February « 2009 « The Cost of Energy

A tidal wave of water woes

By Lou, on February 28th, 2009%

Pop quiz, two questions, no Googling or even thinking too long about it:

1. What’s the most immediate and negative human impact of peak oil?

2. What’s the most immediate and negative human impact of climate chaos?

If you answered “no oil” to the first one, give yourself one demerit. If your answer was “higher prices for oil . . . → Read More: A tidal wave of water woes

It’s the biogas, stupid

By Lou, on February 26th, 2009%

None other than the Wall Street Journal is on the case of livestock flatulence, part of what the US EPA delicately refers to as “enteric fermentation”.

Mutton Methane: Reducing Flatulence to Reduce Global Warming (emphasis added):

Researchers in New Zealand are trying a cocktail of chasers to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions from sheep, which outnumber humans ten to one . . . → Read More: It’s the biogas, stupid

Whither the ice

By Lou, on February 25th, 2009%

Scientists find bigger than expected polar ice melt:

Icecaps around the North and South Poles are melting faster and in a more widespread manner than expected, raising sea levels and fuelling climate change, a major scientific survey showed Wednesday.

The International Polar Year survey found that warming in the Antarctic is “much more widespread than was thought,” while . . . → Read More: Whither the ice

Bubbles, bubbles, oh, what troubles

By Lou, on February 21st, 2009%

Of all the questions I get in e-mail, the one that stands out for its frequency, even if it’s not the single most popular question, is some variation of, “Should I be worried about methane hydrates?” I find this both encouraging–it’s not all queries about “which car should I buy”–and slightly discouraging–methane hydrates are a . . . → Read More: Bubbles, bubbles, oh, what troubles

Living in the Nexus

By Lou, on February 19th, 2009%

The water/energy nexus, that is, one of the new (to our awareness) places where we’ll be living for a very long time.

The interplay between water and energy is getting more attention, including a new report from CERA, described in Report examines links between water and energy:

A new study using research from Cambridge Energy Research Associates examines . . . → Read More: Living in the Nexus

Another footprint, finally

By Lou, on February 17th, 2009%

Yet Another ‘Footprint’ to Worry About: Water:

It takes roughly 20 gallons of water to make a pint of beer, as much as 132 gallons of water to make a 2-liter bottle of soda, and about 500 gallons, including water used to grow, dye and process the cotton, to make a pair of Levi’s stonewashed jeans.

Though much . . . → Read More: Another footprint, finally