Earth Day Network

Yale’s School of Forestry & Environmental Studies recently launched a web site that looks at the economic factors of the reduction in carbon emissions. It assesses what would happen to the economy if certain environmental policies were implemented. You can go on the website and choose from 7 assumptions and predict the economic impact of reducing emissions. You decide which assumptions are realistic and what is the result if they occur. Based on the percentages you choose, you can see how the economy will react. The interesting thing is that, even with high percentages of reduction of CO2, US economic growth is projected to continue.

Go online and see for yourself! www.climate.yale.edu/seeforyourself.

As the 2008 Olympic Games approach, China multiplies actions to try to diminish pollution in the country. Some heavy polluters have been asked to keep on their business outside the Chinese borders, trees have been planted, some roads have been rerouted, etc. More than $16 billion have been spent on that purpose.

Yet the problem is far from being solved. According to the World Health Organisation, the amount of smoke and dust particles in Chinese air is three to twelve times the maximum level usually accepted. Athletes are worried about the bad influence this situation may have on their performances,  but a bigger concern should be the health of our planet. 

According to a study from the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, China has overtaken the United States as the world’s biggest CO2 emitter. In 2006 China would have produced 6,200m tonnes of CO2, compared with 5,800m tonnes from the US. Although these numbers have yet to be softened by the fact that China accounts 1,3 billion people compared with 300 million in the U.S., the situation has to be taken seriously as the energy of the country still relies on coal for 70% of the energy production.

The last declaration from the Chinese government on the 29^th of February stated the will of the country to report as accurately as possible the country’s worse polluters. This project would take the form of a survey, in which all the factories, farms and other polluters would have to report how much they pollute and what pollutant they discharge. In order to be successful, it has been said that the companies will not be charged any fines or sanctions. This way, we might finally have a really accurate vision of how big are the pollution problems of China. Hopefully environmental action will start before the results of the poll are released.

Five passengers on Boeing 777 flight American Airlines AA90 recently enjoyed a gas-guzzling 4,000 mile journey. There were two flight attendants to each customer and even an upgrade to business-class in a transatlantic flight from Chicago to Heathrow Airport. Each passenger also enjoyed a carbon footprint of 43.2 tons of CO2.

What happened? During a hectic weekend with many delays, the American Airlines flight passage diminished as travelers found alternatives to avoid the delay. Only five passengers decided to wait. Rather than cancel the flight, American Airlines decided to fly the plane because, they claimed, there were passengers waiting at Heathrow airport. Environmentalists are calling this event one of the worst environmental crimes in aviation history. Driven by profit over environmental responsibility, American Airlines has only come up with excuses to justify their behavior.  American Airline’s public statement was, “Our goal is to operate our fleet as efficiently as possible to provide our customers with excellent service while being a responsible environmental citizen.”  The five passengers certainly benefited from this goal, but the environment was definitely short-changed.

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/03/05/7481/

New data on climate change has led some scientists to advice that we cut all carbon emissions by mid-century, Juliette Eilperin reports for the Washington Post.  Schmittner, a leading scientist in global warming, states if we continue on the same path for the rest of the century the Earth will warm by 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100. If emissions do not drop to zero until 2300, the temperature rise more than 15 degrees Fahrenheit. The message scientists are pushing is to cut all emissions by mid-century to avoid the dramatic rise. The main challenge? It is hard to predict whether politically and economically the world is ready to make the shift.

Read more at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/09/AR2008030901867.html?nav=rss_print