Comments on: Local effects of moving past the peak

By: Bookmarks about Correspondence

Bookmarks about Correspondence — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 18:01:00 +0000

[...] – bookmarked by 3 members originally found by kuborg on 2008-07-22 Local effects of moving past the peak http://bothwellsblog.wordpress.com/2008/07/17/local-effects-of-moving-past-the-peak/ – bookmarked [...]

By: Bruce Mulkey

Bruce Mulkey — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:02:34 +0000

You hit the nail on the head, Cecil. I hope our elected representatives have an opportunity to read this and to reflect on what will be required if we’re to have a relatively soft landing.

By: bbemory

bbemory — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:39:28 +0000

i agree with everything you say, with one exception: your statement that we should no longer build buildings over six stories. Elevator energy consumption is relatively low. Here is one person’s computation, in response to a statement similar to yours: http://fatknowledge.blogspot.com/2007/02/how-much-energy-does-elevator-use.html
Of course we should try to reduce elevator usage, by making walking up and down more accessible and attractive, and by promoting the health benefits.

But the key point is that high-rise buildings are more energy-efficient than lower-density residential development. The common walls, and floors and ceilings, reduce the energy loss for heating and cooling. These savings more than offset the additional energy for elevator usage. The result is illustrated by a graph in a Wikipedia article on energy use: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_use_in_the_United_States
Residential energy use in New York City is less than one-third of that in a lower-density city such as Houston. And this comparison does not account for additional energy savings in transportation due to denser development and the resulting shorter trip lengths and higher transit usage.

The above is not an endorsement of the Parkside project; there are plenty of more suitable locations for tall buildings in Asheville.

By: Todays Current Events in the Environment » Alert - environmental effect

Todays Current Events in the Environment » Alert - environmental effect — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:30:41 +0000

[...] Local effects of moving past the peak By bothwellsblog Imagining that peak oil and the collapse of the US economy will not profoundly affect our lives is a recipe for disaster. In closing I?d like to recall an interview I conducted with Environmental educator David Orr who chairs the … bothwell’s blog – http://bothwellsblog.wordpress.com This as-it-happens Alert is brought to you by . [...]

By: bothwellsblog

bothwellsblog — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:15:47 +0000

I’ll dig that one up. Thanks for the attaboy and the suggestion.

By: lowerdryad

lowerdryad — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:12:50 +0000

Well-spoken, Cecil. You’ve earned your credibility over the years, too. I often think of an article you wrote for Duck Soup many (eight or ten?) years ago, predicting to a letter exactly what is happening now regarding peak oil. I’d love to see you re-publish it here with appropriate background.