Staff

Sustainability and Environment Headlines – 15 July, 2005

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Rationing and tradable carbon entitlements / Peak oil in Portland / Get ready for future oil shock, [NZ] lobby group warns / Towards Carfree Cities V – Conference in Budapest July 17-23 /
Satellite Sunshine Mapping Benefits Solar Energy / Faced with this crisis / Australia hung out to dry on climate change / Europe’s greenhouse gas trade hots up / Tax cuts push on climate change / Ontario breaks power consumption record, heat wave likely to last for weeks / Scientists Raise Alarm About Ocean Health / Record Hurricane Year has Oil Industry Worried / France Rations Water as Drought Takes Hold / Tasmania facing power crisis /
Shanghai suffers as car culture takes hold / Guns, Germs and Steel on PBS in July / Blue Gold

The Collapse of Civilization and The Rebirth of Community

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Writer Steven Lagavulin argues that the comprehensive nature of the problems our society faces in the coming years will not be met by either political or technological means. Instead, we need to face that humankind has reached a critical turning point in which everything that defines modern civilization is about to be washed away. As such, the best response may be to break away from the sinking ship and begin rebuilding now, even before the crisis is upon us.

Fossil Fuel Headlines – 14 July, 2005

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Simmons – Energy Tsunami Ahead / The Relationship Between a Country’s Income and Energy Consumption per Capita / Oilcast #17: IEA shock markets with predictions / Campbell, Lynch in radio discussion / New age of anxiety dawns / Suez Strikes Back in Bolivia / Korean gov’t agrees energy-saving measures / ASEAN avoids tough issues, touts biofuel as oil fix / Progress noted on China’s strategic reserve / Vancouver airport not ready for oil hike

UK ‘Peak Speak’ Forum – London, 16th July

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An open forum on the implications of the terminal decline of global oil production will be held just outside London (Hackbridge, Surrey) on Saturday July 16th 2005 from 10am until 5.30pm. Hosted by the UK ‘Peak Oil’ campaign group PowerSwitch.org.uk, the event will give many people already aware of ‘Peak Oil’ the opportunity to develop their understanding further.

How to talk to an economist about peak oil

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Politely framed and important challenge to the peak oil argument, questioning why oil suppliers would willingly for-go the massive potential profits:
"…So how could it be that there are billions and billions of easy dollars to be made, and nobody can be bothered to collect them? Unless you have a clear answer for that question, an economist at that point is going to ask whether you’re sure that you’ve got all the facts straight, that oil really is going to sell for $200 a barrel in just two years."

Off the grid

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Can two fossil fuel addicts wean themselves from their consumptive habits without their lives falling apart? A NYC bouncer and an events coordinator are transported to Dancing Rabbit eco-village in Missouri for 30 days. From the creator of “Super Size Me.” To air Wed, July 13.

Peak Oil – An Agenda for New Zealand

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At present, world conventional light crude oil production is barely keeping up with rising demand. At some point, conventional light crude oil production will peak, and then decline – a phenomenon commonly known as “Peak Oil”. This will lead to a sharp, sustained rise in world oil prices, at which point the world will have entered the post-cheap-oil age. …
Because the implications of Peak Oil are so serious for New Zealand, SEF recommends that the Government, and individuals, start planning for “the Peak Oil crisis” now.

US and China Slipping Into a Conflict Over Oil

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Occasionally, there are tipping-point moments and we are witnessing one at the moment. Seismic change is afoot. As oil prices breach $60 a barrel and pessimists warn that the world could be as little as 10 years away from a first-order resources crisis, China’s largest oil company, CNOOC, has launched a $18.5 billion bid for one of the US’s juiciest medium-sized oil companies, Unocal.

Making the World Sustainable

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Decades of an “environmental bubble economy” built on the over-exploitation of natural resources has accelerated global warming, environmental degradation, depletion of water and oil, and brought falling crop yields, precipitating a crisis in world food security with no prospects for improvement under the business as usual scenario.

Fossil Fuel Headlines – 11 July, 2005

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Pasadena Conference to focus on peak oil / Peak Oil: the next big thing / Green energy will never meet needs, says Exxon / Oil to Play for As North Sea’s Future Looks Bright / Should we invest in nuclear power? / Singapore Airlines CEO urges consolidation / Snow Visits U.S.’s Biggest Oil Supplier: It’s Not Saudi Arabia / Samuel Bodman – A whole new world of oil price increases / As Energy Shortage Looms, Hu Revisits Russia for Oil / Power Crunch Deepens as Heatwave Bakes China / Asia seeks alternatives to oil power as prices soar / Life of Chinese people under soaring oil price

Sustainability and Environment Headlines – 12 July, 2005

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‘BioWillie’ emerges as energy alternative to fuel costs / Interview with Jules Dervaes of Path to Freedom / Cheap and clean Emission-neutral vehicle getting rave reviews / Nanotechnology could turn rooftops into a sea of power-generating stations / Emissions: It’s Time to Go on a Low-Carbon Diet / China: The good life means more greenhouse gas / China: Where coal is king, everything else is sacrificed / Planet getting into hot water, says report / North Atlantic Ocean Temps Hit Record High