Drifting winds & the air we breathe

Not convinced that air pollution is a global issue? Did you read our last post about China and think, “That’s another continent far, far away. How could anything they do possible affect me?”

Well, according to a study recently published in the Science Journal, dust particles blown thousands of miles from Asia and Africa have been discovered in California’s water supply. The increase in dust in the atmosphere has been linked to an increase in rain and snowfall in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, as well. The study took place over a two-year period, during which researchers collected samples of the atmosphere over the mountain range. What they found was startling.

“There was this sort of magical switch. The days with dust you see one thing, and the days without dust you see a different thing,” said Kim Prather, an atmospheric chemist who coauthored the study.

So, this has to be proof positive to the nonbelievers out there. Traces of PM2.5 in Beijing will, given enough time, make their way across the globe and into our air and drinking water. This is why the world needs to be watching China’s annual legislative hearing carefully. In fact, every country should be keeping a watchful eye on one another. Perhaps then, through sheer paranoia, the world will be motivated to work towards a united clean up effort.

“The fact that something happening on another continent, in terms of dust generation, could influence precipitation patterns in the U.S — that’s a challenging problem,” said Marty Ralph, the study’s coauthor and a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

How did they know the dust was from China, you ask? Well, all airborne particles carry with them a chemical fingerprint, which allows scientists like Prather and Ralph to track their movement from anywhere, to anywhere, in the world.

Again, this is why they call it ‘global’ warming. The environmental crisis we’re currently facing, which includes issues from gas fracking to carbon emissions, melting ice caps to outdated energy infrastructures, may seem abstract at times, but that’s only because it’s such a wide-spread problem with complex sociopolitical implications. But complexity is no excuse to give up. We must never forget that one person can make a difference. With vision, determination, and informed judgement, we can leave this world a better place than the one we inherited.

Because every person, regardless of race, religion or political affiliation, enjoys breathing.

Will China take the hint? Air pollution reaches dangerous levels

Mere days before China’s government is set to begin their annual legislative hearings, Beijing’s air pollution reaches a dangerous new high. Pollution is expected to be among the main topics to be addressed. Will China take the hint and get aggressive with their energy policy?

Increased air pollution means an increase of PM2.5 particles in the air. Prolonged exposure to these particles resulted in over 8,000 premature deaths in Beijing, Shanghai, Xi-an, and Guangzhou alone last year. According to the World Health Organization, a person should not expose themselves to PM2.5 levels of 25 or higher for more than 24-hours. In Beijing, levels are regularly recorded in the fifty range — nearly DOUBLE the recommended level.

On January 12th of this year, levels of PM2.5 in China rose to a mind-numbing 993. 993! People have been forced to wear masks to simply walk to the grocery store. Remember — the Earth only has one atmosphere. Their air will eventually become your air. That is why the issue of global warming cannot be confronted on a country-by-country basis. I requires inter-governmental cooperation to drastically reduce carbon emissions to ensure our air remains breathable, not just for another century, but for thousands of years to come.

And the problem isn’t just with our air, either. Pollution in the atmosphere makes its way to the ground in the form of rain, which seeps into our streams, and oceans. It pollutes our wells and drinking water. Like the first domino in a long chain of pollution, what we put into the air inevitably makes its way back into our bodies, one way or another.

This week, Chinese Newspapers protested the Environment Ministry’s refusal to make classified pollution information available to the public. The 21st Century Business Herald newspaper drew comparisons to the outbreak of SARS in 2003, which had also been kept secret from the public. It’s time for transparency in government. After all, isn’t government supposed to work FOR the people, not in spite of them? How can the public be expected to make informed decisions if the necessary information is kept from them? Change is never easy — let alone change in blind faith. It’s one thing to have to wear a mask to the grocery store. It’s another not to be allowed to know how many trips will kill you.

The chief pollutant responsible for China’s problem? Coal. Accounting for 19% of the total air pollution, the out-dated energy source continues to pump poison into our atmosphere. How little air has to be left before the world takes a serious look at our energy infrastructure? Sure, it may be China’s problem today. But tomorrow, it’s the USA’s. Next week, Europe’s. Air pollution spreads like cancer. What we need is an emergency procedure to remove the growth before it devours us from the inside, out.

Consider NRGLab’s SH-box the scalpel in this procedure. Without any grid modifications whatsoever, the SH-box is ready to start producing clean, natural energy from crystals. By converting environmental heat into electricity, these Boxes are capable of powering a community or a corporation. Because NRGLab thinks it’s about time we cleaned up our planet. Let’s start with our cities, and move on from there. Hopefully China takes the hint and the lead.

Here comes... Canada to the rescue?

After the Russian meteor scare last week, many wondered why governments around the world seemed surprised and unprepared for the 10,000 ton death-rock hurling towards us. According to NASA scientists, the explosion in our atmosphere was the “equivalent to nearly 500,000 tons of TNT.”

But don’t worry. One country has come to the rescue. Drum roll, please for…

Canada?

After today’s launch of the Indian Polar Space Launch Vehicle (PSLV), four Canadian satellites, including the Near-Earth Object Surveillance Satellite (NEOSSat), will begin monitoring the skies for potential meteoric threats.

That’s right. Asteroid mining out of Canada. The Canadians have Bruce Willis and the team from Armageddon. Who could have foreseen that coming?

NEOSSat will be the first space telescope dedicated solely to finding Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) in our solar system. Unlike Earth-based, man-monitored telescopes, NEOSSat will operate 24/7, capturing hundreds of more images per day for analysis.

NEOSSat is tiny — only the size of a suitcase — and runs off of multi-band gap solar panels. It was launched into orbit 800 kilometers above the Earth, and represents our first line of defense against total annihilation.

I guess someone was listening when we said there were no more hero’s in today’s world. Continue proving us wrong, Canada.

February highs for gas prices

As I predicted, gas prices in America have soared to all-time seasonal highs. According to AAA spokesman John Townsend, ‘February “is the most expensive we’ve seen gasoline in the dead of winter.”

Despite vehicles becoming more fuel-efficient and more people growing conscious of the miles they're driving, the bills just aren't reflecting this progress. In a study performed by the U.S. Department of Energy, the typical American family spends roughly $3,000 a year on gas. This includes heating the house. Driving to work. Things that, if re-imagined, could be accomplished just the same via alternative energy sources.

In February, the national average for gasoline rose to $3.80 a gallon. (On the West Coast of California, it's more like $4.00 plus) This price depends on a number of factors, of which the American Institute for Energy Research has broken down into four basic components:

1. World markets

2. Refining costs

3. Taxes

4. And distribution markup.

Saudi Arabia produces 700,000 fewer barrels now compared to a year ago. As a result, market competition between Iran and Iraq has increased. Add to that the current civil uprising in Syria, another major crude oil producer, and it's no wonder why, with the American government's dependency on foreign oil, people are paying the price. There are even talks of America raising the national gas tax, which has been stable at 18.4 cents per gallon for almost twenty years. 

It seems like everything costs more these days. From diapers to highways, as the costs of raw materials rises, so too will taxes. If history has proven one point: it's that citizens have rarely given into increased taxation without some sort of push back. Families are already struggling to survive and cannot afford to pay more for gasoline. IT'S TIME FOR AN ALTERNATIVE.

And not just a hypothetical one, either. We need real solutions, like the one offered by NRGLab. Their crystal technology produces natural electricity that's not only green and good for the environment, but good for the American wallet as well. Because times are tough. The government needs to stop offering temporary solutions to structural issues (like the gas tax hike), and repair the structure from the foundation up. 

1.5 degrees away from total meltdown

We now have a number. Scientists from Oxford University say an increase of merely 1.5C will be enough to send the world reeling into an Apocalyptic scenario.

This increase in temperature will begin to melt Siberia's permafrost. Covering roughly a quarter of the Northern Hemisphere's total land surface area, the melted permafrost could release hundreds of GIGATONNES of methane and carbon dioxide into our atmosphere.

Though scientists claim that this type of melting could take decades to reach, the fact remains: in the spectrum of billions of years, mankind's occupancy his been minimal, yet disastrous.

Compare our time on Earth to the stalactites and stalagmites studied in Siberia. They've formed over hundreds of thousands of years from melting permafrost dripping into the caves. Through ice ages and vast civilizations, warming periods and wars, they've grown and shrunk with the environment. Scientists can measure individual stalactites and stalagmites much like loggers can measure the age of trees -- by cutting into them. (Only scientists use radio-carbon dating instead of saws.) They're then able to examine growth and decay rates, which can be linked to specific periods in history.

Scientists discovered that Siberian stalactites experienced rapid growth during a period dating back 400,000 years, when temperatures were 1.5C higher than today. This finding indicates that permafrost will melt just as quickly again if temperatures rise to a similar level.

Presently, the global temperature is approximately 0.6C-0.7C above pre-industrial revolution levels.

Anton Vaks, of Oxford's Earth Sciences department and one of the chief scientists on the Siberian team, hinted that their findings could have an affect on energy infrastructure, including the laying of natural gas pipelines and future drilling operations. Oh, and one more thing: it could send the world into complete, and total chaos. "Although it wasn't the main focus of our research, our work also suggests that in a world 1.5C warmer – warm enough to melt the coldest permafrost – adjoining regions would see significant changes. Mongolia's Gobi Desert could become much wetter than it is today."

New oceans, drowning our deserts. Coastline cities under water. Sounds like the plot of a Hollywood movie, though I assure you -- the threat is all too real. We need to gain an appreciation for consequences, and the domino-effect our every decisions, even the simple ones, have on the rest of the world. Leaving the water running while brushing your teeth. Leaving that extra light on when you're not even in the room. These things seem trivial, and yet they add to the overall problem of global warming and energy consumption.

Consumption has been taken off the table of debate, since democracies often equate consumption with personal freedom. So then, what can we do? We must re-evaluate our means of energy production and distribution. A good way to start? The SH-box by NRGLab -- a device designed as a cost-effective alternative to carbon emitting fuel sources.

We will decide the world we live in. Whether that's a good or bad thing remains to be seen. Every pipeline feeds our consumption habits, which warm the planet, making it harder to lay more pipelines, which makes gas more expensive, and people poorer and more stressed. The end of the world doesn't always lie at the bottom of an ocean. Sometimes, it lies at the bottom of ourselves.

Meteors & misguided men

On Friday, a meteor descended on Chelyabinsk, Russia at a speed of 18.6 miles per second. They were lucky - the meteor would have been as big as a 15-story building had it not disintegrated in the atmosphere!

          Is it possible some people were expecting this to happen? We have been raised on sci-fi movies are somewhat de-sensitized when it comes to meteors. We immediately think of movies like Armageddon and Deep Impact.  Come Saturday morning, some folks were excited having had survived the meteor. Others were shocked that our advanced missile defense systems proved utterly useless. (Turns out blasting meteors out of space only works in Hollywood. So much for trillions of dollars spent on defense.)

          The truth is people tend to think of themselves as all-powerful and all-mighty beings. In the movies, the heroes always have muscles and access to the most high-tech equipment. They never get shot. They always get the girl. And in the end, just before the credits roll, they somehow save the day.

          But this is a fantasy! Men are egotistical fools who rarely use technology for good; who shoot each other quite often. Mankind’s biggest accomplishment, to date, has been surviving for thousands of years despite our apparent genetic disposition for blood lust. Sure, we’ve invented a great number of things. From the internet to capitalism. Java to baseball. But have these innovations helped us progress, or have they sunk us further into disillusionment?

          Hollywood heroes do not exist. Bruce Willis isn’t waiting to take off in a space ship, plant a nuke on a meteor, and (spoiler alert) save the earth from sure-fire destruction. We have learned much while at the same time, learned nothing. We’re afraid to face the truth: men are not heroes. We are fools who think we can conquer anything we set our sights on. The Earth. Outer Space. Nothing is out of mankind’s dominion.

          So while we talk about the economy, climate-change, and advancements in new technology, let’s not forget – we’re all just one giant meteor away from being wiped from this Earth, like the woolly mammoths and dinosaurs before us.

Poof! Gone. Just like that.  

Forward on Climate Rally -- Feb. 17th

On Februrary 17th, the Forward on Climate Rally will be held in Washington D.C. People are expected to gather to urge President Obama to address climate change; a promise he made during his inaugural speech when he first took office five years ago. The rally is being organized by the Sierra Club, 350.org, the Hip Hop Caucus and a few dedicated environmentalists.

The Rally’s message focuses on minimizing the environmental footprint the United States is currently leaving on the planet. If the President continues to support the nation’s outdated and obsolete infrastructure, and we continue to depend upon coal mines, oil pipelines, and hazardous fracking operations, the US will be left on the wrong side of history as the rest of the world moves towards renewable, clean energy. (Politicians like to use the term ‘clean coal’ but, lets face it, that’s like saying ‘jumbo shrimp’ — a bit bigger, and better, sure, but still coal at the core.)

It’s time congress puts aside their moral differences on social issues like gun control and abortion and focus on something we can all agree on: we need clean air to breathe, for instance. The U.S. energy policy must reflect what the rest of the world already knows — we need to decrease carbon emissions. Plain and simple. Legislation on tax breaks only rewards corporations with lawyers clever enough to find the loopholes. Climate change isn’t something that can be negotiated, or treated like a stock option. It has to be dealt with seriously; scrutinized from every angle. No bad ideas. All suggestions welcome.

I know what you might be asking: who cares if there’s a little more carbon in the air? I hear cows, and their methane gas emissions (farts) have also contributed to global warming.

The latter happens to be true, but that doesn’t mean that man-made carbon emissions haven’t already taken their toll. Just look at the super-storms that have ravaged the U.S. over the last several years. The droughts. The floods. Scientists have linked these so-called ‘natural’ disasters to elevated levels of carbon in our atmosphere.

How can we undo the damage? Only with time and by changing our energy habits. We need new sources of affordable and efficient energy — not more nuclear power plants, or drills. We don’t need to open more coal mines. What we need is the SH-box by NRGLab.

The SH-Box produces clean electricity from patented crystal technology for pennies per watt. What’s holding NRGLab back? A lack of global government response and cooperation. It’s time for America to take a stand, and the Forward on Climate Rally might just be that motivating voice, screaming, “Get up off your butt, already!”

If you live near Washington D.C., or have the ability to take off of work and make the commute, I encourage you to join the Sierra Club February 17th. Let your voice be heard. Tell President Obama you’re ready for the change you were promised. And while you’re at it, you might tell him to look into NRGLab, and the way we’re approaching energy reform.