Category Archives: Infrastructure

This site makes the case that collapse will take decades, not centuries. And the worst that ever has been or will be, it is fossil fuels that enabled 8.2 people to exist on the planet

Promoting soil health in agriculture at U.S. House hearing 2014

Posted on August 8, 2016 by

Preface.  At last, many years after I first published “Peak soil: Why biofuels destroy ecosystems and civilizations” in 2007, Congress had a hearing to educate House members on why preserving topsoil is so essential for food production for future generations.  … Continue reading →

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Plants are sucking streams dry thanks to more CO2

Posted on August 4, 2016 by

Slezak, M. October 24, 2015. Carbon emissions make Earth greener but are also drying it out. NewScientist. Source: Ukkola, A. M., et al. October 19, 2015 Reduced streamflow in water-stressed climates consistent with CO2 effects on vegetation. Nature Climate Change 6, … Continue reading →

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Water-borne diseases will increase as energy declines

Posted on July 21, 2016 by

Preface. Drinking water and sewage treatment plants are the main reason lifespans nearly doubled. Read Laurie Garrett’s  “Betrayal of Trust: The Collapse of Global Public Health” for details. As energy declines, the ability of towns and cities to treat water … Continue reading →

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National security implications of international energy and climate change policies, Senate hearing

Posted on June 26, 2016 by

[This is an excerpt of a very interesting senate hearing that looks at how war can be caused by climate change (i.e. drought, hunger, rising sea levels) and how climate change will affect infrastructure. The European emissions trading scheme and … Continue reading →

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Hybrid electric trucks are very different from HEV cars

Posted on June 7, 2016 by

Preface. The National Research Council paper I review in this post explains why it is hard to transfer auto hybrid technology to trucks.  They are entirely different animals — medium-duty trucks weigh up to 10 times more, have up to … Continue reading →

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The Dark side of Cruise ships. Garbage. Sewage. And more.

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

[ I detest cruise ships which destroy the ambiance of small towns in Alaska and everywhere else they go.  While cruise ships disgorged their sewage and garbage in Alaska’s Skagway harbor, passengers disgorged into shops owned by the cruise ships … Continue reading →

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Electric truck & car range less in cold weather

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

Preface. What follows are two articles. The first has excerpts from Calstart’s study of the effects cold weather had on lithium and Sodium Nickel Chloride e-truck batteries. The second article is from Consumer Reports, which says that half of driving … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Cold weather, Electric & Hydrogen trucks impossible, Electrification, Trucks: Electric | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Sex, crime, and death on the high seas. A U.S. Senate investigation of the cruise ship industry

Posted on June 1, 2016 by

Senate 113–642. July 24, 2013. Cruise Industry Oversight: recent incidents show need for stronger focus on consumer protection. U.S. Senate hearing. 169 pages. Since 2011, cruise lines voluntarily reported 959 alleged crimes to the FBI, and 130 crimes that must … Continue reading →

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Book review of Door to Door and the amazing world of transportation

Posted on May 19, 2016 by

Edward Humes.  2016. Door to Door: The Magnificent, Maddening, Mysterious World of Transportation. HarperCollins. A book review by Alice Friedemann at www.energyskeptic.com  author of “When Trucks Stop Running: Energy and the Future of Transportation, 2015, Springer] I was in the … Continue reading →

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Climate change impacts on transportation 2008 U.S. Senate hearing

Posted on May 16, 2016 by

Senate  110-1199. June 24, 2008. Climate change impacts on the transportation sector. U.S. Senate Hearing. Excerpts from this 135 page document follow. DANIEL K. INOUYE, U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII The transportation sector is a major indicator of the overall economic … Continue reading →

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