I picked up on this article because I have a cat that is suffering from thyroid disease.  The LA Times reports that “Cat thyroid disease is linked to Chemicals”

EPA scientists zero in on flame retardants in some home products and pet food. There is concern about humans.

An epidemic of thyroid disease among pet cats could be caused by toxic flame retardants that are widely found in household dust and some pet food, government scientists reported Wednesday.

The often-lethal disease was rare in cats until the 1980s, when it began appearing widely, particularly in California cats. That was at the same time industry started using large volumes of brominated flame retardants in consumer products, including furniture cushions, electronics, mattresses and carpet padding.

Scientists from the Environmental Protection Agency noted a possible connection between hyperthyroidism and flame retardants. The chemicals — known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs — mimic thyroid hormones, so experts have theorized that high exposure in cats could cause overactive thyroids.

Cats that remain indoors and eat fish-flavored canned food were found to be the most highly contaminated.  more…

Maria Energia reported that

Yesterday Merrill Lynch (MER) announced that it’s started tracking energy-efficient companies that it considers well-positioned to benefit from tough global warming policies.
The Merrill Lynch Energy Efficiency Index is currently made up of 40 companies from around that globe that fit the criteria of great growth potential from the increased emphasis on energy efficiency and cutting carbon dioxide emissions that cause global warming. The index is divided into four components (from the news release): more

Corn Ethanol pushes up the price of your coffee at Starbucks. 

The Daily Green writes about how

the corn growing bonanza driven by government subsidies for the alternative fuel ethanol has tipped yet another domino in the economic food chain: Starbucks coffees.

At least, it’s part of the reason Starbucks is raising its prices, on average, 9 cents per drink.

They comment that

US farmers planted more corn this year than at any time in more than a half century, yet cattle ranchers, dairy farmers and other food producers are finding the supply tight.

That’s because so many corn farmers are growing their crop for fuel, not food. The rise in corn prices is one reason for the rise in milk prices, which is one reason for the rise in the cost of a latte.

This impact on the price of our skinny latte is part of the bigger picture of the move to more  corn-based ethanol.   The rush to “green our fuel” has effects that are not always apparent.  Don’t we just wish that the politicians would take their snouts out of the trough to look at the bigger picture once in a while?

Climate change is happening, maybe not quite in the way we would expect.  After all we live in the age of blockbuster movies like “The Day After” and we expect things to be seen on an epic scale.

Yesterday the residents of the county of Berkshire, UK got a taste of climate change when about 15cm of rain fell in just a few hours.

Newbry Railway Station (yes those are the rail tracks)

For this part of the world it is not usual to have this much rain in July and after an unusually wet year the ground water levels are already high.  So yesterday when the rain fell it caused some chaos.

Station Road in Thatcham

 Maidenhead town center

Even in our sleepy village which sits on the top of a hill above the Thames there were road closures as water reached 1m in depth in certain places.  Many of the roads and paths started to spring leaks as the subsurface water  looked for a way out. 

Stamford Road, Maidenhead

 So, climate change is upon us, but unfortunately most people seem not to care…

The new carbon-neutral London taxi service has a fleet of Toyota Prius petro-electric cars to provide “karmic” rides around town. Taking cash and account bookings, it costs less than many rival cab firms, which is surprising considering how remarkably posh it is.

All vehicles have sat-nav systems, leather seats, mini fridges stocked with complimentary Belu water, glossy magazines and newspapers. Drivers are smartly dressed and will always open the door for you. Cyclists who lose the will to pedal may order a Climatecar to drive them — and their bikes — home.

Next time you need a ride, perhaps you should consider Climatecars. It’s so much greener than booking a whopping petrol-guzzling family space bus for one measly mortal.

Brian T. Edmondson has written an excellent short piece on why there are 3 reasons people don’t buy from you..

1. They can’t afford it…

This means they really can’t afford what your selling, no matter how bad they want it.

For marketers, price as an objection is no excuse, but in some cases, the money just isn’t there

2. They don’t believe you…

Let’s face it, people are skeptical in nature, and tons of hype, big claims, and broken promises has made “buyers beware”…

Your job as a marketer (you’re a marketer no matter what business you are in), is to make sure people believe what you’re saying…

This is done with guarantees, testimonials, case studies, demonstrations, etc…

3. They don’t want or need what you offer…

This one is a little tricky. Basically you know whether or not you have a valuable product and whether or not people should want or need it.

Your job is to make them aware of what’s available and educate them in a way that shows them the value of what you have to offer…

They may need or want what you offer, and just don’t know it…

Keep these 3 things in mind whenever you are creating and type of sales and marketing activities.

From Steve Hargreaves of CNN  comments on Goldman Sachs’ outlined five events it says are key to the rising sector’s growth.

1. Enacting renewable portfolio standards 
2. Boost enforcement of RPS standards 
3. Enact a carbon cap-and-trade system or a carbon tax 
4. A significant increase in fossil fuel prices
5. The 2008 presidential election 

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In an interesting article The Naib on Sietch blog the uptake of CO2 by the environment is explained.  It highlights some interesting research from this weeks Science journal which goes into the details. 

What I find interesting about all of the carbon balancing is just how good the earth actually is at absorbing the abuse we hurl at it.  That is not to say that it will always keep up.  There is always a chance that we will manage to do just a bit too much damage and tip the balance just a bit too far and then we are really for it!

You may never know the results of your actions, but it you do nothing there will be no results.

Ghandi