The Environment Thread

[Wideleft]

What it looks like as drought strangles the mighty Mississippi

By Brady Dennis, Laris Karklis, Scott Dance and Tim Meko

 

October 26, 2022 at 3:59 p.m. EDT

 

Gift Article:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/10/26/mississippi-river-drying-up/

 

[Tracker]

And apparently at least one major hydroelectric dam in the US is at risk of collapse due to historically low water levels.

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/global-shipping-emissions-1.6636413

Quote

A test engine four storeys high, with four giant pistons, may hold the potential to transform the shipping industry and the global supply chains that rely on it.

"We are taking an internal combustion engine and we are changing it," said Brian Østergaard Sørensen, head of research and development at MAN Energy Solutions, while standing in a research lab outside Copenhagen, Denmark .

MAN Energy Solutions is one of the world's foremost designers of commercial ship engines. At the Copenhagen test site, Sørensen's team is experimenting with different carbon-neutral and carbon-free fuels to see how effective they can be at generating the immense horsepower necessary to move container ships and bulk carriers across the world's oceans.

The shipping industry is responsible for three per cent of all global greenhouse gas emissions — an amount equivalent to what Germany emits every year. But across the globe, 99 per cent of shipping is currently powered by burning fossil fuels, such as bunker fuel and marine diesel. 

"We actually need to look at ways to rebuild existing ships," said Sørensen.

 

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/glaciers-disappear-by-2050-unesco-report-1.6639320

Quote

Some of the world's most famous glaciers, including in the Dolomites in Italy, the Yosemite and Yellowstone parks in the United States and Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania are set to disappear by 2050 due to global warming, whatever the temperature rise scenario, according to a UNESCO report.

UNESCO, the United Nations cultural agency, monitors some 18,600 glaciers across 50 of its World Heritage sites and said that glaciers in one third of World Heritage sites will disappear by 2050 regardless of the applied climate scenario.

While the rest can be saved by keeping global temperature rise below 1.5 C relative to pre-industrial levels, in a business-as-usual emissions scenario, about 50 per cent of these World Heritage glaciers could almost entirely disappear by 2100.

"This report is a call to action. Only a rapid reduction in our CO2 emissions levels can save glaciers and the exceptional biodiversity that depends on them," Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO's director general, said in a statement.

She noted that the UN's COP27 climate conference will have a crucial role to help find solutions to this issue.

 

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/07/super-richs-carbon-investment-emissions-equivalent-to-whole-of-france

Quote

The super-rich emit greenhouse gases at a level equivalent to the whole of France from their investments in carbon intensive businesses, according to analysis published on the opening of the Cop27 UN climate talks in Egypt.

Examining the carbon impact of the investments of 125 billionaires, the research found they had a collective $2.4tn stake in 183 companies. On average each billionaire’s investment emissions produced 3m tonnes of CO2 a year; a million times more than the average emissions of 2.76 tonnes of CO2 for those living in the bottom 90% of earners. In total the 125 members of the super-rich emitted 393m tonnes of CO2 a year – equivalent to the emissions of France, which has a population of 67 million.

The report by Oxfam called for the investments of the very rich to be regulated and for a wealth tax with a steep rate of top up on investments in polluting industries.

 

[Mark F]

International Energy Agency.  

"The IEA was founded on November 18, 1974, after the 1973 oil crisis, to avoid future shocks by helping to ensure reliable energy supplies, promote energy efficiency, ensure energy security and encourage technological research and innovation.[12][1]

The IEA forecasts fossil fuel demand peaking in every area and every scenario. After 200 years of growth, we are at a historic turning point in the energy system, as fossil fuel demand is squeezed from both sides by rising renewables and increasing efficiency. 

RMI has long argued that demand for fossil fuels was peaking; the IEA now agrees.

Part of the change relative to last year is driven by a new natural gas outlook. The golden age of gas is over, according to the IEA. High prices and supply uncertainty caused by Putin curtails the growth of gas demand in Asia; economic and security concerns move the sequencing of change from coal-to-gas to coal-to-renewables. In Asia this pushes down gas demand growth; in advanced economies it puts natural gas into prompt and sharp decline. If it was not already clear, 2022 and the IEA make it clearer: natural gas is a rickety pier into a fiery lake, not a bridge across it"

 

https://rmi.org/the-iea-confirms-that-fossil-fuel-demand-is-peaking/

for context

"the I.E.A. has always been captive to the fossil-fuel industry, or at least to the countries, such as the United States, where that industry has held sway. For years, its forecasts of how fast renewable energy would spread were understatements; it was an engine of the status quo."

Wont make any difference in Alberta.

Edited November 10, 2022 by Mark F

[Tracker]

                                  

[Fatty Liver]

2 hours ago, Tracker said:

                                  

Which dam is this?

[Tracker]

57 minutes ago, Fatty Liver said:

Which dam is this?

They named it the Hoover Dam but the name really sucks.

[Tracker]

           In a few days or hours we’ll reach 8

 

 

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/desalination-water-scarcity-climate-adaptation-cop27-1.6650939

Quote

As the host country of the COP27 climate conference, Egypt kept water security front and centre. Monday was "water day" at the summit, and desalination was a hot topic.

Desalination, an expensive and energy-intensive way of turning sea water into a potable source for use, is one of the cornerstones of the country's — and region's — response to water scarcity.

Egypt is angling to increase its desalination capacity, with the goal of quadrupling output by building 17 new desalination plants over the next five years. The entirety of the conference centre in Sharm el-Sheikh is run using water filtered using desalination technology.

But desalination technology is so energy intensive that experts warn in many cases its use could contribute further to climate change by way of increasing emissions. In 2016, for instance, desalination accounted for three per cent of the Middle East's water supply, but five per cent of its total energy consumption, according to a report by the International Energy Agency.

However, Egypt's plans for desalination expansion are, to date, expected to run entirely on solar energy.

[FrostyWinnipeg]

 

[Tracker]

3 hours ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

 

Because 'Mericuh. Who needs breathable air when you can have guns and Jesus.

[FrostyWinnipeg]

World’s first test run of a hydrogen jet engine a success.

Rolls-Royce and easyJet partnered up to test whether hydrogen-powered planes can one day clean up aviation’s pollution.

Edited November 29, 2022 by FrostyWinnipeg

[Mark H.]

^^ That is tremendous news 

 

[Wideleft]

Officials fear ‘complete doomsday scenario’ for drought-stricken Colorado River

By Joshua Partlow

December 1, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. EST

 

 

PAGE, Ariz. — The first sign of serious trouble for the drought-stricken American Southwest could be a whirlpool.

It could happen if the surface of Lake Powell, a man-made reservoir along the Colorado River that’s already a quarter of its former size, drops another 38 feet down the concrete face of the 710-foot Glen Canyon Dam here. At that point, the surface would be approaching the tops of eight underwater openings that allow river water to pass through the hydroelectric dam.

The normally placid Lake Powell, the nation’s second-largest reservoir, could suddenly transform into something resembling a funnel, with water circling the openings, the dam’s operators say.

If that happens, the massive turbines that generate electricity for 4.5 million people would have to shut down — after nearly 60 years of use — or risk destruction from air bubbles. The only outlet for Colorado River water from the dam would then be a set of smaller, deeper and rarely used bypass tubes with a far more limited ability to pass water downstream to the Grand Canyon and the cities and farms in Arizona, Nevada and California.

Such an outcome — known as a “minimum power pool” — was once unfathomable here. Now, the federal government projects that day could come as soon as July.

Gift Article:  https://wapo.st/3Fmxljs

[Tracker]

4 hours ago, Wideleft said:

Officials fear ‘complete doomsday scenario’ for drought-stricken Colorado River

By Joshua Partlow

December 1, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. EST

 

 

PAGE, Ariz. — The first sign of serious trouble for the drought-stricken American Southwest could be a whirlpool.

It could happen if the surface of Lake Powell, a man-made reservoir along the Colorado River that’s already a quarter of its former size, drops another 38 feet down the concrete face of the 710-foot Glen Canyon Dam here. At that point, the surface would be approaching the tops of eight underwater openings that allow river water to pass through the hydroelectric dam.

The normally placid Lake Powell, the nation’s second-largest reservoir, could suddenly transform into something resembling a funnel, with water circling the openings, the dam’s operators say.

If that happens, the massive turbines that generate electricity for 4.5 million people would have to shut down — after nearly 60 years of use — or risk destruction from air bubbles. The only outlet for Colorado River water from the dam would then be a set of smaller, deeper and rarely used bypass tubes with a far more limited ability to pass water downstream to the Grand Canyon and the cities and farms in Arizona, Nevada and California.

Such an outcome — known as a “minimum power pool” — was once unfathomable here. Now, the federal government projects that day could come as soon as July.

Gift Article:  https://wapo.st/3Fmxljs

You reap what you sow.

[WildPath]

Canada: Ambassador tells EU that deforestation rules 'burdensome' - BBC News

Quote

Canada's ambassador to the European Union has voiced concern with proposed EU rules to curb deforestation.

A November letter from Ailish Campbell said the rules add "burdensome" requirements and will hurt trade between Canada and the EU.

The EU regulation aims to limit the trade of products linked to deforestation worldwide.

Climate campaigners have called Canada's resistance to the rules "shocking".

 

[FrostyWinnipeg]

This is it people! What we've been waiting decades for!

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-to-announce-major-scientific-breakthrough-amid-nuclear-fusion-reports-3598437

 

[Tracker]

10 hours ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

This is it people! What we've been waiting decades for!

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-to-announce-major-scientific-breakthrough-amid-nuclear-fusion-reports-3598437

 

We shall see.

[Tracker]

Winter storms are back — and scientists say climate change is making them a lot worse

As winter storms continue to pummel much of the United States, is climate change partially — or majorly — to blame? 

As with any natural disaster that relates to the weather, it is natural to wonder whether climate change plays a role. Certainly the weather this winter has been extreme, with Texans and Oklahomans being warned of potential tornadoes and Americans everywhere bracing for possible power outages (which on their own can be devastating). Winter storms mean blocked roads, damaged property, crumbling infrastructure and possibly even injuries and deaths.

The big question for both policymakers and the public, therefore, is how much of the horrid weather can be definitively attributed to global warming.

Climate change experts say that it's not merely a coincidence — climate change really is worsening our winter storms this year, as multiples experts told Salon.
"Winter storms develop in a climate change environment: it is warmer and moister," Kevin Trenberth of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) told Salon by email. "But it is plenty cold in winter over the continent. It means snow amounts can be much greater: e.g. see Buffalo recently. They may be more intense: not guaranteed, but more developments ensue. Watch for a bad nor-easter."

While it may seem counterintuitive to attribute more snow to the planet warming, Trenberth observed that this only seems to be the case because the general public is insufficiently informed about how climate change works.

"[People need] education that winter warming may mean more snow, not less," Trenberth added.

This does not mean that scientists can precisely quantify the extent to which climate change has played a role. According to Dr. Michael E. Mann — a climate scientist and director of the Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media at the University of Pennsylvania — it is "tricky" to figure these things out with precision.

"There's still quite a bit of debate about whether we can expect more events like the Texas cold spell last year due to climate change," Mann wrote to Salon. "On the other hand, there is evidence that warming leads to more powerful, snowier nor'easters—something we've seen quite a bit of in the northeast in recent years."

https://www.salon.com/2022/12/17/winter-storms-are-back-and-scientists-say-climate-change-is-making-them-a-lot-worse/

[Mark F]

https://financialpost.com/commodities/energy/electric-vehicles/canadas-ev-battery-supply-credibility-jumps

 

Canada vaults to second spot ahead of the U.S. in global EV battery-supply chain ranking 

Bloomberg research survey ranks 30 countries.

Canada has announced more than $15 billion in investments over the past 10 months in areas ranging from critical mineral mining and processing to battery component manufacturing, electric vehicle production and the country’s first gigafactory.

Edited December 25, 2022 by Mark F

[FrostyWinnipeg]

https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/12/24/1066041/a-startup-says-its-begun-releasing-particles-into-the-atmosphere-in-an-effort-to-tweak-the-climate/

Get your tickets for Snowpiercer now.

Edited December 25, 2022 by FrostyWinnipeg

[FrostyWinnipeg]

 

[TrueBlue4ever]

On 2022-12-28 at 11:40 AM, FrostyWinnipeg said:

 

So this MMA fighter tries to troll Thunberg, and after she destroys him about as badly as you can on Twitter, he stews for about 10 hours before responding back with her catch phrase “How dare you” which is the internet equivalent of “I know you are but what am I”. Cue the Twitter-verse responding en masse with “bro, take the L” comeuppance for him, after he basically confirmed his “small **** energy” and snowflake status by trying to fight back against Greta’s wicked burn. 

And when you think it couldn’t get any better, turns out this guy is actually a horrible human being involved in sexual trafficking young girls, and police were looking for him. And in his attempt at a face-saving comeback post, he was seen with a pizza box (complete with his name and phone number visible on it) in his livestream tweet that allowed the local Romanian authorities to track his location and place him under arrest. Rian Johnson  couldn’t write this stuff. 

Edited December 30, 2022 by TrueBlue4ever