Eco Blog - St. George's Berlin

Phoebe Weston wrote in the Guardian on 24 September 2022 that Utrecht in the Netherlands is planting miniature gardens on top of bus shelters. ( LINK ) Apparently a number of British cities are planning something similar. Any flat roof should work for a flower garden, which not only helps the insect population, but contributes if only slightly to atmospheric oxygen. There is no reason only to plant roofs. Parking spaces for cars would make good gardens too, and fewer parking spaces is an effective strategy for discouraging automobile use. Unfortunately the treatment of environmental protesters in the UK is not always friendly. Terry Macalister reported on on 23 September 2022 that some climate protesters in the UK are forced to wait in prison for months before even coming to trial. ( LINK ) Apparently the problem is a massive backlog of cases, but the effect is likely to discourage more people from protesting. David Malpass of the World Bank may be forced to issue an apology for this r...

  It should surprise no one that "big oil" in the form of companies like ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell and BP have found the truth about their behaviour unwelcome, and are finally being forced to admit the truth in US congressional hearings. Richard Wiles, president of the Center for Climate Integrity, writes in the Guardian ( 17 September 2022 ): “If there is one thing consistent about the oil and gas majors’ position on climate, it’s their utter inability to tell the truth...” The co-Chair of the investigating committee is even more blunt: "The oil giants’ 'climate pledges rely on unproven technology, accounting gimmicks and misleading language to hide the reality...'” ( LINK )  The sad fact is that this lying has gone on for a long time. These companies make enormous profits and feel justified in continuing to exploit the planet because much of modern western society believes explicitly or implicitly that wealth-maximization is good and proper. In recent years a ...

It is old news that producing concrete is an environmental hazard. "Cement is a climate villain. Making it is thought to produce 5% of all global greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels and factories." ( SCIENCE , 2016) Concrete may later absorb the carbon dioxide (CO2), but that is a long term process and we do not have enough time. Substitutes for paving roads with concrete are equally environmentally damaging. Erik Stokstad wrote:  "...  it's already clear that asphalt belongs in official inventories of air pollution sources." ( SCIENCE , 2020) The problem is broader than just with the paving materials. Much of the use of asphalt and concrete covers  places for plant and trees to grow. As O. Wallace wrote : " Looking beyond the usual suspects, many people would be surprised to find out that something as mundane as a parking lot could also be bad for the environment." ( ALLTHINGSNATURE , 2022)  More parking places makes it more convenient for peop...