Knowing Carbon Footprint Bad For Environment?

Measuring a person’s ecological footprint or carbon footprint is a popular tool among environmentalists. Many see it as a way to educate people about the damage they inflict on the environment on an everyday basis — information that may prompt them to change their behavior.

But newly published research suggests that for many people — perhaps most — the receipt of such data may produce the opposite result.

In an experiment described in the journal Social Influence, “Only people who had invested their self-esteem in environmentalism — a strong form of commitment — reacted to negative environmental-footprint feedback by engaging in a pro-environment behavior,” writes Santa Clara University psychologist Amara Brook. “Others were less likely to engage in a pro-environmental behavior after negative feedback.”

Given that “for most people in developed countries, environmental-footprint feedback is very negative,” Brook’s study calls into question the wisdom of providing such information.

Two hundred and twelve students (median age 19) participated in the experiment, which was conducted over a two-week period. First, they answered a set of questions measuring their self-esteem level and the degree to which their self-worth was contingent upon a commitment to preserving the environment.

The following week, they completed a version of the standardenvironmental-footprint questionnaire, which was slightly adapted to apply to student life. (It covers such issues as the number of miles you drive per year and the amount of locally-grown food you consume.)

Link Below:

http://www.miller-mccune.com/culture-society/environmental-footprints-may-produce-backlash-30769/

Green Roofs

Rooftops covered with plants — logically dubbed “green roofs” — could help fight global warming, scientists now suggest.

Green roofs are growing more popular in cities, with the number of green roofs increasing by more than 35 percent from 2007 to 2008 in the United States, representing more than 3.1 million square feet installed last year. In Germany, widely considered the leader in greenroofing, some 12 percent of all flat roofs are green, with the German green roof industry growing 10 to 15 percent annually.

“In Stuttgart in Germany, 25 percent of all roofs there are green. It’s just normal. I think we can get to that level here,” said researcher Brad Rowe at Michigan State University, an environmental scientist in East Lansing. “It’s possible to choose plants where you don’t need to water them if you’re in a place like Arizona, if you have the right cactus species, for instance.”

These roofs can reduce heating and air conditioning costs, with Department of Energy simulations projecting they can lead to a roughly 10 percent reduction in natural gas consumption and a 2 percent drop in electricity use for a typical building. Moreover, green roofs last two to three times longer than standard roofs because they are protected from ultraviolet radiation and the extreme fluctuations in temperature that cause roof membranes to deteriorate. They also retain and detain storm water, which could otherwise exacerbate flooding and erosion.

Link Below:

http://www.livescience.com/9714-green-roofs-curb-global-warming-study-finds.html

Global warming: Succour for Lagos farming community

A group of migrant farmers in Lagos is a beneficiary to a flagship initiative by a non-governmental organisation (NGO) aimed at building the growers’ adaptive capacity to the effects of climate change. As a result of changes in weather conditions and rainfall pattern that are induced by the warming of the earth, agricultural activities are increasingly being boxed into a corner, leading to production declines, food prices’ rise and purchasing power decreases. With the spate of desertification in the north, erosion in the east and coastal erosion/ocean surge in the south and coastal areas, Nigeria seems to be having her fair share of the brunt of global warming.

http://www.independentngonline.com/DailyIndependent/Article.aspx?id=33006

Could a Leaking Ocean Current Keep Europe Toasty?

Now, a new study suggests that the circulation of warm water in the Atlantic may be tougher to disrupt than previously thought. The research, by a team of marine scientists from Europe and the United States, found that “leakage” from a little-studied Indian Ocean current that runs along the east coast of Africa may intensify even as the Gulf Stream weakens, helping keep the northward flow of tropical waters in balance.

And the leakage from the current, known as the Algulhas Current, may already be accelerating because of climate change, the scientists said.

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/28/could-a-leaking-ocean-current-keep-europe-toasty/?partner=rss&emc=rss

Could Japan's tsunami and earthquake affect global warming?

At the present people are talking about limiting the permitting of new nuclear power plants. Some people are talking about shutting down existing plants. There is post incident hysteria occurring that will surely delay and possible take nuclear power out of the solution for global warming. It has been very hard to get permitting to build new plants and this incident may make it impossible. Many people were looking to have nuclear power play a large role in decreasing CO2 and slowing global warming. What would the alternatives be?

There will be many people who will cite renewable power as the source that will give us CO2 free power. Solar cells of semiconductor silicon and cadmium telluride are planned to expand. Wind farms are looked at as an excellent source of electrical energy. Corn and vegetation sources generate more CO2 than they consume in the photosynthesis process. They "net out" a large amount of CO2 that is a greenhouse gas and will lead to global warming. Wind farms, with government subsidies, are a good source of electrical power without the CO2 gas emission. The problem is that all of these sources combined do not come close to filling the demand the world and the USA have for electricity.

Nuclear power was thought to be part of the answer for the large amounts of electricity that will be needed. The question might be: can the world build safer nuclear power plants? Many of the operating plants are considered safe but the incident in Japan is raising new questions and perspectives. Answers and confirmation will need to occur.

http://www.ourmidland.com/opinion/article_47625224-4189-5b4f-83d2-8bcf30e66662.html

Global warming and investment: Business climate adapts to meet Earth's changes

Deutsche Bank's global head of asset management, Kevin Parker, is adamant that investors should be shifting their asset allocation towards funds associated with sustainability. In the Deutsche Bank report, "Investing in Climate Change 2010", Parker says investing in climate change "produces outperformance", adding that the group showed that a 6% allocation to climate change would have outperformed by 0.7% a benchmark portfolio over the previous three to five years.

Mercer, the US-based consulting, outsourcing and investment firm, has created a "TIP Framework" to assess the risk and opportunity climate change has for their clients. The framework estimates the rate of global investment into green technology (T); the costs - in terms of food security and health - of environmental impact (I); and the cost of carbon as a result of global policy (P).

http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article1043821.ece/Global-warming-and-investment--Business-climate-adapts-to-meet-Earths-changes

10 Natural Wonders to See Before They Disappear

You've heard the grim timelines: if warming continues, the Great Barrier Reef will be bleached by 2030; glaciers in the Swiss Alps, on Mt. Kilimanjaro, and inGlacier National Park will disappear in under 40 years; and Arctic ice melt will leave the North Pole bare and polar bears extinct. The immediacy of these timelines prompts flocks of curious eco-tourists to travel to environmentally fragile areas. Tourism is both bane and boon: it can add strain to already distressed areas, but it can also provide income, which in turn can help preserve these wonders. In time for Earth Day, we spotlight 10 areas under threat—some lesser known than others—that can still be visited responsibly.

http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-39412377