A balanced look at climate change and life.

Climate Change – The Facts

Excentree women’s and men’s organic and environmentally friendly clothing are going to try to help make sense of all the information that exists on this topic

You may believe that this should be an easy topic to write about given the high levels of information available on the subject, the thousands of research studies, 100’s of years of data and furthermore the grave amount of public interest and media attention that the subject draws. However you would be wrong. The actual facts, or should I say agreed upon facts in relation to global warming are limited. The problem is so many differences of opinion arise, and with so many people concentrating their efforts upon a supposed correct answer, the result is no answer. Or at least no answer that everyone is agreed upon.

So here is what we are going to do, we are going to summarise the facts as we see and believe them to be. We are not going to try to sway you to either side of the argument; we will let you decide that on your own.

The facts as we at Excentree Fashion Collections see it:-

Most scientists are in agreement that the earth has warmed over recent centuries from as early as 1000BC. Or in terms of greater accuracy since 1850 when standardised temperature measurement became reliable and reasonably accurate and distributed in key areas of the world.

Since 1990 we have experienced 10 of the hottest years globally.

Thick sea ice has declined by a size proportionate to the state of Alaska USA. The decline has been of 42%, 1.5 billion km², this in a period of only 4 years from 2004 to 2008. (World Wildlife Foundation, WWF)

The ocean is currently storing 90% of the worlds extra heat.

When travelling by various means of transport we generate various amounts of CO₂. On a journey from London to Edinburgh an airplane passenger would generate 96.4kgs of Carbon dioxide (CO₂), a car passenger 71kgs of CO₂; however a train or coach passenger would generate 11.9kgs and 9.2kgs respectively.

CO₂is only one emission gas that contributes to climate change, others include methane CH₄, Nitrous Oxide N₂0, Hydro fluorocarbons HFCs, Per fluorocarbons PFCs and Sulphate Hexafluoride SF₆

These gases are commonly known as the greenhouse gases because of the warming effect that their generation can have on our climate.

CO₂has been flagged by many scientists and academics as a problem due to the increased level of its appearance in the atmosphere since the beginning of the industrial age. This increased level being due to the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, gas and wood, to power the creations we now see in everyday life; TV’s, cars, toasters, airplanes, the list could go on forever.

The potential effect of greenhouse gases is measured using a scale called the Global Warming Potential (GWP)

CO₂is not the most harmful or powerful greenhouse gas among the list, that prize goes to Sulphur Hexafluoride, which has a (GWP) of 23,900 per ton; compared to CO₂which has a GWP of 1 per ton.

Sulphur Hexafluoride is used in the electrical industry as an insulator for circuit breakers and switch gear. It is also used in medical operations involving the eye and in ultrasound scans as a contrast to provide clear imagery.

8000 tons of Sulphur Hexafluoride is produced yearly.

27 billion tonnes of Carbon Dioxide is produced yearly.

This is more than 50 times what is dissolved by the oceans marine masses.

CO₂is a naturally occurring gas that has been present in our atmosphere for millions of years.

The earth over millions of years has been much hotter than it is currently today. Most notably in the time of the dinosaurs when the CO₂level was 2 to 4 times higher.

The question of global climate change is not new and can be traced back in our current history to as early as 1895, when an article was posted in the New York Times about the possibility of a second glacial period http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F02E1D8163CE433A25757C2A9649C94649ED7CF

The concentration of Carbon Dioxide in the earth’s atmosphere currently stands at 387 parts per million, a 31% increase in the period 1750 to 2009.

The concentration of Carbon Dioxide for several thousands of years prior to 1750 was around 280 parts per million.

It has been suggested by scientists that this is just natural. Shifts in the earth’s orbit taking the earth closer to the sun are the cause of increased global temperature. Earth has been shown to experience periods of greater warmth and cool every 100 thousand years on cycle.

Temperatures globally have increased 0.8°C since 1880, much of which in the most recent of decades.

The rate of temperature increase could be dramatically increasing with the last two decades of the 20^th century being recorded as the warmest for 400 years.

Advice from our environmentally friendly clothing store?

Climate Change Advice

So having read the above, you may be thinking ‘What can I do to influence climate change?’ Well this particular conundrum can probably best be split into two areas. Firstly the direct question above and secondly, ‘What can I do to reduce my CO₂and greenhouse gas emissions?’ Or possibly you may not be very interested, deciding it is a load of old tosh. Free world, free thought and free choice, in which case you probably will not have got this far anyway. Got to love democracy. What we would like to stress is, that you can only reduce your CO₂

And greenhouse gas emissions you can never stop them completely and research has it and most people are agreed that the planets climate is constantly warming and cooling so we are never going to be completely in control

So anyway presuming some of you at least have got this far I’ll try to pass on some gems of worldly wisdom possibly thought of by me and more likely to have been thought of by me and many thousands of others over the past 20 years, however no less true now than when they have been said before so take head.

1. What can I do to influence climate change?

Directly there are many small things that you can do to influence climate change, (one thing being to purchase fashion garments that help give back to our planet). These mostly include reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases in your everyday lives and reducing the amount of direct and indirect energy sources that you use. Also your actions at work and in the local community to drive eco-related projects and forward thinking environmental projects can have a major affect on the impact of communities upon climate change. Collectively we can have a greater positive impact than when acting alone.

However we must also remember that parts of climate change are a natural phenomenon and that said, regardless of our efforts to stop or reduce climate change, change will occur regardless. From reading the facts about climate change above, you may have deduced that the primary reason scientists disagree about climate change is because it is actually a naturally occurring phenomenon. The disagreement and concern has arisen because it is believed that climate change is occurring too rapidly. So we must remember to do our best to positively limit the speed of climate change to natural levels while remembering that the climate will never be completely constant. Now for the perfectionists among us this concept could be very difficult to grasp but believe us, your best is a valuable contribution to the planet and the planet is grateful.

What can I do to reduce my CO₂and greenhouse gas emissions?

All the comments in Green are also money saving opportunities

In the home and during your home life

Reduce the amount that you use the car. Do this by walking places when that is an option or by taking the train or bus.

Turn off electrical appliances at the plug, rather than using the standby mode.

Recycle your waste; take time to separate paper, plastic, glass and steel from your food waste. Take the separated recyclables to a recycling station or encourage your local MP or Councillor to provide a recycling service as part of the council budget.

Buy locally produced goods when you visit the supermarket or use the local farmers’ market.

Buy fresh fruit and vegetables that are in season when you shop, so you know they haven not travelled great distances.

Even better, dedicate part of your garden to growing your own fruit and vegetables. Fun and money saving.

Check the efficiency of your boiler.

Turn off lights when you are not in the room.

Use more lamps than lights.

Change the bulbs in your lights to energy efficient bulbs.

Insulate your home; hot water tank; loft cavities and wall cavities.

Avoid wasting water, energy is required to heat water and greenhouse gases are usually produced indirectly in this process.

Only boil enough water in the kettle that you know you are going to use that time. Bonus point here: BOILING FRESH WATER EVERY TIME YOU WANT A CUPPA ACTUALLY MAKES YOUR TEA OR COFFEE TASTE BETTER.

Try to fill your dishwasher and do full loads of laundry. If this is not always possible use an energy saving, or reduced load setting.

Let your washing bask in the sunshine rather than tumble drying.

Drink tap water if it is safe to do so.

Take showers rather than baths.

Use roll on deodorants instead of sprays.

When and if you need to shop for new home appliances; fridge, freezer, washing machine etc, shop for those goods that carry good GREEN STANDARDS, ask the in store representative for advice about the GREEN STANDARDS of the products you wish to buy. If he does not know about it shout at him in a very angry voice (clearly only joking). Energy efficient appliances will save you lots of money.

At work and your work life

· Investigate the possibility of a car share to work.

· Cycle or walk if it possible, added advantage of improving your physical condition and saving money.

· Take the bus, train or subway for those longer trips to work.

· Encourage your company bosses to employ many of the tips that you have followed in your home. If small changes in your home can make a big difference imagine that on an office scale?

· Tell your work colleagues about the savings you have made since employing the energy saving methods in your home. Remember this is not meant to be a secret.

· Use the stairs not the elevator.

· Take sandwiches to work rather than having a hot lunch.

· Discuss with your boss the possibility of working from home.

· Use video conferencing and phone conferences to reduce face to face meetings which inevitably involve high transport volume.

· If your company or business activity cannot avoid using cars as a mode of transport, investigate bio-fuel, hybrid and even diesel cars as a way to reduce emissions.

· If cars are a luxury more than a necessity, suggest trading in your company car for a train pass and extra cash in your pay packet.

· Print on recycled paper and recycle the paper again.

· Use one piece of note paper multiple times.

· Encourage, support and suggest initiatives that promote eco-friendly projects at work.

· Plant trees around the outside of the building, helping to increase shade and reduce the need for air-conditioning.

· Bring a plant to work and place it on your desk or in the office to help oxygen flow. (ALSO LOOKS VERY NICE)

How could climate change affect our lives?

Climate change holds the potential to fundamentally change our lives no matter which country we live in, nor if you believe it is being influenced by greenhouse gas emissions or not. If the climate continues to warm at current levels, the increased temperatures will impact rainfall patterns and lead to the melting of ice glaciers across the planet, and the extreme weather conditions that are already noticeable on a yearly basis across the world will continue to worsen.

The world will suffer food shortages due to land losing its fertility through lack of rain and raised temperatures. This will affect both developed and developing nations. However in developing nations it could be the difference between life and death. Malnutrition is likely to rise steeply and regional famines are also likely to increase. Although a complete hypothesis, regional food shortages and desperation could lead to regional conflict in a bid to survive.

Conditions more pressing to the developed world will include increased occurrences, severity and duration of periods of intense heat and on the polar effect, intense rainfall and flooding. I am sure if you think to the news you see and hear on the radio, TV and newspapers over the past years you will remember hearing this phrase, “the unexplained and never seen before phenomena has hit place xxxxxx leaving local people and professionals alike bemused.” Instances of such disbelief are occurring far more regularly year on year.

The changes specific to the UK over the past years may seem muted in comparison to what can be viewed on the news channels including; hurricanes in the Atlantic; typhoons in the Pacific; heat waves and drought in Europe; earthquakes; mudslides and extreme flooding. However think about the flooding and extreme rainfall during the summer of 2008. Yes, the UK has a comparatively mild climate in comparison to our global neighbours, but our actions impact the lives of others as well as our own. Ultimately the UK climate might bite back.

1. Sea surface temperatures around in the UK have increased 0.7 °C since 1970.

2. Sea levels around the UK have risen 10cm since 1900.

Small changes you might think but what could the future hold? (This is purely speculative and we stress the word might)

The UK by the turn of the century 2100:-

The average temperature is expected to rise between 2°C and 5°C with the average central estimate expected to be 3.5°C.

Sea levels to be between 11cms and 76cms higher.

Possibility of droughts in the South East.

This will lead to hotter summers like that of the summer of 2003. In theory this may be a good thing for some. But not for the proportion of the population that is weaker than those in their prime. In 2003 an additional 2000 deaths were reported with related heat issues. Is the possibility of such extreme summers occurring yearly a welcome one?

Changing weather patterns that could lead to heavy rainfall and flooding, heat waves and droughts.

Honestly the above are merely predictions made on factual data that is currently held, but if you read them and think it sounds scary, think about what we do not know and cannot predict, that is the scary part.

What can we do to help?

Primarily we can all help my making small changes in our lives as detailed above. This is by no means an exhaustive list, and I am sure that you can think of many more interesting and fun ways to reduce your personal greenhouse gas emissions, and probably have a greater influential effect on your CO₂ emissions or Carbon Footprint. After you have finished reading this article go away put some of things we have said here into action and research other ways of helping. When you find new ways, innovative or regular, email them to us give@excentree.com so we can add them to our list. We can make a difference together.

Purposely we have missed one major thing out that can help reduce your Carbon Footprint because it is one of the main things that Excentree fashion collections can help you with.

PLANT A TREE, or even several trees. This does not stop at trees, begin your own garden no matter how small it is by potting your Excentree clothing garment tag and see what you can grow. Roof gardens, forests, fields, plant pots all have their part to play in slowing the rapid change in our climate and reducing your carbon footprint.

What if you don’t believe or people around you don’t believe?

Go tell the polar ice caps that you do not believe. No, quite honestly this is an open case and a lot of what is said in the media adds to the doubts of sceptics, we must take all steps necessary to do what we can if we choose to do so. Seriously, there are contradictions that exist and natural effects such as volcanic eruptions, El Nino and El Nina which do affect the natural climate. However the rapid increase in temperatures, even taking account for natural causes, cannot be explained without the inclusion of data relating to the 30% increased level of CO₂since the industrial revolution, a level at it’s highest for 800,000 years. These gases make up a very small part of our planets natural atmosphere but they have a profound effect on the way we live. Greenhouse gases make up 0.5% of our natural atmosphere and at this level they keep our planet 30°C higher than it would be without them. These gases are technically, the 0.5% that keeps us from being non existent. So if you imagine disturbing that level of 0.5%, the result could be a direct and profound effect on the climate we enjoy today.

Final Word

One qualification I will add regardless of what decision you have made yourself by reading this or listening to the media, do what you can to make a difference but don’t stop living your lives. We can all make a valid difference to our own personal carbon footprint through our daily actions, habits and purchases, but what we should not do is stand still in fear of ruining the world. The world is here to enjoy so let’s do that while also making certain small choices that can have a positive impact on our environment. Be who you are, and while doing it embrace and help the beauty around you, however large or small your contribution is, it all counts.