Environment Archives - Page 5 of 5

Lower your Family’s Impact on the Environment Through Financial Security

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 08:53 pm

It’s essential that families do all they can to ensure they are financially prepared to be environmentally responsible. Using simple financial tools such as this interest calculator can help families do just that.

Having an interest calculator available for you would make it a lot easier when you are interested in investing your money for the purpose of building financial security for the future. Most people do not know how to go about putting their money into the right place. In fact, this is one of the most common reasons that people are not able to retire at the age that they would like to. If you would like to prevent yourself from having to struggle when it comes to your finances in the future, protecting your investments would be the best way to achieve this. Once you are able to determine where your money would be best placed, you can count on the fact that you are doing what is right for your family.

Additionally, an interest calculator would be an easy way to check on the fact that you have as much money flowing in as you may expect. If you do not take the time to check on your money, you run the risk of having less money to spend in the future. There is a lot of importance is finding the right tools to help you get where you would like to be. When it comes to the interest attached to any of your investments, using a calculator would help you accomplish a lot. While it may help to prevent over payment in some cases, it can also ensure that you have the money coming in that you would expect from your best investments.

Carbon Emission Cost Tumbles

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 08:53 pm

The climate policy in the European Union largely centres around the ETS (Emission Trading Scheme) which attempts to limit the emissions produced by industry. Each unit of carbon dioxide (a tonne) is allocated a price via a permit scheme, basically permission to emit that unit. The idea being that a market based trading system would give companies an incentive to reduce their emissions especially when the costs of the permits were high.

They have been high previously, in fact the record cost was more than 32 Euros, however this month the cost has plummeted to about 4 Euros. The problems are basically similar to the issues that were faced when the scheme was first started – there are two many permits. Industries have lobbied governments so effectively that the there has been serious oversupply in the market of these carbon permits.

The latest free fall has begun because a proposal to limit these permits was defeated in the European Parliament. As it stands 900million more permits are scheduled to be released into the market which obviously sent the price into a downward spiral. Analysts believe that any price below 20 Euros gives a very low incentive to reduce their carbon emissions.

At this price it is simply not worth companies investing in technology and systems to reduce their carbon footprint. Buying the permits to produce more CO2 is a much cheaper and simpler option. In a market driven system like the ETS then the cheapest option is the one normally selected.

The overall aim and structure of the ETS is sound however the over supply of permits is simply making the system ineffective. However different countries have different agendas to follow and this effects the ETS. For example get yourself a Polish IP address – see here and monitor how the issue is covered in Poland a country heavily dependent on fossil fuels and heavy industry. These companies have a huge economic incentive to keep the costs of the permits low.

Reference – TVN Player

Introducing the Malthusian Theory of Population

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

Arguably the first economist to concern himself with the problems of growing population was T.R Malthus at the very end of the 18th century. It was actually in 1709 that he published his world famous ’Essay on the Principle of Population’ which came to be knows as the Malthusian Theory. It was the huge increases in population of his home country England that gave birth to this rather disturbing treatise.

His rather concerning statement behind this theory was that there is a constant tendency of all organic life to tend towards the point where it’s noruishment was unsustainable. That is that the human population would keep increasing until it started running out of resources and starving. The mathematics was quite straight forward – population could increase geometrically doubling or trebling it’s numbers. Whereas food production was limited to an arithmetical progression such as 1,2,3,4,5, and 6 for instance.

The stark reality of this was that it was impossible for increases in food production to ever keep pace with any consistent population growths. His rather cheery argument did highlight two ways in which population could be checked

1) Positive checks – Events like war, misery, famine and disease could increase death rate and hence limit population growth.

2) Preventative checks – contraception, political policies restraining number of children and even moral restraints.

Obviously the latter sounds the most appealing and it Malthus who proposed these. The idea is that it’s much more beneficial to reduce birth rates than end up having to increase death rate to cope with population growth which was unsustainable.

It’s interesting that Malthus hasn’t appeared yet in the BBC programme on famous economists – Masters of Money. Although it’s early in the series so I’m still hopeful. You can catch up with this wonderful show on the BBC Iplayer. For anyone outside the UK who would like to watch I’d suggest checking out this helpful Facebook page I found. It shows you how anyone can access Iplayer abroad – http://www.iplayerabroad.com/ – simply by using a UK based server to provide you with a UK IP address.

Go Green – Green Energy Tips You Should Know About!

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 08:23 pm

A lot of people are concerned about the environment, but don’t have a good idea of what they can do to help. Interestingly, a thing like this is actually friendly energy industry has been emerging to serve customers who are interested in making a difference. This article provides many tips so you can live a green lifestyle. Green energy is great to have in any home and can save you a lot on electrical bills that can seem to add up over months. Another great thing about investing into green technology is that you can use it as a tax write off which can help you get more back come tax season. One key energy-saving tip that all homeowners would be wise to implement is to insulate your water heater tanks. A great deal of heat can be lost if a tank is not well insulated, resulting in higher-energy consumption Makes sure you wrap your tank to help keep your water warm. Purchasing green energy is something that many people do not even think about. However, purchasing green energy not only helps promote the security of energy in the future, but it also helps reduce pollution. Purchase green energy in an effort to modernize your home and your way of thinking when it comes to energy efficiency.

The Værktøj energy solution you choose should depend on the kind of area you live in. If you live in a rural area or near the ocean, wind power will probably work best. On the other hand, solar power is your best choice if you live in a hot climate. Get more information about the weather and the strength of the wind in your area before you decide. Take an active part in your local community if you find that green energies are a common concern. You will learn more about alternative energy solutions and get a chance to convince local authorities to adopt green energies or offer tax incentives and other advantages. Know when your appliances need to be replaced. If you have a major appliance, such as a furnace or air conditioner that is over 10 years old, you should replace them with newer, more energy-efficient models. Buying the newer, Energy Star appliances can save you a lot in the years to come. Keep a lot of food in your refrigerator. That may seem odd, but the truth is that refrigerators that have a lot of food and items inside do not warm as quickly as less-stocked refrigerators. That means that refrigerators full of food use less energy, which is definitely a greener way to live.

Recycling is one of the easiest tasks that can make a Værktøj home. Some towns automatically include costs for recycling in their garbage collection, so look into this! If not, certain states including Michigan will pay consumers to return bottles after use. Recycling is one of the best ways to cut energy costs! As this article mentioned before, there are many people who are looking to make a difference in the environment and are seeking to reduce their carbon or environmental footprint. If you have the right information, it’s easy to implement green energy solutions in your life. Use the advice in this article and green living is just around the corner.

Mars – The NASA Rover’s Trek Across the Planet

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

Well it’s now started to move, Nasa’s curiousity rover has moved from it’s original landing site almost 400 metres across the planet. It is moving to a spot identified by the scientists who want to use the robots drill to collect rock samples. The feature is called Gleneig and it’s a spot on the surface where three different terrains cross each other.

Curiosity has actually been designed to move much further than this, in fact it is built to operate 20 kms from it’s landing spot. This gives it the potential to analyse and explore a much wider range of conditions that previous probes which were static. The travelling though is painfully slow and Gleineg will actually take several weeks to reach.

All the time Curiousity is travelling it is sending back high quality images using it’s Mastcam. These images are also used to help calculate the best route for the rover to follow. At the moment it is on the base of Mount Sharo and scientists are hoping to find evidence of the abundance of water one thought to have existed on the planet.

There are some great images coming over now and included in a documentary currently screening on the BBC and the Horizon programme. If you’re interested in Science at all it’s definitely worth checking out. If you are based outside the United Kingdom and want to check out this – you can find some information here – on Youtube. It demonstrates how you can configure your computer to use a proxy server to access some of the great British documentaries available online – all with no advert breaks !!

Ok forget advert breaks someone sent me an email about watching more British TV online and I found this – http://www.theninjaproxy.org/just-interesting/itvplayer/

Solar Energy – Environmental Friendly And Safe Energy

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 08:07 pm

The average home in the United States spends more than two thousand dollars on energy every year. Over time, that can really add up to substantial amounts of money and excessive abuse to the environment. To discover how to turn your home into a more environmentally friendly place and save you a lot in the process, know about Solceller. Since heating accounts for the largest portion of any home’s energy usage, this should be the first system you target when trying to improve the energy efficiency of your home. Look for leaks or insulation issues, place restrictions on thermostat usage and bring in a heating professional to assess the efficiency of your furnace. If you invest in an alternative energy system, make sure you have access to quality customer service. If something goes wrong with your system, a qualified technician should come and fix it quickly. Consider getting a formation yourself to save money on maintenance and be independent, especially if you live in a rural area.

When you can, take showers rather than baths. Running a bath uses up to 40% more water than a shower does, which means more energy is being used and your water bill will sky rocket. If you insist in using a bath, let it fill up and then turn the water off. If the time comes that you need a new toilet, purchase one that is energy efficient. A lot of water is wasted by constantly flushing, which has a negative impact on both your water bill and the environment. Many newer toilets have a flush feature that allows you to use less water. Look up different websites and see what Solceller technology is available that you can purchase. You can find things like batteries that run off of solar energy or items for your household that run off of solar energy. You’d be surprised at just how advanced folks have become with green technology these days.

If you have a swimming pool, you can save a lot of money by using solar energy to heat the water. Solceller heating systems are not more expensive than other solutions and are easier to maintain. These systems also work for your outdoor hot tub. This is probably the best use of solar power. Keep passive solar energy in mind when building or remodeling a home. Passive solar homes collect sunlight through specially-designed roofs, walls, windows, and flooring. Passive solar energy ranges from having windows angled to collect southern sun exposure to homes that are heated entirely with the use of the sun. Support your local Solceller energy providers by purchasing energy from them. You can check online to see if any of your local energy providers sell wind, hydro, or solar energy. By switching from the standard energy, you will send a message to your provider; you prefer cleaner energy. You will also be support the development of green energy in your area. Considering the money that you can save and the benefits to the environment that green energy provides, starting your home on a greener path should be a priority. Hopefully, you have learned a lot of helpful tips from this article on how you can make green energy a part of your home’s operation and begin saving money and the environment today.

Source: https://cipec.org/environment/what-is-cryogenic-deflashing

The Environmental Outlook is Grim

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 07:33 pm

Sometimes we can get rather distracted by the economic woes of our nations. I wonder does anyone else seem to notice that in recent months that the environmental issues seem to increasingly take a back seat to our other problems particularly in the media. Of course it’s quite understandable – tales of Greek pensioners and Spanish Unemployment are obviously having a very real impact on many people. The European crisis is affecting many millions of people both directly and indirectly. I seem to spend my evenings watching tales of woe from the BBC news on my computer – this is how I get access. But however bad these might seem I suspect the long term implications of our global environmental crisis could be much, much worse.

Of course I may just be annoyed that my ‘green blog’ has suffered a fall in visitors but speaking to some environmental lobbyists last week I fear I’m not alone. There seems to be a huge amount of inaction in dealing with environmental issues, it’s as thought they’ve been put on the back burner whilst we sort this economic problems out. But of course our industrial expansion at all costs is what has caused these problems in the first place. Phrases like ‘stimulating demand’ and ‘boosting consumption’ may help economically but they’re almost certain to have a negative effect on the planet.

Our demand for scarce resources continues to grow – whilst the supply of water, forests and fish in the sea decline at the same time. The Global Environmental Outlook published by the United Nations recently reported that out of 90 common ecological goals for the world – significant progress has been reported in four of them. That’s pretty pathetic whatever the distractions – consider just a couple of them – global air pollution is estimated to kill 6 million a year or that carbon emissions is expected to cause a temperature change of 3 degrees by the beginning of the next century. These issues are going to make the Eurozone or banking crisis look pretty insignificant soon.

As for my website well hopefully one day it will return from the depths of the search engine rankings. In the meantime, if you’ve a message to get out then the day of the traditional blog is probably over, social media seems to be the key. You can get your message out in many different forms with out the backing of a huge media budget and you don’t need to be on TV at all – check this.

Carbon and Population

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 07:05 pm

Carbon and hydrogen are the basis of organic matter on Earth. The most basic hydrocarbon is methane – CH4. Carbon dioxide is usually thought of as inorganic (although some contend that there is no such thing as inorganic carbon chemistry) is carbon bonded with oxygen. Together methane and carbon dioxide are the two most important determinants for global warming.

Both methane and carbon dioxide are relatively inert – in other words they don’t react with other chemicals or compounds and so stay around for a long time. They are both greenhouse gases. They stay in the upper hemisphere and allow sunlight to pass through them but when ultraviolet light tries to leave the atmosphere it encounters the green house gases and a large portion of it is re-directed to earth. This is causing global warming and also increasing the risk of skin cancer.

The causes for global warming are hotly disputed. Most scientists make the industrial revolution the key event in the exponential growth in greenhouse gases. Others also point to ruminant farming that produces lots of methane.

In both cases it is human activity – one for industry and one for agriculture. Humans themselves breathe out carbon dioxide. The connection therefore between humanity’s security on the planet and humanity’s main activities of breathing, industry and agriculture is irrefutable.

Models of climate change show different things. One short term benefit of more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will be faster plant growth as plants and algae use carbon dioxide in photosynthesis to make energy to grow.

In the longer term, the rising temperature will melt ice caps and glaciers and cause sea levels to rise.

The ways to lower the carbon count are within our power. Trees, plants and flora in general are great sinks for carbon. Another method is to have a paradigm shift in agriculture and industry. Less livestock would reduce methane emissions. And new systems of energy not based on carbon would also have a positive effect.

If no large scale action is taken population numbers will decrease as climatic conditions become more harsh.

Population Burden and Benefit

Last updated on December 22nd, 2019 at 07:00 pm

Malthus, Paul Ehrlich and many other thinkers, social commentators and writers view people essentially as a burden. It is this perspective that leads to conclusions of doom and gloom not only for humanity but for the planet in general. In contrast to this pessimistic view of humanity is the view epitomized by Julian Simon that people have a lot to offer.

Both points of view are essentially stereotypes. People are neither angels or devils. Rather the writers are talking about the aggregate impact of people on resources such as food, water, fossil fuels and minerals.

Ehrlich is right that human activity spreads over the globe. As population numbers increase the need for new land for housing, factories, entertainment centers etc. follows. As a result wilderness areas are becoming fewer and fewer. The Amazon is being chopped down to clear space for new farming settlements (as well as for logging companies).

In the second bet that Ehrlich proposed with Simon he wanted to count clean air, clean rivers, and unpolluted soil as his indices. Simon wisely turned down the bet because he would have lost. Pollution continues to spread despite attempts by governments, NGOs, charities and communities to clean up nature.

On the other hand, there is a lot to be said for Julian Simon’s insistence that human inventiveness and resourcefulness will finds ways to overcome problems. Scientists and engineers constantly make designs and systems more efficient. Ways of generating clean energy have been pioneered. Agricultural innovation keeps abreast with human numbers. As a problem arises the conditions force humans to find solutions.

The only concern is that the crisis might happen to fast for us to respond with a solution. If global warning accelerates with the release of trapped methane in the perma frost we might not have time to respond. If Antarctic ice melts and the glaciers in Greenland do too 60% of the land mass will be flooded. London, New York, Tokyo, Koh Phangan in Thailand, Fiji, Mombasa, Rio will all become submerged.

We need to take the threat of global warming seriously now.