Why 350 Is One Of The Most Important Numbers To Know

The level of carbon in our atmosphere is rising at an alarming rate due to our production and consumption habits. If only we did a few (or more than a few) key things to change the way we live, the number of particles in the atmosphere would be reduced and our planet could begin to balance itself out.

Enviro-Friendly Airplanes

We are still far from the time when jet airplanes leave no impact on our atmosphere, but a new model may significantly cut into the amount of carbon they emit into our skies everyday. Britain's easyJet is set to introduce the "eco-Jet" in 2015, a plane that will emit half the amount of CO2 and 75 percent less nitrous oxide. The plane is designed for short hauls, so it wouldn't have any effect on the international flights. However short hauls make up a tremendous share of airline flights today, since so many carriers offer cheap little hops in the U.S. and Europe.

From LiveScience:

A 2004 study by NASA documented a 1 percent per decade increase in cirrus cloud cover over the United States, presumably due to increased air travel. Jets leave condensation trails, or contrails, that sometimes spread out and are indistinguishable from clouds. The researchers claimed that this extra cloudiness could account for a warming trend of half a degree Fahrenheit per decade in the years between 1975 and 1994.

EasyJet said its projection that the ecoJet would generate a 50 percent reduction in CO2 emissions was based on the latest research by leading aerospace manufacturers. The ecoJet’s engines would produce 25 percent of the improvement and its lightweight airframe 15 percent, while improvements to air traffic control technology and design would provide the remaining 10 percent.

The airline said that given its current passenger-cabin configuration and network, the eco-liner would generate less than 47 grams of CO2 per passenger kilometer in easyJet service.

Although it isn't perfect, the new design in aircraft will go a long way in combating excessive carbon output. In a perfect world aircraft would emit water vapor, but we aren't quite there yet.

City Universities Plan To One-Up The Mayor

Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC will be quite an undertaking, reducing carbon output by 30 percent by 2030. However the Universities of New York are planning to reach the Mayor's goals in only ten years. They are confident that institutions like CUNY, Columbia and NYU can work to reduce their carbon footprints on the city by 2017.

From WNYC:

NEW YORK, NY June 06, 2007 —Nine universities around the city, including NYU, Columbia and CUNY, have accepted the city's challenge of reducing carbon emissions by 30 percent in ten years, instead of the 23 years outlined in the Mayor's 2030 sustainability plans.

REPORTER: The mayor has already committed the city to meeting the accelerated timeline, and has urged other institutions to join in. Fordham University president, Reverend Joseph McShane, says schools can become more energy efficient even as they educate their students about climate change.

MCSHANE: In philosophy classes, in policy classes, in political science classes, we can engage them in conversations about the responsibility that we have as citizens and as sharers of the Earth, to make sure that the Earth is cherished and nurtured and passed on.

The centers of higher learning get that the problem of climate change is not only important, but needs to be dealt with urgently. There is no time like the present, so we need to get going and help do whatever we can to save the planet. One person cannot solve the problem alone, but if we all make a difference where we live, there might just be some hope.