Are the skeptics correct that global warming is a hoax?

My education is in statistics and Six Sigma, so when I saw this article, I had to check it out...

Surface Temperature Data Quality Suspect – Casts Doubt on “Global Warming” Hypothesis

Essentially, the article contests that the data being used to justify an increase in temperatures could be lacking. The author, Thomas Pyzdek (a well-respected Six Sigma guru), points to the location of the temperature monitors as a source of error, due to their surrounding conditions.



"The bottom line is that 89% of the sites examined to date are in categories 3, 4, or 5. In other words, they fail to meet established NOAA requirements."

In Six Sigma, it is critical to make sure (with good solid analysis) that the data you are looking at is valid. This is a VERY common error that people make. More often than not, I usually find a problem with the measurements when I'm working on a project. People naturally assume that the data is valid, therefore we should accept it as is. Since this website is very data-focused, any actual or perceived issues related to data collection and reporting of temperature changes needs to be understood and addressed right away.

This leads me to my original reason for the post. Is global warming real?

At first, I thought it was a hands-down decision from the scientific community that it was real, but the more I've opened up my eyes, I can't discredit the nay-sayers (as evidenced by the article above). If I've learned anything over the past few years, it is to never assume or take for granted something, even if it seems right to you, and even if the majority of people think it is right. That alone doesn't make it true. Science and evidence is what will eventually win out, whether we like the results or not.

So let's assume that the jury is still out on global warming. Does my website go away? No! When I look at the reasons for why we need to make these changes and take these actions to be more green, the reduction of CO2 is not the only reason.

Even if we can live with CO2 emissions, we still have the following issues to address:

1) Water quality and scarcity
2) Pesticides in our food
3) Dependence on foreign oil
4) Destruction of our lands (for coal, livestock, urban sprawl, etc)
5) Landfill overflow
6) Animal extinction

Just to name a few...

Bottom line: If carbon emissions actually has no impact on global warming, then all we have lost is just the fear factor of potential natural disasters and harmful living conditions in the future. I would expect that this is not the main reason people are going green, instead it is the impact on their local environment and their pocketbooks that will have the biggest impact, and that is not affected by global warming.

Trouble with reducing your coffee cup waste

Change is difficult. If you've never tried to make change happen, it can be frustrating, annoying, and at times, hopeless. You keep doing it, in hopes that the reward of seeing the change actually happen will make it worthwhile. The times it has worked, it has been very rewarding. So if you're trying to drive change, keep plugging away. It will happen eventually...

Here's an example of how frustrating it can be. I have been working a lot lately, and staying up late. I need a caffeine fix the next morning, so I go to McDonald's for their caramel iced coffee. I brought in my refillable coffee cup and asked that it be used, instead of a plastic cup (and lid and straw). I hate having a stack of plastic cups in my car, to show me how much coffee I've drank, and how much waste I've generated. I take them home to recycle them, but I'd rather not use them in the first place. The problem I ran into is that the way McDonald's coffee system is setup, the cup defines the right amount of coffee, sugar and caramel (or mocha) mixture. If you remove the cup out of the process, you lose the recipe and consistency.



The manager offered to take my cup and pour the coffee into it (after using their cup to mix it), but I suspected that their cup would have been discarded after use, so would I have gained anything? I guess I could have avoided the use of a straw (they needed the lid to shake and mix the coffee). Frustrating!

I guess my point for this blog is that it takes everyone involved in the whole process to think green and environmentally-friendly in order for change to occur. We as consumers can help drive it, but you will really start to see major changes when the people designing the processes are thinking that way from the beginning. It takes the cup suppliers to provide more compostable materials for their cups, and it takes the "coffee process engineer" (someone must have that title, right?) to develop a process that does not require the cups, and can handle any size cup. Dunkin Donuts has a process that is not dependent on cup size, so it definitely is possible.

I'm not trying to pick on McDonald's. They are an easy target, and to their credit, they have been making an attempt to do the right thing. The problem exists in every business we frequent.

Keep pushing. Keep asking for more eco-friendly solutions. You may inspire the coffee process engineer behind you in line without even realizing it!

Why do we need placemats??

My wife and I sat down at IHOP today, to enjoy a delicious breakfast. After a few minutes, the waitress came over and slide a paper placement underneath our menus.



At first, I didn't think much about it, but then I started to wonder why we NEEDED a placemat. What is it's purpose? If there is no real purpose for them anymore, why are they (and all other restaurants) killing trees and wasting money to use them?

1) To keep the table clean? I don't think so. You have to wipe the table off anyways, so what is this thin piece of paper going to improve?

2) To keep hot plates from damaging the table? Well, if it's too hot, the waiter/waitress will probably put a 2nd plate underneath (since they have to carry them). Even if heat was an issue, I don't think the flimsy paper will stop much.

3) To protect the table from scratches? Maybe, but again, it is really thin paper, so I don't think it will do much to prevent damage of any sorts.

4) Sanitary purposes? I guess if some food fell off your plate, and landed on the placemat, you might be more inclined to eat it from there, rather than if it fell on the table. That wouldn't appear to be a very sound reason (from the restaurants perspective) to justify the expense.

5) Children's coloring book? Of course, but I don't think that was the original intent. With that line of thinking, only children should get them, not adults, and that's not what I've observed.

5) Advertising? That is the only logical explanation I can think of. Maybe the sight of a steak and eggs breakfast on their placemat will persuade someone to order it? It didn't for me, by the way.

I think the placemat used to have some more significance, when it was really a mat, and could protect the table, or looked nice in a formal dining setting. However, just setting a piece of paper under my plate seems to be a complete waste of a tree, and I think we should start refusing them, just like the stacks of napkins they give you at the drive-thru, or using paper towels to dry your hands in the restroom (I prefer the pants method!).

Training people on Going Green

I work at a large company that has 20,000 employees worldwide, however, there has not been any environmental training on what they can do to 'go green' while at work. It seems like such an obvious thing to do: train your employees to take simple steps to reduce their impact on the environment. The training is pretty simple, and the potential business impact is enormous.

What we concluded was that there wasn't any off-the-shelf training that could be easily and quickly deployed, so we decided to make one available, for free, on our website.

http://www.helpsaveearth.org/free_going_green_work_training.asp

We feel that if people are trained at work (where they have a captive audience and reporting hierarchy), we can make a bigger impact on communicating these simple steps, rather than trying to communicate to the masses using numerous methods, with varying amounts of detail and explanation. The viral effect within a work environment are much stronger than in real life. For example, it just takes one manager of 100 people to email a green presentation, and require that their direct reports watch it. They are essentially being paid to watch it, and they will because their boss asked them to. In the real world, your friend might email you the same presentation, but what motivation is there to watch it?

We also feel that once people start taking simple steps at work, it will quickly transfer to the home, and they will look for ways to save at home.

Tough decisions about mulch?

The last major decision I had to make about my house remodeling project was the decision about landscaping mulch.

Eucalyptus?
Traditional?
Recycled Tires?

I had quite a bit of area to cover, so cost was definitely going to be a factor in the decision.

The traditional mulch was by far the cheapest, even with a delivery charge, but I was concerned about termites.

The eucalyptus bags at Lowe's seemed to be more environmentally-friendly, but I don't think there are any real answers out there yet as to whether the mulch is better than traditional cypress trees (are they harvested, or just the invasive trees).

The last option was recycled rubber mulch, made from old tires. The idea was by far the best option, but the price was 10x what a traditional bag cost. I think it's too much to ask that someone pay that much more just to go green. However, my goal with my house remodel was to make it stand out from the rest of the numerous houses on the market. As my project was winding down, I decided that I needed just one more "green" differentiator, and so I did some more research to find a local rubber mulch company, who could get me a cheaper price for a larger order.

The local company did not give me the price I wanted. I was able to find a company in Orlando (about an hour and a half away), that saved me 30% from the price at Lowe's. They routinely made shipments to South Florida, so shipping to my house was on the way, so I didn't feel as bad about the transportation impact.

Installation was relatively easy. The bags were 50-lbs each, but once emptied, the material was easy to spread, and much less messy that traditional mulch. When we finished, we were very impressed with how it turned out.

Again, it was a more expensive decision, but the aesthetic results and environmental benefits we obtained made it well worth the extra cost.

Replacing countertops

I am in the process of remodeling my house. Today's dilemna came when I was evaluating my choices of countertops. Like most green decisions, price was the biggest factor. I could either choose a cheaper quartz material ($2000), a new granite material ($2500), or a granite overlay ($4500). The more expensive it was, the better green choice it was (unfortunately). How could I possibly justify the extra $2000? Isn't twice the price too much to expect someone to "go green"? That's what I kept telling myself...

Let me first explain the benefits of the granite overlay. First, it was made of 70% recycled glass bottles. Second, it would reuse the existing countertops and I wouldn't have to send it to the landfill. Third, it used much less granite material than traditional granite countertops, so less was taken from the earth. Fourth, it was not porous like natural granite, so it was more resilient to damage from heat and knives. Fifth, and most important, it came down to principle. If I was really going to be serious about making a change, I had to feel the pain from time to time, and this was one of those times. It's easy to be green when the price is not an issue. The more we can support green companies, the more likely that price will become less of a differentiator.

I chose the granite overlay. It was 50% of my remodeling budget, but when they were finished, it was worth every penny. I also feel good about my decision, knowing that I made the right choice, not only for me, but for the environment.