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Archive for the ‘CO2’ Category

Obama Inauguration Carbon Footprint

Posted by edro on December 16, 2008

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama insists on the need to develop new forms of energy

“In the 21st century, we know that the future of our economy and national security is inextricably linked with one challenge: energy,” Obama told a news conference. “All of us know the problems that are rooted in our addiction to foreign oil. It constrains our economy, shifts wealth to hostile regimes and leaves us dependent on unstable regions.”

“To control our own destiny, America must develop new forms of energy and new ways of using it. And this is not a challenge for government alone— it’s a challenge for all of us.”

What about Climate Change Mr President-elect?

“We will make decisions based on the facts, and we understand that facts demand bold action,” Obama said.

What about the carbon footprint of your inauguration?

The President-elect forgot to mention that Disa orchids will be flown in for his inauguration from New Zealand within 24 hours of being picked!

The total bill for Mr Obama’s inauguration, including cost of the security, which will be paid by the taxpayers,  will probably exceed the $160million [Figure revised according to the media estimates on January 20, 2009.] At a global average of  584g of CO2/GDP dollar, the inauguration carbon footprint on cost basis alone would be 93,400 metric tons [MT] of CO2.

[But, hey, that’s nothing compared with the trillion-dollar bailouts being handed out to any bank/corporation large enough to blackmail the state!]

As for the additional CO2 created by an estimated 2 million people swarming Washington DC for the ceremony, add another 44,000 MT. By January 21, 2009, the inauguration carbon footprint will have exceeded 137,400 MT of CO2.

U.S. President-elect [do as I say, don’t worry about what I do] Barack Obama looks on as Steven Chu, director of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, speaks after being introduced as Obama’s Energy Secretary during a news conference in Chicago, December 15, 2008. Obama also named former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Carol Browner (R) to head a new council to coordinate White House energy, climate and environment policies, and Lisa Jackson (2nd-R), chief of staff for New Jersey’s governor, to run the EPA. REUTERS/Stephen J. Carrera. Image may be subject to copyright.

Ordering orchids from New Zealand for the presidential inauguration is a callous disregard for the environment; it also rates high, “Scale F,” on the Adolescents Social Insensitivity scale

See:

– The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III)

– The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) – [published by the American Psychiatric Association]

– The mental disorders section, International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD)

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Posted in air pollution, CO2, new zealand, Social Insensitivity, Steven Chu | Tagged: , , , , | 10 Comments »

Positive Feedbacks

Posted by edro on April 30, 2008

Tipping Point

A confirmation of tipping point is presented in the following report by James Hansen, NASA climatologist:

Excerpts from Hansen’s report:

  • We are at the tipping point because the climate state includes large, ready positive feedbacks provided by the Arctic sea ice, the West Antarctic ice sheet, and much of Greenland’s ice.
  • Our home planet is dangerously near a tipping point at which human-made greenhouse gases reach a level where major climate changes can proceed mostly under their own momentum. Warming will shift climatic zones by intensifying the hydrologic cycle, affecting freshwater availability and human health.

Source:Tipping Point: Here and Now!
Report:Tipping Point: PERSPECTIVE OF A CLIMATOLOGIST [PDF]

The ice in the Arctic is much younger than normal, with vast regions now covered by first-year ice and much less area covered by multiyear ice. Left: February distribution of ice by its age during normal Arctic conditions (1985-2000 average). Right: February 2008 Arctic ice age distribution. Credit: NSIDC [Caption: NASA]

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Posted in air pollution, Arctic, atmosphere, civilization, climate, climate change, CO2, dynamics of collapse, Earth, energy, environment, extinction, future, health, HIoN, Human activities, human migration, Human-induced climate change, ice dynamics, Index of Human Impact on Nature, industrialism, lifestyle, limits to growth | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Blue Marble, Red Tide

Posted by edro on April 4, 2008

[Updated]
Index of Human Impact on Nature (HIoN) March 2008

As of End March 2008, the MSRB-CASF Index of Human Impact on Nature (HIoN), an index for calculating the full impact of human consumption and activities on the Earth’s life support systems, stood at a terminally high level of 177.43, a rise of about 3.5 percent over the previous year. In other words, the full human impact including the ecological footprint and the damage inflicted on the living environment by his activities in the 12-month period ending March 2008 was 77.43 percent higher than the load which the planet’s ecosystems in their current state can cope with.

Components of HIoN
services-2snn-ksb.png
The HIoN Index integrates updated data and methodology used by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Synthesis Report for Global Status of Provisioning, Regulating, and Cultural Ecosystem services.

future-earth-l2nnk.jpg
Before and After [Top : Blue Marble composite images generated by NASA. Bottom (left), Mars from Hubble Space Telescope, (right) “Late spring on Mars” portrait taken with the HST Wide Field Planetary Camera-2 by NASA. Final composite image by FEWW.]

According to HIoN projections, our cities and population centers could become almost entirely unsustainable by as early as 2015.

Page Entry: Index of Human Impact on Nature

Source: Index of Human Impact on Nature

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Posted in air, atmosphere, climate change, CO2, economy, energy, environment, future, growth, health, land, lifestyle, natural capital, Oceans, pollution, soil, war, water | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

More on Human-Induced Environmental Catastrophes

Posted by edro on February 26, 2008

“Dust fall” in the West in the last 100 years is up to seven times heavier than at any other period in history

Human activities such as settlement, railroad, industry, farming and ranching has caused a huge increase in the dust levels in the air, according to a report by the University of Colorado at Boulder. More …

Mining Sets Off Earthquake in Germany: Strongest regional quake on record
An earthquake caused by coal mining shook the Saarland region of Germany on the French border Saturday. Measuring 4.0 on the Richter scale, the earthquake caused damage to buildings and cut off the electricity supply to the area. Original report

New Greenland Ice Sheet Data Will Impact Climate Change Models
“If current climate models from the IPCC included data from ice dynamics in Greenland, the sea level rise estimated during this century could be twice as high as what they are currently projecting” ~ Beata Csatho, Ph.D., University of Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences. More …

csathoglaciertrimline.jpg
Research conducted by a UB geologist on the Greenland ice sheet shows the trimline (broken brown line) that marks the maximum extent of the ice sheet at the end of the 18th century and the subsequent retreat of the glacier and land exposed since 1944. [Credit: UB; download image JPEG]

Human-induced climate change has altered the rainfall patterns globally
“For the first time, climate scientists have clearly detected the human fingerprint on changing global precipitation patterns over the past century” More …

Human-induced climate change at a regional scale in Canada, southern Europe and China

Evidence from global air and ocean temperatures, melting snow and ice, and rising sea level show that warming of the climate system is now unequivocal

Arctic summers ice-free ‘by 2013’
Given other facts, the projection of 2013 is already too conservative. In the end, it will just melt away quite suddenly” ~ Professor Peter Wadhams. More …

CO2 levels in the atmosphere have risen 35% faster than expected since 2000
Decline in the natural ability of land and oceans to soak up CO2 from the atmosphere accounts for 18%, inefficient use of fossil fuels adds another 17% to the CO2 increase. More…

Posted in Arctic, CO2, Earthquake, Germany, Greenland, Human-induced climate change, ice dynamics, rainfall, rising sea | Leave a Comment »