largie.com

Over 12% of the United States population lives within a flood zone & even more people live close to the ocean, which means they’re also potentially in danger of being flooded out by excessively high tides high, tsunamis or hurricanes storm surges. We have all heard of the famous fifth-year flood or the hundred year flood study if we look at Environmental Impact Reports & building codes or master plans for most municipalities & counties.

These are quite real no matter how much they’re downplayed or how often they’re mitigated by giant cement ditches or runoff canals. The fact is 12% of Americans still live in a flood zone & that means isn’t a matter of if, but when. Lately we have been seeing quite a bit of flooding in the United States due to extreme weather.

Indeed, more people die from floods, then any other natural disaster & just because we live in a modern civilization such as the United States doesn’t mean we’re immune to these challenges or problems. Of course if you live in a flood zone it might be very wise to have flood insurance even though this might not actually be enough & even if you collect on insurance you still generally lose everything.

It would be very wise before purchasing a home or moving into an area that you check to see if the region has historically had large floods within the last 200 years. And do not kid yourself even if a big flood only comes every 200 years that means in any twenty year that you have a one in ten chance of being flooded out. It makes sense to play it safe & smart & not take anyone else’s word for it… If you do not believe what I am saying, turn on the news.

L. Winslow is a Disaster Assistance Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist & retired entreprenuer. Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity & is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com & all the proceeds will go straight to various charities who sign up.

Ozone depletion is a term used to describe two related phenomena concerning the earth’s ozone layer. The first is the slow & constant deterioration of the amount of ozone in the earth’s upper atmosphere at a rate of about 3 percent per decade. The second is the larger but seasonal decrease in the level of ozone in the atmosphere especially in the earth’s Polar Regions, commonly called an ozone hole.

As we all know, the layer of ozone gas present in our atmosphere plays a very critical role in all chemical & biological process in our planet. Ozone filters out most of the very harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun & prevents radiation from reaching the earth’s surface. Although, the levels of ozone in the atmosphere naturally rise & fall depending on factors such as altitude, temperature, & weather, the large amount of ozone lost in recent years can not actually be attributed to natural factors alone.

Human-made chemicals & gases have a significant role in the phenomena of ozone depletion. Aerosols & Chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs, which are primarily used as propellant & as refrigerant, were found to be responsible for the depletion of the ozone layer. The depletion of the ozone layer poses a enormous risk to all chemical & biological process on the earth’s surface. Exposure to radiation, which would otherwise have been blocked by a “healthier” ozone layer, have various damaging effects on all living organisms on earth.

Because of this, there has been a continuing worldwide concern regarding the preservation of the ozone layer & the phasing out of ozone depleting substances (ODS). Countries & international communities have initiated actions towards the reduction of ODS & finding ways to curb the further depletion of the earth’s vital ozone layer. A significant milestone in this effort was the Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer held in 1987 which encouraged the phase-out & reduction of ozone depleting substances over a time frame of many years.

Ozone gives detailed information on Ozone, Ozone Layer, Ozone Generator, Ozone Depletion & more. Ozone is affiliated with Melanoma Cancer.

Why is virtually everyone so worried about global warming when in reality they should be worried about global cooling in the next coming Ice Age? There is a book out called; Not by Fire, But By Ice. In this book it explains why global warming or climate change isn’t really an issue at all, instead we should get our civilizations prepared for a coming Ice Age in about 150 to 400 years.

In fact many anthropologists believe that the heat of the atmosphere has given mankind & the human species time to regroup & evolve. Hot Begets Not, Hotter Climates go until the pendulum swings & an ice age cometh; That is The Truth about Global Warming.

Global warming assumes that it’s caused by mankind & the climate scientist that believe in global warming say that it’s caused by mankind’s CO2 emissions from our factories, power plants & transportation. While this theory sounds somewhat plausible & yes climate change in the atmosphere might be affected some what by human emissions there’re far greater causes that might he get the climate besides the head lice or locusts (mankind) that is dwelling on the surface.

If these climate scientists, politicians & virtually everyone were reality based in their thinking then they would come up with solutions that we have discussed in our on line think tank.

For instance; why not plant six to 8 billion trees; developed the clean coal technology innovations that have already been discovered for our power plants; put coatings on the roads in concrete & tops of buildings in our large cities to stop urban heat; collect the CO2 in the atmosphere that is over large cities & use it for another purpose?

You see there’re many solutions to the problem of climate change that if mankind were really serious & wanted to do something about it they could. But rather the global warming debate is much to do about politics & power control.

Global warming isn’t real. I certainly hope this article is of interest & that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts & completely unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington

Despite what the media says not all scientists go for the Global Warming Theory. In actual fact, many can not believe that the Theory has gotten this far. The reality is that the Earth has only heated up some 1.5 degrees average over the last fifty years & we can not even be sure that is accurate because the measurements back then were not as good as today.

Sure we see some ice melting which would indicate a heating up of things, but how do we know that isn’t a regional shift cycle that occurs naturally? Of course if you attempt to debate this with a CO2 Man-Made Caused Global Warming Alarmist, they will ask;

If Global Warming is Not Real then What Normal Cycles are Causing the Planet to Heat Up?

The fact is that it could indeed be lots of things, so let’s look at a few shall we?

Ice melting puts cool water into part of the ocean not normally cool, this changes dynamics & weather flows & patterns too. If weather patterns become less robust in some areas they do not allow the distributive affects to move the air & allow for less cooling, this changes airflows, it changes everything.

Ozone, is an issue, if you have whole in ozone you get ice melt, but if you have no heat escape you get more trapped heat. Lots of theories on what’s causing the ozone issues. Remember 25 years ago virtually everyone was worried that our human eye-sight would go, skin cancer like the sheep in Tierra del Fuego, now we find Ozone holes closing but the ambient temperature is heating, another scare?

Ocean Surface Temps, enormous issue & many things can cause this, greenhouse affect isn’t the only one. The resultant being ocean surface temps means we have more heat in those regions, changes everything. And mind you these are only three alternatives to the global warming (caused by mankind) theory, there’re in actual fact nearly twenty possible or plausible explanations & still we’re only talking 1.5 degrees over a fifty year period.

Please take this into consideration & dump the doom & gloom motif, it’s not healthy for that level of stress over nothing. I certainly hope this article is of interest & that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts & completely unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington

With water covering about 80% of our planet, one would think that our water resources are unlimited. However, upon closer inspection, we find that our water-resources at risk, & it’s not as renewable as we may think. Here’s why.

All of our drinking water comes from two sources groundwater (underground aquifers) or surface water (lakes, rivers, streams). These sources renew themselves through the water cycle. This is where water moves from the earth to the air & back again. The most basic problem is this - as our population grows, so do the demands placed on these resources. There is more. Therefore, water is being drawn out more rapidly than it can replenish itself.

Now let us say you happen to live in a water-rich region, such as the Pacific Northwest or Northeast, you are free & clear, right? Not quite.

North East

Generally regarded as having a multitude of lakes, rivers & streams to draw from, this region is relatively unaware of the growing demands placed on their water resources. Population growth has continued to play a need for water conservation practices. Clear? In addition, from spring until fall, much of the precipitation that falls either evaporates transpires. There is more. Transpiration is where plants take in water through their roots & return it as water vapor into the atmosphere.

Thus, in the warmer months when people are out watering their lawns, washing cars, etc, water levels drop rapidly. By late-summer much of this region may enter into a drought, which not just effects humans, but also aquatic life which depends on the water.

Pacific Northwest

This is yet another region that sparks to mind cloudy skies & rainy days. So… So, why should they be concerned about water conservation? Several major metropolitan cities in the pacific northwest rely on snowpack run-off for their water supplies. There is more. Typically, run-off will melt slowly throughout the summer months, providing a steady flow of fresh water. As warmer temperatures have continued, much of this snowpack is melting earlier than ever before. And so… So, by late-summer when water is needed most, the snowpack is gone. This poses a serious problem for this region.

In conclusion, water should not actually be regarded as an unlimited resource. It’s becoming increasingly clear that with our continued growth in global temperatures, & population, water conservation practices need to start today. To learn more about how you can reduce you water consumption, please visit eco touch waterless car wash

? 2007 eco touch LLC

James Dudra is an ecopreneur from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He currently owns & runs eco touch LLC, which sells a complete line of earth-friendly waterless car care products at eco touch? waterless car wash + polish

Global warming is one of the most dangerous challenges that all of humanity has ever faced. Its multiple effects will cause disruptions in everything from natural habitat to drinking water & food supply. And even more dangerously, it will give birth to some of the most powerful natural disasters ever known to mankind.

In 2004, the Tsunami in Asia displayed an unforgiving act of nature. Less than a year later, across continents in the United States, Hurricane Katrina delivered a blow of equal magnitude. Both the disasters caused massive humanitarian crisis, effecting hundreds of thousands of lives. There is more. These might not have been directly caused by global warming, but it certainly paints a picture of thing to come.

In India, the speed of cyclones in the Andra Pradesh region has jumped from an average of 150 kilometres per hours to 250 kph within just six years! And while some cities are at a risk of being washed out, other are at the risk of drying up.

Global warming will cause parts of the world to be very fertile for a period of time but simultaneously, it will also cause droughts in other parts. So… Scientists have estimated that as much as ½ a million people in Asia could face starvation within the next 30-40 years at this rate.

But it is not just these devastating disasters that hint towards what’s happening with our weather. Summers are becoming hotter by the year, & this winter Ski resorts in Central America, Europe & the United States all lost business because it just hadn’t snowed like it used to even last year! For the first time in over a hundred years, Central Park in New York saw no snow in December 2006.

With global warming, ‘extreme weather’ or ‘freak weather’ is becoming a part of daily life. June & July alone has witnessed massive floods in the UK & parts of the United States, while in other parts of the United States heat has caused dangerous forest fires. And this week, the west coast is expected to hit temperatures in triple digits!

There is little argument that global warming is real & it causes changes in our weather pattern. Every week, scientists find more startling & disturbing evidence to support this fact. And the scientific community is trying everything from simple steps to cut carbon emission en masse, to designing colossal artificial air purifiers for earth. This time, it is for the sake of our planet.

George Christodoulou,

If you would like more information about the Increase of Extreme Weather Due to Global Warming,
please visit http://globalwarming-online.com for many more information, facts, & more.

Leave Your Ideas! Please leave a comment or question that can be read by others & answered or responded to.

German activists operating under the banner of the green lobby have taken to slashing tires on high performance vehicles in Berlin in order to ‘educate’ the drivers of such vehicles. Each owner of the 80-plus vehicles that were subject to an attack in the last week of July found a hand-written note under the windscreen wiper detailing the dangers of carbon emissions, in particular from their type of preferred vehicle.

Police investigating the incidents believe that they’re the work of organised groups allied to international activists in France & Belgium who prefer to smear the vehicles with manure, rather than slash the tires. Clear? In what effectively amounts to war being declared on sports & utility vehicle drivers by self-styled environmentalists, the 4 x 4 wheel vandalism highlights the frustration felt by the activists in the difference in the speed of progress on green issues between the majority of German society & the German motor industry. While the population has readily adopted renewable policies, the car industry appears to be dragging its heels. Porsche recently came under attack from Greenpeace, being labeled a ‘climate pig’ by the environmentalists for concentrating on power & performance over green issues in its product range.

However, despite recently introducing a hybrid engine which promises to cut carbon emissions by 20%, the German auto giant’s own research shows that demand for the green cars will be limited. Their V6 sports utility vehicle is highly sought after by consumers, who obviously still remain to be convinced of the benefits of purchasing a green hybrid car. So, despite targeting the manufacturer, it looks like they’re not to blame as they’re only responding to consumer demand, & the market in Germany is currently demanding high performance, high carbon emitting vehicles.

And it is not just Porsche who are the targets of the car terrorists; Daimler & BMW are also accused of putting performance ahead of green issues. There is more. The fact that a lobby of all three German manufacturers have been successful in getting the EU to change their minds on carbon emission targets for vehicles does not help their cause in the eyes of the green lobby. In a co-ordinated drive, the trio have managed to effect a change in the EU draft legislation resulting in carbon emissions being categorised by vehicle size as opposed to the original absolute target for all vehicles. There is more. This means that the future for high performance vehicles in Germany & the rest of the EU looks bright, despite the best efforts of the green lobby to effect change.

However, whether wholesale slashing of 4×4 tyres will really persuade car-loving Germans to abandon their prized performance assets, or make them even more determined to not actually be brow-beaten by a minority of vandals remains to be seen.

Drivers know the basic procedure for keeping their vehicles running: fill up with gasoline, drive, repeat. Most drivers know this routine so well that it’s second nature, without stopping to wonder where the gasoline that seems so essential to their lifestyles originates. You have probably heard the buzz about the need to conserve petroleum based products due to their limited availability for future generations. There is more. This is because petroleum based products such as oil & natural gas are nonrenewable resources that take millions of years to produce naturally, & known reserves fall considerably short of anticipated future demand. The gasoline that powers most vehicles has its origin in ancient marine life that died millions of years ago, but how so?

Oil & natural gas, generically classified together as petroleum products, are found deep within the earth in many parts of the world. What surprises many people is that oil is actually formed from the remains of small organisms, such as algae, plankton & vegetation which lived tens or hundreds of millions of years ago in oceans & lakes. Right. When such organisms passed away, their remains settled on the bottoms of the oceans or lakes, & were covered by mud & sediment. The presence of oxygen with time helps organisms decay, but the small percentage of these organisms that would go on to form oil became compressed into oxygen deprived mud & rock. Over thousands of years, the pressure & heat exerted on the original layer became increasingly intense, eventually converting the organic matter into deposits of petroleum.

Such petroleum deposits are extracted by humans to be processed for use across many industries. One substantial use for such natural oil is the production of gasoline for automobiles with internal-combustion engines. But the oil extracted from underground, called crude oil, must be refined through the process of fractional distillation before it’s ready to power an engine. Fractional distillation involves heating oil in a controlled environment in order to separate different kinds of hydrocarbons as their characteristic boiling points are reached. Through this process, chemists obtain the substance we know as gasoline.

Internal combustion engines, those utilized to power most vehicles, get mechanical energy through the burning of chemical energy in a combustion chamber. Such fuel combustion activates a piston contained within a cylinder, turning a crankshaft that turns the wheels of the car using a chain or drive shaft.

Today, measures are being taken to reduce consumer reliance on natural oil due to limited supply as well as widely held environmental concerns.

About the Author: Greg Chapman, of Greg Chapman Motors, is a leading used car dealer Austin has depended on since 1959. For lots more information please visit Greg Chapman Motors.

Often we have no choice but to drive, even though we know it causes greenhouse gas emissions. Despite this there’re certain simple steps you can take to reduce your impact on climate change. Below you will find ten top tips for reducing your emissions while driving.

1. Turn the engine off when you’re stuck in traffic for long periods. If you are stuck in traffic for many more than a minute or so it is better to turn your engine off in order to reduce your carbon emissions.
2. Rather than leaving your engine running when waiting to pick up or drop off passengers turn your engine off instead.
3. Reducing your speed can radically reduce the amount of green house gases you produce. Traveling at 56 mph rather than seventy mph reduces your fuel use by around ten percent & if you dropped your speed from 70mph to 50mph you would reduce the carbon emitted by your car by a whopping 25%.
4. If you drive more smoothly, instead of accelerating & braking all the time, you can significantly reduce your carbon emissions. Clear? It has been estimated that those who drive smoothly & intelligently can save a staggering 30% of fuel consumption compared with those with a heavy right foot. By keeping your distance from the car in front & monitoring the traffic ahead you can slow down efficiently & avoid constant use of the break.
5. Ensure that your tyres are inflated to the correct pressure, you can find the required pressure in your owner’s manual. According to figures provided by the RAC under inflated tyres increase resistance & can increase fuel consumption by up to 2%.
6. Sharing car journeys reduces the number of cars on the road but nearly 40% of car journeys only have one occupant in the car. Check out Liftshare.org to find travel companies & share travel costs.
7. Avoid carrying unnecessary heavy items, such as tool kits or golf clubs. The more weight you are carrying in the car, the more fuel is used per mile & the greater the carbon emissions per journey.
8. If you’re not using them get rid of roof racks and/or bull bars. Not only do they add to the weight of the car but these items also increase air resistance, adding up to five percent to your fuel consumption.
9. If you have air conditioning fitted attempt & minimise its use. At slower speeds open your car windows & ventilate the car naturally instead. Be aware that at higher speeds open windows can create significant drag, so it’s better to use the car’s conventional air ventilation system or air con if really necessary. Air conditioning can add around ten percent to your fuel consumption.
10. Regularly servicing, in accordance with the manufactures mileage recommendations, ensures that you car runs as efficiently as possible, thus maximising its performance & fuel efficiency & minimising emissions. A regular service will save you money in the long run, as the car should last longer as well as running far more economically.

Tony Cowley
Faster Online

Land investments are under the threat of climate change. And so… Scientists are previewing a disaster in the near future: global warming. Scenarios, are previewing that because of the melting of the glaciers on Earth, the Sea level will grow, from a minimum of 0,5 meters to a maximum of eighty meters, in case that all ice on Earth will be melted. The geography itself will change because of the changing of sea shores. There is more. The owners of the land at low levels, between zero & 2 meters, must take measures for intensive exploiting of land, in order to obtain capital to buy land at higher levels above sea. The next big investments in land must be made at a higher level than eighty meters above sea, to be sure that the investor would not actually be forced to leave again his property after the permanent growing of sea level.

After the extent of the European Union, at a number of 25 countries, the land for sale in Europe registered ® a big growing. But the investors in land have to be informed of the risks of purchasing land at low levels above the sea level. Some zones are in Pollen & East Germany at Baltic Sea & in Latvia & Lithuania at the Finland Gulf. Other zones are Danube Delta & the Danube Valley at the Black Sea. All zones in Europe that are eighty meters above the sea level are safe 100% at sea floods in the future… Europe is the continent with a medium height of 300 meters above sea level. But even when purchasing in mountain zone, or in a hill zone, investors must carefully select the property, so that to keep out of the flooding zone of the rivers. Clear? Investors must count the Highest Level of the rivers & the land not to be at a lower level than the bridges over the rivers. Romania, the last country entered in European Union, has on 2/3 of its surface, mountains & hills, & 90% of its plains are at a higher level than 8o m above sea level. Transylvania, the famous region of Romania, is the highest plain in Europe, being at a medium height of 500 meters above sea level.

Other 3 plains: Moldavia, Dobrudja & Oltenia, do have a medium level of 250m above sea level. The capital city of Romania, Bucharest, is placed in the middle of southern Romanian plain at a medium height of 85 m above the sea level.

To learn something about the land at sea level, see http://www.caraorman.ro & enjoy it.

Author Victor Marcu is the Owner of one of the First Real Estate Company’s in his Country, Romania, & has an Experience of 12 Years of Work in this Field. Is Member of Romanian Union of Real Estate Agencyes: UNAI. He also has a Degree in Mechanics at Politechnic Institute of Bucharest & worked at the Planning & Building of some Industrial Plants in Bucharest & Other Towns of Romania. Is also a Specialist in Evaluation for Real Estate. To search more about properties in Romania & it is capital Bucharest, open his sites: http://www.imobiliare-vittorio.ro or http://romanianproperties.net.