A Few Tidbits Not Generally Known
I’m going back to my area of general knowledge today on global warming. Due to industrialization and a population of almost 8 billion people carbon dioxide(CO2) is being spewed into the atmosphere in ever greater amounts. So we now have around 422 parts per million(ppm) which is causing rapid heating of Earth due to the greenhouse effect. In April the station in Hawaii registered 422ppm. Hawaii is far away from any industrial activity which makes it a great place to take atmospheric measurements
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenhouse_effect
This is because industrial civilization runs on the burning of fossil fuels. It can’t survive without burning fossil fuels. It’s far to large with 7.89 billion people to feed and run without fossil fuels. No “green technology” can replace fossil fuels. We can cut back on its use to help delay the eventual collapse of this civilization. I see no other plausible solutions.
Needful Things
For a few examples of the ever needed burning of fossil fuels I’ll list a few of the more obvious illustrations.
1). Food production and transport.
Have you ever wondered what would happen if the diesel fuel for the trucks disappeared on their way to your friendly neighborhood supermarket? The store shelves would be empty in a few days. Fertilizer production also takes fossil fuels to power the processes that make fertilizer. The war in Ukraine has disrupted fertilizer transport along with some loss if its production. What about transporting the migrant workers to various places to pick or harvest the crops. So far I haven’t seen a solar powered combine. Food produce transported by air would cease. There isn’t any way to make an airplane that doesn’t use fossil fuels. More food production required by exponential population growth will require more fuel.
2). War.
Before fossil fuels horses, mules, and people transported weaponry and food to the front lines. A supply line was key to fighting wars. This is why the US is always after more oil in particular so it can power its ravenous military machine’s appetite. Just one carrier group uses an enormous amount of fuel. Keeping jet planes in the air 24/7(except on September 11,’01)—which never ends is taxing the oil reserves tremendously. That’s why the neocons are chomping at the bit to drill in the thawing arctic areas due to our overarching global warming predicament. They have to have wars to be pathologically happy.
3.) Industry in general. EV’s.
How about considering the new electric car phenomena. It sound good the here the politicians taking about how revolutionary electric vehicles will save industrial civilization. Yes, friends line up to get a shiny new Tesla or Nissan electric vehicle.(EV) Even light weight EV delivery trucks are coming online. Great! Oh boy! Hmmm… Not really. How about the power to make all the big and little parts of the snappy new..hmm, again. Most EV’s still require some fuel in a hybrid combination. I believe the Toyota Prius was the first hybrid.
Then we need the lithium batteries to hold the charge that lasts a few hundred miles. Mining the lithium requires fossil fuel. Fossil fuel is used in making the concrete to build the factories. Then more fuel is need to assemble the cars with the transport to the location, the new car dealership where every one is lining up to save the planet. I consider electric cars as hopium. One hopes to save Earth with an EV. Oh, one last item. Where does the electric energy come from that charges the car’s battery? Mostly coal that fires the power plants. CO2 is still released in almost every process required for manufacturing, transport, and driving the shiny new set of wheels. I’ll stick with gasoline if I ever get a car.[I don’t own a car and haven’t since ‘10.]
4). Wind harvesters.
Large wind turbine farms are as ubiquitous as ants at a picnic. Wind is free. Or, it is free now before the neo-liberal economists find a way to meter and charge for it. Groovy, yea, wind is CO2 free. So what about the manufacturing of the white windmills? Yep, fossil fuels are required for every step in getting the fan up and operating. The average lifespan of a wind turbine is about 20 years. Then a certain amount of its parts needs replacing. They certainly aren’t the long term panacea the “greenies” are advocating. If the wind dies so does electricity production. I want a gas powered car if I ever get the chance.
Finally
It’s late and my kitty and I are starving. I just wanted to get into the global warming situation some to show what’s needed for civilization to function. Without fossil fuel mining(remember, it can’t be produced, it’s extracted from Earth’s reserves) our systems all fail. Burning it releases lots of CO2. Using fuel heats Earth from its burning. As of now there isn’t a practical solution other than reducing its use. How about stopping wars? How about turning off some of the lights at night? It’s not like some aliens will come along and try their luck in Vegas because it lights up and can be seen as far away as Mars, is there? Conserve. Recycle when practical. Don’t buy something that needs replacing in a year or so. Do folks really need a new iPhone every year? Plan your trips in your cars. Especially now that gas is very expensive. I’ll pick it up from here when time permits.
Finally be kind and stay safe.
Peace, The Ol’ Hippy
Images: Fruit—gemma~~Unsplash; Wind turbines—m h~~Unsplash
Other images~~Pixabay