Lots of folks are very quick to critize that the US isn´t really doing much to protect the environment. But when you look closer, this isn´t true at all. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) carbon monoxide emissions between 2000 and 2004 increased by 1.7 percent in the largest economically advanced nation under the sun, while in the member states of the EU during the same time period the average increase was 5 percent - even though economic and population growth was higher there than in the countries of the European Union.An overall American agenda for climate and environmental protection does not exist. Many of the states, on the other hand, have created new realities through amendments that have come into force regardless whether the state is governed by Republicans or Democrats. In Wyoming and Alaska energy consumption per capita is far above the US average, while in California and the New England State of Rhode Island on the east coast it is so low that these two states can keep pace with international comparisons in their handling of resources and exhaust emissions.California, the most populated and economically powerful state in the USA, is the trendsetter in environmental legislation. For generations the people in West Virginia have lived from coal mining. Here an acceleration of environmental laws is not given much support for obvious reasons.Seven states in the northeast – Delaware, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and Vermont – joined together in 2005 as a Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). They want to reach a ten percent reduction of carbon dioxide emission by the year 2018.

The member States of the Regional Greenhouse Gas InitiativeThe federal government appears to be altering the focus of their climate change policies. Already in 2006 President Bush lamented the dependence of American on oil imports. In the meantime the White House seems to be convinced that climate change is expedited by humankind. In spite of this the US government is not setting a maximum limit to toxic emissions, but is relying rather on the promotion of innovative technology and environmentally compatible energy sources.

American President Bush and Brasilien President da Silva after signing an agreement on economic cooperation at Mar 10th 2007The world’s largest quantity of environmentally sound ethanol is produced from corn in the USA. President Bush recently signed an agreement on economic cooperation with the Brazilian president. Brazil is the world’s second largest producer of ethanol.

Someday the fossil deposits in the earth will be exhausted; mankind is trying to delay this point in time with the aid of new technology. Newly developed processes are making coal extraction attractive again. New conveyor and transport techniques facilitate the mining of fossil fuel in places that years ago would have been too uneconomical to mine.The development of new coal handling and transport technology seems advantageous for many power companies because the fossil is indeed an all-rounder – from it electricity can be generated, as well as fuels that compare favorably with kerosene, diesel and gasoline. Hence, the process of coal transformation is experiencing a comeback. In the face of increasing demands for power and insufficient alternative energy production, the return to coal seems to be the most satisfactory way to go, next to the controversial way of nuclear power. In following this path, these new techniques bring both a blessing and a curse to the earth and its climate. The energy giant Vattenfall has announced that in the year 2008 the first “climate compatible” and “CO2-free” lignite power plant will go into operation. On the other hand, the production of fuel from liquefied coal is the number one energy killer, because through it the environment is doubly contaminated – liquid coal fuel emits CO2 in both the production and the combustion phases. However, in view of increasing oil prices, coal fuel is of great interest to countries with huge coal deposits – the USA, India and China.

Let’s have a fundamental look at our atmosphere. What is it good for? You could say: „That we can breathe!“ But why do we need to breathe? Well, we are metabolizing: We need oxy-gen to burn carbon and hydrogen in our body cells to obtain energy, which enables us to do things. In turn we exhale carbon dioxide and oxygen dihydrate – you could also say “water”. Plants take up this CO2 and H2O and convert it back into carbohydrates (CH2O)n and pure oxygen O2. We buy these carbohydrates (food) in the store and burn it with the O2, which luckily is still free. So actually our atmosphere primarily serves as an environment to ex-change substances. Unluckily it can also be used as a garbage dump for any gaseous waste. Sulfur oxides SOx, nitrogen oxides NOx, and halogens, to name a few. Actually CO2 and H2O are also waste, but plants keep the CO2 level low. And water …, well we love it. Unwanted amounts of garbage my harm us, but during the last centuries it turned out that the thermal control property of our atmosphere blanket suffers more from the garbage than we do. And unfortunately, some of the garbage, such as halogens and fluorocarbons, don’t get recycled in the atmosphere. They just stay there for a long time. Tune in again soon!