GREEN OPINIONS
Green Opinions
'Green Opinions' is a blog where people can share and express their own personal opinion and ideas on a particular environmental issue or green topic. It is in effect the Op-Ed section of The Earth Times where the thoughts and ideas of individuals can be shared. From global, national to local issues, there are no topic or subject boundaries; although each article does go through an editorial process prior to publication. If you have your own environmental story or opinion that you would like to share, please let us know. Any contributor that shares a story on green opinions will need to provide a brief biography and picture (if possible). For more information, to send us your story or to set up your account please contact us.
South African Frackers
Posted Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:23:11 GMT by Michelle SimonAn overview of the fracking industry in South Africa and the environmental concerns associated with the process; the article also includes South Africa's potential frackers, written by Michelle Simon.
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Neander Meanderings
Posted Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:35:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongIn the late Middle Pleistocene, haematite (iron oxide) was carried at least twenty km by Neanderthals. Whether used as red ochre for cave painting and burials as their descendants did 40 thousand years ago, or for other ceremonial or even everyday use, Wil Roebroeks of Leiden University et al have tried to discover.
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Living fossil eel takes us back 200 million years
Posted Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:45:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongEels are among the most successful of all fish groups, and that extends back through time to the evolution of the bony teleosts themselves. The new species was named Protanguilla palau, complete with a unique family and genus.
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Recycling brings environmentalists and capitalists together
Posted Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:18:27 GMT by Robb ParlantiRecycling appeals to environmentalists because it helps preserve resources used today for further use tomorrow. And capitalists like recycling because it reduces their energy costs and, in some cases, offers profitable business opportunities.
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Does the environment matter in the US presidential race?
Posted Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:19:01 GMT by Claire DunnUS elections and the environment - does it matter?
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Khaki Army to protest against dugong and sea turtle killing
Posted Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:20:00 GMT by Adrian BishopA protest organised by Earthrace Conservation UK will take place in London later this week against the killing of dugongs and sea turtles in Australia.
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Has the US green economy been affected by global recession?
Posted Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:57:57 GMT by Justin ElliottHow did the global recession and the economic woes experienced in the US affect green job creation and what does the future hold for the US green economy?
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Spectacular New Image of the Omega Nebula
Posted Fri, 06 Jan 2012 13:19:00 GMT by Griffin SmithA brand new magnificent image of the Omega Nebula has been taken by the European Southern Observatory using their VLT (Very Large Telescope.)
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The greenwashed death of a tiger sanctuary
Posted Wed, 14 Dec 2011 07:30:00 GMT by Ines MoralesEyes of the Forest and WWF-Indonesia reports Asia Pulp & Paper's participation in greenwashing the clear-cutting of Indonesian protected forests.
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COP 17 - Sabotage
Posted Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT by Michelle SimonIt's the last day of COP 17, and there seems to be no movement from the US.
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Kyoto protocol and negative protocol by different countries
Posted Wed, 07 Dec 2011 07:45:01 GMT by Naseem SheikhThe major agenda at Durban is the fate of the Kyoto Protocol, the only legal instrument in place to limit global greenhouse gas emissions, whose first commitment period is about to expire in 2012.
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Some Fishy Politics
Posted Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:55:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongSomething doesn't smell right with the EU Common Fisheries Policy. Analysis of European decision makers and mathematical models of the likely outcome of current policy has produced alarm bells for fisheries.
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The Value of Science
Posted Sun, 13 Nov 2011 18:35:00 GMT by Mike CampbellA Green Opinion Blog article looking at the values and difficulties associated with academic research and science.
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Tilting at Windmills
Posted Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:31:00 GMT by Mike CampbellI suppose it must be a good twenty years since the first of the 'new generation' windmills first graced England's green and pleasant land. If I remember rightly, the first wind farm that I saw was on the way to my in-laws' home in Cornwall, at Carland Cross.
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Cause of Grounded Ship Still a Mystery
Posted Sat, 15 Oct 2011 14:30:01 GMT by Chris KeenanThe cargo ship, Rena, ran aground on the Astrolabe Reef, near New Zealand. So far it has spilled between 220 and 330 tons of oil and with a further 1400 tons still onboard this environmental disaster is not over yet.
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Climate change double-think of the world's politicians
Posted Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:55:00 GMT by Martin LeggettRising emissions that are signs of progress; climate negotiators insisting they won't negotiate; green pledges backed out of at the drop of a hat - welcome to the wacky world of politician's words and climate change; where nothing is as it seems.
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Food Waste - Our Dirty Little Secret
Posted Sun, 09 Oct 2011 15:30:00 GMT by Kirsten E. SilvenThe amount of food that is wasted in the so-called 'civilized' world has reached staggering numbers in recent decades at an enormous cost to the environment, while efforts to redirect food waste are still in the early developmental stages.
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Let Me Model That For You...
Posted Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:15:00 GMT by Mike CampbellLet me start by nailing my colours to the mast: I am an analytical scientist by training; I measure things with known accuracy and precision (trust me, I modelled it!). Therefore, by predilection and practice, I believe in tangible things that can be observed and measured.
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Halting oceanic plunder needs more than celebrity chefs
Posted Sun, 02 Oct 2011 22:33:00 GMT by Linden VolsunIn the UK, TV chefs have done wonders to energize the debate on the peril that the world's fisheries and ocean's are in. Now it must be over to the masses to turn their purchasing-power into real-world change, that can stop the plunder of the world's marine resources.
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Green Opinion: Only fools will rush in to frack in the UK
Posted Thu, 22 Sep 2011 21:20:01 GMT by Martin LeggettWith the announcement from Caudrilla Resources of headline-grabbing numbers for the shale gas reserves under Lancashire's fields, the rush to kick-off a fracking boom in the UK has started. But its not a choice between jobs and the environment - but between a short-sighted boom and a sustainable switch to a clean green economy.
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Down on the rhino ranch, dehorning now critical
Posted Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:30:00 GMT by Martin LeggettWith World Rhino Day 2011 just around the corner (Thu 22nd Sep), and the future of the rhino under greater threat than for many years, a radical response has been required to the poaching menace - removing rhinos' horns. The work of de-horning at a conservation ranch in Zimbabwe is demanding, but is helping to stem losses, say conservation staff. Ultimately, though they see hope only when horn is no longer considered a medicine by the misled.
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China shuts down plants in connection with lead poisoning
Posted Fri, 16 Sep 2011 20:37:15 GMT by David VranicarMaking good on promises to reign in 'heavy-metal' pollution, Chinese officials said Friday that they have ordered two plants to temporarily shut down because of a lead poisoning scare.
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China a recurring theme in U.S. solar bankruptcy
Posted Fri, 16 Sep 2011 07:30:00 GMT by David VranicarWith the bankruptcy of U.S. solar manufacturer Solyndra - the third U.S. solar bankruptcy in a matter of weeks - Chinese greentech subsidies emerge as a storyline.
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On cars, China may be shifting from quantity to quality
Posted Fri, 09 Sep 2011 12:05:00 GMT by David VranicarDetroit's title as the 'Motor City' doesn't figure to fade away anytime soon. But China has fast become the Motor Country - maybe a little too fast, according to the Chinese government.
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Clean Error: Conoco sets up fund amid Chinese backlash
Posted Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:00:00 GMT by David VranicarFollowing a June oil spill off the coast of China - a spill that drew the ire of Chinese officials - ConocoPhillips has set up a fund to offset the damage.
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Has Obama become a smoggy failure?
Posted Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:10:00 GMT by Martin LeggettPresident Obama's U-turn over pressing for cleaner, smog-free air only makes sense in the hothouse of presidential re-election politics. In the real world, jobs, health and lives are at stake - and a faith in the American system of being able to deliver on its promises.
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Clean Error: China to appeal WTO decision
Posted Tue, 06 Sep 2011 08:50:00 GMT by David VranicarIn its appeal of a July ruling by the WTO, China could bring environmental concerns - its OWN environmental concerns - to the forefront on international trade.
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Climate leadership needed from Obama
Posted Fri, 26 Aug 2011 14:25:00 GMT by Linden VolsunMitt Romney's kowtowing to the climate skeptic camp is a worrying sign that climate change action will fall victim to mainstream political 'bun fight'. But while the Republican candidate looks increasingly likely to be in bed with the Tea Party denialists, will the Democrat incumbent continue being a no-show for the planet?
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Why 'saving the planet' just doesn't wash anymore..
Posted Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:32:06 GMT by Linden VolsunThe environmental movement has lost the thread, when it comes keeping the public on-board with changing the world. Time to stop 'saving the planet', and 'protecting the environment'; instead, let's wheel out the vision thing, to show people why a green world will work for them.
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Greenwashing: The greater value of being green
Posted Mon, 25 Jul 2011 09:35:00 GMT by Lea SibbelIf you were only exposed to the media, you might start to think that all the large companies of the world engage in the struggle against climate change, saving energy, the rainforest and everything else that comes to mind. And the companies' efforts are not even limited to media-related spaces: They have also reached future consumers.
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When 'cultural rights' founder on a mound of bloodied fins
Posted Tue, 19 Jul 2011 17:45:00 GMT by Linden VolsunShark Finning: When those aiming to save the shark are up against bloody trade making big money, seas and fisheries that are not policed and a community wanting to defend its cultural heritage, how can they win the battle? By turning the shark fin soup bowl into a dining room outcast.
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Nuclear Power: It's all in the mind
Posted Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:15:16 GMT by Mike CampbellFear can be an irrational thing and it is usually stoked by ignorance. My friends may think that I was the mad person if they knew that I had happily stood on top of a working nuclear reactor, but then I know something about ionising radiation and shielding.
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A shoddy way to decide the future of the whale nation
Posted Mon, 11 Jul 2011 18:21:19 GMT by Linden VolsunWith the IWC meeting in Jersey being bandied as a 'quieter affair', after recent tumult and mud-slinging, is it time to look at whether a 'whaling commission' is ever going to be up to the job of protecting the whales?
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Ten tall-tales from the climate change skeptics
Posted Wed, 29 Jun 2011 10:15:00 GMT by Martin LeggettClimate change skeptics have worked up some pretty tall-tales to throw doubt over the need for action on global warming. But given their subtle plausibility, what are the counter-arguments that will show them for the straw-men that they are? The devil has all of the best songs, so they say. And the climate change denial camp have certainly banged out their tunes, to good effect, over the last few years. It's not hard to see why the clamor of the climate skeptics has won more and more of those thronging in the stalls.
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