Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta ecología. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta ecología. Mostrar todas las entradas

miércoles, 23 de febrero de 2011

Documental: the age of stupid

Una visión del no-futuro debido al cambio climático. Un aviso para que actuemos ahora. Algo demagógica, y no ayuda nada el alienar a la clase media americana con tristes historias sobre las consecuencias de la intervención en Iraq.

En cualquier caso, digna de verse; de ser tenida en cuenta. Reflexionar sobre las consecuencias de nuestras acciones nunca está de más.

jueves, 23 de septiembre de 2010

Especial de BBC News sobre el Ártico


22 September 2010 Last updated at 16:43 GMT

Richard Galpin gets rare access to Russia's floating nuclear power station

Could the Arctic become a battleground over control of large reserves of oil and gas thought to lie under the Arctic Sea, or will there be co-operation in the polar region? This will be a question for politicians and experts from around the world as they meet in Moscow.

In a grimy shipyard in St Petersburg, an ugly hulk of red-painted metal sits floating in the dock.

On deck, workmen scurry back and forth, hammering, drilling and welding.

In 2007, Artur Chilingarov planted a Russian flag on the Arctic seabed

This strange construction, part ship, part platform, is unique and lies at the heart of Russia's grand ambitions for the Arctic.

When it is completed in 2012, it will be the first of eight floating nuclear power stations which the government wants to place along Russia's north coast, well within the Arctic Circle.

The idea is the nuclear reactors will provide the power for Russia's planned push to the North Pole.

Moscow is claiming more than a million square kilometres of extra territory in the Arctic, stretching from its current border in the Arctic Sea, all the way to the Pole.

'Complicated and dangerous'

The territory includes an underwater mountain range called the Lomonosov ridge, a area which some Russian scientists claim could hold 75 billion barrels of oil.

Related stories

This is more than the country's current proven reserves.

"These [floating nuclear power stations] have very good potential, creating the conditions for exploring the Arctic shelf and setting up drilling platforms to extract oil and gas," says Sergey Zavyalov, deputy director of the operating company, Rosenergoatom.

"Work in the Arctic is very complicated and dangerous and we should ensure there's a reliable energy supply."

He says each power station, costing $400m, can supply electricity and heating for communities of up to 45,000 people and can stay on location for 12 years before needing to be serviced back in St Petersburg.

And while initially they will be positioned next to Arctic bases along the North coast, there are plans for floating nuclear power stations to be taken out to sea near large gas rigs.

ARctic claims map

"We can guarantee the safety of our units one hundred per cent, all risks are absolutely ruled out," says Mr Zavyalov.

Document

PDF download Map of Arctic oil and gas reserves [7.164KB]

But many environmentalists are alarmed and warn of the consequences of a nuclear accident in the pristine and fragile Arctic environment.

As Russia builds the infrastructure needed to operate in the Arctic, its Polar explorers announced this week they were stepping up efforts to provide the scientific evidence needed to convince the United Nations that Russia's claim to the Lomonosov ridge is valid.

Artur Chilingarov, who three years ago used a mini-submarine to plant the Russian flag on the seabed under the North Pole, will lead another expedition next month which will launch a drifting research station in the region.

Carving up the Arctic

  • A country has the right to exploit oil and minerals up to 200 nautical miles (370km) from the edge of its continental shelf.
  • It can make a claim that the shelf goes beyond the 200 miles
  • There are different ways of carving up the region. A straight line to a central point, such as the North Pole, can be drawn and the disputed area sliced up - a bit like cutting a pie
  • A "median" or "equidistant" line could also be drawn around the nearest point off a country's coastline

Russia needs to collect soil samples from the seabed to prove the Lomonosov ridge is part of the Russian landmass.

The government wants this research completed as quickly as possible because it's declared that the Arctic should be Russia's main source of oil and gas by 2020

And also because Canada is making a rival claim to the territory.

Compromise sought

But Russian scientists believe it could take another 10 years before enough evidence is collected and already tensions with Canada are rising.

"Russia does not want conflict with the other countries surrounding the Arctic," says Vladimir Kotlyakov, honourary president of the Russian Geographical Society and an Arctic expert.

"But naturally nobody wants to give up their territory.

"So we will make a huge effort to hang on to the territory which we think belongs to Russia."

"Of course conflict is always possible, but I repeat that the politicians currently in power in Russia want compromise."

They may want compromise, but they are pursuing a dual-track policy, pushing forward on every front to ensure Russia is the dominant power in the region even before the UN makes a ruling on the territorial disputes.

Although Moscow denies it's setting up special military forces or bases to protect its interests in the Arctic, it is establishing a new coastguard under the control of the all-powerful intelligence agency, the FSB.

Richard Galpin gets on board an ice-breaking ship that would make it much easier for Russia to send oil and gas exports to Asia

Quick route to Asia

And this summer a Russian oil-tanker made a record-breaking voyage through the Northeast passage, which runs along Russia's northern coast linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

The state-owned tanker carrying 70,000 tonnes of oil destined for China, was the largest to sail through the passage from Murmansk to the Bering Strait, completing the journey in less than two weeks.

All this is made possible by the melting of the Arctic ice in the summer months.

The route along the Northeast passage from Russia to Asia which is now opening up, is many days quicker than the traditional route via Europe, the Suez Canal and around India.

northeast passage

Although the ships still need to be escorted by ice-breakers, it is a tantalising opportunity for Russia which wants to sell more oil and gas to energy-hungry countries like China.

With some scientists predicting that there may be no ice at all in the summer by 2030, Russian officials are confident the Northeast passage will become a major route for energy supplies to Asia.

"We believe that five or six months a year are now available [for sailing through the Northeast passage]," says Sergei Frank, the chief executive of the state-owned shipping company, Sovcomflot, whose tanker made the record-breaking voyage.

"And if we can build stronger and smarter ships and find the best routes, then we can enlarge this window a bit."

Next year Mr Frank is planning to send even bigger tankers through the passage.

And on the broader issue of who the Arctic belongs to, he has no doubt that Russia is the rightful owner.

"Your very famous prime minister Winston Churchill, had a very proper saying: Right or wrong, but it's my country.

"The first serious Russian expedition in this area was launched in the 16th Century.

"This is our home."

jueves, 7 de enero de 2010

Calentamiento y el metano oceánico

Y para equilibrar el anterior comentario....

Me habían comentado hace años que podría ser posible, un escape súbito del metano atrapado en los océanos hacia la atmósfera, que podría causar una restroalimentación rapídisima del efecto invernadero. Pues podría estar ya aquí.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8437703.stm

Methane release 'looks stronger'

By Michael Fitzpatrick
Science reporter, BBC News

Bubbles of methane ice (SPL)
Frozen depositories are giving up methane to the sea

Scientists have uncovered what appears to be a further dramatic increase in the leakage of methane gas that is seeping from the Arctic seabed.

Methane is about 20 times more potent than CO2 in trapping solar heat.

The findings come from measurements of carbon fluxes around the north of Russia, led by Igor Semiletov from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks.

"Methane release from the East Siberian Shelf is underway and it looks stronger than it was supposed [to be]," he said.

Professor Semiletov has been studying methane seepage in the region for the last few decades, and leads the International Siberian Shelf Study (ISSS), which has launched multiple expeditions to the Arctic Ocean.

The preliminary findings of ISSS 2009 are now being prepared for publication, he told BBC News.

Methane seepage recorded last summer was already the highest ever measured in the Arctic Ocean.

High seepage

Acting as a giant frozen depository of carbon such as CO2 and methane (often stored as compacted solid gas hydrates), Siberia's shallow shelf areas are increasingly subjected to warming and are now giving up greater amounts of methane to the sea and to the atmosphere than recorded in the past.

METHANE HYDRATES
Methane gas is trapped inside a crystal structure of water-ice
The gas is released when the ice melts, normally at 0C
At higher pressure, ie under the ocean, hydrates are stable at higher temperatures

This undersea permafrost was until recently considered to be stable.

But now scientists think the release of such a powerful greenhouse gas may accelerate global warming.

Higher concentrations of atmospheric methane are contributing to global temperature rise; this in turn is projected to cause further permafrost melting and the release of yet more methane in a feedback loop.

A worst-case scenario is one where the feedback passes a tipping point and billions of tonnes of methane are released suddenly, as has occurred at least once in the Earth's past.

Such sudden releases have been linked to rapid increases in global temperatures and could have been a factor in the mass extinction of species.

According to a report by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), the springtime air temperature across the region in the period 2000-2007 was an average of 4C higher than during 1970-1999.

That is the fastest temperature rise on the planet, claims the university.

The recent thaw over the last decade means that some of the large reserve of carbon from organic material such as dead animals and plants in sediments is now being released into the sea and into our atmosphere.

Trapped below that is the methane hydrate now warming and leaking through holes in the defrosting sediments.

Infographic (BBC)
1. Methane hydrate is stable at high pressure and low temperature
2. Nearer the surface, where water pressure is lower, hydrates break down earlier than at greater depth as temperatures rise
3. Gas rises from the sea-bed in plumes of bubbles - some of it dissolves before it reaches the surface
4. The ISSS team says it has detected methane breaking the ocean surface

Previously it was thought much of this gas was absorbed into the sea.

But according to a recent report that Professor Semiletov and his team compiled for the environmental group WWF, the shallow depth of arctic shelves means that methane is reaching the atmosphere without reacting to become CO2 dissolved in the ocean.

Professor Semiletov's fellow researcher aboard the Russian icebreaker that carries the ISSS team each year is Professor Orjan Gustafsson from Stockholm University in Sweden.

He said that methane measured in the atmosphere around the region is 100 times higher than normal background levels, and in some cases 1,000 times higher.

'No alarm'

Despite the high readings, Professor Gustafsson said that so far there was no cause for alarm, and stressed that further studies were still necessary to determine the exact cause of the methane seepage.

"It is important now to understand how fast it is being released and how much is being released," he said.

However, there is a real fear that global warming may cause Siberia's subsea permafrost to thaw.

Some estimates put the amount of carbon trapped in shelf permafrost at 1,600 billion tonnes - roughly twice as much carbon as in the atmosphere now.

The release of this once captive carbon from destabilised ocean sediments and permafrost would have catastrophic effect on our climate and life on Earth, warn the scientists.


Limitando la población

Envidio a los países con tradiciones protestantes. A veces los miembros de sus iglesias son bastante responsables, como es el caso de los anglicanos pidiendo limitaciones sobre el número de personas que pueden vivir en el Reino Unido.



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8442662.stm


Immigrants should understand Christian heritage - Carey

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey has said immigrants to the UK should have an understanding the country's Christian heritage.

He is among a group of MPs and peers warning that the population should not be allowed to go beyond 70 million.

Lord Carey said immigration angered many people and could lead to violence, and that the system had to focus more on maintaining "values".

Labour says the system works, but the Tories want caps on incoming workers.

All the main parties are sceptical about setting population targets which they believe is unrealistic and counter-productive.

Last year the Office for National Statistics said, if current trends continued, the UK population would rise by 10 million to more than 71.6 million by 2033 - the fastest rise in a century.

'Unprecedented'

Two-thirds of that increase would be caused, directly or indirectly, by migration to the UK, it suggested.

The Balanced Migration Group - made up of 20 parliamentarians, including Lord Carey, former Commons Speaker Baroness Boothroyd, five Labour MPs and 10 Conservative MPs - is backing a campaign calling for curbs on immigration.

We've got to be more outspoken. What I'm calling for is a debate, a debate without any rancour
Lord Carey

Lord Carey told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We are not calling for a ban or anything like that because we value people from abroad."

"What I think I'm concerned about is not saying we must put a limit on people who are non-Christian populations. That's not the point. We welcome everybody and that's always been the generous spirit of the United Kingdom."

But, he said, immigrants must "understand" the UK's culture, including parliamentary democracy "which is built upon Christian heritage", "our commitment to the English language" and an understanding of the country's history.

The system should not "give preference to any particular group", he said, but added that points-based immigration could take these cultural aspects into consideration.

'Competing groups'

Lord Carey added: "If there's going to be an implementation of that points system, it must focus much more on values rather than religions...

"If there are competing groups wanting to come in, some groups which may have a greater understanding, an espousal to that, may be given preference under a points system, but that's not what I'm arguing and certainly not what the cross-party group is arguing."

Lord Carey told BBC Radio 5 live: "We've got to be more outspoken. What I'm calling for is a debate, a debate without any rancour."

He added that immigration was an issue that mattered to "ordinary working-class people" and that it was important to tackle "that kind of resentment which could build and is building up already".

Lord Carey said too much population growth in the UK could foster "dangerous social conditions", with some minority ethnic groups, such as young Muslim men, suffering "disproportionate" unemployment.

Labour MP Field and Tory MP Nicholas Soames, the co-chairmen of the migration group, said: "Poll after poll shows the public to be deeply concerned about immigration and its impact on our population.

"It is time parties turned their rhetoric into reality by making manifesto commitments to prevent our population reaching 70 million by 2029."

70 million 'unlikely'

The government must "restore control" over the UK's borders and "break the present almost automatic link between coming to Britain and later gaining citizenship", the group said.

Cabinet ministers have tried to do more to address public concerns about immigration, saying the issue must not become the preserve of the BNP.

Last November, Gordon Brown promised to "tighten" the UK's immigration rules by reducing the number of professions which can recruit from outside Europe while making it harder for illegal workers to enter the UK by obtaining student visas.

He said new restrictions were having an effect, adding the 70 million projection was unlikely to materialise.

The Conservatives have said they would keep the government's points-based system but place an overall annual limit on numbers and try to attract more highly qualified migrants.

The Lib Dems say they would ensure migrants were directed to parts of the country where they are most needed, where they will be welcomed and there are the resources to accommodate them.

Net migration - the number of people who come to live in Britain minus those who leave - fell by more than a third in 2008 but critics say this was driven by eastern Europeans returning home and immigration levels must fall to levels of the early 1990s.

martes, 1 de septiembre de 2009

Geo-ingeniería

Sí, debemos estar locos o desesperados....

BBC publica hoy un artículo sobre la posibilidad de hacer geo-ingeniería con el clima de nuestro planeta. Ciertamente el estudio detrás del artículo avisa de lo limitado de la iniciativa. No sé si realemente se tienen en cuenta los peligros de implementar algunos de los procesos propuestos, los efectos secundarios inesperados.

No, la solcuión no debe pasar por la inversión de grandes cantidades de recursos en geo-ingenieria, sino en la corrección de l consumo desaforado de recursos naturales. Más barato, sostenible, y , de haber consenso, fácil de poner en práctica.

sábado, 29 de agosto de 2009

miércoles, 19 de agosto de 2009

Colapso: por qué unas sociedades perduran y otras desaparecen

"Collapse: how societies choose to fail or succeed", de Jared Diamond. Un libro a tener en cuenta. Sobre el uso de los recursos naturales y las implicaciones que puede tener para la supervivencia de una sociedad. En el pasado y, más que nunca, ahora.

Sinopsis en wikipedia, en castellano


lunes, 16 de febrero de 2009

Entre 2 y 11.5 grados

EnlaceNo serán un máximo de 6 grados centígrados. Durante los próximos 100 años, la temperatura media pordía subir hasta 11.5 grados. Una verdadera catástrofe global.

En el caso más optimista, parece ser que serán "solo" dos grados. Inaceptable. Incluso esta cantidad representara un cambio sin precedentes (por lo reducido del tiempo) en numerosos ecosistemas.

¿Seguiremos snetados, esperando, decidiendo si son galgos o podencos?

Noticia en ingles (BBC)
Noticia en español (EL País)

domingo, 30 de noviembre de 2008

¿Un nuevo refugio para los gorilas?

Leo con satisfacción que el el gobierno de Camerón ha creado uan nueva reserva para un tipo de gorila que se encuetra en peligro de extinción. ¡Fantástico!

Sin embargo, als dudas me asaltan. En otros lugares de África, el establecimiento de santuarios no ha servido para eliminar las matanzas: los gorilas se han convertido en competidores por los escasos recursos o en fuente de riqueza fácil, y por tanto de represalias.

Sin un estado verdadermente articulado, y sin una población que se beneficie de la presencia de la reserva, dificilmente podrá ésta tener éxito.

martes, 26 de agosto de 2008

La parábola del pelicano

Desde hace varios días, ronda por la playa un pelícano. No puede volar, tal vez tenga rota una ala. Hay quien se compadece de él, otros incluso le dan alimento. No sé si mostrarían análogo comportamiento ante otro seres humanos.

Mientras, las gallináceas, mitad buitres, mitad rapaces, sobrevuelan las palmeras, esperando su momento. Ley de la naturaleza. Y en mitad de la bahía, las ballenas juegan, cortejan, aprenden. Nos regalan, desde su majestuosa indiferencia, sus impresionantes saltos.

Sin embargo, ni unos ni otros pueden saber que los días pueden estar contados. El llamado desarrollo humano, con un futuro puerto, amenaza todo el ecosistema. Tal vez solo el pelícano puede ser consciente de alguna manera de la inmediata brevedad de su vida.

viernes, 25 de julio de 2008

Los hidrocarburos del Ártico y el modelo energético

Un estudio de US Geological Survey (USGS), según cuenta BBC, indica que el Ártico contiene ingentes cantidades de petróleo y gas natural, una fracción muy significativas de las reservas conocidas. Todo un pistoletazo de salida para la carrera por los recursos, si se necesitaba alguno más.

No, lo que necesitamos no son más hidrocarburos. Y mucho menos un juego geoestratégico de grandes potencias para hacerse con el control de los recursos de una región extraordinariamente sensible. Lo que es imprescindible es una cambio de mentalidad y de modelo energético.

jueves, 19 de junio de 2008

El Ártico: ¿un nuevo Mar de Aral?

Uno de los mayores desastres ecológicos del siglo XX ha sido la práctica desaparición del Mar de Aral debido a la sobreexplotación de sus ríos tributarios. Apenas queda un vestigio de lo que fue, una charca contaminada donde la vida a duras penas se mantiene. Además, su desaparición ha afectado incluso al clima de la región. Una tragedia humana también para los habitantes del área. Pero no aprendemos.

Nuevamente es la BBC quien se hace eco de las noticias sobre el rápido deshielo del Ártico. Ahora nos anuncian que pueden ser cinco o diez años los que restan antes de que se pierda el casquete polar durante los veranos. Un fenómeno que tendría unas repercusiones muy importantes sobre las corrientes marinas, y que influiría de manera determinante en la climatología a novel global.

¿Esperaremos sin hacer nada?

sábado, 24 de mayo de 2008

El Ártico y la vida en la Tierra

Según leo en BBC, la ruptura del casquete polar ártico podría haber comenzado.

Mientras tanto, justo cuando celebramos la biodiversidad de nuestro planeta, se comprueba que el 25 % de las especies se han podido extinguir en los últimos 35 años.

¿Hacia qué desastre vamos?

viernes, 14 de marzo de 2008

Esas civilizadas naciones

Nos llamamos a nosotros mismos civilizados, en muchas ocasiones despreciando a los "otros"... término que no sólo indica seres humanos, tambien cualquier otra forma de inteligencia.

Nuevamente, otro ejemplo de barbariedad: las licencias islandesas a punto de concederse para cazar cientos de ballenas. ¿O debería decir asesinar?

martes, 5 de febrero de 2008

Los próximos nueve desastres naurales

O no tan naturales... Se me sobrecoge el corazón al leer en BBC los nueve grandes cambios en imporantes ecosistemas que podrían suceder a raíz del cambio climático. Entre ellos, se encuentran la pérdida de zonas tan relevantes como el Ártico y la Antárida, los bosques tropicales y grandes zonas habitadas que dependen de los monzones. Sobre todo, es impactante la rapidez con la que el cambio podría acontecer, sin darnos tiempo a reaccionar.

La respuesta, la acción, empieza a ser urgente, antes de que suceda.

lunes, 7 de enero de 2008

La explotación del petroleo de Alaska

Regreso de un viaje a un mundo completamente aislado, donde solo cuenta el individuo, su comunidad y la naturaleza, que lo domina todo, y me encuentro malas noticias, una detrás de otra.

Tal vez la peor, por sus implicaciones a medio y largo plazo, sea el comienzo de la explotación de los yacimientos de petróleo de Alaska. Explotación, sí, una palabra muy bien elegida. Aunque tal vez tendríamos que usar el verbo esquilmar.

Es doblemente negativa. Por una parte pudiéramos estar condenando unos ecosistemas delicados a su desaparición, dado el tremendo impacto que la industria del petróleo tiene sobre los lugares donde se realizan las extracciones y el transporte. Aun así, lo que es aún peor es el efecto negativo del consumo de más petróleo. No son más hidrocarburos lo que se necesita, que contribuyen de manera significativa al incremento del CO2 en la atmósfera y, probablemente, al efecto invernadero, sino un cambio del modelo energético. Se requieren nuevas (o no tan nuevas) tecnologías, que no pongan nuestro futuro en manos de unos pocos gobiernos (en algunos casos totalmente irresponsables), y que no contribuyan a la destrucción acelerada de la ecosfera.

¿Cuándo aprenderemos?

domingo, 23 de diciembre de 2007

Decisiones personales y la eficiencia energética

Ayer vi una excelente película de George Cloony, "Michael Clayton". El fondo es la responsabilidad personal, las decisiones, grandes y pequeñas, que tomamos día a día. Muy recomendable.

Durante esta semana he instalado un nuevo sistema de calefacción en mi casa. Son radiadores eléctricos de bajo consumo y alta eficiencia. Hace ya tiempo substituí todas mis bombillas y ahora las tengo de bajo consumo. Mucho más caros que cualquier otro sistema (unos 3 euros por vatio consumido, más de 20 veces más caro que otros sistemas), pero ello es debido a que los otros son mucho más ineficiente. Gastan, pero no calientan en la misma medida.

He de confesar que aunque no he instalado la potencia recomendada (me he quedado corto), es más que suficiente, se nota la diferencia. Además de tener la ventaja de que puedo programar los aparatos con una temperatura cuando creo que estaré en casa o cuando estoy fuera, para mantener la casa caldeada (21 y 15 grados, por ejemplo), optimizando el gasto. No sé si mi gasto en la factura eléctrica me permitirá compensar la inversión inicial. No me importa. Porque hay cuentas que no se tienen que hacer con dinero, al menos no con gastos a corto plazo. El planeta (o nosotros mismos, dentro de pocos años) nos lo agradecerá.

Son decisiones personales. A cada uno nos corresponde el tomar las nuestras ahora que podemos, que aún estamos a tiempo.



ADDENDUM:

Test de consumo energético del Instituto de Diversificación y Ahorro de Energía

domingo, 18 de noviembre de 2007

Ballenas y cambio climático

Una de las peores noticias, junto con el anuncio del Secretario General de UN y las conclusiones de IPCC. Japón volverá, después de 44 años, a cazar ballenas jorobadas (BBC).

Son magníficos animales. Quien los haya visto en directo, quien haya tenido esa fortuna, puede atestigualo. Los hay quien, como El Mercader de Venecia, se venden por una libra de carne.