Category Archives: 2) Collapse

The collapse of the financial system, breakdown of supply chains, blackouts, end of being able to make computer chips, and so on are symptoms of the underlying cause: LESS OIL AVAILABLE TO DO MILLIONS OF ESSENTIAL TASKS. Whether the house of cards goes from the financial shock of a natural disaster or from debt and corruption, blockage of the Suez canal, Export Land Model, or (nuclear war) — there is certain to be a series of dislocations that ultimately bring population down to 1 billion or less, and given past collapses, take about 20-30 years. Let’s hope there are some islands of sanity and that you, dear reader, are living on one of them!

Methane hydrate apocalypse? Maybe not…

Posted on September 20, 2016 by

 [ I don’t think there’s enough evidence yet to decide for sure there won’t be a gas hydrate apocalypse, but here’s some evidence that this might not happen. Even Benton, who wrote “When Life Nearly Died” didn’t pin the mass … Continue reading →

Posted in CO2 and Methane, Methane Hydrates | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Ecological cost of new roads in Africa

Posted on September 14, 2016 by

[ What follows are excerpts from the January 8 2014 issue of Newscientist’s “Africa’s road-building frenzy will transform continent” by Andy Coghlan.  ] China is funding most of the new roads to get the minerals they’ve mined, and transport food … Continue reading →

Posted in Roads, Transportation | Leave a comment

Limits to Growth? 2016 United Nations report provides best evidence yet

Posted on August 23, 2016 by

This peer-reviewed United Nations report (excerpts below) ought to scare anyone who understands exponential growth. Here are a few examples to think about while reading the report: If 2 grams of gold grew at a 5% compound rate for 2,000 … Continue reading →

Posted in ! PEAK EVERYTHING, Distribution of Wealth, Exponential Growth, Limits To Growth, Organizations, Other Experts | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Telling others about peak oil and limits to growth

Posted on August 21, 2016 by

[ Obviously the planet is finite. We’re using many times more oil than we’re discovering, and therefore at some point global oil production will peak and decline.  Yet even in 2016 this reality is denied by most, and a temporary … Continue reading →

Posted in Optimism & Critical Thinking | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Telling others about peak oil and limits to growth

Why do so few alter their lives to lessen climate change and peak oil?

Posted on August 20, 2016 by

[ Most people are in denial about Peak Oil, so of course they’re not doing anything about it.  In fact, quite the opposite. With oil prices down, the public is buying gas guzzling light trucks and SUVs, which not only … Continue reading →

Posted in Optimism & Critical Thinking | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Missing monsoon crashes Indus Valley Civilization

Posted on August 17, 2016 by

19 March 2014 Withering monsoon may have doomed past Asian society. NewScientist. The Indian summer monsoon abruptly weakened 4200 years ago. The ensuing drought may have led to the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization, which flourished around the Indus … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, Extreme Weather | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Missing monsoon crashes Indus Valley Civilization

Climate change impacts on energy, water, and land use in the U.S.

Posted on August 15, 2016 by

Hibbard, K., et al. 2014: Ch. 10: Energy, Water, and Land Use. Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third National Climate Assessment, U.S. Global Change Research Program, 257-281. http://nca2014.globalchange.gov/report/sectors/energy-water-and-land [ Excerpts from this 25 page document, charts/tables: best … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy | Comments Off on Climate change impacts on energy, water, and land use in the U.S.

Clouds may not curb global warming as much as hoped for

Posted on August 12, 2016 by

The following article, Clouds Play Lesser Role in Curbing Warming, Study Finds, is from climatecentral.org Analysis of the first seven years of data from a NASA cloud-monitoring mission suggests clouds are doing less to slow the warming of the planet than … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Warming | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Clouds may not curb global warming as much as hoped for

Benefits of promoting soil health in agriculture U.S. House hearing 2014

Posted on August 8, 2016 by

                    [ At last, 10 years after I first published “Peak soil: Why biofuels destroy ecosystems and civilizations“, Congress had a hearing that educated house members on why preserving topsoil is … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Biomass, Food, Infrastructure, Pesticides, Soil, Soil, Water | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Benefits of promoting soil health in agriculture U.S. House hearing 2014

Twice as many El Niños in 21st century

Posted on August 7, 2016 by

Expect more drought, flooding, and other crazy weather In Nature Climate Change, doi.org/q4c, researchers predict that  El Niños will become twice as common, about once a decade in the future versus every 20 years the past century. Another recent study … Continue reading →

Posted in Extreme Weather | Comments Off on Twice as many El Niños in 21st century