I hate this timeline.
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Electricity generating wind turbines were invented in 1883. Vancouver has had electric trolley busses since 1948. The first concentrated solar power plant was built in 1968. Germany set up funding for installing photovoltaic roofs in 1989, Japan followed in 1994. Ballard went public in 1993, I remember reading about their fuel cells and electric cars in high school.
All the tech existed in 1996, financial necessity would have pushed innovation a lot harder than environmental foresight did.
Frick, George W Bush advocated for turning to hydrogen as an energy source in his 2003 State Of The Union address, not for the environment, but to make America less dependent on foreign energy. I'm still bitter that environmentalists didn't use that opportunity to latch on to protectionism to sell renewables to conservatives. That could have been 23 years of preparation. Not much choice now.
@Space_Burger_Steve @chris agree but problem was battery wasn't so efficient as it's today the most effective was lead battery which would make car weight maybe 10 tons to drive maybe 50km
With li-ions it's much better.
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@Space_Burger_Steve @chris agree but problem was battery wasn't so efficient as it's today the most effective was lead battery which would make car weight maybe 10 tons to drive maybe 50km
With li-ions it's much better.
@MilitaryG @Space_Burger_Steve but there *were* other options like massive expansion in the use of electrified mass transit, and electrification of many other aspects of lives, buildings, etc. SO much could have already been done.
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@Space_Burger_Steve @chris agree but problem was battery wasn't so efficient as it's today the most effective was lead battery which would make car weight maybe 10 tons to drive maybe 50km
With li-ions it's much better.
Which is why I mentioned fuel cells. That's probably also why W was talking about Hydrogen. Batteries are better than fuel cells now, but in the mid 90's fuel cells looked like the better option for cars. In fact, the company I mentioned is still making fuel cells today, apparently they're great for busses:
Even without fuel cells, DC electric locomotives have existed since 1837, AC since 1894. We could have made much more progress than we have in the last 30 years.
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R relay@relay.mycrowd.ca shared this topic
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@Space_Burger_Steve @chris agree but problem was battery wasn't so efficient as it's today the most effective was lead battery which would make car weight maybe 10 tons to drive maybe 50km
With li-ions it's much better.
The first DC locomotive was built in 1837, AC in 1896. The first electric car was built in 1834, and in 1900 38% of the cars in America were electric. No way was an electric car impossible in 1996.
The first electric car: history and origins from 1834 to today
Discover the history of the first electric car: from pioneers Anderson and Davenport in 1834 to the Jamais Contente's record in 1899. A look back at a French invention.
Electra (www.go-electra.com)
And even if it was, that's why I mentioned fuel cells, which is probably what W was talking about when he mentioned hydrogen. Batteries are better now, but in the 90s fuel cells looked like the better option. In fact, the company I mentioned is still making fuel cells today, apparently they're a good alternative to diesel for busses:
We could have made way more progress than we have in the last 30 years.
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The first DC locomotive was built in 1837, AC in 1896. The first electric car was built in 1834, and in 1900 38% of the cars in America were electric. No way was an electric car impossible in 1996.
The first electric car: history and origins from 1834 to today
Discover the history of the first electric car: from pioneers Anderson and Davenport in 1834 to the Jamais Contente's record in 1899. A look back at a French invention.
Electra (www.go-electra.com)
And even if it was, that's why I mentioned fuel cells, which is probably what W was talking about when he mentioned hydrogen. Batteries are better now, but in the 90s fuel cells looked like the better option. In fact, the company I mentioned is still making fuel cells today, apparently they're a good alternative to diesel for busses:
We could have made way more progress than we have in the last 30 years.
@Space_Burger_Steve @MilitaryG GM released the first “modern” production North American electric car, the EV1, in 1996.
Then they killed it.
We are in the predicament we are because of very specific choices by very particular people and nothing more.
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I hate this timeline.
As a long time #climate campaigner... I almost feel like I should be hoping that the Iran/US war continues as long as possible so the price of oil and gasoline can go as high as possible and force economies to electrify and shift at emergency-speed to renewables.
We could have started on this the easy way 30 years ago... but a few of the same people objected and obstructed.
#IranUSIsraelWar #ClimateCatastrophe #ClimateWar #Oil #EndFossilFuels #ClimateCollapse #USA #CanPoli #CdnPoli
@chris
While I don't hope for war to go on, I do wish the few smart governments that still exist will get the message and adapt accordingly. -
@chris
While I don't hope for war to go on, I do wish the few smart governments that still exist will get the message and adapt accordingly.@floreana me too
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I hate this timeline.
As a long time #climate campaigner... I almost feel like I should be hoping that the Iran/US war continues as long as possible so the price of oil and gasoline can go as high as possible and force economies to electrify and shift at emergency-speed to renewables.
We could have started on this the easy way 30 years ago... but a few of the same people objected and obstructed.
#IranUSIsraelWar #ClimateCatastrophe #ClimateWar #Oil #EndFossilFuels #ClimateCollapse #USA #CanPoli #CdnPoli
@chris In the current globalized world order, countries at war are still dependent on one another's trade. Murder is permitted, of course. You can bomb schools and hospitals and commit outright genocides - but its the interruption of a supply chain gets treated as a war crime.
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@chris In the current globalized world order, countries at war are still dependent on one another's trade. Murder is permitted, of course. You can bomb schools and hospitals and commit outright genocides - but its the interruption of a supply chain gets treated as a war crime.
@zazzoo sick, isn't it.
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@chris In the current globalized world order, countries at war are still dependent on one another's trade. Murder is permitted, of course. You can bomb schools and hospitals and commit outright genocides - but its the interruption of a supply chain gets treated as a war crime.
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@chris In the current globalized world order, countries at war are still dependent on one another's trade. Murder is permitted, of course. You can bomb schools and hospitals and commit outright genocides - but its the interruption of a supply chain gets treated as a war crime.
There's been some serious economics research into this. And oddly, supply chain interruptions are often more deadly than the event itself.
US sanctions regimes have cut off tens of millions of people (if not hundreds) from essential medicines or treatments. Or access to sufficient food.
They see similar things in disaster zones. A very limited number of people typically die in the hurricane or the flood. Most of the deaths come afterwards when people can't get medical attention or essential food supplies are cut off.
In no way does this justify shooting people, that's also terrible.
But with the straight of Hormuz cut off. That lack of fertilizer and fuel could represent far more death outside of Iran than inside it.
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I hate this timeline.
As a long time #climate campaigner... I almost feel like I should be hoping that the Iran/US war continues as long as possible so the price of oil and gasoline can go as high as possible and force economies to electrify and shift at emergency-speed to renewables.
We could have started on this the easy way 30 years ago... but a few of the same people objected and obstructed.
#IranUSIsraelWar #ClimateCatastrophe #ClimateWar #Oil #EndFossilFuels #ClimateCollapse #USA #CanPoli #CdnPoli
@chris seeing missiles hit oil refineries gives me complicated feelings. They need to be dismantled. Controlled demolition would have been nicer, but who am I to complain about the rapid and messy approach, given that there was no chance to do the slow and careful demolition?
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@cameron29 reuse/convert ice to ev!
@chris that would be a cool project to do when my current car end up needing to be replaced.
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@Space_Burger_Steve @chris agree but problem was battery wasn't so efficient as it's today the most effective was lead battery which would make car weight maybe 10 tons to drive maybe 50km
With li-ions it's much better.
@MilitaryG @Space_Burger_Steve @chris Connecticut has had pumped hydro storage since 1929. Still operational. Obviously not a battery solution possible everywhere, but certainly could have been more widely adopted to address the battery “problem.”
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@chris that would be a cool project to do when my current car end up needing to be replaced.
@cameron29 I wanted to do it to my old family 1976 Fiat Spider but it wasn’t to be and it went to the scrapper instead.
To be a serious we need to create a recycling and conversion industry in Canada!
