Global Warming Causes Massive Collapse Of Antarctic Ice Sheet
Satellite imagery from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado at Boulder reveals that a 13,680 square kilometer (5,282 square mile) ice shelf has begun to collapse because of rapid climate change in a fast-warming region of Antarctica.
Figure 1. This series of satellite images shows the Wilkins Ice Shelf as it began to break up. The large image is from March 6; the images at right, from top to bottom, are from February 28, February 29, and March 8. NSIDC processed these images from the NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor, which flies on NASA's Earth Observing System Aqua and Terra satellites.
The Wilkins Ice Shelf is a broad plate of permanent floating ice on the southwest Antarctic Peninsula, about 1,000 miles south of South America. In the past 50 years, the western Antarctic Peninsula has experienced the biggest temperature increase on Earth, rising by 0.5 degree Celsius (0.9 degree Fahrenheit) per decade. NSIDC Lead Scientist Ted Scambos, who first spotted the disintegration in March, said, “We believe the Wilkins has been in place for at least a few hundred years. But warm air and exposure to ocean waves are causing a break-up.”
Satellite images indicate that the Wilkins began its collapse on February 28; data revealed that a large iceberg, 41 by 2.5 kilometers (25.5 by 1.5 miles), fell away from the ice shelf’s southwestern front, triggering a runaway disintegration of 405 square kilometers (160 square miles) of the shelf interior (Figure 1). The edge of the shelf crumbled into the sky-blue pattern of exposed deep glacial ice that has become characteristic of climate-induced ice shelf break-ups such as the Larsen B in 2002. A narrow beam of intact ice, just 6 kilometers wide (3.7 miles) was protecting the remaining shelf from further breakup as of March 23 (Figure 2).
Scientists track ice shelves and study collapses carefully because some of them hold back glaciers, which if unleashed, can accelerate and raise sea level. Scambos said, “The Wilkins disintegration won’t raise sea level because it already floats in the ocean, and few glaciers flow into it. However, the collapse underscores that the Wilkins region has experienced an intense melt season. Regional sea ice has all but vanished, leaving the ice shelf exposed to the action of waves.”
Figure 2. During the break-up, the Wilkins Ice Shelf broke into a sky-blue pattern of exposed deep glacial ice. This true-color image of the Wilkins Ice Shelf was taken by MODIS on March 6, 2008.
With Antarctica’s summer melt season drawing to a close, scientists do not expect the Wilkins to further disintegrate in the next several months. “This unusual show is over for this season,” Scambos said. “But come January, we’ll be watching to see if the Wilkins continues to fall apart.”
Real-time collaboration images from NASA’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and data from ICESat showed that the ice shelf was in a state of collapse in March. Scambos then alerted colleagues around the world, seeking to ensure that every means of gathering information was focused on the break-up.
British Antarctic Survey (BAS) mounted an overflight of the crumbling shelf, collecting video footage and other observations. BAS glaciologist David Vaughan said of the ice shelf, which is supported by a single strip of ice strung between two islands, “Wilkins is the largest ice shelf on West Antarctica yet to be threatened. This shelf is hanging by a thread.”
Figure 3. This image shows a high-resolution, enhanced-color image of the Wilkins Ice Shelf in Antarctica on March 8, 2008. Narrow iceberg blocks (150 meters wide, or 492 feet) crumbled into house-sized rubble. Taiwan's Formosat-2 satellite acquired this image.
The combined efforts of these international teams have begun to provide observational data that will improve scientific understanding of the mechanisms behind ice shelf collapse. Scambos said, “The Wilkins is an example of an event we don’t see very often. But it’s a key process in being able to predict how sea level will change in the future.”
The Wilkins is one of a string of ice shelves that have collapsed in the West Antarctic Peninsula in the past thirty years. The Larsen B became the most well-known of these, disappearing in just over thirty days in 2002. The Prince Gustav Channel, Larsen Inlet, Larsen A, Wordie, Muller, and the Jones Ice Shelf collapses also underscore the unprecedented warming in this region of Antarctica.
This is pretty scary stuff. While this wont raise sea level, it is a canary in the coal mine. This giant sheet of ice is big, but there are much larger ones, and they are warming at a rapid pace. I await with morbid curiosity to see how bad things will have to get before we start to take serious action.
Tesco Invades Seaton, England : Closing The Nursery And Holiday Village
The USA has Wal*Mart, the UK has Tesco. This supermarket behemoth takes great pleasure in ripping the hearts out of existing town communities in order to install their profit machines: if they manage to close the surrounding shops down, then all the better for Tesco. This time it’s Seaton in Devon, a small English seaside resort and close-knit community that is in danger of losing not only the holiday village (essentially the thing that draws most people into Seaton) but the nursery - infants and young children will have nowhere to go for childcare, but why should Tesco care, they are bringing “attractive shopping facilities” to the town (i.e. a new supermarket that will kill off the local businesses)?
The lead article comes from today’s Independent:
Sandwiched between the red and white cliffs of the Jurassic Coast and surrounded by acres of unspoilt saltmarsh, the Devon resort of Seaton has prided itself on its status as a serene backwater whose last serious skirmish with an unwanted invader was 700 years ago when it supplied Edward I with ships and sailors to fight off the French.
Yesterday, however, the 7,500 inhabitants of the town on the south Devon coast were readying themselves for a new battle after Tesco bought its largest employer, a holiday village, and promptly ordered its closure. The site also houses Seaton’s only nursery, catering for 35 children, and a swimming pool.
The 152 staff at the Lyme Bay Holiday Village have received redundancy letters informing them that the village, which hosts 40,000 people a year, will close next January to make way for a new development including a large supermarket, a visitor centre and tourist accommodation.
Residents have accused the retail giant, which last year made profits of nearly £2bn, of “breathtaking arrogance” by failing to present any firm proposals for the 15-hectare plot or a timetable for its redevelopment, meaning the town faces the prospect of being without a nursery or housing for the 80 holiday village staff who live on the sites.
Campaigners claim the company, which has said it wants to help make Seaton a “sustainable tourism” centre, has failed to respond to requests for a meeting to discuss its plans and only exercised its option to buy the holiday village after Sainsbury’s, expressed interest last month in acquiring land to build a store.
Lizzie Bewsher, head of a community group opposed to the plans, Stand Up 4 Seaton, said: “In one fell swoop, Tesco have bought up and shut down Seaton’s single biggest source of employment and income. A lot of businesses in the town rely on the passing trade that the holiday village brings in. The people who live in the holiday village face being made homeless and working parents will have nowhere to leave their children. The nearest nursery will be 10 miles away. The village also has the only gym and swimming pool in a town with very few facilities.
If you want to support the campaign then go to http://www.standup4seaton.blogspot.com/. Even if you are not in the UK then they could do with your help.
There is also a long-established web site run by battle-worn campaigners called Tescopoly, which is well worth a visit for anyone who wants to know how to fight unwanted development.
Entrepreneurial Approaches To Energy For Development
| March 27, 2008 | ||
| 11:30 am | to | 1:00 pm |
Entrepreneurial Approaches to Energy for Development
Date: Thursday March 27, 2008
Time: 1130AM-1PM
Location: Bowers Auditorium Sage Hall - 205, Prospect Street, 2nd Floor
Speaker: Prof Bryan Willson – Department of Mechanical Engineering at Colorado State University
Description:
Dr. Willson is Director of the Clean Energy Supercluster at CSU and a co-founder of Envirofit International - a non-profit committed to improving global health through technology solutions to environmental problems in the developing world. Since 2003, Dr. Willson has worked with Envirofit to develop cleaner 2-stroke engines in the Philippines and cookstoves in India. He will also discuss his work on algae-based biofuels through Solix Biofuels, a CSU-affiliated startup founded to enhance energy security worldwide as well as his experience with graduate-level education in technology and sustainable social enterprise at CSU (www.GSSE.ColoState.edu).
Community Wind Energy 2008
| April 14, 2008 | to | April 16, 2008 |
April 14 - 16, 2008 Empire State Plaza Convention Center Albany, New York
Join Windustry in Albany, NY for the premier national conference bringing economic development, agriculture and wind energy together to advance opportunities for locally-owned clean energy production and rural economic development. We will share experiences and information to harness the growing momentum for new models, new policies and new projects.
What to expect at Community Wind
Energy 2008: See what it takes to put a wind project together.
Hear how barriers to the full utilization of the Federal Production Tax Credit are being overcome by the “little guys”. Learn from wind turbine manufacturers, local elected officials, financers and large and small wind developers. Explore community wind as a tool for taking local action to address climate change while keeping your energy dollars local. Get familiar with the full spectrum of wind turbine manufacturers—from residential to midsize and large commercial scale machines. Expand your personal wind energy resource network—meet and greet wind energy folks from many sectors of the industry. Take a tour of a premier community wind project. Hear from policy makers and advocates about policies that work for wind energy development and how to support them. Share your experiences with others working on wind projects.
What is Community Wind?
Community wind is locally owned, commercial-scale wind projects that optimize local benefits. Locally owned means that one or more members of the local community has a significant direct financial stake in the projects other than through land lease payments, tax revenue or other payments in lieu of taxes.
Who will attend?
Rural landowners, farmers, ranchers, economic development experts, elected officials, business leaders, tribal representatives, bankers, local planners, community leaders, legal and utility professionals, students, teachers and anyone else interested in knowing how wind may fit in their community.
For More Information
Phone: 612.870.3461
Toll free: 800.946.3640
E-mail: info@windustry.org
Web: www.windustry.org
Community Wind Energy 2008
April 14 - 16, 2008 Empire State Plaza Convention Center Albany, New York
Join Windustry in Albany, NY for the premier national conference bringing economic development, agriculture and wind energy together to advance opportunities for locally-owned clean energy production and rural economic development. We will share experiences and information to harness the growing momentum for new models, new policies and new projects.
What to expect at Community Wind
Energy 2008: See what it takes to put a wind project together.
Hear how barriers to the full utilization of the Federal Production Tax Credit are being overcome by the “little guys”. Learn from wind turbine manufacturers, local elected officials, financers and large and small wind developers. Explore community wind as a tool for taking local action to address climate change while keeping your energy dollars local. Get familiar with the full spectrum of wind turbine manufacturers—from residential to midsize and large commercial scale machines. Expand your personal wind energy resource network—meet and greet wind energy folks from many sectors of the industry. Take a tour of a premier community wind project. Hear from policy makers and advocates about policies that work for wind energy development and how to support them. Share your experiences with others working on wind projects.
What is Community Wind?
Community wind is locally owned, commercial-scale wind projects that optimize local benefits. Locally owned means that one or more members of the local community has a significant direct financial stake in the projects other than through land lease payments, tax revenue or other payments in lieu of taxes.
Who will attend?
Rural landowners, farmers, ranchers, economic development experts, elected officials, business leaders, tribal representatives, bankers, local planners, community leaders, legal and utility professionals, students, teachers and anyone else interested in knowing how wind may fit in their community.
For More Information
Phone: 612.870.3461
Toll free: 800.946.3640
E-mail: info@windustry.org
Web: www.windustry.org
Renewable Energy Gets It’s 2007 Report Card: Mostly B’s Urged To Do Better By Parents
The renewable energy industry is stepping up its meteoric rise into the mainstream of the energy sector, according to the REN21 Renewables 2007 Global Status Report. Renewable energy production capacities are growing rapidly as a result of more countries enacting far-reaching policies.
Prepared by the Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) in collaboration with the Worldwatch Institute, the Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (pdf) paints an encouraging picture of rapidly expanding renewable energy markets, policies, industries, and rural applications around the world. In 2007, global wind generating capacity is estimated to have increased 28 percent, while grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity rose 52 percent.
“So much has happened in the renewable energy sector during the past five years that the perceptions of some politicians and energy-sector analysts lag far behind the reality of where the renewables industry is today,” says Mohamed El-Ashry, Chair of REN21.
Renowned researcher Dr. Eric Martinot led an international team of 140 researchers and contributors from both developed and developing countries to produce the report. He says renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, and small-scale hydropower offer countries the means to improve their energy security and spur economic development.
Citing the report, Martinot says the renewable energy sector now accounts for 2.4 million jobs globally, and has doubled electric generating capacity since 2004, to 240 gigawatts. More than 65 countries now have national goals for accelerating the use of renewable energy and are enacting far-reaching policies to meet those goals. Multilateral agencies and private investors alike are integrating renewable energy into their mainstream portfolios, capturing the interest of the largest global companies.
Worldwatch President Chris Flavin says the report shows that renewable energy is poised to make a significant contribution to meeting energy needs and reducing the growth in carbon dioxide emissions in the years immediately ahead. “The science is telling us we need to substantially reduce emissions now, but this will only happen with even stronger policies to accelerate the growth of clean energy,” he says.
El-Ashry emphasizes that many of the trends described in the Renewables 2007 Global Status Report are the result of leadership and actions launched since the major renewable energy conference held in Bonn, Germany, in 2004. “This leadership has never been more important, as renewable energy has now reached the top of the international policy agenda under the United Nations and the G8,” said El-Ashry.
Commenting on the dramatic rise of renewables, Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), said: “The findings come in the wake of UNEP’s annual gathering of environment ministers in Monaco last week. It is clear from ministers in Monaco and from reports like REN21 that we are beginning to see elements of an emerging Green Economy, fueled by the existing climate change agreements and the prospect of even deeper and more decisive emissions reductions post 2012.”
The Renewables 2007 Global Status Report is being released ahead of the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC), taking place March 4-6 in Washington, D.C. WIREC will be the third such international conference following those in Bonn in 2004 and Beijing in 2005.
REN21 Renewables 2007 Global Status Report: Highlights (read the full report here pdf)
* Renewable electricity generation capacity reached an estimated 240 gigawatts (GW) worldwide in 2007, an increase of 50 percent over 2004. Renewable energy represents 5 percent of global power capacity and 3.4 percent of global power generation. New renewable energy (not counting large hydropower) generated as much electric power worldwide in 2006 as one-quarter of the world’s nuclear power plants. Large hydropower itself accounted for 15 percent of global power generation.
* The largest component of the renewable power capacity increase was wind power, which grew again by over 25 percent worldwide in 2007, to reach an estimated 95 GW.
* The fastest growing energy technology in the world is grid-connected solar photovoltaics (PV), with 50 percent annual increases in cumulative installed capacity in both 2006 and 2007, to an estimated 7.7 GW. This translates into 1.5 million homes with rooftop solar PV feeding into the grid worldwide. Another estimated 2.7 GW of stand-alone systems brings global PV capacity to over 10 GW.
* Rooftop solar heat collectors provide hot water to nearly 50 million households worldwide, and space heating to a growing number of homes. Existing solar hot water/heating capacity increased by 19 percent in 2006 to reach 105 gigawatts-thermal globally.
* Biomass and geothermal energy are commonly used for both power and heating, with recent increases in a number of countries, including uses for district heating. More than 2 million ground-source heat pumps are used in 30 countries for heating and cooling of buildings.
* Production of biofuels (ethanol and biodiesel) exceeded anestimated 53 billion liters in 2007, up 43 percent from 2005. Ethanol production in 2007 represented about four percent of the 1,300 billion liters of gasoline consumed globally. Annual biodiesel production increased by more than 50 percent in 2006.
* Renewable energy, especially small hydropower, biomass, and solar PV, provides electricity, heat, motive power, and water pumping for tens of millions of people in rural areas of developing countries, serving agriculture, small industry, homes, schools, and community needs. Twenty-five million households cook and light their homes with biogas, and 2.5 million households use solar lighting systems.
* Developing countries as a group have more than 40 percent of existing renewable power capacity, more than 70 percent of existing solar hot water capacity, and 45 percent of biofuel production.
* Investment reached an estimated $71 billion in new renewable power, fuel, and heat production assets worldwide in 2007 (excluding large hydropower), of which 47 percent was for wind power and 30 percent was for solar PV. Investment in large hydropower represented an additional $15-20 billion.
* Investment flows became more diversified and mainstreamed during 2006/2007, including those from major commercial and investment banks, venture capital and private equity investors, multilateral and bilateral development organizations, and smaller local financiers. The renewable
energy industry saw many new companies, huge increases in company valuations, and many initial public offerings. Just counting the 140 highest-valued publicly traded renewable energy companies yields a combined market capitalization of more than $100 billion. Companies also broadened expansion into emerging markets. Major industry growth is occurring in a number of emerging commercial technologies, including thin-film solar PV, concentrating solar thermal power generation, and advanced/second generation biofuels (with first-ever commercial plants completed in 2007 or under construction).
* Jobs worldwide from renewable energy manufacturing, operations, and maintenance exceeded 2.4 million in 2006, including some 1.1 million for biofuels production.
* Policy targets for renewable energy exist in at least 66 countries worldwide, including all 27 European Union countries, 29 U.S. states (and D.C.), and 9 Canadian provinces. Most targets are for shares of electricity production, primary energy, and/or final energy by a future year. Most targets aim for the 2010-2012 timeframe, although an increasing number of targets aim for 2020.
* There is now an EU-wide target of 20 percent of final energy by 2020, and a Chinese target of 15 percent of primary energy by 2020. In addition to China, several other developing countries adopted or upgraded targets during 2006/2007.
* In addition, targets for biofuels as future shares of transport energy now exist in several countries, including an EU-wide target of 10 percent by 2020.
* Policies to promote renewable energy have mushroomed in recent years. At least 60 countries-37 developed and transition countries and 23 developing countries-have some type of policy to promote renewable power generation. The most common policy is the feed-in law. By 2007, at least 37 countries and 9 states/provinces had adopted feed-in policies, more than half of which have been enacted since 2002.
* Strong momentum for feed-in tariffs continues around the world as countries enact new feed-in policies or revise existing ones. At least 44 states, provinces, and countries have enacted renewable portfolio standards (RPS), also called renewable obligations or quota policies. There are many other forms of policy support for renewable power generation, including capital investment subsidies or rebates, tax incentives and credits, sales tax and value-added tax exemptions, energy production payments or tax credits, net metering, public investment or financing, and public competitive bidding.
Why Voting For McCain Is A Vote Against The Environment
Some people I know who seem pretty “with it” seem to have some sort of misguided love affair with John McCain. They think he is just liberal enough, or just “maverick” enough to keep from making the same horrific mistakes that Bush has for the last 8 years. Well I wont bother to go into gritty detail about how they are wrong, but I will do my best to convince you that McCain is no friend of the environment (and the billions of humans who rely on that environment). And thats just it, if you are not a strong supporter of the environment, you aren’t a strong support of the humans that depend on that environment for life. I highly suggest you read all of the linked articles below as they are all pretty good.
First up The New Republic.
Nowadays, any Republican running for president needs one liberal issue he can point to as proof that he is not the scary sort of conservative. In 2000, George Bush had education. For John McCain in the months ahead, that issue may well be the environment.
…
his lifetime rating from the League of Conservation Voters is a dismal 24 percent, and he’s generally more likely to side with miners, developers, and loggers than the EPA.
…
Trying to explain McCain’s wildly erratic record on environmental issues is a maddening task. “We never know where he’s going to come from,” says Debbie Sease, the legislative director of the Sierra Club.
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McCain usually held the conservative line, voting to hollow out clean-water and health protections or to expand offshore drilling. He also famously agitated for the construction of a controversial telescope atop Arizona’s Mount Graham–which meant the razing of a forest containing an endangered species of red squirrel. When a Forest Service supervisor wanted to halt work on a road into the area, McCain was livid, according to a later investigation, threatening that, “if he did not cooperate on this project, he would be the shortest tenured forest supervisor in the history of the Forest Service.”
Senator John McCain likes to present himself as the candidate of the “Straight Talk Express” who does not pander to voters or change his positions with the political breeze. But the fine print of his record in the Senate indicates that he has been a lot less consistent on some of his signature issues than he has presented himself to be so far in his presidential campaign.
And Grist
Does John McCain have that kind of deep understanding and commitment? If elected, will he be the climate champion we so desperately need?
Conventional wisdom says yes. The media touts McCain’s stance on climate as evidence of his straight-talkin’ maverickosity.
…
his is a classic case of what our president calls the soft bigotry of low expectations. Judged against his fellow Republicans, McCain is a paragon of atmospheric wisdom. Judged against the climate and energy legislation afoot in Congress, he falls short. Judged against the two leading Democratic presidential candidates, he is a pale shadow. Judged against the imperatives of climate science — that is to say, judged against brute physical reality — he isn’t even in the ballpark.It’s time to stop grading McCain on a curve.
McCain’s green bona fides, as far as I can tell, boil down to three things:
* He voted against drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and has sponsored or cosponsored the occasional, modest environmental protection bill (protecting whales; awarding tax credits for energy efficiency; boosting fuel efficiency). (Note, however, that his lifetime rating from the League of Conservation Voters is a measly 29 percent.)
* In 2003, he and Sen. Joe Lieberman introduced the first-ever climate bill to the Senate: the Climate Stewardship Act, which would establish a carbon cap-and-trade system to reduce U.S. emissions. It was introduced and voted down in 2003 and again in 2005.
* He acknowledges, without hedging, that anthropogenic climate change is real, and speaks eloquently about the need to address it. He has frequently criticized the Bush administration for inaction.These aren’t chopped liver. All were acts of courage undertaken in a time of Republican majority, when they offered little political reward (other than the undying love of cable news talk-show hosts). The second, in particular, was a beacon of hope for greens in a time when there were very few.
Nonetheless, we must assess these acts in light of what has come after, and the political environment we find ourselves in today.
…
He has gone AWOL:* On June 21, 2007, the Senate voted on the Baucus amendment to the energy bill, which would have removed some oil company subsidies in order to fund renewable energy. The amendment failed to pass. Where was McCain? He didn’t vote.
* On the same day, the Senate held a cloture vote to overcome the standard Republican veto threat and pass the energy bill. The vote succeeded. Where was McCain? He didn’t vote.
* On Dec. 7, the Senate held another cloture vote to overcome the standard Republican veto threat on the energy bill, which had become substantially bolder after being aligned with the House version. The vote failed. Where was McCain? He didn’t vote.
* On Dec. 13, 2007, the Senate held another cloture vote to overcome the standard Republican veto threat and pass the energy bill, which had the Renewable Portfolio Standard stripped out of it but retained a measure that would shift oil company subsidies to renewables. The vote failed — by one vote, 59-40. Where was McCain? He didn’t vote — the only senator not to do so.
* On Feb. 6, 2008, the Senate held another cloture vote to overcome the standard Republican veto threat and pass a stimulus bill containing a number of green energy incentives. The cloture motion failed, by one vote. Where was McCain? He didn’t vote — again, the only senator not to do so.
In short it seems that McCain is just not maverick enough. He isn’t consistent, he isn’t willing to really push the envelope, he isn’t really willing to make the choices needed to keep our environment healthy enough to support our healthy living.
China’s Solar Industry: The Dirty Side Of A “Green” Industry
Few people will be surprised at the revelations of a recent Washington Post article which highlighted the toxic waste being dumped by the manufacturers of solar photovoltaic panels and films into the waterways, soils and other ecosystems of China. The demand for Solar PV largely comes off the back of businesses that want to greenwash their way into our consciences by slapping an acre of solar panels on the roof of their headquarters, knowing full well that solar PV is totally inadequate for powering large-scale offices, data centres and industry. Few of these businesses consider the real benefits to be had from reducing their energy consumption in the first place: after all, givernments and corporations say the economy has to keep growing, don’t they?
But at what cost? One cost is the massive offshoring of manufacturing to places where environmental and human working conditions are, quite frankly, atrocious. This is solely to gain the most product for the least cost. Compact fluorescent lamps are another area where a similar trend is being seen (and which I may cover in a different article). In principle, the use of CFLs is a good thing, but again, at what cost? It doesn’t have to be that way.
[Read the rest at The Unsuitablog]
Electric Cars Could Save $142 Billion Dollars In Heath Care Costs And Reduced Global Warming
According to a study sponsored by the American Lung Association of California, $142 billion in human health and global warming reduction benefits would result from converting the entire California motor vehicle fleet from gasoline vehicles to zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) technologies in the 2010-2030 time frame, or $96 billion more than relying on the lowest emitting gasoline technologies. The $142 billion figure includes $38 billion in benefits to society from reduced global warming emissions.
The study, conducted by TIAX LLC, a consulting firm specializing in transportation and alternative fuels research, also found that California can avoid at least $2.2 billion per year in health costs from reduction of dangerous particulate matter by converting the motor vehicle fleet to ZEVs instead of relying on the lowest emitting gasoline technologies. This reduction in particulates means that California would annually avoid 300 cases of premature death, over 260 cases of chronic bronchitis, over 7,000 asthma attacks and more than 18,000 cases of upper and lower respiratory symptoms by moving to ZEV technology.
“Maintaining our momentum toward cleaner cars will save billions in health costs, and save lives,” said Tony Gerber, MD, an American Lung association of California volunteer. “Now is not the time for the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to weaken the state’s key program that leads to cleaner vehicle technology, and cleaner air.” Dr. Gerber is a pulmonary specialist and assistant professor at the University of California, San Francisco.
American Lung Association of California Senior Policy Director Bonnie Holmes-Gen will testify on the results of the study when the ARB holds a hearing on Thursday, March 27 to consider amendments to its signature ZEV program. The California Air Resources Board (ARB) staff proposal would reduce the “pure ZEV” or “gold standard” program requirement from 25,000 to 2,500 vehicles in the 2012-2014 time frame. The American Lung Association of California will be urging the ARB Board to reject the low volumes of “pure ZEVs” and plug-in hybrids recommended in the staff proposal.
“The Air Resources Board is at a critical juncture right now,” said Holmes-Gen. “The Board has a tremendous opportunity to set a bold new vision for the ZEV program that includes strengthening the program to fully support the state’s goals for both healthy air and global warming reduction.”
She added, “The American Lung Association analysis provides a stark comparison of California’s future transportation choices: pursuing the existing pathway of primarily gasoline vehicles or pursuing a dramatic change to widespread use of electric technology. Given the pressing need to achieve the state’s global warming pollution reduction targets, the ARB should expand the ZEV program and establish a goal of integrating electric-drive technology in all new vehicles as soon as possible.” The American Lung Association is urging ARB to both establish aggressive goals for introducing pure ZEVs into the vehicle fleet and pursuing much broader requirements for utilization of electric drive technologies, including conventional hybrids and plug-in hybrids in addition to hydrogen fuel cell and full function battery electric vehicles.
According to the American Lung Association of California’s study, approximately 110 million tons of greenhouse gases per year could be avoided if all California vehicles were replaced with ZEVs by 2030. This would make significant progress toward the transportation sector’s portion of the state goal for reducing greenhouse gases by 2050.
The study also addressed the current costs of gasoline motor vehicle use:
– The total cost to public health and society of the existing motor vehicle fleet is over $10 billion in 2010, and this cost only drops to approximately $7 billion over the 20-year time frame of the study with normal fleet turnover.
– The existing motor vehicle fleet generates health costs in terms of hospitalizations, premature deaths and illnesses that add up to over $7.4 billion per year (2010), including $4.4 billion per year linked to one pollutant, nitrogen oxide (NOx).
– The total greenhouse gas (well-to-wheel) emissions from the existing motor vehicle fleet are 150 million tons per year, and drop only to 140 million tons per year in 2030 through existing programs and vehicle turnover. This is far from the total reduction that is needed to meet California’s greenhouse gas reduction goals.
“ZEVs are the road to healthier air and a sustainable transportation future,” said Holmes-Gen, “and the American Lung Association of California is looking to the California Air Resources Board to make the vision of zero pollution transportation a reality.”
World Water Day 2008
The international observance of World Water Day is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro.
The United Nations General Assembly designated 22 March of each year as the World Day for Water by adopting a resolution.This world day for water was to be observed starting in 1993, in conformity with the recommendations of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development contained in chapter 18 (Fresh Water Resources) of Agenda 21.
States were invited to devote the Day to implement the UN recommendations and set up concrete activities as deemed appropriate in the national context.
The Subcommittee welcomes the assistance offered by IRC International Water and Sanitation Center to contribute to an information network center in support of the observance of the Day by Governments, as required.
More information about world water day here.
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