Monday, April 21, 2008

Yeay! For Earth Day!

By the (Scary) Numbers
1. The market in carbon offsets, which allows companies to invest in renewable energy as a way of mitigating their own greenhouse gas emissions - almost doubled in 2006 to $5 billion, the World Bank said on 2 May.”
Source
2. Although it has only 4.5% of the world’s population,the United States is responsible for 25% of global greenhouse emissions.
Source
3. The costs of emissions credits on the voluntary market vary widely, from a few dollars per tonne of carbon to $20 or more. Source
4. The first carbon offset project was launched in 1989, to mitigate against construction of a new 183 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Connecticut. It entailed planting 50 million non-native pine and eucalyptus trees on some 40,000 small farm holdings in the Western Highlands region of Guatemala. (12 years on farmers were still not properly paid for their treeplanting.) Source
5. 10 carbon offset projects are listed on Gold Standard Project Registry, of which six have been validated by an UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) -accredited DOE (Designated Operational Entity) Source
6. The voluntary offset market is catching up fast with regulated carbon trade, and will sell an estimated 100 million tonnes of CO2 emissions cuts this year. Source
7. 1 metric tonne of carbon is equal to 1,000 kilograms or 2,205 US pounds. 1 US ton equals 0.91 metric tonnes.
8. One tonne of carbon dioxide would fill the average family home; so most households produce carbon dioxide equivalent to 15 times the size of their home each year.
Source Or put another way, one ton of CO2 correlates to the volume of a swimming pool, 10 metre wide, 25 metre long and 2 metre deep. Source

SO... YOu Wanna Do Something?!
1. March
Take part in The New American Dream’s
Turn the Tide Campaign or join in the Stop Global Warming Virtual March at stopglobalwarming.org, or even the Global Cool workout.
2. Calculate
Check out Sustainable Travel International’s
carbon calculator, showing the actions you can to offset travel, instead of buy offsets.
3. Reduce
Reducing your electricity consumption also reduces the CO2 your local fossil fuel power plant is pumping into the atmosphere. Give our
How to Green your Electronics Guide the once over for more tips.
4. Go Green
Similarly the fuel you burn in your car is also carbon emitting, so you may find our
How to Green your Car Guide exceedingly useful. Come to think of it, you might dig into other energy related guides on Lighting, Heating, Electricity, Dishwasher and so on. Click here to see them all.
5. Watch & Learn
Watch the movie,
An Inconvenient Truth, to get an broader understanding of the issues. Follow up with its Take Action Tips, or go the whole hog and sign up for training as a Climate Project Ambassador.
6. Get Your Hands Dirty
In North America you can support treeplanting directly through such enterprises as:
Grow A Forest; Trees For Life and Arbor Day; American Forests.

P.S. Think Good thoughts for the Sharks, they're in Game 7 Tonight!

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