Eco Blog - St. George's Berlin

 The amount of plastic in the environment puts God's creation at risk. "The Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) explores the Arctic, Antarctic, and the seas and coastal regions of the  temperate latitudes, from the atmosphere to the deep sea. It has researched  plastic pollution in the ocean for 15 years and developed state-of-the-art methodologies for the standardised detection of small microplastics in different environments. The work aims to unveil the distribution of plastic pollutants as well as its impacts on marine life and trends over time to provide scientific data that are needed to combat plastic pollution in the oceans." ( Link ) "If entangled underwater, air-breathing animals cannot return to the sea surface to breathe and die of suffocation. But even gill-breathing animals are affected: if fish or invertebrates remain entangled for too long, they starve or are eaten. The odour of carcasses attracts further anima...

Many of us travel for business, some for pleasure. In both cases the flights have a climate impact, as calculated "by the Federal Ministry for the Environment and a joint initiative by the travel industry association forum anders reisen and the environmental and development organization Germanwatch." ( LINK ) Here are some sample results for round trip flights in kg of CO2: Berlin (BER) to London (LCY):   Climate impact: 477 kg  Berlin (BER) to Paris (CDG): Climate impact 424 kg   Berlin (BER) to Newark (EWR): Climate impact: 3,182 kg Berlin (BER) to Beijing (BJS): Climate impact: 3,792 kg Readers can check other results with this  LINK .

A violent storm alert went out "at  6.45pm on Friday to 3 million people in areas covered by the Met Office’s rare red warning for wind in parts of Wales and south-west England."  (Guardian, 7 Dec 2024 LINK )   (PHOTO SOURCE LINK) The Guardian does not say so explicitly in the article, but we know that violent weather of this sort is a consequences of environmental change. The website "Earthjustice.org" ( LINK ) warns that " Human activity is causing rapid changes to our global climate that are contributing to extreme weather conditions".  (Earthjustice,org, 1 October 2024).  In order to protect God's creation, we need to remind people that reliable scientific evidence links the causes of violent storms to environmental changes that are not inevitable if people reduce pollution. 

Our planet needs help. Those of us with concerns need to work more closely and actively together. Several parishes in the UK, Germany, and France have shown an interest in sharing information and initiatives.  Neal Whitaker (Manchester) writes: "The Manchester diocese has an Eco-Diocese Facebook group where people can share things that have been happening in terms of Eco Church and action towards climate justice."  Here is the LINK .  Rev Canon Andy Salmon ( Salford ).  writes: "One of the things we’re looking at across our Mission Community is doing “Eco Stepping Stones” ( LINK ) with 4 sessions in 4 of our churches.  Alison Wale from Christ Church Episcopal Church in Clermont Ferrand, France, also writes that that parish has a FaceBook page ( LINK ) We must all work together to save God's creation! (Photo credit: m.seadle)

 Plastic is everywhere in our lives, but it is not necessary to use plastic for Christmas decorations. Prior centuries enjoyed many degradable ornaments for their Christmas trees. Perhaps the most common natural ornaments are made from popcorn strings with dried fruit such as cranberries or cherries for colour. Candles were traditional lighting decorations too, but anyone using candles needs to be aware of the fire danger. A dry tree poses special risks, and a nearby fire extinguisher is a good precaution, but proper care reduces the risk: spraying the needles of the tree with water can help, and placing the candles away from other boughs. Above all, care is needed, but the effort is well worthwhile to help to preserve God's creation.  Thanks to Oskar and Rachel for the suggestion!  

Dear readers, here is a link from Greenpeace to a serious problem in the artic: " Norway is planning to start deep sea mining in the Arctic. We can’t let them destroy one of the world’s most remote, ancient and untouched ecosystems for profit." The article is a available HERE .  Image courtesy of  © Markus Mauthe / Greenpeace Thanks to Robyn M. for bringing this to our attention.