The Environment Thread

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2022/08/08/greenhouse-gas-emissions-diseases/

Quote

More than half of known human pathogenic diseases such as dengue, hepatitis, pneumonia, malaria, Zika and more, can be aggravated by climate change. That eye-opening and startling finding is the topic of a research paper published on August 8 in Nature Climate Change by a team of researchers from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

The researchers carried out a systemic search for empirical examples about the impacts of 10 climatic hazards sensitive to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on each known human pathogenic disease. These hazards included warming, drought, heatwaves, wildfires, extreme precipitation, floods, storms, sea level rise, ocean biogeochemical change, and land cover change.

Combining two authoritative lists of all known infections and pathogenic diseases that have affected humanity in recorded history, researchers then reviewed over 70,000 scientific papers for empirical examples about each possible combination of a climatic hazard impacting each of the known diseases.

The research revealed that warming, precipitation, floods, drought, storm, land cover change, ocean climate change, fires, heatwaves and sea level changes were all found to influence diseases triggered by viruses, bacteria, animals, fungi, protozoans, plants and chromists. Pathogenic diseases were primarily transmitted by vectors, although case examples were also found for transmission pathways involving waterborne, airborne, direct contact and foodborne. Ultimately, the research found that more than 58%, or 218 out of 375, of known human pathogenic diseases had been affected at some point by at least one climatic hazard via 1,006 unique pathways.

 

[the watcher]

 

Like most bills that get passed in the US it has been beaten to death or worse. It's such a faulty political system.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/aug/09/us-climate-bill-fossil-fuel-harm-environment-biden

 

Edit: I'll add this

 

Edited August 9, 2022 by the watcher

[Tracker]

The longest river in france dried up today

 

AwesomeRandom

[blue_gold_84]

https://theconversation.com/for-110-years-climate-change-has-been-in-the-news-are-we-finally-ready-to-listen-188646

[FrostyWinnipeg]

Scientists are baffled by an unexplained "ecological disaster" that left ten tons of dead fish floating in a river flowing between Germany and Poland. https://nbcnews.to/3QriDe5

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-forecasts/worst-heatwave-in-six-decades-scorches-china/1232733

Quote

About a month after Shanghai, the most populated city in China, endured a dangerous heat wave that sent the mercury to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, the intense heat has shifted west into central China where residents have endured one of the worst stretches of excessive heat in decades.

Portions of the Yangtze, China's longest river, remain depleted as the heat and lack of rain have caused major impacts to crops in the region, and AccuWeather meteorologists warn that the heat is not expected to ease any time soon.

On Aug. 13, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) activated a level three emergency response to address this unprecedented heat wave, which requires all meteorological entities in the affected region to keep the general public up to date with the latest weather information during this time of extreme weather, according to the CMA's website.

By Tuesday afternoon, the CMA placed the provinces of Hubei and Jiangxi, home to about 100 million people, under red alerts, the highest level of the CMA's three-tiered warning system. A red alert is issued when the temperature is expected to reach 104 F (40 C) in the next 24 hours.

The heat wave is expected to continue for at least the next couple of weeks which would make this the longest period of extreme heat in this region of China since records began in 1961, according to a report from Reuters, which cited China's official Science and Technology Daily on Monday.

Officials in areas affected by the declining water levels around the Yangtze have started to deploy pumps and cloud-seeding rockets, according to Reuters. Rainfall amounts in the river's drainage area were down about 30% in July and are 60% lower than normal in August, Reuters reported.

Although this is the time of year that China normally experiences its hottest weather, observed afternoon high temperatures have surpassed record levels reaching 15 to 25 degrees F above normal...

And to think this is pretty much just the beginning.

[Mark F]

Blackrock wants to exist post oil and gas.

 

 

"This is the first battery storage investment made by BlackRock’s Climate Infrastructure business in the Asia-Pacific region and its biggest anywhere in the world. The entry of the deep-pocketed BlackRock will likely change the dynamics of the growing Australian battery storage market.

Charlie Reid, the co-head of climate infrastructure at BlackRock in the Asia-Pacific, says he is looking at Asia markets as well, where he sees a $US400 billion opportunity and the company has already committed $1 billion for Australia.

“As renewable energy infrastructure continues to mature in Australia, investment is required in battery storage assets to ensure the resilience and reliability of the grid, especially with the continued earlier-than-expected retirement of coal-fired power stations,” Reid said in a statement.

“For our clients, we see tremendous long-term growth potential in the development of advanced battery storage assets across Australia and in other Asia-Pacific markets and look forward to working with Akaysha to ensure an orderly transition to a cleaner and secure energy future.”

https://reneweconomy.com.au/us-investment-giant-blackrock-in-1-billion-big-battery-play-in-australia/

Elon  Musk was at the front of this in Australia, with his very successful battery installation there. initially derided of course by fossil fuelists.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a31350880/elon-musk-battery-farm/

 

Edited August 17, 2022 by Mark F

[the watcher]

With the war in Ukraine,  this in western Europe , weather issues in North America the last 2 years and supply chain issues world wide I could foresee food shortages where there have been none before.

[Mark H.]

22 minutes ago, the watcher said:

With the war in Ukraine,  this in western Europe , weather issues in North America the last 2 years and supply chain issues world wide I could foresee food shortages where there have been none before.

Yes. At least grain prices have come down a bit.

 

[Mark F]

42 minutes ago, the watcher said:

weather issues in North America

"The grinding megadrought that’s plagued the southwestern United States since 2000 plunged to a new level of seriousness on Tuesday, August 16, as the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced that the first-ever Tier 2 water restrictions will take effect in January 2023 along the Colorado River. Generous monsoon rains over parts of the Southwest this summer have done little to blunt the grim longer-term prognosis."

The excellent "eye on the storm" yale climate connections, jeff masters.

https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2022/08/a-next-level-water-crisis-colorado-river-basin-faces-tier-2-restrictions/

 

"John Entsminger, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, and the state's lead Colorado River negotiator, was much more blunt. Here are some of the things he said in a letter he sent to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and other officials:

“Despite the obvious urgency of the situation, the last sixty-two days produced exactly nothing in terms of meaningful collective action to help forestall the looming crisis . . . We are at the stage where basin-wide every drop counts, and every single drop we are short [of the] two to four million acre-feet in permanent reductions draws us a step closer to the catastrophic collapse of the system . . ."

 

https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/no-end-in-sight-for-megadrought-crisis-as-states-fail-to-agree-on-use-of?fbclid=IwAR1ftBo7SoY_-ZKv7vCv6RNAa_b7ti8jTMTYjiI6_UDfrrj9kzlzJMPlFQI

 

collapse of the system.  

Edited August 17, 2022 by Mark F

[the watcher]

 " collapse of the system.  "   

Its a bit unnerving after seeing the response to the pandemic. From unneeded panic  hoarding at the start ,  over reaction to mild restrictions , to ridiculous reactions to life saving vaccines, our society didn't handle the whole thing very well. I can't imagine the response to actual food and water shortages.

[Goalie]

32 minutes ago, the watcher said:

 " collapse of the system.  "   

Its a bit unnerving after seeing the response to the pandemic. From unneeded panic  hoarding at the start ,  over reaction to mild restrictions , to ridiculous reactions to life saving vaccines, our society didn't handle the whole thing very well. I can't imagine the response to actual food and water shortages.

Stock up on them guns 

[Mark F]

1 hour ago, the watcher said:

 " collapse of the system.  "   

Its a bit unnerving after seeing the response to the pandemic. From unneeded panic  hoarding at the start ,  over reaction to mild restrictions , to ridiculous reactions to life saving vaccines, our society didn't handle the whole thing very well. I can't imagine the response to actual food and water shortages.

exactly.

add in corruption, and it could be very ugly.

[FrostyWinnipeg]

Drought Has Caused France to Stop Making a Cheese That’s Been Produced for More Than 2,000 Years

[Tracker]

9 hours ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

Drought Has Caused France to Stop Making a Cheese That’s Been Produced for More Than 2,000 Years

C'est la brie.

[Mark F]

"Toyota and Apple supplier Foxconn are among the entities that have ceased operations in south-west China because of hydropower shortages caused by heatwaves and droughts.

 

According to a government statement, Sichuan, a province with 84 million residents that generates the majority of its electricity from hydropower, announced that it would halt energy supplies to factories and other plants in a number of cities in preparation for a week in which temperatures were expected to exceed more than 40 degrees Celsius.

"So far, the impact on production has not been severe," the companies said.

According to Chinese media, electric vehicle battery manufacturer and Tesla supplier CATL closed its Sichuan factory over the same time period. The CATL did not reply quickly to a request for comment.

Dan Nystedt, vice-president of TriOrient Investments, an Asia-based private investment firm, stated, "There are many manufacturers of laptops, iPads, and tablets in Sichuan, and we've heard that the eastern region of Jiangsu is also suffering constraints."

Sichuan is also a significant center for lithium mining and solar panel manufacturing.

Approximately 20 steel mills have halted production due to power restrictions, while energy-intensive aluminum and zinc smelters have reduced output, according to Shanghai Metals Market.

The Yangtze River, China's largest and most significant waterway, reached its lowest level on record for this year last week, according to a news release from the ministry of water resources."

 

 

It's really starting to bite hard.

 

https://www.btimesonline.com/articles/155962/20220818/china-yangtze-river-toyota-foxconn-drought.htm

Edited August 18, 2022 by Mark F

[blue_gold_84]

Locally, the effects are becoming more and more apparent with each passing season.

[JCon]

And, even if the world starts taking climate change seriously, it will be ages before we get carbon levels back down. We're screwed. More war, more famine. 

[Mark F]

2 hours ago, blue_gold_84 said:

Locally, the effects are becoming more and more apparent with each passing season.

this will be bad: Canadian glaciers. melting.

"What does all this mean for our water supply?

Kavanaugh says glaciers keep our rivers flowing when other water sources dry up, like late summer when the snowmelt is gone and rainfall is at its weakest. 

“They carry us through the hottest months into the winter.”

During particularly hot and dry years — like last summer, for example — glacier-fed rivers can actually see higher-than-normal flow.

“Though the streams that relied on the snowpack and groundwater dropped to very, very low levels, the streams that were fed by glaciers — like the Athabasca River or the North Saskatchewan — had very high flows,” Pomeroy says

The next few decades could be marked by high flows in our glacial rivers, which will continue as long as the glaciers are voluminous enough to contribute a lot of water, Kavanaugh says.

We might have a 20-year window of this much water and then it will start to fall off a cliff,” he says. “How much water is flowing through the river as a function of that time of year is going to start changing remarkably.”

cbc https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/glacier-melt-is-past-the-tipping-point-in-the-canadian-rockies-and-thats-a-big-problem

remember when people said the glaciers are not melting?

joe paidoff from crockofshyt climate blog said so.

probably a few such posts here.

I read somewhere that the last several hundred years maybe five hundred, , have been characterized by reliable , predictable, climate.

This never counts on the balance sheet.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Mark F

[Wideleft]

1 hour ago, Mark F said:

this will be bad: Canadian glaciers. melting.

"What does all this mean for our water supply?

Kavanaugh says glaciers keep our rivers flowing when other water sources dry up, like late summer when the snowmelt is gone and rainfall is at its weakest. 

“They carry us through the hottest months into the winter.”

During particularly hot and dry years — like last summer, for example — glacier-fed rivers can actually see higher-than-normal flow.

“Though the streams that relied on the snowpack and groundwater dropped to very, very low levels, the streams that were fed by glaciers — like the Athabasca River or the North Saskatchewan — had very high flows,” Pomeroy says

The next few decades could be marked by high flows in our glacial rivers, which will continue as long as the glaciers are voluminous enough to contribute a lot of water, Kavanaugh says.

We might have a 20-year window of this much water and then it will start to fall off a cliff,” he says. “How much water is flowing through the river as a function of that time of year is going to start changing remarkably.”

cbc https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/glacier-melt-is-past-the-tipping-point-in-the-canadian-rockies-and-thats-a-big-problem

remember when people said the glaciers are not melting?

joe paidoff from crockofshyt climate blog said so.

probably a few such posts here.

I read somewhere that the last several hundred years maybe five hundred, , have been characterized by reliable , predictable, climate.

This never counts on the balance sheet.

The drought in the U.S. Southwest is now considered a once in 1200 year event.  It has lasted 23 years.

*I have learned that as a subscriber,  I can gift 10 Washington Post articles per month.  This means I can link them here and you can read them in their entirety.  I'm going to try to use them judiciously.

U.S. announces more water cuts as Colorado River hits dire lows

The new shortage triggered by low reservoir levels comes comes as states negotiate how to make major reductions in water use

https://wapo.st/3PBbGpL

 

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by Wideleft

[Fatty Liver]

2 hours ago, Wideleft said:

The drought in the U.S. Southwest is now considered a once in 1200 year event.  It has lasted 23 years.

*I have learned that as a subscriber,  I can gift 10 Washington Post articles per month.  This means I can link them here and you can read them in their entirety.  I'm going to try to use them judiciously.

U.S. announces more water cuts as Colorado River hits dire lows

The new shortage triggered by low reservoir levels comes comes as states negotiate how to make major reductions in water use

https://wapo.st/3PBbGpL

 

 

The lake surface of Lake Mead outside of Las Vegas has dropped more than 170 feet (52 metres) since the reservoir was full in 1983.  40 million people living in the S.W. desert isn't sustainable now, and probably never was.

[WildPath]

6 hours ago, Mark F said:

remember when people said the glaciers are not melting?

There is a prominent political party in this country that has just recently accepted climate change (begrudgingly) and a new one that objects to that and completely denies it.

There are still many around saying we need to exploit O&G more than we currently are. I'm certain most people on the planet have actually witnessed a change in the climate without looking at data, just a real shame for future generation that things weren't averted when they could have been.

[Fatty Liver]

16 hours ago, WildPath said:

There is a prominent political party in this country that has just recently accepted climate change (begrudgingly) and a new one that objects to that and completely denies it.

There are still many around saying we need to exploit O&G more than we currently are. I'm certain most people on the planet have actually witnessed a change in the climate without looking at data, just a real shame for future generation that things weren't averted when they could have been.

There is certainly severe denial out West, I live near a lake in BC that no longer freezes, yet there are picture of Clydesdale horses hauling sleighs full of cut timber across the same lake 75 years ago.  I'm thinking the change from thick ice covered in snow for 2-3 months, to no ice at all must average at least 10-15C change in temps. in that time.

[Wideleft]

On 2022-08-19 at 1:15 PM, Fatty Liver said:

There is certainly severe denial out West, I live near a lake in BC that no longer freezes, yet there are picture of Clydesdale horses hauling sleighs full of cut timber across the same lake 75 years ago.  I'm thinking the change from thick ice covered in snow for 2-3 months, to no ice at all must average at least 10-15C change in temps. in that time.

The 2 Degree C - Beyond the Limit Series in the Washington Post is the best series I've read on current impacts.  Worth subscribing for a month, just to read the entire series.

I don't have the option to gift this article.  Maybe it's free?  (And I have no idea why the "C" was converted to that emoji.)

2°😄 BEYOND THE LIMIT

 

Extreme climate change has arrived in America

By Steven Mufson , Chris Mooney , Juliet Eilperin and John Muyskens
Photography by Salwan GeorgesAUG. 13, 2019

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/climate-environment/climate-change-america/

 

Edited August 22, 2022 by Wideleft

[blue_gold_84]

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/22/climate-emergency-doomer-appeaser-precautionary-principle

Quote

The reality is that our understanding of potential tipping points and feedback effects remains too poorly constrained for us to be confident of how severe climate breakdown will end up proving to be. Furthermore, minimising the potential impact of climate breakdown is more likely to lead to increased reticence in relation to slashing emissions than any potential exaggeration of the likely endgame.

A middle of the road route would be to no one’s advantage – so, as for most situations wherein the risk is hard to quantify, there is only one sensible way forward: to hope for the best, while preparing for the worst.

End of the article is a good, albeit sobering, summation.