Blogs / Better Planet

We like to avoid the gloom and doom around here, but this has to be said. The first presidential debate, about to get underway at Ole Miss as I write, will hopefully contain some kind of casual, glancing reference to the climate-change pollution stat that came out today.

Basically, the chemicals that contribute to global warming when released into Earth’s atmosphere got released 3% more this year than last year, making the direst predictions of 2007 look optimistic.

But why get angry yet? Maybe one of the candidates will  say something fittingly urgent in tone. Maybe Jim Lehrer will bring it up. Or I’ll have the excuse to start smoking again that I’ve been looking for.

flickr: Image/mind’s-eye

A commentary in the Guardian suggests today that we should face the reality that maybe none of the emissions control policies we’re trying to implement will do anything to stop catastrophic irreversible global warming. But facing this reality need not involve suicide, moving to Quebec City, etc.

Geo-thermal engineering, apparently, is a possible answer of last resort. Scientists everywhere agree it’s really risky, but if we had to we could potentially shoot vast quantities of certain chemical agents into the atmosphere to reflect back the sun. No, not immediately comforting. But one of the plans involves a series of yachts crossing the world. Which is at least glamorous.

Image: flickr/radiant guy

A California scientist and cement obsessive has started to churn out cement that doesn’t emit much carbon.  Since we’re not going to stop the world’s population from expanding (realistically, any time soon) we should pave paradise the nice way.

The big questions, as always, are: how much, how fast how cheap? Cement Guy claims cheaper than the normal cement. And that making it in bulk is no problem. And that its manufacturing process can actually absorb emissions from polluters like coal power plants.

Cement accounts for about five percent of the carbon emissions in the world — eliminating its contribution to global warming would be the equivalent of eliminating America. Or almost eliminating China.

What a weird twist of fate that would be: if the way to make the world greener were to make it look more like one the post-industrial backdrops in the Halo games.

Image: flickr/billjacobus1