How about this for a fact much stranger than fiction?
>more> RenewEconomy
epa04931033 Malaysia’s Petronas Towers (R) building and shrouded by haze in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 15 September 2015. Schools were closed in the Malaysian capital and outlying areas amid worsening haze caused by forest and plantation fires in neighbouring Indonesia, officials said. EPA/AHMAD YUSNI
Am embarassed to confess but recently took a round trip cruise out of Singapore, stopping in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Gloom in Singapore was worse than this photo for KL, especially departing late afternoon, through vast container port and then huge petrochem refinery which supplies Oz. Much worse again, this haze was continuous, all the way to Saigon, not quite so dense, but weather forecasts showed that usual NE trade winds are reversed by El Nino already, so south westerlies delivering smoke from Sumatra. Frightening to be an actual witness to consequences of such massive, organised crime.
>more> The Conversation
Greenpeace Report says world can be 100 percent renewable by 2050, and 85 percent renewable in just 15 years…2015 Energy [R]evolution report, the latest in a series that has offered the most accurate projections of any major analysis, worldwide, says, for the first time, path to 100% renewable is cost-neutral. In addition, no new technological advancements are needed…”primary premise of Energy [R]evolution scenario is we have all of the solutions already on the table to get there.”..global CO2 emissions would stabilize by 2020 and approach zero in 2050…Cost of developing RE(renewable energy) sources has fallen steeply in recent years… fuel savings are “cost neutral” with investment in RE, Rochon said. Amazingly, this is possible even though worldwide, governments pay $5.3 trillion annually to subsidize fossil fuels…“Despite playing field isn’t level, tilted in the favor of fossil fuels, RE is still winning,” Rochon told ThinkProgress…Policies that support RE, such as federal tax credits and net metering for residential solar installations, are considered critical drivers of RE industries in USA. The solar industry’s tax credit is set to expire at the end of 2016. None of the fossil fuel tax credits are set to expire at this time…“An RE future is within reach,” Rochon said. “It’s really up to our political leaders to say, yes, and we can do the work to get there.”
For local comment here, it’s already too late for climate to revert to how we liked it a couple or 3 decades ago. At recent presentation, Prof David Karoly was asked if he was confident that 450ppm CO2 and 2 degC warming would not be exceeded. We’re already past 450! Mainstream media only tmentions CO2, just passing 400ppm. But David advises that when you add CO2e for other greenhouse gases, we’re already past 450ppm. So it’s time to get really loud and cranky with our leaders if a few of us want privilege of fighting for survival as as deep cave dwellers.
>more> ThinkProgress
Heard CEO of Raygen on ABC RN lately, adamant that manufacturing would say in Australia, even for products destined for China.
Right now, it’s an unwieldy energy grid that’s reliant on ageing, dirty coal fired power stations and expensive gas, yet needs to be subsidised by more than $500(!) a year for each household, or a total of more than $600 million…Nahan appears to recognise that by removing those subsidies, solar and battery storage and electric vehicles will become even more attractive. The challenge is to effect the regulatory and tariff changes that allow that to happen …. and to happen fairly…Nahan said it was clear that regulators had “not adjusted with time and technological change.”…“It’s red tape gone mad,” in reference to “ban” on exports from storage and EVs, adding that it’s a “rubbish” regulation which he didn’t know about, despite “hundreds of meetings on this issue”…decision locked in by regulators until 2017..rules set in 2012 they didn’t have enough information about technologies.
>more> RenewEconomy
How exciting is this? As our utilities put the hard word on supposed Regulators, to act on their interest rather than ours, here’s the way that Mr Turnbull’s advocated “disruptive technology” will make a big difference. So how about PowerWall for Christmas?
>more> Gizmodo
“He’s also sought in recent days to position himself as an active campaigner against climate change. But Malcolm Turnbull’s past as a logger in the Solomon Islands calls into question how strongly he really holds these views.”…clear felling…A 2002 report by marine biologists published in The Status of Solomon Islands Coral Reefs said the unique reef and Marovo lagoon system was still suffering from the effects of logging…”Villagers report huge sediment plumes following heavy rain,” it said. “Once the rain has stopped, the water may clear within 24 hours to a week. In the rainy season that means the plumes are a semi-permanent feature.”.. may never recover from the damage…A further paper published last year said large algal blooms from sediments in the catchments were wreaking havoc on the delicate reef system.
>more>Malumnalu
3. Drones monitor fertilizer runoff… up to 50% is never absorbed by crops, leading to air and water pollution. It also affects a farmer’s pocket book; fertilizers account for about half of what farmers spend on fields….Drone sensors can create imagery indicating which fields need N or P, and which are doing just fine, so more precise fertilizer application, less being lost into environment causing problems like algal blooms.
4. Water used more efficiently…Drones with thermal cameras can detect which crops are too hot, and which are cooler, so irrigation can be aimed at dry, thirsty plants instead of entire field…water savings potential is massive, especially in drought-stricken areas, where every saved drop of water matters.
>more> EDF
Just in case you missed this – Yackandandah is one of four Australian towns plotting to become 100 per cent renewable, along with Newstead, in central Victoria, and Byron Bay and Uralla in northern NSW. Newstead was recently awarded a $200,000 grant from the state government to develop its plan.
>more>SMH
With just 3 days to go – add yours to the deluge of emails to our new PM to make sure he knows how many of us think that dredging at Great Barrier Reef, now dumping spoil on shore, in wetland, is a total non-starter. Carmichael Mine and Abbot Point port have only been able to get finance from Australian banks. They’re sure to be abandoned, best sooner rather than later. How can we afford such ridiculous foreign investment when we’ll be bailing out our banks?
>more> Greenpeace
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