Thursday, July 28, 2011/ www.Ecological-problems

Globally speaking world cares very little for our environment and planet Earth in general. Money and economy still heavily outweigh environment and ecology. Why? Because our moral values have been degraded by the holy grail of western culture which best summoned in the so called “American dream” where the desire to become rich is the basic principles of life. The United States are not today only at verge of economic but also environmental collapse but yet all the talk is about how to get economy out of trouble. Environment is always neglected because politicians always think they have all the time in the world when it comes to environmental issues. Sadly, this is not the case today, especially with the biggest environmental threat of them all-climate change. Climate change will soon run out of control unless we make big cuts in greenhouse gas emissions on global level-this is what majority of scientists repeats day after day. But these scientific warnings are of very little use because world leaders still have divided opinions about the needed cuts which mean that globally speaking climate change issue is stuck into never-ending status quo with very little chance of moving forward. Other environmental issues are also becoming more and more serious. Biodiversity loss is threatening to wipe out large number of animal and plant species and many scientists are already mentioning yet another mass extinction event.

Air and water pollution are also running out of control in certain parts of the world, particularly in developing countries like China and India. World desperately lacks global environmental conscience and this can only be achieved with the new set of society values. If we continue to value money above everything else then this could soon become the downfall of our society. Nature’s way needs to become our way, it’s as simple as that. The sooner we realize this, the better. Our children and grandchildren deserve much better legacy than the one we are currently preparing for them.

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Text6.

Can one person slow global warming? Actually, yes. You—along with scientists, businesses and governments—can create paths to cut carbon emissions. Here is our guide to some of the planet’s best ideas.

Are corn husks better than corn for producing energy? Ethanol is the alternative fuel that could finally wean the U.S. from its expensive oil habit and in turn prevent the millions of tons of carbon emissions that go with it. The Department of Energy has doubled its 2005 commitment to funding research into biofuels—any non-petroleum fuel source, including corn, soybean, switchgrass, municipal waste and used cooking oil. Already, half of the nearly 11 billion bushels of corn produced each year is turned into ethanol, and most new cars are capable of running on E10 (10% ethanol and 90% gas).

Yet the eco-friendly fuel is beginning to look less chummy of late. Some of the 114 ethanol plants in the U.S. use natural gas and even coal to run the processors. And ethanol has to be trucked. Existing gas pipelines can’t carry it because it corrodes iron. Then there are the economics. Producers depend on federal subsidies, and increasing demand for corn as fuel means the kernels keep getting pricier.

That’s why researchers are prospecting for more alternatives, preferably ones that don’t rely on food crops or a 51 cents-per-gallon tax break. Municipal waste, wood pulp and leftover grain and corn husks are all quite attractive; they can produce something called cellulosic ethanol, which contains more energy than corn. But they don’t give up their bounty easily, so for now they’re more expensive than corn-based ethanol to produce. Undeterred, researchers at several cellulosic-ethanol plants are developing innovative enzyme concoctions and heating methods to make the process more economic. Nothing like haste to make something out of waste.