Places becoming less livable

[Shared Humanity]

Wow. This thread is really depressing. Maybe it should be retitled to people doubling down on climate change. Many of these locations should be evacuated, rather than cool the outdoors and truck in water for toilets.

They do a pretty good job of depressing you over on this thread too.

https://forum.arctic-sea-ice.net/index.php/topic,2728.150.html

[Klondike Kat]

Wow. This thread is really depressing. Maybe it should be retitled to people doubling down on climate change. Many of these locations should be evacuated, rather than cool the outdoors and truck in water for toilets.

It is not just Qatar and the like.  The U.S. southwest has witnessed tremendous population growth, due largely to air conditioning and water piping.  The Phoenix area had barely 100,000 inhabitants in 1950.  It now has over 4 million!

[Tom_Mazanec]

Wow. This thread is really depressing. Maybe it should be retitled to people doubling down on climate change. Many of these locations should be evacuated, rather than cool the outdoors and truck in water for toilets.

They do a pretty good job of depressing you over on this thread too.

https://forum.arctic-sea-ice.net/index.php/topic,2728.150.html

I often find AbruptSLR's postings on the multiple meter sea rise thread to be downers, too.

[Shared Humanity]

Wow. This thread is really depressing. Maybe it should be retitled to people doubling down on climate change. Many of these locations should be evacuated, rather than cool the outdoors and truck in water for toilets.

They do a pretty good job of depressing you over on this thread too.

https://forum.arctic-sea-ice.net/index.php/topic,2728.150.html

I often find AbruptSLR's postings on the multiple meter sea rise thread to be downers, too.

Neven should provide discounts for Prozac for visitors to this blog.

[El Cid]

Don't worry, there is a thread called "places becoming more liveable". that is  the counterweight of this one!

[oren]

Thanks, but I'm not counting on it to balance things.

[gerontocrat]

That thread is owned and managed by Dr. Pangloss - "everything is for the best in the best of all possible worlds".

[Tom_Mazanec]

I also note it is a lot smaller than this thread.

[Klondike Kat]

I also note it is a lot smaller than this thread.

That just shows that the number of pessimists far outnumber the optimists.   

[Tor Bejnar]

I'm reminded of a Mad Magazine piece where a good Samaritan reports to the phone company a pay phone that is vandalized on the NE corner of 7th Ave.  The receptionist asks where the caller is calling from, and is told, "The phone booth on the SW corner of 7th Ave."  A few minutes later, still in the vicinity, the good Samaritan sees a phone company truck and thinks, "Good on them for being prompt!"  The service truck pulls up to the phone booth at the SW corner of 7th Ave. and the driver jumps out with a sledge hammer and whacks the once-working phone to bits.  (from 1955, maybe? - friends of ours in the mid-60's had all the back issues.)

Does this explain "everything"?

[Sigmetnow]

The Toxic Bubble of Technical Debt Threatening America
Climate change will soon expose a crippling problem embedded in the nation’s infrastructure. In fire-ravaged California, it already has.
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2019/10/california-fires-and-pge-toxic-debt/600979/

[vox_mundi]

Senegal Baobab Forest Swallowed by Mining
https://phys.org/news/2019-10-stunning-senegal-baobab-forest-swallowed.html

... In Bandia, 65 kilometres (40 miles) west of Dakar, one of Senegal's most beautiful baobab forests is gradually being devoured by cement manufacturers' limestone quarries. Locals complain that mining activity is crumbling their houses and damaging their health.

... White dust from the Senegalese cement-maker Ciments du Sahel's 20 quarries in the area coat the village as well as the baobab trees. Its huge plant is visible from miles around.

The government, keen to support local industry, approved an expansion of 236 hectares (580 acres) for Ciments du Sahel in June.

... Bandia forest has had protected status since 1933 and is home to a wildlife reserve with rhinos, zebras and giraffes that is a hit with tourists.

Only one fifth of the original forest is left—or some 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres)—according to Ngom. The number of quarries rose from two in 2002 to 20 in 2019, he said.

"There were mango trees here, eucalyptus, acacias, and baobab. When I was a boy, we played among the trees," he said. "They've all fallen down, one after another", Ngom said in Bandia, pointing out an abandoned mine in the distance.

"Look, not one flower is left, not one animal. Here, nature can no longer retake its rightful place," he said above the noise of passing lorry traffic.

------------------------

Mekong Levels at Lowest on Record as Drought and Dams Strangle River
https://phys.org/news/2019-10-mekong-shrivels-drought-strangle-seasia.html

Along parts of Thailand's northeastern border at Loei, the kilometre-wide (3,300-foot) river has shrivelled to a few dozen metres, with boulders and bedrock encasing muddy pools of water.

From above, the encroaching banks of Laos and Thailand are now a thread of water apart, restricting fishing grounds to a slim channel.

Fishermen blame a combination of this year's weak monsoon and the Xayaburi dam, around 300 kilometres (185 miles) to the north.

... "The concern is for the upcoming dry season."

[vox_mundi]

Use of Neonicotinoids on Rice Paddies Linked to Fishery Collapse in Japan
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-neonicotinoids-rice-paddies-linked-fishery.html

A team of researchers with members affiliated with several institutions in Japan has found what they describe as compelling evidence of two fisheries collapsing due to use of neonicotinoid pesticides by nearby rice farmers.



... Back in 1993, fishermen working at two fisheries on Lake Shinji, Japan found that yields had suddenly dropped dramatically. The reason for it was not known but many suspected it was tied to the use of neonicotinoid pesticides by nearby farmers—a new practice. To find out if that was indeed the case, the researchers gathered data obtained by other teams studying the lake over a period ten years before and after the collapse of the fisheries.



In looking at the results, the researchers found that the year following the first use of neonicotinoid pesticides in the local area, the amount of zooplankton in the lake nosedived. This was followed by a very swift drop in population of the fish that fed on them. More specifically, they found that zooplankton biomass shrank by approximately 83 percent. That year the smelt harvest was just 22 tons, a dramatic drop from an average haul of 240 tons each year.



The researchers note that they also studied other factors that might have led to fishery collapse, such as nutrient depletion or changes in oxygen or salt concentrations. They report that they were not able to find any evidence showing that there might have been something other than pesticides killing the food fish ate leaving them to starve. They conclude that the evidence strongly suggests it was the introduction of neonicotinoid pesticides into the lake environment that led to the die-offs.



Masumi Yamamuro et al. Neonicotinoids disrupt aquatic food webs and decrease fishery yields, Science (2019)

[Sigmetnow]

Utqiagvik, Alaska

Alaska’s Big Whale Mystery: Where Are the Bowheads?
As the Arctic struggles with climate extremes, the bowhead migration is two months late. If whales don’t arrive soon, “we’re going to go hungry,” one hunter said.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/31102019/climate-change-alaska-missing-bowhead-whale-migration-krill-canada-arctic-sea-ice

[vox_mundi]

India air pollution at 'unbearable levels', Delhi minister says
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-50280390

Air pollution in the north of India has "reached unbearable levels," the capital Delhi's Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal says.

https://twitter.com/Varun_Jhaveri/status/1190887202319790080

... I think we are heading towards Delhi recording the most polluted day in the history of world!! Most of the Delhi areas are showing an AQI of 999 because the meters can't record above that. This is a DISASTER!

https://aqicn.org/city/india/new-delhi/us-embassy/

.... Five million masks were handed out in schools on Friday as officials declared a public health emergency and Mr Kejriwal likened the city to a "gas chamber".



Satellite imaging showed more than 3,000 incidents of stubble burning in neighbouring states last week. The practice is estimated to cause 44% of Delhi’s pollution.

-----------------------------

New Delhi Schools Shut because of Toxic Smog
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-delhi-schools-toxic-smog.html

An expert panel in India's capital has declared a health emergency due to air pollution choking the city, with authorities ordering schools closed until Nov. 5.

The Supreme Court-appointed panel is also temporarily banning construction activity in the New Delhi region to control the dust in the air.

--------------------

Flights Diverted in Delhi as Toxic Smog Hits Worst Levels of 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/03/flights-diverted-in-delhi-as-toxic-smog-hits-worst-levels-of-2019

... By Sunday the air quality had deteriorated further, with the air quality index measuring over 900 in some areas, far exceeding the level of 25 deemed safe by the WHO, and well above even the 500 mark deemed “severe plus”.

Visibility became so bad that more than 30 flights were redirected from Delhi airport.

... Sachin Mathur, 31, an auto-rickshaw driver in north-west Delhi, said he had to stay outside for work and he had been struggling to breathe and could barely keep his eyes open on the roads.

... “Over the past 10 years the situation has been getting worse. We never used to see pollution like this,” said Rao. “The past few days have been absolutely awful. We have seen many of our pupils falling sick and complaining of having difficulty breathing.

[nanning]

A beautiful and moving short documentary film by the Guardian (Australia).
Thank you Guardian for reporting reality and for your high morality.

(4m58)

[vox_mundi]

Experts Recommend Oxygen Tanks to Deal With Delhi's Crippling Pollution
https://earther.gizmodo.com/experts-recommend-oxygen-tanks-to-deal-with-delhis-crip-1821707237
https://earther.gizmodo.com/closed-schools-delayed-flights-and-restricted-cars-i-1839607214

... Shitty air quality is nothing new for residents in this part of India. Last year, air pollution was so bad in New Delhi that the government enlisted firefighters to shoot the skies with water. The idea was that that would help break up the pollution particles. In the past, experts have even advised residents in Delhi to begin wearing oxygen tanks to breathe more safely.

This time, however, the air quality has reached a whole new level of disgusting.

... In November, Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal called Delhi a “gas chamber” due to the extreme pollution, and the region saw a number of traffic accidents (with one turning out fatal) just a day later. Experts now speculate people who live in the Delhi region could legit need oxygen cylinders to safely breathe the air. In fact, residents could need five cylinders a day, according to India.com.

... Oxygen cylinders aren’t a part of any plan, but governments might consider allocating funding for those soon if things don’t get any better.

http://berkeleyearth.lbl.gov/air-quality/local/India/NCT/Delhi

http://berkeleyearth.lbl.gov/air-quality/local/India

-------------------------

Delhi-NCR Citizens Will Soon Need Five Oxygen Cylinders a Day to Survive: Experts
https://www.india.com/news/india/delhi-ncr-citizens-will-soon-need-five-oxygen-cylinders-a-day-to-survive-experts-2815113/

New Delhi, December 30: Rising pollution levels in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) could soon see residents walking around carrying oxygen cylinders on their backs to counter it, experts warn. If the situation in Delhi-NCR remains the same, experts believe that citizens would soon need at least five oxygen cylinders in a day.

[nanning]

^^
I would be very surprised if Delhi's poor residents will also be receiving these oxygen cylinders.
Please don't forget the 'other people'; the money-poor humans.

Otherwise it's not a solution, is it? Or, who knows, perhaps some will see it surreptitiously as a final solution such as envisioned by Hitler. 'We' need to lose a large part of the population no? You know, enemy nr. 1 and so forth...

[vox_mundi]

Does Climate Change Affect Real Estate Prices? Only If You Believe In It
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-climate-affect-real-estate-prices.html

For the large-scale study, researchers combined sea level data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), geographic data about climate change attitudes from the Yale Program on Climate Change, and proprietary data on millions of repeat real estate transactions from Zillow to examine patterns in high-risk areas.

They found that, even after taking myriad variables into account, homes projected to be under water located in climate change "denier" neighbourhoods sell for roughly 7 percent more than homes in "believer" neighbourhoods.

"If everyone were to say, 'I'm not buying beachfront property here because it's going to get flooded,' then prices would collapse. But if you don't believe in climate change, you might say, 'You guys are crazy. Climate change isn't a real thing, so I see a buying opportunity,'" explains UBC Sauder School of Business assistant professor and study co-author Markus Baldauf.

Because so many people live close to coastlines, adds Baldauf, the effects are amplified. "If you wanted to create a society that's really susceptible to climate change," he says, "you would arrange it like they have in the U.S., because the population centres are really close to the water."

The researchers also examined political party affiliations, and while right-leaning communities were heavier on climate deniers, the effect still occurred even when accounting for political differences.

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3240200

[Sigmetnow]

More on New Delhi

We Are Running Out of Air
One suffocating city is a harbinger of health crises around the world.

Officials have implored the people of New Delhi to stay inside, indefinitely. Five million children in India’s capital have been handed face masks. Everyone is to keep windows closed. Contrary to the most fundamental medical advice, the city’s chief minister urged residents this week to “avoid outdoor physical activities.”

News images seem cut from an apocalyptic outbreak film. One of India’s holiest rivers is covered in toxic foam that looks like white cotton candy. Midday visibility is like a foggy dusk. The air reportedly causes people’s eyes to burn.

At the root is not some panic-inducing virus, though. The cause is simply pollution from agriculture and transportation. And the city’s air crisis is unique only in degree. The same elements are accumulating in the air everywhere. ...

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/11/delhi-air-crisis/601507/

Choking pollution led to China’s aggressive steps to control coal and vehicle emissions.  Likely the same will happen here.

[vox_mundi]

Mothers-To-Be Fear for Their Unborn in Smog-Choked Delhi
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-mothers-to-be-unborn-smog-choked-delhi.html

... This toxic cocktail cuts short the lives of one million people in India every year, according to government research published in June.

The same report blamed air pollution for killing more than 100,000 under-fives every year.

But even before they are born, smog is as bad as smoking when it comes to miscarriages, another study released in the journal Nature Sustainability last month indicated.

... besides miscarriages, rates of underweight babies as well as premature births are rising in cities with high levels of pollution.

[gerontocrat]

The wrong dam in the wrong place + bad engineering + corruption. What possibly could (not) go wrong?

And the real reason for this monstrosity ? - a mega Gold Mine, making sure even more forest is destroyed and the rivers polluted.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/08/death-of-a-river-the-ruinous-design-flaw-in-a-vast-amazon-rainforest-dam
Poorly planned Amazon dam project 'poses serious threat to life'
Operator faces choice of weakening 14km barrier or potentially devastating a biodiversity hotspot

by Jonathan Watts in Belo Monte

The biggest hydroelectric project in the Amazon rainforest has a design flaw that poses a “very serious” threat to human life and globally important ecosystems, according to documents and expert testimony received by the Guardian.

The studies suggest engineers failed to anticipate the impact of water shortages on the Pimental dam at Belo Monte, which has been closed and turned into a barrier. This is forcing the operators to choose between a structural weakening of the 14km-wide compacted-earth barrier and a reallocation of water in the reservoir or on the Xingu river, which is home to indigenous communities, fishing villages and some of the world’s most endangered species.

His concerns were echoed by Francisco del Moral Hernandez, an energy science specialist who coordinated an expert panel on Belo Monte in 2009. “We’ve always known this project is inefficient from the standpoint of power generation. What we did not imagine is the weakness of the civil engineering,” he said. “If I were living downstream of the dam, I would move upriver … It is absurd this was not foreseen.”

Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, who is reportedly planning to attend the completion ceremony for Belo Monte, has weakened protections for the environment and indigenous communities. Local politicians will urge him to push ahead with another mega-project in the volta grande, a giant new goldmine called Belo Sun, which would be powered by the dam.

and more....and more...and more....on how to wreck the rainforest, biodiversity and the livelihood of the local population.

[kassy]

You forgot this one:
They (federal prosecuters) also intend to appeal to the Brazilian government for emergency humanitarian aid to support riverine populations that have experienced a devastating decline of fish on which they depend for nutrition and income.

But i was really wondering what would fail in the design:
it says that water levels fell the previous day to a critical 95.2 metres, which posed a risk that waves “will reach areas of the dam not protected by rock” reinforcements. It asks permission for more water from the intermediate reservoir, a move which would put more pressure on an already strained hydrology.

Cute.

Hernandez and Sawakuchi said planners had been over-optimistic because historical data showed the Xingu river was lower on at least four occasions during the 50 years before construction started.

So that problem was 100% garanteed to show up during its lifetime.

[TerryM]

Lula was released from prison yesterday!


Sorry - no link.
Terry

[kassy]

You are warning the other Brazilians? 

[Sigmetnow]

Red tide is back off the coast of Florida. Residents aren't sure how much more they can take

It's the length of these red tides and their close succession that is so troubling, said the 32-year Naples resident.

"If you've been here 20 or 30 years, red tide was an event that was around for a weekend or a week," he said. "Now, we're looking at months."

Florida's red tide is caused by a species of algae called Karenia brevis, which release neurotoxins that can be deadly to wildlife and can even cause breathing problems in humans on land.

While red tide has occurred for centuries, the 2017-2018 event was the fifth-longest on record, and only the second since 2007 to hit Florida's east, southwest and northwest coasts at the same time.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/12/us/red-tide-southwest-florida-returns-2019/index.html

[vox_mundi]

Venice Underwater as Exceptional Tide Sweeps Through Canal City
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-venice-underwater-exceptional-tide-canal.html

Venice was hit by the highest tide in more than 50 years late Tuesday, with tourists wading through flooded streets to seek shelter as a fierce wind whipped up waves in St. Mark's Square.

The exceptionally intense "acqua alta," or high waters, peaked at 1.87 metres (six feet) as the flood alarm sounded across the Italian city of canals, the tide monitoring centre said.

Only once since records began in 1923 has the water crept even higher, reaching 1.94 metres in 1966.

The exceptional flood, which he blamed on climate change, was "a wound that will leave a permanent mark".



... Water taxis attempting to drop people off at the glamorous and historic hotels along the Grand Canal discovered the gangways had been washed away, and had to help passengers clamber through windows.

At the sumptuous Gritti Palace, which has played host to royals and celebrities over the decades, including Ernest Hemingway, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, the decadent bar was largely underwater.

Rich tapestries were piled onto tables, while the waters lapped around velvet sofas and leather-bound books.



... Pierpaolo Campostrini, a member of St. Mark's council, said the scale of the flooding on Tuesday had only been seen five times in the long history of the basilica, where construction began in 828 and which was rebuilt after a fire in 1063.

Most worryingly, Campostrini said, three of those five episodes occurred in the last 20 years, most recently in 2018.

[pikaia]

"...peaked at 1.87 metres ..."

This is meaningless to me. Measured from where? It would be more meaningful to give the depth of water in St. Mark's Square, for example.

[kassy]

Related to standard height there, see:

http://en.turismovenezia.it/Venezia/High-Water-Information-Centre-7442.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acqua_alta

[El Cid]

Seriously, Venice is worse than Miami and that is quite something. It is built on small islands in an originally marshy environment. It was floodprone even in the best of times but that was the tradeoff at the time: protected from raiders but flooded by the sea at times. Now, as water levels rise, it does not take much to destroy the whole place. There will be no Venice in 2100 and maybe not much of it even by 2050. We should not be surprised that cities built at/even below the sea level are going to disappear.

[Tom_Mazanec]

Another one worse than Miami is New Orleans, as we learned a few years ago.