Environment Thread...

[CrestOfaWave]

                                                              Some food for thought.... 

If the Earth had only been formed 1 year ago on Jan 1st - life would have appeared on February 26, dinosaurs would have arrived as far into the year as December 10th (to vanish a mere 16 days later) and Homo Sapiens would only have showed up very late on December 31.

A few minutes later that day (in less than one minute) man would have drastically altered the fragile balance between land , seas and atmosphere.    reference www.earthfromtheair.com
                                        ........................................................................

If everyone on the planet were to consume natural resources and generate carbon dioxide at the rate we do in the UK , we'd need 3 planets to support us. source WWF-UK.  ( Let alone the rate if this comparison used the US as the example)

                                         ......................................................................

Why post this thread here ... well if we can all get one person to start thinking more about sustainable lifestyles and make some subtle changes then we could help buy this planet more time. Many think the earth has gone way past its tipping point and with the development of India and China this will likely accelerate. Man has the ability to change his/her habits in order to survive - its unfair that we should let our kids try and clear up our misuse of natural resources. The Earth can't contain our current carbon hungry lifestyle much longer - so feel free to post some ideas. I will post a few later today.

[AndrewT]

I'm going to print this thread out and read it later.

[Snatiramas]

I'm going to print this thread out and read it later.

Actually I think you should print a couple of hundred copies and then you can give them to family, friends or random people you meet in the street

[TheChipPrince]

Humans are absolutely trashing the planet IMO, but we'll probably all kill each in some sort of futuristic nuclear war before we kill the planet...

[cia260895]

I'm going to print this thread out and read it later.

Actually I think you should print a couple of hundred copies and then you can give them to family, friends or random people you meet in the street

waste of paper? then u have pollution of refuse vehcles who have to clear them up from people who dropped them?

poor trees

[AndrewT]

I'm going to print this thread out and read it later.

Actually I think you should print a couple of hundred copies and then you can give them to family, friends or random people you meet in the street

waste of paper? then u have pollution of refuse vehcles who have to clear them up from people who dropped them?

poor trees

It's OK - I'd print them out on recycled paper using organic ink with special tree vitamins.

[cia260895]

 

[Snatiramas]

I'm going to print this thread out and read it later.

Actually I think you should print a couple of hundred copies and then you can give them to family, friends or random people you meet in the street

waste of paper? then u have pollution of refuse vehcles who have to clear them up from people who dropped them?

poor trees

whoosh........parting by Moses as it flies over your head

[CrestOfaWave]

sigh... will have to wait for the next natural disaster attributed to global warming to get some serious response. Or when everyone's complaining about the unusual temperatures that effect their personal day to day life - seems everyone is either apathetic and given up or over exposed to the issues. The problem is people arent changing fast enough. This country is pretty much f&%^$d in my opinion due to the general apathy of the masses. Dont get me wrong I'm not one of these 70's generation hippies but 90% of the people in this country are only concerned about what is happening to them and how it will effect them next week or next year. The lack of foresight from leadership level is poor even though there has been some tokenism of late. GG World. Capitalism greed and lack of global process and planning has a lot to answer for....

some links for those who want to investigate more...

www.actionenergy.org.uk - energy focus

www.saveenergy.co.uk - reducing carbon footprint

www.recyclenow.com  - errm self explanatory

www.foe.co.uk - friends of the earth

www.worldwatch.org - disaster stats - (floods kill more people than any other weather related disaster)

www.bwea.com  - british wind energy

www.h2ouse.org  - save water in the home

www.eta.co.uk - fuel efficient cars

[rex008]

And a story about what the environutters want to do about it:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/02/20/optimum_population_report/

But of course, rational debate with these people is about as useful as rational debate with religious fundamentalists...

[Snatiramas]

Dont get me wrong I'm not one of these 70's generation hippies but 90% of the people in this country are only concerned about what is happening to them and how it will effect them next week or next year.

with good reason I am afraid. Today alone
 a little girl can not walk home from school without the threat of abduction
A shopkeeper may be prosecuted for murder when an attacker smashed the shopkeepers car window to steal his takings and got stabbed.
We become less tolerant
More alcoholic
I would have to say that I am more and more troubled by the society that I as an individual am helping to create.....
We revel in the fact that opposing football supporters are admired for managing to keep their gobs shut for 60 seconds instead of being abhorred by the fact that we are even questioning why this should be. It is a working mans game I am frequently told. How condescending is that and not at the current prices.
Youths in our little village gather in a group at night outside the local shop being fairly unpleasant to all and sundry.
I would love to join in to change this situation. Really as a concerned citizen I would love to be able to shape the world around me and try to improve it. Where is the help and leadership necessary to get involved. The government feed us platitudes on a daily basis and do i honestly think the tories would be any better. As the old anarchist saying goes "whoever you vote for government wins"

How depressing is all of that........think i had better go and play some poker

[boldie]

seems everyone is either apathetic and given up or over exposed to the issues. The problem is people arent changing fast enough. This country is pretty much f&%^$d in my opinion due to the general apathy of the masses. Dont get me wrong I'm not one of these 70's generation hippies but 90% of the people in this country are only concerned about what is happening to them and how it will effect them next week or next year. The lack of foresight from leadership level is poor even though there has been some tokenism of late.

Welcome to my world

[Graham C]

I'm all for a greener planet and I do do my bit, but me recycling my potato skins isnt' going to save anything.  Until the USA, China etc major polluting industries change their ways, the likes of me and you doing things slightly different isn't going to achieve much.  It's all propaganda by our governments, they tell us to do this and it will make a huge difference, whilst doing the opposite.

One blessing is that our planet is naturally self healing so when we eventually do sort our shit out, it will get better - although not in my lifetime.

Up the revolution.

[kinboshi]

It's too late.

The population of the planet is 6 billion.  More people are alive now than have ever died.

According to the earth's biocapacity, there are a billion too many of us.

So, we either need to find somewhere else to live (i.e. another planet), or we need to lose a billion off the total population.  This will happen in one of several ways.  Famine, disease, war, or another 'extinction level event' such as a massive meteor hitting the earth.

One (or more of these things) WILL happen.  It has to.

[kinboshi]

One blessing is that our planet is naturally self healing so when we eventually do sort our shit out, it will get better - although not in my lifetime.

The planet, and life on the planet will go on.  We might not be around to see it though.  But then again, we're only one life-form on the planet, it won't miss us when we're gone.  We're nothing special.