NLs I have keen interest in the environment and not noticed a thread about it. Its either we are not aware of the environmental issues or just shying away from it. I would like a vote on if a thread or section be devoted to this issue of course it would have to be with Seun's approval.
it would consist of News, articles and issues and environmental jokes with Emphasis on Water as that is my specialty. most probably news on the Go Green project, recycling and all and keep NL informed
i have posted some article but no one seem to respond so please vote is this something NL would like or this like. Feel free  to air you opinions.


   Honest thoughts at this point is welcomed. Thanks for your time

Very good initiative. I only hope more would be done than just talk and joke about these very important issues. Apart from learning from ppz experiences and gaining from these debates, shouldn't we also have a perpetrating body too.

thanks for you interest honeyeadoe,
we just have to start one step at a time, we need to know if NL would be interested and the forum would be used to share concerns,knowlege conservation etc of the Natural resources we thought would foreva remain. Also experts on other areas of the Environment would be called in. I chose water since its becoming a source of concern to water specialists.
it will be taken seriously although with some fun facts as well so that we have NL of varying interest and input n not bore everyone. So that it would not be for professionals alone but target is the NL community at large.

ScienceDaily (Apr. 23, 2009) — Will problems associated with environmental issues improve in the next two decades? According to an analysis of student performance on PISA 2006--an international assessment of 15-year-olds--students who are the best informed about environmental science and the geosciences are also the most realistic about the environmental challenges facing the world in the next 20 years. Meanwhile, students who are least informed in these areas are the most wildly optimistic that things will improve.

more details at:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090422103728.htm

Are you familar with the kyoto protocol, This article involves Nigeria and i have highlighted where necessary


ScienceDaily (Apr. 23, 2009) — Initiatives aimed at cutting emissions while encouraging economic development are failing the world’s poorest countries, leading scientists from Oxford University are warning

They say that payments from rich countries to fund development schemes in poor nations are unequally distributed because investors choose stronger, more stable states like China, India and Brazil instead of much poorer nations such as Chad, Nigeria and Sudan.

In their new paper published in the first issue of the journal Climate and Development, Dr Chuks Okereke and Dr Heike Schroeder analyse the links between carbon cuts, economic development and justice for developing countries.

The paper assesses the existing initiatives for greenhouse gas reductions, such as the ‘Clean Development Mechanism’ (CDM). The CDM is part of the Kyoto climate change treaty and allows industrialised nations with emissions reduction commitments to invest in projects that reduce emissions in developing countries as an alternative to their own countries. These certified emission reduction (CER) credits, are traded and sold, and used by industrialised countries to a meet a part of their emission reduction targets.

The paper calls into question the effectiveness of these initiatives and is calling for a ‘climate justice development’ fund to be established to pay for climate change adaptation and low carbon development in poor countries, and provide insurance for investors. The scientists add that the post-Kyoto climate change agreement should be more closely tied to world trade and other international treaties.

Dr Okereke, from the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, said: ‘The current system isn’t working because it lumps too many countries together and ignores the socio-economic gulfs between them. Measures that were intended for all developing countries have ended up helping only a few. Investors only invest where they know they’ll get a return and in many cases, rich governments and private investors have been put off by political turbulence in the countries that most need help.

‘This new fund would help solve that problem. It would target the poorest and most vulnerable nations and provide insurance against political turbulence and misuse. The post-Kyoto treaty must emphasise low carbon development without neglecting adaptation; at the moment, the reverse is the case,' said Dr Schroeder, from the Environmental Change Institute.

‘Developed countries have failed the developing world on climate change. We are now looking to key developing countries like China, Mexico and Brazil to demonstrate leadership on this important issue. And they are





http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090418083952.htm

most people are ignorant on environmental issues and don't really believe or care about it. so i think the best idea now is to continue with threads and maybe if many people as you want show interest then you want starting thinking about the having a board.

yes Sissy, Thanks for your input. Let just wait and see the turn out or response. Sometimes its difficult to post some topics related to science or environment on the NL. So i have to make do with what is available and most times the post does not match the topic but there is no where to put it or i just save it on my personal archive.
Cheers

Environmental sciences was one of the degrees I considered, How ever I opted for Forensic Science and Medical microbiology, before I changed to Biomedical sciences.

The thing is people back home have no idea about man's impact on the environment. The few that know, or that are aware of the issues are not able to make an impact. Our lack of knowledge is evident in how people are willing to take money from foreign companies so as to allow systematical dumping of waste. Anyone remember the "koko waste" fiasco?

As someone who grew up in Nigeria, it hurts me to see that some of the beautiful landscapes and natural woodlands [Bush/jungles/forest] are disappearing and making way for socio-economic developments. This is all well, and good but we cannot carry on ignoring the effect of these actions on the environment.

One thing that strikes me is that back home, most of our typical waste is 90% organic, how come no one have implemented some sort of waste recycling method? There is money to be made here - one man's waste is another man's method to make money. These wastes can be recycled to give us green technology etc.

Overall, I feel we need to do a lot. The climate is changing, and if the theories and evidences are anything to go by, we have loads of difficulties ahead of us in the near future.

From Emeka Anuforo and Abosede Musari, Abuja

CALL him the Albert Einstein of Nigeria, and you may be right. Nwakaire Joel from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) has recorded a major breakthrough with the invention of bio-diesel from vegetable oil. To achieve this, he had to solve a problem, which even Rudolf Diesel could not tackle back in 1912.




Scientist Diesel encountered the problem while researching to use vegetable oil from peanut to drive motor vehicle and other mechanical engines.

Taking up this challenge, which has defied solution for about 100 years, Joel from the department of Agricultural and Bio-resource Engineering used non- consumable vegetables such as Jatropha and algae, to produce what may emerge as Nigeria's first bio-diesel.

Rudolf Diesel had in 1912, predicted that "The use of vegetable oils (bio-diesel) for engine may seem insignificant today. But such oils may become, in course of time, as important as petroleum and coal tar products of the present time."

The Guardian learnt that Nwakaire solved the problems that stopped Diesel's research, by inventing a scientific refining process called verification, which helped him to scale the obstacle of vis

for more info.
http://odili.net/news/source/2009/may/4/10.htmlcosity and clogging.


I found this article online and thought i share it with you,

I am a lover of nature been able to visit the Kura falls, Assop water falls, rayfield resort, Yankari game reserve, etc, this places are just delapitating due to wastes from the environment. Our leaders of course either due to inadequate info or lack of interest just turned thier backs to these issues. Recycling is one of the major issues I am fascinated about. though you need the persuasion and education to let others understand how important that is.
example when we talk about humanwaste every one shy's away from the issue but it seems ok to just dump waste in some river or ocean and think its going somewhere, but little do we know its going back underground into our water system. the earth is spherical thus common sence will make us understand that its not just going anywhere but just recycling.

This might be of interest to all espectially Geoscientist,


ScienceDaily (May 5, 2009) — In the hotly debated arena of global climate change, using short-term trends that show little temperature change or even slight cooling to refute global warming is misleading, write two climate experts in a paper recently published by the American Geophysical Union — especially as the long-term pattern clearly shows human activities are causing the earth’s climate to heat up


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090504141047.htm