Climate Letter #682

Extreme heat in the southwestern US.  Temperature records are threatened, and intense wildfires are also being reported in several states.  If you scroll down a ways, this interesting website includes information about how current heatwaves are being amplified by increased humidity, compared with those of the past.  This makes them all the more dangerous for humans who are fully exposed.

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The coming “tsunami” of new infrastructure.  “The next few decades are expected to see some 25 million km of new paved roads, thousands more hydroelectric dams, and hundreds of thousands of new mining, oil and gas projects.”  This post gives many of the details about where they are located, how they are financed, and the consequences for the environment and biodiversity.  The World Bank is cooperating, “in order to keep up with new and varied development demands.”  It seems that humans are not yet done with their relentless push to occupy and transform every square inch of the natural world.
The champion of biodiversity has a completely opposing recommendation, as discussed in the Guardian:
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Why the demand for coal in China will be hard to curtail.  The main reason is because so many of its existing power plants are relatively young, and not ready for replacement like most of those in the older developed countries.  This post has all the data, and a good discussion about the implied uncertainties for making forecasts affecting the whole world.
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How low oil and gas prices affect the trend of CO2 emissions.  There are a number of complications, as discussed here.  Cheap gas has largely served to displace coal, which is favorable, while cheap oil has caused people to burn more gasoline and also slowed the development of transportation alternatives.  On balance, higher prices would no doubt contribute to the climate change mitigation effort.
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The dinosaur extinction event did in fact happen rapidly.  There is new evidence which strongly supports the theory that a major asteroid strike was fully responsible.  The short video shows how and where that evidence was gathered.  Other past extinction events are generally thought to be caused by means that unfold more slowly.
Today’s extinction event might be best classified as a rapid one.  This production, called “We are the Asteroid,”  was created a year ago and posted in this letter.  It makes good points, worth watching again.
Carl

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