Global Warring

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by BeBro
It already has started. Someone has just stolen a complete lake!

Police say that Finland is helping them with their enquiries.

[MOBIUS]

Greedy ****ers!

[MOBIUS]

Trying to think of a famous war fought purely because people were hungry and were forced off their lands in search of a new place to live...

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by MOBIUS
Trying to think of a famous war fought purely because people were hungry and were forced off their lands in search of a new place to live...

US vs plains indians

[EyesOfNight]

MOBIUS+Mention of UN in first paragraph=Don't bother reading.

[Lancer]

This begs the question....how far above sea level is Paris Hilton's jail cell?

[Zkribbler]

Too far. We should move her to Santa Monica.

[Drake Tungsten]

Global Warming alarmism is boring.

QFT

[Patroklos]

Trying to think of a famous war fought purely because people were hungry and were forced off their lands in search of a new place to live...

Any of the migrating barbarian vs. Rome wars.

The Helvetii vs. Julius for a specfic example.

[Zkribbler]

Global Warming alarmism is boring.

does this make it more exciting? The U.S. is now No. 2.

China may lead in greenhouse gases
Its expanding economy passed the U.S. in 2006, a Dutch team reports, which would exceed previous forecasts.
By Mitchell Landsberg, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
June 21, 2007

BEIJING — It was only three months ago that international energy officials revised a prediction that China would surpass the United States as the world's largest producer of greenhouse gases by 2009 or 2010. It could happen, they warned, as early as the end of this year.

That may have been conservative.

China's emissions of carbon dioxide, the most significant greenhouse gas, already have exceeded those of the United States, according to a report released this week by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency.

The study estimated that the surging demand for power from China's rapidly expanding economy caused carbon dioxide emissions to rise by 9% in 2006. That increase, coupled with a slight decline in the United States, meant that China's emissions for the year surpassed those of the U.S. by 8%, the Dutch report said.

A top official of the International Energy Agency, considered the authoritative source on global energy use and fossil fuel emissions, said Wednesday that there was little practical difference between his estimates and those by the Dutch agency.

"It is either this year, or it was 2006, or it will be 2008," said Fatih Birol, the agency's chief economist.

He said that what is important is the way China and the richer countries of the industrialized world respond to the changing situation.

Neither the United States nor China have ratified the 1997 Kyoto Protocol setting limits on greenhouse gas emissions. And as recently as this month's Group of 8 summit of leading industrialized nations in Germany, President Bush cited China as a reason for his continuing opposition to mandatory measures, which critics say impose specific standards on the most economically advanced nations but not on the developing world.

"We all can make major strides, and yet there won't be a reduction until China and India are participants," Bush told reporters at the G-8 conference. He supports non-mandatory goals.

The Dutch report signals a remarkable turn of events for a country that, though the world's most populous, was a distant also-ran among energy consumers until the last several decades, when the Communist government began market-oriented economic reforms. It also underscores the urgency felt in other global capitals about reining in China's greenhouse emissions.

"You know, it's just a continuous growth in the economy here that doesn't seem to slow down," said Jostein Nygard, a senior environmental specialist with the World Bank who is in Beijing to consult with energy officials about the emissions issue.

In an interview Wednesday, the day after the Dutch report came out, Nygard said he couldn't assess its validity but thought there was a good chance it was correct.

"When I've looked over these figures over the last year, I also have thought that we probably have underestimated how quickly China will surpass the United States as the world's largest CO2 emitter," he said.

In response to questions from The Times, Nygard called an official with China's Energy Research Institute to ask whether the government could confirm the validity of the Dutch figures. The official said Chinese researchers were planning to study the report but that their own estimates were that emissions would surpass the United States this year.

The International Energy Agency, based in Paris, announced in April that it had revised its estimates about when China would become the largest contributor to greenhouse emissions.

Even if that already has occurred, China's per capita emissions are only about one-eighth the average for the wealthier industrialized countries of Europe and North America, Birol said. At current projected growth rates, China's per capita emissions in 2030 still will be only one-third those of the West, he added.

In response to the Dutch report, the Greenpeace chapter in China issued a statement Wednesday calling for "immediate actions" by the Chinese government to curb emissions and increase its share of renewable energy.

"However," said Yang Ailun, who manages the Greenpeace campaigns on energy and climate issues in China, "responsibility for China's soaring emissions lies not just in Beijing but also in Washington, Brussels and Tokyo. All the West has done is export a great slice of its carbon footprint to China and make China the world's factory."

The Dutch report was prompted by frustration over delays in compiling accurate assessments of global emissions.

For its annual surveys of energy use and emissions, the International Energy Agency relies on data supplied by each nation, and the reports generally lag by more than a year.

Jos Olivier, a senior scientist with the Dutch environmental agency, said those statistics are the most accurate but that he and others wanted to find a way to get more immediate figures. He relied primarily on energy data collected by British Petroleum and added information about cement production, a major source of greenhouse emissions from chemical reactions.

Olivier said he believed his figures were fairly reliable. In a telephone interview from his office in the Netherlands, he said his calculations showed that carbon dioxide emissions by the United States declined 1.4% in 2006 — very close to the official figure of 1.3% released in May by the U.S. Department of Energy.

U.S. emissions declined partly because of mild weather in 2006, and partly because of increased use of natural gas instead of dirtier forms of fossil fuel, the Energy Department said.

China's emissions have outpaced predictions because the economy has grown faster than expected. With construction booming, China produces an estimated 44% of the world's cement, Olivier said. And with its factories' fuel needs rising, China has been completing construction of coal-fired power plants at a rate of about two a week.

In the next eight years, the International Energy Agency estimates, China will build as many power plants as exist today in all of the European Union countries. Birol said the West needs to find incentives to help China invest in cleaner forms of energy than coal, because when coal plants come on line, they generally last decades.

"We do not have much time to change those trends," he said.

[Lancer]

We're # 2 but we try harder. *farts*

[Sirotnikov]

Global-warming legislation passes both houses

By MICHAEL RISPOLI
Gannett State Bureau

TRENTON

The New Jersey Legislature approved a measure Thursday that would make the state second in the nation, behind California, to pass into law greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.

The Global Warming Response Act, which mandates a reduction in emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and an 80 percent cut by 2050, passed the Senate 36-1 and the Assembly 72-8. High emissions have been linked to increasing global temperatures and could yield devastating environmental consequences, say supporters.

"Global warming is the most urgent environmental issue in our lifetime," said sponsor Sen. Barbara Buono, D-Middlesex. "This legislation sets up a comprehensive solution."

It now heads to the desk of Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who is expected to sign the measure into law. A spokeswoman, Lilo Stainton, said, "He likes the bill" but is still reviewing it.

The act mirrors an executive order Corzine issued in January.

The state's approach to climate change has been hotly debated over the past few months in committee hearings. Supporters are calling for immediate action due to a lack of federal action, while detractors countered that the bill will be devastating to the state's energy sector. Thursday's vote was no different, with enthusiastic critics speaking up before the vote.

In the Assembly, some Republicans spoke out against the bill. Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, R-Morris, criticized the bill, saying it did not specifically outline how to lower emissions. Carroll called it "posturing over policy."

Others said the bill would do little to affect climate change on a larger scale, as emerging countries like China and India have no emission standards.

"This idea that the United States is the bad guy here I wholeheartedly disagree," said Assemblyman Michael Doherty, R-Warren. "The United States is the cleanest country on earth."

[Sirotnikov]

CEOs consider global warming serious economy threat

Seventy-seven percent of Bay Area CEOs think that global warming is a very or somewhat serious threat to the region's future economy and quality of life, according to a survey released Thursday.

The Bay Area Council survey found that only six percent of the 510 CEOs and top executives in the nine Bay Area counties surveyed say the threat is "not at all serious."

Also, an 84 percent majority of Bay Area businesses support the California Global Warming Solutions Act (AB32), requiring California to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by the year 2020. Fifty-six percent say they "strongly" support it.

One third of Bay Area companies (32 percent) report they have discovered market opportunities for their business related to global warming or greenhouse gas reduction, and 52 percent of respondents say that they have made changes in their operations or policies in the past two years regarding global warming.

Larger companies seem to have more quickly adjusted to the changing environmental landscape. For example, 60 percent of companies with more than 10,000 Bay Area employees have found ways to profit from greenhouse gas reduction, but only 29 percent of those with 49 or less employees have found market opportunities for themselves.

More than 70 percent of very large employers with more than 1,000 local employees have changed internal policies in the past two years to respond to global warming, whereas only about half of companies with 99 or less employees have changed policies.

Twenty-two percent of the companies surveyed in San Mateo and 26 percent of the 131 companies surveyed in Santa Clara County (a proportional amount) said they had discovered greenhouse gas reduction market opportunities, while 54 percent of the San Francisco companies have found market opportunities.

Founded in 1945, the Bay Area Council develops and drives regional public policy initiatives and researches critical infrastructure issues.

[Sirotnikov]

Global warming threatens Spanish tourism

By Sinikka Tarvainen Jun 22, 2007, 5:07 GMT

Madrid - Global warming is threatening the crucially important tourism sector in Spain, one of the world's top tourist destinations, where temperatures are expected to rise to African levels in many popular holiday areas.

In northeastern Barcelona, it will become as hot as it is now in southern Seville in the second half of the century, scientists forecast. And in Seville, it will be as torrid as in Cairo.

With Spanish beaches also expected to lose an average of 15 per cent of their surface under rising sea levels by 2050, tourists will prefer to head for northern Europe, according to European Union experts.

Spanish tourism professionals, however, are more optimistic and trust that visitors will keep coming, even if mostly in the colder winter months.

Tourism earns 11 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in Spain, the world's second tourist destination after France. The country of 45 million residents receives 58 million mainly European tourists annually.

The vast majority of the visitors come for beach holidays, a sector which is likely to be hard hit in places like the holiday island of Majorca, where beaches could almost disappear.

Culture tourism could also be affected by temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius.

Top temperatures will rise by up to 3.6 degrees by 2070 and faster after that, according to a government study.

Spain is expected to be among the countries most affected by global warming, which will bring droughts, heat deaths, flooding and storms.

Rainfall is likely to drop by 40 per cent in the south of the country by the end of the century, according to the National Meteorological Institute.

More than a third of Spain is already affected by desertification, and some areas suffer from sporadic shortages of drinking and bathing water in the summer.

Tourism is expected to decrease also in Portugal, Italy and Greece, which receive more than 100 million visitors annually together with Spain.

More than half of the Portuguese territory is at risk of desertification or droughts over the next two decades, according to the environmentalist group LPN.

'Humans are adaptable,' said Pere Canellas, head of a Majorca hotel owners' association. 'Majorca will present itself as a winter holiday destination.'

Experts say the Spanish tourism branch will have to undergo major adaptations, such as ski resorts transforming into centres for nature tourism.

'We are talking about very long time frames,' Majorca tour operator Mateo Pou said. 'The predictions will not come true tomorrow nor in five years.'

[Sirotnikov]

Things you can do today to reduce Global Warming

Wednesday, 05 July 2006
Source: www.stopglobalwarming.org

Take Action!

There are many things you can do in your daily life that can have an effect on your immediate surrounding, and on places as far away as Antarctica. Here is a list of things that you can do to make a difference.

There are many things you can do today to reduce your own adding to on this problem!

Tropical Tree Growth Slowed
Other big changes are being monitored in the tropics, too. Data on tree growth, tropical air temperatures and CO2 readings collected over 16 years indicate that a warming climate may cause the tropical forests to give off more carbon dioxide than they take up. This would upset the common belief that tropical forests are always a counterbalance to carbon, taking huge amounts out of the atmosphere. The study, by Deborah and David Clark of the La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica, and Charles Keeling and Stephen Piper of the Scripps Institution, reports that rainforest trees grow much more slowly in warmer nighttime temperatures, which is a hallmark of climate change in the tropics.
Tropical Tree Charles Keeling

Landscaping Your Home for Energy Efficiency
In Winter, by maximizing solar heating while deflecting winds away from your home; and
in Summer by maximizing shading while funneling breezes toward your home. [Source]

Buy a Hybrid Car
The average driver could save 16,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $3,750 per year driving a hybrid.

Buy a Fuel Efficient Car
Getting a few extra miles per gallon makes a big difference. Save thousands of lbs. of carbon dioxide and a lot of money per year.

Carpool When You Can
Own a big vehicle? Carpooling with friends and co-workers saves fuel. Save 790 lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Inflate Your Tires
Keep the tires on your car adequately inflated. Save 250 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $840 per year.

Change Your Air Filter
Check your car's air filter monthly. Save 800 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $130 per year.

Reduce Garbage
Buy products with less packaging and recycle paper, plastic and glass. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.
Composting helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the number of trips trucks must make to the landfill as well as the amount of methane released by our landfills.

Use Recycled Paper
Make sure your printer paper is 100% post consumer recycled paper. Save 5 lbs. of carbon dioxide per ream of paper.

Buy Minimally Packaged Goods
Less packaging could reduce your garbage by about 10%. Save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide and $1,000 per year.

Unplug Un-used Electronics
Even when electronic devices are turned off, they use energy. Save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $150 per year.

Plant a Tree
Trees provide a microclimate and sustained moisture for you. Trees suck up carbon dioxide and make clean air for us to breath. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.


Use Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
Replace 3 frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. Save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $60 per year.

Fill the Dishwasher
Run your dishwasher only with a full load. Save 100 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Adjust Your Thermostat
Move your heater thermostat down two degrees in winter and up two degrees in the summer. Save 2000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $98 per year.

Check Your Waterheater
Keep your water heater thermostat no higher than 120EF. Save 550 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $30 per year.

Change the AC Filter
Clean or replace dirty air conditioner filters as recommended. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150 per year.

Take Shorter Showers
Showers account for 2/3 of all water heating costs. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $99 per year.

Install a Low-Flow Showerhead
Using less water in the shower means less energy to heat the water. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150.

Buy Products Locally
Buy locally and reduce the amount of energy required to drive your products to your store.

Buy Energy Certificates
Help spur the renewable energy market and cut global warming pollution by buying wind certificates and green tags.

Insulate Your Water Heater
Keep your water heater insulated could save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Replace Old Appliances
Inefficient appliances waste energy. Save hundreds of lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Weatherize Your Home
Caulk and weather strip your doorways and windows. Save 1,700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $274 per year.

Use a Push Mower
Use your muscles instead of fossil fuels and get some exercise. Save 80 lbs of carbon dioxide and x $ per year.

Put on a Sweater
Instead of turning up the heat in your home, wear more clothes Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $250 per year.

Insulate Your Home
Make sure your walls and ceilings are insulated. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $245 per year.

Air Dry Your Clothes
Line-dry your clothes in the spring and summer instead of using the dryer. Save 700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $75 per year.

Switch to a Tankless Water Heater
Your water will be heated as you use it rather than keeping a tank of hot water. Save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $390 per year.

Switch to Double Pane Windows
Double pane windows keep more heat inside your home so you use less energy. Save 10,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $436 per year.

Buy Organic Food
The chemicals used in modern agriculture pollute the water supply, and require energy to produce.

Bring Cloth Bags to the Market
Using your own cloth bag instead of plastic or paper bags reduces waste and requires no additional energy.



Source: StopGlobalWarming.org

Take Action!

There are many simple things you can do in your daily life that can have an effect on your immediate surrounding, and on places as far away as Antarctica. Here is a list of few things that you can do to make a difference.

Use Compact Fluorescent Bulbs: Replace 3 frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. Save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $60 per year.

Inflate Your Tires: Keep the tires on your car adequately inflated. Check them monthly. Save 250 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $840 per year.

Change Your Air Filter: Check your car's air filter monthly. Save 800 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $130 per year.

Fill the Dishwasher: Run your dishwasher only with a full load. Save 100 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Use Recycled Paper: Make sure your printer paper is 100% post consumer recycled paper. Save 5 lbs. of carbon dioxide per ream of paper.

Adjust Your Thermostat: Move your heater thermostat down two degrees in winter and up two degrees in the summer. Save 2000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $98 per year.

Check Your Water Heater: Keep your water heater thermostat no higher than 120EF. Save 550 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $30 per year.

Change the AC Filter: Clean or replace dirty air conditioner filters as recommended. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150 per year.

Take Shorter Showers: Showers account for 2/3 of all water heating costs. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $99 per year.

Install a Low-Flow Showerhead: Using less water in the shower means less energy to heat the water. Save 350 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $150.

Buy Products Locally: Buy locally and reduce the amount of energy required to drive your products to your store.

Buy Energy Certificates: Help spur the renewable energy market and cut global warming pollution by buying wind certificates and green tags.

Buy Minimally Packaged Goods: Less packaging could reduce your garbage by about 10%. Save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide and $1,000 per year.

Buy a Hybrid Car: The average driver could save 16,000 lbs. of CO2 and $3,750 per year driving a hybrid. (Note: E85 fuel, derived from corn, is available in most US states, but in ZERO New England states. See LiveGreenGoYellow.com for more info.)

Buy a Fuel Efficient Car: Getting a few extra miles per gallon makes a big difference. Save thousands of lbs. of CO2 and a lot of money per year.

Carpool When You Can: Own a big vehicle? Carpooling with friends and co-workers saves fuel. Save 790 lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Reduce Garbage: Buy products with less packaging and recycle paper, plastic and glass. Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

Plant a Tree: Trees suck up carbon dioxide and make clean air for us to breath. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

Insulate Your Water Heater: Keep your water heater insulated could save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year.

Replace Old Appliances: Inefficient appliances waste energy. Save hundreds of lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.

Weatherize Your Home: Caulk and weather strip your doorways and windows. Save 1,700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $274 per year.

Use a Push Mower: Use your muscles instead of fossil fuels and get some exercise. Save 80 lbs of carbon dioxide and x $ per year.

Unplug Un-Used Electronics: Even when electronic devices are turned off, they use energy. Save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $256 per year.

Put on a Sweater: Instead of turning up the heat in your home, wear more clothes Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $250 per year.

Insulate Your Home: Make sure your walls and ceilings are insulated. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $245 per year.

Air Dry Your Clothes: Line-dry your clothes in the spring and summer instead of using the dryer. Save 700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $75 per year.

Switch to a Tankless Water Heater: Your water will be heated as you use it rather than keeping a tank of hot water. Save x lbs. of carbon dioxide and $390 per year.

Switch to Double Pane Windows: Double pane windows keep more heat inside your home so you use less energy. Save 10,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $436 per year.

Buy Organic Food: The chemicals used in modern agriculture pollute the water supply, and require energy to produce.

Bring Cloth Bags to the Market: Using your own cloth bag instead of plastic or paper bags reduces waste and requires no additional energy.

Use the Canvas/Vinyl Bags Sold at the Market: At Hannaford, each bag costs $5.50; you get a $.05 credit each time you use them and they hold 3 plastic bags worth of groceries. It’s environmentally friendly and it’s easier to get all the groceries into the house!