Transport – July 25

NZ: Overlander rail decision may be reversed by peak oil /
Students hop on planes to save the planet /
Flying on holiday ‘a sin’, says bishop / Lutz: GM building hybrids for good press / EPA report charts the rise and fall of U.S. fuel economy

Cooling the mall, heating the planet

For 99 percent of recorded history, humanity managed to stay cool by finding some shade, getting some air moving, and slowing down when it gets too hot. Starting this summer, let’s show the world that a mere few decades of air conditioning have not turned Americans into wimps. Turn the thermostat to OFF, throw the windows open, and head for the park instead of the mall.

Peak Moment Television: 16 more episodes

Peak Moment is a television series emphasizing positive responses to energy decline and climate change through local community action. How can we thrive, build stronger communities, and help one another in this time of transition? (16 more episodes are now online.)

Climate – July 25

Pine plantations may be one culprit in increasing CO2 levels /
Researchers link wildfires, climate change / Global Warming, not just heat wave / Some scientists think global warming is behind heat wave /
NASA’s goals delete mention of home planet

Vinod Khosla debunked: ethanol is NOT the answer

When an influential person begins to affect energy policy decisions – decisions that will have a huge impact on all of our lives – we better take a critical look at the claims that person is pushing. You can’t discuss ethanol for long with an ethanol proponent without having them mention the endorsement of Vinod Khosla.

Peak oil – July 25

Harper’s Magazine covers peak oil movement /
Peak Oil and Michigan’s Energy Future /
Why It’s Hard to Debate a Cornucopian /
Jay Hanson and DieOff.org /
Power for the people: what sort of energy? /
How Cuba survived its oil shock /
Canada: People may have to pick eating over heating

Oceans and climate – July 25

Institute of Science in Society ocean series:
Oceans in Distress /
Oceans and Global Warming /
Oceans: Carbon Sink or Source? /
Acid Oceans /
Abrupt Plankton Shifts /
Global Warming and Plankton /
Plus: Undersea gas could speed global warming – study /
Warmer waters disrupt Pacific food chain

Explosive Oil Consumption Growth in the Top Oil Exporting States

The top 14 oil exporting states experienced high economic growth in 2005 and the first half of 2006, leading to high domestic consumption of oil. The rates of increase in oil consumption are in the high single digits or low double digits in all top exporting countries except Norway.

Geopolitics – July 24

Encroachment (Failure in Iraq and the prospect of fascism) /
The geopolitics of oil gains a new constituency /
Putin plan to shut out US oil giants /
Iranian army chief: Arab states should cut oil supply to Israel /
Bush told to plan for Chávez oil shock

A new kind of money

The decline in the availability of cheap energy is likely to be accompanied by an equally ominous possibility of world financial meltdown. That we are facing both of these threats now is not an accident: energy and financial stability are intimately linked. I believe the solutions for dealing with these twinned threats are equally linked.

Food shortages – July 24

Grain Drain /
Wheat price soars as world granaries run low /
India grows a grain crisis /
Zimbabwe: ‘Power Cuts Could Reduce Wheat Yield’ /
Lester Brown: The grain needed to fill an SUV’s tank could feed a person for a year /
Food crisis in Lebanon