Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Amidst all the naysaying and contrary bashing going on regarding Green Living and Green Technologies, it's refreshing to see that some communities have aligned themselves with both the social responsibility and the economic opportunity available through adopting sound ecological policies and encouraging business start-ups that serve those principles.
Asheville, NC is emerging as a leader in this arena, and this article discusses what's going on there...
Quote:
Innovation Earth: The Next Green Tech Town
More than 300,000 people may have marched in Manhattan last month for a worldwide climate call-to-arms, but evidently we can't even get it together at the statewide -- let alone national -- let alone global level. A study released last week by the Georgetown Climate Center shows that less than half of U.S. states are preparing for the coming effects of climate change.
Unbelievably, those unprepared include Louisiana, where coastline is fast disappearing and with it the area's natural protection against future super storms; and Texas, where temperatures are rising and the current drought is among the worst seen in 500 years.
This shouldn't come as a surprise, perhaps, since far too many U.S. governors still deny that climate change even exists . But it's enough to turn our hopes toward American cities, which seem unfazed by politics and focused only on the realities ahead.
.....
But the smartest among them are also preparing for the best, becoming hubs for green tech and innovation that can bolster a city's economy along with its resiliency.
One to watch: Asheville, North Carolina. Surrounded by the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and long a haven for artsy types and outdoorsy retirees, the city has had at its forefront a certain eco-consciousness (as well as climate preparedness; the city has an extensive 169-page Sustainability Management Plan in place). But now, the city is poised to cultivate a new generation of green tech startups, led by the efforts of Lazy Environmentalist Josh Dorfman.
"Unbelievably, those unprepared include Louisiana, where coastline is fast disappearing and with it the area's natural protection against future super storms; and Texas, where temperatures are rising and the current drought is among the worst seen in 500 years."
In Louisiana they're losing land area at a ferocious rate. Some is due to erosion, and not being replaced by Mississippi river silt. Some is due to land sinking as the land subsides due to oil production. And some is due to rising sea levels.
According to the experts...
Quote:
“So we're fighting this massive loss of surface land [and] we're also subsiding because we're not replenishing these wetlands,” Marshall says. “On top of that, here comes global warming and sea level rise.” According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, southern Louisiana has “the highest rate of relative sea level rise of any place in the country, and one of the highest rates anywhere on the planet.”
And in Texas, it keeps getting hotter and drier... this is merely one of hundreds of articles on the phenomenon...
Quote:
Levels at three Texas lakes have plunged to record lows, the latest chapter of a multi-year southern Plains drought.
According to a drought update issued Friday by the National Weather Service in Ft. Worth, Texas, Lakes Granbury, Nocona, and Ray Hubbard each plummeted to new record lows since dams creating those lakes were completed in the 1960s.
In total, Texas reservoirs have lost 240 billion gallons of water over the past 12 months.
But this is more substantial... predicted climate changes for Texas coming out of the federal climate assessment... higher average temperatures, more record temperatures, increase in number of warm nights, longer dry spells, higher number of consecutive dry days, lower precipitation, lower soil moisture, and rising coastal waters.
Quote:
Finally, sea levels have been rising inexorably, with an acceleration since the 1970s. Because of all the heat that’s already in the system, oceans will continue to rise for millennia. But by how much and how quickly is dependent on how much more carbon is pumped into the atmosphere. The assessment projects that oceans are likely to rise 1-4 feet by the end of the century, but the report does not rule out an increase of six feet. Much of the Texas coast—including barrier islands like Padre and Galveston, that protect the mainland from tropical storms—is only a few feet above sea level. And sea-level rise will not be uniform. In some areas, like around Galveston-Houston, the ground is sinking as well.
One to watch: Asheville, North Carolina. Surrounded by the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and long a haven for artsy types and outdoorsy retirees, the city has had at its forefront a certain eco-consciousness (as well as climate preparedness; the city has an extensive 169-page Sustainability Management Plan in place). But now, the city is poised to cultivate a new generation of green tech startups, led by the efforts of Lazy Environmentalist Josh Dorfman.
This is at the heart of why I started this thread, because I find it remarkable that Asheville has identified and aligned itself with the economic opportunities available to them in encouraging emerging green technologies. And I believe this kind of leading entrepreneurship is central to the purpose for this forum... not to be a target for naysayers, but to be an inspiration to forward thinkers.
Quote:
Last fall, Dorfman moved to Asheville with his young family and thought it would be great to use his startup and media experience to help scale up an entrepreneur community in his newfound hometown. Not long after, the perfect opportunity came along: He was hired by the county as its new director of entrepreneurship.
The resulting effort, the recently launched VentureAsheville.com, will create what Dorfman dubs "a high-growth entrepreneurial ecosystem." Local wanna-be entrepreneurs are paired with startup funding via an in-town angel investor network (Asheville Angels) and are given access to bi-weekly pitch events, networking get-togethers and mentoring. A green tech offshoot of national startup accelerator The Iron Yard will be launching this fall.
Sustainability-minded businesses that fall outside the realm of cleantech have access to Asheville nature-based business accelerator Accelerating Appalachia. Last year's graduates include Riverbend Malts, which provides locally farmed artisan malts to craft brewers, and Veterans to Farmers, which trains veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for careers in family farming.
Of course, Venture Asheville isn't exclusively focused on green tech. But the niche seems a natural fit for the city, which headquarters the National Climatic Data Center and its hundreds of climate scientists (including 16 Nobel laureates). The city will also soon be home to a 20,000-square-foot space downtown called the Collider that will serve as a meeting grounds for climate tech startups and scientists, entrepreneurs and even artists. Dorfman sees this as yet another potential incubator for innovation.
Chicago's "Sustainable Chicago" Plan is broad in scope, and commendable in detail, but it is lacking the Economic Opportunity component that makes Asheville's plan so remarkable.
Quote:
"I want Chicago to be the greenest city in the world, and I am committed to fostering opportunities for Chicagoans to make sustainability a part of their lives and their experience in the city." -- Mayor Emanuel
The City of Chicago is a leader of innovative environmental initiatives, and sustainability is a key focus of Chicago’s policies. From the Chicago Climate Action Plan's broad leadership to the City's targeted energy efficiency investments, Chicago is integrating sustainability in the places residents work, live, learn, and play while preparing for a resilient future.
The coastline of Louisiania is disappearing because of dams, not global warming.
Again, that is not what the experts say. As noted in the material referenced. the levees and dams are only considered to contribute about 1/3 of the total problem.
Again, that is not what the experts say. As noted in the material referenced. the levees and dams are only considered to contribute about 1/3 of the total problem.
Did you even read the articles I linked to? I seriously doubt it, or you couldn't dismiss them so easily. They are quite detailed, and quite convincing, and cross check with a lot of other substantial material. Like the following...
Staggering interactive maps and graphics showing changed due to climate change, damage from oil industry, and levees. Losing Ground
Stunning article and maps exploring the fact that the Louisiana "boot" outline on their road signs doesn't even look like a boot any more... and why. A must read if you want to understand the problems the state faces. https://medium.com/matter/louisiana-...t-b55b3bd52d1e
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
