Thread: Climate Change and our Land of Fire, Flood and Drought.

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

Iceberg bigger than Brunei is a floater. 315 billion tonnes of ice could make a few scotch on the rocks


World's biggest iceberg makes a run for it - BBC News

Give it time & it will have it's own Town Council (& rates), International Airport & all the trappings of a modern country.

Fresh Water? No probs. Just needs a bucket & an Ice Pick.

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Listening this morning to an account of the rehabilitation work on the Golden Highway near here following a fuel spill a month ago - the road is due to be reopened tomorrow.

Approximately 30,000l of fuel, mostly diesel, was lost when the rear trailer of a B-double rolled.

Because of the drought, the water table was abnormally low. Note that below the water table, the pore space in the soil/subsoil/bedrock is completely (or almost) filled with water, and the grains are wet with water. This means that oil, such as fuel, that are not miscible with water, will not penetrate below the water table, which is normally no more than a metre or so below the surface.

In this case the fuel had penetrated up to 5m below the surface, requiring the removal to a licensed storage facility of 7,000 tonnes of soil, subsoil, and road material, followed by its replacement and rebuilding of the road.

Sounds like some poor bugger is going to get in the poo.

Originally Posted by 4bee

Sounds like some poor bugger is going to get in the poo.

According to reports he passed a blood test - but he had driven from Newcastle, four or five hours driving, and the accident happened around 0500, so there are some suggestions that if he had been hanging around the terminal for half a day, fatigue could be a factor. According to the interview I listened to the accident is still under investigation.

Originally Posted by trout1105

Solar and wind power are a fantastic way to produce electricity, Even I rely on solar/batteries when I go away on my trips BUT they are Not the "Magic Bullet" we are looking for because the storage of that power is still too expensive and the disposal of all those batteries and panels when they get to the end of their service life is just another environmental disaster waiting to happen Not to mention the ecological damage being done to produce those panels and batteries in the first place .
Hydro is another fantastic way to produce and store electricity But where are we going to find all that water, infrastructure and suitable geology to be able to provide power for the entire continent when we are struggling to supply our basic household water needs as it is...………...

It doesn't have to be fresh water, sea water would do as it is only needed for it's embodied kinetic energy when pumped.

The major issue with using sea water is that it is corrosive - everything has to be to marine standards, which means $$$.

The water can also be repeatedly reused if the scheme is designed properly.

It doesn't have to be fresh water, sea water would do as it is only needed for it's embodied kinetic energy when pumped

You blokes have seen what happened to the two experimental wave energy machines in Port Kembla and I think SA somewhere.
I think the Port Kembla one is still there rotting away.

Similarly before someone brings it up, the fabulously expensive (failed) hot rock project in SA championed by Tim Flannery.

I just also read today that Crescent Dunes concentrated solar in the USA has just gone bankrupt, which was another lucky escape for SA. Luckily they could not get any private investors to invest.

"All that glisters is not gold"
Regards PhilipA

Tim Flannery you say? Was it powered by Hot Air then?