Climate Change

The word "pollution" usually evokes images of clogged rivers, smoggy skies and toxic metals leeching through the soil. Many sources of pollution today are invisible to the eye and impossible to detect without special equipment, as people have become increasingly conscious of the environment and less tolerant of harmful practices. Yet one of the most visible forms of pollution is often overlooked.

Prince Charles seems to be the odd man out when it comes to the royal family. He’s been overshadowed by his mother the Queen, his former wife Diana, and now his sons William and Harry. While he might not sell a lot of papers, Prince Charles is still pushing to get the word out about the environment, a cause that he’s championed since the 1980’s. His “Start” initiative will bring together celebrities and green ideas for an eco-minded “Garden Party To Make A Difference” this September.

At best, flooding is a hassle. Roadways close, basements become pools and shoes get wet. More severe runoff can destroy crops, displace entire populations and open the door to disease, starvation and war. Pakistan has already seen more than one thousand deaths following its recent flooding. By planning ahead and maintaining soil integrity, the threat of serious flooding and its side effects can be greatly reduced. A new study out of Purdue University has found that the most effective way to reduce water runoff is to reduce urban sprawl.

A single data point does not a pattern make but this past June is the hottest month ever since we’ve started recording temperatures, and 2010 has also offset 1998 as the year with the most warmest months. Facts like that make it difficult to claim global warming is a figment of imagination, and it shifts the discussion more toward what causes it instead.

Humans certainly are creating carbon dioxide (among many other waste materials) and pumping them into the atmosphere but so far scientists haven’t been able to prove the connection between that waste and global warming. At least not to the satisfaction of businesses and other entities that are profiting from said waste production.

The NOAA says:

Hybrid and plug-in carmakers haven’t quite nailed down an all-purpose advertising strategy. Ford used Kermit the Frog for the hybrid escape, Nissan hired Lance Armstrong to pitch the Leaf, and the Chevy Volt dance went viral for all the wrong reasons. Lexus is taking a different approach to promote their CT 200h hybrid with the “Darker Side Of Green” debate series moderated by celebrities.

The premise is simple: throw a cocktail party to celebrate the launch of the CT 200h that features a debate between both sides of the issue of climate change. Throw in a celebrity like Andy Samberg for a healthy dose of hipster wit as moderator. According to Lexus, the winner gets “ultimate green, or dark green, supremacy.”

For a while it seemed like the public cared about global warming and wanted to reduce what humans are doing to unbalance the worldwide ecosystem. Now that’s not a certain thing and Al Gore is fighting to reverse the trend. Most of that shift in public opinion is due to some unethical behavior by people close to global warming data which created a breach of trust.

Add some powerful interests to the mix like businesses who don’t want to see new legislation interfere with their current operating practices, or politicians who stand to gain from related lobbyists and we have a magnifying glass on the underbelly of Al Gore’s global warming campaign. But where did it begin?

Global warming is a contentious issue again because skeptics have pointed out inconsistencies with the data scientists are using to measure how much humans are impacting the environment. Setting that debate aside for a moment, scientists have discovered that somewhere around 7 teragrams of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, has been released each year from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf. That’s around 7.7 million tons of methane, and the data was aggregated from 5,000 locations. Sound credible?

In a situation like this the argument over who is causing global warming – man or nature – becomes almost irrelevant. It’s important for us to understand how that much greenhouse gas drifting into the atmosphere will affect the climate. Our ability to adapt or prevent that shift in climate may determine the next step in our collective bloodline.

Texas is making more noise about the threat of tougher emissions standards than a trampled rodeo clown.

The Lone Star state filed a petition in federal court this week, arguing the government has no right to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The message is loud and clear: Don’t mess with big business in Texas, or you’ll have a fight on your hand.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry says the regulations will sacrifice jobs and hurt the energy industry. According to the EPA, Texas and other Region 6 states are responsible for 35 percent of greenhouse gases emitted by industrial sources. But that doesn’t mean much in Texas.

Early on in his presidency, Obama looked like the anti-Bush when it comes to green issues. He pushed tougher vehicle emissions standards through and was hitting hard on climate change legislation.

Then reality struck. The health care debate slowed green negotiations and now Obama is tripling federal loan guarantees for nuclear reactors to $54 billion, while opening the door to off-shore drilling and more coal plants.

From the looks of things, his next move will be to buy a big ranch in Texas.

As you might expect, the reaction to Obama’s change of heart has been harsh from the environmental community that thought Bush’s replacement would turn the country toward renewable energies at a much faster pace.

The oldest trees on Earth are facing a life or death battle with climate change, possibly due to global warming. The giant redwood forests in California lay snug against the coast where a swath of fog keeps them moist periodically throughout the year. But, climate changes over the last century have reduced how likely it is that fog will form and now scientists are concerned that the redwoods may not survive.

Measurements taken recently captured the height of moisture-producing clouds and scientists meshed that data with recorded maximum temperature readings. Overall they discovered that fog is 33% less likely to form now than 100 years ago.