...and nothing short of a planetary rescue will save it from theenvironmental cataclysm of dangerous climate change. Those are notthe words of eco-warriors but the considered opinion of a group ofeminent scientists writing in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
By Steve Connor, Science EditorU.K. IndependentJune 19, 2007
Six scientists from some of the leading scientific institutions inthe United States have issued what amounts to an unambiguous warningto the world: civilisation itself is threatened by global warming.
They also implicitly criticise the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for underestimating the scale of sea-level rises this century as a result of melting glaciers and polar ice sheets.
Instead of sea levels rising by about 40 centimetres, as the IPCC predicts in one of its computer forecasts, the true rise might be asgreat as several metres by 2100. That is why, they say, planet Earth today is in "imminent peril".
In a densely referenced scientific paper published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A some of the world's leading climate researchers describe in detail why they believe that humanity can no longer afford to ignore the "gravest threat" of climate change."
Recent greenhouse gas emissions place the Earth perilously close to dramatic climate change that could run out of control, with greatdangers for humans and other creatures," the scientists say. Only intense efforts to curb man-made emissions of carbon dioxid eemissions and other greenhouse gases can keep the climate within or near the range of the past one million years, they add.
The researchers were led by James Hansen, the director of Nasa'sGoddard Institute for Space Studies, who was the first scientist towarn the US Congress about global warming.
The other scientists were Makiko Sato, Pushker Kharecha and Gary Russell, also of the Goddard Institute, David Lea of the Universityof California, Santa Barbara, and Mark Siddall of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University in New York.
In their 29-page paper, "Climate Change and trace gases", thescientists frequently stray from the non-emotional language of science to emphasise the scale of the problems and dangers posed byclimate change.
In an email to The Independent, Dr Hansen said: "In my opinion, among our papers this one probably does the best job of making clear thatthe Earth is getting perilously close to climate changes that could run out of our control."The unnatural "forcing" of the climate as a result of man-made emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases threatens togenerate a "flip" in the climate that could "spark a cataclysm" in the massive ice sheets of Antarctica and Greenland, the scientists write.
Dramatic flips in the climate have occurred in the past but none has happened since the development of complex human societies andcivilisation, which are unlikely to survive the same sort of environmental changes if they occurred now."Civilisation developed, and constructed extensive infrastructure,during a period of unusual climate stability, the Holocene, now almost 12,000 years in duration. That period is about to end," the scientists warn. Humanity cannot afford to burn the Earth's remaining underground reserves of fossil fuel. "To do so would guarantee dramatic climate change, yielding a different planet from the one onwhich civilisation developed and for which extensive physical infrastructure has been built," they say.
Dr Hansen said we have about 10 years to put into effect the draconian measures needed to curb CO2 emissions quickly enough toavert a dangerous rise in global temperature. Otherwise, the extraheat could trigger the rapid melting of polar ice sheets, made farworse by the "albedo flip" - when the sunlight reflected by white ice is suddenly absorbed as ice melts to become the dark surface of open water.
The glaciers and ice sheets of Greenland in the northern hemisphere,and the western Antarctic ice sheet in the south, both show signs of the rapid changes predicted with rising temperatures. "The albedo flip property of ice/water provides a trigger mechanism.
If the trigger mechanism is engaged long enough, multiple dynamicalfeedbacks will cause ice sheet collapse," the scientists say. "We argue that the required persistence for this trigger mechanism is at most a century, probably less."
The latest assessment of the IPCC published earlier this yearpredicts little or no contribution to 21st century sea level from Greenland or Antarctica, but the six scientists dispute this interpretation. "The IPCC analyses and projections do not well account for the nonlinear physics of wet ice sheet disintegration,ice streams and eroding ice shelves, nor are they consistent with the palaeoclimate evidence we have presented for the absence of discernible lag between ice sheet forcing and sea-level rise," the scientists say.
Their study looked back over more than 400,000 years of climate records from deep ice cores and found evidence to suggest that rapidclimate change over a period of centuries, or even decades, have inthe past occurred once the world began to heat up and ice sheets started melting. It is not possible to assess the dangerous level of man-made greenhouse gases."
However, it is much lower than has commonly been assumed. If we have not already passed the dangerous level, the energy infrastructure inplace ensures that we will pass it within several decades," the scientists say in their findings."We conclude that a feasible strategy for planetary rescue almost surely requires a means of extracting [greenhouse gases] from the air."
http://environment.independent.co.uk/climate_change/article2675747.ece
Friday, June 22, 2007
Antibacterial Cleaners Do More Harm Than Good
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06.21.07
Science & Technology
John previously noted that the triclosan in antibacterial soaps and cleaners was a gender bender that was disrupting the natural grown of frogs and was found in 55% of the rivers and streams in America, and provided a long and surprising list of products that included triclosan. (Its in toothpaste!)
Now we learn from Scientific American that it does more harm than good. It appears that after, say, spraying a counter with an antibiotic cleaner, some chemicals linger and continue to kill bacteria but don't get all of them. The ones that survive develop a tolerance: "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" Soon we have populations of antibiotic resistant bacteria.
"What is this stuff doing in households when we have soaps?" asks molecular biologist John Gustafson of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. These substances really belong in hospitals and clinics, not in the homes of healthy people." ::Scientific American
We reprint John's partial list of products to avoid below the fold.
Noxzema Triple Clean Antibacterial Lathering Cleanser
Colgate Total Toothpaste, Fresh Stripe
Revlon ColorStay LipSHINE Lipcolor Plus Gloss, Solar
Gentle Antibacterial Body Soap with Moisture Beads
Clearasil Daily Face Wash
Shield Deodorant Soap Bar, Surf Scent
Softsoap Gentle Antibacterial Body Wash with Vitamins
Aveeno Therapeutic Shave Gel
Softsoap Fruit Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
Right Guard Sport, Deodorant Aerosol, Fresh
Right Guard Sport, Clear Stick Deodorant
Suave Deodorant Soap, Antibacterial
Old Spice High Endurance Stick Deodorant,
pHisoderm Antibacterial Skin Cleanser
Softsoap Liquid Antibacterial Body Soap
Clean and Smooth Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
Old Spice Red Zone Antiperspirant & Deodorant
Colgate Total Toothpaste
Revlon ColorStay LipSHINE Lipcolor Plus Gloss
New Vaseline Brand Intensive Care Antibacterial Hand Lotion
Lever 2000 Soap Bar Antibacterial
Lever 2000 Deodorant Soap Bar
Imina Lathering Facial Cleanser
Softsoap 2 in 1 Antibacterial Hand Soap Plus Moisturizing Lotion
Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap with Light Moisturizers
Right Guard Sport, Deodorant Aerosol
Suave Liquid Hand Soap, Antibacterial
Bath & Body Instant AntiBacterial Hand Gel-Freesia
Dial Liquid Antibacterial Soap, Original Formula
Clean and Smooth Kitchen Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/antibacterial_c.php
Science & Technology
John previously noted that the triclosan in antibacterial soaps and cleaners was a gender bender that was disrupting the natural grown of frogs and was found in 55% of the rivers and streams in America, and provided a long and surprising list of products that included triclosan. (Its in toothpaste!)
Now we learn from Scientific American that it does more harm than good. It appears that after, say, spraying a counter with an antibiotic cleaner, some chemicals linger and continue to kill bacteria but don't get all of them. The ones that survive develop a tolerance: "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" Soon we have populations of antibiotic resistant bacteria.
"What is this stuff doing in households when we have soaps?" asks molecular biologist John Gustafson of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. These substances really belong in hospitals and clinics, not in the homes of healthy people." ::Scientific American
We reprint John's partial list of products to avoid below the fold.
Noxzema Triple Clean Antibacterial Lathering Cleanser
Colgate Total Toothpaste, Fresh Stripe
Revlon ColorStay LipSHINE Lipcolor Plus Gloss, Solar
Gentle Antibacterial Body Soap with Moisture Beads
Clearasil Daily Face Wash
Shield Deodorant Soap Bar, Surf Scent
Softsoap Gentle Antibacterial Body Wash with Vitamins
Aveeno Therapeutic Shave Gel
Softsoap Fruit Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
Right Guard Sport, Deodorant Aerosol, Fresh
Right Guard Sport, Clear Stick Deodorant
Suave Deodorant Soap, Antibacterial
Old Spice High Endurance Stick Deodorant,
pHisoderm Antibacterial Skin Cleanser
Softsoap Liquid Antibacterial Body Soap
Clean and Smooth Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
Old Spice Red Zone Antiperspirant & Deodorant
Colgate Total Toothpaste
Revlon ColorStay LipSHINE Lipcolor Plus Gloss
New Vaseline Brand Intensive Care Antibacterial Hand Lotion
Lever 2000 Soap Bar Antibacterial
Lever 2000 Deodorant Soap Bar
Imina Lathering Facial Cleanser
Softsoap 2 in 1 Antibacterial Hand Soap Plus Moisturizing Lotion
Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap with Light Moisturizers
Right Guard Sport, Deodorant Aerosol
Suave Liquid Hand Soap, Antibacterial
Bath & Body Instant AntiBacterial Hand Gel-Freesia
Dial Liquid Antibacterial Soap, Original Formula
Clean and Smooth Kitchen Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/antibacterial_c.php
Eco-Friendly Toys for Tots
The makers of Green Babies, the world's largest selection of certified organic cotton clothes for babies and kids, today announced the launch of their new, made in US wooden toy collection, Earth to Kid. While recent studies have suggested that plastic toys may leech a number of potentially dangerous chemicals including phthalates, which are endocrine disruptors and possible human carcinogens, these wooden toys will be made in the U.S. from non-threatened hardwoods instead. And that means that while your toddler is busy putting them in their mouth for an exploratory taste you won't have to worry about any of these toxins potentially leaching into their developing bodies to undo all the good from that organic baby food you've been feeding them. So far they’ve come out with heirloom quality baby rattles, building blocks, a school bus with removable people, and a train whistle, and there are more toys planned for holiday release. If you’d like to give them a shot while their new website is nearing completion the toys can currently be found at most Whole Foods Markets in Southern California, as well as several others in Austin, Houston, and NYC as well.
Never Ending Lightbulb
by Matthew Sparkes, London, UK on 06.22.07
Design & Architecture (lighting)
A UK firm has developed a bulb that is more than 3 times as efficient as CFL bulbs and will burn brightly for decades. They claim that it will burn for so long that the building or appliance that contains it will wear out before the bulb does.
The traditional light bulb remained the way it is for so long because there wasn’t enough of an incentive to change. No one bothered to develop newer, more efficient designs because they were so cheap to produce. They waste 95% of energy and don’t last long.
That is changing now with CFL bulbs, because the green movement is providing an incentive to change. Now they are becoming even more advanced. The Economist is reporting that a team of researchers has developed a bulb that lasts, for all intents and purposes, forever. It’s also far more efficient, converting more energy to light rather than heat.
UK Company, Ceravision, have created a new bulb design that doesn’t use electrodes, so cannot burn out. It uses a magnetometer to bombard a small piece of aluminum oxide with microwaves to create an electrical field. Gas is then passed into a hole in the aluminium, in order to ionise it and create a glowing plasma. Traditional bulbs convert only 5% of energy to light, CFLs make use of around 15%, but this new design converts over 50%.
There are other bonuses as well, both financially and environmentally. The bulbs are expected to last for decades, so will need replacing far less often. This means less carbon emissions from production, and lower costs. It also doesn’t have the traces of mercury that CFL bulbs have, so will be easier and cleaner to dispose of once it does burn out. ::The Economist
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/never_ending_li.php
Design & Architecture (lighting)
A UK firm has developed a bulb that is more than 3 times as efficient as CFL bulbs and will burn brightly for decades. They claim that it will burn for so long that the building or appliance that contains it will wear out before the bulb does.
The traditional light bulb remained the way it is for so long because there wasn’t enough of an incentive to change. No one bothered to develop newer, more efficient designs because they were so cheap to produce. They waste 95% of energy and don’t last long.
That is changing now with CFL bulbs, because the green movement is providing an incentive to change. Now they are becoming even more advanced. The Economist is reporting that a team of researchers has developed a bulb that lasts, for all intents and purposes, forever. It’s also far more efficient, converting more energy to light rather than heat.
UK Company, Ceravision, have created a new bulb design that doesn’t use electrodes, so cannot burn out. It uses a magnetometer to bombard a small piece of aluminum oxide with microwaves to create an electrical field. Gas is then passed into a hole in the aluminium, in order to ionise it and create a glowing plasma. Traditional bulbs convert only 5% of energy to light, CFLs make use of around 15%, but this new design converts over 50%.
There are other bonuses as well, both financially and environmentally. The bulbs are expected to last for decades, so will need replacing far less often. This means less carbon emissions from production, and lower costs. It also doesn’t have the traces of mercury that CFL bulbs have, so will be easier and cleaner to dispose of once it does burn out. ::The Economist
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/never_ending_li.php
Europe's Warmest Winter in 700 Years
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 06.22.07
Science & Technology
According to an article recently published in Geophysical Research Letters, the last fall/winter season was Europe's warmest in 700 years. In fact, the last time Europeans witnessed such unusually high temperatures was in 1289.
Jürg Luterbacher of the University of Bern, Switzerland, the study's lead investigator, mined temperature and climate records from across Europe that went back several hundred years to draw this conclusion. "People in churches, or doctors, wrote diaries, and usually they also included information about weather and climate. Climate historians can use and interpret this information and translate it into a temperature value," explained Luterbacher, who used these records to compare past and recent temperatures.
What is particularly unusual about the temperatures seen in the fall of 2006 and the winter of 2007 is not necessarily their values (though they were high), but the fact that one immediately followed the other, a sequential juxtaposition not seen since 1289.
While Luterbacher hypothesizes that the high temperatures experienced in 1289 were most likely the result of a large volcanic eruption, he and his colleagues attribute last year's warmer fall/winter season to the movement of warm air up from the Atlantic off the coast of North Africa.
Though they can't yet say with certainty whether such an unusual incident is due solely to global warming, they draw a direct comparison to a similar 2004 study that indicated that it was "very likely that human influence has at least doubled the risk" of extreme weather incidents such as the recent heat wave that killed 35,000 people in Europe.
Via ::Freak winter is Europe's warmest for 700 years (news website)
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/europe_winter.php
Science & Technology
According to an article recently published in Geophysical Research Letters, the last fall/winter season was Europe's warmest in 700 years. In fact, the last time Europeans witnessed such unusually high temperatures was in 1289.
Jürg Luterbacher of the University of Bern, Switzerland, the study's lead investigator, mined temperature and climate records from across Europe that went back several hundred years to draw this conclusion. "People in churches, or doctors, wrote diaries, and usually they also included information about weather and climate. Climate historians can use and interpret this information and translate it into a temperature value," explained Luterbacher, who used these records to compare past and recent temperatures.
What is particularly unusual about the temperatures seen in the fall of 2006 and the winter of 2007 is not necessarily their values (though they were high), but the fact that one immediately followed the other, a sequential juxtaposition not seen since 1289.
While Luterbacher hypothesizes that the high temperatures experienced in 1289 were most likely the result of a large volcanic eruption, he and his colleagues attribute last year's warmer fall/winter season to the movement of warm air up from the Atlantic off the coast of North Africa.
Though they can't yet say with certainty whether such an unusual incident is due solely to global warming, they draw a direct comparison to a similar 2004 study that indicated that it was "very likely that human influence has at least doubled the risk" of extreme weather incidents such as the recent heat wave that killed 35,000 people in Europe.
Via ::Freak winter is Europe's warmest for 700 years (news website)
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/europe_winter.php
N.J. Takes Lead on Global Warming War
by Jasmin Malik Chua, Jersey City, USA on 06.22.07
Science & Technology
Photo credit: Manuel Bartual
New Jersey lawmakers launched one of nation's most aggressive attacks on global warming yesterday by approving a measure to cut the state's heat-trapping emissions to 15 to 25 percent below current levels by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050—a target equaled by only one other state so far: Minnesota. (A California law approved last year, by contrast, mandates only a cut in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse emissions by 25 percent by 2020. Take that, you California hippies!)
The Assembly and state Senate overwhelmingly passed the measure 72-8 and 36-1, respectively. Governor John Corzine has said he will sign the bill.
"In the absence of leadership on the federal level, the burden of reducing
greenhouse gases has now fallen upon the states," said Lilo Stainton, a spokeswoman for Corzine. "This legislation ... will make New Jersey a national leader in combating global warming."
Lawmakers said New Jersey couldn't afford to dawdle, especially when projections have shown that warmer temperatures will mean more coastal flooding, heat waves, and air pollution. Recent studies say that North Jersey's weather could end up more like balmy South Carolina's by the end of the century if the trend remains unchecked.
Admittedly, even if the ambitious goal was met, it would make only a small dent in overall worldwide warming trends. Supporters say that the Garden State's move, along with those of other states, could be key in getting the federal government to follow their lead. (We're not holding our breath, but stranger things have happened.)
The bill was not without its detractors, of course. "The Earth has warmed up and cooled down hundreds of times. ... The debate is not over," Assemblyman Michael J. Doherty, R-Warren, said.
Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, R-Morris, criticized the bill for not including "one single specific proposal" to decrease New Jersey's reliance on non-renewable energy sources. A better bill, he said, would encourage the use of radiant heating, hydropower, and wind farms. "If we had the political will, we could take steps today to lessen New Jersey's global imprint," he said.
New Jersey is already the second largest solar market in the United States (the first being California), and some predict that Thursday's bill could spur the state toward making less-polluting energy sources and high-efficiency hybrid vehicles ubiquitous.
Although cutting emissions will drive up costs for electricity and other products in the short run, Corzine and other lawmakers acknowledged, because much of the plan focuses on slashing energy use, they say consumers will reap savings in the long term as they use less power.
"New Jersey as a state will receive really incredible economic benefits, in addition to setting the lead for the rest of the nation," said Suzanne Leta Liou of Environment New Jersey, an advocacy group. :: The Record
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/nj_takes_lead.php
Science & Technology
Photo credit: Manuel Bartual
New Jersey lawmakers launched one of nation's most aggressive attacks on global warming yesterday by approving a measure to cut the state's heat-trapping emissions to 15 to 25 percent below current levels by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050—a target equaled by only one other state so far: Minnesota. (A California law approved last year, by contrast, mandates only a cut in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse emissions by 25 percent by 2020. Take that, you California hippies!)
The Assembly and state Senate overwhelmingly passed the measure 72-8 and 36-1, respectively. Governor John Corzine has said he will sign the bill.
"In the absence of leadership on the federal level, the burden of reducing
greenhouse gases has now fallen upon the states," said Lilo Stainton, a spokeswoman for Corzine. "This legislation ... will make New Jersey a national leader in combating global warming."
Lawmakers said New Jersey couldn't afford to dawdle, especially when projections have shown that warmer temperatures will mean more coastal flooding, heat waves, and air pollution. Recent studies say that North Jersey's weather could end up more like balmy South Carolina's by the end of the century if the trend remains unchecked.
Admittedly, even if the ambitious goal was met, it would make only a small dent in overall worldwide warming trends. Supporters say that the Garden State's move, along with those of other states, could be key in getting the federal government to follow their lead. (We're not holding our breath, but stranger things have happened.)
The bill was not without its detractors, of course. "The Earth has warmed up and cooled down hundreds of times. ... The debate is not over," Assemblyman Michael J. Doherty, R-Warren, said.
Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, R-Morris, criticized the bill for not including "one single specific proposal" to decrease New Jersey's reliance on non-renewable energy sources. A better bill, he said, would encourage the use of radiant heating, hydropower, and wind farms. "If we had the political will, we could take steps today to lessen New Jersey's global imprint," he said.
New Jersey is already the second largest solar market in the United States (the first being California), and some predict that Thursday's bill could spur the state toward making less-polluting energy sources and high-efficiency hybrid vehicles ubiquitous.
Although cutting emissions will drive up costs for electricity and other products in the short run, Corzine and other lawmakers acknowledged, because much of the plan focuses on slashing energy use, they say consumers will reap savings in the long term as they use less power.
"New Jersey as a state will receive really incredible economic benefits, in addition to setting the lead for the rest of the nation," said Suzanne Leta Liou of Environment New Jersey, an advocacy group. :: The Record
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/nj_takes_lead.php
Energy Bill? What Energy Bill?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 06.22.07
Business & Politics
That '57 Plymouth they dug up in Tulsa will get close to 25 miles per gallon, not much less than the current average. Yet the "compromise" reached in the so-called energy bill that the automakers were running over themselves to stop specifies an average fleet mileage of 35 MPG in 2020. It doesn't take sixty-three years to figure out how to get a 10 MPG improvement. The Times put it nicely:
"The combination of breakthroughs and setbacks highlighted the blocking power of the entrenched industry groups, from oil companies and electric utilities to car manufacturers, that had blanketed Congress in recent days to defend their interests. "
No money for renewables, a requirement for 36 billion gallons of ethanol, no pressure on utilities to use renewables, no cutting of incentives to oil companies that might, horror of horrors, "lead to higher gas prices." Nothing but 12 years to reach a fuel efficiency standard that the market will demand a lot sooner.
In 2020 three dollar gas is going to be a very distant memory and 35 MPG better be too; what a waste of time. ::New York Times
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/energy_bill_wha.php
Business & Politics
That '57 Plymouth they dug up in Tulsa will get close to 25 miles per gallon, not much less than the current average. Yet the "compromise" reached in the so-called energy bill that the automakers were running over themselves to stop specifies an average fleet mileage of 35 MPG in 2020. It doesn't take sixty-three years to figure out how to get a 10 MPG improvement. The Times put it nicely:
"The combination of breakthroughs and setbacks highlighted the blocking power of the entrenched industry groups, from oil companies and electric utilities to car manufacturers, that had blanketed Congress in recent days to defend their interests. "
No money for renewables, a requirement for 36 billion gallons of ethanol, no pressure on utilities to use renewables, no cutting of incentives to oil companies that might, horror of horrors, "lead to higher gas prices." Nothing but 12 years to reach a fuel efficiency standard that the market will demand a lot sooner.
In 2020 three dollar gas is going to be a very distant memory and 35 MPG better be too; what a waste of time. ::New York Times
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/energy_bill_wha.php
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