Seven
western European nations from Spain to Russia have been placed under
severe heat warnings this week, with temperatures expected to reach up
to 40 degrees Celsius, straining health facilities and power supplies.
With
temperatures noted to be up to eight degrees Celsius higher than normal
across the continent, the World Meteorological Organization has issued
extremely hot weather warnings for most of Spain and Belgium as well as
the western half of Germany and parts of the Netherlands.
Meanwhile,
across the Atlantic Ocean, the United States East Coast is under the
grip of a heat wave that has already claimed two lives and caused fires
and power outages. Officials in locales such as New York City and
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania have called on residents to conserve energy,
stay hydrated, and check on vulnerable elderly neighbors and animal
companions.
On the western coast of the United States,
Washington and Oregon have also faced record-high temperatures recently,
and even Canada to the north has reported near-record highs, with some
municipalities in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec enveloped in
unhealthy smog.
In Asia, wildfires have ignited in central Mongolia
due to the prolonged heat and dry weather, claiming three lives and
injured six others as of Tuesday, July 6.
Meanwhile, the
Aulacese (Vietnamese) National Hydro Meteorological Forecasting Center
has reported temperatures reaching 48 degrees Celsius and the sparking
of forest fires in northern and central regions with more of the same
forecast for the near future.
In Formosa (Taiwan), this year's
highest-ever temperatures have crowded hospitals and clinics with
patients exhibiting heat-induced sicknesses and symptoms, with the
number of stroke patients rising by up to 30%.
It saddens us to know
of the lives lost to the extreme heat and we pray for the protection
and resiliency of all those affected.
Our prayers that the
equilibrium of our ecosphere may be restored as humanity strives to be
more conscientious stewards on Earth. During a June 2009 climate change
conference in Veracruz, Mexico, Supreme Master Ching Hai spoke with
concern once again for the dangerous conditions
of global warming, while advising of the best action to halt climate change.
Supreme Master Ching Hai:
The past decade has twice, at least, seen the hottest average annual
temperatures ever recorded in our planet’s history. So, we must cool the
planet, first and foremost. And one of the most effective and fastest
ways to reduce the heat in the atmosphere is to eliminate methane
production. Methane not only traps up to 72 times more heat than carbon,
it also goes away from the atmosphere much faster than CO2.
We
can start by cutting down on the biggest methane producer in the world,
that is, animal raising. So, to cool the planet most quickly, we have to
stop consuming meat in order to stop the livestock raising industry
If
everyone in the world would adopt this simple but most powerful
practice of an animal-free diet, then we could reverse the effect of
global warming in no time.
http://www.connexionfrance.com/heatwave-alert-lyon-rhone-valley-france-high-temperatures-summer-11823-view-article.htmlhttp://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE6670U420100708http://news.discovery.com/earth/heatwaves-they-dont-call-it-global-for-nothing.htmlhttp://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-07/07/c_13387055.htm http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/local_news/queens/fdny-battles-fires-amid-heat-wave-20100707-akdhttp://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/07/08/heat.wave/index.html?iref=24hours&fbid=MkDy87-nV7Dhttp://www.euronews.net/2010/07/08/higher-temperatures-on-the-way-for-europe/