Why we’re so useless at cutting carbon.

If our success in mitigating climate change relies upon understanding it, our success must also rely upon our understanding of why we have been so bad at combatting it so far. We are partially in denial, as this piece in the New York Magazine highlights, but there are other key reasons, like a lack of technology (or cheap technology), obsession with economics, and political will to act. Here’s a look into some of them.

If we are serious about mitigating climate change,
we need to leave the oil in the ground.

When I say we are in denial, I mean not that we don’t believe, but that we aren’t willing to accept the reality or our duties. That’s because, to take the analysis of the linked article further, the model of climate change that we understand is so far removed from day-to-day reality. Take this as a basic model:

- humans emit lots of carbon dioxide:

- this carbon goes into the atmosphere and contributes to the enhanced greenhouse effect;

 - this means more heat is trapped within the atmosphere, warming the planet up.

Read the Medium story by Dave Olsen - “Why we’re so useless at cutting carbon.”

Call on energy plan a test of Shorten's integrity

Rejuvenated and reinforced by Super Saturday byelections success, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten mused that voters want him and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to respectfully debate public policy ideas and to focus less on their own political interests.

Bill Shorten has spotted public interest.

‘‘People don’t want more of the same from Malcolm Turnbull,’’ Mr Shorten declared. ‘‘They want a government that acts in the interests of people. To be honest, that’s the message I get out of it, too. The people of Australia are sick of me and Turnbull being in a Punch and Judy show – he runs around complaining about me, we complain about the government. They want better from us.”

Read the Editorial from today’s Age - “Call on energy plan a test of Shorten's integrity.”

Abbott’s wind commissioner has been a boon for renewables, climate body says

The role of Australia’s windfarm commissioner has been a success and should be expanded to include solar and other large-scale renewables, a report by the Climate Change Authority has recommended.

 A windfarm in Bungendore. A Climate Change Authority report
says the role of windfarm commissioner, set up under Tony
 Abbott, has facilitated the uptake of wind energy. 

It says the post, set up under the former prime minister Tony Abbott to handle complaints and investigate potential risks, has actually facilitated the uptake of wind energy by helping to address community concerns.

The controversial role of national windfarm commissioner was established by the Coalition in 2015 as part of a deal with anti-wind senators in response to complaints about turbine noise.

Read the story by Lisa Cox from The Guardian - “Abbott’s wind commissioner has been a boon for renewables, climate body says.”

Humanity needs science to survive and thrive.

“Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hi there, world. It’s been a long time since you’ve had a heart-to-heart with science, but there’s no better opportunity than right now. There are a whole slew of problems facing our nation and the world today, and I’m afraid you’re going to need it for all of them if you want to get through them successfully. The world is a large, complex system, with many different competing interests all vying for your attention as to which one is most important. No one is here to decide that for you, contrary to what you might’ve heard. Instead, science is here to contribute something that every perspective should agree on: the best suite of facts, laws, models, theories, conclusions and inferences that the whole of humanity has been able to collect and construct. That’s what science is. It’s what science was made to do. And it’s why humanity is the success that it is today.

Read the story by Ethan Siegel - “Humanity needs science to survive and thrive.”

Tesla is the market's measure and now it is better

T

esla has become the vehicle against which all electric cars are now measured.

And while much of the world’s attention is on the new Model S, Tesla has not forgotten its original fans, without whom it could never have achieved its present success.

Treehugger reports that to reward the original buyers for supporting the company when it was in its infancy, when almost nobody believed that an EV could as good as a gasoline car (never mind better!),  a few months ago, Elon Musk announced an upgrade that he calls Roadster 3.0.

This includes a new battery pack that can store 31 per cent more power than the original one (70kWh vs. 53kWh), a new aerodynamic kit that brings the EV's coefficient of drag from 0.36 to 0.31, and new tires with 20 per cent better rolling resistance.

All the details are in the Treehugger story - “Tesla now sells "pre-owned" Model SEVs, will ship 31% bigger Roadster battery in August”.

Great Barrier Reef under environmental and commercial pressure

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is subject to various pressures, both environmental and commercial.

It was images such as this which
 greeted delegates to the recent
G20 Summit n Brisbane.

Human induced climate change threatens the reef’s survival, a situation worsened by Australia’s mismanagement of its commercial use, primarily the dumping of dredging material and the establishment nearby of a major coal port and so the movement through the reef of huge coal-bearing ships.

Australia’s Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, has used the platform of the UN Security Council, of which she is the president, to question comments from US President Barack Obama about the importance of protecting the reef for his daughters and grand-children.

And no her comments that the reef was not at risk have been dismissed by scientists who have said that if nothing changes it will be “slaughtered”.

Their comment come in a Melbourne Age story headed: “Great Barrier Reef will be 'slaughtered': scientists dismiss Julie Bishop's claim reef not at risk”.

When in Opposition, the present Australian Coalition Government was quite negative about seeking a position on the Security Council and Bishop herself said at the time: "There really has been no justification for the benefit that will accrue to Australia by pursuing a seat at this time."

The story headed: “The irony behind Julie Bishop's success at the United Nations Security Council” points out clearly how the Coalition Government has benefitted from the role.