2010 Report on the Environmental Impacts of Ozone Depletion

The 2010 report from the UNEP Environmental Effects assessment Panel (EEAP) is now available from UNEP.  The report assesses the environmental impacts of ozone depletion and its interactions with climate change. The report is commissioned by the parties of the Montreal Protocol on Protection of the Ozone Layer, and the idea is to make it more accessible to the public, including politicans and policymakers,  by using language digestible to non-specialists the research fields involved. My own involvement was mainly with the first chapter of the report. The figure below shows how UV is expected to change over the years ahead.

Projected changes in clear-sky UV

50 Years of Research at Lauder

We celebrate “50 years of Atmospheric Research at Lauder” on 28-29 April 2011. The celebration will be based at Central Stories Museum in Alexandra where a permanent display of Atmospheric reseach is being prepared.  If you have with links to Lauder atmospheric research (DSIR or NIWA), or an interest in it,  you will be very welcome.  Consider it a re-union but with a scientific flavour.  The convenor is Gordon Keys (jgkeys@xtra.co.nz), who was OIC at Lauder in the 1970s and 1980s. Registration forms are available from him.

If this old truck looks familiar, you need to be there……  The old observatory truck was sold to Ian Coutts of Christchurch for $1 on the day of this photo. He made it “roadworthy” again at no further expense, and the photo shows him driving out from Lauder, under the watchful eyes of  Brian McNamara and Jack Richardson. He drove it  across the Omarama saddle to be used as a glider winch at Omarama. Ian later restored to its former glory- but without the superstructure.

 

 Tentative programme:

28 April

10:00. Registration opens

10:00 to 12:00. Informal get together and viewing of displays at the Museum

12:00 to 13:00. Lunch (own arrangments) 

13:00 to 15:00. Formal presentations

15:00 to 15:30. Afternoon Tea

15:30 to 17:30. Formal presentations

19:00 to 23:00. Conference dinner

29 April

09:00 to 10:00.  Meet at Museum

10:00 to 14:00.  Lauder site visit (lunch included in registration fee)

15:00 . Close         

Please register early. A block booking for rooms at Centennial Court Motel will be held until 30 March. If you’re from out of town,  make the most of your visit to sunny Central by taking time out before or after to ride the Rail Trail, or visit the Arrowtown Autumn festival.

Audio on Dosimeters

Radio New Zealand’s Ruth Beran did a nice story about the UV dosimeters for their “Our Changing World” programme that went to air on 2 September 2010.  Listen to a transcript of her interview with Tony Reeder, Jan Jopson, and Richard McKenzie.

Sunscreens

‘What’s Really in our Sunscreens?’ TV3, Tuesday 27^th July, 8pm.

If you miss it you can view the episode online after the airing date using the link below -

http://www.tv3.co.nz/Shows/Reality/WhatsReallyInOur/tabid/778/Default.aspx

While wer’e on the subject of sunscreens ….

Below is a graph showing the spectral transmission of a sunscreen we tested, soon after application on to a UV-transmitting quartz filter. The upper panel shows the unfiltered spectrum of sunlight, and the spectrum filtered with an SPF30 sunscreen. The lower panel shows the transmission deduced from the ratio of those two measurements.  This particular sunscreen blocks just about all UV radiation, including the most damaging UV-B region (280-315 nm) and longer wavelength  UV-A component from 315 to 400 nm.

Sunscreen Transmission

UV Stuff at “Science Learn”

For more background information on UV radiation and my personal interests in it, please visit the science learn website.

… and more … It’s D for Dosimeter

Personal electronic UV dosimeters badges  invented in New Zealand.  Research tools that you wear on your wrist to relate your personal UV exposure to your production of blood serum vitamin D.  Read all about it …

As seen on TV: Sun-bedding

Just in case you thought I was kidding on my earlier blog, see the same message again here in true-life colour …

Climate Wars

I’ve just finished reading Gwynne Dyer’s “Climate Wars”, a chilling – if you’ll pardon the pun- sequel to his earlier novel “War”. Both are very easy to read, yet sobering experiences. Gwynne Dyer knows what he’s talking about. This is in stark contrast to the ill-informed public (that excludes the present company, of course) which has no comprehension of the scale of the climate change issue. Theirs is usually a self-centred view, filtered through rose-tinted glasses.  The only information they seem willing or able to access is the rubbish piled on the web by the small-yet-prolific band of nay-sayers, most of whom  fall into the categories of “very stupid” or  who appear to have vested interests in maintaining the status quo.  I’m particularly annoyed by those with civic or political responsibilities, who use the debate to justify a fence-sitting posture designed to garner maximum political leverage (i.e., votes).

As Dyer points out in the later chapters of his book, the long-term effects – on time scales of centuries or more - are possibly catastrophic for life as we know it.  But its the earlier chapters that really scare me.  For many, a slightly warmer climate, or a few cm rise in sea level may seem of little consequence.  But Dyer raises several spectres of climate change triggering political instabilities which could have dire consequences in the next few decades. I hope the people who matter are listening. The book should be compulsory reading for all would-be civic leaders and political decision makers. Because of past inaction, they now have a hard row to hoe to keep us out of hot water. And if they can’t stand the heat, they should get out of the kitchen.

The Colour of Green

I realise that green is a little bit removed from UV, but this makes me see red …

I was disappointed and puzzled by the decision of the Environment Court to reject Meridian Energy’s proposed Project Hayes wind farm in the Lammermoor Ranges of  Central Otago.  It was a split decision by the triumvirate, none of whom has specific interests in the region affected. Their argument was based on their assessment that the area was significant because of its “outstanding beauty”. Strange, I’ve lived in Central Otago for 30 years, yet prior to Project Hayes, had never heard of this being a ”must-see” natural local icon. I wonder why I never went there? Of course the whole Central Otago region qualifies for that superlative, but since the Lammermoors are virtually uninhabited and untouched by the trappings of tourism, and abundantly windy, I would have thought it a prime candidate for harnessing wind-energy. Sure it will look different from its present state – for the few who ever go there – but will it necessarily be worse? It may well become a tourist attraction in its own right. And if you want to see what it used to be like, just look in another direction.

The environment court seems to have conveniently forgotten we have a slight problem with energy. We need green energy and we need it soon if we hope to meet our Kyoto-and-beyond targets. The rest of the world woke up to the benefits of wind energy long ago. Germany isn’t known for being particularly windy, but their energy production from wind already exceeds NZ’s total electricity consumption. Why are we so slow? We have perfect conditions to harvest it. And if we don’t get green energy, we’ll pay through our noses, to coin a phrase.  There’s a price to pay either way. But it’s not sufficient to simply deny all such projects and pretend that improved efficiencies will save the day. Realistically, they won’t, at least not in the near future. Especially if you live in Central Otago where it gets cold in the winter.  Perhaps the best energy-efficiency strategy for the government would be to deny people the option of living in places like Central Otago, and require everybody (except the primary producers who keep the country afloat) to live in Auckland. Think of the savings in heating and transport costs. 

Resource consent had previously been granted for the wind farm, which would have provided much-needed greenhouse-friendly energy for decades ahead. That consent had already been a long drawn-out process involving the community board, locals, appeals, and a lot of time and money. It looks like it has all been a waste, and that decisions taken by the affected parties can be rescinded from afar - in this case even despite the obvious national interest.  

I’m heartened to hear that Meridian Energy have decided to appeal the decision. I say good luck to them. If the environment court’s decision is supposed to be green then I must be colour blind.

NIWA UV Workshop

The  NIWA UV Workshop was held in Queenstown New Zealand between 7-9 April 2010.

Go here more details, including extended abstracts of the papers that were presented.