May 17, 2012
Welcome to the Anthropocence. This is the name of the new geological era that has been defined by scientists at the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program in Sweden. All of human history has taken place so far in the Holocene, which started around 12,000 years ago. Each new geological era is marked by large scale changes in either Earth’s geology or mass extinctions, The Anthropocence has been named for the new largest pressure on Earth’s systems: humans. Humans... read more
May 8, 2012
I had a conversation with a Canadian friend recently who suggested I shouldn’t really worry about conserving water here in BC because it’s a renewable resource, so it doesn’t matter how much we use. Well technically that’s true, but by that standard so is coal – it’s just that the rate we’re using coal and the rate it regenerates don’t align. This is not yet happening with water supplies in BC, but as an Australian, I can tell you that when it does... read more
May 2, 2012
Some really interesting research was recently published looking at the most effective way to create renewable hybrid systems (solar-hydro, wind-hydro, and solar-wind-hydro). I say it was really interesting firstly because I’m a science nerd, and secondly because the research is being conducted by my brother as part of his PhD! What the paper is looking at is sophisticated weather maps in the state of Victoria, Australia that best determine optimal locations for... read more
Apr 20, 2012
I’ve been a bit down on humanity in the last week or two. Every time I turn around, there’s a new report or talk or version of ‘we’re all going to hell in a hand basket’ and no matter how many times this gets repeated with greater and greater urgency, it seems like none of our country’s power brokers are willing to heed it. Saving the planet all on your own is an impossible task. As a child, I loved the TV series Captain Planet where five different youths... read more
Apr 12, 2012
This is part three of a three part series on the use of water in the Alberta oil sands – Part 1, Part 2 Expansion, tailings, what's next? Over the past two weeks, I’ve looked at water usage in the Alberta oil sands. I’ve tried to discover what the water is used for, and how it could be better reused. This week I’m going to try and find some solutions. Last week I went to a lecture that discussed some of the research work that is being done to try and... read more
Apr 2, 2012
This is part two of a three part series on the use of water in the Alberta oil sands – Part 1, Part 3 Oil sands tailings: most people know about the potential hazard these ponds pose to ducks, but what exactly are they? As mentioned last week they are a combination of water, sand, oil residue and solvents left over from the separation process. The marketing brochures will tell you that 90% of the water used in in situ mining processes is recycled. However,... read more
Mar 27, 2012
This is part one of a three part series on the use of water in the Alberta oil sands – Part 2, Part 3 Water use in the oil sands is a controversial topic. It is currently being profiled in the film White Water Black Gold and has been the subject of several environmental reviews and debates. There are several distinct ways that water gets used in the oil sands, which produce differing forms of waste. The most water intensive is the surface bitumen mining, which... read more
Mar 16, 2012
My iPhone is dying. Not because I’ve dropped it too many times – I’ve looked after it really well. But because it’s now 2.5 yrs old which is the end of its life span and the phone’s brain is slowly shutting down and working much slower. This makes me both sad and irritated at the same time. Sad because I love my iPhone and everything it’s been able to do for me (seriously, I’m not sure what I did before I had an iPhone) and annoyed because I know it’s not... read more
Mar 9, 2012
During the 14th Century in Europe, Charles IV was the Holy Roman Emperor and ruled over much of modern-day Central Europe. Nuremberg, in the south of Germany was one of the most important cities of the empire politically, socially and economically. Because of it’s importance as a centre for trade and innovation (the printing press was invented in Nuremberg) Nuremberg was given greater autonomy than many other cities, which allowed it to be central for not only the... read more
Feb 24, 2012
I went to two very interesting lectures recently, both organized by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions. The first was by Professor Mike Hulme from the University of East Anglia (home of the Climategate email ‘scandal’) talking about Climate Pragmatism. It was quite a compelling lecture in which Dr Hulme suggested that since we can’t agree on the implications of the science of climate change, we should look at different cultural frames for discussions, and... read more