Christmas Wishes: The Heat is On

As another year draws to a close its time to extend Christmas wishes to everyone reading this.
But the Heat is On!

40 degrees in Melbourne means the following:

• Libraries and other free air-conditioned places will be busy. 
• Lots of people can't afford air-conditioning and older people die in greater numbers in the heat.
• So do dogs and other furry pets!
• Kids left in cars - please, please no!!!!!
• Peak water use in the morning as everyone tries to prepare their plants for the heat
• Northern hemisphere trees will get stressed and drop their leaves, perhaps for the rest of the summer as a response to the heat. Normally takes a couple of weeks to show something other than crispiness.
• Train cancellations - 16 trains of 2000 cancelled early and more will cancel later. Perhaps some heat buckling the rails later on,
• The Melbourne Southern Star Wheel (like the London Eye ) may have its engineers checking it anxiously. Its structure buckled under 46 degree heat in 2009 and its been closed since then. Due to re-open this weekend I think.
• Air conditioning units will be on full all day - solar power units will make sure that some of this peak is being generated by the sun! Thus making life cheaper for us all.
• Freeways today have been RS. Still RS and will continue as people get stressed in the heat and traffic.
• Grass and Bushfire risk is very high today. Not yet extreme or catastrophic.
• Tony Abbot and co will be making life more difficult for all renewable energy projects. He doesn't believe in subsidies for businesses like Holden, which is fair enough. But when will he remove the fuel subsidies for the transport industry, mines etc. Will he remove the land and reduced tariffs for the coal industry. Will he make things more of a level playing field so that big business doesnot unfairly compete with small



Christmas Lights

• Short answer no!

So to all of the environmental activists out there: have a great Christmas and be prepared for an interesting, tumultuous New Year. Lets hope people power can be successful. I'm beginning to think a double dissolution might not be a bad idea but ...??

Climate Council's Report

Christmas Cake & Donations- How to divide the portions

As I sit down to write this post my Christmas Cake is cooking gently in my electric oven. Its another cool overcast day here in Melbourne, ideal weather to cook cakes and not suffer heat stroke.
Once cooked I will have to write strict instructions on the cake tin to make sure the cake is kept intact for Christmas Day. Or I can do what my mother does and freeze the cake, bringing it out when I defrost the turkey.
More worrying is how to divide my donations to charity this year. There are so many needy people and organisations. With the various environmental groups reeling in shock with Federal Governments decisions to repeal the Carbon Tax, axe the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, dismiss the Climate Commission, approve the dredging of the harbour at Abbott Point, Queensland for an expanded Coal Terminal and encourage logging in Tasmanian World Heritage areas, I don't know where to turn.
Now Getup has another save the ABC campaign which also is deserving of help.

So sorry to some of my normal people focussed charities, I'm going to divide my donation dollars and support some of these environmental campaigns. After all people need to live in an environment that supports them with clean air, water, sustainable energy, sustainable work and reliable information. As worried Holden workers are finding to their cost.

As Tony Abbott said prior to his election win as reported by SBS News on the idea of a mandate:

“As an Opposition our job is to hold the Government rigorously to account. Oppositions are not there to get legislation through. Oppositions are there to hold the Government to account, and unless we are confident a piece of legislation is beyond reasonable doubt in the national interest, it is our duty, as the Opposition, to vote it down.”

Yo Yo Spring & Extreme Weather

Melbournians are quite used to Spring being the season that yo yo's - up one minute with 36 degrees C, down to 12 degrees with Antarctic winds the next. This spring has seemed quite cool and definitely wet.
My water tanks are completely full to overflowing. The winter doona is still on my bed, though it got thrown on the floor last night after Summer officially started.
The Bureau of Meterology (BOM) is warning that the cold weather will return later this week. So the doona hasn't yet been packed away until next April.

However, the statistics from the BOM show that we have continued the warming trend shown earlier in the year. The Conversation's article "Australia records its warmest spring on record "shows this year has been record breaking throughout the year.
I watched the Catalyst special on ABC TV last night -How to get prepared for extreme weather - laughing at the extremes the film crew put their hapless families through while simulating a fire and flood.
The two main points of the special were: Be prepared- have your disaster plan written down and regularly actioned and that the number of extreme weather effects are increasing - were demonstrated nicely.

As a suburban dweller, I belong to that lazy majority that has no written disaster plan.
I have an emergency box which has my important documents and occasional other things in it. I run a fairly comprehensive pantry so can keep myself fed for a couple of weeks and so long as the water tanks are moderately full will have access to water (unpurified). I also have access to multiple means of cooking including a gas barbecue which allows for some independence in the event of disaster to electricity and gas supply.
I have a wood burning combustion heater and fuel supplies. I have solar hot water and PV.

But if I had to evacuate then all bets are off for preparedness. See the CFA Fire Plan Template.
I should be better prepared for storms and other events following the experiences of my family in the Christchurch earthquake.
So perhaps my Christmas Season need to include writing and practicing a disaster plan.
What about you?