Sustainable planet: everybody must contribute

Our planet is sick and crying for help. Let’s take a look at its future. Should we wait for governmental actions or should we act by ourselves? See the natural cycle, the human impacts on the environment, the prognosis, memorize the top recyclable materials and be a voluntary.

Once upon a time there was a blue planet called Earth. It was full of wonderful things and paradises like the Alps in Switzerland, Kenya in South Africa, Yosemite National Park in the United States, Patagonia in Argentina and the Fujiyama in Japan. You could see as well whales, insects, Jacaranda trees in Pretoria (South Africa), waterfalls, paradisiacal fruits and much more.   

 But while the time was passing and the humans were destroying, the poor planet heated up.  

This planet still exists. But does it have a future? Which future might this be?

The scientists’ forecast isn’t very colored, actually it is very dark, almost  black. It is a nightmare.

 They proved that the human activities in the environment are heating up the planet and the consequences can be dramatic for the next generations. Let’s take a closer look.

You’ve already heard about the greenhouse effect, haven’t you? 

This natural phenomenon allows the existence of life on the Earth.  

The sun emits its powerful energy to the space in the form of light/energy. 30% of the rays are contemplated. Air, earth and water absorb about 70%. The heated surface (sole) then emits infrared radiation (heat). A small part of this thermal radiation goes into the space, but most is removed in the atmosphere (the Earth’s protection layer) absorbed by water steam, carbon dioxide, methane and other gases of the greenhouse effect. Pollution blocks this process!  

Changes in this gas mixture also change the way how the planet takes advantage of the sun’s energy: the nights in the desert are cold because without humidity the greenhouse effect is too weak to keep the accumulated heat during the day.  Remember: in 1991 tons of gases and Philippine volcanic ashes reduced the layer of ozone and cooled down the planet about 0,5 degree.  

If the heat was not kept by the greenhouse effect, the planet would be frozen with a medium temperature of 18° below zero. At the moment the normal temperature is 14,5 degrees. 

The gases caused by human activities are carbon dioxide CO2 (during million of years, naturally produced by the breathing of the plants and animals, it was the balancing factor in the maintenance of the Earth’s temperature), methane CH4, nitrous oxide N2O, ozone O3, chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs).  

 

They destroy the ozone layer, which protects from the ultraviolet radiation (main cause of skin cancer).   The fact is: it has already immense, irreparable damages and there is no sign that this process will stop.   We are going to be fried in maximum 10 years. 

When there is an increase in the concentration of the greenhouse gases effect, e. g. carbon dioxide, liberated by industry, vehicles, deforestation and farming, the natural greenhouse effect is blocked.   This effect is potentiated and it turns harmful, provoking the global heating.  

Since 1750 the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere climbed up to 35%.  The temperature increase was almost 3° in the last 30 years (from 1,0 to 3,5°C between 1970 and 2004). If this tendency continues, the scientific forecast of the future presents 6 versions until the year 2100: a rise of temperature at least of 1,1° up to  6,4° in the worst case.

But we can see already very real results:  tsunamis, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions everywhere on the planet.   A consequence of this climate change (global heating) will be the increase of the ocean levels between 18 and 38 cm, maybe until 59 cm if the temperature increases  1,5 to 2,5 degrees Celsius. It could be even more.  

What exactly will happen?  

Polynesia (Bora Bora, classified the most beautiful island of the planet), Los Angeles, New York, London, Rio…they all will disappear. First under water it will be the island of Tuvalu in the Pacific. 

The scientists foresaw more terrible scenery and announced catastrophes: The glaciers will melt and the polar caps will disappear (the Arctic shrinks 2,7% a year) and the oceans  will finally rise  7m or more.  

What will happen in  all the continents:  lack of drinking water , reduced harvests, less fishing and agriculture, thirst and hunger, floods, droughts and hurricanes, pests and diseases. 500 million people without a place to live, or maybe up to 1 billion, who knows.  Poverty, violence…  

Most prejudiced will be Africa and Asia.Until 2020 only half of the harvests.Up to 250 million people without water. It could reach up to 2 billion without a place to live…  

Are you absolutely sure that you have to wash your car in the backyard today?

Those climate changes (global heating) can provoke the extinction of thousands of species. 1/3 will be extinct until 2050.  

Biodiversity is the variety of 14 million species on earth and the environmental compounds are part of it. It is responsible for the evolution and for the maintenance of  life in every place, including   the middle of the deserts, in the frozen steppes and prairies, in the bottom of the sea, in the high of the mountains or in the sources of sulfurous waters. It implicates the balance and stability of ecosystems and its use for the humanity. But it is being reduced by  our destruction. There is the urgent need to protect it.

 Brazil is the richest country in biodiversity on the planet. It has 7% of the terrestrial surface. 42% of Brazil is forest.   12% of the species of the world are found in this territory.  22% of all the plants, 34% of the known species, 65 – 75% of the biodiversity of the planet!  We will lose 30% of that richness (animals and vegetables like Acerola, Açai, cacao and more). 

They are 5 hotspots on the planet. The two biggest in Brazil: the Atlantic forest and the savannah, which will lose 75% of the original landscape.  

Since 1970 17% Amazonian got lost (for Brazilian wood, monoculture of  sugarcane and coffee, soy plantations for chicken of McDonald and steak). 

Between 2000 and 2005 Brazil was responsible for 42% of the deforestation in the world! Where is the responsibility? Brazil’s collaboration in the global heating is 6 times superior to the world average. Although the country has decreased the impact,  there is no clear protection of  the forest  by  political actions. 

Deforestation devastates the soil, kills the plants and the animals, alters the regime of rains and, indirectly affects the climate since it affects the genetics of the plants.  

I‘ve already explained:  thirst, hunger, catastrophes, the list continues.

 The worst is, that there aren’t any signs that this devastation will stop increasing. We have to look for a form for producing wealth without destroying our life base.  

Profit and responsibility!  

A reconciling of the economical development with the respect to the environment is necessary.  Sustainable development is the key word for governments, companies and citizens. Maintaining this rhythm of planet exploration, there won’t be water, energy nor enough resources to preserve the life in the future.  

The future is in our hands! And the time is little… so what are we waiting for??  

The Kyoto protocol of 1997 is an international agreement of 55 countries, destined to reduce the greenhouse effect gases. Up to 75%, at least 30. Growing countries like China, among others, cannot be charged.  

The 8 countries most industrialized in the world (G8) see the need to cut the emission in half and want  to stop using fossil  fuels  until 2030.  

Europe, US, Canada, Japan provide 1/5 of the global population and  consume 70% of the energy, 75% of the metals and 85% of the wood in the world. 

A word on carbon credits:  The goal is to decrease emission. One carbon credit is a permit that allows the holder to emit one ton of carbon dioxide. Credits are awarded to countries or groups that have reduced their green house gases below their emission quota. Carbon credits can be sold at the international market at their current market price. If a (rich) country for example isn’t able to substitute petroleum it cannot fulfil the goals, but it can finance the implantation of cleaner technologies or the use of renewable energies in another part of the planet which counts points to reach to reduction goal. This normally corresponds a brutal fall in the industrial production, but that way they can acquire carbon credits.

There are voluntary funds  of the rich countries for financing the protection of forests in the world  like Amazonia.  

However, the largest pollutants are China/India (coal), USA and Brazil (deforestation), place 3 for Canada and Europe.  

Some pioneering works exist, like Natura cosmetics in Brazil by offering refills and recycling.  Goóc  company  which recycled more than 1.3 million car tires in order to fabricate slippers.   

Greenpeace, famous for its courageous actions, put a credit  card on the market that decomposes in 3 months. Different from normal PVC, which is not recyclable and frees dioxin in the production and in the burning process.

 Ferrari  will produce independently with photovoltaic panels almost all the necessary electricity in the factory, reducing the emissions of CO2 between 25% and 30%.  

Solar energy is already announced for the factories of Opel, Nissan and Seat, all in Spain. The American factory of Spartenburg, BMW led off a study about the viability of using wind energy.

Today, 63% of the energy of the factory come from recycled methane gas of the local embankment which saves  more than 1 million dollars a year since 2003. 

At Land Rover, the wind energy is  used in the annual production of 100.000 motors and reduces  3 .000 tons of CO2- emission.  

At FIAT 93% of the chemical residues are recycled.  They reuse  92% of the used water.  

FORD  has a natural treatment of  the sanitary effluents, control of solid residues and emissions and reforestation. 

HONDA maintains a water treatment station, leading to reutilization of the treated water for the future. 

PEUGEOT AND CITROËN: Today 85% of the produced residues are reused. Their unit possesses own effluent treatment.  

RENAULT AND NISSAN  use rain water and produces bricks with the dreg of the effluent treatment.  One can see, that some DO care, but there is still a long road ahead of us.

This must be done:   

Preservation of the ecosystem (environment) by reducing the impacts of our actions to maintain the basic condition for a good life quality.  

Energy: change  fossil  fuels  to renewable (solar/wind)  and cleaner (like bio fuels, cane alcohol, biodiesel)  alternatives.

Transport:  hybrid vehicles, public transportation or bus, bicycle.  

Constructions: equipments and more efficient illumination, solar energy, recycling  

Agriculture:  less N20-emission of N2o (fertilization)  

Industry: energy recovery, CO2-control , recycling, sewer  and effluent treatment

Forests:  reduction of deforestation, reforestation   

Trash: Composting of all organic garbage,  recycling  

 rational use of water and energy, without wastes  

 natural foods  

 use of legal certified wood without deforestation  

control of air- and water  pollution.  

The IPCC report (intergovernmental panel on climate change) motivates the individual action and shows that each person can help to reduce the emissions of harmful gases by making a few changes in the lifestyle.  The cost of these changes would be around  0,6 to 3% and the temperature will rise 1 degree less. It is worth it. 

How long does it take to degrade in the nature?

paper               3 to 6 month

tissue               6 month to 1 year

cigarette filter5 years

chewing gum  5 to 10 years

painted wood13 years

nylon               hundreds of years

glass                hundreds of years

rubber             does not degrade

Brazil for example produces more than 12 billion of plastic bags a year and 80% of them are only used one single time.  They cover sewers, kill sea animals and babies. Free for the consumers, incalculable for the environment. Why not purchase a canvas one and reuse?

How to face the garbage accumulation of the modern society? 1,8 kg per person a day.   

Countries of first world pay garbage by kilogram! Some hundred Euro per month only for the empty garbage can, more for each kilo. They are forced to recycle, otherwise they have to pay.   

The most educative tools still are fines: One thrown can in the USA can cost you 500 $ , spit chewing gum in the street 1.000 $ in Singapore. How about 3 EURO deposit on a big PET bottle, 50 cents for each plastic bag in the market or paper bags only. How’s that?

We must recycle more. More and more and even more! Everybody has to contribute.

Please memorize the principle recyclable products:

glass  (it goes back to use)       

paper, cardboard (recycled paper)  

plastic (material for textile fibers, strings, broom bristles, carpets, toys). 1 ton of  recycled PET saves 130 kg of petroleum. 5 PET bottles are enough to manufacture 1 shirt size XL or 33 cm of carpet.  

metal (can be used again without limits. Brazil in the worldwide number 1° in recycling aluminum cans, 87%, congratulations!).   1t recycled aluminum avoids 5 t bauxite (used in the production).  

But: Only 10% computers and 3% cell phones are recycled, 50% of the people don’t know…  

Notice that metal foil, rubber and mirrors aren’t recyclable.

Learn to calculate your water expenses.

Verify in your water check and verify the water consume in cubic meters per month.

Divide the value by the number of people that live in the house and, then, divide by thirty to know the daily expense per person. 

The individual total multiplied by 1000 is the consumption in liters per person in one day.  

110 liters per person a day are the established limit by the World Health Organization. A normal household uses per person and day more or less: 

Bath 46 liters (1 minute shower= 5 liters, toilet flush 35 liters,  washing clothes 15 liters,  washing  the back yard 20 liters or much more,  do the  dishes 8 liters, for  drinking  and cooking only 5 liters. 

Brushing teeth with a running faucet wastes 5 liters each time; this amount could  save 2 people in Africa dying of thirst…  

Don’t also forget that a dripping faucet wastes 6.000 liters of water a year, and a worn-out discharge 35.000 liters a year. 

Did you knew that  

one liter of oil destroys 10.000 liters of water 

the USA use so many disposable diapers in 1 year  that if you put one above the other you could reach until the moon and back 7 times.  

one recycled aluminum can give energy to run a TV for 3 hours   

if you bend down to pick up a can from the street you’re even doing butt exercise…

Australia used banana peel in a research to produce energy and fuel.

Coconut peel is used for bathroom finishing.

I would like to ask you though, could it be a little less? I’m not asking for dramatic changes in your lifestyle, I’m only asking to simplify.

Everything what we are doing now has definitively a high price in the near future:

fast food produces garbage, petroleum means pollution. My final calculation is very simple: Luxury equal trash. Do you really want this?! 

Now is the time to chose, at which side you want to be.  

I decided to economize water, to sweep the yard, I use filtered coffee grounds as a garden fertilizer, I clean with vinegar, salt, bicarbonate and lemon.  

 I read instead of watching TV, I walk or bike and I eat natural local food.

What’s your choice?  (Remember the hurricanes…)

 Are you still going by car to the bakery on the corner, are you still smoking,

still purchasing imported cheese? You will get the fair return…. welcome to the future,  welcome to your desert, to your disaster.

Let’s repeat:

 Save water, eat less meat, turn off the lights, leave the car at home, consume organics, use less paper, use less plastic bags and finally  be a voluntary. If nobody begins, you begin, today.  

 Change the world.   It’s in our hands.  

We make ourselves the future; the biodiversity and the civilization depend on our actions. The earth cannot wait anymore for the delayed governors.  We have to save the planet,  so can we survive. Everybody should act, as fast as possible.  

 We should take care of our planet, like we take care of our children.

I did my best offering you a guide for our earth.  

Now it’s up to you!     

 Think about it very well…because by now we have only this planet for living. Mother Earth will thank you. Namaste. 

Do you know what’s happening to the Amazon rainforest? Do you really? DO you know the effect we’re causing on it? Watch and find out My new video on ‘what YOU can do to save the rainforest’ is out now! The link is: www.youtube.com Want to support the Rainforest this second? Sign up on: www.princesrainforestsproject.org Copyright I do not own the rights to the song. The group is One Republic. www.onerepublic.net Peak award positions #3 – Most Responded (Today) – Education #51 – Most Responded (Today) – Education – Global #12 – Most Responded (This Week) – Education #54 – Most Responded (This Month) – Education
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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Please Note... All links within articles are placed by their author-owners and not by this blog.Products with in those links may or may not be the best in the world.If it sounds too good to be true it could be a scam.Articles are posted for their info,ideas and or entertainment value only.

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When people are not concerned with the environment it adds to the problem. There is a saying that goes something like “if you are not a part of the solution you are a part of the problem,” this may no be true in all cases – but it is certainly try on the issue of recycling. Many people know how important it is to recycle. Others either do not understand or they do not care about the effects that their own decision to not recycle will make. The key for environmental enthusiasts (who are, at this time, rightly concerned) is to get the word out so that more and more people will really understand the problem.

Processing older products into new products is the basic idea. You can prevent the waste of material that is still useful just by routing it to a place that will break it down for re-processing and transforming into new, safe and usable items.

The example that most people are familiar with is that of recycling aluminum cans, and glass materials. But there are more and more than that. It has been said that the third key component of the waste management hierarchy. It is definitely something we should all pay attention to.

Recyclable materials, or, as they are sometimes referred to: “recyclates” or “recyclables,’ are everywhere. In our homes and in our trash cans, even when people do recycle – sometimes they throw certain things away not even being aware that the item is a recyclable one. So pay more attention to what you may or may not be doing to improve the environment. Reducing energy usage is very important, and I believe that everyone should contribute to the cause.

So, you may ask, how exactly is recycling done? It is actually pretty amazing, and a valuable resource for us to promote all over the country.

If we had more recycling plants and a few less weaponry production facilities, perhaps (just as an example, of course) we may be able to preserve our amount of time left before the ozone deteriorates and begins to destroy the world we live in. As melodramatic as it sounds, the above statement is absolutely true. More and more people are finally getting it. But we need to avoid ignoring the problem from now on – for the sake of every living thing within the sanctity of this, our precious world.

Recyclates include glass, paper, aluminum, asphalt, iron, textiles and plastics. But there is more. There are many types of biodegradable waste, such as food waste or garden waste. This waste, believe it or not, is also recyclable through new technology utilizing the ability of micro-organisms through composting these materials, or by anaerobic digestion.

Go the extra mile. By this I finally come to my point, I mean that the more you know about how recycling is done, the more helpful you can be for the overall recycling process. First recyclable materials are sorted, of course. Then they must be cleansed of any residues or impurities left behind. Therefore, you can be of more assistance when you rinse out the aluminum can, glass bottle or, other item you would normally put aside for recycling before you do so.

This is a great idea to help not only increase the speed of recycling – but to make it more effective, i.e. to make the recycled materials we use more pure and long lasting. I have noticed that the recycling of paper is a wonderful thing. Reducing the contamination of the recyclables makes a more valuable, high quality, recycled product. As a matter of fact, because of its texture and purpose – I actually prefer writing on recycled paper than on regular paper.

The most important thing about this is that we can reduce the amount of trees we chop down for the purpose of lumber, cardboard and making other kinds of paper. One f the reasons are environment is suffering and that millions of species are wiped out because of the deteriorations of forests everywhere: all over t world. One of the most essential things we can do for our environment is to keep our rainforests as untouched as possible aside from the research that is absolutely beneficial.

Recycling is reducing “inputs” or, energy and raw materials to a production system, or re-using old materials effectively. As well as reducing the amount of waste that we, as a general population, produce and of which we must dispose. Materials that can be recycled are a broad category of things we used to dump carelessly out as garbage. Materials such as aluminum can be recycled indefinitely. So there is no reason to throw them out. The importance of recycling and the technology of recycling have come into more and more fruition. Recycling is more important to people right now than it has ever been because the necessity of conservation is always growing. This understanding is a great thing. It is a drive towards a healthier, safer, and more beautiful tomorrow.

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Please Note... All links within articles are placed by their author-owners and not by this blog.Products with in those links may or may not be the best in the world.If it sounds too good to be true it could be a scam.Articles are posted for their info,ideas and or entertainment value only.

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