debate Environmental Thread does anyone care that Amazon Rain Forest is burning down to the ground

[oldtimer]

This is a total catastrophe and failure for the World and humanity at large. There are some things that surpass national boundaries and borders like Human Rights and certain Environmental issues that affect the whole Globe which surely should be of concern to all of us. Whether it’s the Oceans and Rivers that have been polluted or whether it’s our air and soil that have been poisoned, it all has something to do with human activity like the Global Warming and the Melting of the Ice Caps and Glaciers which is going to put many coastal Cities and Communities under water soon. IMO

Everyone’s opinions are welcomed, but keep your comments constructive, professional, and on topic. Personal attacks and belittling of others are not tolerated.

 

[oldtimer]

You need to identify what group of people or countries are the biggest food wasters. The African continent for example, would be the lowest food wasters for obvious reasons. Their elite however are usually fat or a little obese.

Americans on the other hand have a very high % of fat or very obese people, while their elite are not fat... the opposite of Africa!

In certain parts of the World having some extra weight is a sign of wealth and success, what makes it worse is that those Elites have a certain appetite for eating every animal that is on the endangered species list. IMO

 

[fatter]

I am for hydro power, Canada exports electricity to the US, there are a ton of places where we could capitalize on this with minimal damage to the environment, in fact my brother just built one (super) at a NY reservoir.

 

[JB Lions]

Americans on the other hand have a very high % of fat or very obese people, while their elite are not fat... the opposite of Africa!

Gilsan, from Portugal:

"Almost 60% of the general Portuguese population is obese or pre-obese. Women, elderly and less educated individuals present the highest obesity prevalence. Abdominal obesity, in particular, seems to be a relevant public health problem among the elderly men."

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5946450/

Maybe, somebody wants to quote that for Gilsan. BTW this is why he blocked me. He hates when I point out reality to him. This is what I was getting at, handle your own business first. Maybe Gilsan can get his countrymen to stop eating so much.

The East Asians are the worst offenders in that department... especially China. Not only do they eat anything that moves, they also go to Africa and pay the poachers for elephant and rhino tusks, to name just those two magnificent animals, for pathetic and inhumane reasons that we all know about!

They also kill millions of sharks... for their fins! Revolting!

See, now he's blaming somebody else again, now it's East Asians/China. Post the Portugal numbers for him. Somebody copy and paste this for him:

Almost 60% of the general Portuguese population is obese or pre-obese. Women, elderly and less educated individuals present the highest obesity prevalence. Abdominal obesity, in particular, seems to be a relevant public health problem among the elderly men."

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5946450/

 

[GILSAN]

In certain parts of the World having some extra weight is a sign of wealth and success, what makes it worse is that those Elites have a certain appetite for eating every animal that is on the endangered species list. IMO

The East Asians are the worst offenders in that department... especially China. Not only do they eat anything that moves, they also go to Africa and pay the poachers for elephant and rhino tusks, to name just those two magnificent animals, for pathetic and inhumane reasons that we all know about!

They also kill millions of sharks... for their fins! Revolting!

 

[oldtimer]

I am for hydro power, Canada exports electricity to the US, there are a ton of places where we could capitalize on this with minimal damage to the environment, in fact my brother just built one (super) at a NY reservoir.

The old Hydropower Plants unfortunately caused too much interference with migratory paths and they changed the habitats too much. But the newer ones are more Eco friendly and are probably a more preferred choice for producing renewable energy in certain regions. IMO

 

[oldtimer]

"Act Now" from UN​

How to do your part to help with protecting the Environment:

https://www.un.org/en/actnow/index.shtml

 

[Cal2]

So much food is being thrown in the trash everyday that could be prevented from going to waste if managed better. IMO

3D printing food, using waste food

https://www.google.com/search?q=3d+...5YjlAhVuk-AKHUhEArcQ8tMDCMUB&biw=1229&bih=601

It's a start.

 

[oldtimer]

It's a start.

You (and everyone else) need to give a small Description or Quote as to what a link is about so that people know what to expect before clicking on it, Thanks.

 

[JB Lions]

PG&E to Cut Power for Nearly 800,000 Customers Due to Wildfire Risk
Customers could be affected by a shut-off even if they aren’t experiencing extreme weather conditions where they are

PG&E Corp. PCG -5.22% is planning to shut off power to hundreds of thousands of people in California starting Wednesday as it seeks to prevent its electric lines from sparking more deadly wildfires, in what is believed to be the largest such pre-emptive blackout ever.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/pg-e-w...ers-due-to-wildfire-risk-11570513569?mod=e2tw

 

[J Sokol]

"The shut-offs are set to start shortly after midnight Wednesday and could last for multiple days and cover parts of 34 of California’s 58 counties, a huge swath of the nation’s most populous state."
Thanks for your post @JB Lions. This is scary stuff when you consider the financial cost to businesses and private citizens, the inconvenience to everyone, and the negative consequences of limited health care and medication.
It seems that climate change is going to present many unanticipated consequences.

 

[oldtimer]

Anyone here has any experience with using Solar Panels, it's a good time for people to think about adding a small backup system in the areas that are going to lose their electric power frequently so that at the very least they can charge up their electronic devices and keep up with the news and communicate with others. If the electric power outages are going to be a norm they might as well go full solar. (or use some other source of renewable energy like wind trubines) IMO

 

[JB Lions]

I was curious as to how people in California are going to take this. Take it in stride, part of living there or will tempers start to flare.

Same kind of prep you do for hurricanes. Water, batteries, food, generators, flashlights etc.

• PG&E will begin shutting down power throughout the Berkeley Hills on Wednesday, October 9th beginning around noon. Power is expected to remain off for at least 36 hours, and potentially up to 6 days.
  
  
• UC Berkeley is cancelling classes on Wednesday. They were informed that the transmission lines that power the core campus area will be turned off. Residence Halls are not expected to lose power.
  
  
  https://www.jessearreguin.com/blog-1/psps

Already trending, tomorrow even more.

• https://twitter.com/search?q=PG&E&src=trend_click

 

[oldtimer]

I was curious as to how people in California are going to take this. Take it in stride, part of living there or will tempers start to flare.

Maybe they are just doing this to encourage some of the people to go Solar so that there will be less load on the grid. I bet that by the forth and fifth outage some people might seriously consider that. IMO

 

[JB Lions]

Maybe they are just doing this to encourage some of the people to go Solar so that there will be less load on the grid. I bet that by the forth and fifth outage some people might seriously consider that. IMO

This is the reason they gave for it, remember those big fires last year:

What is the purpose of the Public Safety Power Shutoff?

The two most destructive wildfires in California’s history took place in 2018 (Camp Fire, Paradise) and 2017 (Tubbs Fire, Santa Rosa). In both these fires, it was determined that they were caused by failures of electrical equipment. To help prevent future incidents of a fire being started by a similar cause, PG&E received permission to call a PSPS. These are activated if weather conditions become favorable for a wildfire to quickly spread, which consists of three main factors: high temperatures, high winds, and low humidity. Based on current weather data, PG&E may choose to implement a PSPS. PG&E aims to notify the public 48 hours before a PSPS event, and again 24 hours later, and again right before the shutoff. In extreme cases, notifications may be sent outside of those hours in the interest of safety.

#poweroutage
https://twitter.com/search?q=#poweroutage&src=trend_click

They have 3 out of the top 4 terms trending for this thing

 

[J Sokol]

It seems like it's time to get into the survival business. I'm guessing everyone who hasn't already done it is going to start stocking up on supplies and preparing for the next disaster.

 

[oldtimer]

This is the reason they gave for it, remember those big fires last year:

What is the purpose of the Public Safety Power Shutoff?

The two most destructive wildfires in California’s history took place in 2018 (Camp Fire, Paradise) and 2017 (Tubbs Fire, Santa Rosa). In both these fires, it was determined that they were caused by failures of electrical equipment. To help prevent future incidents of a fire being started by a similar cause, PG&E received permission to call a PSPS. These are activated if weather conditions become favorable for a wildfire to quickly spread, which consists of three main factors: high temperatures, high winds, and low humidity. Based on current weather data, PG&E may choose to implement a PSPS. PG&E aims to notify the public 48 hours before a PSPS event, and again 24 hours later, and again right before the shutoff. In extreme cases, notifications may be sent outside of those hours in the interest of safety.

#poweroutage
https://twitter.com/search?q=#poweroutage&src=trend_click

They have 3 out of the top 4 terms trending for this thing

it's understandable if they are trying to help prevent fires, but they should have thought of some ways to lower the discomfort and inconvenience that this is causing for so many people.

I'm not sure if they have already done this or not, but they should have created several power centers powered by solar or generators in strategic locations around the affected areas so people could go to charge up their electronic devices. IMO

 

[oldtimer]

It seems like it's time to get into the survival business. I'm guessing everyone who hasn't already done it is going to start stocking up on supplies and preparing for the next disaster.

This is probably going to cause an uptick for solar power companies. IMO

 

[J Sokol]

Twenty firms produce one third of all carbon emissions, according to an Oct. 9, 2019, article in The Guardian (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/09/revealed-20-firms-third-carbon-emissions).

'The study shows that many of the worst offenders are investor-owned companies that are household names around the world and spend billions of pounds on lobbying governments and portraying themselves as environmentally responsible.

A study earlier this year found that the largest five stock-market-listed oil and gas companies spend nearly $200m each year lobbying to delay, control or block policies to tackle climate change.

Heede said the companies had a “significant moral, financial, and legal responsibility for the climate crisis, and a commensurate burden to help address the problem”.'

It will be interesting to see if these firms are held accountable in any way.

 

[GILSAN]

Anyone heard of Boyan Slat?

 

[oldtimer]

It will be interesting to see if these firms are held accountable in any way.

Then again it's the same problem of Economical growth and health versus Environmental well being and stability that we had talked about here before. We also talked about the overweight people eating less and being in shape being better for the environment, but you don't want to starve people to make them lose weight because then they might lose muscle which is essential to their well being instead of losing excessive fat which is a burden on their body. The main problem that we have with the World now is that 150 years ago at the beginning of the Industrialization age there was no one with the vision and foresight that could have helped to set things on the right track and so human activity, growth, and production have gone rampant and have evolved to become a burden on this planet to the point that many companies which could have normally been considered to be serving humanity by creating a more comfortable, convenient, and happy life for everyone are now have become the instrument of destruction and death for this planet. But if we are going to put this World on a diet to get it back in shape we have to be careful that we don't starve the good part of capitalism which is holding the economy together, because a total economical collapse can be as devastating and harmful to the future of humanity as would global warming and the other environmental issues that are putting this planet at jeopardy.

As I have already mentioned in order to solve the Environmental problems we have to first deal with the big picture which is the existing mindsets and the bad human characteristics that are currently in control of the World. There is not one day that we don't hear on the news about all the conflicts, killings, torture, and wars that are popping up in different corners of the World which are mostly the continuation of the wrong policies of the past that were based on cruelty, inequality, supremacy, and hunger for power and dominance and the lust for money and mortal pleasures which have clouded everyone's sense of logic and moral values. As we see the World getting engulfed in more and more hostilities and conflicts to the point that even friends and allies are now turning on each other I see no chances of achieving any global understanding and cooperation which is going to be required to solve the social and environmental problems that we are facing.

Unless if we are willing to change the mindsets and the lifestyles that have brought the World to the point of self destruction we are not going to be able to save the Humanity and our home Planet. IMO