If everybody cycled like the Dutch, we could offset the UK or Australia’s entire carbon footprint.

If everybody cycled as much as the Dutch, global carbon emissions would drop by nearly 700 million tonnes per year.

A study from the University of Southern Denmark - published by the Communications Earth and Environment journal - has urged people to saddle up like they do in the Netherlands.

Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.

This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia.

“The significant untapped climate and health benefits of increasing bicycle use suggest an urgent need to promote sustainable bicycle use,” the authors conclude.

There are plenty of reasons to get on your bike.

On an individual level, it is a great way to stay fit and healthy, staving off the chronic diseases associated with a sedentary lifestyle.

People who cycle to work have a 45 per cent lower risk of developing cancer, and a 46 per cent lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

But it’s not just good for you - it’s great for the environment, too.

The transport sector accounts for a quarter of global fuel-related greenhouse gas emissions, with half coming from private vehicles, including passenger cars and trucks.

Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic chemicals and gases.

According to UK climate organisation Hubbub, 50 per cent of the journeys we take each day are less than 3.2 kilometres long - meaning they could feasibly be swapped out for bike rides.

According to the new study, bike production has ballooned over the last 60 years. 123 million bikes were produced in 2015 - up from 20.7 million bikes in 1962.

But this doesn’t mean more people are cycling as a proportion of the global population. Bike journeys account for just five per cent of daily trips worldwide.

The study authors recognise that not everyone lives in a cycle-friendly place - but call for an “urgent” expansion of cycling infrastructure worldwide.

“Lessons learned from successful experiences in countries like Denmark and the Netherlands, particularly on the city level such as Copenhagen and Amsterdam, would be essential,” they write.

“These include but are not limited to, for example, proper bicycle lanes planning and construction, pro-bicycle education and culture, and policies to discourage car use through tax.”

https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/06/03/on-your-bike-if-we-all-cycled-like-the-dutch-global-emissions-drop-nearly-700-million-tonn

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:

> If everybody cycled like the Dutch, we could offset the UK or
> Australia’s entire carbon footprint.

That’s an unsubstantiated claim.

> If everybody cycled as much as the Dutch, global carbon emissions would
> drop by nearly 700 million tonnes per year.

If everybody died, it would save far more.

> A study from the University of Southern Denmark - published by the
> Communications Earth and Environment journal - has urged people to saddle
> up like they do in the Netherlands.

An ‘environmental’ journal urging people to ride a bike?

Gerraway!

> Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this
> pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.

Figures, please.

> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia.

But not the biggest producers, which are…?

> “The significant untapped climate and health benefits of increasing
> bicycle use suggest an urgent need to promote sustainable bicycle use,”
> the authors conclude.

The Dutch die of the same killer diseases as the lardarse Brits, and in the
same proportion, so what are these ‘health benefits’?

> There are plenty of reasons to get on your bike.

There are plenty of reasons not to get on your bike, a major one being the
threat from other cyclists.

> On an individual level, it is a great way to stay fit and healthy,
> staving off the chronic diseases associated with a sedentary lifestyle.

The Dutch die of the same killer diseases as the lardarse Brits, and in the
same proportion, so what are these ‘health benefits’?

> People who cycle to work have a 45 per cent lower risk of developing
> cancer, and a 46 per cent lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

Data previously published on this group of a comparison of Dutch and
British mortality rates from the main killer diseases shows, no difference
beteeen the two countries.

> But it’s not just good for you - it’s great for the environment, too.

So it is claimed. Where is the data?

> The transport sector accounts for a quarter of global fuel-related
> greenhouse gas emissions, with half coming from private vehicles,
> including passenger cars and trucks.

> Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic chemicals and gases.

‘Clogging’? Pure hyperbole.

> According to UK climate organisation Hubbub, 50 per cent of the journeys
> we take each day are less than 3.2 kilometres long - meaning they could
> feasibly be swapped out for bike rides.

A very doubtful claim at best.

> According to the new study, bike production has ballooned over the last
> 60 years. 123 million bikes were produced in 2015 - up from 20.7 million bikes in 1962.

And people have ballooned over the last 60 years 🙄

> But this doesn’t mean more people are cycling as a proportion of the
> global population. Bike journeys account for just five per cent of daily trips worldwide.

For which there are a multitude of reasons for not using a bicycle.

> The study authors recognise that not everyone lives in a cycle-friendly
> place - but call for an “urgent” expansion of cycling infrastructure worldwide.

And how would that help?

Data previously published on this group show essentially no differences
between cycling-infra-rich Holland and the cycle slaughterhouse UK.

> “Lessons learned from successful experiences in countries like Denmark
> and the Netherlands, particularly on the city level such as Copenhagen
> and Amsterdam, would be essential,” they write.

‘Level’ being the operative word.

> “These include but are not limited to, for example, proper bicycle lanes
> planning and construction, pro-bicycle education and culture, and
> policies to discourage car use through tax.”

One wondered when money-raising would come to the fore.

For all the taxing of London’s vehicles, no-one can point to a single child
that has been saved from pollution-related asthma.

Note there’s no mention of Germany here, which due to the policies of their
Green-coalition government, have closed low-emission nuclear power stations
and replaced them with lignite (filthier than coal) power stations. Only in
the bizarre world of the environmentalist would such lunacy make sense.

> https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/06/03/on-your-bike-if-we-all-cycled-like-the-dutch-global-emissions-drop-nearly-700-million-tonn

--
Spike

On 06/06/2023 02:13 pm, Spike wrote:

> swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> If everybody cycled like the Dutch, we could offset the UK or
>> Australia’s entire carbon footprint.
>
> That’s an unsubstantiated claim.

....replayed by another janitorial worker (they're ALL experts on
Economics, Ecology, Biology and International Trade, you know!).

QUOTE: The transport sector accounts for a quarter of global fuel-related greenhouse gas emissions, with half coming from private vehicles, including passenger cars and trucks.

Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic chemicals and gases. ENDS

They kill many vulnerable people as a result of their toxic fumes - ask Khan.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> QUOTE: The transport sector accounts for a quarter of global fuel-related
> greenhouse gas emissions, with half coming from private vehicles,
> including passenger cars and trucks.

> Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic
> chemicals and gases. ENDS

> They kill many vulnerable people as a result of their toxic fumes - ask Khan.

Khan cannot point to a single person whose life has been saved by any
reduction in polluted air arising from his various vehicle-taxation
regimes.

--
Spike

QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.

This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS

I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If
> this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>
> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>
> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.

Say ‘hello’ to the bridge at Arnhem, providing it isn’t too far.

--
Spike

On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>
> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>
> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.

Nobody here gets knocked down either - fancy that!

On 06/06/2023 05:38 pm, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:

> QUOTE: Dutch people fairy-cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>
> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>
> I am in Gelderland at the moment [ ... ]

Did you go there to be gelded?

On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>
> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>
> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.

Driving to Europoort soon to go back to the 1970's UK with silly passport stamps and biometric checks.
Can't wait to rejoin our EU friends.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
>> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If
>> this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
>> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>>
>> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
>> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>>
>> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.
>
> Nobody here gets knocked down either - fancy that!

QUOTE

According to figures published by Statistics Netherlands (CBS), 582 people
died as a result of a traffic accident in 2021 - the lowest number recorded
in the Netherlands since 2015. The number of road fatalities fell by 28
between 2020 and last year.

The provinces of Gelderland and South Holland saw the highest number of
deadly road accidents, while Zeeland recorded the fewest. 382 of the
victims in 2021 were cyclists, motorists or other car passengers.

ENDQUOTE

--
Spike

QUOTE: On an individual level, it is a great way to stay fit and healthy, staving off the chronic diseases associated with a sedentary lifestyle. ENDS

Do they mean this bonehead?

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fx9A3KsXwAAWW6U?format=jpg&name=medium

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
>> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If
>> this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
>> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>>
>> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
>> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>>
>> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.
>
> Driving to Europoort soon to go back to the 1970's UK with silly passport
> stamps and biometric checks.

> Can't wait to rejoin our EU friends.

Nothing is stopping you moving there permanently, such as to Amsterdam or
Utrecht.

--
Spike

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:

> QUOTE: On an individual level, it is a great way to stay fit and healthy,
> staving off the chronic diseases associated with a sedentary lifestyle. ENDS

Dutch health stats v UK

We’ve heard so many claims for bicycling and health benefits, let’s check
out the comparison between NL (a cycling paradise) and the hellhole of the
unhealthy UK.

Here’s my main point: I am opposed to public health campaigns that focus on
cycling, thereby implanting in people’s minds the claimed health benefits
of cycling. What are the facts?

The Dutch cycle more than the UK, 9bn miles to 3.5bn miles per annum, and
have done so for longer. Note that the population of Holland is only
one-fourth of that of the UK (or in the modern vernacular, ‘four times
smaller’).

So you would think that all this health-benefit would show up in the
statistics. Let’s see…

Keep in mind that the Dutch population at 17.2 million is almost exactly
one-quarter of that of the UK at 68 million.

To compare cases per year on a per-head basis, the NL figures have been
multiplied by 4.

CVD:
UK…324446
NL…347880
Result: UK healthier for CVD.

IHD:
UK…178985
NL…167020
Result: NL slightly healthier for IHD

Stroke:
UK…20326
NL…26072
Result: UK healthier for stroke.

Diabetes:
NL…5.4% of adults
UK…3.9% of adults
Result: UK healthier for diabetes

COPD:
NL and UK ~200 deaths per million
Result: indistinguishable

Comment: any health benefits from the amount of cycling by the Dutch over
the Brits seem to be based more on dogma, tropes, and wishful thinking
than fact.

Some data taken from the extensive tabulated data at ehnheart.org; COPD
from statistics.blf.org.uk

--
Spike

QUOTE: According to the new study, bike production has ballooned over the last 60 years. 123 million bikes were produced in 2015 - up from 20.7 million bikes in 1962. ENDS

Great news - stuffs the Mr Toads.
PARP PARP.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> QUOTE: According to the new study, bike production has ballooned over the
> last 60 years. 123 million bikes were produced in 2015 - up from 20.7
> million bikes in 1962. ENDS
>
> Great news - stuffs the Mr Toads.
> PARP PARP.

In other news: people have ballooned in the last 60 years:

1960: 3bn people 2023: >8bn people

--
Spike

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:
>> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If
>> this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
>> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>>
>> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
>> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>>
>> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.

> Driving to Europoort soon to go back to the 1970's UK with silly passport
> stamps and biometric checks.

Rushing back to Blighty just as the Ukraine war hots up?

> Can't wait to rejoin our EU friends.

We can’t wait for you to join your EU friends either.

--
Spike

On 07/06/2023 08:10 am, Spike wrote:

> swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com>...

....pretending not to answer other posters, said:

>> On Tuesday, June 6, 2023 at 5:38:58 PM UTC+1, swldx...@gmail.com wrote:

>>> QUOTE: Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6 kilometres each per day. If
>>> this pattern was replicated worldwide, the study suggests, annual global
>>> carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes.
>
>>> This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
>>> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia. ENDS
>
>>> I am in Gelderland at the moment so can well believe those statements.
>>
>> Nobody here gets knocked down either - fancy that!
>
> QUOTE
>
> According to figures published by Statistics Netherlands (CBS), 582 people
> died as a result of a traffic accident in 2021 - the lowest number recorded
> in the Netherlands since 2015. The number of road fatalities fell by 28
> between 2020 and last year.

The height of the pandemic, with a great drop in traffic as people
stayed at home and (if they could) phoned it in).
>
> The provinces of Gelderland and South Holland saw the highest number of
> deadly road accidents, while Zeeland recorded the fewest. 382 of the
> victims in 2021 were cyclists, motorists or other car passengers.
>
> ENDQUOTE

A Dutch friend of mine was killed in NL last year - in a head-on crash.
Things unfortunately seem to have been getting back to normal there.

Spike <Aero.Spike@mail.invalid> wrote:
> swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> If everybody cycled like the Dutch, we could offset the UK or
>> Australia’s entire carbon footprint.
>

The population and industry of the two countries are widely different.

The suggestion their carbon footprints are remotely comparable is hardly
credible.

QUOTE: Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic chemicals and gases. ENDS

Even electric cars shower the roads and environs with brake dust.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:
> QUOTE: Cars also contribute to air pollution, clogging the air with toxic
> chemicals and gases. ENDS

> Even electric cars shower the roads and environs with brake dust.

And tyre particles. Even e-campers as well as cars.

--
Spike

QUOTE: This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia.ENDS

The polar bears can thank us later.

The Arctic Ocean's ice cap will disappear in summer as soon as the 2030s and a decade earlier than thought, no matter how aggressively humanity draws down the carbon pollution that drives global warming, scientists said Tuesday.

Even capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius in line with the Paris climate treaty will not prevent the north pole's vast expanse of floating ice from melting away in September, they reported in Nature Communications.

"It is too late to still protect the Arctic summer sea ice as a landscape and as a habitat," co-author Dirk Notz, a professor at the University of Hamburg's Institute of Oceanography, told AFP.

"This will be the first major component of our climate system that we lose because of our emission of greenhouse gases."

Decreased ice cover has serious impacts over time on weather, people and ecosystems—not just within the region, but globally.

"It can accelerate global warming by melting permafrost laden with greenhouse gases, and sea level rise by melting the Greenland ice sheet," lead author Seung-Ki Min, a researcher at Pohang University of Science and Technology in South Korea, told AFP.

Greenland's kilometers-thick blanket of ice contains enough frozen water to lift oceans six meters.

By contrast, melting sea ice has no discernible impact on sea levels because the ice is already in ocean water, like ice cubes in a glass.

But it does feed into a vicious circle of warming.

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:

> QUOTE: This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most
> countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia.ENDS

> The polar bears can thank us later.

Did you hear of the polar-bear expert who was due to give a paper at the
Copenhagen COP?

His funding was withdrawn when it was discovered that his report found that
polar-bear groups were flourishing.

That was off-message, of course, so he had to go.

Interesting that 20 years later polar bears are still being used by the
believers.

> The Arctic Ocean's ice cap will disappear in summer as soon as the 2030s
> and a decade earlier than thought, no matter how aggressively humanity
> draws down the carbon pollution that drives global warming, scientists said Tuesday.

No sh1t!

You do know that the remains of ancient forests have been found under the
ice?

Wonder what industrial action could have caused that warming event.

> Even capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius in line with the Paris
> climate treaty will not prevent the north pole's vast expanse of floating
> ice from melting away in September, they reported in Nature Communications.

Of course not! Melting ice caps are a regular feature of interglacial warm
periods.

> "It is too late to still protect the Arctic summer sea ice as a landscape
> and as a habitat," co-author Dirk Notz, a professor at the University of
> Hamburg's Institute of Oceanography, told AFP.

It was always too late to save the ice-caps. Nothing saved them in the
past.

> "This will be the first major component of our climate system that we
> lose because of our emission of greenhouse gases."

So what caused the previous losses of the ice-caps?

> Decreased ice cover has serious impacts over time on weather, people and
> ecosystems—not just within the region, but globally.

It was always thus.

> "It can accelerate global warming by melting permafrost laden with
> greenhouse gases, and sea level rise by melting the Greenland ice sheet,"
> lead author Seung-Ki Min, a researcher at Pohang University of Science
> and Technology in South Korea, told AFP.

That’s happened so many times in the past, it’s just routine.

> Greenland's kilometers-thick blanket of ice contains enough frozen water
> to lift oceans six meters.

Buy a boat.

> By contrast, melting sea ice has no discernible impact on sea levels
> because the ice is already in ocean water, like ice cubes in a glass.

> But it does feed into a vicious circle of warming.

Quite possibly; it’s happened so many times…

--
Spike

The Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in summer by the 2030s, even if we do a good job of reducing emissions between now and then. That’s the worrying conclusion of a new study in Nature Communications.

Predictions of an ice-free Arctic Ocean have a long and complicated history, and the 2030s is sooner than most scientists had thought possible (though it is later than some had wrongly forecast). What we know for sure is the disappearance of sea ice at the top of the world would not only be an emblematic sign of climate breakdown, but it would have global, damaging and dangerous consequences.

The Arctic has been experiencing climate heating faster than any other part of the planet. As it is at the frontline of climate change, the eyes of many scientists and local indigenous people have been on the sea ice that covers much of the Arctic Ocean in winter. This thin film of frozen seawater expands and contracts with the seasons, reaching a minimum area in September each year.

The ice which remains at the end of summer is called multiyear sea ice and is considerably thicker than its seasonal counterpart. It acts as barrier to the transfer of both moisture and heat between the ocean and atmosphere. Over the past 40 years this multiyear sea ice has shrunk from around 7 million sq km to 4 million. That is a loss equivalent to roughly the size of India or 12 UKs. In other words, it’s a big signal, one of the most stark and dramatic signs of fundamental change to the climate system anywhere in the world.

With your support, we collaborate with more experts and reach new audiences.. You power our independent journalism
As a consequence, there has been considerable effort invested in determining when the Arctic Ocean might first become ice-free in summer, sometimes called a “blue ocean event” and defined as when the sea ice area drops below 1 million sq kms. This threshold is used mainly because older, thicker ice along parts of Canada and northern Greenland is expected to remain long after the rest of the Arctic Ocean is ice-free. We can’t put an exact date on the last blue ocean event, but one in the near future would likely mean open water at the North Pole for the first time in thousands of years.

Already debunked ,

swldx...@gmail.com <swldxer1958@gmail.com> wrote:

> The Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in summer by the 2030s, even if we do
> a good job of reducing emissions between now and then. That’s the
> worrying conclusion of a new study in Nature Communications.
>
> Predictions of an ice-free Arctic Ocean have a long and complicated
> history, and the 2030s is sooner than most scientists had thought
> possible (though it is later than some had wrongly forecast). What we
> know for sure is the disappearance of sea ice at the top of the world
> would not only be an emblematic sign of climate breakdown, but it would
> have global, damaging and dangerous consequences.
>
> The Arctic has been experiencing climate heating faster than any other
> part of the planet. As it is at the frontline of climate change, the eyes
> of many scientists and local indigenous people have been on the sea ice
> that covers much of the Arctic Ocean in winter. This thin film of frozen
> seawater expands and contracts with the seasons, reaching a minimum area
> in September each year.
>
> The ice which remains at the end of summer is called multiyear sea ice
> and is considerably thicker than its seasonal counterpart. It acts as
> barrier to the transfer of both moisture and heat between the ocean and
> atmosphere. Over the past 40 years this multiyear sea ice has shrunk from
> around 7 million sq km to 4 million. That is a loss equivalent to roughly
> the size of India or 12 UKs. In other words, it’s a big signal, one of
> the most stark and dramatic signs of fundamental change to the climate
> system anywhere in the world.
>
> With your support, we collaborate with more experts and reach new
> audiences. You power our independent journalism
> As a consequence, there has been considerable effort invested in
> determining when the Arctic Ocean might first become ice-free in summer,
> sometimes called a “blue ocean event” and defined as when the sea ice
> area drops below 1 million sq kms. This threshold is used mainly because
> older, thicker ice along parts of Canada and northern Greenland is
> expected to remain long after the rest of the Arctic Ocean is ice-free.
> We can’t put an exact date on the last blue ocean event, but one in the
> near future would likely mean open water at the North Pole for the first
> time in thousands of years.

Since the last interglacial period, in fact.

--
Spike