The Power Of Nature.Wild Weather.Climate Change.

[tobyjugg2]

Yep, those 'requirements' not met to shareholders satisfaction seem to me to be:

1. Not being allowed to increase customer bills by 40% (of which well over 50% of the new total would NOT be investment)

2. 1 plus regulators not agreeing to letting them do 'things in their own time (ie carry on regardless)

[tobyjugg2]

The Boat race

“The warning was stern: Do not enter the water. Not because of the tide. Not because of sharks. Because of the sewage."

- Thursday’s New York Times

"The New York Times, Fox News, ABC, CNN and numerous other international media have run stories in the buildup to Saturday’s race – although it is what is floating in the Thames, rather than on top of it, that has piqued their interest."

 

Do not enter the water: how dirty Boat Race has captured world’s attention | The Boat Race | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Sewage scandal has brought extra focus on the race and forced more caution from the rowers but enthusiasm is undimmed with Oxford...

 

[tobyjugg2]

Labour’s shadow environment secretary, Steve Reed, said: “It is sickening that this Conservative government has turned a blind eye to illegal sewage dumping that has put thousands of people in hospital. To make matters worse, consumers face higher water bills while water bosses pocket millions in bonuses.

“Labour will put the water companies under special measures to clean up water. We will strengthen regulation so that law-breaking water bosses face criminal charges, and give the regulator new powers to block the payment of any bonuses until water bosses have cleaned up their filth.”

 

That should also include blocking payments of dividends and any increase in domestic charges until the companies have improved infrastructure and reduced debt.

 

[tobyjugg2]

That will be another nail in the tory coffin pre GE

maybe they will claim they are going to do something - after 14 years of just removing monitoring and gutting regulator power

- they will be lying

[tobyjugg2]

and lets not forget

"Water companies in England and Wales have almost doubled their profits since 2019.

During this parliament, which started in 2019, pre-tax profits at water companies have climbed by 82%, according to a Liberal Democrat analysis of Companies House data.

It found that in 2022-23, England’s water firms made £1.7bn in pre-tax profits. This is up 82% since 2018-19, when the same companies made £955m. Since 2018-19, water firms have made £4.2bn in pre-tax profits."

 

Water firms’ profits in England and Wales almost double since 2019, find Lib Dems | Water industry | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Party to call for measures to stop companies prioritising profit over environment at spring conference

 

[tobyjugg2]

1 hour ago, cjcregg said:

Botswana is literally overrun with humans. They've become an invasive species that destroys the environment for every other living creature and have to be controlled somehow. The devastation they cause has to be seen to be believed. 

 

1. Elephants were there first for millions of years before Sapiens

2. They cause far less damage than the equivalent number of humans

3. There are orders of magnitude more humans than elephants

 

Surely we need to look at controlling our own numbers and planetary destruction tenancies first and foremost.

Looking at other species is just a distraction.

 

[tobyjugg2]

4 hours ago, cjcregg said:

Botswana is literally overrun with elephants. They've become an invasive species that destroys the environment for every other living creature and have to be controlled somehow. The devastation they cause has to be seen to be believed.

 

Surely you mean

Botswana is literally overrun with humans. They've become an invasive species that destroys the environment for every other living creature and have to be controlled somehow. The devastation they cause has to be seen to be believed. 

 

1. Elephants were there first for millions of years before Sapiens

2. They cause far less damage than the equivalent number of humans

3. There are orders of magnitude more humans than elephants

 

Don't we need to look at controlling our own numbers and planetary destruction tenancies first and foremost?

Looking at other species (even locusts) is just a distraction.

 

Example

Gasping for Breath: The Devastating Impact of Environmental Pollution in Botswana

WWW.BOTSWANACLIMATENETWORK.ORG

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Botswana is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa with a rich cultural heritage and an abundance of natural resources...

 

 

that suit your preferences better @cjcregg?

Edited April 4 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

Now - want to consider how climate change, habitat shrinkage on a massive scale and human infestation of even those shrunken habitats to illegally log and hunt actually define the increased interaction between human and elephant - among other species?

 

Perhaps start with a simple question:

If elephants vanished from Botswana tomorrow, would the issues currently attributed to elephants in the reports related to your claim actually vanish - or would the situation actually get worse if the limited protections in place for elephants remaining habitats were rescinded with the elephants disappearance?

 

(of course the interactions would end - but would the environmental damage decrease or increase?)

Edited April 4 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

Botswana has massive resources. Britain is very densely populated. As you say - Botswana just 2M people - so loads of space?

I partly agree its how we manage our co-existance with other species - and our and their environment.

 

You do realise this is kicking off because of the threat to ban the very profitable sale of trophies - much of which trade seems to be illegal from poachers?  - ?despite? government intervention

(see the reports of hundreds of unidentified dead elephants and wildly varying elephant population densities )

 

I agree with understand culling species if absolutely necessary - NOT when that culling is wrapped up in illegal killing to sell the ivory. Rather like the illegal aspects of the diamond trade.

AND The elephant population is a major driver of Botswana's tourist industry - 20% of the countries economy

 

So, after basic sanity checking - do you think that the ecological damage would reduce or increase in the then ex-elephant' zones if the elephants were exterminated - or crowded in smaller areas despite all that space ?

 

Botswana: Mining, Minerals and Fuel Resources

WWW.AZOMINING.COM

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Botswana is a country located in Southern Africa. The total area of the country is 581,730 km² with a population of 2,098,018...

"Botswana is abundant in natural resources such as diamonds, silver, copper, nickel, coal soda ash, potash, and iron ore. Almost 70-80% of export earnings are attributed to diamond mining. The mining sector of the country, especially diamond mining, plays a dominant role in its economy. The global downturn of 2009 greatly decreased the demand for Botswana's diamonds. In the recent years, Botswana has transformed itself into a middle-income country with the GDP amounting to $30.09 billion in 2011."

 

Botswana’s Varying Elephant Population(s)–The numbers are all over the place—are they being manipulated? - Conservation Frontlines

WWW.CONSERVATIONFRONTLINES.ORG

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Botswana now has the largest elephant population in Africa. In the early 1960s, there were thought to be fewer than 10,000; by 1990...

 

Botswanas Elephants And Where To Find Them

THECULTURETRIP.COM

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With the help of this Culture Trip guide visitors to Botswana will be all set to enjoy the country's most incredible natural assets: its...

 

[tobyjugg2]

41 minutes ago, cjcregg said:

It has 'loads of space' but 70% of it is the Kalahari desert which can only support a very limited number of elephants.

Elephants don't eat diamonds or any of the other 'natural resources' you listed. Clearly I was referring to food resources ie vegetation.

Thanks for the links but I'm quite up to speed with pretty much everything I need to know about Botswana.

 

Clearly not with such ridiculous responses as 'elephants dont eat diamonds'. Might be everything you want to know .. but clearly NOT what you need to know.

 

So, if you are such an expert you dont need to refer any further:

Why is the Botswana government not doing more to alleviate genuine issues with poached ivory?

How much cash has the government got (impressively mainly made from NOT doing what African nations leaders do with any money) - largely unused apart from a relatively small part keeping the elite rich

In a nation larger than France, but with only a bit over 2 million inhabitants, and loads of cash - why aren't they greening the desert and savanna rather than moaning about elephants moving from the areas that can either no longer support them  or they have been driven from?

and a key question:

Why is such a wealthy (relative to inhabitants) nation apparently so involved in elephant hunting and illegal trophy markets?

Why is such a sunny country not investing its 'spare' money in solar? Sticking rather with coal which puts money in the hands of a few?

Why is a country near the front line of climate change, with lakes etc retreating significantly, yet with an apparent strong will to stay with historic herding lifestyle not doing more to enable it?

Why is there such high unemployment in a relatively wealthy potentially developing nation?

Some useful background for a starter - if you bother to read it - its not complex at this stage. Half hour at most.

 

Botswana - Democracy, Tribalism, Wildlife | Britannica

WWW.BRITANNICA.COM

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Botswana - Democracy, Tribalism, Wildlife: Under the 1966 constitution (since amended), Botswana is a multiparty republic...

 

Wildlife vet: the Botswana elephant debate is actually about a bigger conservation issue - Africa Geographic

AFRICAGEOGRAPHIC.COM

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The debate following the handing over of the social dialogue report on lifting of the hunting ban in Botswana continues.

 

what was done and can be grown upon - but it has rather stalled and changed direction

Botswana: From dusty bowl to sparkling success story

WWW.BBC.CO.UK

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How the southern African nation managed to make the best of its natural resources.

 

Is elephant poaching on the rise in Botswana? - Africa Geographic

AFRICAGEOGRAPHIC.COM

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A spate of arrests points to an elephant poaching increase in Botswana, shining a light on the efficacy of anti-poaching systems

 

Edited April 4 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

4 hours ago, cjcregg said:

I wouldn't consider myself an expert as such but I do think I'm somewhat better placed to understand the issues that the over population of elephants is having on Botswana and other species. I don't pretend that I know what the solution is but I do speak with conservationists on the ground there who believe that the situation is so precarious now that hunting has to be considered as part of the solution.

My family owns shares in game reserves in both South Africa and Botswana and I have witnessed with my own eyes a single bull elephant completely destroy acres of mature woodland in just a few weeks. This has a devastating effect on all other life forms that depend on such environments, both directly and indirectly. It's not unlike the effect that logging has on the Brazilian rain forest.

You correctly identify that elephants are a tourist attraction but fail to recognise that so are many other species

 

 

Back to the point you ignored:

You do realise (that article) is really about Germany banning imports due to elephant hunting/poaching (err) and  internationally illegal trophies which many countries ban due to the entwined illegal poacher trade - not about humane culling

You also seem to ignore, despite referencing - that Botswana is reintroducing elephant HUNTING and trophy sale, while disarming the poaching wardens? Not unavoidable humanitarian culling/herd management?

 

You reference a bull elephant destroying some stuff while on a rampage - so why was the elephant on a rampage? and SURELY there are far better mechanisms for manage and culling occasional rogue elephants without reintroducing hunting and trophy marketing.

.. let alone raging against other countries who exercise their right to choose NOT to be party to those in hunting and trophy market

 

Edited April 5 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

Much of that information is official and from Botaswana documented issues so why is it NOT relevant?

You sound like one who would profit from the elephant hunting and trophy market reintroduction as you seem to be promoting hunting and trophies rather than humane herd and environment management - which you apparently consider not relevant or chose not to engage when your presentations are questioned ?

Or is it just that an elephant has inconvenienced you?

 

Simple fact: its up to Germany whether they import elephant hunting trophies which are widely banned anyway.

Simple fact: 'reintroduce hunting and trophies (never left really did it) and many 'conservation minded' folk you seem to disparage will take their custom elsewhere - but you'll get a newish hunter market - acknowledged

You: Present dubious claims - they will be challenged, whether you like it or not.

 

This bridge must be the last one left in Botaswana if your statement re 130,000 elephants actions are in any way true

[tobyjugg2]

Ok so I'll summarise your apparent stance/opinion detailed above and let readers judge

* You are in favor of exterminating elephants specifically via hunting, and might as well profit from the trophies while they last, and Germany and everyone else should import those trophies for sale whether they like it or not?

* You seemingly imply elephants all need to be exterminated; or close too; by hunting; as 'it's what they (all elephants) do' .  So humane culling of a few problematic ones and humane methods of herd management isnt an option or even 'relevant' in your opinion?

* Using available funds to invest in better management of herds, the tourist industry (20% of national income) and the wider environment in Botswana as part of national growth is all ...  not relevant?

Those do seem to be the meaning of your statements.

 

 

Edited April 5 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

While I save the last Smithsonian $45,000 question for if @cjcregg retruns .. maybe before ..

 

Thames Water default: What's next for the company now it can't officially pay its debts?

WWW.CITYAM.COM

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Further cracks in the Thames Water ecosystem have appeared and are gushing today as its parent company defaulted on an interest...

 

Foreign banks key to Thames Water's fate as owners seek delay to repay £190m loan

INEWS.CO.UK

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Foreign banks to decide fate of crisis hit water company as deadline repayment deal approaches

 

reuters.com

WWW.REUTERS.COM

 

 

Edited April 5 by tobyjugg2

[tobyjugg2]

Smithsonian: The $45,000 question

Verreynne points out that rural villages rarely benefit from income generated by safari tourism, but instead bear the highest costs of human-elephant conflict.

On average, a legal elephant hunt in neighboring countries costs about $45,000. Comparatively, a night in a luxury safari lodge runs closer to $355.

 

1: Is a political and herd management issue

2. Is a greed issue.

 

[tobyjugg2]

Saturday was provisionally the warmest day of the year so far for the UK, according to the Met Office, with 20.9C recorded at Santon Downham, Suffolk, about 8C above average for the time of year.

Germany has just had its warmest March since records began in 1881, with mean temperatures 2.77C above average at 7.4C (45.3F).

 

[tobyjugg2]

Understanding climate: Antarctic sea ice extent | NOAA Climate.gov

WWW.CLIMATE.GOV

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Antarctic sea ice extent hit a record low extent in February, but thanks to large natural variability from year to year, experts say there is still...

 

An unprecedented leap of 38.5C in the coldest place on Earth is a harbinger of a disaster for humans and the local ecosystem

 

‘Simply mind-boggling’: world record temperature jump in Antarctic raises fears of catastrophe | Climate crisis | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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An unprecedented leap of 38.5C in the coldest place on Earth is a harbinger of a disaster for humans and the local ecosystem

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/04/09/march-record-global-heat/

 

 

Sea Temp   VS  Antarctic Ice  .... roughly 60 METERS (approx 200 feet) of sea level rise in that Ice that is melting

30% less ice @ minimum so far

[tobyjugg2]

On 20/03/2024 at 10:27, tobyjugg2 said:

So much for the Torys and Brexit protecting the UKs waters and fish

“Industrial fishing is designed to kill marine life as efficiently as possible,” said Hugo Tagholm, the executive director of Oceana UK. "Everything from sharks to starfish are hoovered up by bottom trawling, which can destroy whole ecosystems and empty our seas of life. This also threatens communities seeking to make a sustainable living from our seas.

“How can we call them ‘protected’ if we have such highly extractive industries in them?

 

 

‘Hoovered’ up from the deep: 33,000 hours of seabed trawling revealed in protected UK waters | Marine life | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Analysis shows alarming prevalence of harmful fishing methods thought to ‘destroy whole ecosystems’

 

and

Brexit Britain err EU Greece becomes first European country to ban bottom trawling in marine parks

 

Greece becomes first European country to ban bottom trawling in marine parks | Fishing | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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The law will come into force in national parks within two years and in all of the country’s marine protected areas by 2030

 

[tobyjugg2]

Dubai is experiencing major flooding as 1.5 year’s worth of rain just fell in a single day.

[tobyjugg2]

So they seem to be deliberately fouling Britain - not 'just negligently

Need to be in jail alongside the PO crims, and rabidly corrupt MPs

[tobyjugg2]

and more ..

As thames water pushes to further rip off captive customers, not get fined for it, and allow more dividends .. for little more than 'aspirations' to do better

More detail comes out of the literally and figuratively sh** companies apparently shunting money out of the regulated business to profit/bonus/dividend generating unregulated side companies

 

"Accounts filed at Companies House show :

(Kennets) accounts, filed more than 12 months after the end of Kennet’s financial year, showed that the company made a £1.15m pre-tax profit for the year to 31 March 2023, up from £374,000 a year earlier. Revenues rose to £1.6m in 2023 – up from £1m in

"Kennet Properties paid out a £14.5m dividend in the year to 31 March 2023"

"Kennet ?takes on? land no longer needed by Britain’s biggest water company before developing it and selling it on, typically for housing or commercial premises. It also received income for the use of sewer networks by third parties for fibre-optic cabling."

 

Thames Water could raise bills to £627 a year to help fix leaks | Thames Water | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Embattled water supplier promises to invest up to £3bn more over the next five years

 

 

Thames Water-linked firm paid £14m in dividends despite concerns over group | Thames Water | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Kennet Properties sells off Thames Water land, whose owner, Kemble Water, has warned it would not be able to pay a £190m loan

 

[tobyjugg2]

Truly Gobsmacking for a number of reasons ..

For first time in a billion years, two lifeforms have merged into one

WWW.INDEPENDENT.CO.UK

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‘The first time it happened, it gave rise to all complex life,’ scientists say

 

 

For the first time in one billion years, two lifeforms truly merged into one organism | Popular Science

WWW.POPSCI.COM

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It is a discovery that’s 'one for the textbooks.'

 

 

[tobyjugg2]

and something for aurora watchers to err watch out for

 

4 solar flares simultaneously erupt from the sun in rare 'super' explosion — and Earth could be hit by the fallout | Live Science

WWW.LIVESCIENCE.COM

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In the early hours of Tuesday (April 23), quadruple solar flares near-simultaneously exploded from across the sun's surface, and there's...

 

[tobyjugg2]

Thought for the day

"The interesting thing is that (some) humans have a hard time coming to terms with the fact that 2,400 gigatonnes of carbon (our total emissions since pre-industrial times) might make a difference to the climate,

.. but very readily get behind the idea of a few hygroscopic flares making 18 months worth of rain fall in a day."

- theconversation

 

So No, cloud seeding did not cause the effects in Dubai.

[tobyjugg2]

China green-lights mass production of autonomous flying taxis — with commercial flights set for 2025 | Live Science

WWW.LIVESCIENCE.COM

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The EHang EH216-S autonomous flying taxi is the first eVTOL ready for mass production and could lead the way for flying cars around...