Global Warming...New Report...and it ain't happy news

All they have to do now is build 100 more like it (11MW each) and they will have the equivalent of a single coal-fired or nuclear powerplant.

Fair weather brings strong profit for Lloyds of London

LONDON: Lloyd's of London, the world's biggest insurance market, on Thursday reported a pretax profit of 3.66 billion pounds (€5.4 billion, US$7.2 billion

[...]
To avoid global warming, scientists and environmentalists say emissions must be cut by as much as 90 percent below 1990 levels. The biggest reductions in use of oil, coal and other fossil fuels would be required in the United States because the nation is by far the world's biggest energy consumer and producer of carbon emissions -- consuming one-fourth of the world's energy though it has only one-20th of the world's population.
Though the spirit may be willing, the flesh is weak. The institute's report found that few of the "green" cities have significantly increased spending on more efficient buildings or transportation systems despite their commitment to the Kyoto goals, and the ones that have made progress have done so because they rely on emissions-free hydroelectric power plants that have been in place for decades or were aided by state and federal fuel-efficiency mandates.
[...]
Why are Americans so poor at saving energy despite good intentions? One reason is that the heavy use of energy has made life easier for most Americans and is ingrained in the American lifestyle -- from turning on the air conditioner as soon as the temperature hits 80 degrees to using the elevator instead of the stairs and driving cars to work instead of walking or using mass transit.
[...]
Rather than drive less or turn down the thermostat, surveys show that Americans want Congress to curb energy demand by requiring businesses to cut emissions and automakers to make more fuel-efficient cars. Yet most consumers are not buying efficient cars and other available products. Sales of hybrid gas-electric cars are growing rapidly, for example, but constitute 1.4 percent of U.S. vehicle sales.
Small, high-mileage vehicles that are big sellers in Europe and Japan find few takers here. Evidently, Americans are hoping that revolutions in low-carbon fuels will enable them to keep driving big cars. But cars that operate on clean fuels such as hydrogen, cellulosic ethanol or solar energy are in the experimental phase and would require technological breakthroughs to be available to the mass market -- something energy analysts say could take years to decades.

The new forecast is out. I didn't start listening until it was halfway through, however, so I'm not sure whether it predicted 17 named storms or that 17 named storms would threaten the U.S.A. I do recall they are putting the odds at 78% that the USA will be hit by a major hurricane this year, and of course the term 'global warming' was evoked at some point in the brief monologue.

I wonder if it is rather unusual for the USA to NOT be hit by a major storm in any given year? That 78% may be low.

Snow-pack in the Fraser River Watershed is 120% to 150% above the average. Its the third highest on record (began 1954?). Recent information suggests that the Beetle killed pines will increase risk of quick runoff since those forests have lost their ability to hold back water. Resulting higher peak flows may create increased risk for erosion which then fills the Fraser channel in the lower gradient areas. Also in November a heavy rainfall triggered a series of slope failures within the Thompson River watershed causing huge volumes of gravel/rock to in-fill the Thompson River channel. This will eventually deposit in the low gradient sections of the Fraser channel. Then as dust mixed in water it will be carried to sea.

Let me see if I've got this right. Global warming has caused an unusually heavy accumulation of winter snow, which, together with the pine beetle infestation, also a product of global warming, will yield increased river runoff which will harm salmon hatcheries on Vancouver island.

Why don't I see the connection?

The Federal alternative minimum tax took a bigger bite out of my income this year than last. I wonder if that is not also a result of global warming?

Let me see if I've got this right. Global warming has caused an unusually heavy accumulation of winter snow, which, together with the pine beetle infestation, also a product of global warming, will yield increased river runoff which will harm salmon hatcheries on Vancouver island.

Why don't I see the connection?

And that relates to an earlier point regarding how estimations of costs to human societies from GW can easily fail to account for unforseen ramifications cascading through ecological systems. Nig nog.

blatham wrote:

And that relates to an earlier point regarding how estimations of costs to human societies from GW can easily fail to account for unforseen ramifications cascading through ecological systems. Nig nog.

Something creeps me out people are pondering possible ramifications of a pest infestation on humans in an undeterminate future whereas you have NOW tens of thousands dying of hunger in Darfour, 3 millions (!) plus Zimbawian refugees in S Africa (much less spectacular than 50 Vanatuans "climatic refugees" I must concede), ten of thousands of Karen refugees herded in Northern Thailand internment camps, slavery (yes slavery) in Mauritania, not to say more than 1 million deaths PER YEAR of malaria, etc, etc...

It reminds of Jackie Chan's films where the malicious little jumping man stares as if a menace is coming from the left (or the right depending on your political motives) which distracts his opponent to look at the same direction and then delivers a knocking right slap that makes the other guy spent the rest of the night looking for his broken teeths. Diversion for short.

That there may be more immediate situations of human suffering has no relevance to what we humans morally ought to be doing as regards GW. Though Darfur is a unimaginable tragedy doesn't mean that your local police force ought to park their cars and grab the nearest plane to Africa.

"A nouveau hier soir, l'amalgame qui est fait entre identité nationale, immigration et fraude ne fait pas honneur à ce candidat", a-t-il ajouté, répétant que le terme "ignoble" n'avait pas été employé par Ségolène Royal à l'encontre personnelle de Nicolas Sarkozy mais à propos de "l'amalgame" fait selon elle entre immigration et identité nationale.

A l'inverse, pour Christian Estrosi, proche du candidat de l'UMP, c'est la candidate PS qui "perd ses nerfs et son sang-froid" et a démontré qu'elle était "plus du côté des voyous que des victimes" après les événements de la gare du Nord à Paris.
http://www.lexpress.fr/info/infojour/reuters.asp?id=41198&1907

> I'd like to ask the chances of Le Pen in the first round, specifically if only he and Sarkozy will be left, as happened last election? Thank you!

LOL High Seas, my translator is on the other computer. Can you translate that for we language challenged whose primary knowledge of French is in food terms and words that would violate TOS?

Foxfyre wrote:

LOL High Seas, my translator is on the other computer. Can you translate that for we language challenged whose primary knowledge of French is in food terms and words that would violate TOS?

Just oral skirmishes between the 2 main candidates about immigration. A blip on the campaign radar compared to the much more vociferous and marketing based elections in the US or in Italy (as an example, private funding for candidates is forbidden. Costs are covered by ... taxpayers).

With sometimes productive and sometimes heated discussions on the immigration thread, I've wondered if other countries were having as vitriolic debates as we are having on immigration issues here? Are the populations as divided?

For that matter, is the average 'man in the street' in France or Europe in general seriously consumed with the global warming schtick? It honestly rarely comes up in day to day conversations here, at least in the places where I go.

What people forget is GW would go away, the taxes will remain