Global warming dialog

Washington post article:


​https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/gone-in-a-generation/forest-climate-change.html?utm_term=.ee33e8c51ffc

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/the-world-needs-a-diet-overhaul-expert-panel-says/

There are so so so many news items detailing brand new scientific studies concluding now that illustrate grim data concerning the future of our planet.

Not one study reassures us that our offspring and theirs has any hope of living on a planet with ecological normalcy like most of us did when we grew up.

Its depressing, scary, and leaves anyone who has been paying any attention to this issue over the years with a great deal of dread. What can we do about it?

Well now that is a sticky wicket when we have republicans in power. Second Bush claimed “there was unproven and inconclusive data proving global warming as anything other than a “left wing” hoax," and the current president claims that 2 degrees centigrade- is just a little eentsy change, nothing to worry about... that the costs associated with curbing carbon dioxide emissions is too high, bad for business, blah blah blah. His attitude postpones governmental intervention into our dirty polluting habits, leaving it for the next president to clean up the mess if it's not too late by then.

I can’t for the life of me figure out how it can be that the future of a civilization is cradled in the small hands of an ignorant and greedy individual.

When trump declared that that he was removing our country from the Paris accord where 200 countries agreed to TRY to reduce emissions, I decided I would speak my mind and try to spread environmental info when I could, so every now and then I plop info up on this blog when I see something pertinent.

There were a few studies that I will put links to here when I can so anyone who is interested can see what they're saying, and what to do about it during your daily lives. Maybe we do not need tRUMP to help us tip-toe towards reduced emissions? Maybe there are steps that we all can take to reduce our carbon footprint as we drive, eat, buy, wash, etc. Those daily decisions probably add up to lots more of an effect than anything tRUMP can say or do.

A simple list includes:

1. correct air pressure in the tires of your car can lead to 20% increase in fuel efficiency (saves you the corresponding cost in fuel also)

2. eat all the food you buy- studies say we toss into the garbage HALF of the food we grow- all that food production produces carbon to grow, process, ship, package, etc. Then there are costs associated with disposing it also into the waste stream

3. cut down your water use- it takes enormous amounts of electricity to process, pump, pressurize, then process waste water in the sewer system. Electricity produces emissions. Use less water,=less emissions, as well as a lower water bill for you, and in Trumbull where we are charged for the sewer use by mirroring the water bill, there's lots of money to be saved by reducing your water usage. I bought a very high efficiency front loading washing machine, take short showers, turn the water on/off when shaving and doing occasional dishes in the sink, etc, and paid for the washer in a couple of years in the savings I saw in my bills for water and sewer.

4. DON'T buy stuff with lots of plastic packaging. When I see all that unnecessary plastic, it's a total turnoff. Say no to those companies by buying stuff that is packaged with a more environmentally conscious approach.

5. consider alternatives to the soaps/shampoos/detergents that we Americans grew up with. Many of those companies add tons of chemicals that I can't pronounce, and those chemicals are absorbed right through our skin then we carry these chemicals around in our bodies for life. Who is to say the harm those chemicals do to us? I am less trusting now than I ever was about our government protecting us. A common ingredient, PALM OIL, is added to almost everything, and increased production in the orient has resulted in the near extermination of the Orangutan species, as well as their entire habitat so greedy farmers can supply vain Americans with their beauty products.

5. have a garden. Grow your own food. It's satisfying, it's great exercise, the food is FREE, WHOLESOME, and has as a carbon footprint only the effort expressed as the emissions from your toil- panting, huffing, and puffing. Plus, when you put tomato and onion salad on the table, there is a huge sense of satisfaction and accomplishment derived from seeing your loved ones eat in the most healthy style imaginable. Grow stuff that you use a lot that stores easily, and requires few or no chemicals- potatoes, onions, peppers, arugula, carrots, string beans, peas, Spaghetti sauce, blueberries, strawberries, rhubarb, to name just a few. Americans have gotten REALLY SPOILED AND LAZY. Italians somehow have maintained their connections to the earth. They know how to plant, how to grow and harvest, cook and store vegetables- what an enviable culture they have! It's in their blood and it's passed down from generation to generation. Wish our family had that in our blood!
6. WHY BUY an SUV??? They cost a ton, they weigh many tons, takes shitloads of gas to propel them through space, and they pollute like crazy!!! Current cheap gas makes them look affordable, buy that shallow line of reasoning ignores all that we must now pay attention to- our use of fuel, and the resulting pollution... and the planet that we leave to our offspring.

7. REPLACE all your non-LED light bulbs. JUST DO IT. yeah, it'll cost you but you will see an instant reduction in your electricity bill. I got mine down to 'bout $45/month but I have a small family, and I'm really conscious about turning lights off when I leave the room.

8. buy a wood burning fireplace insert... my gas bill per month is the same in January as it is in July... about $40/ month. The heat never goes on, the whole house is heated by that stove- yeah, it takes a little effort, and it's not fun for some, but my house is always at least 70f, and nobody died for the oil that is sold to me, and nobody had to produce, process, and deliver gas to my home. I go through about 6-7 cords per winter, and once the fire gets going, the stove has no visible emissions and burns more efficiently than high efficiency oil burners. Plus, if the wood I have gets into the ground, there is no pollution, like there is with oil!
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I'm done typing for now but will put sample products up for people to try... but when election time rolls around again, ask yourself which elected officials seem to care about global warming... It is a valid concern for us as a species.
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