Search Greenrightnow
Environmental Headlines
Home
Tagged : greenhouse-gases
Carbon expert reminds us that global change is happening now
September 23rd, 2009 · No Comments
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
This number shows Earth’s collective 3 trillion-plus metric tons of combined greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
You’ll notice that it is a BIG number. And it’s already outdated. This picture was captured yesterday. Look at the counter today on the web, and the number will be bigger.
The volume of greenhouse gases is constantly ticking upward. Much faster than a watch. Steady as an oil derrick. As ominously as a time bomb.
[Read more →]
Tags: · carbon counting, carbon dioxide pollution, Deutsche Bank, Greenhouse Gases, Intergrovernmental Panel on Climate Change, methane gas, metric tons of carbon in the atmosphere, MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, New York Climate Summit, total carbon
Amazon deforestation and your shoes
By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now
When we put our shoes on, we don’t really think about where they’ve been before they got to us.
Most likely, they were manufactured somewhere overseas, China or Vietnam perhaps, then shipped to the United States. But where did the material used to manufacture them come from? Are your shoes made of leather? If so, there’s a chance they’re contributing to climate change — and the illegal destruction of the Amazon rainforest.
 Greenpeace International says rainforests are being needlessly lost not just to the meat trade but to the leather industry, as cattle ranches expand illegally in Brazilian Amazon region.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Adidas/Reebok, Amazon rainforest, Brazil, cattle trade, Clarks, deforestation, Geox, Greenhouse Gases, leather, Nike, Prada, shoes, Timberland
Greenpeace warns that cattle trade has dangerous ecological impacts
From Green Right Now Reports
Greenpeace’s report “Slaughtering the Amazon” notes that Brazil’s thriving and expanding cattle trade, which has made it the world’s largest exporter of beef and the top producer (along with China) of leather, has out-sized environmental consequences.
 “The cattle sector in the Brazilian Amazon is responsible for 14% of the world’s annual deforestation. This makes it the world’s largest driver of deforestation, responsible for more forest loss than the total deforestation in any country outside Brazil except Indonesia,” according to the report, the result of a three-year investigation by Greenpeace International.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Amazon, beef, Brazil, cattle trade, deforestation, Greenhouse Gases, illegal deforestation, leather, rainforests, ranches, supply chains
Try Sierra Club’s virtual frying pan to count your carbon footprint
By Melissa Segrest
Green Right Now
Shall we have an omelet with vegetables and cheese for breakfast?
Let’s order a Caesar salad for lunch, with some chicken noodle soup.
And dinner – Who’s up for meatloaf, with macaroni and cheese on the side and some chocolate chip cookies to top it off?
Oh, while you’re at it, stop for a second and ask yourself: What impact does this food have on the environment?
Here’s some food for thought: An entertaining interactive tool lets you add up your “carbon points” and see just how badly those three cups of coffee are hurting the world.
[Read more →]
Tags: · "fresh" seafood, Carbon Dioxide, Co2e, food system and greenhouse gases, food waste, Greenhouse Gases, low carbon diet calculator, processed food, regional food, seasonal food, Sierra Club, Sierra Club GreenHome
FedEx puts more hybrids on the road; says feds should express incentives
Green Right Now Reports:
FedEx has added 92 hybrid-electric trucks to its fleet, all of which are converted standard delivery trucks.
 The increase represents a jump of 50 percent in the company’s hybrid fleet, bringing it to a total of 264 hybrid-electric vehicles. FedEx estimates that its hybrid fleet has saved an estimated 1,521 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions since 2004. That’s equivalent to taking 279 cars off the road annually.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Air Pollution, California, Charlotte, FedEx, Greener Businesses, Greenhouse Gases, hybrid conversions, hybrid incentives, hybrid-electric vehicles, North Carolina
Cash for Clunkers greenlighted; rev up the car buying frenzy
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
Congress has approved what will be a big bonanza for car buyers — not to mention car dealers — with the “Cash for Clunkers” bill that cleared the Senate on Thursday.
Once signed by President Obama, who pushed for the law, car buyers will be able to get up to $4,500 toward more efficient new vehicles when they trade in their aging gas guzzlers (or even just their aging cars that get so-so mileage). Cars must pre-date 2002 but not be older than 1984 models.
Ironically, this generous program would not be available had it not been for the short-sighted American car manufacturers who made so many gas gulpers, their heedless American customers and also the torpid economy. None of those players gets chastened or overhauled or even pinched in this deal.
[Read more →]
Tags: · BarbaraKesslerBlog, car dealers, Cash for Clunkers, Gas-Guzzlers, gasoline, Greenhouse Gases, high mileage cars, low mileage cars, lower emissions
U.S. report on climate change: No time to waste
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
The Obama Administration, via the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), issued a wake-up call today, a massive report on climate change called Global Climate Change Impacts in the U.S..
It concludes that the effects of climate change are here, they’re worsening and they must be dealt with soon if future generations are to enjoy ample food, water and comfortable living conditions
Quite simply, it’s a message about impending disaster. Average temperatures are getting hotter and could rise as much as 10 degrees by the end of the century. Our use of fossil fuels is mainly to blame. If we don’t stop polluting the air with heat-trapping gases, the ensuing climate changes will lead to drought, flooding, severe storms, stressed agriculture, thinning glaciers, earlier snow melts, rising sea levels, declining ecosystems and deteriorating air quality.
End of story. Literally.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Climate Change, Fossil Fuels, global warming, Greenhouse Gases, heat-trapping gases, sea rise, severe weather, U.S. Global Change Research Program, warming temperatures, water shortages
Find your car’s emissions and greenhouse gas ratings
From Green Right Now Reports
How do cars pollute? In two main ways, through inefficient mileage (guzzling a gallon of gas every eight or 10 or 14 miles) and through tailpipe emissions.
There’s the pollution associated with manufacturing, also, but to keep it simple let’s stick with emissions and mileage. Obviously, both affect the air. Think of mileage as a measure of your car’s pollution volume over time – if a gallon of gas doesn’t take you very far, you have to burn a lot more gas — and emissions as the chemistry of that pollution; if the mix is particularly noxious, your car will be a bigger offender than one with better tailpipe controls.
So if you want to buy the cleanest car you can — in the price range you need — you’ll look at both factors. Fortunately, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has already done this work, assigning a “greenhouse gas” score to most models. Find it at the EPA’s Green Vehicles website.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Air Pollution, Cars, Department of Energy, Emissions, Environmental Protection Agency, Fuel Efficiency, greenhouse gas rating, Greenhouse Gases, taipipe exhaust, Trucks
The sky is blue and greenhouse gases are bad for us
By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
All week we kept getting these alerts from the EPA. First they wanted to tell us about the accelerated clean up of some Superfund sites. Next, they were trumpeting how they are (finally) going to test a bunch of common pesticides to see if they are endocrine disruptors. (Actually, they’re ordering the makers of these compounds to get them tested…but we’ll deal with that fox/hen house issue another time.)
I started to think, geez, would they ever leave us alone? Who do these EPA folks think they are anyway, government regulators?
[Read more →]
Tags: · BarbaraKesslerBlog, Clean Air Act, Climate Change, EPA, global warming, Greenhouse Gases, Lisa Jackson, regulation
Spam e-mail’s environmental impact
By Laura Elizabeth May
Green Right Now
It turns out spam is not only annoying, it is bad for the environment as well. McAfee Inc. announced new research revealing how spam e-mail is damaging to the environment and substantially contributes to greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).
The study calculated globally the annual energy used to transmit, process, and filter spam which totals 33 billion kilowatt-hours. That is the equivalent to the amount of electricity used in 2.4 million homes with the same amount of GHG as 3.1 million passenger cars using 2 billion gallons of gasoline, according to McAfee.
[Read more →]
Tags: · electricity use, Greenhouse Gases, McAfee, spam
Farm Sanctuary urges people to eat less meat for Earth Day
By Laura Elizabeth May
Green Right Now
On Earth Day, Farm Sanctuary wants people to “eat green” as well. Farm Sanctuary, the nation’s leading farm animal protection organization, will encourage people to reduce or eliminate their consumption of meat and other animal products by raising awareness about factory farming’s negative impact on the environment. The group believes that choosing a plant-based vegan diet is the most ecologically sustainable way for people to eat.
The group will be involved in nearly two dozen outreach and education events on Earth Day. At the different Earth Day festivals, volunteers will man tables and hand out leaflets documenting meat’s devastating impact on the environment. The group w ill also hand out literature promoting a healthy, sustainable vegan lifestyle.
[Read more →]
Tags: · Earth Day, Farm Sanctuary, Greenhouse Gases, meat consumption, United Nations, vegan
Coal protest planned for the Capitol
By Diane Porter
Green Right Now
Next Monday, in what is billed as the largest mass civil disobedience rally for the climate in U.S. history, organizers expect thousands of people to join in a protest at the Capitol Power Plant in Washington, D.C. Hoping to bring attention to the issues of climate change and green jobs to the new administration and new Congress, the protestors are expected from around the country, spurred on by support and videos from actress and activist Susan Sarandon and NASA’s James Hansen.
“We want to send a clear message to Congress and the Obama administration that Americans aren’t satisfied with the action that’s been taken on climate yet,” said Mike Crocker, a spokesperson for Greenpeace. “We need robust policies in place as soon as possible, certainly in time for (the next United Nations Climate Talks) in Copenhagen in December 2009.”
[Read more →]
Tags: · Capitol Power Plant, carbon pollution, Greenhouse Gases, Greenpeace, James Hansen, Pew Center for Global and Climate Change, protest, Susan Sarandon, Washington DC
|
