1. At 32.3 degrees Shimla was hottest in 170 years on May 27, 2010
2. On an average 40% of all electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are on standby mode.
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3. The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports that 11 of the past 12 years are among the dozen warmest since 1850.
4. We should not kill that spider! There are more than 40,000 species of spiders, and they all eat insects and provide natural pest control.
5. Over the last 100 years global sea level has risen by about 10 12.5 cm
6. By 2015, consumer electronics and small appliances will be responsible for almost 30% of all household electricity use.
7. A photocopier left on overnight uses enough energy to make 1,500 photocopies
8. 80 per cent of car tyres are under-inflated, which increases fuel consumption
9. India is the world's fourth biggest greenhouse gas emitter and produces about 4 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions.
10. In India solar lanterns and homelighting systems are being used in over 600 000 homes, and are
contributing to substantial savings in kerosene.
11. The energy saved by recycling one aluminum drink can is enough to run a TV for three hours.
12. India has constituted about 4.6% of its geographical areas into protected areas and a chain of 89
national parks and 489 wildlife sanctuaries have been established over 15 million hectares of
dense forestland.
13. It takes less energy to keep a full freezer cool than it does an empty one. If you don't have enough
food to fill it, use bottles filled with water.
14. For office meetings, use telephone or videoconference, rather than travelling far off places.
15. Every year we throw away 24 million tons of leaves and grass. Leaves alone account for 75% of
our solid waste in the fall.
16. Temperatures have increased by 0.4 o C over India since 1901
17. The total electricity consumed by electronic devices in standby mode equals the annual output of
12 power plants.
18. Products made from recycled paper, glass, metal and plastic reduce carbon emissions because
they use less energy to manufacture
19. Even if all GHG emissions were to cease immediately, the earth would still experience a certain
degree of climate change, due to the long lifetime of GHGs in the atmosphere
20. Rising temperatures could provoke more frequent floods and droughts, spur disease and increase
water scarcity in India because of the disappearance of Himalayan glaciers.
21. Check and replace your vehicle's air filter regularly to keep your car fuel efficient.
22. 2000 trees a minute are cut down in the Amazon alone. That is 7 football fields a minute!
23. Every ton of recycled office paper saves 380 gallons of oil.
24. Between 1990 and 1998, 97% of all natural disaster-related deaths occurred in developing
countries.
25. Glass produced from recycled glass instead of raw materials reduces related air pollution by 20%,
and water pollution by 50%.
26. There has been a 10% decrease in snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere since the late 1960s.
27. On average, floods affect about 5,000 square kilometers of land and 4.2 million people in India each year.
28. Majority of the developing countries (in Asia, Africa, Latin America and small island states) are in
tropical and subtropical regions - the areas most likely to be affected by climate change impacts.
29. By 2020 between 75 and 250 million people in Africa will be facing increased water shortages due
to climate change.
First Published: Friday, June 04, 2010, 20:15