I think this is the beginnings of an economy based on perpetual growth and fossil fuel energy running headlong into geological energy constraints. Basically I see an undulatory downward path for the rest of my life. From here out, I think any rallies in our economic condition are going to be met with spiking commodity prices that knock us right back down.
To answer an earlier question first regarding water pressure. Look around your neighbourhood and see if there are any large water towers. If there are then you have a hydraulic pressure system, meaning that your water pressure is sustained by gravity rather than pumps.
gg3 wrote:
What I'm doing for urban sustainability: Designing telecommuter infrastructure for my clients; promoting telecommuting generally; installing remote-access on every system we install in order to reduce our own driving to client sites; replaced my incandescents with CFs; replaced my conventional washer with a twin-tub; use "purge water" (the cold that comes through before hot water in the shower) for toilet-flushes; and currently engaged in a serious design project on graywater recovery. And the usual stuff about recycling and not wasting heat. Next new vehicle a few years from now will almost certainly be some kind of hybrid or new-tech powertrain. When I buy a house I'm going to start doing all the usual things e.g. insulation, solar as soon as I can afford it, etc. etc.
This is some of the most sensible stuff that you can do to prepare. Get to really know your neighbourhood and neighbours. Start rebuilding and strengthiening your community. Do what you can to forestall the worst problems that will arise when the crisis hits bad.
Buying a gun is the last thing you need to do, besides there will be plenty to scavenge when the owners no longer need them. Think of this as you would emergency response, then extrapolate beyond the immediate needs to long term survival.
One of the thins I don't advocate is buying or continuing to own a car. Get rid of yours as soon as you can. This will put you in a position of needing to cope without one and will help you identify the weaknesses in your community due to the over reliance on personal transport.
Something I'm doing in my community is advocating the return of horse power. I don't mean going back in time, but taking advantage of modern technology and design and combining that with the advantages of horse power.
Regarding water purification, I'd investigate reverse osmosis equipment, particularly look at equipment used in marine applications. They are already designed to use power efficiently and there are some that require no power.
I think the same of cars. Probably the best investment is a cheap used Corolla. It will keep rolling for a long time, is good on gas, and can be paid off. More important than dumping 20k into a hybrid is to keep your overall mileage in check. It will be better for you to drive an old pickup 5000 miles a year, than to drive a new prius 15000. I understand that people still need cars, but those who purchase the better cars to me seem like they are chasing the rainbow. Better to deal with the root problem, over all mileage, first. Then you will have more money, more vehicle choices, and you won't be strapped with a loan on a car that'll be hard to unload living in a suburb, and so on.
Joined: Oct 04, 2004 Posts: 5651 Location: Body in OK, Heart in TX
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2005 9:11 am Post subject:
RdSnt wrote:
Regarding water purification, I'd investigate reverse osmosis equipment, particularly look at equipment used in marine applications. They are already designed to use power efficiently and there are some that require no power.
RO units use a lot of water. They recover only 5 to 15 percent of the water entering the system. The remainder is discharged as waste water. Because waste water carries with it the rejected contaminants, methods to recover this water are not practical for household systems. Waste water is typically connected to the house drains and will add to the load on the household septic system. An RO unit delivering 5 gallons of treated water per day may discharge 40 to 90 gallons of waste water per day to the septic system.
Are there newer RO systems that waste less water? I was drinking RO water until I found out about all the waste. I can't drink it anymore considering all the water problems in the world. I'm cursed (or blessed, depending on your point of view) with a conscience.
Are there newer RO systems that waste less water? I was drinking RO water until I found out about all the waste. I can't drink it anymore considering all the water problems in the world. I'm cursed (or blessed, depending on your point of view) with a conscience.
http://www.fourwinds-ii.com/PUR%20Water%20Makers.htm
This is an example of the type of system that I might use in an emergency, re: civic water supply is not available or contaminated. In that case I'm not going to worry about waste water.
The other thing to consider is that the waste water can be hooked into the gray water system.
Joined: Aug 18, 2004 Posts: 694 Location: SF Bay Area, Calif
Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2005 3:09 am Post subject:
gg3 wrote:
I am highly sceptical of urban gardening for two major reasons. One is all the toxic crap in the soil. Two is the toxic crap in the air, some of which comes down when it rains. And as for gardening in used tires, what about the toxic nasties in the rubber that could leach into your soil? Better to stick to clay pots and re-used plastic containers. And grow stuff indoors if possible.
I usually agree or am enlightened by gg3, but here I disagree.
Urban gardening is widespread throughout the world and has a big contribution to make after Peak Oil. There's a whole literature on the subject -- still not as much information as the topic deserves.
Toxic substances in the soil are localized, due to particular causes such as chips of lead paint scraped from a building. If one has contaminated soil, remediation is possible, but a fast solution is to import enough soil so your garden is a foot or more deep. Also, you can make good soil through composting.
For a fascinating look at the possibilities, see "ABOVE-GROUND GARDENS BY DR. MARTIN L. PRICE & LAURA S. MEITZNE" (ECHO website) at http://www.echotech.org/technical/technotes/Abovegro.PDF . ECHO specialized in agricultural information for the 3rd World.
What especially intrigued me was a garden made with a matrix of aluminum soda cans:
Quote:
The Wick Garden consists of a piece of polyester cloth (the "wick") laid out on a flat area in the shape of the desired garden and a 5-gallon bucket waterer (see above) placed directly on the wick. Set the root balls (the roots and soil attached to plants in their starting containers) of transplants directly on the wick. Finish the beds by filling in around the plants to a depth of 3-6" with some extremely airy material such as pine needles, pieces of coconut husk, or even cola cans. It is important that this material be something that will not become waterlogged. Leave a section of the cloth clear to hold the upside-down bucket. The wicking action of the cloth spreads water and nutrients to the roots, which grow above and below the surface of the cloth. Sometimes the cloth is first covered with a thin layer (0.5-1") of compost or potting soil. Best results are found with short or trailing vegetables and herbs, such as onions, radishes, lettuce and mint.
About toxic nasties in the air, I'm not sure what you're thinking of. I've heard of lead from car exhaust being a problem in gardens close to roadways, but I've never heard of any other problems with the air. Are you thinking of particulate matter?
I'm not sure why gg3 would put more faith in vegetables grown by a stranger in unknown conditions than in vegetables one grows oneself.
I'm not particularly worried about health problems from vegetables -- though I'd always wash them. I would be much more concerned about meat and dairy products. Or the health problems from long-term consumption of junk food.
Joined: May 19, 2004 Posts: 892 Location: San Francisco, California
Posted: Tue Feb 08, 2005 11:51 am Post subject: Correction: Hetch Hetchy power production
johnmarkos wrote:
1.6 Gwh/year -- nothing to sneeze at and comparable to the annual power use of the city of San Francisco. Of course, the entire Bay Area relies on this system but it is still a nice resource.
Wow, I'm surprised nobody called me on this one. I was off by over three orders of magnitude. San Francisco's annual power use is roughly six terawatt hours. 1.6 Gwh is enough to power the city for about three hours. Nonetheless, it may be enough to make the pumps go.
Joined: Aug 18, 2004 Posts: 694 Location: SF Bay Area, Calif
Posted: Tue Feb 08, 2005 12:38 pm Post subject:
Ludi wrote:
bart wrote:
but a fast solution is to import enough soil so your garden is a foot or more deep.
Just curious about where this soil would come from....
Right now, it's easy to get soil trucked in ready to garden. Amendments, etc. are cheap in the quantities needed for gardening.
In a post-peak world it won't be so easy, as you point out. Transporting a bulky item like soil is a hassle. Even so, I don't think soil is a limiting factor for gardening. You can only garden so much land intensively before you are overwhelmed.
Sand and clay are what the land surface of the earth is made up of, so we won't run out of these. The problem is getting them in the right proportions, and having enough nutrients and organic material in the soil.
For starters, we could start directing our waste stream into compost instead of to landfills and rivers. We would need:
Carbon sources: paper, wood, brush, clippings.
Nitrogen sources: food scraps, vegetation that's still green, urine, animal manure, etc.
As long as there is plant and animal life, we won't run out of these.
Organic farmers and gardeners are creating compost and soil now. On a national basis, Cuba is doing it. Over the millenia, farmers in China and other traditional cultures did it. Our ancestors did it.
Once we get over our cultural hangups, we will do it too.
Joined: May 19, 2004 Posts: 892 Location: San Francisco, California
Posted: Sat Feb 12, 2005 4:30 pm Post subject: Re: Correction: Hetch Hetchy power production
johnmarkos wrote:
johnmarkos wrote:
1.6 Gwh/year -- nothing to sneeze at and comparable to the annual power use of the city of San Francisco. Of course, the entire Bay Area relies on this system but it is still a nice resource.
Wow, I'm surprised nobody called me on this one. I was off by over three orders of magnitude. San Francisco's annual power use is roughly six terawatt hours. 1.6 Gwh is enough to power the city for about three hours. Nonetheless, it may be enough to make the pumps go.
I was wrong again. The initial figure of 1.6 Gwh/year was 1000 times too small. The Hetch Hetchy system produces "1.6 billion kilowatt hours a year." That's 1.6 terawatt hours.
Then there's The Geysers geothermal field near Santa Rosa, California, which produces, "Around 2,000 megawatts in 1988, enough electricity for about two cities the size of San Francisco."
Given that this region has already developed significant sources of renewable energy and that we have many other untapped potential sources of power (solar, tidal), I'm beginning to return to my initial sentiment that the SF Bay Area could fare relatively well post-peak.
Enough about my little corner of the world. Back to the general discussion of "sustainable life in an urban environment." It seems to me that city-dwellers should find out what existing and potential forms of renewable energy exist within a reasonable distance from their homes. Then, they should figure out where food is produced nearby. If the city is relying heavily on imports (of food, energy, or both) from a far-away region, they may want to consider moving.
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