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26 Oct 06
Okay, I've made this thread to encourage others and to get ideas from others on what we can do to tackle global warming.
In all seriousness I can't expect you to do anything substantial, nothing like buying a hybrid car or buying a wind turbine for your house (they are expensive!); but I am encouraging you to do a few easy things that take little effort and don't cost you much at all.
What I am referring to are things like making your house more energy efficient - this will save on the amount of energy you use in your home, saving you money in the long run.
Periodically I will post about a single thing you can do, and describe how it will benefit you.
I encourage others to help here by perhaps giving extra details if you can and bringing up other areas that I have yet to cover; I also encourage you to implement some of these ideas if you can at home, but also to discuss what you learn here with your friends and family, so hopefully they can help too.
Energy efficiency tip #1
Energy saving light bulbs -
1. They consume up to 80% less power than traditional light bulbs.
2. They last on average 12 times longer than traditional light bulbs - I say again 12 times longer, that's a long time.
3. The initial cost of these energy efficient light bulbs is higher than the traditional ones at the moment; however, the lower power consumption, combined with their much longer life means that you will save a lot of money in the long run.
On average each energy saving light bulb will save you £9 each year. If your house had all of your bulbs replaced with energy efficient ones you would saves hundreds of pounds as the years went past.
For example: If you replaced 11 of your traditional light bulbs with energy efficient ones you would save on average around £99 each year.
Of course if you have already done this then you need a pat on the back. Well done! You can tell us how much it has saved you so far.
It doesn't just help the environment; it makes economic sense.
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by princeoforangeHowever, anything that helps stop the Northern hemisphere plunging into an ice age or half the land mass of Europe disappearing under the sea probably makes economic sense too.
If it didn't make economic sense I don't think I would do it, but seeing it makes economic sense it is certainly worth consideration.
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by WheelySo lets see:
However, anything that helps stop the Northern hemisphere plunging into an ice age or half the land mass of Europe disappearing under the sea probably makes economic sense too.
Global warming is going to cause an ice age in the Northern Hemisphere and also it is going to cause half the landmass of Europe (which happens to be in the Northern Hemisphere) to disappear into the sea?! Really, Wheely bin, be sensible.
27 Oct 06
2 edits
Originally posted by princeoforangePerhaps you'll notice the word "or" in my post. This usually suggests than one thing might be the case but also suggests that the other thing might be the case instead. It usually doesn't mean both things at the same time.
So lets see:
Global [b]warming is going to cause an ice age in the Northern Hemisphere and also it is going to cause half the landmass of Europe (which happens to be in the Northern Hemisphere) to disappear into the sea?! Really, Wheely bin, be sensible.[/b]
I appreciate that not looking at the whole picture is very easy when debate means attempting to justify gut feeling rather than looking at the facts but I would urge you to read carefully before posting.
EDIT: For your information, there is an argument that global warming could bring on significant cooling of the Northern hemisphere due to the collapse of ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream.
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27 Oct 06
1 edit
Originally posted by princeoforangeIf you want more details I can certainly give you some:
So lets see:
Global [b]warming is going to cause an ice age in the Northern Hemisphere and also it is going to cause half the landmass of Europe (which happens to be in the Northern Hemisphere) to disappear into the sea?! Really, Wheely bin, be sensible.[/b]
The gulf stream is an ocean current that runs from the gulf of Mexico up across the atlantic bringing heat towards the UK and much of western europe. It is driven by surface and differences in water density.
Basically it works like this: The heated water in the gulf of Mexico moves towards Europe , and in the north of the Atlantic this water becomes cold, becoming more salty and more dense, so it sinks to the ocean floor; it then moves back to the Gulf of Mexico where it is heated and rises; for it to travel back to europe again.
However, because of Global warming a lot of ice has melted from the Greenland ice sheet, Antartica and the north pole; this means that a lot of fresh water has been added to the system, and this means that the salinity (salt content) of the Atlantic water will decrease (it has been diluted).
This means the flow of the gulf stream will decrease or even shut down all altogether because less water in the north atlantic will sink and move back to mexico, as not as much water will increase in density as their is less salt to do this.
Current climate models predict that if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, the gulf stream will decrease in strength by 25% in the next hundred years, possibly making it instable and maybe shutting it down altogether.
The consequences:
A reduced gulf stream would mean that less heat is brought to north-west Europe and therefore cause harsher winters. However, current climate model predictions are confident that the increase in temperatures resulting from an increase in greenhouse gas emissions is much greater than the potential cooling effect, so a cooling of the UK climate is unlikely this century.
I guess we're lucky on this front. 😕
Edit: I believe the movie 'The Day After Tomorrow' was based on the consequences of this event.
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27 Oct 06
Originally posted by mancityboyIt depends on how much you use your lights, but if you're like any other average person:
I've got 15 light bulbs. How much would I save?
15 x £9 = £135 per year.
I think they work this out with you using each light bulb 3 hours a day, so I'm probably way off, I'm pretty sure you won't use all of your lights for 3 hours a day everyday.
The initial costs of the light bulbs is of course slightly higher, so this will cut away much of what you save in the first year, but over the 11 other years you will save a lot.
And over 12 years:
12 x £135 = £1620
Again, you probably won't use every light bulb for 3 hours each day, so you may save less.
Oil prices are going up, demand for all types of fuels are going up, supply of the fuels is becoming more and more difficult: electricity prices will go up, so you would save even more money in a few years.
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27 Oct 06
Originally posted by princeoforangeDefinitely, the way energy prices seem to be spiking at the moment, it is definitely a good idea to find ways on cutting back on the amount of energy you use; it will save you money.
If it didn't make economic sense I don't think I would do it, but seeing it makes economic sense it is certainly worth consideration.
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by princeoforangeYes, global warming does induce ice ages. Just because it says warming doesn't mean that it means "no ice."
So lets see:
Global [b]warming is going to cause an ice age in the Northern Hemisphere and also it is going to cause half the landmass of Europe (which happens to be in the Northern Hemisphere) to disappear into the sea?! Really, Wheely bin, be sensible.[/b]
Basically, if I understand correctly, warming melts the ice at the poles, which causes a shift in the current system in the oceans. That shift of currents causes the cold weather.
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by Bad wolfYou're just treating the symptoms, not the disease.
Okay, I've made this thread to encourage others and to get ideas from others on what we can do to tackle global warming.
In all seriousness I can't expect you to do anything substantial, nothing like buying a hybrid car or buying a wind turbine for your house (they are expensive!); but I am encouraging you to do a few easy things that take little effort ...[text shortened]... it has saved you so far.
It doesn't just help the environment; it makes economic sense.
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by WheelyAh yes, that handy word "or".
Perhaps you'll notice the word "or" in my post. This usually suggests than one thing might be the case but also suggests that the other thing might be the case instead.
It could by global cooling
or
It could be global warming
or
Just to be on the safe side we'll call it climate change, then we'll have the "I told you so" card to play whichever way it goes.
or
Just in case nothing happens we'll say these things "may" happen rather than "will" happen so that when we've killed business for no reason (which was our whole intention anyway) we can claim that we never said anything WOULD happen, only that it MAY happen.
These are great tactics, wheely bin, are you by any chance a civil servant?
or
Did you play Sir Humphrey in "Yes Minister!"?
27 Oct 06
Originally posted by princeoforangeRead what people say, not what you think they say. I mean, many of your posts show such a startling misunderstanding of what people are saying it's scary.
Ah yes, that handy word "or".
It could by global cooling
or
It could be global warming
or
Just to be on the safe side we'll call it climate change, then we'll have the "I told you so" card to play whichever way it goes.
or
Just in case nothing happens we'll say these things "may" happen rather than "will" happen so that when we've killed busi ...[text shortened]... by any chance a civil servant?
or
Did you play Sir Humphrey in "Yes Minister!"?
You are remarkable as an example of someone who can add two plus two and come up with five. As the saying goes, this is never true, even for very large values of two.