Posted by feww on November 24, 2010
Brief History of Mankind
Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at record levels: the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
The average mixing ratios of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) reached record level in 2009,WMO reported.
- CO2 concentrations ~ 386.8 ppm
- CH4 ~ 1,803 ppb
- N2O ~ 322.5 ppb
These values are greater than the corresponding atmospheric concentrations in pre-industrial times (~1750) by 38%, 158% and 19%, respectively.
In the twenty year period between 1990 and 2009, the combined radiative forcing—the balance between atmosphere’s incoming and outgoing radiation—for all persistent greenhouse gases increased by 27.5%, with CO2 accounting for about 80% of the increase, according to the NOAA Annual Greenhouse Gas Index.
Source: WMO GHG Bulletin
Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
Carbon dioxide is the single most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, contributing 63.54 %2 to the overall global radiative forcing. It is responsible for 85% of the increase in radiative forcing over the past decade and 83% over the last five years. For about 10 000 years before the industrial revolution, the atmospheric abundance of CO2 was nearly constant at ~ 280 ppm (ppm = number of molecules of the gas per million molecules of dry air). This level represented a balance among the atmosphere, the oceans and the biosphere. Since 1750, atmospheric CO2 has increased by 38%, primarily because of emissions from combustion of fossil fuels (8.7 Gt carbon in 2008, http://www.globalcarbonproject.org/), deforestation and landuse change. High-precision measurements of atmospheric CO2 beginning in 1958 show that the average increase in CO2 in the atmosphere (airborne fraction) corresponds to ~ 55% of the CO2 emitted by fossil fuel combustion. WMO
Source: WMO GHG Bulletin
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Posted in carbon dioxide, carbon emissions, carbon footprint, Carbon Footprint of Your Dollar, greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gases | Tagged: atmospheric CO2, atmospheric methane, atmospheric N2O, CO2e, radiative forcing | Leave a Comment »
Posted by feww on November 17, 2010
Most Unethical Countries Worst Polluters
UAE, Australia, USA, Canada, Netherlands and Saudi Arabia are the worst CO2 polluters: Report
The United Arab Emirates, Australia, the United States and Canada have the worst overall records for emitting carbon, based on their current and historic emissions, says a report.
A new study, which rates 183 countries on their CO2 emissions from energy use, has identified United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, USA, Canada, Netherlands and Saudi Arabia as the world’s six worst polluters in relation to CO2 pollution.
UAE (1), Australia (2), USA (3), Canada (4), Netherlands (5) and Saudi Arabia (6) are the only countries rated by the report as ‘extreme risk’ because of their high CO2 emissions from energy consumption.
“The poor performance of UAE and Saudi Arabia is reflective of a near 100% reliance on fossil fuels and their use of energy intensive desalination plants to produce drinking water. Saudi Arabia was the 11th highest global emitter in 2008 with 466 MtCO2. However, the desalination process that produces 70% of the country’s drinking water accounts for 50% of CO2 emissions. UAE dropped 15 places from last year to take the bottom spot due to a huge 25% jump in its overall carbon output between 2006 and 2008 and a 20% rise in per capita emissions. Maplecroft recognises that desalination is a positive way to address water security but high emissions underline the need to find more energy efficient innovations.” The report said. See full report.
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Posted in Emissions Bill, fossil fuel dependency, GHG, greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gases | Tagged: carbon dioxide emissions, Carbon emission, carbon footprint, Carbon Footprint of Your Dollar, CO2e | Leave a Comment »
Posted by feww on July 17, 2009
The United States gov releases spy images of Arctic ice
The United States gov has released about 1,000 intelligence images of Arctic ice soon after the National Academy of Sciences said they could help researchers make up a clearer picture of the impact of climate change.
East Siberian Sea (Preview Gallery 2008). Source: GFL – Image ID: esiber_20080609_1
A total of about 1,200 images taken from six sites around the Arctic Ocean, and22 sites in the United States, are posted online at gfl.usgs.gov/.
Chuckchi Sea (Preview Gallery 2008). Source: GFL – Image ID:chuckchi_20080612_1
“The Arctic images have a resolution of about 1 yard (1 meter), a vast improvement on previously available pictures of sea ice, said Thorsten Markus of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.”
“These are one-meter-resolution images, which give you a big picture of the summertime Arctic,” Reuters reported Markus as saying on Thursday. “This is the main reason why we are so thrilled about it. One meter resolution is the dimension that’s missing.”
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Posted in arctic melt pools, arctic ocean, Climate Change, greenhouse gases, Medea program | Tagged: arctic ice images, CO2 Emissions, CO2e, East Siberian Sea, spy images of Arctic ice | Leave a Comment »
Posted by feww on July 19, 2008
Use Videoconferencing!
Following our organization’s strong condemnation of the United Nations and its Secretary General for their “addiction” to the “carbon habit,” getting endless fixes through flying tens of millions of miles each year, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has now taken the lead on condemning the business world’s unbridled flying habits. More…
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Posted in Climate Change, energy, environment, food, Global Warming, health, politics, Tourism, Travel | Tagged: air pollution, air travel, business travel, CO2e, ecocide, greenhouse gases, Videoconferencing | 2 Comments »
Posted by feww on June 13, 2008
A Shrinking World Series
Could California Turn to Desert by 2011?
Water, water, my bloody kingdom for a drop of water. ~ King Conan
Water Emergency in Calif
As most of the croplands in the Central U.S. is submerged under floodwater, the heart of California’s farming area is feeling the heat. Gov. Schwarzenegger who proclaimed last week a drought in California, declared yesterday a state of emergency in nine counties in Central Valley.
“Just last week, I said we would announce regional emergencies wherever the state’s drought situation warrants them, and in the Central Valley an emergency proclamation is necessary to protect our economy and way of life,” Mr Schwarzenegger said.
“Central Valley agriculture is a $20 billion a year industry. If we don’t get them water immediately the results will be devastating,” he added. “Food prices, which are already stretching many family budgets, will continue to climb and workers will lose their jobs—everyone’s livelihood will be impacted in some way.”
“His declaration covers Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Kern counties and directs California’s Department of Water Resources to work with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to deliver more water through the State Water Project to where it is most needed.” Reuters reported.
Conservation Action:
- Water rationing is imposed in Long Beach, Roseville and the East Bay Municipal Utility District, which serves 1.3 million people in the San Francisco Bay area.
- Water agencies serving about 18 million people throughout Calif have declared a water supply alerts.
- Officials are planning for reduced water use through this year because lower water supplies are anticipated next year.
- Schwarzenegger is asking lawmakers to back a “comprehensive solution” to expanding water and says he needs $11.9 billion bond to finance water projects. (Source)
Coyote Dry Lake, Mojave Desert. Image: Jeff T. Alu via Wikimedia. This file is licensed under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation license, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation.
Coyote Dry Lake is a dry lake bed in the Mojave Desert located about 24 km northeast of Barstow, and north of Interstate 15 in southern California. The lake measures about 10 km long and about 6 km wide at its widest section.
California’s Last Chance: Do a U-Turn, or Turn to Desert!
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feww
Posted in Climate Change, energy, environment, food, Global Warming, health, politics, Tourism, Travel | Tagged: air soil and water pollutions, Barstow, Business as usual, calif., civilization, Climate Change, CO2, CO2e, Coastal areas, Collapsing Cities, conserve, Coyote Dry Lake, crops failure, Department of Water Resources, desertification, deserts, Drought, dying cities, economy, energy, environment, extreme fire hazards, food, Global Warming, government, health, Mojave Desert, onservation, politics, quality-of-life, recycling, Sacramento, Schwarzenegger, southern California, Water pollution, water quality, water shortages, water supply | 4 Comments »
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