China is the world’s heaviest polluter, partly because of its heavy dependence on coal. The manufacture of cement also contributes particulate matter as well as copious amounts of carbon dioxide to the air. Other areas in the northeast are suffering with poor air quality as well. Harbin, the capital of Heilonjiang Province is enclosed in smog.
A traveller’s account of landing in Beijing and proceeding to the airport terminal illustrates the pervasive nature of the Chinese smog. It can be so intense that inside visibility is reduced to a few dozen meters. It is a sensation unlike any other, which gives a traveler the sense of impending suffocation or drowning. Forex TV At the climate conference in Paris, the Chinese delegates have vowed to start reducing their carbon footprint by 2030. In the meantime massive amounts of particulate matter and noxious gases are entering the shared atmosphere. Sources: BBC News Xinhua News Forex TV
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A little known emerging viral infection has gained a foothold in Florida. Chikungunya fever has spread from Africa to southern Asia and on to the Caribbean. It had been found sporadically in the USA in people who returned from areas where the disease was found. Recently a person developed Chikungunya without leaving Florida. The mosquito borne disease had a major outbreak in an island off Madagascar in 2005/2006. Approximately 300 thousand people contracted the painful disease. Mexico has recorded 7000 cases up to September 2015. The disease can sometimes be mistaken for Dengue Fever(breakbone fever) because severe joint pain is common for both. Encephalitis is sometimes part of the infection. Generally the very young and very old are most vulnerable to permanent neurological damage. The death rate hovers around 17%. There is no vaccination or cure. Pain killers can be used to help with the joint pain. Its name in the Makonde language, spoken in Tanzania and Mozambique in Africa, means "it bends up," because patients are often contorted with pain. They can spend weeks in bed, racked with pain. NBC News The Aedes mosquito is the vector for this disease. It survives best in warm climates. It flies and feeds in daytime or night. It is active inside and outside. Because prevention is so important, WHO advises that people wear clothing that covers skin and the wearing of repellents like DEET. It advises travellers to these tropic areas to only sleep where intact screens are in place or to stay where air conditioning means that windows are shut tight.
As the planet warms, diseases of the tropics are expected to more easily spread as the insect carriers make their way to new territories. Aedes albopictus(tiger mosquito) is already adapted to living in climates cooler than the tropics. This busy arthropod is a vector for yellow fever, dengue and worm parasites in addition to chikungunya. It was introduced to N. America from Asia in old tires that contained water. Sources: Science Daily CDC NBC WHO Meteorologists are trying to figure out how the N. American weather patterns might shape up in the coming months. This fall into winter will see a strong El Nino effect from the warming of the eastern Pacific Ocean. The predictions are complicated and depend on how the body of unusually warm water in the Pacific Ocean along the British Columbia/Alaska coasts will interact with the warming influence from the south. The effect of this weather phenomenon usually lasts through the winter months and dissipates in the spring. The heating effect of the ocean is particularly pronounced this year. California’s waters are an average four degrees warmer than usual. When there is an El Nino effect California usually sees fierce rain storms. This has happened in some areas already, causing mudslides and highway disruptions. While the coastal areas of N. America are predicted to have a milder winter than average because of the proximity of the warmer ocean waters, other areas may have colder than usual winter weather. El Nino can affect the jet stream – that circumpolar wind and weather phenomenon that may bring high pressure and Arctic temperatures to the continent. The Weather Network is predicting a mild start to the winter but the eastern half of the continent will see a sharp drop in temperatures toward the end of the winter. Predicting a season’s weather is increasingly difficult as the Earth warms. Warmer ocean temperatures have significant effects on the creatures that live in and on the waters. A few of the changes are:
Global TV NOAA The Weather Network Refugees -- too many, too much noise, too much garbage. Humans are messy creatures and when you have a mass exodus from a war zone you get some unwanted side effects. Millions of people have been displaced by the wars in the Middle East and many are risking their lives to start anew in safer places. Some countries in Europe are slamming their borders shut, saying that they cannot cope with the thousands of people on the move. Hungary has shut its borders. Chain link and razor wire greet the refugees. The Hungarian authorities have threatened to deport the refugees to their home countries, no matter that there is a particularly nasty war raging. Slovakia is stopping people at its borders and only allowing smaller groups to transit their territory. Some countries like Sweden, Austria and most notably Germany have committed to take many of the asylum seekers. But Der Spiegel is reporting that in Germany the welcome mat is beginning to wear thin. The small village of Hesepe in Lower Saxony has 2 500 residents. They are currently hosting 4 000 safety seekers. Disruption to the usual way of life is inevitable, yet the residents remain remarkably hospitable. Other areas have not been so welcoming. Bigots and white supremists have been blamed for fire bombing a recently completed apartment building planned to house refugees. Germany has registered over 400 000 people fleeing warfare between September 5 and October 15, a staggering number. Basic supplies and shelters are lacking in many areas. With winter fast approaching, Chancellor Angela Merkel made an emergency trip to Turkey to speak with their president about slowing the crush of people. It is not clear if any real changes would be made in Turkey to entice refugees to stay in that country. While that state has basic facilities for refugees, some have been lingering there three and four years. They are not allowed work permits so remain supplicants of the state. President ErdoAan has stated that he would not turn Turkey into “a concentration camp” for the benefit of Europe. The plight of the people trying to reach safer ground is the lead story on the television news stations. Cold rain is falling on the people and children are falling ill. There seems to be no coordinated plans to deal with the reality of the large movement of people. To add to the difficulties of housing and sheltering the refugees, hundreds of thousands of migrants have targeted Europe as a way to a better life. Italy has borne the brunt of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Yet what Europe is currently coping with may be just the beginning of mass human movements. It has been predicted that global warming in the next 50 years will displace hundreds of millions of people who can no longer survive in their traditional homelands. Sources: Der Spiegel UN Refugee Agency |
Barbara McPherson
Blogger, gardener, farmer. Working toward food security and a 30 foot
diet. Addicted to reading. Love this planet, especially my little corner
on Vancouver Island, Canada Archives
October 2016
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