Perhaps it’s time to start the alternative

The Arbourist has a post about a small company that has a proposal to create liquid fuels out of water and carbon dioxide from the air. While the proposal looks promising, since, as far as I can tell, it takes more energy to create the liquid fuel than is released by burning that fuel, and that any carbon extracted from the atmosphere while creating the fuel will ultimately be re–emitted when that fuel is used, I have difficulty seeing how much of a difference this particular technology would make. (See also my comments at the Arbourist’s post). However, if new evidence or technology emerges that allows this technology to make more of a difference, I will certainly change my mind about it.

And The Arbourist’s post got me thinking. Since there has been much resistance to making more than a token effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, perhaps it is time to put geoengineering on the table. That might potentially be the best hope for avoiding disaster. While I am not actively suggesting we start geoengineering, I am suggesting we put it on the table. This is important considering our collective failure to make much effort towards mitigation of global warming and climate change.

Geoengineering is not science fiction. Several of the proposals have analogues that happen naturally. And it is not decades away. As far as I can tell, the following proposals are pretty much shovel ready, and we could start tomorrow if there was a serious effort, and with no significant research yet to be done or technology to be developed:

• Atmospheric sulphur aerosols
• Grassland restoration
• Cool roofs
• Enhanced weathering

These proposals each have a number of advantages and disadvantages (discussed after the jump):

Clark to be the next premier of BC

The BC Liberal Party has selected Christy Clark as its next leader. This means that, once the formality of Gordon Campbell resigning is over, she will be the next premier of British Columbia. She will be the second woman to be premier.

Since Clark does not have a seat in the legislature, it’s possible that a new general election is imminent. If that takes place, the HST referendum due to take place this September would likely be moved up to coincide. A less likely possibility is that some backbencher in a safe seat will resign to let her run; she would likely win the resulting by–election. That would be the first time since 1981 that the governing party has won a by–election here.

As for the leadership vote itself, I’m glad it was not Kevin Falcon who won. Clark is a life–long federal liberal. Supporting your own side is only part of getting your political preferences enacted; you also have to support middle–of–the–roaders in your opponents. Clark should be one such middle–of–the–roader, despite being a partisan pit bull that grinds opponents to dust.

The BC Liberals will likely get a boost in the polls. Clark remains popular with the public at large. New leaders always get a honeymoon period in the polls. I just hope that she waits until the NDP has selected a new leader before she calls an election; dropping the writs earlier would be blatantly opportunistic.

A few more factoids guaranteed to set the blood of any wingnut readers boiling. The BC NDP is a nominally socialist party, even though it is far more moderate than the federal party. At the same time, Clark is a divorced single mom. She will soon become the most powerful person in British Columbia. The NDP and the Liberals are the only parties with a realistic chance of winning seats. Who should the wingnut vote for, the “socialists” or the woman heading a non–nuclear family? Either way, the sky still refuses to fall. Indeed, the only thing that’s fallen recently is a bunch of fluffy white stuff.

Some random stuff

In no particular order:

• What were you doing 1954/04/11? For me, that was decades before I was born, but if you were alive back then you weren’t doing much, as that day was the least exciting day in the twentieth century. I wonder what that Turkish academic and those Belgian voters think about having that day to themselves. Today, with the amazing democratization of information the internet provides, you can find out about some public figure’s sneezing fit two minutes after it happens. Clearly, the idea of an uneventful day is so last century.
• The United States Department of Defense has released its report on the consequences of repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Guess what? It will be a complete non–event. Other countries have gays and lesbians in their militaries with no ill effects, and the same will happen to the United States. About two–thirds of personnel think that repeal will have no ill effects or no effect at all. A strong majority support repealing DADT.
  • Unsurprisingly, the only group opposed to repeal is American evangelicals. They continue to deprive their country’s military access to badly–needed personnel and specialists, a pretty funny way of “supporting the troops”.
• The 2010 Pacific hurricane season ended yesterday, and was the least active season since the weather satellite era began in 1971. Despite that, it was pretty eventful, with hundreds of people killed and a Category 5 hurricane forming. This record low inactivity does not disprove global warming or climate change, not the least because the Atlantic was very active this year, and the fact that climate models do not predict that there will be a greater number of tropical cyclones.
• If you see bits of white falling down when you view my blog, you are not seeing things. Rather, that is a snowfall decoration to celebrate the holidays. It will remain visible until January 4.

First snowfall of the season where I live

Outside it is starting to stick. It is steady and definitely not a flurry, but it is not very deep or anything.

First official day of Atlantic hurricane season; Central Pacific hurricane season starts today

Today is the first official day of 2009 Atlantic hurricane season and will run until November 30. This year, it technically began early with the formation of Tropical Depression One in May. If you live in the Caribbean, Central America, along the coast of the United States, Bermuda, or in Atlantic Canada, make sure you’re prepared. You can find updates, warnings, and advisories on all tropical cyclones in the Atlantic at the National Hurricane Center’s website.

This season’s list of names goes as follows:

• Ana
• Bill
• Claudette
• Danny
• Erika
• Fred
• Grace
• Henri
• Ida
• Joaquin
• Kate
• Larry
• Mindy
• Nicholas
• Odette
• Peter
• Rose
• Sam
• Teresa
• Victor
• Wanda

In the unlikely event they run out of names, the Greek alphabet will be used to name any additional systems.

The central Pacific hurricane season also starts today, so if you live in Hawaii, make sure you’re prepared. The season will end November 30. Updates, warnings, and advisories are available from the Central Pacific Hurricane Center’s website. Names in this area are taken from four cyclic lists of Hawaiian names; the next five names are Lana, Maka, Neki, Omeka, and Pewa.

2009 Pacific hurricane season starts today

The 2009 Pacific hurricane season begins today, and will run until November 30. If you live in Western Mexico, Central America, or California, make sure you’re prepared. You can find updates, warnings, and advisories on all tropical cyclones in the eastern north Pacific at the National Hurricane Center’s website.

This season’s list of names goes as follows:

• Andres
• Blanca
• Carlos
• Dolores
• Enrique
• Felicia
• Guillermo
• Hilda
• Ignacio
• Jimena
• Kevin
• Linda
• Marty
• Nora
• Olaf
• Patricia
• Rick
• Sandra
• Terry
• Vivian
• Waldo
• Xina
• York
• Zelda

In the unlikely event they run out of names, the Greek alphabet will be used to name any additional systems.

The name Alma is history

At its recent meeting, the World Meteorological Organization’s Regional Association IV Hurricane Committee has retired hurricane names from the lists for both the Atlantic and the Eastern Pacific.

From the Atlantic, the names Gustav, Ike, and Paloma were retired and replaced with Gonzalo, Isaias, and Paulette on the name list for the 2014 season. Hurricane Gustav caused over 6 billion dollars in damage and killed 153 people in Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and The United States. Hurricane Ike, the most intense hurricane of the season, caused 32 billion dollars in damage and killed 195 people in The Bahamas, Cuba, and the United States. Hurricane Paloma was not at all a gentle dove as it killed one person and caused nearly a billion dollars in damage in the Cayman Islands and Cuba. Unlike what might have been expected, Hurricane Hanna, which killed over 500 people on Hispaniola, was not retired.

In the Eastern Pacific, for the first time since 2002, a name was removed from the list, as the name Alma was replaced with Amanda on the list for the 2014 season. Tropical Storm Alma was the first Pacific tropical storm to hit Central America since 1949. It killed nine people, five of which were due to the crash of TACA Flight 390 in Tegucigalpa.

Just like the Atlantic, the Eastern Pacific has questionable retirement decisions. Truly bizarre retirement decisions are Fico in 1978, Fefa in 1991, Knut in 1987, and Iva in 1988. None of those caused significant deaths or damage, and Knut did not come anywhere near land. Bad nonretirements include Tara, Liza, Paul, and Tico. Hurricane Tara killed over 500 people in Guerrero in 1961. Although the name Lisa is on the lists for the Atlantic, the name Liza should have been retired in the Pacific as it killed at least 435 people on the Baja California Peninsula in 1976. Hurricane Paul is the second-deadliest Pacific hurricane as it killed over 1000 in El Salvador and Guatemala in 1982. In 1983, Hurricane Tico killed 135 in Mexico, mostly Sinaloa.