Global Warming for Dummies by Elizabeth May

Elizabeth May, the Green Party leader of Canada, and Zoe Caron of the Sierra Club, have joined force and published a book that they would like our prime minister, Stephen Harper, to read it…no pun intended, the title is: Global Warming For Dummies.  It was out since October 2008 and May was supposed to give Harper a copy back then.  I wonder if he’s read it…..

I actually haven’t read it… anyone with comments??

Greener Gadgets Show in New York

If you happen to be in New York this weekend, you can check ou tthe “Greener Gadgets” show on February 27 where

innovators, entrepreneurs, visionaries, and eco-designers will return to New York City to discuss the future of sustainability for the consumer electronics industry

Make sure you check out the Green Gadgets Design Competition, hmm…..  what should I buy my  next item towards sustainability, how about a Lightimus?  What is your fav and “must haves” in 2009?

Divorce ‘bad’ for climate change?

“DIVORCE adds to the impact of global warming as couples switch to wasteful single lifestyles”

by Family First senator Steve Fielding

Steve oh Steve, is there ever a more appropriate time to bring up family values and climate change!  I admire how Senator Fileding brings this infront of the Australian Senate.  In the news article, he further stated that he was quoting from an American report.  

So I searched around and found this 2007 paper by Yu and Liu.  They surveyed thousands of married couples and divorced individuals from 12 countries.  In particular, they concluded that for thte year of 2005, divorced households in the USA:

• spend 46% and 56% more on electricity and water per person than married households; and
• could have saved more than:
• • 38 million rooms;
  • 73 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity; and 
  • 627 billion gallons of water.

Using the DOE’s average emission factor for the US in 2007 of 0.676 tonnesCO2e/MWh, staying married can save 49,348 tonnes CO2-equivalent.  Or, in other words, the amount of pollution that US divorcees could have saved is equivalent of reducing 4441 large SUVs driving 24,000 km (or 15,000 miles) per year!  

Now, let’s stay married to save the planet!

Carbon tax bad, lower business tax good. Of course they’re not related!?

I read this article last night, and this is the type of articles that makes me a bit…eh,  annoyed.

“We oppose the carbon tax. We are convinced it doesn’t do a thing to reduce carbon emissions,” said David D. Hull, executive director of the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce.

In the same article, he also praises the lowered business tax:

Small business got a giant helping hand from the province in October. After dropping the corporate tax rate on the first $400,000 of small business income to 3.5 per cent in July, Victoria slashed it again to 2.5 per cent, effective Dec. 1 ……  ”We’re one of the best jurisdictions in North America for business tax, and we’re just getting better,” said Hull.

“We see those steps as a long-term positive for the province of British Columbia.”

Well… Mr. Hull, have you read the BC 2008 Budget?  The small business corporate tax reduction is the result of the “revenue neutral carbon tax”!!!  

Do you know of any other articles like this??  Please send them my way….

Carbon credit confession

Not that unbelievable =)