Finding ways to cut down on paper waste is definitely a burden for modern businesses. Some things just need to be printed. While printers have gone inkless and tonerless, none have offered completely reusable paper.

The PrePeat printer does just that. Instead of using conventional paper, the printer uses a special--and very expensive--paper made from PET plastic. And you print, erase and reprint on each sheet up to 1,000 times.

Of course, replacing paper with plastic isn't exactly eco-friendly but in this case it might just be. The printer goes for $5,600 and each sheet of "paper" costs $336. Which doesn't make it very wallet-friendly either







www.greenpolis.com

Go Vegetarian

A 2006 United Nations report found that the meat industry produces more greenhouse gases than all the SUVs, cars, trucks, planes, and ships in the world combined. Greenhouse gases cause global warming, which studies show will increasingly lead to catastrophic disasters—like droughts, floods, hurricanes, rising sea levels, and disease outbreaks—unless we drastically reduce the amounts emitted into the atmosphere.

Many conscientious people are trying to help reduce global warming by driving more fuel-efficient cars and using energy-saving light bulbs, but they could do more simply by going vegetarian.

The official handbook for the Live Earth concerts says that "refusing meat" is the "single most effective thing you can do to reduce your carbon footprint."
According to Environmental Defense, if every American skipped one meal of chicken per week and substituted vegetarian foods instead, the carbon dioxide savings would be the same as taking more than a half-million cars off U.S. roads.

The University of Chicago reports that going vegan is 50% more effective than switching to a hybrid car in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
More than Just CO2

Raising animals for their flesh, eggs, and milk is one of the world’s leading emitters of carbon dioxide (CO2). But global warming is caused by more than just CO2. Animal agriculture is the leading source of methane and nitrous oxide emissions, which—combined with carbon dioxide—causes the vast majority of global warming.

Methane: The billions of farmed animals crammed into factory farms produce enormous amounts of methane, both during digestion and from the acres of cesspools filled with feces that they excrete. Methane is more than 20 times as powerful as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in our atmosphere. Statistics from the Environmental Protection Agency show that animal agriculture is the number one source of methane emissions in the U.S.

Nitrous Oxide: Nitrous oxide is about 300 times more potent as a global warming gas than carbon dioxide. According to the U.N., the meat, egg, and dairy industries account for a staggering 65 percent of worldwide nitrous oxide emissions.

www.goveg.com

Earth Hour 2010

What is Earth Hour?
• Earth Hour is a global WWF climate change initiative. Individuals, businesses, governments and communities are invited to switch off their lights for one hour on Saturday, 27th March 2010 at 8:30pm to show their support for action on climate change.

• Earth Hour is a symbolic event designed to engage people from all walks of life in the climate change discussion to send a strong message to our political leaders that we want them to take meaningful action on climate change.

• It is the largest climate event in history where millions of people around the world will unite by turning off their lights for one hour, Earth Hour, to demand action on the climate crisis.

How does climate change affect Malaysia?

Climate change is considered to be one of the biggest threats facing nature and humanity today. It is an undeniable, pervasive, and insidious planetary crisis that affects food and water security, biodiversity, public health and our overall socio-economic well being. In order to avoid the devastating effects of climate change, global warming should stay well below a 2° Celsius increase compared to pre-industrial temperatures.

To attain this objective, global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions need to be cut by at least 50 per cent in the coming decades.

Rising CO2 levels and climatic changes greatly impact the marine ecosystem by increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, raising sea-levels and causing coral bleaching and ocean acidification. These changes will have disastrous consequences on the people, livelihoods and species that depend on a healthy and thriving marine environment. Even turtles, one of Malaysia’s most endangered species, will be badly affected by climate change. Turtles have been around for millions of years, but they are facing more and more threats from humans. Can we let climate change be the threat that pushes them over the edge of extinction?

Climate change is predicted to increase the frequency and strength of storms, which will erode beaches and reduce nesting habitat. For example, The Turtle Islands Park in Sabah, an important nesting site for green and hawksbill turtles, is facing serious erosion problems. We can help turtles to adapt to this by protecting as many nesting habitats as possible now.

When turtles lay their eggs, the temperature of the nest determines the sex of the hatchlings. Warmer nests produce mostly female hatchlings. As the climate warms, it is predicted that turtle nests too will be warmer resulting in fewer male hatchlings. This imbalance in the sex ratio will have an adverse impact on the future turtle population where there will be fewer male turtles to fertilize the eggs. Slowing climate change now will help to reduce this threat.

Turtles also require healthy marine habitats, such as seagrass beds and coral reefs, for food and shelter. Rising sea levels, ocean acidification and coral bleaching brought on by climate change will affect seagrass distribution and productivity. As the turtles habitats degrade and disappear, they may go too. We can help them adapt by reducing as many threats now, so that their natural resiliency can take over. Along with saving the turtles by mitigating and adapting to the catastrophic effects of climate change, we also save the ecosystems they need, shared not only by myriad and unique marine organisms but for millions of human beings dependent on coastal and marine resources for their livelihood.

What can you do?
Participate in Earth Hour. Join the millions of people around the world who are switching off their lights for just one hour to demonstrate their understanding, and commitment to help stop climate change.

So just, turn out your light, show support.

http://www.earthhour.org