Aircraft do harm the environment

Just a post to make you think. How many aircraft are flying at the moment?. how many are overhead right now? Where did it come from and where is it going? All questions we ask our selves from time to time. There is now the opportunity answer all these questions in real time. Head over to Flight Information and see for yourself.

Sandy, is this the future?

Hurricane Sandy

The Hurricane Sandy, should show to everybody the power of Nature. Never has a Hurricane been more destructive or effected more people than Sandy. This is all part of the expected changes already taking place to our only climate.

Naturally there are many people that still claiming this is just a one off event, but is it? Time will tell but this could be a tipping point that makes ordinary people start to ask questions and demanding some answers.

On 20th January is a UK vote on moving clocks forward one hour

There is a compaign in the UK to change the UK clocks one hour forward. This will have an important effect on reducing CO2 emissions. A link is here for more information. Every country should consider adjusting the clocks to minimise emissions, it's cheap and effective.

It's just an idea

A major use of electricity is heating water. I used my electric kettle this morning and thought, do we really need to heat water to boiling point everytime? How about a small thermostat in each kettle so you could set it to switch off at a lower temperature. This could save a significant amount of energy without loss.

What do you think, have you ideas?

PS some business ideas at www.drachsi.com

What is just one person do?

One fills so insignificant when considering the problems facing the world on climate change. Yes, I have done most of the normal things, low energy lamps, insulated my property, reduced car journeys, transferred heat from a room heated by the sun, to other parts of the house. Now the big step.

I am installing 12.5Kw of photovoltaic panels, what I don't use is sold to the local energy company at a profit. I will be able to measure the C02 saved. My contribution to future generations and my own pocket.

Pete

If you are concerned about the environment, here is an idea for everybody

Create your own environmental website for free. The services is provided by Microsoft. I have created a simple example website, to show what is possible at Business Services. When you have your website ready, come back and post details here.

Enjoy

Do you think this solution might work?

The world will always have different opinions about Climate Change, how to limit temperature increases, what does it cost, who pays, when must we start? Then there are the Climate Change sceptics.

Some countries like Germany are setting their own Climate Change agenda, high electricity prices, high tax on petrol, subsidy's for solar energy, and a good public transport network. Now they have to tackle the coal burning power station companies.

Just suppose for example. Jamaica reduced it's CO2 emissions. Insulating their houses, more public transport., then subsidised the installation of solar panels and painted all roof tops white. There is enough sun in Jamaica to dramatically reduce other forms of electricity generation. This costs money. So how to fund it?

This is where the WTO (World Trade Organisation) IMF (International Monetary Fund) and rating agencies like Mood's, Standard & Poors come in. Each country is rated for it's current CO2 emissions and then on a sliding scale, the IMF offers low cost loans for each CO2 reduction step. The rating agencies increase the county's credit rating, and the WTO sets low global tariffs for all exports.

Every country can do their own thing, in their own way, in their own time. But after a date to be set, these organisations start to change the ratings and rates charged. So would something like this work? Politicians are in the end just politicians, most are not leaders and certainly not risk takers. The world will only agree at some point in the future when it is already to late.

So what do you think? would it work?

Managing Climate Change, is a little bit like having life or home insurance, you hope you never need it, but if you do, then you are thankful you paid the premiums.

Additional Thought

Using current satellite technology, it would be very easy to view areas of the world that are using "slash and burn" to clear the Rainforest. Could this not be another way to make countries pay higher rates of interest on borrowed money?

See the video