fairly well agreed that the increase in the sea levels is caused at least partly by global warming. This would certainly worsen effects of storms like Sandy – primarily due to the increased effects of the Storm surge which coastal communities dread so much.

But there is no definitive answer to whether climate change including the falling levels of Artic sea ice have any direct influence on either the intensity or direction of a Superstorm like Sandy. Although there is much disagreement between scientists one point is not in dispute, that the increased risks of these storm surges need thinking about. The economic impact alone means that some serious decisions need to be taken for the long term and short term periods.

For example in New York, they’re going to need to repair the flooded subways pretty quickly. However a long term view needs to be taken and one the most obvious is building a huge multi billion dollar flood barrier to protect the Lower side of Manhattan from the levels of storm surge that are now possible.

There are other areas in the US that perhaps might simply just need abandoning. Protecting from these storm surges is extrmely expensive and there are areas which it is simply not possible. But we need to adapt and recognise that there is a change in our climate and that extreme weather events are going to become much more common.

If there is one good thing about Sandy then hopefully – the environmental issues will be moved up the Presidential election ladder. There is no denying that our cimate is changing and these events have a huge impact on society and the economy. The clean up from Sandy is very likely to be in tens of billions of dollars.

If you want to read about the various issues that are facing the planet and it’s environment then check out the new Horizon and Natural History shows on the BBC. If you can’t access the BBC IPlayer application then check this post out , it has all the information you need to change your IP address to a UK one and bypass the filters.

There are other options for accessing these websites which are particularly useful if you’re interested in environmental news sites from across the globe, one of the newest is called Smart DNS which is a sophisticated DNS service which can allow you

What is a Super Storm?

A “Super Storm” typically refers to an unusually powerful and intense storm that can combine characteristics of different weather systems, often resulting in severe weather conditions. The term is not scientifically defined, but it is often used in media and public discourse to describe storms that exhibit extreme features such as:

High Wind Speeds: Super storms can have sustained winds exceeding hurricane force, leading to significant damage.
Heavy Precipitation: These storms can produce excessive rainfall or snowfall, contributing to flooding or blizzard conditions.
Large Scale: Super storms tend to affect a wide geographic area, impacting multiple regions and states.
Complex Structure: They may combine elements of tropical storms, winter storms, and extratropical cyclones.

A well-known example of a storm that has been classified as a “super storm” is Hurricane Sandy in 2012, which made landfall on the East Coast of the United States and caused widespread devastation due to its size, storm surge, and heavy precipitation.

Overall, the term is often used to emphasize the severity and potential impact of a storm rather than to denote a specific meteorological classification.