Transcript Getting Green

FIONTAR - 2012
Sustainability
Can I Make a
Difference?
What is the controversy all
about?
Tackling some of the myths

Using energy is bad.

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When are we going to see the effects of it so
people can see there is a problem?
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Year 10 student 2011
Carbon dioxide is bad

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Year 10 student 2012
Professor of Mining Geology, Uni of Adelaide Ian
Plimer, scientist and Climate change sceptic
“Carbon dioxide cannot be measured”.
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Tony Abbott,
Our Current Global Concerns?

Hotter temperatures

Water Shortage &
Droughts

Cyclones & Floods

Forests being cut down

Pollution
Our Current Global Concerns?
Rising Sea levels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSmN8Eq4qEg
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Melting glaciers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fLG2AoOYgY
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Biodiversity
http://vimeo.com/7592397
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http://shipbright.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/climate-change-epilogue-making-sense-of-it-all/
Climate Change
The controversy
A long-term change in the earth's climate, especially a change due to an
increase in the average atmospheric temperature
Dictionary.com
George Monbiot vs. Ian Plimer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEsygjXunTs
http://shipbright.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/climate-change-epilogue-making-sense-of-it-all/
Climate Change
The scientific evidence
A long-term change in the earth's climate, especially a change due to an
increase in the average atmospheric temperature
Dictionary.com
Our Air is Made Up of:

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Nitrogen
78.08%
Oxygen
20.95%
Argon
0.93%
Carbon Dioxide
0.038%
Other Gases
0.002%
Neon, Helium, Methane, Krypton,
Ozone, Nitrogen Dioxide, Xenon
www.bbc.co.uk/.../6_clean_air1.shtml

Also contains Water Vapour (1%)

Humidity- measure of Water Vapour

Forecasting Weather
taber4wards.org/pages/cal_cubs/week_8.htm
What is global warming about

An inconvenient truth – The Basic
Science of global warming
What is the Greenhouse Effect?

The Natural Greenhouse Effect

The Enhanced Greenhouse Effect
Natural Greenhouse Effect

Occurs when gases in the Earth’s
Atmosphere trap some of the Infrared
Radiation (heat) that would otherwise
escape from the Earth.

This energy originally comes from the
sun.
www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/whatis.htm

The Natural Greenhouse Effect is
very important

It ensures our daily average
temperature on earth is 15 0C
rather than -18 0C
Enhanced Greenhouse Effect

During the last century Greenhouse
Gases have increased dramatically.

We are producing TOO MUCH carbon
dioxide.
What are the main Greenhouse Gases?
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Carbon Dioxide
(contributes 60%)
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Methane
(contributes 20%)
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Chlorofluorocarbons
(contributes 14%)
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Ozone
(contributes 9%)
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Nitrous Oxide
(contributes 6%)
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Water Vapour
Heinemann – Chemistry One p335
Water Vapour
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Biggest contributor of Natural
Greenhouse Effect (72%) but does not
contribute to the Enhanced
Greenhouse
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Level of water not increasing in any
consistent way
How do we Measure the
Damaging Effects of a Gas?
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Characteristic of the gas
Abundance
Methane is about 80 times stronger as
a Greenhouse Gas than carbon dioxide
but does less damage because it is
less abundant.
www.nps.gov/.../climate-change-causes.htm
In summary….
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Greenhouse Effect Animation
http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/earthguide/diagr
ams/greenhouse/
Evidence that Greenhouse gases
are on the rise
Evidence that greenhouse Gases are on the
rise
Atmospheric methane
Carbon dioxide
Nitrous oxide
Carbon dioxide
State of the Climate 2012
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Atmospheric CO2 increase
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Decreasing C13 to C12 tells us
it is fossil fuel

Oxygen is being used up as
carbon is burnt to CO2
I am not saying Carbon
dioxide is bad!!!!
We need Carbon dioxide to
survive?

All animals breathe out carbon dioxide
(small amount)
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Plants remove carbon dioxide during
the day and release oxygen
The problem is we are
removing too may forests on
Earth?

Current rate of deforestation is about
10 times the rate of reforestation
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Plants take up Carbon Dioxide by
Photosynthesis
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Planting more trees would slow down
the increase in carbon dioxide
The problem is we produce too
much Carbon Dioxide because
of fossil fuels (coal, crude oil
and gas)?
Major contributors
Electricity (we use mainly brown coal in
Australia)
Burn Fossil
Fuels
Coal & Gas
Produces
Electricity
Makes
Carbon
Dioxide
Major contributors
Transport (crude oil)
Burn fuel
Petrol
Diesel etc
Energy for
cars, trucks,
planes to
move
Produces
Carbon
Dioxide
Major contributors
Industry Production of materials
2.0
Per Capita Emissions (tonnes C
person-1 y-1)
CO2 emissions (Gt C y-1)
Top 20 CO2 Emitters & Per Capita Emissions 2009
5
4
1.5
3
1.0
2
0.5
Global Carbon Project 2010; Data: Gregg Marland, Thomas Boden-CDIAC 2010; Population World Bank 2010
1
Australia
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Is 17th in producing carbon dioxide
emissions
But per person we are third
Can I Make a
Difference to My World?
Governments need to reduce
emission of fossil fuels
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Carbon
sequestration
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More efficient use
of our fuels
Nuclear ????
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Governments need to make the
move to renewable energy
sources.
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Renewable energy sources
(solar, wind, hydro, wave, geothermal
energy)
Securing a clean energy future
A carbon price alone is not enough!
This is more about a future energy strategy
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We can make try and leave
more sustainable lives?
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Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is
the long-term maintenance of responsibility, which has
environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses
the concept of stewardship, the responsible management of resource
use.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability
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Use the car less, walk, ride a bike,
carpool, public transport
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Avoid products with lots of packaging
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Move the thermostat down 2 degrees in
winter
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Move the thermostat up 2 degrees in
summer
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Use less hot water
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Turn off electrical devices at the power
point when you are not using them
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Replace regular light bulbs with
compact fluorescent ones
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Plant a tree
We can solve problems
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We reduced the Ozone Layer problem
why not try and reduce the Enhanced
Greenhouse Effect?
Ozone Layer
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The Ozone Layer is a layer of
molecules about 30 km above the
Earth’s surface which protect us from
the sun’s ultra violet rays.
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Ultraviolet rays can burn us easily.
(sunburn)
www.cec.org/ods/en/module01/cec_odspolicy_m01...
What causes the Ozone
Layer to break down?
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Certain chemicals (CFC’s) used in
industry, in refrigerators and aerosols
were reacting with the Ozone Layer
and causing a hole to form in the
protective layer over Antarctica.
What would happen to all the
plants, animals and humans on
earth if the hole in the Ozone
Layer got bigger?
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We would all be exposed to very high levels
of ultraviolet light.
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We would burn more easily.
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Reduction in plant growth on the land and in
the sea.
Similarities
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Both the Greenhouse & Ozone Layer
are environmental problems we have
caused & are related to the sun.
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Enhanced Greenhouse Effect is linked
to the Earth’s infrared (heat) rays,
while the Ozone Layer damage is
related to the sun’s ultraviolet
(burning) rays.
Differences
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The Enhanced Greenhouse Effect is
accelerating.
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The hole in the Ozone Layer is slowly
being reduced due to International
collaboration. People have found
alternatives to the chemicals that we
used to use.
The Future
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The hole in the Ozone Layer is being
reduced. We have found a solution to
this problem.
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The Greenhouse Effect is the major
environmental concern of this century.
We need to find a solution to this
problem.
In summary
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F
XntPfWi8H0&feature=related