Year End Musings

2008 has come and gone, what will 2009 bring?

I am optimistic for a new President that believes in science and who appoints actual scientists to top positions, but the challenges he will face are daunting. Renewable energy should be a top priority, as well as bringing climate change to the top of the agenda. Unfortunately a couple of La Nina assisted cold winters in North America have given ammunition to those who want to continue business as ususal, but there is a difference between weather and climate, and delay could be catastrophic.

I want to read Mark Lynas' book Six Degrees - I recently saw the National Geographic show based on it and it was very good and very frightening. I like how it showed the differences in the climate and ecology one degree at a time. Think about it - six degrees doesn't sound like much, but if your body temperature was raised by that amount you would be dead.

But it's a new year, and time to be optimistic that our species has more sense than bacteria (which will use up all their resources in a closed environment until they die).

And since it is cold and windy today in Grand Portage with snow everywhere, Here is a photo I took at the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve in Costa Rica.

From The "Practice What You Preach" Department

A couple of months ago I posted on how everyone should clean and check their wood stoves for leaks before the heating season. Mine was clean and ready, and I didn't think it had any leaks - until I discovered one last night.

I only fire it up when it gets below zero to save on propane, so with temperatures forecast to get down around ten to fifteen below and winds at 25-30 mph I thought I had better stoke up a nice fire.

A few hours later the fire was burning nice and hot, but my wife said she could smell an occasional whiff of smoke. I checked the dampers and vents and everything seemed fine, so I sat and watched the stove and pipe and sure enough - a short puff of smoke came out from where the flue damper was. The wind was strong enough to overpower the hot smoke and the pressure buildup caused the leak. I will need to replace that section of pipe, but in the meantime I will try to find some high temperature putty or tape as a solution for the winter.

I guess the moral of the story is; don't assume your stovepipe has no leaks until you watch it in windy conditions or test it under pressure.

Interesting Bird Sightings

Over the last couple of weeks I have had a Black-backed Woodpecker feeding on an old spruce snag in my yard. I was able to take a couple of pictures, but my camera only has a 6x optical zoom and I was not able to get closer without scaring him off.

My mom lives across the bay from me and has had a pair of Cardinals coming to her feeder. We never used to get them this far north, but they are even nesting in Grand Portage now. I will try to get some photos of them to post.

Birding is a lot of fun for me, and I have seen a few rarities around Grand Portage in the winter - the best one was a white phase Gyrfalcon about ten years ago. It was flying low over the softball field and at first I thought it was a Snowy Owl, but the head was much smaller and not round, and the wings were more pointed and tipped with black. It flew by only about thirty feet away from me and I had a great look at it.

OT and just for fun, here are a couple of photos of our puppy Maggie Maye and I getting ready to watch the Vikings.

The Difference Between Weather and Climate

I am looking out my office window at a foot of fresh snow, and temperatures tonight are supposed to get down to fifteen below (F) - so do I still believe all the talk about climate change?

Short answer: yes

Why? Because it doesn't matter what I believe, or what the current weather is on my little corner of the globe, climate change is happening and science is showing this every day.

I keep seeing arguments saying "global warming stopped in 1998" - well that is nonsense. 1998 was an extremely strong El Nino year that was very warm worldwide, but to base a trend starting from that date to extrapolate climate is dishonest. In order to have a valid climate period you need to use at least thirty years, and going by that the clear trend is upward. Even the temperature in Lake Superior has increased dramatically in the last 30 years. Just because the Earth is heating up it doesn't mean everyplace on the planet is going to turn into Miami Beach. Increased heat in the atmosphere will increase the energy available for storms, as well as increase the amount of water vapor the air can hold, so more intense snow and rain events are one of the predicted outcomes of climate change.

The science is solid, and a little Minnesota cold snap will not invalidate it.

Listen For Me On WOJB

I was recently interviewed at the Climate Change Symposium by WOJB radio in Hayward, WI. According to the station they will air it some time this weekend, but I am not sure of when. Since I am out of their range, if anyone hears it let me know in the comments - hopefully I don't sound too nervous.

Good News for Cleaner Air

In spite of intense efforts by the Bush administration to loosen rules on emissions, the EPA has dropped plans that would have allowed expansion of power plants without triggering the New Source Review portion of the Clean Air Act.

The EPA has also dropped another proposed rule change that would have allowed polluters near National Parks and other Class 1 airsheds to use computer models to average annual emissions for new air permits. Critics charge that this would mask shorter term spikes in pollutants.

By dropping these proposed changes the EPA is clearing the way for the Obama administration to set its own agenda with regards to industrial pollution controls, and I for one am looking forward to seeing who the new EPA administrator will be. Judging by the quality of appointments so far I am sure it will be someone who values science over ideology.