Please watch this short video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxQNy8G1cIQ&feature=plcp
Environmental Consultant, Media Event Organizer, Environmental Educator, and Writer
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Hurricane Sandy and Climate Change
Hurricane Sandy is predicted to potentially be the largest
hurricane observed in the northeastern United States. Just last year, we got
socked to the tune of $15.6 billion in damages by hurricane Irene. Hurricanes, like heat waves and droughts are
becoming more frequent and more extreme. This is what climatologists have been
warning us will happen if we keep burning fossil fuels.
Every 24 hours humans pump 91 million tons of CO2 into the
atmosphere? CO2 lingers in the
atmosphere for over 100 years. As a
result, the CO2 concentration has jumped from an 800,000 average of 280 parts
per million to today’s 393 parts per million. That’s a very sudden jump of 113
parts per million!
The more CO2 in the atmosphere, the hotter the atmosphere
gets. The hotter the atmosphere gets, the more moisture it holds. The more
moisture it holds the bigger and more frequent the storms get. As the
atmosphere gets hotter it causes severe storms and flooding in some areas and
heat waves cause severe droughts and wildfires in other areas.
The CO2 we put in the atmosphere comes from burning fossil
fuels such as oil, coal, and natural gas. For example, with every gallon of gas
you burn, you put 20 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere and that stays up there
for over a hundred years. Even the Marcellus Shale natural gas that our
government touts as our energy future is a fossil fuel and puts 117 pounds of
CO2 into the atmosphere for every one million BTUs of energy it creates. Keep in mind; we pump 91 million tons of CO2
into the atmosphere every 24 hours.
This summer we saw 75% of the Arctic Polar Ice Cap melt
away, we saw record heat waves, droughts and wild fires, so there is now no
doubt that global warming is happening. If we plan to survive on this planet,
we have to stop burning oil, coal and natural gas as quickly as possible.
Think about it like this; you are in a car speeding toward a
solid wall. If you speed past a given point, applying the brakes will be too
late to avoid a fatal crash. We have already passed that line pumping CO2 into
the atmosphere. We are passed the point of avoiding a collision but we still
have a short window of time to prevent it from being fatal.
Politicians and fossil fuel industry people say it will hurt
the economy to change to clean green energy. But, you know what? Switching to
clean energy will boost our economy and create jobs. How many Katrina’s,
Irene’s, and Sandy’s do we have to pay damages for before we figure it out?
But, the most
baffling consideration is: If we don’t stop burning fossil fuels right now when
we hit the wall the economy will be a moot point!
Monday, October 22, 2012
Why Won't Candidates Talk About Global Warming?
Why isn’t climate change being discussed in the Presidential
debates? It is the most ominous threat to the survival of humanity, yet not
only are our presidential candidates not talking about it, they are talking
about burning more fossil fuels as part of their future energy plans.
Every 24 hours humans
pump 91 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere? CO2 lingers in the atmosphere for over 100 years. As a result, the CO2 concentration has jumped
from an 800,000 average of 280 parts per million to today’s 393 parts per
million. That’s a very sudden jump of 113 parts per million!
The more CO2 in the atmosphere, the hotter the atmosphere
gets. The hotter the atmosphere gets, the more moisture it holds. The more
moisture it holds the bigger and more frequent the storms get. As the
atmosphere gets hotter it causes severe storms and flooding in some areas and
heat waves cause severe droughts and wildfires in other areas.
The CO2 we put in the atmosphere comes from burning fossil
fuels such as oil, coal, and natural gas. For example, with every gallon of gas
you burn, you put 20 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere and that stays up there
for over a hundred years. Keep in mind; we pump 91 million tons of CO2 into the
atmosphere every 24 hours.
This summer we saw 75% of the Arctic Polar Ice Cap melt
away, we saw record heat waves, droughts and wild fires, so there is now no
doubt that global warming is happening. If we plan to survive on this planet,
we have to stop burning oil, coal and natural gas as quickly as possible.
Think about it like this; you are in a car speeding toward a
solid wall. If you speed past a given point, applying the brakes will be too late
to avoid a fatal crash. That’s where we are now pumping CO2 into the
atmosphere. We have now passed the point of avoiding a collision but we still
have a short window of time to prevent it from being fatal.
Politicians and fossil fuel industry people say it will hurt
the economy to change to clean green energy. But, you know what? Switching to
clean energy will boost our economy and create jobs. But, the most baffling
consideration is: If we don’t stop burning fossil fuels right now when we hit
that wall the economy will be a moot point!
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