eached to the point of infertility. Massive dust storms pick up the loose soil and carry it as far as Tokyo and Taipei. During sunset, fumes from factories block out the sun well before it can be observed sinking below the horizon.
But all this may be finally changing.
In 2005, the Chinese government, in cooperation with the World Bank, completed the world’s largest watershed restoration on the upper banks of the Yellow River. Woefully under-publicized, the $500 million enterprise transformed an area of 35,000 square kilometers on the Loess Plateau — roughly the area of Belgium — from dusty wasteland to a verdant agricultural center.
The result of careful terracing, replanting of native vegetation and restrictions on grazing, the rejuvenated land now supports a thriving local agricultural economy. Even better, the new vegetation reduces flooding and dust storms by anchoring the region’s soil and is becoming a large carbon sink.
As the Copenhagen meeting on climate change begins, the restoration project may finally get the attention it deserves. A new film directed and written by John Liu, the founder of the Environmental Education Media Project and a veteran eco-film director, will tell the story of the Loess Plateau. The documentary, “Hope in a Changing Climate,” takes the story of the Loess Plateau as its lead, but quickly moves to Rwanda and Ethiopia where similar successes have come from a process known as forest landscape restoration.
Copenhagen is the first time forest landscape restoration will be on the agenda at a major international climate conference. Under what is known as Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation Plus (REDD+), Copenhagen negotiators hope to establish a regulatory regime to fight deforestation and manage forested areas. Proponents of forest landscape restoration are hoping this could include recognition and support for projects across the globe.
That could be a major step forward in popularizing landscape restoration. The process suffers from being literally as exciting as watching grass grow. It can take decades for vegetation to fully return, and strict attention must be paid to mundane matters like grazing and over-planting. Mr. Liu’s documentary overcomes this stumbling block with jaw-dropping fades from muddy denuded landscapes to lush fields.
It is becoming harder to deny the importance of forest landscape restoration in combating climate change. A new study by the World Resources Institute shows that about 1 billion hectares of land could be restored across the globe. Rough estimates indicate that carbon sequestration through this process could eliminate 50 percent more carbon from the atmosphere than a proactive cessation of deforestation could.
Still, forest landscape restoration is decidedly complex. Because ecosystems vary based on geography, and lasting success depends on the support of local residents, the process is pesteringly cross-disciplinary. Any forest landscape restoration project requires the know-how of engineers, ecologists and soil scientists, plus an understanding of local economics and politics.
In the Loess Plateau locals built and must maintain the terraces that have brought about their ecosystem’s incredible recovery.
Much hangs in the balance of the Copenhagen talks, and although forest landscape restoration is a shining light in what has over the past few months become a darkening debate, it is no panacea. It must be implemented in combination with carbon cuts and sound anti-deforestation policies.…
f the life which was borne into this world by SHE who has finally passed the torch... [IT] IS fitting, therefore, to thank you ALL for your kind remarks and to advise you particularly that I have cherished this solid brass statue and its intricate detail for many a year as part of a collection which symbolises for me the passing of the torch - in the form of the seed amongst us zaadzsters et al - from Guatama Buddha to Mahakashyap and onwards from India to China, China to India, India to Japan, Japan to the USA and hopefully now from the USA to the entirety of all the peoples of all the nations of the WORLD.
LET the PEOPLE decide !
A model of INSIGHT ARISING from the Goddess of COMPASSION towards AUTHENTIC SELF
…
Added by Michael Grove at 11:52 on February 24, 2013
, the father of airborne radar, Dr. Taffy Bowen
recounts his personal story of how the first airborne radars were
built and brought into use in the Royal Air Force, and of the
Tizard mission to the USA in 1940, of which he was a member.
Written from the point of view of the individuals who worked at
the laboratory bench, the story begins with the building of the
first ground air-warning radar at Orfordness in June 1935. The
book proceeds to describe how this equipment was miniaturized
to make it suitable for use in aircraft and the lengthy, sometimes
hazardous flight trials conducted before radar went into service
with the RAF. The author also details the activities of the Tizard
mission, which was instrumental in installing the first airborne
radars in US aircraft. The greatest achievement of the mission
was to pass on the secret of the resonant magnetron to the US
only a few months after its invention at Birmingham University.
This was the device that brought about a revolution in Allied
radar, putting it far ahead of the corresponding German
technology for the remainder of the war.
…
", the father of airborne radar, Dr. Taffy Bowen
recounts his personal story of how the first airborne radars were
built and brought into use in the Royal Air Force, and of the
Tizard mission to the USA in 1940, of which he was a member.
Written from the point of view of the individuals who worked at
the laboratory bench, the story begins with the building of the
first ground air-warning radar at Orfordness in June 1935. The
book proceeds to describe how this equipment was miniaturized
to make it suitable for use in aircraft and the lengthy, sometimes
hazardous flight trials conducted before radar went into service
with the RAF. The author also details the activities of the Tizard
mission, which was instrumental in installing the first airborne
radars in US aircraft. The greatest achievement of the mission
was to pass on the secret of the resonant magnetron to the US
only a few months after its invention at Birmingham University.
This was the device that brought about a revolution in Allied
radar, putting it far ahead of the corresponding German
technology for the remainder of the war.
…
er Hitler’s Third Reich, became a mainstay of popular culture through the 1960s and 1970s before being revived with an updated model in 1997.
The German car maker said the last vehicle would be made in Mexico next year, at the only factory still manufacturing the car. The company said the decision would allow it to focus on other models, including its portfolio of electric cars. Hinrich Woebcken, chief executive of Volkswagen Group of America, said: "The loss of the Beetle after three generations, over nearly seven decades, will evoke a host of emotions from the Beetle's many devoted fans."
At its peak it sold more than a million cars a day, powered in part by the cinema exploits of Herbie the Love Bug • and this particular picture shall forever [RE]main a [RE]minder of the 53 YEARS of my own VW memories, which as you are ALL no doubt aware by now, were turned sour forever by VW themselves in respect of the Beetle [BE]ing the People's CAR and that the customer is supposed to be KING rather than the GOD-ALMIGHTY DOLLAR !!!???
Few people were surprised when in 1993 Ferdinand Piëch became chief executive of Volkswagen, then on the brink of bankruptcy. Over the next two decades, latterly as chairman, he built the company into the largest car manufacturer in Europe by a substantial margin, rivalling Toyota for the title of largest carmaker in the world. But Piëch’s management style was not to everyone’s taste. German newspapers called him “Lord of the Manor’’; a General Motors executive once called him “quasi-psychotic’’. Aggressive, brooding and authoritarian, he ran Volkswagen like a personal fiefdom
…
Added by Michael Grove at 12:38 on September 16, 2018
al counsel for Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
It means President Biden is now relying on a change of policy from these states or a change from Congress - otherwise the US is unlikely to achieve its climate targets. This is a significant loss for the president who entered office on a pledge to ramp up US efforts on the environment and climate.
On his first day in office he re-entered the country into the Paris Agreement, the first legally-binding universal agreement on climate change targets. And he committed the country to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 52% by 2030 against 2005 levels.
"While this decision risks damaging our nation's ability to keep our air clean and combat climate change, I will not relent in using my lawful authorities to protect public health and tackle the climate crisis," he said. The outcome of this case will be noted by governments around the world, as it will affect global efforts to tackle climate change. The US accounts for nearly 14% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.
A United Nations spokesman called it "a setback in our fight against climate change" but added that no single nation could derail the global effort. In the US, this ruling could also affect the EPA's broader existing and future regulatory responsibilities - including consumer protections, workplace safety and public health. The ruling gives "enormous power" to the courts to target other regulations they don't like, Hajin Kim, assistant professor of law at University of Chicago, tells the BBC.
…
mont, who in 1885 became the first person to successfully photograph an individual snow crystal — the ice that makes up snowflakes. After years of trial and error, Bentley was able to capture the intricate details of snow crystals by using a compound microscope attached to his bellows camera.
He went on to photograph more than 5,000 of these “ice flowers” during his lifetime — never finding any duplicates — and the images still mesmerize to this day.
THE LOVE OF NATURE ...
IS INDEED THE NATURE OF LOVE
MANIFESTED IN ALL OF US,
ADULTS AND CHILDREN ALIKE ,
AS THE MOMENT BY MOMENT ,
OPPORTUNISTIC ACTIONS ,
EXEMPLIFIED BY NATURE IT SELF,
FALLING LEAVES ...
NEVER forgetting that the two dimensional collective six sides of the snowflake can [NOW] perfectly relate to the multidimensional reality of the six sided FS4D cube ...
…