Rob Gell told me about the interesting work being done by global company Siemens on future energy and water planning. It was released on World Water Day in Melbourne this week.
I saw a bit in the press but it mostly picked up their comment on the future of electric vehicles (big). But there is much more to their work and worth having a look at - and noting that they see "more than" 30% CO2 reductions by 2030 from 2010 levels in buildings...and given that buildings contribute around 40% of total emissions, we are talking big potential savings here.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
OK so we want the drought to break but a bucket on your head?
That's not hail - this is hail (in WA)...
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Local interventions
From the Northern Star in northern NSW, Australia:
"BEEF and mutton fat is helping to keep 100 of Ballina Shire Council’s diesel-fuelled vehicles on the road.
Combined with soy beans and conventional diesel, the by-products of Australia’s meat processing industry are used in a new fuel called B20.
Ballina is the first council in the Northern Rivers to use biodiesel in its fleet."
It costs 3 to 4 cents a litre more than regular diesel, and we do not know how many litres they are using and therefore the cost of the reductions. But this is an interesting development away from the major cities.
"BEEF and mutton fat is helping to keep 100 of Ballina Shire Council’s diesel-fuelled vehicles on the road.
Combined with soy beans and conventional diesel, the by-products of Australia’s meat processing industry are used in a new fuel called B20.
Ballina is the first council in the Northern Rivers to use biodiesel in its fleet."
It costs 3 to 4 cents a litre more than regular diesel, and we do not know how many litres they are using and therefore the cost of the reductions. But this is an interesting development away from the major cities.
We all need a bit of discipline
Fascinating talk from Stewart Brand, a great hero of mine - and who is now advocating nuclear power (gulp!) - on whole earth discipline:
Thinking about technology and scale
If you have been following the absolute debacle of the insulation program in Australia, one of the lessons may be: if we are to directly intervene with technology, the scale (international, national, regional, local) might be critical.
Here is Berkeley California's experience from a Berkeley blog:
"Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates has defended Berkeley FIRST, a pilot program initiated by the city to help residents finance solar power systems for their homes, and which has been cited as a model for other cities across the country.
In a letter to the East Bay Express, Bates says he believes Berkeley FIRST might be the city’s “most important contribution to combating climate change” and says it has laid the foundation for a larger scale state-wide program.
He says Berkeley FIRST was a catalyst for the expansion of residential solar energy and that one of its greatest advantages was its scalability. ”Berkeley FIRST has become a national model for energy efficiency and renewable energy adoption. Vice President Biden recognized Berkeley FIRST and, in taking it to national scale, renamed the program Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE). Seventeen states and more than 200 cities are now preparing to launch Berkeley-like PACE programs,” he writes."
Here is Berkeley California's experience from a Berkeley blog:
"Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates has defended Berkeley FIRST, a pilot program initiated by the city to help residents finance solar power systems for their homes, and which has been cited as a model for other cities across the country.
In a letter to the East Bay Express, Bates says he believes Berkeley FIRST might be the city’s “most important contribution to combating climate change” and says it has laid the foundation for a larger scale state-wide program.
He says Berkeley FIRST was a catalyst for the expansion of residential solar energy and that one of its greatest advantages was its scalability. ”Berkeley FIRST has become a national model for energy efficiency and renewable energy adoption. Vice President Biden recognized Berkeley FIRST and, in taking it to national scale, renamed the program Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE). Seventeen states and more than 200 cities are now preparing to launch Berkeley-like PACE programs,” he writes."
Important work on the ground while others debate...
A good description from Maria Blair - who has now moved to the White House - of the Rockefeller Foundation's adaptation program in the Asia Pacific area (disclosure: I was involved while at ICLEI).
Hands up who wants to go to Cancun?
Jumping Frog thought it "stripped open the arrogance and negligence of the developed countries on the issue" while a philanthropist's view was that "(i)f COP 15 was any indication, international, multi-state level processes will not provide all the solutions to climate adaptation and mitigation."
Yep, global governance..
One Sydney blogger (and Indian Youth Climate Network delegate) said that "COP saw more protesters and activists than thinkers and experts", and an American economist noted that "I am ambivalent about NGO involvement. ... On the whole, it was a surprisingly young group. "
A sub-section of that - what is the appropriate involvement of non-Government Organisations?
Food for thought as I prepare for a presentation at the Australian Information Industry Association meeting at KPMG next Monday.
Yep, global governance..
One Sydney blogger (and Indian Youth Climate Network delegate) said that "COP saw more protesters and activists than thinkers and experts", and an American economist noted that "I am ambivalent about NGO involvement. ... On the whole, it was a surprisingly young group. "
A sub-section of that - what is the appropriate involvement of non-Government Organisations?
Food for thought as I prepare for a presentation at the Australian Information Industry Association meeting at KPMG next Monday.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Re-purposing: now can we do it with COP?
Cats know how to do it:
As does our cat at our front door:
I know it all feels perilously close to the LOLcats but I am wondering how we take the essence of COP - countries from all around the world meeting to focu on climate change - and turn it into something useful (as opposed to Copenhagen)...
Monday, March 1, 2010
Nice fence but no site plan so: fail...
-- Amina Khan from the Los Angeles Times reports on a curious state of affairs...
Some Southern California cities fine residents for watering their lawns too much during drought conditions. But in Orange, city officials are locked in a legal battle with a couple accused of violating city ordinances for removing their lawn, which they did to save water.
The dispute began two years ago, when Quan and Angelina Ha tore out the grass in their frontyard. In drought-plagued Southern California, the couple reasoned, the lush grass soaked up tens of thousands of gallons of water – and hundreds of dollars – each year.
Quan and Angelina thought they were doing something good for the environment.
“We’ve got a newborn, so we want to start worrying about her future,” said Quan Ha, an IT manager for Kelley Bluebook.
“We’ve got a newborn, so we want to start worrying about her future,” said Quan Ha, an IT manager for Kelley Bluebook.
But city officials informed the Has that they were violating several city laws that require residents to cover significant ports of their front lawns with live ground cover. On Tuesday, the two are scheduled to appear in Orange County Superior Court to challenge a lawsuit the city filed against them. They are fighting City Hall, saying their yard looks fine.
Soon after the city complained about the yard, they covered the dirt with wood chips, with help from neighbor Dennis Cleek.
“It’s their yard, it’s not overgrown with weeds, it’s not an eyesore,” said Cleek, whose own yard boasts fruit and avocado trees. “We should be able to have our yards look the way we want them to.”
But city officials determined the fix was not acceptable, saying city codes require that 40% of the yard be landscaped predominantly with live plants.
“Compliance -- that’s all we’ve ever wanted,” explained City Atty. Wayne Winthers. Last summer, the couple tried to appease the city by building a fence around the yard and planting drought-resistant greenery – lavender, rosemary, horsetail and pittosporum, among others. They sent a photo to city officials in October but say they received no response.
A few months later, they heard from the city, which said their landscaping still did not comply with city standards.
“They put up a nice fence but [the photo] didn’t show anything about how they had complied with code, as far as the frontyard goes,” Winthers said, “nor did it include a site plan.”
At the end of January, the Has received a letter from the city informing them they had been charged with with misdemeanor code violations and must appear in court.
“It’s just funny that we pay our taxes to the city and the city is now prosecuting us with our own money,” Quan Ha said. “Doesn’t it waste funds to go back and fourth in court, rather than sending pictures, e-mails and having phone conversations?”
Winthers said he hoped the city could work out a compromise with the couple. “We know times are tough, but we’re willing to work with them; we’d be more than happy to,” he said.
Meanwhile, the couple said there had been one bright spot: They reduced their water usage from from 299,221 gallons in 2007 to 58,348 gallons in 2009.
Soon after the city complained about the yard, they covered the dirt with wood chips, with help from neighbor Dennis Cleek.
“It’s their yard, it’s not overgrown with weeds, it’s not an eyesore,” said Cleek, whose own yard boasts fruit and avocado trees. “We should be able to have our yards look the way we want them to.”
But city officials determined the fix was not acceptable, saying city codes require that 40% of the yard be landscaped predominantly with live plants.
“Compliance -- that’s all we’ve ever wanted,” explained City Atty. Wayne Winthers. Last summer, the couple tried to appease the city by building a fence around the yard and planting drought-resistant greenery – lavender, rosemary, horsetail and pittosporum, among others. They sent a photo to city officials in October but say they received no response.
A few months later, they heard from the city, which said their landscaping still did not comply with city standards.
“They put up a nice fence but [the photo] didn’t show anything about how they had complied with code, as far as the frontyard goes,” Winthers said, “nor did it include a site plan.”
At the end of January, the Has received a letter from the city informing them they had been charged with with misdemeanor code violations and must appear in court.
“It’s just funny that we pay our taxes to the city and the city is now prosecuting us with our own money,” Quan Ha said. “Doesn’t it waste funds to go back and fourth in court, rather than sending pictures, e-mails and having phone conversations?”
Winthers said he hoped the city could work out a compromise with the couple. “We know times are tough, but we’re willing to work with them; we’d be more than happy to,” he said.
Meanwhile, the couple said there had been one bright spot: They reduced their water usage from from 299,221 gallons in 2007 to 58,348 gallons in 2009.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Curious scenes: will we all look back and shake our heads in wonder ?
Even the City of Light has problems keeping the waste management system out of bike lanes - and I loved the Paris Velib. I wonder if there is a web-site wholly devoted to bike-lanes and their woes?
Sunday, January 24, 2010
And you don't have to even crane your neck
Regional forecasts - still early days
Quirin Schiermeier has an excellent article in Nature which looks at four areas of significant dispute within climate science circles: regional climate forecasts, precipitation forecasts, aerosols and palaeoclimate data.
Regional forecasts are a critical tool for local governments and it seems to me that we are awaiting good approaches to closely-grained data to justify the costs of action on adaptation in some cases:
"Downscaled climate models face particular uncertainty problems dealing in regions with complex topography, such as where mountains form a wall between two climatically different plains. Another potential source of error comes from projections concerning future greenhouse-gas emissions, which vary depending on assumptions about economic developments."
With the levels of uncertainty high, we need to mount potent multi-factorial arguments to ensure that we capture all of the benefits - as I suspect that the costs will have a large in-built variability for some time.
Regional forecasts are a critical tool for local governments and it seems to me that we are awaiting good approaches to closely-grained data to justify the costs of action on adaptation in some cases:
"Downscaled climate models face particular uncertainty problems dealing in regions with complex topography, such as where mountains form a wall between two climatically different plains. Another potential source of error comes from projections concerning future greenhouse-gas emissions, which vary depending on assumptions about economic developments."
With the levels of uncertainty high, we need to mount potent multi-factorial arguments to ensure that we capture all of the benefits - as I suspect that the costs will have a large in-built variability for some time.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Curious scenes: will we all look back and shake our heads in wonder ?
From Water Words that Work: the September 2009 floods in Georgia, USA. Wild and extreme weather is not just a forecast...
Monday, January 4, 2010
You say cities, I say local governments
Cities are all the rage internationally. But there is clearly two conversations going on: one that talks about local governments and one that talks about urban cities.
The local government conversation focuses on, well, government that is local - such as Councils, shires, municipalities and so on. They may be urban and very large (Brisbane City Council has over 1 million people in Australia) or rural and very small (Diamantina Shire has around 2000 people at the top end of the same State).
The focus here is on the local feedback loops that can be democracy at its best or worst: speedy, innovative, parochial, old-fashioned and so on. From this focus comes "localism" and an interest in working in a small-scale area of action. It has been the fuel for the growth of organisations such as ICLEI over the past 15 years.
The urban conversation is the one that you hear including comments such as: "75% of energy use is in cities" or "over half of the global population now lives in cities" - I swear I heard these quotes a dozen times a day in Copenhagen. Mr Van den Brande, President of the Committee of the Regions, gave us both in one go.
Putting aside the significant methodological issues concerning counting urbanisation (see the 2008 World Energy Outlook for a look at this), and therefore not getting too focused on the numbers, this story is all about clout and action. The World Bank even supports action with cities!
But they are two different concepts, even though they may overlap. In UN speak, the term "cities" is shorthand for local governments, but local governments know that this is not true.
Many rural local governments are crucial in the climate change debate for example), though not necessarily as the end-users of energy. As potential sites for significant energy supply - such as wind farms - it could be argued that in many countries rural local governments (and the ways that they manage planning regulations and land-use) are more important than many urban areas.
As well, many rural local governments will be at the cutting edge of work on adapting to the impacts of climate change, an adaptation that will need to be skillfully integrated into the other pressing priorities of local life.
So, yes, cities are important for all of the reasons that are commonly shared. But let's not suggest that they are sufficient to do the entire job...
The local government conversation focuses on, well, government that is local - such as Councils, shires, municipalities and so on. They may be urban and very large (Brisbane City Council has over 1 million people in Australia) or rural and very small (Diamantina Shire has around 2000 people at the top end of the same State).
The focus here is on the local feedback loops that can be democracy at its best or worst: speedy, innovative, parochial, old-fashioned and so on. From this focus comes "localism" and an interest in working in a small-scale area of action. It has been the fuel for the growth of organisations such as ICLEI over the past 15 years.
The urban conversation is the one that you hear including comments such as: "75% of energy use is in cities" or "over half of the global population now lives in cities" - I swear I heard these quotes a dozen times a day in Copenhagen. Mr Van den Brande, President of the Committee of the Regions, gave us both in one go.
Putting aside the significant methodological issues concerning counting urbanisation (see the 2008 World Energy Outlook for a look at this), and therefore not getting too focused on the numbers, this story is all about clout and action. The World Bank even supports action with cities!
But they are two different concepts, even though they may overlap. In UN speak, the term "cities" is shorthand for local governments, but local governments know that this is not true.
Many rural local governments are crucial in the climate change debate for example), though not necessarily as the end-users of energy. As potential sites for significant energy supply - such as wind farms - it could be argued that in many countries rural local governments (and the ways that they manage planning regulations and land-use) are more important than many urban areas.
As well, many rural local governments will be at the cutting edge of work on adapting to the impacts of climate change, an adaptation that will need to be skillfully integrated into the other pressing priorities of local life.
So, yes, cities are important for all of the reasons that are commonly shared. But let's not suggest that they are sufficient to do the entire job...
Monday, December 21, 2009
Like, say, the survival of Bangladesh?
The official COP site reports the surprising news:
Just hours after the world leaders had hammered out a deal, Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina expressed satisfaction over a "reasonable conclusion" to the UN Climate Change Conference.
Speaking at Lund University in Sweden, the Prime Minister stated that the agreement takes in most of the country’s concerns, AFP reports.
"I am pleased to say that we have been successful in arriving at a reasonable conclusion," she said, adding that "there are certain areas that would be finalized in the coming days."
Just hours after the world leaders had hammered out a deal, Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina expressed satisfaction over a "reasonable conclusion" to the UN Climate Change Conference.
Speaking at Lund University in Sweden, the Prime Minister stated that the agreement takes in most of the country’s concerns, AFP reports.
"I am pleased to say that we have been successful in arriving at a reasonable conclusion," she said, adding that "there are certain areas that would be finalized in the coming days."
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