Hawaii Water Shortage–Climate Crisis AM Edition 4/12/24
Is peak oil consumption behind us? The IEA says so. It forecasts demand will drop to 1.2 million barrels a day this year and 1.1 million barrels in 2025. Part of the reason for the forecast is a rise in renewable energy, and part is due to a slowdown in global economic growth. The organization’s experts added: “In both 2022 and 2023, global oil consumption rose by more than 2 mb/d as economies continued their recoveries from the Covid-19 shock and saw spikes in personal mobility, along with exceptional releases of pent-up demand for travel and tourism.” Climatecrisis247 believes that this does not mean the price of crude will drop. OPEC+ has kept supply tight. Political and military instability in the Middle East could cause a collapse in supply, much as it did in the 1970s.
Renewables –A Big Challenge?
Gas Prices –A New Cause Of Inflation
The fact that Hawaii is surrounded by water has not helped a low water supply. According to CBS News, “Long before there was a crisis in Hawaii involving flames, there was a crisis involving water: water that climate change was drying up, scarce water going to tourist activities instead of locals, and then tainted water that poisoned thousands with jet fuel from Red Hill.” Climatecrisis247 believes that the US Drought Monitor shows high levels of drought across most of the Hawaiian islands, particularly the largest– Hawaii—“The Big Island.” It has about 60% of the land mass of the state. There is no additional significant source of fresh water, so the problem may persist.
Maybe Slowing Climate Change Makes It Worse
One key movement to reduce air pollution may hinder efforts to slow the world’s largest climate problems. According to a paper in the journal “Nature” titled “Recent reductions in aerosol emissions have increased Earth’s energy imbalance,” “With most future scenarios showing further rapid reductions of aerosol emissions due to air quality legislation, such emission reductions may continue to strengthen Earth’s energy imbalance, on top of the greenhouse gas contribution. Consequently, we may expect an accelerated surface temperature warming in this decade.” Aerosol emissions can create clouds that reflect sunlight before it reaches the Earth’s surface, thereby slowing global warming. Climatecrisis247 believes this shows the complexity of efforts to control the climate crisis. Despite a massive body of evidence about the cause of climate change and work by scientists, the factors in slowing global warming are immensely complex.
Americans Moving Because Of Climate Crisis
According to Pro Publica, the pace at which people are relocating to parts of America to find more climate-friendly areas is increasing. In an article titled The Flooding Will Come “No Matter What,” the authors wrote, “As the U.S. gets hotter, its coastal waters rise higher, its wildfires burn larger and its droughts last longer, the notion that humankind can triumph over nature is fading, and with it, slowly, goes the belief that self-determination and personal preference can be the driving factors in choosing where to live.” Climatecrisis247 believes this observation is not new. Three years ago, the upper Midwest emerged, where climate refugees might move because of abundant water, temperate climate, and few wildfires and violent storms like hurricanes.
