Aviation is one thing that offers no easy alternatives and for the time, it might be best to focus elsewhere. I believe that both aviation and cloud computing are each responsible for 2-3% emissions GHG however alternative energy sources should help with the cloud.
Concrete is another big emitter with no readily available alternative.
Therefore the importance of replacing oil, coal and gas with renewable sources of energy becomes more critical.
Thanks John and agree it's about mitigating the risks for us all, and into the future. A couple of responses: (1) Recent research (Chen et al. 20230 on ocean warming and Hansen et al on global warming in the pipeline suggest warming may be much greater and faster (e.g., as much as 0.36C per decade) than many projections indicate. We should prepare for this possibility. (2) Agree with your caution re: COVID infection. Long COVID is already imposing big health, welfare & economic costs. Eventually this will result in part return to social responsibilities model which will include air filtration. If people knew the published literature on Long COVID and excess mortality from post COVID sequelae they would be much more careful.
Nicely expressed, John, and it's good to read something optimistic among all the gloom, but I can't share your optimism in regard to climate change. Given lag, and given the dire condition of many of the planet's life-support systems already, I think that widespread disaster is already inevitable. The present one degree is causing widespread disruption and 2° is unavoidable even if all fossil fuel burning stopped tomorrow. The present 1° global average, 1.5° now in Australia, is too hot for humans and animals to survive, even if food supply etc were unaffected.
And one of the consequences of long Covid will be a less productive workforce and early retirement of many experienced professionals and operatives. I don't think nearly enough thought has been given to how we are going to remediate disused mines such as ERA and Mt Morgan, leaking nuclear plants, abandoned coal seam gas wells and many of the 55,000 other legacy mine sites discharging non-biodegradable contaminants into the environment. Some of these sites will each require tens of millions of dollars and there is no plan and no budget get there.
I agree with this. If we dwell in the “quietism of despair”, we let the bad guys know win. I was really emboldened by last year’s federal election. Yes, the government that won hasn’t done anywhere near enough to avert climate catastrophe, but at least we as a nation rejected what the oligarchs and the press barons wanted. It gave me confidence that our democracy is in much better shape than the United States, for example. I think we all need to realise that political organisation is the only way we’re going to see our way out of this difficult patch in human history. Yes, we’re all so busy raising children and working jobs, but, as you say, let’s harness the new tools available to us. I don’t think these are the same as getting together in a community hall and meeting people face-to-face, but they are something. The individual action thing raises questions for me. I believe that only a carbon tax at the national level is will properly address the problem. But I suppose in the absence of this, I am happy to take individual action. For instance, I am vegetarian (hoping to become vegan), use public transport as often as possible and I have committed to no long haul flights. The latter one is interesting because I know some people who claim to be committed environmentalists and yet make so many overseas trips. They see it as an absolute necessity that they can’t live without. Aviation, at least at the moment, is one area where the only way to reduce CO2 emissions is actually to stop flying. Like you can reduce your CO2 emissions by going vego/vegan, using public transport and using renewables, but you can’t reduce CO2 emissions from aviation (don’t get me started on abatement which we all know is a con). Why don’t you read about places anyway? Read Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice or John Julius Norwich’s History of Venice and experience Venice without swarms of tourists. I saw an Instagram post of a fabulously wealthy couple who flew to Aspen or some such place to ski. Do people see the irony of that? By flying halfway across the world to experience snow, they’re actually reducing the surface area of the world covered in snow?
I was thinking along similar lines yesterday while reading Ross Garnaut's The Superpower Transformation: Making Australia's zero-carbon future. The odds are against us succeeding in keeping global warming below 1.5°C, but the difference between 2°C and 3°C is hugely significant in human and ecological terms, and a combination of policy and personal action can make that difference.
I struggle a bit with the gap between "we have done" and "we have adopted a policy" because governments are very good at having policies but often bad at delivering them. Even when the policy is half-hearted, like NSW's target of halving long-term homelessness by 2015... 2020...2025... in the future! * They seem to treat it as a "not less than 1000 people homeless at any time" rather than "fewer is better", and renew it every time it fails.
Similarly with SloMo committing to net zero. No mechanism to get there, but his government is committed. The ALP should IMO pick stuff that's been planned and do it. Focus on delivery ASAP and keep quiet about the policy to fund Study Number 4000 into the possibility of establishing an inquiry into the viability of a potential plan to consider construction of a fast rail link. No-one needs to know until the plan gets to the point of public submissions on a concrete proposed route etc.
What cheers me up is seeing things actually get done, or at least get to the construction planning stage. The new tunnel under Sydney harbour is far more credible than any number of policy announcements. It's stupid but at least it's actually being built.
Aviation is one thing that offers no easy alternatives and for the time, it might be best to focus elsewhere. I believe that both aviation and cloud computing are each responsible for 2-3% emissions GHG however alternative energy sources should help with the cloud.
Concrete is another big emitter with no readily available alternative.
Therefore the importance of replacing oil, coal and gas with renewable sources of energy becomes more critical.
Thanks John and agree it's about mitigating the risks for us all, and into the future. A couple of responses: (1) Recent research (Chen et al. 20230 on ocean warming and Hansen et al on global warming in the pipeline suggest warming may be much greater and faster (e.g., as much as 0.36C per decade) than many projections indicate. We should prepare for this possibility. (2) Agree with your caution re: COVID infection. Long COVID is already imposing big health, welfare & economic costs. Eventually this will result in part return to social responsibilities model which will include air filtration. If people knew the published literature on Long COVID and excess mortality from post COVID sequelae they would be much more careful.
Nicely expressed, John, and it's good to read something optimistic among all the gloom, but I can't share your optimism in regard to climate change. Given lag, and given the dire condition of many of the planet's life-support systems already, I think that widespread disaster is already inevitable. The present one degree is causing widespread disruption and 2° is unavoidable even if all fossil fuel burning stopped tomorrow. The present 1° global average, 1.5° now in Australia, is too hot for humans and animals to survive, even if food supply etc were unaffected.
And one of the consequences of long Covid will be a less productive workforce and early retirement of many experienced professionals and operatives. I don't think nearly enough thought has been given to how we are going to remediate disused mines such as ERA and Mt Morgan, leaking nuclear plants, abandoned coal seam gas wells and many of the 55,000 other legacy mine sites discharging non-biodegradable contaminants into the environment. Some of these sites will each require tens of millions of dollars and there is no plan and no budget get there.
I agree with this. If we dwell in the “quietism of despair”, we let the bad guys know win. I was really emboldened by last year’s federal election. Yes, the government that won hasn’t done anywhere near enough to avert climate catastrophe, but at least we as a nation rejected what the oligarchs and the press barons wanted. It gave me confidence that our democracy is in much better shape than the United States, for example. I think we all need to realise that political organisation is the only way we’re going to see our way out of this difficult patch in human history. Yes, we’re all so busy raising children and working jobs, but, as you say, let’s harness the new tools available to us. I don’t think these are the same as getting together in a community hall and meeting people face-to-face, but they are something. The individual action thing raises questions for me. I believe that only a carbon tax at the national level is will properly address the problem. But I suppose in the absence of this, I am happy to take individual action. For instance, I am vegetarian (hoping to become vegan), use public transport as often as possible and I have committed to no long haul flights. The latter one is interesting because I know some people who claim to be committed environmentalists and yet make so many overseas trips. They see it as an absolute necessity that they can’t live without. Aviation, at least at the moment, is one area where the only way to reduce CO2 emissions is actually to stop flying. Like you can reduce your CO2 emissions by going vego/vegan, using public transport and using renewables, but you can’t reduce CO2 emissions from aviation (don’t get me started on abatement which we all know is a con). Why don’t you read about places anyway? Read Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice or John Julius Norwich’s History of Venice and experience Venice without swarms of tourists. I saw an Instagram post of a fabulously wealthy couple who flew to Aspen or some such place to ski. Do people see the irony of that? By flying halfway across the world to experience snow, they’re actually reducing the surface area of the world covered in snow?
New Scientist had a recent article about research into pandemics and subsequent political change, from Egypt to WWII.
New Scientist had a recent article about research into pandemics and subsequent political change, from Egypt to WWII.
New Scientist had a recent article about research done into pandemics and political change, from Egyptians through to WWII.
I was thinking along similar lines yesterday while reading Ross Garnaut's The Superpower Transformation: Making Australia's zero-carbon future. The odds are against us succeeding in keeping global warming below 1.5°C, but the difference between 2°C and 3°C is hugely significant in human and ecological terms, and a combination of policy and personal action can make that difference.
I struggle a bit with the gap between "we have done" and "we have adopted a policy" because governments are very good at having policies but often bad at delivering them. Even when the policy is half-hearted, like NSW's target of halving long-term homelessness by 2015... 2020...2025... in the future! * They seem to treat it as a "not less than 1000 people homeless at any time" rather than "fewer is better", and renew it every time it fails.
Similarly with SloMo committing to net zero. No mechanism to get there, but his government is committed. The ALP should IMO pick stuff that's been planned and do it. Focus on delivery ASAP and keep quiet about the policy to fund Study Number 4000 into the possibility of establishing an inquiry into the viability of a potential plan to consider construction of a fast rail link. No-one needs to know until the plan gets to the point of public submissions on a concrete proposed route etc.
What cheers me up is seeing things actually get done, or at least get to the construction planning stage. The new tunnel under Sydney harbour is far more credible than any number of policy announcements. It's stupid but at least it's actually being built.
(* https://www.nsw.gov.au/premiers-priorities/reducing-homelessness)