An iceberg the size of Luxembourg has fallen from the glaciers of Antarctica after another crashed into the giant iceberg, according to scientists who now fear that this evolution will entail changes in ocean circulation.
The collision, which occurred on February 11, made it appears a piece of ice 300 feet long and 700 meters wide from the ice shelf off the coast of Antarctica.
According to the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in Bremerhaven, this phenomenon has not been produced by climate change but is due to natural processes of the ice sheets.
German scientists from the station "Neumayer III", located some 10 kilometers from the place where the collision occurred, they were able to observe the phenomenon directly and calculated that the energy released in the moment of impact is equivalent to 5 to 10 tons of conventional explosive.
The detachment is one of the largest in recent years. In 2002 an iceberg about 200 miles separated from Antarctica. In 2007, an iceberg the size of Singapore left the Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica.
Scientists now fear that ocean currents are affected, as any interruption in the production of cold water in the region could affect currents and weather patterns.
viernes, 26 de febrero de 2010
More than 130 countries adopted the Bali Declaration on Biodiversity
Over 130 countries have agreed to the 'Declaration of Nusa Dua on the Environment', which stresses the importance of preserving biodiversity and the need for a "green economy" low carbon to halt climate change.
The text, agreed during the Global Ministerial Forum on Environment which closed on Friday in Indonesia, is the first rank of statement within the framework of United Nations approved the Ministers in the last decade.
"Shortly after (the conference) in Copenhagen and the frustration it generated, the environment ministers from more than 130 countries have returned to find a collective voice. The world should be proud of this," said executive director United Nations Program for Environment (UNEP, acronym in English), Achim Steiner.
First test after Copenhagen
"This was the first test after Copenhagen, the system has shown its capacity to respond," said Steiner.
Nusa Dua Declaration addresses a wide variety of topics ranging from biodiversity conservation to electronic waste management, through the need to adopt a "green economy" and to globalize environmental policies.
According to Steiner, the approved document will serve to better protect the health of humans and the natural environment of electronic waste and the illegal traffic of toxic waste.
Also encourage an "architecture of government" that seeks to facilitate overall a more effective fight against climate change and the dangers facing the environment.
The declaration promotes the creation of an intergovernmental panel's scientific approach to the political community, so that it can legislate accordingly and quickly.
The text calls for incorporating environmental issues into the agenda of priorities of the reconstruction process in Haiti following the devastating January earthquake that killed over 200,000 people.
Despite not being among the official subjects of the Global Ministerial Forum on Environment, the fight against climate change was most discussions and informal meetings have been held since Monday.
This international meeting, which has brought the island of Bali to ministers and delegates from over 130 countries, was the first since the UN Conference on Climate Change Copenhagen, held in December.
The text, agreed during the Global Ministerial Forum on Environment which closed on Friday in Indonesia, is the first rank of statement within the framework of United Nations approved the Ministers in the last decade.
"Shortly after (the conference) in Copenhagen and the frustration it generated, the environment ministers from more than 130 countries have returned to find a collective voice. The world should be proud of this," said executive director United Nations Program for Environment (UNEP, acronym in English), Achim Steiner.
First test after Copenhagen
"This was the first test after Copenhagen, the system has shown its capacity to respond," said Steiner.
Nusa Dua Declaration addresses a wide variety of topics ranging from biodiversity conservation to electronic waste management, through the need to adopt a "green economy" and to globalize environmental policies.
According to Steiner, the approved document will serve to better protect the health of humans and the natural environment of electronic waste and the illegal traffic of toxic waste.
Also encourage an "architecture of government" that seeks to facilitate overall a more effective fight against climate change and the dangers facing the environment.
The declaration promotes the creation of an intergovernmental panel's scientific approach to the political community, so that it can legislate accordingly and quickly.
The text calls for incorporating environmental issues into the agenda of priorities of the reconstruction process in Haiti following the devastating January earthquake that killed over 200,000 people.
Despite not being among the official subjects of the Global Ministerial Forum on Environment, the fight against climate change was most discussions and informal meetings have been held since Monday.
This international meeting, which has brought the island of Bali to ministers and delegates from over 130 countries, was the first since the UN Conference on Climate Change Copenhagen, held in December.
Apple shareholders reject environmental measures
Apple Inc. shareholders rejected two proposals seeking to force the computer maker to undertake further action to analyze its impact on the environment.
One proposal would have asked Apple to issue a detailed report on environmental sustainability. The other called for a board meeting on the subject.
One proposal would have asked Apple to issue a detailed report on environmental sustainability. The other called for a board meeting on the subject.
jueves, 25 de febrero de 2010
Bloom Energy provides fuel cells
Bloom Energy Company presented on Wednesday, with fanfare, its fuel cells, but kept secret their plans for increased marketing of their expensive power generating apparatus.
At a press conference, executives from Bloom Energy disseminated not many new details about their strategies for the promising technology of fuel cells is cheap and affordable homes.
This is an important point because the company sells $ 700,000 a cabinet of fuel cell that looks like a filing cabinet.
With funding by nearly $ 400 million, Bloom Energy is one company that attract attention among which are installed in the "Valley of the Semiconductor in California.
Large corporations have been the first customers, but Bloom Energy wants to reduce the price in thousands of dollars for equipment that are affordable for families.
The company president, K.R. Sridhar said the cuts could take a decade or more as technology advances, as happened with computer chips, which increased its capacity and was cheaper to over the decades.
"We are very confident that we can activate the economic precepts," said Sridhar at the press conference at the offices of the company sales and auction site eBay.
Since its founding in 2001, the company has maintained its discretion regarding the progress of technology.
The lack of product details raised questions among experts, for whom it is still impossible to measure the true cost of power generation with the cabinet of Bloom Energy cells and whether this technology is substantially different from those of other companies in the industry.
"I would try to take a healthy dose of skepticism," said Bryan Pivovar, manager of the fuel cell division of the Center for Hydrogen Technologies and Systems, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
"What we showed the managers of Bloom Energy is to have these systems and have achieved market them," he added.
"I have not seen anything from Bloom to make me believe that there is something special in the way they have armed your system and what their innovation," he said.
According to Bloom Energy, the fuel cell cabinet produces more energy with less environmental damage than other similar products on the market because it not only uses hydrogen to start the chemical reaction that generates electricity.
The system could be activated by wind, sunlight and what is available, which can vary from community to community, said the directors of the company without elaborate on details.
One of the easiest ways to activate the cabinet Bloom would connect directly to a natural gas pipeline.
Bloom Energy said its customers include companies Google Inc. and eBay Inc., which have cheaper energy.
Cabinets with fuel cells, both companies get electricity to nine to 10 cents per kilowatt hour, whereas if the network buy would cost between 13 and 14 cents.
At a press conference, executives from Bloom Energy disseminated not many new details about their strategies for the promising technology of fuel cells is cheap and affordable homes.
This is an important point because the company sells $ 700,000 a cabinet of fuel cell that looks like a filing cabinet.
With funding by nearly $ 400 million, Bloom Energy is one company that attract attention among which are installed in the "Valley of the Semiconductor in California.
Large corporations have been the first customers, but Bloom Energy wants to reduce the price in thousands of dollars for equipment that are affordable for families.
The company president, K.R. Sridhar said the cuts could take a decade or more as technology advances, as happened with computer chips, which increased its capacity and was cheaper to over the decades.
"We are very confident that we can activate the economic precepts," said Sridhar at the press conference at the offices of the company sales and auction site eBay.
Since its founding in 2001, the company has maintained its discretion regarding the progress of technology.
The lack of product details raised questions among experts, for whom it is still impossible to measure the true cost of power generation with the cabinet of Bloom Energy cells and whether this technology is substantially different from those of other companies in the industry.
"I would try to take a healthy dose of skepticism," said Bryan Pivovar, manager of the fuel cell division of the Center for Hydrogen Technologies and Systems, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
"What we showed the managers of Bloom Energy is to have these systems and have achieved market them," he added.
"I have not seen anything from Bloom to make me believe that there is something special in the way they have armed your system and what their innovation," he said.
According to Bloom Energy, the fuel cell cabinet produces more energy with less environmental damage than other similar products on the market because it not only uses hydrogen to start the chemical reaction that generates electricity.
The system could be activated by wind, sunlight and what is available, which can vary from community to community, said the directors of the company without elaborate on details.
One of the easiest ways to activate the cabinet Bloom would connect directly to a natural gas pipeline.
Bloom Energy said its customers include companies Google Inc. and eBay Inc., which have cheaper energy.
Cabinets with fuel cells, both companies get electricity to nine to 10 cents per kilowatt hour, whereas if the network buy would cost between 13 and 14 cents.
The Vermont Senate voted for the closure of nuclear plant
Bloom Energy Company presented on Wednesday, with fanfare, its fuel cells, but kept secret their plans for increased marketing of their expensive power generating apparatus.
At a press conference, executives from Bloom Energy disseminated not many new details about their strategies for the promising technology of fuel cells is cheap and affordable homes.
This is an important point because the company sells $ 700,000 a cabinet of fuel cell that looks like a filing cabinet.
With funding by nearly $ 400 million, Bloom Energy is one company that attract attention among which are installed in the "Valley of the Semiconductor in California.
Large corporations have been the first customers, but Bloom Energy wants to reduce the price in thousands of dollars for equipment that are affordable for families.
The company president, K.R. Sridhar said the cuts could take a decade or more as technology advances, as happened with computer chips, which increased its capacity and was cheaper to over the decades.
"We are very confident that we can activate the economic precepts," said Sridhar at the press conference at the offices of the company sales and auction site eBay.
Since its founding in 2001, the company has maintained its discretion regarding the progress of technology.
The lack of product details raised questions among experts, for whom it is still impossible to measure the true cost of power generation with the cabinet of Bloom Energy cells and whether this technology is substantially different from those of other companies in the industry.
"I would try to take a healthy dose of skepticism," said Bryan Pivovar, manager of the fuel cell division of the Center for Hydrogen Technologies and Systems, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
"What we showed the managers of Bloom Energy is to have these systems and have achieved market them," he added.
"I have not seen anything from Bloom to make me believe that there is something special in the way they have armed your system and what their innovation," he said.
According to Bloom Energy, the fuel cell cabinet produces more energy with less environmental damage than other similar products on the market because it not only uses hydrogen to start the chemical reaction that generates electricity.
The system could be activated by wind, sunlight and what is available, which can vary from community to community, said the directors of the company without elaborate on details.
One of the easiest ways to activate the cabinet Bloom would connect directly to a natural gas pipeline.
Bloom Energy said its customers include companies Google Inc. and eBay Inc., which have cheaper energy.
Cabinets with fuel cells, both companies get electricity to nine to 10 cents per kilowatt hour, whereas if the network buy would cost between 13 and 14 cents.
At a press conference, executives from Bloom Energy disseminated not many new details about their strategies for the promising technology of fuel cells is cheap and affordable homes.
This is an important point because the company sells $ 700,000 a cabinet of fuel cell that looks like a filing cabinet.
With funding by nearly $ 400 million, Bloom Energy is one company that attract attention among which are installed in the "Valley of the Semiconductor in California.
Large corporations have been the first customers, but Bloom Energy wants to reduce the price in thousands of dollars for equipment that are affordable for families.
The company president, K.R. Sridhar said the cuts could take a decade or more as technology advances, as happened with computer chips, which increased its capacity and was cheaper to over the decades.
"We are very confident that we can activate the economic precepts," said Sridhar at the press conference at the offices of the company sales and auction site eBay.
Since its founding in 2001, the company has maintained its discretion regarding the progress of technology.
The lack of product details raised questions among experts, for whom it is still impossible to measure the true cost of power generation with the cabinet of Bloom Energy cells and whether this technology is substantially different from those of other companies in the industry.
"I would try to take a healthy dose of skepticism," said Bryan Pivovar, manager of the fuel cell division of the Center for Hydrogen Technologies and Systems, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
"What we showed the managers of Bloom Energy is to have these systems and have achieved market them," he added.
"I have not seen anything from Bloom to make me believe that there is something special in the way they have armed your system and what their innovation," he said.
According to Bloom Energy, the fuel cell cabinet produces more energy with less environmental damage than other similar products on the market because it not only uses hydrogen to start the chemical reaction that generates electricity.
The system could be activated by wind, sunlight and what is available, which can vary from community to community, said the directors of the company without elaborate on details.
One of the easiest ways to activate the cabinet Bloom would connect directly to a natural gas pipeline.
Bloom Energy said its customers include companies Google Inc. and eBay Inc., which have cheaper energy.
Cabinets with fuel cells, both companies get electricity to nine to 10 cents per kilowatt hour, whereas if the network buy would cost between 13 and 14 cents.
Climate change becomes promiscuous to a monogamous frog in Peru
There in the Amazon jungle of Peru, a poisonous frog species that, because of climate change, has left to throw practice monogamy in promiscuous attitude to the hunt for suitors that guarantee their survival.
Explains the professor of the Natural History Museum of Peru Ricardo Palma University, Victor Morales, these frogs have changed their reproductive behavior, primarily due to decreased water in the ponds they inhabit.
Climate change and habitat destruction are behind the phenomenon that Morales in March detailed in the publication 'The American Naturalist', with researchers Jason Brown and Kyle Summers.
Most frogs are polygamous
According to the professor, most frogs are polygamous but this particular species, called 'Ranitomeya variabilis', only a couple pairs with beneficial environmental conditions, ie when there is enough water in the tanks of bromeliads where you live.
For thousands of years, the mother only made one or two eggs and neither she nor the male left the home when it came to care for the young.
However, current environmental constraints have changed this behavior, so now think only males and females to ensure their offspring and have been reproduced more individuals.
To demonstrate this new stage adaptation in frogs, Professor Peruvian conducted in recent years, analysis of water and larvae in the tropical forests of Tarapoto and the conservation area of the Cordillera Escalera in northern Peru.
The aforementioned poison frog is abundant in these forested areas where it has been found promiscuity traditionally monogamous species because genetic differences have been found within the same brood.
Included in the red list of threatened species
Toxic skin and colorful, these amphibians are prey diurnal snakes and other predators, but now they face a hostile environment in which the tadpoles are dying and even eat each other over the lack of space and water.
Peruvian biologist Marina Rosales said that global warming and the destruction of the Amazon particularly affect the flora and fauna of wet environments, including this frog is found, including in the red list of threatened species.
In his view, this scientific discovery, apparently "anecdotal" should be interpreted as an indicator that environmental conditions are changing, forcing the amphibians to be more concerned than before about leaving a larger number of offspring and thereby ensure the survival of their genes.
Faced with this predicament, much like Professor Rosales Morales found that amphibians, like other species, they adapt and fight for their survival, but this flexibility is limited and in any case, it is not beneficial in the long term.
Therefore, the specialist of the National Natural Protected Areas by the State (SERNANP) warned that this is not an isolated case, as humans must take actions necessary to mitigate adverse effects on climate and biodiversity .
Explains the professor of the Natural History Museum of Peru Ricardo Palma University, Victor Morales, these frogs have changed their reproductive behavior, primarily due to decreased water in the ponds they inhabit.
Climate change and habitat destruction are behind the phenomenon that Morales in March detailed in the publication 'The American Naturalist', with researchers Jason Brown and Kyle Summers.
Most frogs are polygamous
According to the professor, most frogs are polygamous but this particular species, called 'Ranitomeya variabilis', only a couple pairs with beneficial environmental conditions, ie when there is enough water in the tanks of bromeliads where you live.
For thousands of years, the mother only made one or two eggs and neither she nor the male left the home when it came to care for the young.
However, current environmental constraints have changed this behavior, so now think only males and females to ensure their offspring and have been reproduced more individuals.
To demonstrate this new stage adaptation in frogs, Professor Peruvian conducted in recent years, analysis of water and larvae in the tropical forests of Tarapoto and the conservation area of the Cordillera Escalera in northern Peru.
The aforementioned poison frog is abundant in these forested areas where it has been found promiscuity traditionally monogamous species because genetic differences have been found within the same brood.
Included in the red list of threatened species
Toxic skin and colorful, these amphibians are prey diurnal snakes and other predators, but now they face a hostile environment in which the tadpoles are dying and even eat each other over the lack of space and water.
Peruvian biologist Marina Rosales said that global warming and the destruction of the Amazon particularly affect the flora and fauna of wet environments, including this frog is found, including in the red list of threatened species.
In his view, this scientific discovery, apparently "anecdotal" should be interpreted as an indicator that environmental conditions are changing, forcing the amphibians to be more concerned than before about leaving a larger number of offspring and thereby ensure the survival of their genes.
Faced with this predicament, much like Professor Rosales Morales found that amphibians, like other species, they adapt and fight for their survival, but this flexibility is limited and in any case, it is not beneficial in the long term.
Therefore, the specialist of the National Natural Protected Areas by the State (SERNANP) warned that this is not an isolated case, as humans must take actions necessary to mitigate adverse effects on climate and biodiversity .
martes, 16 de febrero de 2010
Renewable energy: a bet profitable
"You tend to think that sustainable development or social responsibility are not profitable. But they are if the commitments and incentives are real." These words by Georg Kell, executive director of Global Compact, a UN agency dedicated to helping the private sector to comply with the basic principles of social responsibility.
Kell said during a panel discussion on "Leadership in the path towards sustainability ', which took place on Monday at Columbia University in New York, only 20% of global companies are involved in activities to combat climate change including the renewable sector. The figure is small, "largely due to a lack of consensus on the vision" by companies and governments, said Kell. But it is twice what it was five years ago.
"Decades ago the talk of sustainable development. However, environmental measures have not only increased, but have been reduced. The only thing that has risen is that people use the term 'sustainable development'," lamented not without humor, Shahid Naeem, scientific director of the Center for Environmental Research and Conservation (CERC) of Columbia.
What is needed are real examples that show the viability of the sustainable model, the speakers agreed. And that example was Navarre.
The autonomous community intervened without complex at the meeting, organized by the Government itself and the aforementioned navarro college. Miguel Sanz Sesma, President of Navarre, spoke proudly of the bet that their community did two decades ago in renewable energy and how it is now reaping the harvest: currently, clean sources-this includes the hydro-met 65 % of regional electricity consumption, and in 2009 alone wind power 100% of domestic electricity demand for 92 days. "Not only that. Moreover, we have a lot of money to renewable energy," said Sesma. In fact, the renewable sector contributes navarro 5% of regional GDP.
Kell said during a panel discussion on "Leadership in the path towards sustainability ', which took place on Monday at Columbia University in New York, only 20% of global companies are involved in activities to combat climate change including the renewable sector. The figure is small, "largely due to a lack of consensus on the vision" by companies and governments, said Kell. But it is twice what it was five years ago.
"Decades ago the talk of sustainable development. However, environmental measures have not only increased, but have been reduced. The only thing that has risen is that people use the term 'sustainable development'," lamented not without humor, Shahid Naeem, scientific director of the Center for Environmental Research and Conservation (CERC) of Columbia.
What is needed are real examples that show the viability of the sustainable model, the speakers agreed. And that example was Navarre.
The autonomous community intervened without complex at the meeting, organized by the Government itself and the aforementioned navarro college. Miguel Sanz Sesma, President of Navarre, spoke proudly of the bet that their community did two decades ago in renewable energy and how it is now reaping the harvest: currently, clean sources-this includes the hydro-met 65 % of regional electricity consumption, and in 2009 alone wind power 100% of domestic electricity demand for 92 days. "Not only that. Moreover, we have a lot of money to renewable energy," said Sesma. In fact, the renewable sector contributes navarro 5% of regional GDP.
The snail, a thermometer to measure the recovery of forests after a fire
Talking about forest fires when the thermometer below 0 º in half of Spain is rare. However, measures to prevent them should be carried out during most of the year and the autumn and winter they also serve to check how the forests have recovered after a fire.
And when assessing whether a forest is recovering from the devastating effects of fire, the presence of the snail is an indicator that things are going well. So says a team of researchers at the University of Barcelona, who has studied the changing structure of animal populations after a fire.
The researchers conducted a sampling in the area affected by fire in August 2003 that devastated 3,000 hectares of natural park of Sant Llorenç del Munt il'Obac. Three years later, compared the situation in the burned area with an area near the park that had not been affected by fire in order to analyze how varies malacological fauna (molluscs).
Difficult survival
"The terrestrial gastropods-snails, have a very limited capacity to reproduce in damaged areas. They are very slow when it comes to recolonize an area affected by a disturbance," says Vicenç Bros, gastropods specialist of the Technical Office of Natural Parks Barcelona Provincial Council. "Also, are much more affected than other agencies because, unlike other animals that can run, they need to have small shelters under rocks or in the trunks of trees to survive." They get to hide a small proportion of the population, which in future will be to repopulate the area.
One of the main conclusions of the study, published in the journal Biodiversity and Conservation "is that after the fire, the species typical of moist forests in Europe (as 'Pomatias elegans' or 'Acanthinula aculeata') are very concerned. In contrast, the predominate in drier environments, such as the Mediterranean ( 'Xerocrassa penchinati' or 'Cernuella virgata') spread more easily, according to Bros.
The researchers found that in areas near the edge of the fire has not been a significant increase of forest species. The drought that affected the area between 2004 and 2007 may have decreased the ability of snails to repopulate the burned area.
This research is part of a multidisciplinary study that analyzed the evolution of different bodies after fires, such as birds, reptiles and various types of arthropods (insects, arachnids, etc).
And when assessing whether a forest is recovering from the devastating effects of fire, the presence of the snail is an indicator that things are going well. So says a team of researchers at the University of Barcelona, who has studied the changing structure of animal populations after a fire.
The researchers conducted a sampling in the area affected by fire in August 2003 that devastated 3,000 hectares of natural park of Sant Llorenç del Munt il'Obac. Three years later, compared the situation in the burned area with an area near the park that had not been affected by fire in order to analyze how varies malacological fauna (molluscs).
Difficult survival
"The terrestrial gastropods-snails, have a very limited capacity to reproduce in damaged areas. They are very slow when it comes to recolonize an area affected by a disturbance," says Vicenç Bros, gastropods specialist of the Technical Office of Natural Parks Barcelona Provincial Council. "Also, are much more affected than other agencies because, unlike other animals that can run, they need to have small shelters under rocks or in the trunks of trees to survive." They get to hide a small proportion of the population, which in future will be to repopulate the area.
One of the main conclusions of the study, published in the journal Biodiversity and Conservation "is that after the fire, the species typical of moist forests in Europe (as 'Pomatias elegans' or 'Acanthinula aculeata') are very concerned. In contrast, the predominate in drier environments, such as the Mediterranean ( 'Xerocrassa penchinati' or 'Cernuella virgata') spread more easily, according to Bros.
The researchers found that in areas near the edge of the fire has not been a significant increase of forest species. The drought that affected the area between 2004 and 2007 may have decreased the ability of snails to repopulate the burned area.
This research is part of a multidisciplinary study that analyzed the evolution of different bodies after fires, such as birds, reptiles and various types of arthropods (insects, arachnids, etc).
jueves, 11 de febrero de 2010
Clean energy for the poorest of Kenya
Oddly enough, the electricity is still a luxury for many Africans. A luxury that a group of youths from Kibera, one of the most miserable shantytowns of Africa, wants to make available to all. Sarah breast Beginning, the famous African grandmother of U.S. President, Barack Obama.
Robert and his friends realized one day that they were sick of being poor. Their twenties, had no profession or property and tired of seeing that, despite the many NGOs that are flooding the black continent, the reality around them remained the same as always: abject poverty, the lack of any infrastructure and basic service.
Eight years after that sharing, Robert Kheyi-29-year-leads with his friends a youth organization in Kibera, Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, which aims to get solar power, clean, quality, people under the planet's resources.
Obama's grandmother
The first to receive the benefits of supply through solar panels was the grandmother of President Obama, who gave 80 years for the first time a switch. It was in August last year, when the army of volunteers arrived in Kibera Kogelo-Obama African people near Lake Victoria to install eight large solar panels on the roof of the illustrious neighbor, which, together with the school principal the light zone clean-enjoy.
The flagship product created and devised by the 'Program for youth in Kibera "is a portable lamp light range of up to six hours. It is a small tool, easy to use and durable. His only problem: price. "We sell the unit to 3,500 shillings, a still very high cost to the purchasing power of the people of Kibera," laments Robert Kheyi, who is preparing to solve the difficulty by introducing an unprecedented small installment payment system, which is very rare in Africa.
"We started taking all this in common: we left school, but not for lack of talent. Some had no money to pay school fees, others were orphaned and had to feed and take care of his brothers," says Robert Kheyi from the small and humble workshop now become an assembly plant sunlamps.
Free courses
"We wanted to organize, do something, but we refused to accept the help of NGOs or ask for charity. It was there where he was born the idea to start with solar energy, an investment for the future". Investment in the future no doubt few can imagine how helpful it is in poor and rural Africa. Today, nearly a decade later, Robert Kheyi get in his humble office made of tin and no running water. But with clean energy.
Today, the organization provides training to young people like the founders, were eager and few resources. "A six-month course in solar energy easily cost $ 1,500 [$ 1,000]. Here we give free." For now, young people are in training, but very soon these pioneers who will lead by example.
Besides being a social and innovative, sunlamps workshop is a perfect solution in a world in need of remedies against the effects of climate change. In African cities kerosene is the main fuel for power generation. In rural areas of Africa, what replaced coal. In both cases, harmful to health and also for the environment. Work and effort that since 2005 have been recognized by various institutions promoting clean energy in South Africa, Switzerland and the UK, and shows that everything can be witty.
Robert and his friends realized one day that they were sick of being poor. Their twenties, had no profession or property and tired of seeing that, despite the many NGOs that are flooding the black continent, the reality around them remained the same as always: abject poverty, the lack of any infrastructure and basic service.
Eight years after that sharing, Robert Kheyi-29-year-leads with his friends a youth organization in Kibera, Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, which aims to get solar power, clean, quality, people under the planet's resources.
Obama's grandmother
The first to receive the benefits of supply through solar panels was the grandmother of President Obama, who gave 80 years for the first time a switch. It was in August last year, when the army of volunteers arrived in Kibera Kogelo-Obama African people near Lake Victoria to install eight large solar panels on the roof of the illustrious neighbor, which, together with the school principal the light zone clean-enjoy.
The flagship product created and devised by the 'Program for youth in Kibera "is a portable lamp light range of up to six hours. It is a small tool, easy to use and durable. His only problem: price. "We sell the unit to 3,500 shillings, a still very high cost to the purchasing power of the people of Kibera," laments Robert Kheyi, who is preparing to solve the difficulty by introducing an unprecedented small installment payment system, which is very rare in Africa.
"We started taking all this in common: we left school, but not for lack of talent. Some had no money to pay school fees, others were orphaned and had to feed and take care of his brothers," says Robert Kheyi from the small and humble workshop now become an assembly plant sunlamps.
Free courses
"We wanted to organize, do something, but we refused to accept the help of NGOs or ask for charity. It was there where he was born the idea to start with solar energy, an investment for the future". Investment in the future no doubt few can imagine how helpful it is in poor and rural Africa. Today, nearly a decade later, Robert Kheyi get in his humble office made of tin and no running water. But with clean energy.
Today, the organization provides training to young people like the founders, were eager and few resources. "A six-month course in solar energy easily cost $ 1,500 [$ 1,000]. Here we give free." For now, young people are in training, but very soon these pioneers who will lead by example.
Besides being a social and innovative, sunlamps workshop is a perfect solution in a world in need of remedies against the effects of climate change. In African cities kerosene is the main fuel for power generation. In rural areas of Africa, what replaced coal. In both cases, harmful to health and also for the environment. Work and effort that since 2005 have been recognized by various institutions promoting clean energy in South Africa, Switzerland and the UK, and shows that everything can be witty.
Chinese farms pollute even more than companies
Chinese factories are notorious but farmers and ranchers even pollute more than they. So says the first official census of China on the pollution in the country, which was made public this week. The study also shows that water pollution is twice as severe than previously thought, since the figures available so far had been omitted from agricultural waste.
In preparing the report have been taken two years of work. 570,000 people have participated and have collected six million data sources, which include factories, farms, households and waste treatment facilities. The next census will not be available until 2020.
According to the report, land cultivated by farmers more water polluting emissions from its factories. According to some sources quoted by 'The Guardian', the publication of the census was postponed due to opposition from the Chinese Agriculture Ministry, which in the past had insisted that farmers were responsible for only a small part of the environmental problem.
Some environmental groups believe that this report represents a small step on the path to the transparency of the Chinese system.
Heavy reliance on fertilizers
During the presentation of the census, the Agriculture Ministry spokesman Wang Yangliang, acknowledged the problems arising from intensive farming methods, "Fertilizers and pesticides have been important for increasing productivity but its misuse has also had a serious impact on the environment, "he said. "The rapid development of animal husbandry and aquaculture has produced lots of food but are major sources of pollution in our lives."
While the high numbers of rural pollution is partly explained by the enormous size of China's agricultural sector also reflect the heavy dependence on artificial methods such as fertilizers.
The Government asserts claims that are necessary because China has only 7% of land area to feed 22% of world population. And a 'lobby' industry is pushing for more use of chemicals.
Another serious problem is the unreliability of the data. Many businesses and local governments offer emissions figures well below reality. It is not yet measure different forms of pollution and some data are not made public. The deputy minister of environmental protection, Zhang Lijun, said that over the coming years will increase the measurement systems.
In preparing the report have been taken two years of work. 570,000 people have participated and have collected six million data sources, which include factories, farms, households and waste treatment facilities. The next census will not be available until 2020.
According to the report, land cultivated by farmers more water polluting emissions from its factories. According to some sources quoted by 'The Guardian', the publication of the census was postponed due to opposition from the Chinese Agriculture Ministry, which in the past had insisted that farmers were responsible for only a small part of the environmental problem.
Some environmental groups believe that this report represents a small step on the path to the transparency of the Chinese system.
Heavy reliance on fertilizers
During the presentation of the census, the Agriculture Ministry spokesman Wang Yangliang, acknowledged the problems arising from intensive farming methods, "Fertilizers and pesticides have been important for increasing productivity but its misuse has also had a serious impact on the environment, "he said. "The rapid development of animal husbandry and aquaculture has produced lots of food but are major sources of pollution in our lives."
While the high numbers of rural pollution is partly explained by the enormous size of China's agricultural sector also reflect the heavy dependence on artificial methods such as fertilizers.
The Government asserts claims that are necessary because China has only 7% of land area to feed 22% of world population. And a 'lobby' industry is pushing for more use of chemicals.
Another serious problem is the unreliability of the data. Many businesses and local governments offer emissions figures well below reality. It is not yet measure different forms of pollution and some data are not made public. The deputy minister of environmental protection, Zhang Lijun, said that over the coming years will increase the measurement systems.
miércoles, 10 de febrero de 2010
Future deserts on Earth
The Mediterranean is one of the areas most likely to become a desert, a danger ahead for 38% of the land surface. The alarming conclusion belongs to a Spanish research study published in International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment '.
The scientists measured the impact of human activity in their environment through a method known as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and a geographic information system (GIS, its acronym in English). For the first time, included indicators of desertification and classified 15 natural areas according to their degree of aridity.
Of the areas studied, eight were listed as areas at risk of desertification, which represents 38% of the Earth's surface.
"In the case of Spain, the Jucar basin, the Segura and the southeastern Ebro are some of the areas most at risk of desertification due to climatic conditions," said Montserrat Núñez, lead author of the study.
Overall, North Africa, Middle East, Australia, southwest China and western South America are the most threatened areas. On a scale of 1 to 10, these subtropical desert regions have a risk of desertification of 7.6, according to this research. In the case of the Mediterranean, the risk would be 6.3 out of 10. Marine areas and grasslands were a 4 on this scale.
The overexploitation of aquifers, aridity, erosion and fire risk are primarily responsible for desertification. "The unsustainable use can lead to soil degradation. If it occurs in arid, semiarid and dry sub-humid, like Spain, the degradation is called desertification and the effects may be irreversible, because they create totally unproductive areas," said Nunez.
The first part of the study, the scientists who worked at the Technological University of Mendoza (Argentina) and the Autonomous University of Barcelona, has focused on developing the research method, which can also compare the impact of a single human activity different places. Currently being implemented in Argentina and Spain.
The scientists measured the impact of human activity in their environment through a method known as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and a geographic information system (GIS, its acronym in English). For the first time, included indicators of desertification and classified 15 natural areas according to their degree of aridity.
Of the areas studied, eight were listed as areas at risk of desertification, which represents 38% of the Earth's surface.
"In the case of Spain, the Jucar basin, the Segura and the southeastern Ebro are some of the areas most at risk of desertification due to climatic conditions," said Montserrat Núñez, lead author of the study.
Overall, North Africa, Middle East, Australia, southwest China and western South America are the most threatened areas. On a scale of 1 to 10, these subtropical desert regions have a risk of desertification of 7.6, according to this research. In the case of the Mediterranean, the risk would be 6.3 out of 10. Marine areas and grasslands were a 4 on this scale.
The overexploitation of aquifers, aridity, erosion and fire risk are primarily responsible for desertification. "The unsustainable use can lead to soil degradation. If it occurs in arid, semiarid and dry sub-humid, like Spain, the degradation is called desertification and the effects may be irreversible, because they create totally unproductive areas," said Nunez.
The first part of the study, the scientists who worked at the Technological University of Mendoza (Argentina) and the Autonomous University of Barcelona, has focused on developing the research method, which can also compare the impact of a single human activity different places. Currently being implemented in Argentina and Spain.
miércoles, 3 de febrero de 2010
Food prices rise 2.15% for climate impact
Wholesale prices of food rose 2.15 percent in January, well above the 0.27 percent rise on the same month last year by the impact of El Nino weather phenomenon on crops, the Ministry of Agriculture.The variation in the first month of this year also contrasted with the fall of 0.21 percent reported that food prices in December.
Foods contribute nearly a third of total inflation in the country.
"The reason for this increase is specifically the problems we had with tubers, especially damage (crops) in the subject of potato frost and for the same reason vegetables and cold-weather vegetables, where we have major increases (price ), "said Agriculture Minister Andres Fernandez.
Analysts estimate that the impact of El Niño, an abnormal warming of waters in the equatorial Pacific that disrupts global weather patterns, especially around the Asia-Pacific region will remain on crops in the country during the first quarter of this year.
But the Climate Prediction Center of the U.S. government believes that the phenomenon will last until the start of the summer of 2010 in June.
The major increases in prices were in charge of the tubers, at 8.85 percent, vegetables and vegetable 4.37 percent, the various food segment in 2.41 percent, fruit by 1 , 8 per cent and meat by 0.87 percent.
The good behavior of food prices was one of the main factors that Colombia achieved a 2 percent inflation in 2009, well below the target set by the Central Bank for that year, between 4.5 and 5.5 percent.By 2010 the monetary authority set an inflation target of 2 to 4 percent.
The National Statistics Department (DANE) plans to disclose the report of the January inflation on Friday, February 5th.
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