Planet Savers blog

Graham Harvey in an article in The Independent (30.Dec.07) points out that TB was a problem for humans in the 19th century that was eventually solved, not by drugs, but by better diet, better housing and better public hygiene.

He raises very interesting questions about the quality of food and housing of our sick livestock. For example, why do we feed our ruminants on grain? These animals like to be fed on good old fashioned grass – the green stuff that grows quite naturally and freely all over our countryside. Of course, it is much easier to find a scape goat, or rather a scape badger, to blame than to address the whole issue of industrialisation of farming methods.

He points out that “Industrial cropping, with its heavy dependence on chemical fertilisers, depletes soil organic matter and curbs the biological activity without which plants can’t take up trace elements.” As a result most food has to be propped up with additives in order for it to have any goodness. As ever, British people are voting with their feet as more and more look towards the farmer’s markets and organic box schemes.

The recent surge in the bio-fuels industry has had an interesting knock on effect. Grain is no longer a cheap commodity to feed to livestock, which means that farmers have started putting cattle back in the fields to graze. Which set me wondering, could it be that the bio-fuels industry will see a return to old fashioned methods of feeding cattle which, in turn, will wipe out TB and save the badger? I hope so.

With the year nearly over, I get the feeling that the world is just waiting for the Bush era to be over, too. Everything you read about climate change seems to be balked by Bush.

The Bali talks, which everyone in the whole world knew were vital to deciding our next steps, ended in a battle against the US stance. Al Gore felt the need to apologise for US behaviour saying that it would change once Bush steps down. Now Arnie is suing the administration because California, along with 16 other states, have been refused to set up new regulations curbing greenhouse emissions from vehicle exhaust pipes.

What is it with this guy? If he knows something the rest of the world doesn’t, he ought to start talking. Coz, from where most of us are standing, he seems to be edging the human race towards its own destruction. His interest in economics outweighs scientific argument. The man is either downright greedy, utterly stupid, or so ineffectual as to render the process of government useless.

The San Fransisco Chronicle carries a very good article by Shellenberger and Nordhaus On Global Warming. It points out that all governments, even those booing the US at Bali, could have the finger pointed at them for failing to meet their Kyoto promises. Then goes on to suggest that if government backed industry in the same way they did when the microchip was developed, then effective technology would quickly become affordable for the vast majority of us.

I’m still revelling in Dr Iain Stewart’s magnificent TV series “Earth: The Power of the Planet” which ended last night. The photography was utterly breath taking all the way through. His light and easy delivery explaining how our planet works, the traumas it has been through, and its ability to survive, gave a layman such as me some understanding of the enormity of Earth’s power.

It was all very humbling and his closing words said it all. (something like) “It’s not the planet that needs saving, the planet can look after itself, in fact it needs trauma to avoid stagnation. It’s not the planet that’s in danger, it’s us.”

So, taking this on board, I hereby change the name of this site to: “I want to save my planet from any further human exploitation so that I can carry on living on it.” But, for now, I’ll carry on using the shorter form :>)

Thank you Dr Stewart for a brilliant series.

Whilst I think the idea of the Grid storing excess electricity in car batteries around the country is a capital idea, I can’t help wondering how we are going to negotiate the times when we are not likely to need our car so that it will be possible for the Grid to borrow the power.

Yes, there will be averages for everyone but, if the idea is that the Grid can take energy to smooth out peaks, aren’t those more likely to be when people are busy and popping out, or when there is an emergency and people’s standard patterns are disrupted from the norm? What if you are suddenly called to the hospital and find that the Grid have borrowed your battery power and you might not make it?

I guess the answer is to make sure you have a hybrid and not rely totally of electricity. It will be interesting to see what financial incentives are offered.

There is an interesting article in the New Scientist quoting Global Action Plan’s comparison of the carbon footprint of computer servers against the SUV. The IT sector is reckoned to account for 2% of human generated carbon dioxide emissions each year. This make IT more akin to the airline industry than automobiles. So, the poor old SUV is just a scape goat, huh?

I was amused to note that this page on their website carried an advertisment from Land Rover for the Discovery 3.

Can you remember what your partner bought you for Christmas last year?

Well, apparently, more than half of the UK’s men forget what their partner bought them. Women were not much better either! According to the BBC today, we spend £2.3bn on unwanted gifts.

I found this rather sobering.