Illustrated Water Flow wallpaper
Beetles Devastate Coffee Plants
Westly writes:
Until recently, the coffee berry borer was confined to just a few regions in Central Africa. But since the 1980s, the beetle has gradually spread to every coffee-growing region except Hawaii, Nepal, and Papua New Guinea. Juliana Jaramillo, a biologist at Kenya’s International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology, suspects temperature increases are to blame. She and her collaborators recently identified the temperature range in which the beetle can survive. They found that the average minimum temperature the borer requires to reproduce is about 68 degrees F, and the mountainous regions of Ethiopia did not reach that temperature until 1984.
Local shade trees had provided natural cooling thus natural protection for coffee plants – now outpaced by global warming- and now farmers are cutting the trees to increase coffee yields. The trees are being devastated and the beetle population is increasing.Short of a new hybrid coffee or global cooling the situation does not look as though it will end well. Except for maybe tea drinkers.
Solar Power: Brighter Long-Term Investment Outlook
With utilities adopting standards to increase the amount of solar-generated electricity in coming years, the U.S. could bolster its presence in the global solar-power market. The quickening growth pace could present attractive opportunities for investors, according to some professionals.
At the end of 2009, the U.S. ranked fourth in total solar capacity, with 2.09 gigawatts installed, behind Germany with 9.79Gw, Spain with 4.01Gw, and Japan with 2.68Gw, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. With U.S. installed capacity growing at a faster pace than that of the international market, the country may be on track to become a more dominant market by 2014, according to Larry Sherwood, an analyst at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC).
Not by way of investment advice but just putting two and two together – there is some uncertainty in the solar investment market because no one is sure if the Energy Dept.’s Loan Guarantee Program will be renewed. If the program is renewed look for solar energy related stocks to edge up a bit.
tangledwing 