You probably know that April 22 is Earth Day. An event which maybe most Singaporeans were unaware, until we were drawn to attention by some of the shows in the media related to it. One of them was the Inconvenient Truth on HBO. If you remember, you might have seen it's trailer in the cinemas a couple of years ago. As a documentary-junkie, I decided to find out what it was about.
If Al Gore was telling the truth, some of these consequences of global warming he highlighted were definitely startling. Quoting Mark Twain, he said "What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know, it's what we know for sure that ain't so." Essentially, this documentary presented the statistics to draw correlation between CO2 emission and degree of global warming, the consequences of global warming (what already happened and what are projected to happen), and to inspire the viewers to do their bit to reduce CO2 emission.
I thought for the benefit of those who had not watched it before, I will share with you the consequences he mentioned. Besides losing the beautiful glaciers in the world which most of us will never get to see in our lifetime, some other consequences are closer to heart:
1. Heat waves were already killing people around the world. 35,000 people killed in Europe by heat wave in 2003. 1,400 killed in the same year by heat wave in India.
2. Warmer ocean has caused stronger storms that devastated many parts of the world. Bigger typhoons and hurricanes, such as Hurricane Emily, Dennis, Katrina, were resulted from warmer ocean.
3. Uneven distribution of precipitation that caused extreme heavy downpours in some areas (such as India and China) which resulted in floods, and droughts in some areas (such as Dafur and Niger).
4. Thawing of ice caps will increase in sea level all over the world, affecting the coastal cities. Millions of people in Beijing, 40 million in Shanghai, 60 million in Calcutta, will all be affected. (Yup, Singapore no more.)
5. Migration of mosquitoes, rodents, lice, ticks, fleas and other pests to areas which used to have lower temperature. They spread emerging infectious diseases to these areas.
6. Rivers no longer reach the sea, lakes dry up. Glaciers in mountains that provide fresh water for up to 40% of population in the world will disappear.
As Al Gore had said, this isn't so much of a political issue, but a moral issue. Global warming is a fact, not a theory. Never mind if you don't care about polar bears drowning or animals losing their habitat. I think for some of us who don't need to actively worry about feeding ourselves, we can spend some time to think about how global warming will affect ourselves and the rest of the people around the world. What can we do to help them and ourselves?
I found this Top 50 List of Things We Can Do To Stop Global Warming. I think it is one of the standard list as it is published in several websites. I filtered it down to the items in which we, in Singapore, can do.
#1. Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl) - CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
#2. Install a programmable thermostat - Programmable thermostats will automatically lower the air conditioning at night and raise them again in the morning. They can save you $100 a year on your energy bill.
#3. Clean or replace filters on your air conditioner - Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
#4. Choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases - Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances to choose the most energy efficient products available.
#5. Do not leave appliances on standby - Use the "on/off" function on the machine itself. A TV set that's switched on for 3 hours a day and in standby mode during the remaining 21 hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby mode.
#6. Cover your pots while cooking - Doing so can save a lot of the energy needed for preparing the dish. Even better are pressure cookers and steamers: they can save around 70%!
#7. Use the washing machine or dishwasher only when they are full - If you need to use it when it is half full, then use the half-load or economy setting. There is also no need to set the temperatures high. Nowadays detergents are so efficient that they get your clothes and dishes clean at low temperatures.
#8. Take a shower instead of a bath - A shower takes up to four times less energy than a bath. To maximise the energy saving, avoid power showers and use low-flow shower heads, which are cheap and provide the same comfort.
#9. Use less hot water - It takes a lot of energy to heat water. You can use less hot water by installing a low flow shower head (350 pounds of carbon dioxide saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.
#10. Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible - You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.
#11. Be sure you’re recycling at home - You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.
#12. Buy intelligently - One bottle of 1.5l requires less energy and produces less waste than three bottles of 0.5l. As well, buy recycled paper products: it takes less 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper and it prevents the loss of forests worldwide.
#13. Choose products that come with little packaging and buy refills when you can - You will also cut down on waste production and energy use... another help against global warming.
#14. Reuse your shopping bag - When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop. Waste not only discharges CO2 and methane into the atmosphere, it can also pollute the air, groundwater and soil.
#15. Reduce waste - Most products we buy cause greenhouse gas emissions in one or another way, e.g. during production and distribution. By taking your lunch in a reusable lunch box instead of a disposable one, you save the energy needed to produce new lunch boxes.
#16. Buy fresh foods instead of frozen - Frozen food uses 10 times more energy to produce.
#17. Eat less meat - Methane is the second most significant greenhouse gas and cows are one of the greatest methane emitters. Their grassy diet and multiple stomachs cause them to produce methane, which they exhale with every breath.
#18. Start a carpool with your coworkers or classmates - Sharing a ride with someone just 2 days a week will reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by 1,590 pounds a year.
#19. Keep your car tuned up - Regular maintenance helps improve fuel efficiency and reduces emissions. When just 1% of car owners properly maintain their cars, nearly a billion pounds of carbon dioxide are kept out of the atmosphere.
#20. Drive carefully and do not waste fuel - You can reduce CO2 emissions by readjusting your driving style. Choose proper gears, do not abuse the gas pedal, use the engine brake instead of the pedal brake when possible and turn off your engine when your vehicle is motionless for more than one minute. By readjusting your driving style you can save money on both fuel and car maintenance.
#21. Check your tires weekly to make sure they’re properly inflated - Proper tire inflation can improve gas mileage by more than 3%. Since every gallon of gasoline saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, every increase in fuel efficiency makes a difference!
#22. Consider the impact of your investments - If you invest your money, you should consider the impact that your investments and savings will have on global warming. Check out Social Invest and Ceres to can learn more about how to ensure your money is being invested in companies, products and projects that address issues related to climate change.
#23. Share this list.
I am not a SUPER-DUPER-GREEN enthusiast. However, I believe that many items on the list benefit our pockets and help in reducing CO2 emission at the same time. While we are unable change the politics and economic motivations of giant corporations, we can do our part. Collectively, we can secure a better future.
If Al Gore was telling the truth, some of these consequences of global warming he highlighted were definitely startling. Quoting Mark Twain, he said "What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know, it's what we know for sure that ain't so." Essentially, this documentary presented the statistics to draw correlation between CO2 emission and degree of global warming, the consequences of global warming (what already happened and what are projected to happen), and to inspire the viewers to do their bit to reduce CO2 emission.
I thought for the benefit of those who had not watched it before, I will share with you the consequences he mentioned. Besides losing the beautiful glaciers in the world which most of us will never get to see in our lifetime, some other consequences are closer to heart:
1. Heat waves were already killing people around the world. 35,000 people killed in Europe by heat wave in 2003. 1,400 killed in the same year by heat wave in India.
2. Warmer ocean has caused stronger storms that devastated many parts of the world. Bigger typhoons and hurricanes, such as Hurricane Emily, Dennis, Katrina, were resulted from warmer ocean.
3. Uneven distribution of precipitation that caused extreme heavy downpours in some areas (such as India and China) which resulted in floods, and droughts in some areas (such as Dafur and Niger).
4. Thawing of ice caps will increase in sea level all over the world, affecting the coastal cities. Millions of people in Beijing, 40 million in Shanghai, 60 million in Calcutta, will all be affected. (Yup, Singapore no more.)
5. Migration of mosquitoes, rodents, lice, ticks, fleas and other pests to areas which used to have lower temperature. They spread emerging infectious diseases to these areas.
6. Rivers no longer reach the sea, lakes dry up. Glaciers in mountains that provide fresh water for up to 40% of population in the world will disappear.
As Al Gore had said, this isn't so much of a political issue, but a moral issue. Global warming is a fact, not a theory. Never mind if you don't care about polar bears drowning or animals losing their habitat. I think for some of us who don't need to actively worry about feeding ourselves, we can spend some time to think about how global warming will affect ourselves and the rest of the people around the world. What can we do to help them and ourselves?
I found this Top 50 List of Things We Can Do To Stop Global Warming. I think it is one of the standard list as it is published in several websites. I filtered it down to the items in which we, in Singapore, can do.
#1. Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl) - CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
#2. Install a programmable thermostat - Programmable thermostats will automatically lower the air conditioning at night and raise them again in the morning. They can save you $100 a year on your energy bill.
#3. Clean or replace filters on your air conditioner - Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
#4. Choose energy efficient appliances when making new purchases - Look for the Energy Star label on new appliances to choose the most energy efficient products available.
#5. Do not leave appliances on standby - Use the "on/off" function on the machine itself. A TV set that's switched on for 3 hours a day and in standby mode during the remaining 21 hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby mode.
#6. Cover your pots while cooking - Doing so can save a lot of the energy needed for preparing the dish. Even better are pressure cookers and steamers: they can save around 70%!
#7. Use the washing machine or dishwasher only when they are full - If you need to use it when it is half full, then use the half-load or economy setting. There is also no need to set the temperatures high. Nowadays detergents are so efficient that they get your clothes and dishes clean at low temperatures.
#8. Take a shower instead of a bath - A shower takes up to four times less energy than a bath. To maximise the energy saving, avoid power showers and use low-flow shower heads, which are cheap and provide the same comfort.
#9. Use less hot water - It takes a lot of energy to heat water. You can use less hot water by installing a low flow shower head (350 pounds of carbon dioxide saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.
#10. Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible - You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.
#11. Be sure you’re recycling at home - You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.
#12. Buy intelligently - One bottle of 1.5l requires less energy and produces less waste than three bottles of 0.5l. As well, buy recycled paper products: it takes less 70 to 90% less energy to make recycled paper and it prevents the loss of forests worldwide.
#13. Choose products that come with little packaging and buy refills when you can - You will also cut down on waste production and energy use... another help against global warming.
#14. Reuse your shopping bag - When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop. Waste not only discharges CO2 and methane into the atmosphere, it can also pollute the air, groundwater and soil.
#15. Reduce waste - Most products we buy cause greenhouse gas emissions in one or another way, e.g. during production and distribution. By taking your lunch in a reusable lunch box instead of a disposable one, you save the energy needed to produce new lunch boxes.
#16. Buy fresh foods instead of frozen - Frozen food uses 10 times more energy to produce.
#17. Eat less meat - Methane is the second most significant greenhouse gas and cows are one of the greatest methane emitters. Their grassy diet and multiple stomachs cause them to produce methane, which they exhale with every breath.
#18. Start a carpool with your coworkers or classmates - Sharing a ride with someone just 2 days a week will reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by 1,590 pounds a year.
#19. Keep your car tuned up - Regular maintenance helps improve fuel efficiency and reduces emissions. When just 1% of car owners properly maintain their cars, nearly a billion pounds of carbon dioxide are kept out of the atmosphere.
#20. Drive carefully and do not waste fuel - You can reduce CO2 emissions by readjusting your driving style. Choose proper gears, do not abuse the gas pedal, use the engine brake instead of the pedal brake when possible and turn off your engine when your vehicle is motionless for more than one minute. By readjusting your driving style you can save money on both fuel and car maintenance.
#21. Check your tires weekly to make sure they’re properly inflated - Proper tire inflation can improve gas mileage by more than 3%. Since every gallon of gasoline saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, every increase in fuel efficiency makes a difference!
#22. Consider the impact of your investments - If you invest your money, you should consider the impact that your investments and savings will have on global warming. Check out Social Invest and Ceres to can learn more about how to ensure your money is being invested in companies, products and projects that address issues related to climate change.
#23. Share this list.
I am not a SUPER-DUPER-GREEN enthusiast. However, I believe that many items on the list benefit our pockets and help in reducing CO2 emission at the same time. While we are unable change the politics and economic motivations of giant corporations, we can do our part. Collectively, we can secure a better future.
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