2010 tied (so far) for warmest on record
- The planet is hot and is only getting hotter.
- “With more than two months to go, 2010 is on pace to tie 1998 as the warmest year in the historical record, according to an analysis of land and sea surface temperatures by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Signs of warming were evident in the opening of the Northwest Passage and Northeast Passage to shipping, the third straight year that these normally ice-choked waterways were extensively ice-free in the summer.”
- “Heat waves also continued to break records through September, with Los Angeles tallying its all-time hottest day on Sept. 27, when temperatures reached 113 degrees.”
We have 10 years to solve nature crisis
- “The UN biodiversity convention meeting has opened with warnings that the ongoing loss of nature is hurting human societies as well as the natural world.”
- “”Let’s have the courage to look in the eyes of our children and admit that we have failed, individually and collectively, to fulfil the Johannesburg promise made by 110 heads of state to substantially reduce the rate of loss of biodiversity by 2010.”
Walmart mandates zero deforestation in beef, palm oil sourcing
- “Walmart will require sustainably-sourced palm oil for all its private brand products globally by the end of 2015, a move that will provide critical support for initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of palm oil, which has at times been produced at the expense of tropical rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia. Walmart says the move will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5 million metric tons by the end of 2015 for its U.K. and U.S. private brand products alone.”
If you want less birds and bats to die from wind turbines, paint them purple
- Insects, and therfore birds and bats looking for a meal, are most attracted to white and gray wind turbines, which happen to be the most popular color to paint them. Insects are the least attracted to purple.
- Painting wind turbines differently could save many birds and bats.
Study shows energy-use divide in the United States
- “The Southeastern and Great Plains states are way behind most West Coast and Northeastern states when it comes to being energy efficient.”