Google’s New Climate Change Tool Cuts Down on Deforestation

Google.org just gave a demonstration of its awesome new climate change tool at Copenhagen. The tool, once testing has been completed, will be given to scientists as a nonprofit service. Drawing on Google Earth technology, Google hopes to help end destruction of forest resources via scientific monitoring, with an emphasis on poorer nations that have less access to technology. Google Earth has already helped monitor and prevent destruction of Australian coral reefs and deforestation Amazon tribal lands. And the tool will be on par with many of Google’s applications in terms of speed and breadth.

According to the Google Blog, “Protecting the world’s standing forests is a highly cost-effective way to cut carbon emissions and mitigate climate change. The United Nations has proposed a framework known as REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries) that would provide financial incentives to rainforest nations to protect their forests, in an effort to make forests worth “more alive than dead.” Implementing a global REDD system will require that each nation have the ability to accurately monitor and report the state of their forests over time, in a manner that is independently verifiable. However, many of these tropical nations of the world lack the technological resources to do this, so we’re working with scientists, governments and non-profits to change this.”

Treehugger also notes the most deforested countries from 1990-2005 are incredibly hard-hit. These nations are: Honduras, Nigeria, the Phillipines, Benin, Ghana, Indonesia, Nepal, North Korea, Ecuador, Liberia and Haiti.  These are also nations that traditionally have less access to technology, hence Google’s focus on these areas. The deforestation percentages of the countries listed range between -37% and -22%, and all have soils that are severely affected because of the poor forestry practices, a common side-effect of deforestation.  (source)

This is a very commendable effort on Google.org’s part, and with wise use, the tool will likely accomplish its mission.  By making this information easily accessible and public, the world will have a chance to self-monitor what’s going on out there, rather than just read about it and feel as if it were billions of miles away. The internet has already brought humanity together in ways hitherto unimaginable, and this is one furthering step on the way toward a true global community. After all, if climate change can be mitigated by reduced deforestation, the climate change goals become more and more attainable.

If you’re considering new construction, we urge you to look into reclaimed and FSC-certified woods. Both minimize your impact on the world’s forest and still allow you to create your dream home. Browse around the site for more about these methods. Whatever your building needs are, CalFinder has you covered.

For more about the monitoring tool, check out this Google blog post.

Source: Treehugger.com

Photo Credit: Marine Business World & File Rex

Posted on December 21st in Solar News by Craig.