Local Store Cheaper than Online

The blades on my electric razor were blunt, so I searched online for new ones. But I found they were cheaper (and more environmentally friendly) at the local store.

First I looked for a sharpener online. Vollco Sharpening Heads are available for rotary razors by Phillips/Norelco and Remington. The sharpeners consist of a plastic disks with abrasive material in the bottom. You replace the foils of the razor with these and run the razor for a few seconds, to sharpen the blades. I have used this on a previous razor and it worked okay, but these units are not approved by the razor makers and are controversial.

As I had a new razor (a Phillips Speed-XL Model using HQ9 heads), I needed a different set of sharpening heads. The blades for different model razors are different shape. The sharpener is cheaper than replacement blades (conventional wisdom seems to be you can sharpen the blades two or three times). But I found that my previous razor did not last past one resharpening.

Replacement blades are available for foil and rotary razors. One catch with rotary razors in the number of heads. My razor has only two heads but most of the replacements are sold in packs of three.

Taking into account the shipping cost and the exchange rate, I found it was cheaper to get on my bicycle and go down to the local shaver shop and buy the blades there. I found they sold replacement heads one at a time. So I was able to buy just two replacements. The shop also offered to install the replacements for me, but it was easy enough to do myself. Apart from the lower cost, there was also the benefit of lower environmental impact, as hopefully the shop's stock came by an efficient ship, whereas the online order would have come by air.

The replacement blades still cost about one third the price of a new razor, which sounds excessive. Perhaps someone would like to set up a business sharpening razor blades? ;-)

See also Amazon.com:

Shavers

• Foil Shavers
  • Braun
  • Remington
  • Panasonic
  • Replacement Foils & Cutters

• Rotary Shavers
  • Philips Norelco
  • Remington
  • Replacement Heads
  • Sharpening Heads

• Replacement Parts

Flat screen TVs causing global warming?

The paper "NF₃ , the greenhouse gas missing from Kyoto" (Michael J. Prather and Juno Hsu, GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 35, L12810, doi:10.1029/2008GL034542, 2008) suggests a chemical used in making plasma and LCD panels needs to be monitored. The chemical is Nitrogen trifluoride and is a powerful greenhouse gas (17,200 times that of CO2). It was introduced to replace nastier chemicals: hexafluoroethane and sulfur hexafluoride. It is used to clean the Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment which deposits thin high purity films on the flat panel displays.

The extent of the problem is not known, as the production of NF₃ is not reported and it is also not known how much is lost in the production process. Prather's paper is not the first to raise the issue, with:

1. Estimates of US emissions of high-global warming potential gases and the costs of reductions (Harvey, 2000),
2. Keeping Cool without Warming the Planet: Cutting HFCs, PFCs, and SF 6 in Europe
   (Anderson, 2000)
3. How to Do Environmental Innovation Journalism (Forsberg)

GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 35, L12810, doi:10.1029/2008GL034542, 2008

NF₃, the greenhouse gas missing from Kyoto

Michael J. Prather
Earth System Science Department, University of California, Irvine, California, USA

Juno Hsu
Earth System Science Department, University of California, Irvine, California, USA

Abstract

Nitrogen trifluoride (NF₃) can be called the missing greenhouse gas: It is a synthetic chemical produced in industrial quantities; it is not included in the Kyoto basket of greenhouse gases or in national reporting under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); and there are no observations documenting its atmospheric abundance. Current publications report a long lifetime of 740 yr and a global warming potential (GWP), which in the Kyoto basket is second only to SF₆. We re-examine the atmospheric chemistry of NF₃ and calculate a shorter lifetime of 550 yr, but still far beyond any societal time frames. With 2008 production equivalent to 67 million metric tons of CO₂, NF₃ has a potential greenhouse impact larger than that of the industrialized nations' emissions of PFCs or SF₆, or even that of the world's largest coal-fired power plants. If released, annual production would increase the lower atmospheric abundance by 0.4 ppt, and it is urgent to document NF₃ emissions through atmospheric observations.

Received 5 May 2008; accepted 27 May 2008; published 26 June 2008.

Keywords: greenhouse gases; nitrogen trifluoride; Kyoto Protocol; climate change.

Index Terms: 0317 Atmospheric Composition and Structure: Chemical kinetic and photochemical properties; 3305 Atmospheric Processes: Climate change and variability (1616, 1635, 3309, 4215, 4513); 6620 Public Issues: Science policy (0485); 1610 Global Change: Atmosphere (0315, 0325).

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Read Full Article (file size: 71271 bytes) Cited by

Citation: Prather, M. J., and J. Hsu (2008), NF₃, the greenhouse gas missing from Kyoto, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L12810, doi:10.1029/2008GL034542.

Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

OECD meeting on ICT and Environment

Professor John Houghton sent me a note to say he is at the workshop the OECD are currently holding a in Copenhagen on ICTs and Environmental Challenges . This is to discuss the environmental impact of ICTs in the knowledge economy. Slides and video from the conference are available online:

• Welcome and introduction

1. A framework for modelling ICT and environmental challenges using future scenarios
2. From green attitude to green action: The approach of the Norwegian ICT-industry
3. Eco-innovation in the knowledge economy: Challenges and opportunities for ICT
4. Comments and questions
5. The future impact of ICTs on environmental sustainability
6. ICT contribution to the emergence of carbon-sober social behaviour
7. ICTs and the environment: A framework for analysis
8. Comments and questions

• ICTs in pollution management, cleaner technologies and better resource management

1. e-Strategies in governments and business
2. Networks, energy consumption and managing energy use
3. Impacts of technology-specific applications: broadband access, DSL and fibre access networks
4. Comments and questions
5. Energy efficiency in ICTs
6. Environmental benefits of broadband
7. How green IT can beat CO2
8. Comments and questions

• The ICT producing sector – challenges and progress

1. Environmental impact of ICT: A conceptual framework and some strategic recommendations
2. ICTs, resource management and energy efficiency
3. The Green IT index and firm organisation
4. Comments and questions
5. High tech: Low carbon
6. The TCO label: Marketing, development and certification issues
7. The changing role of ICT: An industry view
8. Comments and questions

• Policy developments, policy issues and implications for future work

1. The road from Bali to Copenhagen
2. European policies for ICTs in a highly-efficient, low-carbon economy
3. The Global e-sustainability Initiative (GeSI)
4. Comments and questions
5. Japan's Green IT Initiative
6. How Public Administration can contribute to a sustainable ICT
7. The Action Plan for Green IT in Denmark
8. Comments and questions

• Conclusions

Tender for Government Emissions Trading Scheme

The New Zealand government has issued a request for "Outsourcing of Administrative Functions for the Emissions Trading Scheme (Forestry)". This is a good application for Internet technology (Australia is also to use a "internet auction platform"). To get the details you have to register with the NZ Government Electronic Tenders Service.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (“MAF”) wishes to contract with an outsource partner for the provision of certain Contact Centre and Transaction Processing services to support the Emissions Trading Scheme (“ETS”) announced by the Government.

As a signatory of the Kyoto Protocol, New Zealand has an obligation to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels through the period 2008 – 2012, or take responsibility for any excess emissions. As part of its management regime, the Government has decided to implement an economy wide Emissions Trading Scheme (“ETS”).

On enactment of the legislation, the forestry sector (the first of five sectors) can join the ETS with effect from 1 January 2008. New Zealand will be the first country in the world to bring forestry into an economy wide emissions trading scheme.

The Ministry of Economic Development (“MED”) will have overall responsibility for ETS administration and MAF will administer the forest specific aspects of the scheme (“ETS (Forestry)”) under delegated authority from the Chief Executive of MED.

MAF expects that there will be high levels of activity through both the Contact Centre and the Transaction Processing Centre in the first eighteen months of operation. Forest landowners will be seeking information about the scheme, and applying to join, or seeking to be exempt. Some will be applying for free carbon credits being issued by the Government. After that initial period there will be a lower steady state of activity, dealing with notifications of change and processing of emission returns.

Whilst not a part of this Request for Proposal, MAF is also responsible for the operation of other forestry schemes and, over time, will be seeking to align the administration of these with the administration of the ETS (Forestry).

MAF is seeking a “best of class” service from an experienced outsource partner, capable enabling MAF to meet its business objectives for ETS (Forestry) and of dealing with uneven flows of activity. ...

From: "Outsourcing of Administrative Functions for the Emissions Trading Scheme (Forestry)", Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 2008

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme for Australia

Professor Ross Garnaut has released the latest part of his climate change study commissioned by the Australian state and federal governments. This proposes a n emissions trading scheme. There is a media release, Executive Summary, and full Emissions Trading Scheme Discussion Paper (477kb).

The trading scheme would use an "use an internet auction platform" (on Page 78 of the report). This might be the most significant contribution that ICT makes to the world.

From the Executive Summary:

... The centrepiece of the ETS is a greenhouse gas emissions market. A price on carbon is needed to address the market failure of unpriced greenhouse gas emissions. ...

Target and trajectories: ... Australia should declare the ambitious emissions budgets and target trajectories that it would be prepared to accept in the context of an effective, comprehensive global agreement. Along with the design of the ETS we can announce a set of trajectories of permit releases over time, consistent with our emissions budgets. The trajectories should embody rising degrees of constraint. Any shift in trajectory should only be triggered by movement towards stronger effective international mitigation commitments. ...

Design of an effective ETS: An ETS is established to reduce emissions, but the emissions limit is a decision to be made outside of the scheme itself. In developing the ETS design, the singular objective should be to provide a transactional space that enables the transmission of permits to economic agents for whom they represent the greatest economic value.
A number of guiding principles can be applied in order to achieve this objective, including scarcity, tradability, credibility, simplicity and integration. These principles define a solid framework within which an effective market can be designed.

Intrinsic and extrinsic features: An ETS has two types of design features: those that are essential to the operational efficiency of the scheme, referred to as intrinsic features, (for example the scheme’s coverage, permit allocation rules, compliance rules and governance); and those that are defined outside of the scheme’s operation, but still have considerable influence on the scheme’s economic impact, referred to as extrinsic features (for example, defining the emissions limits and principles for compensation). Both these design feature types exist within a broader context of factors that affect the operation of the scheme but are beyond the influence of policy decisions on ETS design, known as exogenous factors (for example the evolving global environment agreement as well as the evolving scientific and technological knowledge bases).

Permit Allocation: The price of permits, the increase in the price of electricity and other emissions-intensive products, and structural change in the economy in response to the restriction on emissions, will not be affected by the method of permit allocation. Transaction costs will be lowest if they are auctioned; any free allocation of permits will involve elaborate assessment and political processes. ...

International Trade: The costs of abatement can potentially be substantially reduced, and therefore more ambitious targets achieved, by international trade in permits. However, linking with an economy that has a flawed domestic mitigation system will result in the import of those flaws. Variations in the quality of mitigation arrangements across countries mean that the decision to link with particular markets is a matter for fine judgement, but ultimately global mitigation will only be successful if countries can trade in emission permits. Opportunities for international linkage of the Australian ETS should be sought in a judicious and calibrated manner.

Governance: Sound governance arrangements are necessary to issue permits and to ensure that permits are acquitted in line with emissions. In Australia, there is a place for an independent institution playing a central role in administration of the ETS, within policy parameters established by legislation. In this report, we refer to such an institution as the Independent Carbon Bank. ...

Compensation: This is a difficult reform, and a permit price that is high enough to secure levels of emissions within targets and budgets will have major effects on income distribution. The losers from such changes (households, and low-income households in particular, but in some circumstances domestic and foreign shareholders in highly emissions-intensive businesses) may feel that they can make a case for compensatory payments. The case for substantial measures to reduce the impact of the reform on living standards of low-income households is strong, and will affect political support for and perceptions of stability of an efficient ETS. ...

From: Executive Summary, Emissions Trading Scheme Discussion Paper, Garnaut Climate Change Review, Ross Garnaut , March 2008

See Books on:

• Emissions Trading
• ISO 14000 environmental management standards
• environmental management

Garnaut Climate Change Interim Report

The interim Garnaut Climate Change Review, commissioned by Australian governments has been released. The suggested cuts in green house gas emissions are possible with minimal impact on our lifestyle and economy. Reducing energy use with computers, broadband and the Internet, could help. A further Draft Report will be released 30 June 2008 and a Final Report 30 September 2008.

Available are:

1. Media release (353kb)
2. Executive Summary (44kb)
3. Full Report (634kb)

The full report is 64 pages long. All the documents appear to have been efficiently and carefully encoded in PDF, unlike many government reports. But the reports could do with shorter web addresses. They are about 150 characters long. Removing the duplicated text and "MicrosoftWord" would help, especially as the files are in PDF format, not Microsoft Word.


Here is the text of the executive summary:

This Interim Report seeks to provide a flavour of early findings from the work of the Review, to share ideas on work in progress as a basis for interaction with the Australian community, and to indicate the scope of the work programme through to the completion of the Review. There are some important areas of the Review’s work that are barely touched upon in the Interim Report, which will feature prominently in the final reports. Adaptation to climate change, energy efficiency and the distribution of the costs of climate change across households and regions are amongst the prominent omissions from this presentation.

Many views put forward in this Interim Report represent genuinely interim judgements. The Review looks forward to feedback from interested people before formulating recommendations for the final reports.

Developments in mainstream scientific opinion on the relationship between emissions accumulations and climate outcomes, and the Review’s own work on future “business as usual” global emissions, suggest that the world is moving towards high risks of dangerous climate change more rapidly than has generally been understood. This makes mitigation more urgent and more costly. At the same time, it makes the probable effects of unmitigated climate change more costly, for Australia and for the world.

The largest source of increased urgency is the unexpectedly high growth of the world economy in the early twenty-first century, combined with unexpectedly high energy intensity of that growth and continuing reliance on high-emissions fossil fuels as sources of energy. These developments are associated with strong economic growth in the developing world, first of all in China. The stronger growth has strong momentum and is likely to continue. It is neither desirable nor remotely feasible to seek to remove environmental pressures through diminution of the aspirations of the world’s people for higher material standards of living. The challenge is to end the linkage between economic growth and emissions of greenhouse gases.

Australia’s interest lies in the world adopting a strong and effective position on climate change mitigation. This interest is driven by two realities of Australia’s position relative to other developed countries: our exceptional sensitivity to climate change: and our exceptional opportunity to do well in a world of effective global mitigation. Australia playing its full part in international efforts on climate change can have a positive effect on global outcomes. The direct effects of Australia’s emissions reduction efforts are of secondary importance. Australia has an important role to play alongside its international partners in establishing a realistic approach to global mitigation. Australia can contribute to the development of clear international understandings on the four components of a successful framework for global mitigation: setting the right global objectives for reduction of the risk of dangerous climate change; converting this into a goal for stabilisation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at a specified level; calculating the amount of additional emissions that can be emitted into the atmosphere over a specified number of years if stabilisation of atmospheric concentrations is to be achieved at the desired level; and developing principles for allocating a limited global emissions budget among countries.

Australia should make firm commitments in 2008, to 2020 and 2050 emissions targets that embody similar adjustment cost to that accepted by other developed countries. A lead has been provided by the European Union, and there are reasonable prospects that the United States will become part of the main international framework after the November 2008 elections. Some version of the current State and Federal targets of 60 per cent reduction by 2050, with appropriate interim targets, would meet these requirements.

Australia would need to go considerably further in reduction of emissions as part of an effective global agreement, with full participation by major developing countries, designed to reduce risks of dangerous climate change to acceptable levels. Australia should formulate a position on the contribution that it would be prepared make to an effective global agreement, and offer to implement that stronger position if an appropriately structured international agreement were reached.

The process of reaching an adequate global agreement will be long and difficult. Australia can help to keep the possibility of eventual agreement alive by efficient implementation of its own abatement policies, and through the development of exemplary working models of cooperation with developing countries in regional agreements, including with Papua New Guinea.

Australia must now put in place effective policies to achieve major reductions in emissions. The emissions trading scheme (ETS) is the centre-piece of a domestic mitigation strategy. To achieve effective mitigation at the lowest possible cost, the ETS will need to be supported by measures to correct market failures or weaknesses related to innovation, research and development, to information, and to network infrastructure.

Establishing an ETS with ambitious mitigation objectives will be difficult and will make heavy demands on scarce economic and finite political resources. The difficulty of the task makes it essential to use the most efficient means of achieving the mitigation objectives. That means efficiency both in minimising the economic costs, and in distributing the costs of the scheme across the Australian community in ways that are broadly seen as being fair.

To be effective in contributing as much as possible to an effective global effort to avoid unacceptably high risks of dangerous climate change, soundly based domestic and international policies will need to be sustained steadily over long periods. Policy-makers will need to eschew short-term responses that seem to deal with immediate problems but contribute to the building of pressures for future policy change. The Review aims to provide the basis for steady long-term policy at Commonwealth and State levels, and for productive long-term Australian interaction with the international community on climate change policy.

From: Executive Summary, Garnaut Climate Change Review Interim Report to the Commonwealth, State And Territory Governments of Australia, February 2008

Green marketing guide from the Australian Government

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has been active in investigating 'green' claims by companies about environmentally beneficial products. They have now produced a 28 page "Green marketing and the Trade Practices Act" booklet. Those selling low power computers or ones claiming to be carbon offset or carbon neutral need to consider the advice:

• Contents
• Introduction 2
• Green marketing and the Trade Practices Act 3

1. The Trade Practices Act 4

• What does the law say? 4

2. Making environmental claims 7

• Principles to consider 7
• Broad or unqualified claims that can be problematic 11
• Penalties and remedies for breaching the Act 15
• Avoiding a breach of the law 15

3. Key environmental efficiency schemes 16

• The Equipment Energy Efficiency Program 16
• Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Scheme. 18

4. Checklist for marketers 20

From: Green marketing and the Trade Practices Act, ACCC, 8 February 2008

There have not been any Green ICT cases with ACC, but some of the other cases were:

1. ACCC scrutinises Origin green power television advertisement
   ... Attn: Consumer, environment writers ACCC scrutinises Origin green power television advertisement As part of its continuing scrutiny of green'marketing ... 21 Dec 2007

2. Warning to air conditioning industry after Daikin 'green' claims challenged by ACCC
   ... Attn: Consumer, environment writers Warning to air conditioning industry after Daikin green'claims challenged by ACCC Daikin is an importer and distributor of air- ... 21 Jan 2005

3. ACCC alleges green claims misleading
   ... ACCC alleges green claims misleading The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has instituted proceedings in the Federal Court, Melbourne, against Lloyd Brooks Pty Ltd alleging misleading and deceptive conduct in claiming the environmental benefits for its range of Earthstrength plastic kitchen, garbage and freezer bags. ... 24 Jan 2005

4. Federal Court finds "Green" claims to be misleading
   ... Federal Court finds Green claims to be misleading The Federal Court, Sydney has found that Sanyo Airconditioners Manufacturing Singapore Pte Ltd, trading as Sanyo ... 18 Jan 2005

5. EnergyAustralia clears air about green electricity claims
   ... EnergyAustralia has agreed to provide the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission with an administrative undertaking to resolve ACCC concerns about representations which it made about its ClearAir and GreenFuture non-accredited electricity products, ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, announced today. ... 21 Dec 2007

6. BOC Gases: misleading 'Environmentally Friendly' claims
   ... BOC Gases have agreed to clarify the environmental and performance comparisons, cease using general terms such as environmentally preferred'or general green'claims ... 6 Jan 2005

How to fix a dishwasher using the Web

After several years of having to manually advance the dishwasher through the cycle, I thought it was time to fix it. The web turned out to be a useful resource to do this. Apart from the inconvenience, I was using more water having to use more water to rewash partly washed dishes. To find out how to fix just about anything, try typing into a search engine "how to fix a ...".

One danger is that how to instructions can get you to attempt repairs you should not really try. In this case the Dishwasher Troubleshooting Tool proved most useful. The symptom was " Dishwasher cycle does not complete" and the suggested checks were:

• Test the timer motor
• Test the thermostat
• Test the heating element

Unfortunately these are generic instructions not specific to a particular model. But after testing the timer motor and heating element, I tried the thermostat. There turned out to be a small press button on the thermostat. I pressed this and it stayed pressed. The dishwasher then worked. This seems to be an overload cutout, but was not mentioned in any of the instructions.

Of course, a replacement smaller countertop dishwasher, or a drawer unit would use less water and be more convenient for small loads. The Fisher Paykel Dual DishDrawer units look very attractive, with the ability to fill one drawer, while the other is washing. But as my unit is now working there is no point in replacing it.

ps: Another part of the dishwasher which may need replacing is the cutlery basket. There are some replacements ones sold, but these can be flimsy plastic. A better alternative might be a bit of the stainless steel security fly screen mesh used in windows. Offcuts are available from suppliers, such as Alucom in Canberra. Aluminum mesh is not suitable, as the harsh dishwasher detergent tends to dissolve it.

See also:

• Repair a Caroma Dual Flush toilet cistern outlet valve
• Dishwasher repair and installation kits on amazon.
  

Green Transport Innovation Fund

The ALP has promised a $500M Green Car Innovation Fund . If elected, hopefully this will be implemented as a broader "Green Transport Innovation Fund". Such a fund should allow for other forms of transport to be more fuel efficient, including buses, trains, trucks and ships. All of these forms of transport are made in Australia. Also a modest investment in hybrid electric bicycles and scooters could produce a new industry for Australia.

Adding new technology, such as hybrid diesel/electric motors to passenger cars requires decades of investment and billions of dollars. The equipment has to be designed to be made in high volumes at the lowest possible cost and to operate for years with little maintenance. Most Australian cars are designed elsewhere and even those designed in Australia have to conform to the international standards of their overseas headquarters. The Australian branch of a multinational car company can't simply decide to make its own version of a hybrid car. This will make the ALP's Green fund largely ineffective.

However, such an investment applied to other transport could produce results much quicker. Buses, trains, trucks and ships are made in lower volumes with more customization and local adaption than cars. Also Australia has small specialist arms of multinational companies making specialist vehicles, such as underground mining trucks, which would particularly suite low fuel drives. The payback period for fuel saving in such vehicles and the bonus of reduced air pollution in a confined underground mine would allow a payback for an investment in years, rather than decades.

Australia also happens to be the major international maker of high speed ferries, both for civilian and military use. In this areas Australia partners with US companies, but is the developer of the technology and a major manufacturer. These vessels have a high fuel consumption and new technology could be used to reduce that. As well as saving costs, this would be very attractive to the military to increase the flexibility of the ships.

Hitech Wooden Surfboards

Peter Walker, was showing his wooden surfboards at the Canberra Biennial today. He is an Associate Professor at Rhode Island School of Design and a Visiting Artist at the Jam Factory in Melbourne.

The surfboards are made from a plywood framework with holes drilled to make it light. The result looks like the wing of an old biplane. The framework is then covered with thin lightweight wood. The final result looks like a piece of Scandinavian furniture, or part of a traditional Australian surf boat. The board has two bungs to allow the pressure to be equalized on hot days.

The framework of the surfboards reminded me of the work I saw at the UTas Academy of The Arts which architect Helen Norrie gave me a guided tour of in September. It happens Peter has a Bachelor of Fine Art from the Design in Wood program at the Tasmanian School of Art in 1986 and a Master of Fine Art from the Centre for Furniture Design, University of Tasmania.

As I mentioned at the end of my talk to the ACS Tasmanian Branch, wood could be used for hi tech education buildings. As an example aComputer Numerical Control router like that used by the students at the University of Tasmania Architecture school, could be used to shape desks for a flexible learning centre. The desks could have cutouts designed to take Chip PC Inc's PC built into a wall socket. This would remove most of the clutter usual in a computerized classroom. Low voltage LCD displays could be used, eliminating the need for mains power on the desktop, lowering power use and increasing safety.

The most complicated tap in Canberra

The public library I complained about in February seems to have fixed their water wasting urinal by installing an infrared movement detector which activates when someone is present. But another problem in the same toilet is the bizarrely complex hand basin tap. The sign on the tap reads: "To turn on tap pull lever out. Turn Level to the Left for hot. Turn lever to the right for cold.". The problem is that an elegant but difficult to use tap has been installed which is not suitable for a public facility. The library should replace the tap with one which is easy to use and remove the sign.

Donald Norman discussed the design of tap handles in his book "The Design of Everyday Things". The technical details may be complex, but the idea is simple: the tap handle should work the way the user of it expects.

In this case the tap handle looks like a round knob with a bar sticking out, much like the "Justyna" model depicted here. The usual way this would be expected to work is you turn it to get more water. Even when you read the instruction to "pull lever out", it is not clear what the lever is ( there is a thin round bar, which does not look like a lever).

It may be difficult for the library to retrofit two conventional taps in place of the mixer (they would have to drill another hole through the stone facing). A simpler option would be to install a conventional knob which you turn for cold water only. If the cold supply is at too low a temperature to be comfortable, then hot water could be automatically mixed or a small water heater installed.

ps: Better than the infrared flush urinal would be a waterless urinal, or a single flush per day system, as used in the six star rated Australian Ethical Investments building.

Wollemi Pine

On the way from Canberra to Sydney I stopped in at the Mount Annan Botanical Gardens and succumbed to the marketing by buying a Wollemi Pine. This is a recently discovered ancient Australia tree.

Wollemia is a genus of coniferous tree in the family Araucariaceae. The Australian species Wollemia nobilis is the sole species in the genus Wollemia and was discovered in 1994 in a remote series of narrow, steep-sided sandstone gorges near Lithgow in temperate rainforest wilderness area of the Wollemi National Park in New South Wales, 150 kilometres north-west of Sydney.

In both the botanical and popular literature, the tree has been almost universally dubbed the Wollemi Pine, although it is not a true pine (genus Pinus) nor a member of the pine family (Pinaceae), but rather is related to Kauri and Araucaria in the family Araucariaceae. ...

From: Wollemia, Wikipedia, 2007

The Botanic Gardens Trust (Sydney) licensed Wollemi Australia Pty Ltd to grow and sell the trees. You can buy one online (but they seem to be cheaper at the botanic gardens).

Hopefully, the Wollemi Pine will not become a weed. Normally when a new plant is imported into Australia, a weed risk assessment is done to make sure it is not a threat to the environment. The Wollemi Pine was already in Australia and so, is not subject to these restrictions. It has been isolated to a small valley for thousands of years, in which time the climate has changed, so no one really knows what will happened when it s cultivated widely. However, such an assessment is being carried out for New Zealand.

See also:

• Books mentioning Wollemi Pine.
• Scholarly papers about the Wollemi Pine.
• Mount Annan Botanical Gardens.
• To import for release Wollemi pine Wollemia nobilis (Family: Araucariaceae), Application for Approval to Import for Release or Release from Containment any New Organism (Rapid Assessment),ERMA New Zealand Evaluation & Review Report, Application Code: NOR04003, 2007
  

Company reports online by default

A little noticed legal change took place in 2007: companies can publish their annual reports online as the default option. The companies have to tell the shareholders they are doing this and give them the option of requesting a paper copy. But the default has changed from opting-out (say if you don't want a printed copy), to opt-in (say if you do want one). This should reduce paper consumption and transport costs.

... (1AB) For the purposes of paragraph (1AA)(a), a company, registered scheme or disclosing entity must, on at least one occasion, directly notify in writing each member that:

(a) the member may elect to receive, free of charge, a copy of the reports for each financial year, or a copy of the concise report for each financial year; and

(b) if the member does not so elect--the member may access the reports, or the concise report, on a specified web site; and

(c) if the member does so elect and the company, scheme or entity offers to send the report either as a hard copy or an electronic copy--the member may elect to receive the copy as either a hard copy or an electronic copy.

From: Corporations Legislation Amendment (Simpler Regulatory System) Bill 2007, 004-2005-2006-2007, The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia,
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Nobel Peace Prize 2007 to IPCC and Al Gore

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold "Al" Gore Jr. have won the Nobel Peace Prize 2007, "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change".

IPCC members such as Dr Rajendra K Pachauri, have done much hard work over many years to bring climate change to world attention. It seems odd that they all have to share half the prize with Al Gore, who produced little more than the Powerpoint presentation of an "An Inconvenient Truth" (and DVD). However, Mr. Gore's presentation probably had more effect on public opinion than all of the experts on the IPCC, as the Nobel committee notes:

... Through the scientific reports it has issued over the past two decades, the IPCC has created an ever-broader informed consensus about the connection between human activities and global warming. Thousands of scientists and officials from over one hundred countries have collaborated to achieve greater certainty as to the scale of the warming. Whereas in the 1980s global warming seemed to be merely an interesting hypothesis, the 1990s produced firmer evidence in its support. In the last few years, the connections have become even clearer and the consequences still more apparent.

Al Gore has for a long time been one of the world's leading environmentalist politicians. He became aware at an early stage of the climatic challenges the world is facing. His strong commitment, reflected in political activity, lectures, films and books, has strengthened the struggle against climate change. He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted...

From: The Nobel Peace Prize for 2007, Media Release, Nobel Foundation, Oslo, 12 October 2007

Some books available on the topic:

• Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and discussion thereof
  
• Looking Back to Think Ahead: GREEN India 2047, P V Sridharan, R K Pachauri (1998) and Other books by R K Pachauri
• An Inconvenient Truth, by Al Gore (also DVD) and other books by and about Al Gore
  
• Global Warming and Global Warming in Australia
• The Nobel Peace Prize

Emissions Trading Standards

Standards Australia (SA) is holding free forums in Sydney and Canberra in October on standards for Australia's National Emissions Trading Scheme. Also ICT standards could be very useful, as for example XML based e-commerce transaction formats for trading and standard formats for reporting and audit using ebXML. ACX Electronic Emissions Trading Platform (EETP) is already running.

As SA point out, there are existing standards which could be used as part of a scheme for the benefit of business and policy implementations. In particular there is the ISO 14000 series of environmental management standards, including:

1. ISO 14064-1:2006, Greenhouse gases – Part 1: Specification with guidance at the organization level for the quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals.
2. ISO 14064-2:2006, Greenhouse gases – Part 2: Specification with guidance at the project level for the quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission reductions and removal enhancements.
3. ISO 14064-3:2006, Greenhouse gases – Part 3: Specification with guidance for the validation and verification of greenhouse gas assertion
   

The forum panel will include the Secretary General of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Australasian Emissions Trading Forum, Australian Industry Group, National Association of Testing Authority (NATA) and the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board.

For a carbon emissions exchange to operate effectively and efficiently it needs to be built on a solid, authoritative and harmonised system of international Standards and related technical infrastructure.

Many of these Standards already exist and Standards Australia will hold forums in Sydney and Canberra to discuss how they can contribute to Australia's National Emissions Trading Scheme and where new Standards could play a role.

These forums are in response to growing concerns related to climate change and the Prime Ministerial Task Group on Emissions Trading Report published a report on 31 May 2007 emphasising the critical importance of establishing an Emissions Trading Scheme in Australia by 2012.

The Sydney event will focus on opportunities and challenges for business and the Canberra event will concentrate on emerging emissions Standards and their policy implications. ...

We invite you to join us in discussing the opportunities, challenges and the introduction of these Standards. ...

From: Emissions Trading Standards Round-Table, Standards Australia, October 2007

See Books on:

• Emissions Trading
• ISO 14000 environmental management standards
• environmental management

Metadata for data processing

CSIRO's ICT Centre held a seminar 28 September 2007 by Roland Viger, of the US Geological Survey, Colorado, USA on "Using geoprocessing specification as semantic metadata with GEOLEM". There is a description of GEOLEM available. The techniques might be applied to business applications.

Essentially Roland created a portable layer between the Geographic Information System (GIS) which holds data and an environmental model which uses it. He defines "compound commands" which are a small scripting language to be able to take the data from the GIS and assemble it into something meaningful environmentally. The middle layer is written using Java.

This raises the question as to if this technique could be expanded beyond GISs and environmental applications. Could such scripting languages be used to allow large collections of data to be made understandable for specific groups of users. On the other hand could languages used to define software design, such as used for Shane Flint's Aspect-Oriented Thinking be used for environmental applications, or even language for business logic with ebXML.

Perhaps these techniques could be used to write mini-languages, using XML syntax, to define transformations. These transformations would then process the data. After many layers of transformation the result would be the one the user wanted.

Saving the Planet One Towel at a Time

On the weekend I bought 3m of 10mm diameter (1m thick) aluminum tube (about $7) and bent it to make a drying rack which fits under the vent on my home air conditioner. This allows me to dry washing while using the air conditioner as a heat pump. Perhaps air conditioner makers could offer this as an accessory.

Ideally washing should be dried in the sun naturally, without the need for a clothes dryer. But many homes are now equipped with a dryer. It may be difficult to convince the average householder to give up their dryer, so it might be better to give them a more efficient cheaper one.

Electric tumble dryers use an electric heating element which warms the air and then discharge hot wet air into the room or outside. This is very inefficient. Some more expensive "condensing" dryers use mains water to condense the humidity out of the discharge air. These waste water as well as electricity.

A cheap and simple alternative might be to equip the laundry with a reverse cycle air conditioner. The clothes would be hung on a small fixed rack above the laundry tub, under the air conditioner. Ideally the air conditioner would have an interlock so it would not operate when the door or window of the room is open.

Assuming the home is already being equipped with air conditioning, an extra outlet for the laundry should be cheaper than an electric clothes dryer. An alternative might be a fan and duct to circualte air from an air conditioner elsewhere to the drying room.

Advanced vehicle systems for developing nations

Systems such as the $US395 Ford Sync car dashboard computer show that computer technology for cars is now affordable for more than just upmarket models. Recently I was asked for some ideas for research on vehicles and IT and so suggested using in car computers to provide facilities usually requiring expensive roadside infrastructure and be used to reduce traffic congestion and fuel use, particularly in developing nations.

Theme: Advanced vehicle systems for developing nations

This research will focus on the use of current or soon to be available mass produced computer and telecommunications hardware which can cost effectively applied to vehicles by use of advanced new computer applications. The technology will be developed for and tested in Australia's remote and harsh outback conditions and then sold to existing markets in the Middle East and new markets in developing nations, such as India and China. This will address the AutoCRC's mission to deliver smarter, safer and cleaner vehicle technology for Australia's benefit.

BACKGROUND

Technology which could be applied on a small scale by one manufacturer will be emphasized, rather than systems which require widespread industry adoption or government mandate. Instead of the "trickle down" approach, where technology developed for dense US and European roads has to be modified, the technology will be developed with these conditions in mind. Australian long distance driving, and for similar conditions in the middle east, demand different features from vehicle systems. Developing nations cannot afford large scale infrastructure to support advanced vehicle systems and so a more independent approach is needed.

CORE TECHNOLOGIES:

* CAR COMMS: Many vehicle technology applications assume that a reliable wireless communications network is available, usually provided by the cellular telephone network. However, this network is not universally available outside Australian urban centers. Also such systems are not necessarily affordable for the envisaged applications, particularly in developing nations. Mesh networks offer a low cost alternative form of communications, but a number of research questions remain before they could be considered reliable, particularly when used from moving vehicles. This research would look at software designs for WiFi and WiMax mesh networks for cars. The systems would be designed for adhoc car to car communications , as well as integration with the newly announced Australian WiMax system. The communications system would be used for entertainment, person to person communications and car navigation tasks.

* DASHBOARD INTERFACE: Many cars will have a computer screen in the car dashboard which either came with the car or was added. These systems can be used for family social use and for mobile e-commerce applications, such as taxi trucks in developing nations. However, the cost of developing an application for these systems is currently prohibitively high. This research project would look at a toolkit of application components using Web 2.0 related technology to build social and commercial applications for vehicles.

OpenMoko provides a standard open source hardware platforms for developers of in-car computers. The Reva NGX show-car model showed the use of similar technology, with an Indian made Linux touch screen computer in the dashboard.

* VEHICLE INTERFACE: Modern cars have computer controlled systems which could be used for remote monitoring and automated control. This research would look at how to provide standardized interfaces to engine management, breaking, steering and other onboard systems.

EXAMPLE APPLICATIONS:

* FAMILY TRIP PLANNER: The family would use the car communications network and dashboard screen to plan trips. The screen could automatically show where the family is, from the location of their smart phones and plot this against the car location and family schedule. The system could then automatically route the driver to family events:

"... the built in phone would refuse to take any calls while your car was in motion. The automated voice response system would say on your behalf "Yes dear, I am on his way to pick up the kids, ETA is 2 minutes. I have parking slot 3 reserved in the school queuing system. Press 1 if you want me to get some milk on the way home, press 2 for bread ...".

From: Re: RUF Dual Mode transport system, Tom Worthington, Link Mailing List, Jun 7 09:39:27 EST 2006

This is the scenario I suggested AIIA CEO, Sheryle Moon's talk on "The ICT Industry In Australia".

* SMART ROAD TOLL: The current toll roads, such as the Sydney M7 are based on expensive RFID or optical number plate recognition infrastructure. Also the toll amount is fixed, resulting in under use of the road at off peak times. Cars equipped with communcations and location systems could provide a lower cost option for tolling. The vehicle could also advise the toll road of the drivers intended route and time, to set a suitable price.

* SMART ROAD: Vehicles could cooperatively communicate the road conditions to each other and to traffic authorities. Vehicles slow or stopped in a lane could be advised to oncoming drivers and to authorities. Existing systems for this rely on expensive networks of in road sensors or cameras.

* SAFETY OF LIFE ON ROAD: SOLOR would provide a system for automatic commercial vehicle tracking for safety purposes. It would be analogous to the Automatic Identification System (AIS) used by international shipping under the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). SOLOR would monitor all commercial vehicles for public safety and conformance with cargo safety, driver fatigue and other rules. An adaption of the system would be available for use in trouble spots to monitor all commercial vehicles for detection of possible truck bombs.

* TRAVELLING WIRELESS HOTSPOT: Public vehicles, such as busses, could be equipped with mobile wireless hotspots to connect both their own passengers and surrounding cars to the Internet. This would provide a lower cost and more robust system than fixed roadside antennas.

* PIMP MY RADIO: The Pimp My Radio demonstrator vehicle would be outfitted with an advanced audio and video digital entertainment system, in the style of the MTV show Pimp My Ride. In addition to a high quality surround sound system, the vehicle would have high resolution screens and multi player online game consoles. The vehicle systems would be interfaced to form part of the game, with the vehicle and its occupants being represented by avatars in My Space and similar systems.

* CAR SHARE SYSTEM: Systems such as Australia's GoGet car share offer access to cars for those who only need them occasionally or cannot afford to won one. GoGet's current web based booking system and RFID tags could be built into the car communications system, allowing better utilization at a lower cost.

* GUIDED HIGHWAY: Light rail provides an efficient method of public transport in urban areas. However, the startup costs are high and does not suit organic growth. There have been various proposals for road vehicles adapted to guided ways, the longest such route in the world being the The longest guided busway in the world being the Adelaide O-Bahn Busway. Such systems have depended on mechanical modification of specially procured vehicles. Proposals for advanced computer controlled guided systems have not been successful. This project will research the adaption of existing vehicles, particularly hybrid cars, and hybrid light trucks and mini-busses for automated guidance. The existing onboard computer controlled systems would be modified with a minimum of additional hardware and using a wireless network for tolling, navigation and safety. The and the existing in-dash computer would be used for the driver interface. The system would be designed so provide car owners, taxi truck and mini-buss operators could drive their own cars onto the guided road.

MILITARY APPLICATIONS AND POSSIBLE RESEARCH COLLABORATION

Many of the issues with the use of vehicle mounted communications in remote areas also apply to the military. Adhoc self forming networks could be applied to the Australian Defence Force's need for communications in remote areas at short notice. In vehicle screens could be applied to situational awareness for Australian Army ASLAV and Bushmaster vehicles. This could also be used for civilian contractor vehicles used in conflict areas, where a full military communications fit out was not feasible.

Open Source Alternative to the Ford Sync Dashboard Computer?

Ford have announced that their "Ford Sync" , dashboard system will cost $US395 as an option extra initially on late 2007 US models such as the Focus. But perhaps open source hardware can provide an alternative for a larger range of vehicles and expanded applications, paritularaly for developing nations.

The Ford Sync uses Microsoft software and is intended as a low cost version of the dashboard screens for audio, video, SMS text messages, telephone and computer access (flash overview available). The system keeps costs down by interfacing via Bluetooth or USB to external music players and phones. Voice recognition or steering wheel buttons are proposed.

The Projects such as OpenMoko provide standard open source hardware platforms for developers of in-car computers. The Reva NGX show-car model has an Indian made Linux touch screen computer in the dashboard. This goes beyond what is proposed for Ford Sync, by providing the car speedometer, as well as communications and entertainment. An alternative would be a removable or portable computer, connected to the car's audio system, but with no inbuilt screen.

Dashboard screens have previously been associated with upmarket models of vehicles. As these become more common it opens up the possibility of new vehicle applications. These could be used to provide facilities usually requiring expensive roadside infrastructure and be used to reduce traffic congestion and fuel use, particularly in developing nations. Recently I was asked for some ideas for research on vehicles and IT and these may be applicable.

Development in India is Sustainable

Dr Rajendra K Pachauri, head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2002 and now head of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), presented "Coping with Climate Change: Is Development in India and the World Sustainable?" at the ANU Australia South Asia Research Center in Canberra on 8 August 2007:

"Recent high rates of economic growth in India and other parts of the developing world, while reducing poverty and raising global economic growth, have put considerable stress on the environment even as it is already saddled with high emissions from the developed world. The 2007 K R Narayanan Oration by Dr Rajendra K. Pachauri will enquire into whether such growth patterns can be sustained into the future and what options are available for ensuring that the adverse impact of economic growth on the environment is manageable. ..."

The ANU VC introduced the talk, commenting it was the most crowded he had attended. The topic of development, India and climate change is timely. The talk was organized with the Australia-India Council (AIC).

Dr Pachauri said we had been paying lip service to sustainable development for 20 years, but the scientific evidence of the last few years had been a wake-up call. He said we needed to deal with externalities and vested interests in the euphoria of escalating consumptions in neglect of natural resource implications. 2007 is the centenary of the birth of Rachel Carson, environmental campaigner. The Club of Rome study "Limits to Growth" in 1972 was rightly criticized, for its static Malthusian view. Prudent societies would look for substitutes for limited resources. But the poorest will be worst hit in the process. Income inequality is increasing. Sustainable development relates to social conditions as well as environmental ones. We cause environmental damage at our peril as the earth is a closed system.

The Club of Rome produced an update in 2004. This made an adjustment for the difficulty of extraction of resources as they run out. This made the outlook even bleaker.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has produced three reports. These have had an unprecedented impact. This partly because people have starting attributing extreme climate events to global warming. Al "Borne again" Gore has had a major effect; although he did not do so with such vigor when running for President. The IPCC report is unequivocal: most temperature increase in the second half of the 20th century is most likely due to human activity [sounds slightly equivocal to me]. The likely increase by the end of the century is 1.8 to 8 degrees.

The impacts of warming are detailed in the fourth IPCC report. South Asia is particularly vulnerable. Even when there is an average decrease in rainfall there are likely to be more floods. The mega deltas of Asia are particularly vulnerable to cyclones and storm surges. Melting glaciers in the Asian high mountains are the source of water in much of south asia and some of China. This will effect direct runoff and groundwater recharge. Australia's method of charging for water could help in India by applying economics to a scare resource.

Vector borne diseases will increase, due to an increase in water borne disease vectors. Yields of some crops, such as wheat, decrease with a temperature increase. Aquaculture will also be effected. Efforts are needed for drought tolerant crops for the poor, which could be an areas for cooperation between India and Australia. Two thirds of Indian agriculture is rain fed.

Rising prosperity in areas such as China can cause a decrease in global food stocks, due to more affluent eating meat fed on grain. Temperate regions will gain water while the tropics get less.

There is time available to stabilize the situation and it would be irrational not to act.

Gandhi said "It took Britain half the resources of the planet to achieve this prosperity. How many planets will a country like India require?