Post AVo9QiVFqONNmprKC0 by enkiusz@is-a.cat
(DIR) More posts by enkiusz@is-a.cat
(DIR) Post #AVo3ZCjqiKMi9TLjsm by kravietz@agora.echelon.pl
2023-05-19T07:53:04.320805Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
The scale of tayga logging in #Russia Irkutsk oblast'. This process has been going for years, but apart from Russian environmental activists few people even know about it.Before, the wood — perfectly healthy whole trees — were largely exported to EU where, thanks to the legal classification of "biomass" as zero-emission fuel they were, again, legally reducing CO2 emissions from coal power plants. Now it goes mostly to China.As significant part of this logging is illegal even by Russian law, the forest that has not been logged is often set on fire to cover up and pretend it was all lost in an accidental forest fire, thus multiplying the harm to environment and climate.The idea of biomass burning was based on sound scientific observation that when you grow say wheat, it takes CO2 from the air that is then bound in the straws, so when you later burn it, it has a zero net CO2 balance. This was then turned into a requirement for a minimum percentage of biomass in power plant fuel mix, which, together with the EU ETS emissions certificates, created a huge demand for #biomass. Since EU actual waste biomass (straws, wood chips etc) was able to satisfy only a fraction of this demand, the industry did what it had to do: started importing it. But lifetime of straws is one year, while this forest has been growing for hundreds of years, which is how science was turned into absurd.This is how just one Polish power plant ended up importing 7000 tons per year of forest from Komi Republic (Russia) over distance of thousands of kilometers, or German power plants importing coconut shells from Pacific area and planting forest in Africa to be cut and then transported on ships to be burned in Germany...
(DIR) Post #AVo9QiVFqONNmprKC0 by enkiusz@is-a.cat
2023-05-19T08:11:38Z
1 likes, 0 repeats
@kravietz yep, biomass fuel is ripe for abuse
(DIR) Post #AVprSwq6hCCl8wwoyW by Greengordon@spore.social
2023-05-20T00:39:46Z
1 likes, 0 repeats
@kravietz The idea that capitalism is THE problem is shown to be false here. Dictatorships of all kinds are also a huge part of the climate, pollution, waste, etc problem."A significant part of this logging is illegal even by Russian law, the forest that has not been logged is often set on fire to cover up and pretend it was all lost in an accidental forest fire, thus multiplying the harm to environment and climate."#climate
(DIR) Post #AVprnRtwuxU5GvWKvI by kravietz@agora.echelon.pl
2023-05-20T04:50:41.221006Z
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@GreengordonBy all means — Russian authorities, just like Soviet Union, has zero respect to the environment and climate, regardless of the economic system. USSR was responsible for one of the largest environmental disasters in the past, not only Chernobyl but also Kyshtym, drying up of Aral sea and many others.
(DIR) Post #AVqzymrDTrAxzrwiRc by jhinin@mastodonapp.uk
2023-05-20T15:28:00Z
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@Greengordon @kravietz is this assuming that capitalism and democracy are synonymous though? Easy to get into semantic debates of course but I would instinctively regard many of the world's dictatorships as capitalist, including China.
(DIR) Post #AVqzyniOI9i6empBKK by kravietz@agora.echelon.pl
2023-05-20T17:57:03.443905Z
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@jhininNo, I don't insist on such assumption. There's nothing contradictory between say socialism and environment protection laws in theory. However we yet have to see such a country in real life. Or you can imagine such protection in an authoritarian country, but it's also largely theoretical. One reason for it may be that environment protection usually originates from the demands of the citizens themselves, and this assumes citizens have any political power.@Greengordon