Aust has environment mgx priorities wrong.

• bic_cherry

  21 Oct 09, 07:08

  Artic 1: Aust tourist writing to ST, complains abt 'wasting water'
  Artic 2: "Fires rage in Aust".
  Artic 3: 'Green roofs' could cool warming cities by 'evapotranspiration'.

  My contention is tt watering plants on hot day is a good thing to keep atm temp down so that less air-con power used will mean less green house gas, so fuel saved and n less global warming.

  If the Aussie guy cannot even spare some H2O to cool surroundings down (saving electricity), then I think he's in big big trouble cos burning fuel (>electricity generation> to power one's air-con unit) to cool oneself down is a terrible thing to do as it only accelerates green house warming for a temporary personal comfort. It causes those who are too poor to have air-con access to suffer more because it's hot air that's blowing out of the air-con condenser units, heating up the surroundings. It's thus such an anti-social thing to do, just depending on air-cons to cool oneself down without thoughts about the actual environmental/ future impact of one's other actions.

  Acc Artic 3,: more trees should be planted and watered to cool the environment down.

  Dear Mr Burke, if U dun allow evaporation, then U cannot expect much rain>

  If U use air-con because day is hot n trees have wilted, then U are only accelerating the green house effect of fossil fuel use.

  Then U will be ALWAYS short of H2O n U (n your future generations) will burn burn burn... rite?

  Thank you for your concerns and we'd welcome U back after U have solved your own problems back home. Don't forget to offset your carbon emissions on your next trip here. Plant a tree n have a nice day, g'day mate.

  :)

   

   

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  "Wasteful"
  Sep 23, 2009> ST> My Point
  
  'For a city so dependent on water, it was sad to see trees, flowers and grass being hosed in the blistering heat.'
  
  MR DENIS BURKE: 'I spent eight glorious days in Singapore enjoying the cleanliness, food and ambience of this great city. However I found a most unusual phenomenon: For a city so dependent on water, it was sad to see trees, flowers and grass being hosed in the middle of the day, in the blistering heat. The evaporation factor is at its greatest at this time. Sydney also has a water problem so we are told to water before 10am and after 4pm. If Singapore had the same rules, billions of litres of this precious commodity would not be lost through evaporation.'
  
  http://www.straitstimes.com/ST+Forum/Story/STIStory_433158.html
  
  Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access

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  Wildfires rage in eastern Australia

  http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2009/10/17/Wildfires-rage-in-eastern-Australia/UPI-36021255761410/

  Published: Oct. 17, 2009 at 2:36 AM

  Firefighters continued to struggle Saturday against wildfires in two states in eastern Australia.
  
  Two fires threatened homes in central Queensland, while more than 20 fires were reported in New South Wales, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
  
  A member of the New South Wales Fire Brigade died Friday after collapsing. He was part of a crew that had just put out a grass fire on Fingal Head, on the state's north coast.
  
  Earlier this year, as the Australian summer ended, explosive bush fires in Victoria killed 200 people and destroyed several communities. Many of those who died were overtaken as they tried to flee.
  
  In Queensland, about 50 fires burned Friday, and the pace picked up Saturday as wind speeds increased. In Mount Archer National Park, residents were told to be ready to leave at a moment's notice, while some residents of communities near Rockhampton were told their homes might be threatened within hours.
  
  In New South Wales, the Fire Service warned the Brooms Head fire might spread to threaten property. Other blazes closed roads.

  © 2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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  'Green roofs' could cool warming cities
  17:52 28 September 2007 by Catherine Brahic

  Covering city buildings in vegetation - creating "green roofs" and walls - could substantially save energy by reducing the need for air conditioning on hot days, say researchers.

  Green roofs and walls can cool local temperatures by between 3.6°C and 11.3°C, depending on the city, suggests their new study.

  Eleftheria Alexandri and Phil Jones at the Welsh School of Architecture, at the University of Cardiff in the UK, mimicked the microclimate around and inside buildings using computer modelling. They compared local temperatures when buildings were made of bare concrete with when the concrete was covered in vegetation.

  Such green surfaces are already in use - roofs that are strong enough to take the additional load can be covered with mosses, turf and even trees. In Switzerland, roofs covered in alpine plants that require little soil are becoming increasingly common. Walls can also be greened, often by climbing plants planted at ground level.

  ... .... more at: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn12710