EARTH HOUR 2009

29th March 2009, Saturday, 830PM to 930PM local time, is the time for all of us to give our support to the Earth Hour 2009 campaign! simply flicked off all lights in your home for 60 minutes, which would be an effortless yet symbolic action!

Earth Hour is a global campaign to reach out to the world, so as to raise awareness and take action to fight climate change. The weather today, is more than erratic. Winter arrives later, and temperatures fluctuates in extremes.

Climate change, in particular global warming, is a very evident problem today, which results in implications and environmental problems.

Global Warming, to put it simply, refers to a general increase in the Earth's temperature, which is caused by enhanced greenhouse effect, and reduction in carbon sinks.

Here are some of the many consequences of global warming:

1)Changing Weather and Extream Weather



For example, hurricanes that are simulated under warmer and higher CO2 conditions are more intense. Worldwide, the proportion of hurricanes reaching categories 4 or 5 (with wind speeds above 56m/s) has risen from 20% in the 1970s to 35% in the 1990s.

2)Melting Glaciers and Ice Sheets



The escalation of ice melt from continents as well as from sea ice masses and glaciers is the most widespread effect of global warming. currently, mountain glacier retreat rates have been increasing in the Andes, Alps, Himalays, Rocky Mountains and North Cascades.

Effects:

-landslides

-flash floods

-glacial lake overflow

-serious threat to the future of local water resources because increased melting would cause greater flow for several decades, after which some areas of the most populated regions on Earth are likely to run out of water as glaciers sources are being depleted.

-increased in temperature which may disrupt the ecosystems

-increase bacterial activity in soil lead which causes them to become carbon sourcs instead of carbon sinks.

THAT IS, contibuting to the enhanced greenhouse effect, and thus global warming, instead of facilitating the removal of CO2 in the atmoshphere.


3)Sea Level Change



The first island destroyed by rising sea levels caused by global warming was Lohachara Island in the Sundarbans in the Bay of Bengal, which was home to 10,000 people.

Effects:

-coastal erosion

-coastal flooding

THEREFORE, lost of homes.

4)Acidification



CO2, in water, becomes a weak carbonic acid. Thus, increase in greenhouse gas would lower the average pH of seawater.

Effects:

-detrimental on coral reefs

-affect the growth and reproduction of fish, which is a mjor source of food supply for Man.

5)Effects on Ecosytems



Many of species ar risk are Artic and Antartic fauna such as polar bears. Forests in some regions, such as North America, potentially face an increased risk of fores fires.

6)Effects in World Food Supply and Changes in the Biosphere



It is projected that soil moisture will fall by 10% if global warming continues into the next 30 years. agriculture would therefore, be severely affected, and coupled with a global population boom and uneven distribution of food resources, the consequence culd be disatrous.

7)Spread of Disease



Global warming may also lead to an increase in malaria and dengue infected areas, especially in poorer countries.

8)Effects on Health



Extreame high temperatures increase the number of people who die on a given day for many reasons, for example, heat exhaustion.

In the lower atmosphere, ozone is a harmful pollutant which damages lung tissues, thus causing problems for people with asthma and other lung diseases.

PLUS more pollutants from smokers, negative effects of heath would definitely increase!

Earth Hour 2008 was a success, with millions of people in some of the world’s major capital cities, including Copenhagen, Toronto, Chicago, Melbourne, Brisbane, Tel Aviv and Manila, who took part and switch of their lights for 1 hour.

Why should i switch off the lighs then?

TO SAVE CARBON DIOXIDE!

"According to WWF Thailand, Bangkok decreased electricity usage by 73.34 megawatts, which, over one hour, is equivalent to 41.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide. The city of Christchurch of New Zealand reported a drop of 13% in electricity demand."

-from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Hour

So, just 1 hour of your time could make a huge differenc for Mother Earth! Of course, it would be even better if all of us make it a habit to reduce our electricity usauge at home and at work, and NOT SMOKE. and bring our own plastic bags. and not ask for carriers. and reuse, reduce and recycle. and not sleep with the aircon on. and not drive our cars around always. and take public transport once in awhile IF you drive a car. and use environmentally friendly product. and buy solar powered car. and play more sports instead of computers and watching tv. and limit your time on the computer, or rather, switch off your computer when not in used, rather than putting it on standby mode as it still uses up electricity. and not have long baths. and not let the water run. and... so many more!

HAHA. all these, are what daddy, mommy and geography taught me! daddy is very excited about Earth Hour and he was the one who actually initiated to get involved with it :D So, my family would be taking part in this campaign by switching off the lights for 60 mins! my mommy reminds and encourages us to save electricity by pasting stickers on certain parts of our home, which shows us the amount of money we can save if we switch of the lights. and sis and i have an air con in our room which we hardly use now, because we feel guilty switching it on every night like we did in the past. this really helped to cut down on the electricity bills significantly! a fan will do just fine.

of course, we could do more in conserving the resources of Mother Earth such as reducing our water usauge, and cutting down our computer hours! haha. dont worry, we're working on that!

so, join in later this evening, from 830pn to 930pm, to do your part for the Earth we live in! :D it would be fun and exciting!

This year's slogan:

WHEN IN DOUBT, VOTE EARTH




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after work tml, i'll be attending a dentist forum with my parents at paragon! going for scaling and polishing two weeks back, the dentist Doctor Chan, a 71 year old strong and beautiful lady, told me that its best for me if i put on braces! though its a pity too. cause basically, my teeth are straight except for one of the front teeth.

yet, if i dont put on braces, it would get more crooked as time passes due to the pressure exerted by the other teeth. so, my parents are bringing me to the forum to learn more about braces and stuff, and hey, there's invisible braces too! never heard of them until then.

hmm, would i have problems lip locking with braces on? haha.

then shopping afterwards! :D

anyway, recently, i'm so entertained online by my darlings jingwen and yiting. everyday, work would be less mundane with them to chat with online, which would make me smile like a silly kuku infront of the computer! especially yiting, who shares with me her OFFICE SCANDALS.

speaking of office scandals, my daddy was sharing with me office scandals in his new workplace. i feel like sharing right now, but have to wake up for work tml so i'll share some other time!

Love,
turtle 12:00mn