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Showing posts from May, 2007

SWIM AT THE NORTH POLE ?

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sporting just a cap, trunks and goggles, Lewis Gordon Pugh will swim 1 km (0.6 miles) in water at a temperature of minus 1.8 degrees Celsius on July 15, a dip he expects to last 21 minutes. Such a swim would have been impossible as little as 10 years ago because the water would have been frozen, Pugh says. "Most people have no idea that you can find patches of open sea at the North Pole in summer," said Pugh, who set the record for the coldest human swim off Antarctica at 0 degrees Celsius. "I can't think of a better way to show that climate change is a reality than by swimming in a place that should be totally frozen over. I hope it will ... put pressure on the leaders of the G8 summit to cut carbon emissions dramatically," he said in a statement. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . THE ABOVE EXERPT FROM A REUTERS NEWS ITEM IS JUST ONE OF MANY EVENTS THAT ARE HAPPENING WORLD WIDE THAT PROVE THAT CLIMATE

FACTS/FIGURES ON GAS PRICE

. . . . . . . AFTER READING A LOT OF DATA ON THE PRICE OF GAS AT THE PUMP...... I FIND THAT WE IN CANADA/USA ARE SPOILED ROTTEN ,COMPARED TO THE REST OF THE WORLD . . . . . . .WHY DO THE GOV'T'S OF THESE 2 COUNTRIES HAVE TO APOLOGISE EVERY TIME THE PRICE OF GAS GOES UP. . . . USA . .ON AVERAGE TAKES THE LEAST AMOUNT OF TAXES PER LITER OF GAS AMONG THE BIGGEST WESTERN COUNTRIES ,WHILE (SURPRISE) UK TAKES BACK THE MOST. . . . . .FRANCE,GERMANY AND ITALY ARE NOT FAR BEHIND THE UK. . . . .FOR EXAMPLE IN CANADA APPROXIMATELY 30 PER CENT GOES TO TAXES...IN UK OVER 50 PERCENT GOES TO TAXES . . . . THE LION'S SHARE (75 PERCENT)GOES TO THE OIL COMPANIES FOR COST OF REFINERIES, ETC...ETC...ETC . . . .AND . . . . PROFITS . . . . .I WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOME OF THE PROFITS RETURNED TO BENEFIT THE ECOLOGY WHICH IS DESTROYED YEAR AFTER YEAR BY THE GAS GUZZLING MOTORIZED MONSTERS. . . . .END OF RANT.

POINTS-TO-PONDER

. . . . . . .BEFORE YOU START BULLDOZING A GREENSPACE WITH TREES HERE ARE A FEW POINTS TO PONDER COMPLIMENTS OF A RECENT RESEARCH BY SOME BRITISH SCIENTISTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . .An additional 10 percent more green space could reduce surface temperatures by 7 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a team of British scientists. Extra parks and green roofs could counteract the predicted rise in temperature until 2080 when summers are expected to be hotter and drier and winters wetter. Because American cities are more prone than British cities to high summer temperatures, University of Manchester biologist Roland Ennos said green space has an even more important function in the United States.In cities around the world, planting more grass and trees could keep people more comfortable and reduce air conditioning costs and energy expenditures, Ennos said. . . . . . . . . HAVING SAID THAT I NOTICE THAT EVEN IN MY OWN CITY,TORONTO AN APPLICATION HAS BEEN MADE BY A VERY LARGE CONTRACTOR TO DEMO

BEJING-POLLUTION-SOLUTION

. . . . . . . .Beijing car ban cuts air pollution by 40 per cent published: Sunday May 6, 2007 WASHINGTON (Reuters): When officials in Beijing kept about 800,000 cars off the road for three days last year, it cut the amount of nitrogen oxide air pollution almost instantly by about 40 per cent, scientists reported on Monday. The difference was apparent from space, observed by a NASA satellite, said Michael McElroy, a Harvard University professor of environmental studies and co-author of the report in Geophysical Research Letters. Nitrogen oxides are key ingredients in ozone, which can exacerbate lung ailments such as asthma and emphysema. Limiting the number of motor vehicles on the streets of the Chinese capital reduced nitrogen oxide levels dramatically during a Beijing summit in November, the scientists found. The experiment took place during a meeting between Chinese and African officials. Such vehicle bans are expected to be repeated this summer and then again next year in prepar

THE-HEAT-IS-ON

. . . . . . . . . . .While I was walking on the sidewalk today a city bus passed by.I noticed that its rear tailpipe was spewing out so much heat that it was clearly visible against the horizon.I got to thinking ,how many other buses were on the road at that moment??Where does all that heat go.Since this is toronto, a big city in canada I knew there were hundreds of buses along with thousands of cars and trucks.All spewing hot air exhaust,along with the usual mixture of nitrous oxide and co2.Add to that combined emissions another hundred or so cities around the world like bejing,mexico city,sau paulo,los angelus, tokiyo,berlin and is it any wonder that this planet earth has a global warming problem. . . . . . . . . . . . .In my younger days I owned several cars and I remember the many times the car motor would over heat.It was so hot at times that you could easily cook a good meal from the exess heat. . . . . . . Little did I realize at the time that I was contributing to global warmin

THEORIES- - GALORE

"Some scientists credit changes in rice production, and some also trace it to repairs in oil and gas storage facilities that can leak methane." . . . . . . . . . . . . . . these are just 2 of the many theories floating around both pro and con greenhouse emissions,and possible reasons why there is so much greenhouse gases. . . . .. .. ... . . . . . ITS ADVISABLE TO LOOK UPON EACH NEW THEORY WITH CAREFUL CONSIDERATION AND NOT TO JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . .. . . . THE ABOVE SNIPPET REFERS TO A FINDING AT A CONFERENCE IN BANGKOK THAILAND THAT IMPLICATES RICE PRODUCTION TO METHANE GAS EMISSIONS . . . . . . . . . CONFERANCE DATE IS FIRST WEEK OF MAY 2007.