: greenhouse gases : Disease Proof

Green-News: Wednesday 7.8.09

Posted on July 8, 2009 by Gerald Pugliese

Coral reefs are amazing! They’re colorful, unique, bustling with unusual marine life and very, very threatened. Scientists believe, given the raising concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the world’s coral reefs will face extinction by 2100; via TreeHugger.

Canada has topped the United States as the worst on tackling global warming. Our neighbors to the north now have the highest per capita emissions in the world. The U.S. ranking improved largely due to President Obama’s pro-climate change policies; the AFP reports.

The WWF—the World Wildlife Fund, not the wrestlers—wants to label red meat and dairy products, encouraging people not to eat more than 3 portions of either each week, in order to help curb the large amount of emissions involved with producing them; from Food Navigator.

Very often coal ash from mining facilities is dumped into giant slurries nearby residential communities—you know, no biggie—but according to the EPA, 26 coal ash sites in 10 states are at risk of flooding, like what happened in Tennessee last year; the Associated Press reports.

When completed in 2010, a Colorado wind farm will boast 34 turbines spread across 6,000 acres, supplying 51-megawatts of green energy to Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Wyoming. That’s enough juice to power 14,000 households; the Associated Press explains.

More proof that Americans are warming up to climate change prevention. A recent survey found nearly three-quarters of African Americans would back federal policies for global warming, with 54% of those surveyed calling climate change a serious problem; via Red Green and Blue.

Image credit: Sam and Ian

Tags: Green Living, carbon, climate change, coral reefs, dairy, global warming, greenhouse gases, meat

Green-News: Wednesday 5.13.09

Posted on May 13, 2009 by Gerald Pugliese

I was at the car show a few weeks ago and I saw a lot of gas-free cars. It was pretty amazing. Norway’s finance minister likes the idea too. She wants to ban sales of new gasoline-powered cars by 2015. Insisting cars should be powered by alternative fuels like electricity, hydrogen and biofeuls; Reuters reports.

Canada is pushing towards biofeuls too, in this case ethanol, but the move is drawing concern from other countries, like the United States. To make ethanol, you need a lot of grain and there is controversy over the greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural practices used to raise feedstock grain; from ReportonBuisiness.com.

However, the U.S. appears to be conflicted on the ethanol thing. Three White House cabinet members have devised a plan to help shield corn ethanol producers from the current credit crisis. But officials do recognize the challenge of having to improve biodiesel and ethanol farming practices; Green Inc explains.

Now, the U.S. is not so kind on hydrogen car funding. President Obama has cut former President George W. Bush's $1.2 billion plan for developing hydrogen fuel cells. Here’s why. Science officials say hydrogen cars are still decades away and we need to focus on more immediate energy-saving endeavors; via TreeHugger.

Biofuels have other problems too. Experts say biofuel crops are two to four times more likely to establish wild populations. These foreign species of plants are invasive and threaten indigenous tropical plants. Luckily, farming measures could be developed to control any unwanted spreading of crops; ENN reports.

But maybe all this can be avoided. Scientists believe existing greenhouse gases can be turned into clean-burning fuel. The process uses high temperatures and metal ions that convert carbon dioxide in the air into methanol. Also, the catalyst may a help to release hydrogen; from NewScientist.

Image credit: david_megginson

Tags: Green Living, biofuel, ethanol, greenhouse gases, hydrogen

Green-News: Wednesday 4.22.09

Posted on April 22, 2009 by Gerald Pugliese

The only artificial trees I’ve heard of are fake Christmas trees and maybe the stuff you put in aquariums, but experts claim building big towers filled with various materials that absorb carbon dioxide, nicknamed trees, could help reduce climate change, provided they prove profitable. The idea is still in its infancy; ENN reports.

Speaking of global warming, according to a new study by the National Center for Atmospheric Research, researchers recommend nations need to significantly lower emissions, by 70% this century. Stressing this will prevent massive losses of sea ice and permafrost, which contribute to the rise in sea levels; via Environmental Leader.

Now, from fake plants to real plants, scientists believe a tiny aquatic plant, called duckweed, may be used to clean up animal poop at industrial hog farms. Duckweed breaks down waste and produces ten times more starch than corn and can be used to make ethanol cheaper and faster; from EurekAlert!

In Indonesia palm oil is a savior. Apparently, a palm tree can bare fruit for more than 30 years and the global demand for palm oil has created a thriving industry, employing many of the local villagers. The problem is palm tree plantations are uprooting tropical forests, and threatening endangered species; World Watch Institute explains.

Not sure if this is truly green news, but doctors in Russia found a five-centimeter fir tree growing in a patient’s lung. The man complained of intense chest pains and was coughing up blood. Doctors suspected a tumor, but were startled to find a branch with needles and everything; via DiscoBlog.

New findings in the journal Environmental Health reveal various cleaning agents, such as solvents and disinfectants, used in hospitals contain hazardous chemicals which may pose health risks to workers, harming airways and irritating the skin. This is doubly bad in poorly ventilated areas like bathrooms; Reuters investigates.

Image credit: JPhilipson

Tags: Green Living, Research, Toxins, climate change, ethanol, global warming, greenhouse gases

Green-News: Wednesday 3.18.09

Posted on March 18, 2009 by Gerald Pugliese

New York City might sink. Some parts of lower Manhattan are already only 5 feet above sea level and an increase of just 8 inches would threaten the region. Warmer temperatures and melting sea ice are to blame. Other cities like San Francisco, Boston and Miami will also see sea level rise; via National Geographic News.

So not surprisingly, sea level increases may surpass current estimates. Scientists claim areas like Greenland and Antarctica are losing ice quickly, adding to annual sea level rise. This could lead to more incidences of major flooding in continents like Australia; from NewScientist.

California is already getting slammed with flood conditions pinned to rising tides. Now the problem is flash flooding. In times of drought, parched land doesn’t absorb rainfall quickly and downpours, due to climate change, have increased heavy rains, leading to flash foods that destroy bridges and roadways; Red Green and Blue explains.

Mickey Mouse is going green. Disney has planned to cut to solid waste to landfills by half and reduce electricity usage by 10% by 2013 and goals beyond that include slashing greenhouse gas emissions, minimizing water consumption and going zero waste; SustainableBusiness.com News reports.

Microsoft is also joining the eco party. Microsoft aims to cut emissions by 30% by 2012 and their new data center features environmentally amenities, such as lights that turn on and off when someone walks in and out of a room and under-floor cooling systems, efficiently cooling the building as cold air warms up and rises; via TreeHugger.

Renewable energy sounds good, but it’s not cheap and some experts wonder if ambitious goals, like 40% of global power from green energy by 2050, are really possible. Funding may come from state programs and government subsidies, which could cut the end goal to 15%; from Green Inc.

Image credit: hammernet

Tags: Green Living, climate change, drought, global warming, greenhouse gases, ocean, water

Green-News: Wednesday 12.3.08

Posted on December 3, 2008 by Gerald Pugliese

In order to eliminate marine debris, the California Ocean Protection Council is calling for manufactures to establish “take back” programs for used packaging materials, statewide fees on single-use shopping bags and banning plastic food containers; SustainableBusiness explains.

A report by Environmental Integrity Project claims the 50 filthiest coal-burning plants in the U.S. are now producing more mercury pollution than they did in 2006. Even though some facilities tried to clean up, twenty tons of mercury was still released into the air; via Green (Living) Review.

Wind power might change the weather. Using a computer model, scientists determined a mega wind-farm from Texas to central Canada and the Great Lakes to the Rocky Mountains, on the average, lowered wind speeds by 2-3 meters per second; Discovery News investigates.

Our energy demands show no signs of slowing down. Leading researchers to believe that even if we switch to clean power, all the heat generated from our energy needs might still cause the planet to warm up, despite the reduction in greenhouse gases; NewScientist reports.

Rainforests soak up carbon emissions. But they’re being chopped down in order to grow biofuels. Here’s the problem, a new study has determined the benefit of using this land for biofuel wouldn’t show up for 75 years. Meaning forest conservation is more eco-friendly; TreeHugger explains.

Beijing had a simple goal. Keep the city’s pollution index under 100 for 256 days. And apparently they’ve done it, 1 month earlier than planned. All the measures taken during the Olympics helped. Actually, city officials claim the air has improved consistently over the last 10 years; via GreenDaily.

Tags: Green Living, carbon, coal, greenhouse gases, plastic bags, pollution