Our parents and grandparents say,
“Why blame us for global warming?”
They point out they never had all our cars, air conditioning, computers and devices.
That is true.
However, it is not the damage of past generations so much as the story of the last thirty years and the speed of increase is concerning, as David Wallace-Wells points out:
Half of the all the emissions that have ever been produced from the burning of fossil fuels, in the entire history of humanity, have been produced in just the last thirty years.
More than in all the centuries and millennia before.
D.Wallace Wells
Wallace-Wells believes we are on the brink of catastrophe. He states this is not the work of our ancestors, it is more so the work of a single generation – his. [Despite this we are all responsible for the future.]
He also points out that it is a reflection of how much power we wield over this planet, so we can do something to help.
The obstacles may be enormous, but the main driver of global warming is human action and how much carbon we put into the atmosphere. And we can do something about that!
Because –
We will be writing the climate change story whether we like it or not.
Inaction is not a choice. I prefer alternatives and solutions.
Environmental Emissions Problems and Solutions
Problem: 2/3 of the carbon emissions can be attributed to the burning of fossil fuels!
Solution: Employ solar arrays or increase uptake of renewable energy sources. A sliver of Sahara Desert can absorb enough solar energy to power the world’s energy needs.
Problem: 2/3 of power generation is lost to waste heat so a new electric grid is needed.
Solution: Renewable energy the cheaper default for energy needs and are now cheaper than fossil fuels
Problem: The fuel companies have political and lobbying power ans influence over policy and stocks and shares are invested heavily in coal and fossil fuel companies.
Solution: – Divest from fossil fuels eg. Was Macht Mein.De
Problem: Methane and Carbon emissions from agriculture.
Solution:Turn cattle producing farms into carbon sinks and feed cattle seaweed which will gives a 90% reduction of methane
Problem: Rising sea levels from Global warming melting polar ice caps
Solution: Build seawalls and levies to protect coastal areas
Problem: An alternative type of air travel that doesn’t produce carbon is needed.
Solution: ? Unknown
We hold the future of planet in our hands.
We won’t beat climate change – but we can modulate and live with it. The only obstacles to that are human ones.
Do YOU believe you can make a difference?
Something to Ponder About 
Last year should have taught us that we needn’t get on a plane to communicate. Still there’s a lot of chatter about travel right now. I’m hoping it’s not those people whole tire us about there not being a planet B
I look at solar panels and wonder how they were produced and how we’re planning to dump them when they reach their shelf life. I note that different countries choose different ways to get around the coal issue and think it ridiculous not to have an international consensus on how climate change should be managed. Doing the right thing by the planet should not mean wrecking our way of life. Those windmills and solar panels don’t do the trick. The system isn’t perfected yet. We still rely on dispatchables to get us by. And what about India. Poor people there need coal to subsist. What are they to do? Why do we allow China to build power stations?
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This argument about China building power stations has been around for a while. I am sure they are doing just that, but they are long term planners and are heavily into solar now. That is their aim. Self-sufficiency is China’s aim, and as such they are now the largest producers of solar panels. Coal wil only be used until solar can convert their needs. They are already reducing Australia’s exports. We are building eco villages completely solar powered as we speak. No electricity from the grid!
I hear a lot about coal needing to be a transition fuel and that argument has merit but I do believe that serves us no purpose to expect that solar power should be perfect when other power sources are not. These things will take time to perfect and given the amount of investment it is bound to happen.
Regarding an international consensus. You are right we should have one, but it is so difficult to get traction on that when there are so many differnt perspectives, and needs amongst the world’s population. If we could all agree, the United Nations would have solved all our problems. We have a find a way to work together despite our differences, to problem solve the disagreements, respect each other and their POV and find the common denominator on which we might all agree.
My solar system was installed on my new house last week and I can’t believe how much coal it is theoretically saved already in that short time. 100’s of kilograms! On one house! And how much carbon has been saved from being emitted to the atmosphere. We had our first solar installed about ten years ago on our former house, ( and it is still going strong), yet the technology has moved ahead incredibly in that decade. We now have twice the size of the former system despite a similar number of panels as our old house – they have doubled their efficiency and I can only imagine the moves forward that will come in the next decade. Solar is very popular here – and so it should be as we have so much sun. Where are you located, Mary?
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We can defeat climate change if we take right decisions. Thank you 😊
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