Long-Term Environmental Care Does Not Equate to Automatic Taxation and More Metaphorical Hands In Your Wallet

The province of Ontario recently scrapped a proposed eco-tax on goods and services that negatively have an impact on the environment. This was largely due to public outcry, compounded by the installation of the HST (Harmonized Sales Tax) on the same day.

Evidence is growing to support the belief that we are running out of space to live on this planet and that we should help maintain what space and water we have to promote a sustainable future for generations to come. Simply enter the term “global warming” your search engine of choice and you will be bombarded with everything from Global Warming For Dummies to documentaries recording human instigated damage on our environment. Ultimately, caring for this planet we call Earth should not be a chore. Education should be instigated at an early age to bring children closer to the environment so they have that initial connection.

Staying in Ontario, it is customary that high schools require students to complete a minimum forty hours of community service in order to graduate. Taxation by force should be the only way to care for this planet. Encouraging volunteers to plant trees, or creating jobs which promote the local environment are just some of a long list of potential solutions which will have both short-term and long-term benefits, more jobs and a healthier environment for your children for your family. We are all in this metaphorical boat together. We can either continue on course to that iceberg or we can alter destinations to suit our cultures. We are a diverse race, but a united force capable of living in a variety of places. Towns should consider what needs to be improved, whether it is the water supply or smog levels, and work with communities to foster a stronger partnership.

 

Solar Storms: Knowledge Is The Next Best Defence To Taking Preventative Measures

Image via Wikipedia

Quote from NASA update:

The sun and Earth are separated by 93 million miles of space—a seemingly safe distance. But since the Space Age began, and especially in recent years, there has been a growing realization that 93 million miles really isn’t so far apart.

Solar mass ejections from the Sun, consisting of a breeze of plasma, can be traced to the phenomenon here on Earth known as the Aurora Borealis. Today, Dr. Tony Philips of NASA issued an update informing the public of the meeting on Germany of “representatives from more than 25 of the world’s most technologically-advanced nations” declaring the risks solar storms pose on the safety of urban society.

In an earlier update on January 21 2009, it was revealed that ”a solar flare can make you toilet stop working”, and that

[t]he strongest geomagnetic storm on record is the Carrington Event of August-September 1859, named after British astronomer Richard Carrington who witnessed the instigating solar flare with his unaided eye while he was projecting an image of the sun on a white screen. Geomagnetic activity triggered by the explosion electrified telegraph lines, shocking technicians and setting their telegraph papers on fire; Northern Lights spread as far south as Cuba and Hawaii; auroras over the Rocky Mountains were so bright, the glow woke campers who began preparing breakfast because they thought it was morning. Best estimates rank the Carrington Event as 50% or more stronger than the superstorm of May 1921.

If you are interested in tracking solar storms, with training instructions provided, visit http://solarstormwatch.com/ to watch next to live data streamed every hour from STEREO, which “ consists of two space-based observatories – one ahead of Earth in its orbit, the other trailing behind. [NASA STEREO Website]“

Image by NASA Goddard Photo and Video via Flickr

Ultimately it becomes very easy to tie the possibility of a solar mass ejection to doomsday prophecies, but much more difficult to provide solutions. One such person by the name of Lawrence E. Joseph featured on the popular American radio show Coast to Coast AM suggested that a good way to counter these plasma bursts from the Sun frying electrical components in the ground would be to install giant surge protectors to prevent an overload of electricity. HowStuffWorks further explains how excess power is diverted from the surge protector to the ground, but the true test of this concept would be to develop a working prototype capable of protecting the Power Grid.

In conclusion, solar storms can trigger beautiful displays on light on Earth’s poles, but they can also trigger disasters. Hence a meeting was needed to put forth new ideas and raise awareness on the risks associated with a plasma ejection travelling to the Earth. Surge protection found in most homes could be the solution, if applied on a grand scale, but unless more people become educated on the risks of solar storms, the demand for their installation, or the installation of other preventative technology, could be compromised.

If you are interested in the topic of solar storms here are some articles below for further reading:

• ‘Sun Awakens’: Scientists Warn of Solar Storms to Come (abcnews.go.com)
• Lawrence E. Joseph: The Solar ‘Katrina’ Storm That Could Take Our Power Grid Out For Years (huffingtonpost.com)
• Earth Gets Geomagnetic Wallop (news.discovery.com)
• STEREO Reveals Solar Storm Related to Failure Aboard Communications Satellite (eon.businesswire.com)

 

Is Humanity Doomed?

No. But, according to an article posted on CTV’s website entitled “Earth nearing point of no return: eco activist” one eco activist named Tim Flannery believes that the period of inaction we have remaining will only get shorter until we inevitably encounter the consequences of environmental degradation. 

In the book, Flannery also discusses what he calls a “drastic change in energy use” that will eliminate pollution from the air by using the tools that are already at our disposal.

Whether these tools will live up to their expectation is another concern but when trying to remove carbon from the atmosphere, or any greenhous gas for that matter, you have to be careful not to emit more than you’re removing throughout the process. With numerous reports, some speculative, suggesting that another Ice Age is coming or suggesting that sea levels will rise, none of which I dispute, it is important to do background research to gather more perspectives and investigate the origins of environmental damage in the past, as to see whether or not planet Earth might need some help in restoring a balance in the atmosphere, that enables us as a species, to thrive better without putting other species at risk. Afterall this planet is home to millions if not billions of different forms of life, and while at times we may feel that we are number one on the list, our entire environment could get distorted in certain species suddenly ceased to exist. There would be a chain of effects that will eventually impact us, either in terms of food supply, or environment, but in short every form of life has a purpose on this planet.

In conclusion humanity is not doomed, but only as long as we pay attention to our surroundings. Education is always best and it may not be a bad idea to educate yourself on how global warming, or global cooling for that matter, works. You may come across different opinions, each with their own supportive “evidence” but ultimately no one can predict the future, the best we can do is analyse the trends of the past to better spot patterns and predict the likelihood of those patterns reoccurring. However, there will be some evidence that sends the warning lights off in your head, and it is crucial to investigate how that evidence was collected, whether it is in the form of a chart or graph, and whether or not there could be any bias behind the sampling strategy. It will be vital for scientists in the future to continue to conduct their future as the best form of avoiding catastrophic environmental degradation could be by early detection.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Climate Study: Human Beings Pushing Earth’s ‘Boundaries’ (time.com)
• How Much Human Activity Can Earth Handle? (time.com)
• CO2 is not the only cause of climate change (guardian.co.uk)