The first global map of the overall impact that 17 different human activities are having on marine ecosystems has been put together.
Previous studies of human impacts have focused on a single activity or on an isolated ecosystem, and rarely on a global scale.
The North Sea around UK is one of the worst affected, and the English Channel too.
Scientists investigating how quickly global warming could run out of control have now identified nine ‘tipping points’.
Each of these could tip the planet into an increasingly dangerous state that could last for many centuries.
A major international investigation by dozens of leading climate scientists has found that the “tipping points” for all nine could occur within the next 100 years.
A new type of ‘molecular sieve’ is capable of removing water out of solvents and biofuels.
It is a very energy efficient alternative to existing techniques like distillation.
The previous generation of ‘nano-sieve’ membranes, made of silica, degrade because they react with water and steam.
In the new membrane, part of the ceramic links is therefore replaced by organic links. By doing this, water doesn’t have the chance to ‘attack’ the membranes. Manufacturing the new hybrid membranes is simpler than that of ceramic membranes, because the material is flexible and will not show cracks.
The hybrid membranes are suitable for ‘drying’ solvents and biofuels, an application for which there is a large potential market worldwide. The main advantage of membrane technology is that it consumes far less energy than common distillation techniques.
This technology - mixing organic molecules with inorganic - to produce new materials is producing great advances.
Reversing the flow means that dirty water can be cleaned very easily, filtering out bacteria and dirt.
Another nano-sieve is suitable for filtering out carbon dioxide. This has great applications in exhaust fume management from cars to factories and coal-fired electricity generators.
An audit of London shows increasing and unsustainable strain on the environment.
Every Londoner needs land the size of five and half football pitches to support their way of life. This means its ecological footprint is greater than cities such as Tokyo but is more sustainable than Shanghai and New York.
In its ‘State of the Environment’ report, the Environment Agency says London already produces 19 million tonnes of waste every year, and only recycles 20% of household waste.
The city should waste less water, manage waste better and adapt to climate change, it suggested.
“And we believe that as a world-class city, London can provide international leadership”.
London’s Sustainable Development Commission says:
On this last point, the Low Emissions Zone has sparked the threat of a legal challenge from Porsche, the car manufacturer. They obviously feel targeted !
But how would the Island fare in an audit?
This exchange scheme is the best holiday-and-learning-experience in organics that you can get!
Learn about growing, farming, rural issues, farm life, and more… and have fun for the cheapest ‘hotel’ you could find.
In return for your help on organic farm, gardens and smallholdings, you receive meals (usually organic!), accommodation and learning opportunities.
Litter louts, illegal smokers and graffiti vandals, will soon be fined on-the-spot around the Island.
In response to public concern, from April 2, the IW Council introduces this new initiative. Built on the Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2005, it allows fines from £30 to £300 to be imposed by fixed penalty notice.
Offences will include dropping litter, including cigarette butts, spraying graffiti, fly posting or leaving refuse outside their homes too far in advance of collection day.
It will be similar to the Council’s strategy with dog owners who fail to clean up after their dog.
The fines will not be used to generate income, as the Council has been accused to profiting from car-park charges, and the Government from speeding fines.
The UK, the US and Japan are to form a joint fund to help developing countries slash their greenhouse gas emissions.
It was announced at a meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bank governors in Tokyo on 16/2/08.
Japan’s leader Yasuo Fukuda proposed the new fund at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last month.
The fund will be managed by the World Bank and aims to ’scale up’ investment and use clean technologies in developing nations.
US president George Bush said in his final State of the Union message last month that America will contribute $2 billion (£1 billion).
Japan is to also call on non-G7 nations to participate.
Chancellor Alistair Darling said other countries have expressed interest in the fund.
“They want to be sure that a new fund will help and do things existing funding is not able to do,” he told journalists.
We feel this is a great step forward, aligning with the multinationals making a stand, and starting to show the way forward.
Three countries have come together for the first time, to try to save the mountain gorillas of central Africa.
Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda have launched a project to improve their security.
One of the world’s most endangered species, they live at the point where the three countries meet.
There are only about 700 mountain gorillas still left in the world and they have been hit by the destruction of the forests - their natural habitat.
The 10-year conservation project, which was launched in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, is to focus on greater security and ways of discouraging local communities from destroying the region’s forests.
It aims to give them a share of the money made from gorilla-trekking permits.
The first four years of the project are being funded by the Dutch government at a cost of $6m.
The Gorilla Organization has been working internationally for 10 years to save the world’s last remaining gorillas from extinction by supporting long-term education, economic development and conservation projects in the poor communities surrounding the gorilla habitat.
Can you help?
Saturn’s orange moon Titan has hundreds of times more liquid hydrocarbons than all the known oil and natural gas reserves on Earth.
According to new data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, hydrocarbons rain from the sky, collecting in vast deposits that form lakes and dunes. ScienceDaily (21 February 2008)
So all we have to do is get there and mine it!
Titan is like a big petrochemical plant. Although this is all happening at a much lower temperature than in a petroleum refinery, the basic processes going on there are very closely allied to what people do when they make fuel. [more]
Instead of water, vast quantities of organic chemicals rain down on the moon’s surface, pooling in huge reservoirs of liquid methane and ethane. Solid carbon-based molecules are also present in the dune region around the equator.
As well as the famous rings around Saturn, there are 19 satellites in orbit. These range in size from Titan, the second largest moon in the Solar System (Ganymede is the largest), to small asteroid-like objects.
Action:
Design project, anyone?
Many Islanders can no longer look after their gardens due to ill health or old age.
Volunteers to assist with this growing problem are hard to come by, but ironically there is an increased interest in gardening amongst younger people, many of whom have small gardens or no gardens at all. There is also a waiting list of over 500 people for Council allotments.
This innovative pilot scheme by the Footprint Trust on the Isle of Wight seeks to marry these two groups.
The person who has a garden they can no longer look after and the individual who wants a growing space. The householder will get their garden looked after for free and the gardener gets a free allotment in return. No money exchanges hands and either party can give six weeks notice at any time.
The scheme is being launched in February 2008.
We wish the Footprint Trust every success with this wonderful scheme.
Action
Do you know a suitable volunteer or garden-owner?
Guardian: Environment Sustainable Development
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