Pollution - Articles

Global #carbon Emissions Above 2 °C

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 14:02:21 +0000

Global carbon emissions will increase in 2017,
. . . after 3 stable years of little-to-no growth,
. . . according to new research published this week,
. . . growing by 2% over 2016 levels, and
. . . predicted to increase again in 2018,
. . . meaning that time is running out,
. . . to keep global temperature increases below 2 °C.

11-15-2017 Source: Global #Carbon emissions above 2 °C

Already Past Point Of No Return: #climate

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 13:50:14 +0000

In 1992,
. . . 1700 scientists, penned an open letter entitled,
. . . “The World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity.”

Human activities,
. . . inflict harsh and often irreversible damage, on the:
. . . . . . environment,
. . . . . . critical resources, and
. . . . . . may so alter the living world,
. . . . . . that it will be unable to sustain life, in the manner that we know.
Fundamental changes are urgent,
. . . if we are to avoid the collision,
. . . our present course will bring about.

Since that first warning in 1992:
. . . . . . global average temperatures have risen by more than 1/2 a degree Celsius,
. . . . . . annual carbon dioxide emissions have increased by 62%,
. . . . . . access to freshwater is lower,
. . . . . . forests have been decimated,
. . . . . . fisheries have dwindled,
. . . . . . there are 2 billion more people inhabiting the earth,
. . . . . . but there are almost a 1/3 fewer mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. There is one bright spot.
. . . “The rapid global decline in ozone depleting substances,
. . . shows that we can make positive change, when we act decisively.”

Now, 15,000 scientists have issued what they call the
. . . “World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice.”
“Humanity has failed to make sufficient progress,
. . . in generally solving these foreseen environmental challenges, and
. . . alarmingly, most of them are getting far worse.
Soon it will be too late to shift course away from our failing trajectory.”

10-15-2017 Source: Already past point of no Return: #Climate

#water Filter

Wed, 09 Aug 2017 12:47:46 +0000

Rice University Researchers,
. . . have developed a simple water filtration material,
...so effective that a single gram of it can treat up to
. . . 83,000 liters of contaminated water,
. . . after which it can be washed with vinegar and reused.
https://www.youtube....h?v=L_UWrDB3EWE
In addition to being effective and reusable,
. . . the new filter uses inexpensive raw materials, and
. . . relies on a fairly easy and common skill,
. . . to keep it functional and reusable.

8-9-2017 Source: #Water Filter

#pollution: Health Costs

Sat, 29 Jul 2017 15:11:31 +0000

New Delhi, India, costs in 2013 and 2014:
. . . . . . $16.9 billion dollars, on Oil, Gas, and Coal subsidies, and
. . . . . . $140.7 billion dollars, on air pollution linked health costs.

7-29-2017 Source: #Pollution: Health costs

#chernobyl's Damaged Nuclear Reactor

Sat, 11 Feb 2017 14:40:36 +0000

April, 26, 1986,
. . . No. 4 reactor at the Chernobyl plant experienced a catastrophic meltdown,
.. . sending long plumes of highly radioactive fallout into the atmosphere.
An untold number of people,
. . . suffered from various radiation-related health problems,
. . . in the months, and years that followed.

Workers at the site of the world's deadliest nuclear accident,
. . . have started to move a shield,
. . . called the "New Safe Confinement,"(costing $2.1 billion)
. . . that should prevent further radioactive material from leaking out,
. . . of the damaged reactor over the next century.

2-11-2017 Source: #Chernobyl's damaged nuclear reactor

#fukushima Fries Clean-Up Robot

Sat, 11 Feb 2017 14:13:32 +0000

Radiation levels, on TEPCO's robot,
. . . inside the containment vessel, of reactor No. 2, at Fukushima, reached
. . . 530 sieverts per hour,
. . . a level high enough,
. . . to kill a human within seconds.

It now appears, that this initial estimate may have been too low.
. . . Or TEPCO's robot is getting closer to the melted fuel, which is very likely.
. . . High radiation readings near any of the used fuel,
. . . are to be expected.

Now, that same remotely operated robot,
. . . had to be pulled when its camera began to fail, after just
. . . 2 hours of exposure to the radiation inside the damaged reactor.
Accordingly, TEPCO has revised its estimate to about
. . . 650 sieverts per hour!

2-11-2017 Source: #Fukushima Fries Clean-up Robot

India's Pollution Is So Bad

Wed, 09 Nov 2016 14:00:49 +0000

The smog smothering millions in the Indian capital of New Delhi is so thick,
. . . it's over 40 times what's considered safe by the World Health Organization,
. . . over 6 times the limit set by Indian law, and
. . . plainly visible from space.

11-9-2016 Source: India's pollution is so bad

Is Clean Coal A Lost Cause?

Thu, 27 Oct 2016 17:04:41 +0000

The US Department of Energy (DoE),
. . . first started sponsoring clean coal technology, back in the late
. . . 1990s, and more than
. . . $7.5bn of the federal budget has been allocated to supporting its development

To date, not a single commercial-scale carbon capture, and
. . . sequestration (CCS) power plant has been brought online in the USA.

10-27-2016 Source: Is clean coal a lost cause?

“Climate” Report = Things Are Not Great

Thu, 04 Aug 2016 13:59:06 +0000

2015 was not only the warmest year on record,
. . . but also saw several other records broken,
. . . records that we didn’t really want to see broken

In addition:
. . . . . . greenhouse gases were highest on record,
. . . . . . global surface temperature was highest on record,
. . . . . . sea surface temperatures were highest on record,
. . . . . . the global upper ocean heat content was highest on record,
. . . . . . the global sea level had risen to its highest level on record,
. . . . . . extremes were observed in the water cycle and precipitation levels;
. . . . . . the Arctic continued to warm,
. . . . . . the sea ice extend remained low;
. . . . . . global ice and snow cover declined; and
. . . . . . tropical cyclones were well above the average overall.

8-4-2016 Source: “Climate” Report = Things Are Not Great

Climate Change: "on The Record"

Mon, 13 Jun 2016 14:06:25 +0000

Bob Inglis: We Are All on the Record, on Climate Change

The Carbon Era

Sat, 21 May 2016 18:11:57 +0000

The Carbon Era:
. . . Can we really afford to keep up our bad habits?

Jeremy Rifkin On Climate Change

Thu, 18 Feb 2016 20:00:34 +0000

Jeremy Rifkin on Climate Change

Beijing, China: Issues First Ever 'red Aler...

Mon, 07 Dec 2015 20:12:07 +0000

In an online statement, the city government said,
. . . all outdoor construction work must stop on red alert days,
. . . while also urging schools to close.

The notice, issued after days of heavy smog last week,
. . . also places traffic restrictions on certain types of vehicles,
. . . in the city of 22.5 million people.

12-7-2015 Source: Beijing, China: issues first ever 'red alert'

Coal-Fired Power Plants

Wed, 18 Nov 2015 19:51:06 +0000

The U.S. and several other key global players–including:
. . . . . . France,
. . . . . . the World Bank,
. . . . . . the European Investment Bank, and
. . . . . . the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development,
. . . have already limited its export financing for coal plants.

The policy would effectively cut off public financing for,
. . . 85% of coal plants, currently in the pipeline.

11-18-2015 Source: Coal-fired power plants

Society 'to Be Hit By Climate Change'

Mon, 16 Nov 2015 14:46:58 +0000

We emit 9 gigatons of carbon per year from our burning of fossil fuels,
. . . but there's a 100 gigatons lying just under the Siberia tundra.
You have many-fold larger stores of carbon in the topsoil of tropical soils,
. . . or under the ice in the Arctic.

"If we don't manage the living ecosystems well enough,
. . . they could start biting us from behind."

11-16-2015 Source: Society 'to be hit by climate change'

Nasa | A Year In The Life Of Earth's Co2

Sun, 02 Aug 2015 12:35:06 +0000

NASA | A Year in the Life of Earth's CO2

How To Fix Climate Change

Sat, 18 Jul 2015 19:32:59 +0000

How to fix Climate Change

Deniers Vs Science

Sun, 19 Apr 2015 23:02:19 +0000

The Global Warming Skeptics VS The Scientific Consensus.

04-19-2015 Source: Deniers VS Science

What's Your Plan, For The Next 17 Years?

Sun, 19 Apr 2015 22:09:38 +0000

How much time do we have,
. . . before we break our "Carbon Budget."

04-19-2015 Source: What's your plan, for the next 17 years?

Beijing: Pollution Was Just Too Much

Fri, 27 Mar 2015 22:35:23 +0000

Beijing to close its last remaining coal plant in 2016.
. . . pollution is now the #1 cause of social unrest in China.

03-27-2015 Source: Beijing: Pollution was just too much