The Environmental Watchdog MasterThread

The Batlord · 08-01-2019, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frownland

If we reduce the cost of thrust, we can make space our new trash can and that solves the issue of unusable nuclear waste.

If you reduce the cost of thrust then WWWP will be the cheapest ho on the planet.

Sorry.

Lisnaholic · 08-02-2019, 08:54 AM

Even though fossil fuel industries have a lot of clout, change is a-comin'

Here are some stats about the sales of Electric Vehicles (2018) :-

Notice who is leading the switch to electric vehicles? Scandanavia and China. Of course the fossil fuel industries won't change overnight, but there is a global trend slowly turning to more eco-friendly vehicles:-

Quote:

It took five years to sell the first million electric cars. In 2018, it took only six months.

Is it too little too late? Maybe, but on environmental issues you have to look for good news where you can because the overall picture is so bleak.

(The graph and quote are from visualcapitalist.com.)

OccultHawk · 08-02-2019, 09:03 AM

Where does the electricity come from?

Lisnaholic · 08-02-2019, 09:11 AM

^ I don't know, OH. I'd like to say wind farms, but probably not.

OccultHawk · 08-02-2019, 09:25 AM

Well to answer my question in Norway it’s from dams.

Hydroelectric works great but I think it’s already pretty much tapped out world wide. And the dams aren’t exactly nature’s best friend.

I’m was being a little facetious with that question. I mean, in America driving an electric car isn’t much of service when the electricity is generated by burning coal.

Lisnaholic · 08-02-2019, 09:41 AM

^ Yes, good points all, OH. Thanks for answering your own question. If hydroelectric has reached its max already, there are projects for tidal energy underway in Europe I believe.
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ______________________________________________

The worst thing about global warning is that we can't predict all the catastrophes that it might generate. Here's a new one, unexpected afaik, and the result of the hottest June on record around the world. While in June a lot of the media focused on bikini-clad girls sunbathing in Paris, this disaster was getting primed and is now out of control:-

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49125391 = Arctic Wildfires

And the worst of the worst are the catastrophes that guarrantee that the rate of catastrophes is going to get worse. See bits in bold:-

Quote:

This soot can be harmful to humans and animals, entering the lungs and bloodstream. It also plays a role in global warming. Nasa scientists say the soot absorbs sunlight and warms the atmosphere. If it falls on ice or snow, it reduces reflectivity and can trap more heat, speeding up the melting process.

The fires are releasing copious volumes of previously stored carbon dioxide and methane - carbon stocks that have in some cases been held in the ground for thousands of years. The fires .... emitted an estimated 100 megatons of CO2 between 1 June and 21 July, almost the equivalent of the carbon output of Belgium in 2017, according to Cams.

OccultHawk · 08-02-2019, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

^ Yes, good points all, OH. Thanks for answering your own question. If hydroelectric has reached its max already, there are projects for tidal energy underway in Europe I believe.
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ______________________________________________

The worst thing about global warning is that we can't predict all the catastrophes that it might generate. Here's a new one, unexpected afaik, and the result of the hottest June on record around the world. While in June a lot of the media focused on bikini-clad girls sunbathing in Paris, this disaster was getting primed and is now out of control:-

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49125391 = Arctic Wildfires

And the worst of the worst are the catastrophes that guarrantee that the rate of catastrophes is going to get worse. See bits in bold:-

I met a guy at a punk show around ten years ago or more who told me this was going to happen. He said ALL the carbon in the Arctic is going into the atmosphere.

Lisnaholic · 08-02-2019, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

I met a guy at a punk show around ten years ago or more who told me this was going to happen. He said ALL the carbon in the Arctic is going into the atmosphere.

Well, your guy was ahead of the curve, and his prediction will be truly catastrophic - not just the carbon, but also methane, previously frozen in peat bogs, is being released in unprecedented amounts.

On methane release worldwide:-

Quote:

"It's gone up by 150 percent since the pre-industrial period. So that's an enormous increase. CO2, by contrast, has gone up by something like 30 percent."

Molecule for molecule, methane is much more effective than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. And that's just part of the trouble. "Methane is much more complicated once it gets into the atmosphere than something like carbon dioxide is," Shindell says, "and that's because it reacts with a lot of different important chemicals."

For example, methane in the atmosphere also creates ground-level ozone. And ozone isn't only bad for human health; it also contributes to global warming. Shindell recently totaled up all the effects of methane emissions and realized that the heating effect is more than 60 percent that of carbon dioxide's.

Source: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/...ryId=122638800

~~jwb~~ · 08-02-2019, 02:04 PM

Like I said I'm not so adamant that we can't have carbon taxes as I am willing to scrap them for a higher goal

In either case they will play either a minor role or no role

Lisnaholic · 08-02-2019, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elphenor

what if the toll booth pays for a new highway

in this case Green Energy whoo

the principle behind it is that polluting invades everyone's space, and therefore you owe the public

^ Well put, elphenor. Carbon taxes could play a part in improving things, as well as being a thumb on the scale to encourage companies to explore other options.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwb

Like I said I'm not so adamant that we can't have carbon taxes as I am willing to scrap them for a higher goal

In either case they will play either a minor role or no role

^ Absolutely, jwb, given that man-generated carbon dioxide is only a small part of the picture, and that CO2 itself may not be where the global warming crunch really comes. As per my last post, the huge rises in atmospheric methane could be much more damaging.
Where is the methane coming from? About one third natural, two thirds from our busy selves. This is a pretty good breakdown:-

Given that the "wetlands" component is on the increase because of thawing peatbogs, it would make sense for us to cut back where we can: less livestock, less coal mining seem like the least painful places to trim back on methane production because afaik there are methane free alternatives around already. There's a big section from rice paddies too, but that's a cheap staple food for millions, plus I really like it myself.

08-02-2019, 09:03 AM	#473 (permalink)
OccultHawk one-balled nipple jockey Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Dirty Souf Biatch Posts: 22,033	Where does the electricity come from? __________________ 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Member of the Year & Journal of the Year Champion Behold the Writing of THE LEGEND: https://www.musicbanter.com/members-...p-lighter.html

08-02-2019, 09:11 AM	#474 (permalink)
Lisnaholic ...here to hear... Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: He lives on Love Street Posts: 4,444	^ I don't know, OH. I'd like to say wind farms, but probably not. __________________ "Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

08-02-2019, 09:25 AM	#475 (permalink)
OccultHawk one-balled nipple jockey Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Dirty Souf Biatch Posts: 22,033	Well to answer my question in Norway it’s from dams. Hydroelectric works great but I think it’s already pretty much tapped out world wide. And the dams aren’t exactly nature’s best friend. I’m was being a little facetious with that question. I mean, in America driving an electric car isn’t much of service when the electricity is generated by burning coal. __________________ 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Member of the Year & Journal of the Year Champion Behold the Writing of THE LEGEND: https://www.musicbanter.com/members-...p-lighter.html

08-02-2019, 02:04 PM	#479 (permalink)
~~jwb~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Jul 2019 Posts: 4,403	Like I said I'm not so adamant that we can't have carbon taxes as I am willing to scrap them for a higher goal In either case they will play either a minor role or no role