Text 16838, 99 rader
Skriven 2007-06-17 12:16:11 av Glen Jamieson
     Kommentar till en text av Hap Newsom
Ärende: E: FALAFEL - 70617
==========================
 -=> Quoting Hap Newsom to Glen Jamieson <=-

Greetings, Hap,

 -> As someone else beside Cindi pointed out, long grass in humid areas
 -> makes a good day-time hidey place for mozzies.
 -> 
 HN> I know that the Southeastern USA has been in the midst of a prolonged 
 HN> drought....I have no reports on whether that has affected the humidity
 HN> or not  though.....I wonder if it has?

I would expect so. My international weather reports don't mention
humidity, but yours might.
 
 ->  HN> Isn't our planet such a neat thing? Feast or famine! 
 -> 
 -> And with the advance of global warming, the climate is becoming more
 -> extreme everywhere, as predicted.
 ->  
 ->  -> In South Australia our main river has stopped flowing to the sea, and
 ->  -> water rationing is general.  People with even house numbers can only
 ->  -> water their lawns on Saturday nights for up to 4 hours, while the odds
 ->  -> do it on Sunday nights.  The government is subsidising the installation
 ->  -> of rainwater tanks for private houses.  New large buildings are now
 ->  -> designed to re-use grey water from washbasins etc for flushing toilets.
 ->  -> 
 ->  HN> Common sense if you ever really think about it. Most don't though 
 HN> and 
 ->  HN> convenience is MUCH more important to many than practicality. 

The latest report is that Adelaide has only 32 weeks left before the
taps run dry if there is no intake into the reservoirs, and Stage 5 of
rationing is likely to be instituted very soon.  That means no water
used for gardens at all.  People have already been fined for washing
their cars.

 -> New buildings are now being given an energy and water efficiency
 -> rating, like refrigerators and washing machines, with financial
 -> encouragement from governments and other bodies.
 -> 
 HN> Same here to a much lesser degree however. We just replaced our old
 HN> washer  and dryer with a set that uses much less energy, and less water
 HN> as well. 

Good for you.  You should get the money back from reduced running costs.

 -> most governments are waking up to the fact that they have to look
 -> beyond the next election, and take positive actions to reduce the rate,
 -> and to deal with the inevitable consequences of climate change.  There
 -> has been a ground-swell of interest and concern by the general public
 -> (read, "voters"), so now governments have been forced to act.
 -> 
 HN> In the USA, denial is still the most popular attitude, although it's
 HN> more of  an "if I hide my eyes I can't see it" sort of denial at best.

It is our children and grand-children who have to live with the
consequences of our own neglect.
 
 -> A Federal initiative to take control of the Murray-Darling river
 -> system, which supplies water to much of the 4 Eastern states, is in the
 -> process of becoming accepted by the states, which now have to look
 -> nationally.  South Australia, being at the bottom end of the river at
 -> present finishes up with the salty dregs of whatever the others leave!
 -> 
 HN> Your individual states are more autonomous and your federal government
 HN> is "weaker" than ours. Our Federal laws (and programs too for the most
 HN> part)  supercede our State programs and laws...and when the two come
 HN> into  conflict more often than not the Federal position predominates.

Sadly, our state governments are strong, and that of Victoria is still
holding out against the Federal government, with the Premier hoping to
be bribed with Federal money for a new interstate pipeline before
accepting loss of some water to South Australia.
 
 -> much more has still to be done.  Some large desalination plants are
 -> being built, but until that can be done using solar or wind energy,
 -> more fossil is required to run them.
 -> 
 HN> With the risiing price of fossil fuels alternatives sources are
 HN> becoming more  viable...with some interesting side effects...like corn
 HN> being used for ethanol 
 HN> production....making corn more expensive and having the side effect of
 HN> making products that use corn ( and High Fructose Corn Syrup) more 
 HN> expensive...like beef, and chicken, and (in the case of HFCS) Soda
 HN> Pop, and  breakfast cereals!

Ethanol here is made as a by-product of our large cane sugar industry,
and it is temporarily free of tax, so fuel with 10% ethanol in petrol
is 3 cents a litre cheaper than standard fuel.

 HN> It's going to be an interesting time, this 21st century!

As in the old "Chinese curse" definition.  :(

... In Hawaii old people never die.  They become ancestors.
___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR]

--- FLAME v2.0/b
 * Origin: Braintap BBS Adelaide Australia (3:800/449)