Homework #7

Question 1:

Is it less 'ethically wrong' for countries to import natural gas compared to domestically produce it? The movie talks about how communities are affected by the extraction of natural gas. However, is it also wrong when it is imported from other developing countries?

Question 2:

Is it more important to secure national energy or protect the environment and health of local communities?

Question 3:

Would governments regulate more the extraction of natural gas to avoid any health issues, even though it might be more expensive? Would this be used as a political strategy?

Homework #6

The policies under the Obama administration concentrates more on improving their fuel efficiencies and moving towards more sustainable energy sources. It touches more on how they are specifically reaching their goals in the public and private sector. In addition, it gives an action plan to be more prepared for natural disasters as a concequence of climate change and a brief overview at USA attempts to help other developing nations with resources and knowledge about sustainable and alternative energy sources. Some of the policies discussed affects society as new appliances and car AC's that are better for people's health, which will decrease the rate of asthma cases and other respiratory diseases. The environment is also affected by improving air quality as there will be less HFC's, methane, CO2 and other greenhouse gases emitted to the atmosphere.

During class we discussed Obama's action plan towards energy sources. We observed that the article talked a lot about how to secure domestic oil reserves. I believe that the US is concentrating too much on securing oil and coal sources instead of searching for alternative energies that will benefit Americans in the long run. 

In contrast, Brazil has suffered from economic, social and political barriers that has not allowed the country to implement more policies on renewable energies or energy efficiency. The article explains what type of policies would be more viable for the country given their current use of alternative energies and the resources they have. It gives a realistic view of what Brazil should do to improve their energy policies overall. These policies invest heavily in energy sources can affect the country socially and economically as the government is not improving society's living standards but concentrating too much on energy sources. Using more renewable energies instead of oil and natural gas would diversify energy sources, create jobs, stimulate new industries and help develop poorer areas socially and economically. 

Both approaches illustrates both countries different views on sustainability and securing energy. I believe that Brazil's views on changing to other alternatives is a better approach, since they are taking a proactive strategy in order to not only stop depending in foreign energy sources (both sustainable and non-sustainable) but also stop depending on fossil fuels overall. 

Power Surge

What do they propose be the solution to the energy crisis is?

The Power Surge video proposes to move towards the goal of eliminating greenhouse gas emissions  under a wedge system and divide the necessary steps to stop emitting greenhouse gases in the next coming years. Instead of looking for one single technology that will completely replace fossil fuels, the video suggests using four categories of:

- Building more nuclear plants

- Imposing efficiency standards

- Searching for alternative and sustainable energies

- Clean carbon (carbon sequestration)

Through the use of innovative technology, entrepreneurs and scientists are looking into the best alternative energy that can replace fossil fuels. In addition, searching for ways to create clean carbon for the current economies that depend on it, like China and India. There are technologies already exsisting in submarines and power plants that collects carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or natural gas and traps it. This kind of technology can help the process of carbon sequestration in an industrial manner. However, there is not enough financial motivation for stop emitting carbon dioxide for private or public entities in order to use these technologies.

Do you agree or disagree with their assessment of how to solve the problem?

I believe that this strategy can be a useful tool at analyzing the problem and trying to find the best solution for the short and the long term. Since it can be divided into wedges of strategies it can be easier to vizualize at how humanity can best tackle the problem of climate change and sustainable energy sources. I believe that the clean carbon and carbon dioxide sequestration strategies are very interesting as they can help remedy the largest problems of using fossil fuels. However, it has to be done in an industrial size as having only 4 power plants in the world that can sequest CO2 is not enough for the amount of CO2 emitted worldwide. Ultimately, there are many solutions that can help solve the problem they key is to actually implement it and invest in these technologies now. 

Do they accurately address the effects of the environment, society and economy when they consider what alternative energies to use?

The video doesn't focus too much on the society when considering their strategy. They were focusing more on ways to look at the problem and deciding which of the four strategies should be used more than the others. I believe that one of the factors they considered related to the society is when they talked about solar and wind power. The chinese mogul of solar power is trying to make this technology more available for the masses by making it more effiecient and less costly. If society can't afford the technology then it is very likely it will not work. Another aspect that was discussed that touched upon the economy linked to society was the fact that by creating more efficiency standards in electricity use and power generation it would also have a financial incentive as it would be cheaper for society. 

An Inconvenient Truth Analysis

What image started the modern day environmental movement?

It started by a picture taken by Apollo 8 crew of the Earth. The image showed how polluted the planet looked compared to older pictures.

What is considered the most vulnerable part of the earth system?

- The atmosphere and climate

Relatively speaking, compared to the earth, how thick is the atmosphere?

- The atmosphere is as thick as a layer of varnish on a globe

How can trapping infrared radiation by the earth’s atmosphere be a GOOD thing?

- It allows heat to be maintained in the Earth's atmosphere which creates a livable and consistant environment, when not altered with other chemicals that can change it. 

How can trapping infrared radiation by the earth’s atmosphere be a BAD thing?

- If too much radiation gets trapped in the Earth's atmosphere it can change the planet's natural balance and alter the environment by having higher levels of heat. 

 What percentage of people depend on glacial melt for their drinking water?

- 40% of the Earth's population

Why is studying ice cores important?

- Ice cores are used by scientists to study the temperature of the planet since tens of thousands of years. This can help us understand better what type of temperatures the Earth has been exposed to and what has happened in the past to foresee how the Earth will react to climate change. 

What is the relationship between carbon dioxide (CO2) and atmospheric temperature?

- In general, when levels of CO2 increase atmospheric temperatures tend to follow.

Over what time period have the hottest 10 years on earth occurred?

- The last 14 years have been the hottest years on record, with 2005 being the hottest year.

As the water temperature under a hurricane increases, what happens to the wind velocity of the 

storm?

- The wind's velocity is higher since the heat it what gives it power. This means that as the Earth becomes hotter, hurricanes will be stronger and more destructive.

What has happened to Lake Chad over the years?

- It used to be one of the largest lakes in the world however, due to the rising climate temperatures it has dried up. Now it's almost all dried up. 

How much of the suns radiation gets reflected by ice?

- Over 90%

What redistributes energy from the equator to the north and south poles?

- The ocean and wind currents redistributes energy. If this is affected by climate change (since currents are powered by changes in cold to hot temperatures) it can bring negative changes to the Earth's climate. 

 If the ice sheets of Western Antarctica were to melt, approximately how much would sea level 

rise?

- Around 20 feet

List the three factors causing the collision between civilization and earth

1. Rising global population

2. Outdated attitudes and ways of thinking

3. Advances and changes in science and technology

Approximately, what percentages of global carbon dioxide emissions come from forest fires?

- About 30%

What country is the largest contributor of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere? 

- According to Al Gore it is the USA. However, this has changed in recent years with the USA being number 9 on the list.

Which country has the lowest government standards for gas mileage of automobiles?

- This country is USA, which directly affects the level of gas emissions and how much they contribute to the global climate change.

Which two nations have not signed onto the Kyoto Protocol?

- The USA and Australia.

Carbon Footprint

What is your total estimated greenhouse gas emission per year?

- My average greenhouse emission per year is 13 tons, which is less than the average American.

What is your individual % breakdown for the four sections (Home Energy, Driving & Flying, Food & Diet and Recycling and Waste)?

- Home Energy: 36.7%

- Driving and Flying: 24.9%

- Food and Diet: 7.2%

- Recycling and Waste: 31.2%

How do your total and % breakdown compare to the average US person?

- The biggest differences between my estimates and the average US person is with the driving & flying section where I use half of what the average American uses. This is due to living a city with public transportation. If I were to live back home (Guatemala) my driving gas emissions would be much higher since everyone drives and there is bad public transportation. Another section that stood out was food & diet, I am not used to recycling or eating organic food since I didn't grow up with that mentality. I have been recycling more since I started living with Americans since they have taught me about their mentality on recycling. 

How does your total compare to the world average?

- The world average is 5.5 tons, where I got an estimate of 13 tons. This is a big gap between me and the world. However, considering that I live in a city and the world is taking into considerations people that live in small towns or villages the gap will always be big. 

How do you think you could decrease your carbon emissions for each of these categories?

- I think that the best way to reduce my carbon emissions is by buying more organic foods and recycling all of my waste. In addition, I could unplug electronics when not in use. The apartment complex where I live includes heater and AC, so many people just leave their heaters on all day. I think by using it only when in the apartment would be a great help at reducing my CO2 emissions.

A little about myself

Hi! My name is Ana Gabriela Jo but I prefer Gaby. I am at a summer program in São Paulo for a month with my University, Northeastern University. I am from Guatemala with Chinese decendance, I grew up there and lived there until I graduated from High School. When I was 18 I moved to China by myself to obtain an Associate's Degee and learn Mandarin.  I decided to apply to this program because I have always been interested in Brazil becsause of its people, culture and their famous places