Weather, Water, Energy 2-26-07

Good pieces from the weekend over at Grist, including TXU Corporation’s “tipping point” decision to dump 8 of 11 proposed coal-fired electricity plants and to shift to a greener agenda, the human “discount rate” and its threat to our future, and tributes to both Al Gore (several posts) and Ah-nuld as environmental leaders. . . . Looking for a good investment. How about something that cleans up toxic water for your very own use? . . . Renewable energy making a comeback 30 years after Jimmy Carter told us to and we told him, shut up, you big downer, we want to party. Excellent summary of the situation and possible future. One of those possibles? Maybe this new hydrogen fuel system? And check out these pieces at Scientific American online, one on states taking the lead on renewable energy and another on the use of dung to make ethanol. Well, okay, ewwww, but still worth taking a look at. So to speak. . . . Quick. Spot the lunacy in this headline at Christian Science Monitor:

How fast must we act on global warming?
Despite broad agreement on climate change, economists are divided over how quickly to implement solutions.

Excuse me? “Economists”? Who the f--- cares? It’s their “counsel” that’s gotten us where we are. Find a melting ice sheet for them and forget them. . . . "International Polar Year." Massive two-year, 10,000 scientist effort to study the two poles for all they're worth before they, you know, disappear. Bet you hadn't heard of that one before. . . . CA looking at water wars. Not with other states. With itself. In the meantime, it's actually getting along pretty well with its neighbors, joining a five-state Western regional pact to bypass the feds on goals to cut greenhouse emissions. While Nero Bushnev fiddles . . . .The climate models so far haven't taken the impact of aerosols and their effect on cloud interiors into account satisfactorily. Two different models with different inputs of aerosol and climate sensitivity match past weather well but diverge significantly into our future. The famous "more study" proposed. . . . Finally, well-intentioned but sad op-ed in Christian Science Monitor. Calls for the US to join Europe and Japan in taxing oil at a rate to encourage conservation and R&D in alternatives. Don't you just love this optimism? "The 2008 presidential hopefuls – Republican and Democrat – must be brave enough to bring big energy issues into their campaign platforms and debate them in public. That will be an uphill battle, but we all have a right to keep raising the subject and to hope that a principled politician will step up to the plate." Then we'll all wish for ponies! . . .