According to the Gaia Theory, the Earth behaves like a living system, capable of looking after itself. We, despite our technological advances, still cannot predict whether it will resist the climate change or even enhance it. In his latest book, James Lovelock underlines the acute problem; we may not have enough time to save ourselves from the very damage we as overpopulated humans caused to the Earth’s biosphere.

James Lovelock calls for immediate action by governments to cut green house gas emissions and to prepare for a disaster in case we are already to late, providing for alternative food and shelter options; he warns us that the social and economic impacts of the climate change crisis may soon move masses of population from their current locations in the hope to find a suitable climate to survive.

The dramatic levels of our dependency on electricity in our current life style has resulted in the unprecedented deterioration of natural resources. In the search for a carbon-free alternative energy generation, the book analyses the current technologies for an answer. Special attention is given to renewable technologies such as wind, solar and nuclear power.

James Lovelock reveals the real carbon footprint of the wind turbines through a series of calculations, and states that to produce the cement for the wind turbines already involves a certain amount of carbon emissions that should be re-considered in our evaluations.

His conclusion is that renewable technologies need more time to work on and to make them carbon-neutral, with the exception of nuclear energy, which is already developed and ready to be implemented globally. James Lovelock revisits the safety and waste issues associated with the nuclear energy, and he explains the reasons for the negative public perception, and gives the reader an alternative and favourable view towards nuclear energy by re-examining these perceptions.

This book invites us to inquire into the reality of the energy technologies, more than the imposed opinion of the media. As our Earth has the capacity to regulate itself, the question is whether we will be able to survive the consequences of the climate change. The answer depends on quick and massive action.

A must read book for all of us.

Here is a link to a video about James Lovelock on The Guardian Online.

And here is a link to the book on Amazon in the UK.

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