Global Warming and its Effects on our Reefs / What Can We Do?!?

[SlamaJama]

28 Dec 2006 at 4:10am
CLIMATE change has been killing fish on Australia's Great Barrier Reef, a study out yesterday revealed. Rising temperatures have bleached more than 30 per cent of the world's coral reefs, according to a five-year study Down Under.

M.R,
Its my feeling there are many questions relating to this subject but 2 come to mind right away...
1) I think its time we assess the way we live, ask our selves tough questions and come up with tough practical answers. Global Warming is REAL and its HERE.
2) I mean do we continue to have reef tanks if its partial (if not mostly) our fault, or will WE be the only "keepers" of an extinct ecosystem...this goes deeper than this post....lets get pro-active as a group, I ask again..

What Can We Do?!?

 

[scarf_ace1981]

no need to worry slama. new reefs and fish will be found elsewhere. you can't beat mother nature. if you read that article posted not too long ago, 90-95% of all ocean life had been wiped out once and look where we are @ now.

 

[jhale]

Mike I agree I have thought about the problem for some time.
There are no easy answers, at least not ones that we all want to hear.
We as a nation consume the most energy and produce most of the worlds
waste. To change this will require a huge shift in the way we all live our lives.
This is happening, but at a very slow pace. Ironically the best thing we could do to help the reefs would be to shut down all our tanks.

Threads like this have been posted in the past without much response, which is kind of sad.

 

[inline6]

Headline news like this http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16390346/
and Al gore's movie http://www.climatecrisis.net/
makes you wonder why nothing is being done now.

 

[jhale]

from the site posted above,
some simple things you can do at home to make less of an energy impact.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/whatyoucando/

 

[SlamaJama]

there is alot to be worried about....

 

[Vision06]

You can worry about this also then. I watched it today.
http://science.discovery.com/tvlistings/series.jsp?series=110507&gid=0&channel=SCI


http://science.discovery.com/tvlistings/episode.jsp?episode=0&cpi=110507&gid=0&channel=SCI

 

[SlamaJama]

im sure reefs have come and gone...but we need to try to prevent anymore of what GLOBAL WARMING AND and its effects on OUR REEFS which is wat i should have called this thread...

28 Dec 2006 at 4:10am
CLIMATE change has been killing fish on Australia's Great Barrier Reef, a study out yesterday revealed. Rising temperatures have bleached more than 30 per cent of the world's coral reefs, according to a five-year study Down Under.

M.R,
Its my feeling there are many questions relating to this subject but 2 come to mind right away...
1) I think its time we assess the way we live, ask our selves tough questions and come up with tough practical answers. Global Warming is REAL and its HERE.
2) I mean do we continue to have reef tanks if its partial (if not mostly) our fault, or will WE be the only "keepers" of an extinct ecosystem...this goes deeper than this post....lets get pro-active as a group, I ask again..

What Can We Do?!?

vision, did u read this oru just doing ur own thing....?

 

[jhale]

changed the title for you mike.

 

[SlamaJama]

wow thxs J

 

[Vision06]

I added it as an addition to global warming. Not only is it killing the reefs but so are these starfish and many other things.

I know how I feel on the subject. This is a touchy subject for many ppl.......That or maybe I was doing my own thing....I forget.

 

[HAVIC]

Before you believe Al Gore. Read this interview from Discover Magazine with the man who figured out how hurricanes form and how to predict them over 20 years ago. About half way to the end of the interview they get into global warming. I'm not saying that it is not happening because numbers don't lie but it may not be because of of us.
http://www.discover.com/issues/sep-05/departments/discover-dialogue/

 

[sarahandkevin]

I am afraid the world is doomed. I dont see mass change happening. All I can do, is do the best that I can do and then hope I die before it all comes to an end.

...happy new year

 

[jhale]

Before you believe Al Gore. Read this interview from Discover Magazine with the man who figured out how hurricanes form and how to predict them over 20 years ago. About half way to the end of the interview they get into global warming. I'm not saying that it is not happening because numbers don't lie but it may not be because of of us.
http://www.discover.com/issues/sep-05/departments/discover-dialogue/

please lets not turn this into a debate over whether global warming is happening or caused by us. the person in that article is discounting so much research it's ridiculous. your right the numbers do not lie, and they point to global warming being caused by the amount of carbon dioxide we are pumping into the atmosphere.
this thread is for discussing how to help the situation, please keep it on track.

 

[loismustdie]

I am concerned. I run energy efficient bulbs on every light in my house that is not dimmable. Dimmable lights are rarely used. I drive a car that gets 24 MPG. When we can, we use my wifes car which is even better. We walk and ride bikes a lot if we're going local.
My thermostat is set a few degrees cooler in the winter and a few degrees warmer in the summer. Attic fans are great in the summer too. I buy green electricity from ConEd. My list goes on and on. I do worry about these things, BUT:

We as a nation consume the most energy and produce most of the worlds
waste.

Let us not forget that we are one of very few nations who actually measures what we consume, and how much waste we produce. Comparing us to others is a pretty weak argument. Can you imagine a garbage truck in France being weighed before it dumps? They don't. The emissions standards of a car in the middle east makes an H2 look environmentally friendly. If you hate driving in this city, let's see you make your way around South Korea, where they look at you like you're nuts if you ask them if their cars are actually inspected for emissions.
If you believe everything Al Gore says, I've got a Treaty for you to sign.
Again, we are blaming a guy with a fish tank in his house for all the woes of the ocean. WE ARE NOT INNOCENT, but when my electric bill is comparable to pretty much everyone else I know who doesn't have a tank, how much do I waste exactly? My bill is consistently around $170 a month, even in the summer.
Those nice big tankers that pull into our ports every day with cheaply made Chinese goods emit more CO2 into the atmosphere than all of our tanks electric usage combined for the year. We want everything cheap though... don't we?
Listen, I agree, it's on us to keep our consumption down as low as possible. We should strive to buy energy efficient equipment. What it comes down to around here though is most hobbyists don't buy the energy efficient products because they are more expensive. Paying more up front isn't appealing for some reason. I can't tell you how to fix that without causing a total flame war.
I guess my point in all this is:
-Buy energy efficient equipment.
-If you run a tank, find more ways to conserve around your home.
-Try talking to your friends who don't have tanks. We tend to be more energy conscious.
-A little extra $$$ on certain things isn't exactly a bad thing.
-Stop Blaming America.
-Stop blaming the hobby.

 

[Psycho graphic]

IMO to save the planet would mean toppling most of the governments and large corporations of the world, and giving up about 80% of our affordable modern conveniences. Neither of which will ever happen. Maybe it's just destiny that we go the way of the dinasours and let new species take over. I don't make this last statement to be funny, I honestly think this could be true.

 

[jhale]

I did not mean to sound like our country was the total problem.
I'm not going to be taking my tank down any time soon, and driving my suv and other trucks due to my work will not stop either.

I think if people are aware of what they can do to help cut back on energy costs and do it, that will go a long way. every small bit adds up.

For my part I try to even out my energy consumption in other areas.
I use low watt bulbs and dimmers in the house.
When possible I'll use mass transit.
For my work which uses up a lot of tree's I buy wood that is domestic as much as possible, and I avoid using tree's that are not certified, though I've heard you can never be sure.
I recycle paper products for what that's worth.
I also keep the house cool in the winter, though the summer I am guilty of keeping the AC on more. There's more, but whatever I do I try to keep the enviorment in mind. That's better than ignoring it altogether.

 

[SlamaJama]

Chris, Jon, excellent points made....we need sololutions peeps, not blame. Its so easy to blame your neighbor, but what have YOU done to add to or help resolve an obvious problem....thxs to all who have replied

 

[loismustdie]

Buy a Kill O Watt. $40 purchase can help you a lot. Know exactly how much power you're using and what you can cut back on.
A little FYI on this, a member burning HQI bulbs (250's) ran a little test. I see guys talking about how HQI gives you the brightness of 1 step up in wattage (for example a 250 watt HQI fixture giving you the light you would get out of 400 watt SE). Turns out, the 250 watt HQI's he has uses around 350 watts. 50 watts less than what it's being compared to, yet 100 watts more than he was expecting to be using.
I see a lot of people on the site advising HQI for the so called increase.
False advertising is rampant in this hobby with supplements and equipment claims. Know your gear.

 

[LeslieS]

One way to save energy that was not mentioned is fixing things. It has become so cheap to replace goods that very few people fix anything. If your lamp breaks - fix it. If your kids break their toys, glue them back together. Also, buying good quality the first time will make frivolous purchases less likely and they are usually easier and more worthy of fixing.

Jerry fixes EVERYTHING. I know that I better really like it if I buy it because I am going to have it FOREVER!