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BY IKE SEÑERES
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Friday, February 10, 2017
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ANYONE has to be totally deaf and dumb if they continue to deny the fact that climate change is real, and that greenhouse gas emissions is one of the main causes of the destruction of the ozone layer that in turn causes climate change.
As I see it, however, many of those who continue to deny the existence of climate change are actually aware of its existence and its effects, but they choose to ignore the reality because it runs counter to their economic interests.
That is exactly the reason why some industrialized countries continue to refuse to sign the Kyoto Protocol, because according to them, doing so would kill their businesses. Of course, in saying that, they would rather not talk about the fact that climate change in general and air pollution in particular is actually killing millions of people all over the world, either directly or indirectly.
Many opponents of the Kyoto Protocol would argue that mankind has to continue producing industrial and consumer goods in order to survive, but it seems that they do not realize that the continued production of greenhouse gas emissions in general and the destruction of the ozone layer in particular is actually posing a threat to the survival of mankind, directly or indirectly. And if these environmental offenders would continue to do what they are doing, the time may come when nobody could buy their industrial and consumer goods even if they would continue to produce it, because the demand for these would go down, as more people would die from the effects of their destructive ways.
One does not have to be a genius to realize that the problem of climate change involves simple mathematics so to speak, because the more emissions would cause more air pollution, and the more air pollution would cause more destruction of the ozone layer that would in turn cause more climate change.
It also does not take a genius to realize that the only way to reduce emissions is to replace fossil fuels with renewable sources of energy, because renewable sources do not cause air pollution. At the risk of stating the obvious, we all have to be reminded that fossil fuels are burned, and that is why emissions are produced. And when emissions are produced, greenhouse gasses are released into the atmosphere, eventually ending up in the ozone layer.
At first, using electric vehicles had sounded like a bright idea, but eventually, someone who was brighter had realized that that may not be a bright idea after all, because the electric vehicles had to be plugged in electric outlets that are also powered by producers that are also using fossil fuels in order to produce their energy.
In a manner of speaking therefore, it could be said that in effect, the use of electric vehicles actually increased the demand for electricity that was produced by fossil fuels. Even if we could say that the electric vehicles had actually reduced emissions in our roads and highways, we could not deny the fact that just the same, the power plants had already produced the emissions prior to that.
Talking about bright ideas, it goes without saying that it is a brighter idea to have vehicles that are running purely on solar energy. Yes, running on energy that comes free from the sun, with nothing to pay to the petroleum industry, and with no fossil fuels to burn.
Only a few years ago, this idea sounded like a dream, but now, that dream is now a reality because purely solar vehicles are now in the global market, and thank goodness, an Australian company that is manufacturing these vehicles have opened shop in the Philippines. Now based in Metro Manila, Star 8 Green Technology Corporation is now offering a complete line of “solarised” buses, jeepneys and tricycles, all ready to hit the road to serve the riding public.
I interviewed Star 8 officer Mr. Jacob Maimon about his business but to my surprise, he was talking more about the beauty of the Earth as God’s creation and the need to preserve it. He was also talking about the sun and how good it is as a source of free energy.
Other than these, however, he seemed more enthusiastic in talking about how solar powered buses, jeepneys and tricycles could revolutionize the transport industry in the Philippines, in the process enabling the drivers to earn more and thus improve their lives, and at the same time improving their health too.
Apparently, he had already figured out the design of these vehicles are causing health problems to the drivers. Not to my surprise, he also told me about his plans to make these vehicles affordable by the drivers.
For so many years now, the government under many administrations has been planning to phase out jeepneys and tricycles, seeing these as big contributors to air pollution, but up to now, no one has thought of a replacement in case these are phased out.
From out of nowhere (actually from Australia, Cambodia and Thailand), Mr. Maimon shows up here to offer not just an idea, but with a complete line of actual vehicles that are ready to roll.
The good thing is, he already has a ready financing plan for interested drivers and operators that are friendly to them. The latter is very important to have, because without that, any opposition from the drivers would derail the deployment of this technology that is 100 percent good for carbon reduction./PN
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