Don't Need A Weather Man To Know Which Way The Wind Blows...

In the last 20 years in particular, there has been an increase in some kinds of extreme weather events, notably erratic rainfall, contributing to floods and droughts, as well as rising sea levels and seasonal unpredictability. The results of these climate changes are failed harvests, disappearing islands, destroyed homes, water scarcity and deepening health crises. And that means millions upon millions of people who were already struggling are finding it even more difficult to get food, water and shelter. And as always it's poor people and the 3rd world which will suffer first. You just have to look out of your window to see how erratic weather patterns are becoming. . . or turn on your tv. So we're talking floods and droughts. Of course one of the solutions to this is vertical or indoor farms, which grow crops in urban environments in rotating trays beneath UV lights. The advantage being it takes up less space and can be grown anywhere.

However there could be greater threats. I've heard some scientists predict great earthquakes caused by tectonic plates shifting as the great weight applied onto them by ice caps is removed as they melt, speculation of course.

Other's fear we could create a new ice age as the sun enters a cooling phase and the gulf stream changes. The origins of the gulf stream lie in the Gulf of Mexico and it carries the tropical waters from the Florida Straight to the great banks of the United States, where it heads eastward, carrying its warm waters to the borders of the North Atlantic.

As soon as the tropical waters hit the Arctic Ocean, they cool abruptly and plunge towards the abyssal zone to form a loop, known as "thermohaline circulation." Then, like an immense conveyor belt that slows down in the ocean depths, it sets out again southward to rejoin the beginning of the Gulf Stream. IF all the ice melts due to rising temperature the gulf stream will be affected and could result in a complete thermohaline shutdown and throw the Earth into a new Ice Age.

It should be stated here this is only one possibility and there is science to prove or disprove it either way.

On a slightly more optimistic note a recent report showed that the effects of Global Warming has actually stopped although others warn it could return in 2015 and much worse than before. Other's feel it will prove to be complete bullshit and/or may just be down to natural conditions or may be caused more by the actual sea and not rising CO 2 levels at all. Scary stuff but no one really knows.

HOWEVER we should surely plan for worst and hope for the best and this means a full conversion to green power which seems to be starting now anyhow, more hybrid cars, electric car recharge points in the local park's car parks, wind farms and geothermal plants. I've even seen that a few houses in my area are now fully decked out in solar panels. I think this is a good beginning but we're a long way from ONLY electric cars and panels on all roofs. This is a natural time of conversion and I'm lead to believe the world can be fully powered by renewable energy as early as 2030.

There are other advantages from switching from fossil fuels too, as we all know the world is currently addicted to petroleum . If you happen to see the movie " The Kingdom " it's quite enlightening as it deals with vast American colonies set up in the middle east and populated by American oil workers who treat their land and soil as U.S.A ground and act in accordance with their native countries beliefs and life style.
This cause a great deal of tension with some locals and their Muslim beliefs. Also they feel like it's an invasion of their land even though the foreign companies and workers are in league with their own governments. Quite simply the situation and the tensions it creates can be stopped by a change from oil. So not only is a power conversion good for the environment it's good for political relations too, of course a lot of the oil producing countries involved will be losing out on billions so they're not so eager to rush into this change and neither are the oil companies in the west and more developed world.

The argument is; change now but risk the world's economy fully collapsing or let the green technology come into use at a slower rate the world can more easily absorb BUT risk environmental catastrophe. And make no mistake the effects of this are happening now in your life time and not in some distant future!!

by kUZE rEN

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