Urban air pollution more dangerous than Chernobyl
A study conducted by the Royal Commission of Environmental Pollution in London reports that urban air pollution is more dangerous than the radiation exposure suffered by thousands during the Chernobyl explosion in 1986. The study suggests that over 24,000 people die in Britain every year because of air pollution. The Chernobyl accident is estimated to have cost 16,000 lives.
Posted by Stephanie
American courts rule on greenhouse gases
On Monday, all nine judges of the United States Supreme Court ruled on whether or not carbon dioxide is an air pollutant. If the greenhouse gas is a pollutant then it is the Environmental Protection Agency’s job to regulate it under the U.S. Clean Air Act. The decision was split 5 – 4 in favor of adding CO2 to the list.
The day before, a California judge ruled that the government can be sued for using U.S. investors’ money to finance overseas projects responsible for greenhouse gas emissions.
Ryan Bergen
And another bicycle plan for Montreal...
| Vélocité shoveled a bike path last February to support their demand that the paths be open year-round. |
The City’s plan might also include an extension of the open season for bike paths. The 2007 season begins tomorrow. For those who didn’t know there was such as thing as an opening seasons for these paths, what it means is that they’re maintained and parking restrictions apply for cars.
This might make life easier for the city’s road warriors.
Posted by Julie Geffard
Look who's suffering...
All this talk about global warming. How the bigger countries need to limit their CO2 emission, how they need to save energy, etc.
And yet, it will be the poor countries in Africa and Asia that will have to deal with the most consequences... that they are not responsible for.
Rich countries, will not only have less consequences from global warming, but they will also be better prepared to deal with it.
Sounds fair? Not really, but do you think anyone will REALLY do anything about it?
By Debbie
Sydney goes green by going black
For the first time, many of Sydney's icons turned off their lights for an hour.
On March 31st, the city plunged into darkness in an effort to raise awareness on global warming. Between 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm, the city supported "Earth Hour" in order to show that it does not take much to save energy.
By Debbie
Australia's opposition party to push China to limit emissions
Given Australia's laissez-faire attitude towards climate change and the Kyoto Protocol, it would seem somewhat hypocritical for the country's politicians to start lecturing other countries on their emissions. It should be pointed out that the party pushing for a climate change conference with China this year is the Australian Labor Party. Unlike the ruling Liberal party (in power since 1996), Labor supports a significant reduction in Australia's greenhouse gas emissions.
The Herald Sun reports that Labor leader Ken Rudd will travel to China later this year. The Labor delegation will try to persuade China's leaders to limit their emissions. Rudd is also calling for an Australian version of Britain's Stern Report, which examined the economic impacts of climate change.
Rudd made his announcement at a Labor summit on climate change, held March 31 in Australia's capital, Canberra. The conference included a pre-recorded message from Al Gore, who praised Labor's efforts.
Posted by Nick Say
Concordia University presents Al Gore with honorary doctorate
Belated climate change news from within Concordia University itself: on March 22, Concordia awarded an honorary doctorate to Al Gore. Concordia principal Claude Lajeunesse presented the doctorate to Al Gore after the former U.S. Vice-President's speech at Montreal's Palais des Congrès.
From now on, Tempest contributors should refer to the star of An Inconvenient Truth as Dr. Gore (even if this sounds like the name of a Norwegian death metal band). The university administrators may not tolerate Tempest's use of "Al Gore", and are certain to have a problem with the informal "Al".
Posted by Nick Say
Look who's talking: frequent-flyer John Travolta speaks out on climate change
Global warming is currently in vogue in Hollywood. Movie stars like Leonardo Dicaprio are trying to raise the public's awareness of climate change. Anyone cynical about the carbon footprints of jet-setting green celebrities will probably be paralyzed with incredulity when they learn that John Travolta has been lecturing the public on climate change.
Travolta takes the term frequent flyer to a whole new altitude: the star of Saturday Night Fever and Grease owns not one but five - yes, five - private jets; his Florida home is also equipped with its own runway. Travolta flies his own planes. According to London's Evening Standard, the 53-year-old actor flew at least 30,000 miles in the last 12 months, which is the equivalent of 800 tonnes of carbon emissions. The Evening Standard notes that this alone is a 100 times the total yearly emissions of the average Briton.
Travolta's Bigfoot-like carbon footprint didn't stop him lecturing the British public on global warming. Travolta was in London for the premiere of his film Wild Hogs, which appears, even more incongruously, to be a paean to motorbikes. He told fans that "alternative methods of fuel" had to be sought to help the environment. Travolta made his comments after driving up the red carpet in London's Leicester Square on a Harley Davidson. Travolta didn't mention whether the Harley was powered by the alternative fuels he advocates.
Travolta, a Scientologist, believes that a solution to climate change can be found in space. The Broken Arrow star, it seems, is already there: lost in space.
Posted by Nick Say
Canadian Magazine Readership Drops
Competition from the Internet has caused Canadian magazine readership to drop, according to data released today from the Print Measurement Bureau.
The Globe and Mail article looks at the fragmented media industry and analyzes how radio, newspapers and television are also battling to keep their audiences as people gravitate toward the Internet.
Magazines such as Reader's Digest saw subscription rates fall, while surprisingly, Canadian Geographic's numbers rose.
Posted by Adam Klevinas (and yes, I know this isn't about global warming, but it is about magazines and the Internet!)
Ontario Steps Up Funds for Green Automakers
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty has announced a $500-million boost to fund Ontario automakers' development to build more environmentally friendly cars. The province is attempting to maintain its stronghold on the automotive sector.
McGuinty's plan is to allow automakers to continue building large automobiles, but in a more environmentally friendly way. He says Ontarians aren't ready to give up their large SUVs for smaller cars.
The Premier also hopes to take advantage of a market that he thinks will be profitable in the future.
Further, this article in today's Globe and Mail talks about how companies that convert to green technologies stand to benefit.
Posted by Adam Klevinas
Heat Waves Pose Threat to North American Cities
A scientist with intimate knowledge of next month's report by the IPCC has indicated that the report will contain a warning concerning heat waves. Gordon McBean says thousands of people in North American cities could be killed unless governments put in better warning systems and take other, precautionary protective measures.
The report is said to detail specific regions that are specifically vulnerable and suggest adaptation strategies. Those strategies could include: warning systems, architectural changes, protection of green space and community programs to monitor the well-being of people living alone.
To find out more, read the report from this morning's Globe and Mail.
Posted By Adam Klevinas
Major cities at risk from rising sea levels: scientists
Cities such as New York, Tokyo, Shanghai, Mumbai, Dhaka and Jakarta are vulnerable to global warming and rising sea levels, according to a peer-reviewed scientific study said to be the first to look at such areas.
The study, which was which was published in the journal Environment and Urbanization, says 634 million people around the world live in areas lying at less than 10.05 metres above sea level, which are considered to be threatened coastal areas, and the numbers are rising.
More than 180 countries have populations in low lying coastal zones, it says, and about 70 per cent of those have urban areas with populations of over five million people that are under threat.
Poor nations in Asia are most at risk. The study gives no time frame for potential rising and flooding.
Details: CBC.ca
Posted by SH
20 blustery comments:
Nick,
I knew about Gore's honourary doctorate, but didn't mention it in my article about the conference.
I'm just not sure about Gore. I have mixed feelings. I know what he's doing is good, but I have trouble with what his potential motives are. Suzuki seems more pure, if that makes sense. I keep getting this feeling that Gore is going to try to run for President or there's something else behind it all.
Anyway, do you think I should throw that into my article?
Adam,
It wasn't meant to be a dig at your reporting. I happened to be on the Concordia website and I went on the media link (the one I've posted)and they have the date of the award as March 27. It was only when I double-checked the French version that I realised it was a typo.
I definitely wouldn't add it into your story. Personally, I find honorary degrees ridiculous - as you might gather from the tone of my post. They just seem like a massive PR stunt for the university. When I think of the amount of work PhD students have to do, and then along comes a celeb and gets handed one for work they've been doing anyway.
Nick
Adam,
I hope Claude Lajeunesse doesn't read Tempest. If he does, I might as well delete my comment and you'd better delete yours and re-write it, making sure you address Gore properly - as Dr. Gore!
I share your feelings about (Dr.) Gore. I have respect for environmentalists like Suzuki, but, with politicians there's the whole question of sincerity. Does (Dr.) Gore really mean what he says or is he just amassing political capital?
Nick
I've changed the link from the one erroneously stating the doctorate was awarded on March 27.
Nick,
No worries. I left it out of my article for a reason, but was a bit torn myself as to whether that was good reporting or not.
I thought, given the tone of my piece, that it wasn't necessary. It happened at the end of the night, well after Gore's long winded speech. I wasn't there for it.
I wouldn't worry too much about Claude Lajuenesse either. At the conference, just the mention of his name (incidentally, by Gore) got a large 'boo' from the audience.
Nick,
wow. Loved, loved, loved your post.
Funny, informative. Really good.
One comment though.
Don't most celebrities today waste more CO2 than the average person?
I've been looking for information about that, but I'm pretty sure that maybe, if celebrities cut down a little bit on their 20 cars, 5 planes, private flights, etc, we may have a little more room for air...
I used to live near that Coca-Cola sign in Sydney the article mentions. Trips down memory lane aside, I wonder if they'd consider doing anything like that in Montreal? I guess with the problem of heating, it could only be done in spring or summer.
Debbie: minor point, but you've made a typo in the spelling of Sydney.
Julie,
Cool post. I like the video.
The problem with riding in Montreal is the lack of sympathy from drivers. It just isn't safe, bike paths or not.
And really, we want to avoid situations like this.
In any case, the bike paths that run through the city aren't that great. They don't access the city's core very well. Either you have paths that run in the Plateau area or along the Lachine canal. Nothing really works in the places where they would be the most useful.
I think they should close down some of the city streets just to bikes. That way, we would have more people riding because they feel safer. More riders also means more active people which is less strain on the health care system.
More riders also means less cars (or at least less cars on certain roads) which would significantly help the city's pollution levels.
I give a lot of credit to the people in my article who brave -40 winters on their bikes. I'm just not sure the majority would be willing to take that extra step, even if the paths were in better shape for the winter.
I don't think we necessarily need bicycle paths to make bike riding work. The first step should be resurfacing the streets.
The stakes for the rider and bicycle are too high in Montreal.
Redoing the streets would also mean we could actually use all of the space on the roads giving us twice as much of it to share.
Ryan,
Although clicking on the link that leads to the NYT makes it immediately clear, I think you should mention in your post that the judges decided carbon dioxide was in fact a pollutant.
Ryan,
Very interesting, this share theory.
While we're waiting for it to make its way here though, I think adding bike paths is a good idea.
Although I agree with AK that drivers have difficulty respecting bikers, I have the impression the white lines of bike corridors do manage to put a safe distance between cars and bikes. Biking in the city is new, and drivers still behave as if they tolerated the use of their space by bikers. A line of white paint that they're not supposed to cross tells them that it's actually a shared space. I have the impression from my experience as a biker in this city that it does make a concrete difference.
I also agree with AK that bike paths don't access the city's core too well. Take Sherbrooke, or De Maisonneuve, or Sainte-Catherine: none of these thoroughfares have corridors for bikes. I have no choice but to take one of them when I go downtown, and I can imagine people being reluctant to make that trip.
Finally, I think adding bike paths sends a signal that biking is increasingly becoming a norm rather than an exception. Maybe I'm being too optimistic, but I think this sign of social acceptance could have an effect on the number of bikers.
The first time I found myself on a bike corridor in rush hour, biking appeared to me as a normal way to commute instead of a student's way to save on a metro ticket.
Adam and Nick,
You may have guessed that I'm not a big Gore fan, but I don't question his sincerity. I do believe he cares about these issues.
Besides, what difference does it make if he wants to run for president again? That people will question his motives? They'll do that anyway.
This is a whole other philosophical issue but don't you think there's something fundamentally anti-democratic in persisting in viewing every politician as an opportunist?
Re John Travolta, with five jets I'm surprised his carbon emissions are only 100 times higher. I'd guess at least 1,000 and wouldn't be surprised by 10,000.
Ann,
I don't think ALL politicians are opportunists. But, as I was saying, there's a barrier that I have a hard time going beyond with American politicians. Perhaps it's a stereotype, perhaps it's my lack of in-depth knowledge of the American political system. I'm not sure.
You're right, if he runs for President, the people will question his motives and it may go beyond his sincerity about global warming. Personally, I don't think Gore will run again. I know I said that I have the feeling he might, but I tend to lean away from that for the most part.
I think no one can really tell what his motives are. I don't know enough about him and I'm sure only the people closest to him would be able to say.
Only time will tell, I guess.
Ryan,
Check out this article from the L.A. Times about California's decision on greenhouse gases. Even though they've made a decision, the state still faces a number of challenges.
Tax dollars going to "help" automakers make cleaner cars? I would rather governments encouraged citizens to buy cleaner cars by offering incentives (thus creating a greater incentive for the development of such cars) and giving automakers tax breaks for reaching certain thresholds in the development and sale of cleaner cars, instead of giving them money not knowing if they'll ever come up with anything.
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