CLIMATE CHANGE AND GLOBAL WARMING

[Stanley]

Great point! A perfect example of the inability of any organisation to get it 'right' when the parameters on which decisions are made are altered by different priorities, control of funding etc. The sad fact now is that these things are controlled by the amount of flak they will get for any action taken. Development further down the flow raises the priority of that place above existing individual land holdings. Would it still be the same under the old system of Local Drainage Boards and catchment authorities? Is the problem to much centralisation?

[Tizer]

Even though our village is on the edge of the Levels any flood risk is not from water on the Levels but from water draining out of the fields on the slopes surrounding the Levels. The water that's already out there on the moor can spread out over many thousands of acres and it takes a heck of a lot of water to raise the surface level by even an inch. In heavy rain we get streams running off the fields and down onto the Levels but it's not a problem as long as the drains and ditches are maintained. In recent years there's been a vertical spout of water out of a hole in the ground at the entrance to a farm yard up the lane from us and it runs down and collects near us if the drains are blocked. The spout must be from the field drains converging at that point and the hydrostatic pressure of the water in them. Alongside the spout is a road drain but it's on the uphill side and not very effective even when it's clear. There have been complaints and some workmen were sent in last summer to sort it out and we saw them digging up the road...and it's just as bad this winter. The hole and the drain are still separate and the water has to shoot out of the hole, into the air and run uphill if it's to go down the road drain! They should have connected the two below ground level. But that's perhaps asking too much...

[Stanley]

That reminds me of my first charge in the army. I pointed out to a young officer who had told me to did a drain that water can't flow uphill. It never came to anything, I suppose someone took him on one side and instructed him in elementary physics.

[Stanley]

Re. flooding and surface water. It is universally accepted that a large area of hard standing such as a car park or a housing estate needs provision for dealing with contaminated surface run-off. This is best dealt with at source by the developers by installing ponds with reeds or other plants which slow down run-off filter contaminants out and destroy them by biological activity and provide a wild-life resource. However, this uses valuable building land and is a cost to the developers which has to be reflected in the contract price for the development. This being the case, the developer prefers to discharge the run-off directly into the sewers and leave the water authorities to deal with the problem.
The Environmental Agency recognises this problem and prefers the ponds but whistle-blowers report that due to budget cuts, there are no staff permanently dedicated to assessing the problem and producing a coherent policy that can be enforced. Meanwhile, the developers get away with shuffling the problem sideways onto the agencies and doing nothing to control the run-off they have created. See this LINK

[Tizer]

And yet if an individual like myself wants to self-build a house the planners insist on provision of SUDS, `sustainable urban drainage systems', even in some rural locations. The big building companies have the clout to get away with not providing it but the self-builder gets left with the burden. The UK building industry is very, very slow to take up modern building methods and we've got some of the most out-of-date homes in Europe being built in Britain.

[Stanley]

Bit like HMRC policies chasing unpaid tax, the little guy is an easier target than the big one and so you get the imbalance.
Consider this: If, from the start of building regs the capacity of the outfall sewer from a development had been set at twice (or even more) the expected flow, to allow for possible future development, how many problems would have been avoided today? The difference in cost between a 6" pipe and a 12" say is minimal, only the cost of the pipe. It's the excavations that are the major cost. Only a simple example but how many developments are being allowed today with minimum standards. Classic example is the Bazalgette sewers on the Embankment in London. (LINK) Heavily criticised at the time for being over-built and far too expensive, only now are they reaching capacity.
Then there is the continuing problem of building on flood plains....

[Stanley]

The extreme hot weather in Australia is leading of course to speculation as to whether this is evidence of climate change. Whatever the answer, it is certainly extreme!

[Tizer]

Reporting on the Australian heatwave, today's Financial Times says: "A third day of temperatures over 40C has focused attention on scientists’ warnings that heatwaves are one of the clearest examples of man-made climate change and Canberra’s recent decision to scrap a carbon tax introduced to curb emissions. An interim report published on Thursday by the Climate Council, a non-governmental group staffed by Australian scientists, found heatwaves in the country are becoming more frequent, lasting longer and the hottest days are becoming hotter. It blames increased greenhouse gas emissions for the intensity of the heatwaves. “Australia has always had hot weather. However, climate change is loading the dice toward more extreme hot weather,” said Professor Will Steffen, author of the report. The Climate Council was formed following a decision by Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s government to scrap a formal state Climate Commission, which was set up to provide reliable information on climate change. Australia’s second severe heatwave in a fortnight follows confirmation by the Bureau of Meteorology that 2013 was the hottest year on record. Average temperatures were 1.2C above the long-term average, breaking the previous record set in 2005 by 0.17C."
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/054961a8-7de5 ... z2qYeU2WPv

It's easier to determine the effects of climate change in Australia than in, for example, Europe because Australia has much less natural variability. I'm sorry to have to tell this to our members in Oz but it's going to get worse - this heatwave is bad but it's occurred outside the El Nino (Pacific warming) periods. When the next El Nino arrives the heatwaves will be even hotter.

[Stanley]

That sounds logical Tiz and even though it can't be proved to be accurate it should form the basis for 'worst case' planning. Too late when it turns out to be an accurate prediction. the AC load on the leccy supply has already forced voltage reductions and outages in some Australian cities. The system is working at peak capacity. There would seem to be an obvious case for increasing capacity.

[Wendyf]

News that climate change isn't to blame for the extreme weather conditions after all.....it's gay marriage what done it!

[Stanley]

If he believes he is right he has only one course open to him. Exodus and seek a promised land.....Nowt so queer as folk.....

[Tizer]

It's people like him who are responsible for Richard Dawkins hammering religion so hard.

[David Whipp]

I wonder what Act of Parliament brought the flooding in October 2009 down upon our heads?



Above is Skipton Road. A regular sight until a few years ago was the flooding of the road from side to side near the entrance to the old gas works. It was only after several years of pestering that the county council connected the road gulleys to a drain, allowing the surface water to get away.

The picture below shows the water swirling around upstream of a culvert under the path near West Close Farm. The face of the pipe was partially blocked by a plastic garden chair, causing it to back up along its length towards Gisburn Road and spill over the path and go overland rather than follow the stream bed. I took the picture after getting the chair away from the culvert entrance and before I removed it from the stream.

[hartley353]

22 Plus million people in Australia. In excess of 9 million residential HVAC systems, and no accurate numbers for commercial systems. Cities built without concern for the heat reflective properties of its materials. Average daily use of these systems 16 hrs trying to stay cool, it is no wonder they feel the heat. Not global warming just ignorance.

[chinatyke]

It's people like him who are responsible for Richard Dawkins hammering religion so hard.

... or in the case of Richard Dawkins, speaking the truth!

[Stanley]

I'm sure our Australian relatives would be heartened if they read Hartley's post. It's all their fault for living there. You'd get on well with Tony Abbott, he abolished the official body enquiring into climate change so the Aussies formed a voluntary organisation to take over the work....

[Whyperion]

Sorry, for once I am in partial agreement with Hartley. Building design and materials do contribute to localised warming (or rather reduced cooling), and no HVAC system should be permitted without it being powered 100% by renewables, particulary solar power.

[Tizer]

If we blame the Aussies for using air conditioning then we should also blame the British for having the worst insulated houses in Europe, exacerbated by knocking holes in their walls through to all-glass conservatories and then heating these conservatories with fossil fuel energy. The insulation efficiency of the glass in a conservatory is a small fraction of that of a properly insulated wall. Brits are blasting heat out into space from their beloved conservatories.

[Pluggy]

I plead not guilty your honour. no air con or conservatory here.......

However it is a Victorian built house with solid walls which makes it bad to heat

[Big Kev]

News that climate change isn't to blame for the extreme weather conditions after all.....it's gay marriage what done it!

I heard that too. Word is they're offering cheap holidays, to gay married couples, in drought hit countries

[Tizer]

Pluggy, we have a conservatory, closed off from the house with double-glazed French windows, but the sole heat source is the sun. When it's too cold we don't use it - unlike many folk who want to use a conservatory all year round like they want to eat summer season fruit all year round. The trouble now is that many people have used conservatories as a cheap and easier way of getting an extension on the house, so it's essentially like living in a glass house. They come out a lovely bright colour on the infra-red heat detectors!

[Stanley]

Lots of activity and announcements following the protests from the inhabitants of the Levels. Bringing in military help is short term and too late. What's more important is the fact that the massive pumping operation may have to be stopped because the river they are pumping the water into is 50% choked with silt and can't handle the flow. If they carry on pumping and there is even more rain (as forecast) the river will overtop its banks and the water will end up where they have pumped it from. If I were a councillor I would be demanding that dredging should be done in summer instead of going in too late in the year in October and November like they did last year.
Classic case of the political imperative ignoring the real world and getting it wrong.

[LizG]

22 Plus million people in Australia. In excess of 9 million residential HVAC systems, and no accurate numbers for commercial systems. Cities built without concern for the heat reflective properties of its materials. Average daily use of these systems 16 hrs trying to stay cool, it is no wonder they feel the heat. Not global warming just ignorance.

When we built a new house 4.5 years ago we were only able to get a building permit if we built a 5 star house (I think they are 6 or 7 star now). On our block, 2 acres, they were very particular about the size of the eaves, the orientation of the house on the block, that we caught the water off the roof etc.

We have solar panels, a 115 kl water tank (about 7 meters across) no air conditioning but we installed ceiling fans. We capture the winter sun in most rooms, but hardly any sun comes into the house during the summer months. Because we live close to the sea we get an afternoon sea breeze and the rooms are designed so that windows are opposite doors so when the breeze comes up it flows through the house.

During the oppressive heat of 45 degrees last week the maximum temperature inside was 31C; still hot but I don't believe a domestic split system could have done much better.

Our winter gas bill is never above $145 for heating and hot water for 2 months and the power bill is under $200 for 3 months (and we run a water pump most of the time.)

I thought I should go into bat for the Aussies; we don't just use power with gay abandon.

[Stanley]

Good lass Liz.....

[hartley353]

Thank you for your post Liz. It would seem there are some enlightened folk down under, is this a local state legislation or country wide, there are some excellent design points there. We are not considered to be a hot country but many of our homes and businesses consider 26-28 degreesC to be normal winter temps when setting the thermostat. It was interesting to note that your building of shade and breeze features into your home follows historic practice from many other hot countries. My posting of HVAC figures for OZ was purely to show the saturation point where working on a family unit of 2.2 people every one has access to one. This country could equally be castigated for the use of these systems were there is no necessity, and their use has caused damage to the health of the people where it is installed. Like you my home is fitted with ceiling fans one in the main bedroom and one in the lounge but they get little use. The lounge one can be used to drive down hot air that has gathered in the ceiling area, so has summer and winter use.....Mike