So, I have revamped the blog. Hopefully nothing has been lost. I’ve still got some work to do, for example, sorting information into the new ‘Popular Topics’. The search button should still quickly find you what you want, as long as you can remember the author's name or a key word or two. Thanks for your patience today, and for the next little while.
There is one thing I'm really worried about, as a future possible environmental catastrophe?
And that is a recently discovered, massive fresh water lake, in Antarctica?
The ABC report mentioned, that the only thing holding back this ginormous body of water, was a crumbling ice wall, and one that seems to be getting thinner by the summer.
I don't know what anyone posting here knows about hydrology, and what sheer weight of water is capable of doing!
And to enhance that worrying, is the claim, that this one body of water, if released, is enough to raise SL by as much as 3 metres?
And given just how much of our coastal plains, the home of most of our capital cities would be very negatively affected, I think we need to look at ways, to strengthen that wall!?
Others have postulated, we could reduce atmospheric carbon, by capturing it, in man-made devices and then burying it.
Personally, I think that is a daft and extremely costly notion, that won't necessarily permanently sequester Co2. [ I feel the earth move under my feet, I see walls crumbling down?]
We have always been able to remove Co2 as dry ice via, the fractional distillation process. i.e., compressing then rapidly releasing pressure, turns Co2 into dry ice, which is extremely cold.
Some have suggested, we use ships and extraction processes, to remove carbon from sea water.
I prefer, more natural means, like say growing oil rich algae, in sea water, where it flourishes, and it gobbles up 2.5 times its own bodyweight, in carbon.
Moreover, it can be made to virtually double that bodyweight/absorption capacity/oil content,every 24 hours, under optimized conditions!
And some types are up to 60% oil, and produce naturally occurring, ready to use unrefined, superior diesel or jet fuel!
That said, and given we have the natural means at hand to reduce this carbon content over time, and with economies of scale, algae based oil production?
I think we should pump considerable dry ice in front of the reported wall, to make much more ice in the ice wall, and seriously harden it, given what three metres of sea level rises, would do to us and our economy, [70% destroyed!]
I don't believe, it would be an entirely unwarranted investment.
Perhaps we should be sending ice makers, instead of the usual plethora of ice breakers?
During the last enduring and disastrous drought, the only thing still thriving in the Murray /Darling was algae.
So perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad idea to grow some there, as viable oil rich cash crops Crop, which, i.e., only require 1-2% of the water of traditional irrigation.
And oil production on a large scale, would completely rescue the local economy of that region, and replace considerable, and increasing costly oil imports.
Extracting the oil is a simple as sun drying some of the regularly harvested material, and then crushing it.
It only becomes seriously toxic if allowed to die, and I suggest, so would you or I! The ex-crush material, might be suitable as fodder,or for ethanol production.
Algae even prefer nutrient rich effluent, which they clean, and would be far better than sending millions of annual tons of it out to sea, were it does nothing but harm to the marine environment!
Growing our own solves so many multiple problems ,the wonder is, why aren't we already doing it!
Surely it couldn't be anything to do with government intransigence (Ardmona)or lack of political intelligence? Or could it?
Or is political intelligence, much like an English country Gentleman, just another outstanding oxymoron?
Alan B. Goulding
A new study has found that the inter glacial 400,000 years ago was much warmer than the Eemian interglacial and of course much warmer than the Holocene climate optimum.
SLs were between 6 metres and 13 metres higher than today.
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v510/n7506/full/nature13456.html
So this is where you mob of trogs' have been hiding out!!?
Gav tried it years ago but he found he had to try and get back.
Yes Alan, JC is tryin' ter git over, on the other side:
Don't you tell me, "Get to work at nine";
Gonna do things in my own sweet time.
I'm movin' over on the other side,
Movin' over on the other side;
Come on and follow me;
You'll be satisfied.
Where the grass is green,
We'll step ashore;
And the air is clean,
So weep no more.
Leave your troubles far behind,
On the other side.
Poo'd in the nest JC?
Well there could be an element of truth in that JC, and nowhere more obvious, than, Greed is good, Wall st. The home, of extreme capitalism?
And given we've made such a mess, and quite grossly overpopulated the planet, it behooves us to find a way to reduce population pressure, without resorting to criminal neglect of the worse off, or adapting Nazi like final solutions!
We've always solved overpopulation pressures with migration!
You should laugh at a possible warp engine J.C. What's your alternative?
[ Maybe we could migrate to the stars with steam. More coal J.C, more coal, get busy with that Mexican banjo, we need more steam for the lift off!]
I suggest that migration still remains the best and most humane solution.
Water the Sahara, i.e., and you immediately have a safe haven for many millions, and there is similar desertification in northern Chile, and indeed, our own arid heartland.
We have a 1.8 trillion super fund invested offshore, which arguably is enough money, if invested here, to build a gas grid, rapid rail links, and an inland shipping channel. All income earning propositions!
A visionary inland shipping canal, would;
#1, relieve much of the shipping pressure now threatening the great barrier reef.
#2 quite massively shorten the distance, between us and our principle Asian markets. [It's the economy stupid.]
#3 Massively reduce the fuel and energy expended, doing just that, particularly, if we connect our rapid rail, two tier, container carrying rapid rail freight links, to roll roll off, very rapid turn around, ferries. [It's the economy stupid.]
#4, use the canal, as an endless reliable source of water, to grow, salt tolerant crops, [bananas, coconuts,] or those that need the help of membrane coated, ag pipes. [It's the economy stupid.]
#5, create a second canal that eventually links with the end of the first, and then uses, very huge twelve hour tides, [approx,] and lock gates, to keep the water and current riding shipping, moving around. [Ditto.]
. #6, build our own national fleet, of submersible, nuclear powered shipping, to operate the aforementioned bulk shipping service. [Ditto.]
#7 open up and develop the inland, with new cities, new farms and new industries, and a ready built highway, to carry the products and produce created or produced there, to the rest of the world. [Ditto.]
Knowing as we invest our own super in all that, we are investing in what remains arguably, some of the most profitable business model ever created.[ And ditto.]
Norway already builds semi submersible giant roll on roll off ferries. and it's not a huge technological step, to fully submerse them at say, periscope depth.
The advantages include a virtual armchair ride, in any conditions, making such a service, the most reliable anywhere, and the safest from pirates/terrorists.
Nuclear power, has already established possible speeds of 50+ knots in already dated submarine technology, which compares very favorably, with the average 15 knots, best for current bulk shipping.
And nuclear power, will mean, we only have to refuel, around once every 25 years! [And ditto yet again.]
As for poo, well given you seem to be a self declared greenie?
So why aren't you emulating impoverished Indonesians, and running your house on it?
A bit of steel wool in the airtake, is all you need, to convert an old diesel generator, into a biogas powered one, and a simple bladder, will store most of what you need, to overcome, the stop start norms of household power.
And if you can handle a welder, well, a digester is almost child's play to create?
You seem very adept at bagging everybody's skills or contributions?
Could that be, because your just don't have any worthwhile ideas of your own to contribute?
Except say, leave it and or, lock it up. Eat mushrooms not meat!
Destroy the dams and return the world to forested habitat, suitable for everything except we humans,?
And then only allow a few of us to flourish, in hobbit like hamlets? Green green, I'm going away, to where the grass is greener still!
Is that you J.C.?
Alan B.