Solution To Climate Change - Virtual Assistants

The Internet surely changed the way we see things. Started as a military device, it was cropped down to consumer levels in order to build a whole new sector in the market place. Today, you can almost do anything with it. You can surf for information, see places in just a few clicks, shop on an online store open 24/7, and now you can even let someone do your job or personal things for you - ONLINE!

Virtual assistance is now an in thing for most people specially the younger generation. It offers a lot of benefits since the only money the person has to shell out is his/her electric consumption and provisions for high-speed Internet connection. One can accept jobs literally from all over the world. Like me for example, I live in the Philippines but I have a part-time job doing Marketing Research for a US based company and we only communicate through my web messenger account. We negotiate through an online website that host this kind of activities so that both parties are ensured when it comes to the output work.

Some say it's a solution to climate change since majority now will only have to stay at home to do work cutting down the usage on oil when commuting towards their offices. Since renewable energy is a hit thing today, most power providers are now looking for cheaper and more Eco-friendly alternatives therefore one can now assure himself of the electric consumption are now being produced from renewable sources.

In the long run, I can see that this can be an additional aid in lessening greenhouse emissions since majority can now stay at home with their families. Virtual assistants can go beyond limits when you look at it at a bigger perspective and I hope that someday, we can all start telecommuting and start being productive where we are.

Stop global warming! Start acting! Help the environment heal itself by lessening the chances of potentially increasing dangerous climate change.

To Slow Global Warming, Install White Roofs

If you ask an architect or a civil engineer regarding cost-efficient roofs, they will normally tell you to paint it white. Obviously for two reasons - white colored roofs will reflect heat, meaning lesser chances of using the air conditioning unit, and it's cheaper to paint it white (since you only need one color unlike other colors, which needs white as a primer or initial color before applying it). But scientist today found one more benefit - slowing global warming.

According to a data released during the Fifth Annual California Climate Change Research Conference, if the 100 biggest cities installed white roofs and change their pavements from asphalt-based materials to reflective materials, the global cooling effect will be massive.

Since 2005, the Golden State has required all flat commercial infrastructures to have white roofs. Next year, new and retrofitted residential and commercial establishments, whether flat or sloped roofs, will have to install heat reflecting materials in compliance of the energy-efficient building code. But still, there are no provisions or legislation pertaining to heat-absorbing asphalt pavements, which is a cheap byproduct of oil refining.

According to Hashem Akbari, a physicist with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a 1,000 square-foot roof - the average size of an American home - offset 10 metric tons of planet-heating carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere of dark-colored shingles or coatings are replaced with white material.

According to recent statistics, Globally - roofs account for 25% of the surface of most cities, and pavements account for 35%. Considering these data, if all major urban cities shifted to these kind of materials, an estimated 44 metric gigatons will offset the production of greenhouse gasses, which have been trapping heat in the atmosphere and altering the climate for a potentially dangerous scale.

That is more than all the countries emit in a year. Installing these heat-reflective materials will induce cooler atmospheres thus offsetting 10 years of emission growth even without slashing industrial pollution.

"I call it a win-win" Akbari said. "First, a cooler environment not only conserves energy but induce comfort. Second, cooling a city by a few degrees dramatically reduces smog. And third, is offsetting global warming."

Carbon Tax to Solve Global Warming

According to a top US economist last Thursday that in order to fight global warming, carbon taxes and not cap and trade market alone will lead the technological changes the world's energy system needs.

Spending almost $65 billion a year for permits to emit greenhouse gasses, cap and trade has been the dominant choice to slow global warming. The European Union, under the Kyoto Protocol, even adopted the policies as well as other US companies who volunteered for the program which by the way, are the major carbon polluters.

Jeffrey Sachs - a special advisor to the U.N. Secretary General and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University - told a panel last Thursday that it is much more cheaper and simpler to put carbon tax on energy production rather than  putting a cap on tens and thousands of polluters. This carbon tax will somehow focus at an oil wellhead or refinery. 

As the world prepares to form  a successor agreement for the Kyoto Protocol by the end of next year, focus is sharpening on how well is the cap and trade markets are fighting emissions. Carbon taxes will quickly cut emissions across all sectors of the economy, including vehicles and manufacturing, said Sachs. It could be more efficient than spreading the trade of permits across the financial system.  

Clean Energy Act of The Philippines

Manila, Philippines - with the passing of its Renewable Energy Act - the Philippines can save over US $2.9billion according to a recent study by WWF and the University of the Philippines. This legislation took 19 years in the making and now, the senate has reach a decision to push with the bill.

The savings would come from increasing the country's renewable energy share in its power generation mix from 0.16% to 41% from wind, solar, ocean, run-of-river hydropower and biomass. Today 26% of the country's power comes from burning oil. Last year the country has imported 101.4 million barrels of oil alone, costing a staggering US $7.5billion.

In passing this landmark legislation, the senate has paved the way in attaining energy independence and low-carbon growth. By tapping into massive clean energy sources - the Philippines is now moving towards an era of sustainable development while contributing to the global efforts in to prevent dangerous climate change. This will also give the Philippines an advantage in focusing the $3 million rebate into other programs that needs attention.

The landmark legislation aims to accelerate the development and use of the nation's vast renewable energy resources through fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to investors. It also assures investors in wind, solar, biomass, ocean, and run-of-river hydropower of premium rates in electricity generated from these clean sources through feed-in tariffs.

Other incentives include duty-free importation of equipment, tax-credit on domestic capital equipment and services, special realty tax rates, income tax holidays, net operating loss carry-over, accelerated depreciation, and exemption from universal change and wheeling charges.

Sarah Palin on the Environment

This coming November of 2008, the world will witness history in the making as democrats and republicans fight again to claim the presidency of the United States of America. Bush will no longer run this time and will allow two parties with different viewpoints clash and seek supremacy at the end of this year. But let me cut down the chase and focus on the stand of republican Governor Sarah Palin running for the vice-president position regarding the environment.

She claims that "climate change is not to be attributed as man made" during an interview with news week. Her state (Alaska) is by far the one who is affected most of it but still she insist that this is a natural phenomenon that is not solely blamable to mankind's actions. Now my position on that... BULL@#$%!

Looking at her platform on "environmental reforms", she is pro-oil drilling in the ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) because according to scientist, Alaska holds approximately 10.3 billions bbl of "recoverable undiscovered oil," which will make it the largest onshore oil deposits in the US. With her running mate Mccain who was quoted "if you want to drill, drill, drill, ANWR is where you will start" . 

ANWR is home of bears, gray wolves, sandhill cranes, and a herd of caribou. Now when you look at it in a very simplistic manner, opening up an oil-drilling center in that area will cause a domino effect in the ecology. You have to realize that in order to establish that oil-drilling activity, one must invest in transportation (thus creation of unwanted service roads), waste disposal and operation of heavy machinery that can add to the daily carbon emissions. Even though she promises to tapped only a portion (19 million acre) of the undiscovered oil, this will still make a dent in the surrounding areas. 

She is now even with Bush when it comes to environmental reforms and when you look at it, Bush even change his position today regarding climate change. He is now pro to capping the gas emissions of major companies to a minimum in order to minimize and eventually decrease the production of these gasses. 

There was even an instance that Sarah Palin sued the Federal Government for stating a fact that the polar bears are threatened species due to warming. Her act of suing is no doubt self-service since this statement can stop the policy in opening the ANWR for oil-drilling. 

Even though she claims that this will help the Americans solve the energy problem, most economist claim that this action can only cause a minimal change in the long-run. There is no guarantee that pushing for the onshore drilling will cause a rising effect in their economy.

To know more about her position for the environment, click here.

As for me, I say NO to Sarah Palin!

7 Ways To Be Energy Efficient At Home

On the advent of rising fuel cost and high increase of demand in energy production, a lot of power-generating plants are looking for more raw materials to convert to energy. As a result, the environment suffers from these industrial plants and at the same time, these power plants can dictate the price of generating and transmitting this energy to consumers' houses. And looking at our economy today, more and more companies are finding ways to eliminate high usage of electricity simply because it can cut down their cost to more than 40% of their total annual budget. 

Looking at an ordinary consumer with an average monthly salary, it is only imperative to cut cost in order to survive in this community. One way to do it is by cutting down the usage of our electricity.  When one decide to do this, there are a lot of benefits that will follow through. 

But the questions is, how do we do this? How can one be energy efficient at home? So here are 7 simple ways that you can contribute in greening the earth.

1.  Replace your OLD Refrigerator - The older the fridge, the higher in consumes energy to maintain the desired temperature. There has been a lot of significant changes in this industry in improving energy efficiency so that it can both benefit the consumers as well as the environment. Direct Energy spokesperson Lisa Dornan said "If you look at the top-rated refrigerator in 2001 that was Energy Star, and one that you would buy today with an Energy Star rating, there would be a 20% to 40% difference in energy efficiency" during a press conference about minimizing energy consumption. Her firm performs home energy audit and energy retailer. As a rule of thumb, when buying refrigerators, always look at the energy efficiency ratio (EER). The higher it is, the better. Also, anything that has a motor in you appliance set, try to have it replaced with newer models and make sure to check the EER.
   
2. Install programmable timers and thermostats - When buying appliances, make sure it comes with a timer or thermostat sensor in order to make it more efficient. This is helpful because it can minimize the usage of appliances when not in use. Best example is your air conditioning unit that can be programmed to switch on and off the time you leave your house and the time you come home so that it will not keep on removing the heat of the house all the time. 
3. Don't let the heat escape - Caulk your windows and door frames to make sure they are airtight. Also, try to install honeycombed-type shades in order to trap the heat before it goes inside your house.
4. Use compact fluorescent bulbs - this is a no brainer kind of suggestion. This kind of bulbs are very efficient and easy to produce. It can dramatically decrease your power consumption as much as $400 per 10 incandescent bulbs.
5. Change the filter of your air conditioner unit- this will help you AC units to function properly and detect thermostat changes in order to require it's machine to operate. This will also help minimize wear and tear on your unit. 
6. Invest in an attic fan - for regular homes, try installing an attic fan, it is more energy efficient and it can remove unwanted heat to make your house feel cooler. For people who live at apartments or condo units, try buying an energy efficient fan in replacement of your AC unit during the cooler season. 
7. UNPLUG all appliances not in use - even though your TV set is not switched on, by merely plugging it to the power outlet inducts energy thus increasing your bill at a certain level. Try unplugging unused appliances and switching off lights when not in use in order to cut down on the cost and minimize energy loss.

So these are some ways that can help you be energy efficient at home that can benefit you, your family and the environment. But before I end this article, I would also suggest to look for those power savers being sold at hardware stores. These are devices that cuts down the energy loss being transmitted in your home by reusing it in the system. These are somewhat expensive devices but when you look at it in the long run, it will help you cut down on your cost.