Coffe GIFs

Here within a collection of Coffee related GIFs:

Below from scene in futurama where Fry drinks 100 cups of coffee.

More to come soon.

Graffiti in Bristol

Graffiti in Bristol 

I do a lot of work in Bristol and now ans again I come across some lovely graffiti, which I have shared with you here, it is a work in progress I will post more as I find them. All images are from Google Street View.

171 Hotwells Road

"Bristol Food" this reminds me of the Mint Sauce Cartoons, painted by Joe Burt in a magazine from my youth. Love this one.

Eugene Street

Some  run of the mill stuff in an industrial area.

The Duke of York Pub - Conduit Place

Far out! (Yes I was born in the 80's.)

 

Banksy - Girl with Pierced Ear Drum - Bristol Marina

Others such as Visit Bristol have done a great job of marking all things Banksy, so I will stop at the one picture. 

 

Marcruss Outdoors Hotwell Road 

 

Flood Risk Assessment Bristol 

 

Animal Tracks Visible from Space

The below image struck me as rather spectacular as it shows cool patterns decided upon by animals as they walk in to a field. The pattern kind if reminded me of nerve / synapses that you see in a picture of a brain. Image location: https://goo.gl/maps/BY1qzCDhFqHT8HQKA

Again animal tracks in Nairobi national park. Image location: https://goo.gl/maps/NtY2Fdd3VYov1Ufv8, are these animal tracks leading to a watering hole?

Sunlight and Daylight Assessment

Environmental Consultants

How to Deal with a Climate Change Denier

How to Deal with a Climate Change Denier

Push them off a cliff. . . . just kidding. Maybe.

As more and more science adds to the consensus that man made climate change is a real thing Climate Change Deniers because less and less commonly encountered. But when you do come across these oddities, you can bet they are:

• Paid by Oil Lobby
• Will-fully Ignorant
• Just Trying to Annoy You

I all cases this makes them appalling human beings, and you are unlikely to change their minds. What you need is the NASA CO2 Graph. It rocks for the following reasons.

• Its a picture.
• Its shows how weird things are getting.
• Its from NASA

The last point is likely to sit  well with any denier, as they probably like big noisy things that look like penises such as space rockets.

I saw Professor Brian Cox use this graph to very good effect in a TV debate some time ago. There we had some moronic buffoon towing his oil paymasters line, on how the data didn't stack up etc. Well this graph, got a round of applause from the audience, and the dude stopped talking. Amen.

These days it is easy to look this up on a phone or tablet, and show it to the offender, although my personal favourite is to print on to a baseball bat and hit them on the head with it. If the offender is a co-worker why not super glue this graph to their desk?

Misinformation   

Deniers have often been fed on a diet of carefully crafted misinformation. Oil and Gas Companies have known for decades that global warming was likely to be a real thing. 

Further Reading:

Exxon Scientists Predicted Global Warming, Even as Company Cast Doubts, Study Finds

Just 90 companies are to blame for most climate change, this 'carbon accountant' says

ExxonMobil Claims Shift on Climate But Continues to Fund Climate Science Deniers

Sunlight & Daylight Assessment

 Desktop Study

Why we are Not Doing Anything About Climate Change?

Why we are Not Doing Anything About Climate Change? 

It may seam that we are doing nothing about climate change, things are happening but not quickly enough.

Who is Doing the Most?

First off we are doing something about climate change. Countries get together to discuss the issue, we describe the problem, we discuss the solution, we set targets. All this is doing something and in some countries meaningful reduction sin CO2 emissions have been made.

So the west is leading the world in reducing CO2 emissions . . .  .no not really. We may be showing the greatest percentage decreases, but compared to huge manufacturing nations such as China and India, we do not create very much CO2, and what we do create is easier to decarbonise.

Quick Example: It is easy to switch a heating system in an office block from oil to gas and save carbon in the process, we could also add solar panels to the roof and reduce further. It is far for diifcult to decarbonise a steel works, or a cement factory.

What is Getting in Way? 

Most people (including politicians) are fully aware that climate change is real and require urgent attention. Unfortunately there are some powerful players who stand to loose a lot of money if we stop using oil and gas. Who, the oil and gas companies.

BP (British Petroleum) for example runs advertising campaigns telling it customers how green it is as company, whilst spending over $50,000,000 (50 million) a year on lobbying the government to benefit the sales of oil and gas.

In total, just in the UK oil firms spend $200,000,000 (200 million) a year on influencing politions to use more oil, and prevent the removal of oil subsidies.

Oil Subsidies? What? Really?

So world wide tax payers contribute Trillions of Dollars to subsidise oil. In the UK alone tax payers contribute $12,000,000,000 (12 billion) a year to help reduce the cost of oil and gas.

In the same year we give only $9,000,000,000 (9 billion) a year in subsidies to renewable. Now it is worth pointing out at this point that just throw subsides at renewable may not fix the the problem, nor might it be the best solution.

For example energy efficiency measures such as subsidising loft insulation, or offset measures such as Tree Planting are far far cheaper then renewable energy infrastructures subsidies.

But the fact remains that by subsidising oil and gas we are making oil or gas a more competitively price energy source, which will slow the uptake of renewables. 

What to Do?

We need to act quickly and choose the best value options for decarbonising and offsetting our emissions. Efficiency measure such as altering diet, and turning down heating etc. will only get us so far.

 

Not all carbon saving measures cost the same amount so it is important that we subsidise the correct ones.  The recently defunct FITs scheme (paying subsidies to electricity generators for renewable energy), cost around £250 t/CO2e, whilst tree planting in a developing country can deliver the same effect for £3 t/CO2e.

This is not to say the Solar or Wind are bad options, but the administration of the subsidies in this case was not good value for money, in term of CO2 reduction per unit of currency.

Desktop Study

Semi-Proportional Carbon Footprint Diagram

Semi-Proportional Carbon Footprint Diagram

Please find below a free to copy, alter or bastardise Semi-Proportional Carbon Footprint Diagram. It shows which aspects of our lives use the most carbon. It is based on a diagram found in "How Bad are Bananas" and which is a good book to read if you are interested in Carbon Footprints. 

As you can see whilst most of obsess over gas and electricity use it is food, flying and useless crap we buy which are the main problems.

A quick look at this diagram and I hope most will see the quickest way to cut your footprint is to buy less junk, and eat a vegetarian diet. 

Scientific Web Content

Riverford Organic Slaughter Procedure

Riverford Organic Slaughter Procedure

Below is Accurate of November 2018, it is a copy of an email received from Riverford:

Here are the details of the slaughtering procedure. I have also added in a little extra to how the animals are kept. If you did want to find out anymore you are more than welcome to call us here at the Farm (Riverford Organic). Or on our (Riverford Organic) website at the top left hand side there is a tab called 'about' click on that one and scroll down there is another box on the right hand side click on 'faqs' this will open up all the information about why we do things the way we do, packaging, prices vs supermarket prices, etc. 

There is a lot of information backed up with scientific facts to support our ethos here are Riverford.

All the beef and lamb used at the butchery is bought directly from members of our producer group, who are all within 40 miles of the abattoir. The group is very selective and we only use farmers we have a long trusting business relationship with (some also supply veg into Wash). All producers and their farms have been visited and approved by the butchery general manager. Regular visits are also carried out during the year.

We (Riverford Organic) use a small family run abbattoire in Devon that is 10 minutes’ drive from our butchery. Unlike most abattoirs, they only slaughter three days out of seven so it is not done on a mass scale (low throughput). It is fully E.C. licensed and Soil Association approved, has a full time F.S.A. meat inspector and veterinary surgeon on site during slaughter.

The method used is called stun & stuck- which means that the animal is “stunned” to render them unconscious and then “stuck” which means their throat is cut. This process is only carried out by fully licensed and trained slaughter persons under the supervision of the F.S.A. staff.

Lambs are held in a holding pen, in groups of 3 – 4 as this reduces stress, where they are “stunned” on either side of the head with a specially designed electrical stunner. The voltage and “stun” time is meticulously monitored to ensure the animal is fully unconscious before “sticking”. They then have their throats cut (“sticking”) and allowed to bleed before being further processed.

Cattle are held, separately, in a specially designed “stun box” and shot with a “captive” bolt rather than by electrical stunner because they are so much larger the electric method would not give an effective “stun”. The animal is then “stuck” by having its throat cut and allowed to bleed before further processing.

Chickens are processed at another “low throughput” facility in Devon. This facility is also fully E.C. licensed and Soil Association approved to process poultry and again there is a F.S.A. veterinary surgeon on site during slaughter.

The chickens are hung on a moving line and get dipped into an electric bath & “stunned” before coming out the other end where a fully licensed slaughter person is waiting to ensure they are fully stunned before cutting their throats (“sticking”). They are allowed to bleed before further processing.

I can assure you that all our animals are killed in the most humane way possible; none are killed using “ritual” slaughter methods, and they do not suffer any unnecessary stress or pain. The welfare of the animal is very important to us and our chosen processors.

All premises are monitored and supervised by F.S.A. officials who are completely independent. We also visit and audit the premises on a regular basis to ensure every process meets our own high standards. The butchery won the R.S.P.C.A. award for good business in 2011.

Lamb

All of our lambs come from farms local to the butchery and they live outdoors all year round as this is the most natural way for the animals to live. They will graze on grass and natural herbage in the spring and summer and are given hay/silage in the winter & autumn. Farmers may also supplement the sheep’s diet with organic sheep nuts if there is insufficient grass to graze.

Farmers will bring the ewes inside to lamb where there will be straw bedding and penned off areas. These areas are large enough for the ewes to be comfortable but small enough to ensure the safety of the lamb. As soon as the farmer feels that the lamb is safe and healthy it will be turned out to pasture with its mother, this could be anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days.

The sheep are free to graze naturally which means that they are able to grow at their own rate. This means that the meat produced is as natural as possible, giving it a wonderful flavour and the right balance of muscle and fat.

Beef 

Our (Riverford Organic) beef herds live outdoors for the majority of their lives and all are traditional beef breeds. The Soil Association welfare regulations dictate that they must be brought inside for a period during the winter time. This is to allow the pastures to recover during the wetter months of the year so that the grass will be lush ready for the animals to be let out in early spring.

When the cattle are brought inside they are kept in large barns with good ventilation. They all have large bays in the barns with plenty of straw bedding that is regularly maintained. During this period they are fed a diet of silage with occasional cereal supplements.

As with other organic livestock, the beef herds are fed and kept as naturally as possible. This ensures that the meat has the right balance of muscle and fat, and also means that the need for vaccinations is eradicated.

Pork

Our (Riverford Organic) pork is now supplied by Helen Browning Organics. http://helenbrowningsorganic.co.uk The pigs are British saddlebacks who live outdoors all year round. They are in fields which have natural shelter as well as “pig arks”. These arks are open so the animals can exercise their natural behaviour patterns without restraint, avoid sunburn on the hotter days and keep warm in the winter time. The pigs are fed organic pig meal.

The pigs will be taken inside a few days before they are taken to the abattoir. They are brought inside so that the farmers can make sure they are clean, healthy and up to weight. The barns have a good ventilation system which keeps the pigs healthy and cool. They have the run of a large barn which is bedded with straw. Pigs are sociable animals and enjoy being able to be together in the barns. All pigs are allowed to grow at their own rate. They are not given any supplements or fattening aids.

Chicken:

All our (Riverford Organic) chickens are organic. The chickens have huts for shelter which are opened each dawn so the chickens can go in and out freely and easily during daylight hours. They are shut in their huts at dusk to have protection from predators during the night.

The chickens are fed organic chicken feed inside the huts but when they are outside they scratch and forage in the grass for worms etc. and lead a totally natural existence. Outside we also provide them with shelters which they can use for protection from predators and/or inclement weather.

Our farmers keep small flocks of chickens as opposed to larger ones. This is so that the chickens have plenty of space inside the huts and outside. Inside the huts the chickens have perches and hay bales and feed toys (dried corn to peck at e.t.c.).

Practical Cycling