Archive for November, 2008
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Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
My list of things to do (it’s long, like a roll of toilet paper) has one item labeled “community water.”
I want to examine the effect of size on performance, i.e., it is harder for customers to monitor bigger water providers (private or public) so they may be run less-efficiently than smaller providers. [...]
Resources versus Environment
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
Water is a resource, but it’s also an environmental good, and sometimes water quality is abandoned in the name of harvesting another resource. For example, when miners use water to blast away hills (the reason California has the “right of prior appropriation“), when mining destroys surface or groundwater supplies, and when processors [...]
Greenwashing at a Discount
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
The 2008 Water Footprint Summit (London, December) lists a who’s who of speakers from the corporate social responsibility (CSR) sector.
Now I am one of those people who thinks that companies need to profit maximize first and worry about the environment, education system, etc. later not-at-all.
Others (usually not owners) think that companies should [...]
The Costs of Slowing Climate Change
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
This is from the Food Climate Research Network (via DG):
The International Energy Agency has published its latest Outlook report setting out world energy trends and their implications to 2030.
Under its Reference Scenario, which assumes no new government policies, world primary energy demand is projected to grow by 1.6% per year on average [...]
China Will Suffer from Climate Change
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
“Climate Change and Food Security in China” warns that China will lose its self-sufficiency in food production as early as 2030 because of climate change. The solution? Take immediate action to cut greenhouse gas emissions and adopt policies encouraging more climate-friendly ecological agriculture. Greenpeace commissioned the report, which was authored by Chinese [...]
Academics on Climate Change
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
The Oxford Review of Economic Policy published the following articles:
Dieter Helm: Climate-change policy: why has so little been achieved?
Abstract: While the scientific evidence for climate change grows, the policy responses have so far had little or no impact on the build-up of emissions. Current trends in emissions are adverse. The paper considers [...]
What Do Hubcaps Do?
Submitted by PlasticLess.com Blog
I recently saw an eye catching photo of a sculpture that was created using lost and discarded plastic hubcaps. My first thought was that it was a really creative (and profitable) way to recycle.
My second thought was that hubcaps are an absolutely pointless car accessory.
I am too lazy to do proper research [...]
Mega-Bear versus Super-Spike
Submitted by R-Squared Energy Blog
Update: Never say never. Today, the prediction I made in 2005 that WTI would never again fall below $50 has fallen. Front month WTI as of this writing has dipped to $49.75. But it will never fall below $40.
——————-
In 2005, with oil trading in the $40’s and $50’s, Goldman [...]
Swedish trash schizophrenia
Submitted by everydaytrash
Victor, our man in Stockholm, sent just me this troubling story from Swedish National Public Radio. Apparently the trash incineration biz in Sweden is outpacing waste production by Swedes. They’ve built so many new facilities that trash must now be imported from other European countries just to meet the demand to burn [...]
Top companies’ peak oil warning
Submitted by The Low Carbon Kid Blog
Leading UK companies have launched a report, The Oil Crunch: Securing the UK’s Energy Future, warning that cheap, easily available oil is likely to end by 2013, posing a grave risk to the UK and world economy.
The UK Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security (ITPOES) includes Arup, [...]
I Hope Obama Ties Some Green Strings to the Auto Industry Bailout
Submitted by PlasticLess.com Blog
It is hard to predict who with preside over the actual bailout of the Big Three. If things move quickly, an oil industry insider with little to lose in the way of credibility will sign the thing. If there is a protracted debate, an idealistic newcomer with everything to lose in the [...]
City girls don’t like to get greasy
Recycle a Bicycle teaches young people that bikes are awesome and shows them how to fix them when they break. One way the program raises money is via sales of jewelry made of old bike chains. Funy enough, these tough chick accessories grew from girly origins.
According to today’s Brooklyn Daily Eagle:
Several years ago, Recycle-A-Bicycle [...]
Hubcap zoo
Submitted by everydaytrash I discovered this dragon and other wonderful hubcap animals via Esther over at Je me recycle. Apparently, this British guy collects hubcaps on the road and crafts them into creatures that he then sells for megapounds. Not bad.
Rating 4.00 out of 5
[?]
Famous Last Words
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
I’m extensively quoted in this story:
Zetland went on to say that water managers are “creating” the next shortage.
“What are water managers doing? They’re telling people that they’d better use less — or face rationing,” he said. “So, business as usual. Too bad, because that won’t work… It is the engineers and the [...]
Wildfires and Water Use
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
Over 1,000 houses have burned in Southern California, and contributing factors include an environment under stress and an uncooperative climate.
If there’s less water around, vegetation will be drier and more vulnerable to fires. If weather is hotter, the fires are more likely and more likely to spread.
Despite this rather simple logic, scientists [...]
In Defense of Ethanol
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
Two days ago, I criticized the corn ethanol program for increasing food prices (I also dislike it because it subsidizes one crop with a heavy environmental footprint to produce fuel that’s probably doesn’t even reduce overall carbon emissions.)
In response to the points in that post and a conversation we had last weekend, [...]
Tell Obama Your Environmental Ideas
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
I got this from Team Obama:
To give you a behind the scenes look at the Transition and provide a window to how the team is approaching climate issues, we filmed this meeting of our Energy & Environment Policy Transition Team and interview with team member Heather Zichal.
Watch the video, then tell us [...]
Recession is Good
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
I had this email exchange with JB.
JB: I hope that green jobs can help pull us out of this slump…
DZ: The green job thing is BS.
JB: Why do you think the “green jobs” is BS?
DZ: Because they are looking for govt subsidies.
JB: Do you think Pickens is wasting his millions on it [...]
More on CAFOs
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
BB asks:
I am doing research on the support of CAFO’s by the federal government. I understand that there are direct subsidies given to concentrated farms (EQIP, etc.), but those subsidies seems minimal relative to the indirect grain subsidies that CAFO’s receive. If Obama were to substantially decrease indirect subsidies to CAFOs, do [...]
Cutting Fat or Muscle?
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
A guest post from JWT…
Let’s start with Pacific Institute’s report. It says we could save 3.4 million AF by installing drip irrigation. At $1,000 AF, that would cost something like $9 billion.
The governor has demanded a 20% reduction in urban water use. Currently, all urban water use is about 9 million AF, [...]
Australia is rubbing its hands due to nuclear new build
Submitted by The Low Carbon Kid Blog
Uranium mining is expanding all over Australia. The Government is relishing the idea of making lots of money from the nuclear renaissance being predicted (but not yet proven).
Australian greens are fast losing the optimism they felt when the Labor Party won the last election. It’s clear that the temptation [...]
Ramp it up - investment in low carbon technology
Submitted by The Low Carbon Kid Blog
The last issue of the New Scientist contains a one page ad from the Carbon Trust offering £3m to £6m funding for partners in oil-from-algae technology.
The Low Carbon Kid wrote about this concept 17 months ago. He highlighted it because many of the problems present with the traditional oilseeds [...]
Ramp it up - investment in low carbon technology
Submitted by The Low Carbon Kid Blog
The last issue of the New Scientist contains a one page ad from the Carbon Trust offering £3m to £6m funding for partners in oil-from-algae technology.
The Low Carbon Kid wrote about this concept 17 months ago. He highlighted it because many of the problems present with the traditional oilseeds [...]
I Tip My Hat to the People Wearing the Tinfoil Hats
Submitted by PlasticLess.com Blog
I was going to link to a website that was serious about tinfoil hats. It seems almost inconceivable, but it appears that the webmaster didn’t pay his hosting fees. I guess foil is kind of expensive.
Anyway, the things that I want to write about are paranoia and hysteria. I have come into [...]
“People Can’t Afford to Be Wasteful”
Submitted by PlasticLess.com Blog
Here is an awesome quote from Beth over at Fake Plastic Fish:
…this is a new, fierce economy, baby. People can’t afford to be wasteful, and I’m freakin’ glad.
She was speaking from experience, having just reformatted several PCs at her workplace rather than simply getting replacements. I expected to eventually see some reports [...]
