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Re: General Conversations.

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Global CO2 Levels

Why the Guardian is putting global CO2 levels in the weather forecast

As CO2 levels climb, the carbon count is a daily reminder we must tackle climate change now.

The simplest measure of how the mass burning of fossil fuels is disrupting the stable climate in which human civilisation developed is the number of carbon dioxide molecules in the atmosphere.

Today, the CO2 level is the highest it has been for several million years. Back then, temperatures were 3-4C hotter, sea level was 15-20 metres higher and trees grew at the south pole. Worse, billions of tonnes of carbon pollution continues to pour into the air every year and at a rate 10 times faster than for 66m years.

At the dawn of the industrial revolution, CO2 was at 280 parts per million (ppm) in the atmosphere. By 1958, when the first measurements were made at Mauna Loa in Hawaii, it had reached 315ppm. It raced past 350ppm in 1986 and 400ppm in 2013.

The Guardian will now publish the Mauna Loa carbon count, the global benchmark, on the weather page of the paper every day.

“When I read the letter from Guardian reader Daniel Scharf encouraging us to include information on climate change in our weather forecasts, we thought it was a fantastic idea,” said the Guardian’s editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner.

“Levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have risen so dramatically, and including a measure of that in our daily weather report is symbolic of what human activity is doing to our climate. People need reminding that the climate crisis is no longer a future problem – we need to tackle it now, and every day matters.”

While weather changes daily, climate changes over years and decades. So alongside the daily carbon count, we will publish the level in previous years for comparison, as well as the pre-industrial baseline of 280ppm, and the level seen as manageable in the long term of 350ppm.

Year-on-year comparisons are important because each year there is a natural rise and fall of CO2 levels, rather like the planet breathing. Trees and plants absorb carbon and release oxygen as they grow, lowering atmospheric CO2.

As most plants are in the northern hemisphere, CO2 reaches its lowest level each year at the end of the growing season in October. Then it begins to rise as dying plants decay, reaching a peak in May or June.

While the CO2 level is an important and symbolic measure of the global warming caused by humanity, it is a simple one. The increases in temperature the world experiences, and the heatwaves, storms and droughts that strike, also depend on how fast emissions rise or fall and how long they remain at high levels. The 350ppm level was proposed in 2008 by Nasa’s Prof James Hansen as a suitable target.

However we measure climate change, one thing is clear: to keep below 1.5C of warming, the aspiration of the world’s nations, we need to halve emissions by 2030 and reach zero by mid century. It is also likely we will need to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, perhaps by the large-scale restoration of nature.

It is a huge task, but we hope that tracking the daily rise of CO2 will help to maintain attention on it. When the 400ppm milestone was passed, Prof Ralph Keeling, who oversees the Mauna Loa measurements begun by his father, said: “It is symbolic, a point to pause and think about where we have been and where we are going.”

As the crisis escalates...

... in our natural world, we refuse to turn away from the climate catastrophe and species extinction. For The Guardian, reporting on the environment is a priority. We give reporting on climate, nature and pollution the prominence it deserves, stories which often go unreported by others in the media. At this pivotal time for our species and our planet, we are determined to inform readers about threats, consequences and solutions based on scientific facts, not political prejudice or business interests.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... r-forecast
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Post by visit »

Worldwide climate demonstration on the 20th of September.
What are you doing tomorrow ?
Which activities are going to take place in your country / at your town ?
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Post by Susanne »

Since this is the "Off-topic topic section", this might be the right place to post my musical recommendation - which is not really too far away from our topics 8-) . I have discovered the Latvian group Auli this year - they mainly play bagpipes and drums, but they are modern in a way I really appreciate and do a lot of cross-over, too, simply fantastic in my humble opinion. PLUS: they have amazing video footage for their clips on You Tube. Absolutely stunning impressions of landscape and nature. If you do not know them already, here are two examples which may be a superbe introduction to their work:

Zemes Elpa (='Breath of the Earth'), fantastic flight over Latvian landscapes!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHDobvDeJxs
Jura (now, you all know what that means):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rviNdBggdmo

And a last tip for everybody who is still wishing him-/herself back to the time of "Ligo" :mrgreen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DmYHgV8bjs
Susanne
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Post by Susanne »

Today, the Durbe cam view perfectly illustrates the Celtic name for a colour, "glas" which may be used for : blue, green, grey (and the different hues of those colours):

Image

See here eg.: https://www.omniglot.com/celtiadur/2018 ... reen-grey/
We've got everything in one picture! (And my philologist heart is jumping with joy, ha!)
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Polly
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Post by Polly »

I'm planning on designing my 'green oasis' these days. I came across the following information:
Buddleia - is sold commercially as a food source and magnet for butterflies.

Image

The buddleia seems to be a terrible deception.
...
Aber der Schmetterlingsbaum ist ein falscher Freund, der sogar einige Schmetterlingsarten bedroht. Das sagt Yves Desmons vom Cercle des naturistes de Belgique.
...
Die Pflanze verfolgt demnach eine eher hinterhältige Strategie. "Sie haben eine lila Farbe, die Schmetterlinge sehr anzieht, und sie strahlt sehr starke Gerüche aus, die zudem attraktiv sind. Der Nektar der Pflanze ist aber von schlechter Qualität, dafür aber reich an Koffein. Daher werden Schmetterlinge, sobald sie Koffein konsumiert haben, süchtig danach", erklärt Desmons.

Dies sei der Anfang vom Ende für die Schmetterlinge. Sie verbringen ihre Zeit damit, vergeblich nach Nektar zu suchen, von dem nur sehr wenig vorhanden ist. Das erschöpft die Schmetterlinge und hat zur Folge, dass sie nicht mehr brüten. Diese Kettenreaktion bedroht also ihre Spezies.
...
Laut Yves Desmons dürfen wir kein Mitleid mit den Schmetterlingsbäumen haben: Wir sollten sie dringend fällen und wenn möglich aufhören, sie zu verkaufen. Im Moment sei es noch möglich, die Pflanze in Geschäften zu finden, obwohl sie als invasive Pflanze gelistet worden ist. Einige Gemeinden, wie zum Beispiel Soignies, hätten schon begonnen, sie durch andere Arten zu ersetzen, die für die Biodiversität viel interessanter sind.
GT
But the butterfly tree is a false friend that even threatens some species of butterflies. This is what Yves Desmons from the Cercle des naturistes de Belgium says.
...
The plant therefore follows a rather devious strategy. "They have a purple color, which is very attractive to butterflies, and it emits very strong smells, which are also attractive. However, the nectar of the plant is of poor quality, but is rich in caffeine. Therefore, once butterflies have consumed caffeine ", addicted to it," explains Desmons.

This is the beginning of the end for the butterflies. They spend their time searching in vain for nectar, of which there is very little. This exhausts the butterflies and means they no longer breed. So this chain reaction threatens their species.
...
According to Yves Desmons, we should not feel sorry for the butterfly trees: we should urgently cut them down and, if possible, stop selling them. At the moment it is still possible to find the plant in shops, although it has been listed as an invasive plant. Some communities, such as Soignies, have already started to replace them with other species that are much more interesting for biodiversity.


Source: https://brf.be/national/1305865/#:~:tex ... 20Desmons.
"Throw your heart across the river and swim after it."
Indian proverb
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Biker
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Post by Biker »

.
thank you, Polly.
I didn't know that!
I actually think the inflorescences are quite pretty.
From now on, I'll always have my pruning shears with me on walks and bike rides.
Creatively visits by me to these deceitful bushes are then probably in the interest of the fluttering beauties :whistling:
not on private property, of course.
Only on ruderal areas :innocent:

:wave:
*Please don't feed the trolls!*
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Polly
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Post by Polly »

Biker :hi:
I didn't know that!
Ha, me neither. :blush: :laugh:
I even have two of them (white). Although it was only kept small on the terrace, I was also dazzled.

There are good native trees and plants for gardens that are beneficial for insects (we all need insects, diversity is important).
But if there is little space (terrace or balcony) it becomes more difficult.

I work a lot with herbs, sedum, nasturtium and the flowers of some vegetables are also popular.


Liz :2thumbsup:
"Throw your heart across the river and swim after it."
Indian proverb
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Liz01
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Post by Liz01 »

Polly wrote: February 22nd, 2024, 10:57 am I'm planning on designing my 'green oasis' these days. I came across the following information:..
Thank you Polly :2thumbsup:

I will my butterfly tree replace with other plants. This is really an important message. Especially since I also have swallowtail butterflies here
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