ENERGY WEDNESDAY

     From Worldometer (new  COVID-19 deaths yesterday):

          DAY  USA  WORLD    Brazil    India    South Africa

June     9     1093     4732         1185        246       82

July    22      1205     7128         1293      1120     572

Aug    12      1504     6556        1242        835     130

Sept     9      1208      6222       1136       1168       82

Oct     21      1225      6849         571        703       85

Nov    25       2304    12025        620        518      118

Dec    30       3880    14748       1224       299      465

Jan     14       4142    15512       1151        189     712

Feb      3       4005    14265       1209       107      398

Mar      2       1989     9490        1726       110      194

April     6        906    11787         4211       631       37

May     4        853     13667        3025      3786     59 

June    1        287    10637         2346      3205      95

 July    7         251      8440        1595        817      411

Aug     4         656    10120        1118        532      423 

Sept   22      2228      9326          839       279     124

Oct      6       2102      8255          543       315       59

Nov    3        1436      7830         186        458       23

Dec     1       1633      8475          266        477       28

Jan     7        2025      6729         148         285     140

Feb     2        2990   12012          946        991      175

Mar     2        1778     7756          335         173       28 

Apr     1          439      4056         290          52       12

May    5          225      2404         151            ?        64

June    2          216      1413         130          10       31

July    6          316      1627         335           35       12 

         13          407       1742        388           38       12 

         14          231       1721         292          47         8

         22          251       1785         271          69         3 

         27          397       2326         308          44         5

         28          260       2088         276          47       10 

Aug    2          363       2047         271          47         ?

Summary:

• Nothing much has changed from last week.
• New cases yesterday (with new cases/million population in the parentheses)
• #1      Japan  167,678 (1331)
• #2      S. Korea  111,700 (2173)
• #3      Germany  87,681 (1040)
• #4      Italy  65,196 (1083)
• #5      USA  61,162 (183)  
• #9      Taiwan  23,529 (980)
• #12    Singapore  10,230 (1734)
• #16    New Zealand  7382 (1476)
• #40    Thailand  1843 (26)
• #55    UAE  1032 (103)
• #83    China 107 (0.07)
• I especially included countries on our Fall trip.
• Not sure when we were that low in ranking.  Note, though, that we had an infection rate around 1/12 that of S. Korea.
• As terrible as the COVID situation is in S. Korea, tourists are allowed, but need to show a negative test within 2 days of entering.
• No mandatory quarantine.
• Additionally must test negative within 24 hours of arrival.
• Of those countries above, Singapore had the second highest new cases/million rate.  However, tourists remain welcome, after showing proof of vaccination.  No negative test requirement.
• Japan allows visitors on organized tours, but only a very few are coming.  
• Tour companies are super cautious.  
• No sign of possible relaxation for solo travelers. 
• Okinawa has been the worst stricken prefecture for many weeks.  They are these days daily suffering at around 2500 new cases/million, which is worse than even South Korea.  
• Hawaii is among the worst U.S. states, but we are  ten times lower in new cases/million than Okinawa.

• Notice that China, #83 in new cases/million with a rate of 0.07, is almost 3000 times lower than the USA.  The USA is open to anyone.  China is the most isolated, preventing entrance of foreigners.  So don't think of going there any time soon.

The primaries yesterday insured for the continued control of Congress by Democrats.  A lot of Trump-supported victories and the spark of how important the abortion issue will be on November 8.  Tomorrow, why Republicans won't have the tsunami they were expecting.

I was contemplating on my professional past and realized that I have had no experience in fossil fuels and fission energy.  These two provide nearly 88% of the energy used in the country today.

• Sixty years ago my first job was in biomass engineering.  Well, it was an engineer in a sugar cane processing factory.  
• 
  Then when I started my University of Hawaii career, I suddenly found myself growing marine algae in a raceway, with carbon dioxide from a generator to mimic the effectiveness of this option to combat climate warming, while producing a biofuel.  

• 
  Immediately came the energy crisis of 1973 when I also became part of the Hawaii Geothermal Project.  
• Then for the next few years I had summer assignments at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory on laser fusion.  
• In 1979 I was part of the congressional staff team that marshaled the first wind energy bill, and I drafted legislation on OTEC and hydrogen that became law.  

• 
  Returning to the University of Hawaii in 1982 I also ventured into solar photovoltaics, plus methanol and electric vehicles.
• I led teams in macrobiotechnology and algology.
• But no oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear fission on my record.

Maybe because of my lack of knowledge, I was surprised by some of the microdots of information below from the energy media.  While the biggest shocks are with the fossil fuels, there are others.

So to begin, Honolulu will be shutting down it's dirtiest power plant on September 1, the AES 203 megawatt coal-fired facility after 30 years of service.  With this comes the end of coal in Hawaii.  The plant now provides 11% of our island electricity with coal from Indonesia.

From Time magazine:

• So is the world quickly shedding coal for electricity?  Nope.  Last year, the global generation of power from COAL was at an all-time high!  
• If that is not bad enough, the generation this year will be even more.
• Coal-fired electrical generation accounts for about 30% of all global carbon dioxide emissions.

• 
  China is terrible, where the growth was 9%.
• India was worse at 12%.
• Of course, the USA and EU are good citizens and are quickly shifting to the renewables, right?  Not at all!  The COAL jump since 2020 is almost 20%!!!  We are double the villains of China and India.
• Can you believe that, as tarnished as China's reputation is regarding coal, their per capita emission is half of the USA?
• India set a net zero goal for 2070, and will produce more renewable energy electricity than the current capacity of their grid by 2030.
• China is expected to account for 43% of all new renewable energy capacity over the next five years!

Here is the latest from ENERGY MATTERS by the American Energy Society.

• During the past year the average price of natural gas has nearly doubled.

• 
  A year ago the price of WTI crude was $71/barrel.  Today, $91/barrel, a 28% increase.  Actually, Brent and Murban crude were at $97/barrel, so the increase is  a bit higher than that.
• In 2021, global coal-fired power set an all-time record of 10,244 terawatt-hours, which will be shattered this year
• This publication said that 70% of the growth will come from China and India.
• Further, the U.S. will reduce coal use 5%.
• This is the problem with statistics.  You can turn them into your favor or not.  Both Time and the American Energy Society said the same thing, in a manner that confuses the issue.
• 
  German Chancellor Olaf Scholz supports keeping nuclear plants in operation.  There is, after all, that Ukraine War and problem with Russia's supply of natural gas.
• Popular support for nuclear power in the USA is at an all-time high.  California is getting ready to keep Diablo Canyon's nuclear reactor in service by providing funds.  
• These are the countries most reliant on nuclear power.  Must only include Europe, for the USA is not shown, for we are at 19%, which is 1% less than from renewables.

• Total worldwide offshore windpower capacity = 35,300 megawatts.  With UK at 29% share China 28% and Germany 22%.  The 1200 MW Hornsea Project of the UK is the largest.  Here is where offshore windpower looks good...the dark redder the better.

• 
  Heatwaves:

• Southern Europe: wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans have forced evacuation of villages.

• 
  Britain recorded its highest temperature ever (40.2 C, or 104.4 F), and Portugal did, too (47 C or 117 F).
• China: heat and flooding are forcing masses of people to relocate ... and a museum roof melted.  Portions of the country are facing unprecedented temperatures.

• 
  Northern India: In May, temperatures reached 49°C (120°F), a record that has been broken many times since.
• The heat wave in Japan is its worst on record (in terms of heat, intentsity and duration).
• Texas: Extreme high temperatures are straining ERCOT.  What is ERCOT?  I think Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

• 
  The status of the monarch butterfly has been reclassified...from ENDANGERED to EDGE OF COLLAPSE, for the population has declined by 99.9% from 1981.  Nothing much to do with global warming, but a crisis.

• 
  Communities that replace dark surfaces — like streets, rooftops, playgrounds and parking lots — with lighter and cooler alternatives can lower "heat island" temperatures by 5°F, and the overall total can feel up to 15°F cooler.

• 
  We just passed that mark,: July 28th is Earth Overshoot Day, the date each year when humanity has used all the biological resources that Earth regenerates during that year.  In 2021, Earth Overshoot Day was July 29th.

• 
  Valero Energy Corp, Marathon Petroleum Corp. and Phillips 66, the three largest independent refiners in the U.S., will set all-time cash records for the third quarter of this year.
• Because the value of the Yen has dropped, the price of oil this year shows an increase of 70% in Japan.  The USA?  Only +40%.

• 
  Bad enough that there is a lot of methane leaking out of home appliances, but recent research has detected 21 toxins/carcinogens like benzene and hexane from natural gas.  However, this risk is less than from secondhand smoke from cigarettes.
• People in Texas might not realize it until they see their electricity bill, but the price instantly jumped for short periods up to $4/kWh this summer.  The usual price is from 4 cents to 7 cents / kWh.  Hawaii is as bad as it gets with a range of 30 cents to 40 cents/kWh.

• 
  Think you're having a hot summer in Phoenix?  Be thankful that you can remain comfortable.  The annual per capita income in India is about 91,000 rupees ($1183).  The average cost of an air conditioner (that is, the electricity cost) is about 22,000 rupees ($286)/year.  That is about one-fourth of their annual income.
• I can go on and on....but enough is enough.

The beauty of mathematics:

Day 15 of Blood Lily batch 1, Day 2 of BL2 and BL 3/4 on lanai:

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HOW I BEGAN A QUEST TO TASTE THE FINEST IN CUISINE

Well, Speaker Nancy Pelosi did land on Taiwan.  This royally upsets the Chinese.  But, after Ukraine, the U.S. has to take a stand in Asia.  If you can recall back that far, Speaker Newt Gingrich visited in 1997.  China called it a mistake and not much more.  Newt himself today responded that China threats over Pelosi's Taiwan visit a "bluff."  Remember the Axis during WWII?  A weird trio looming might well be China, Russia and Iran.

Justice was delivered by a drone strike in Kabul, although it took more than 20 years.  The victim was 71-year old al-Qaeda head Ayman al-Zawahiri, #2 to Osama bin Laden, until he was earlier assassinated by Navy Seals in 2011.  Apparently, Zawahiri's family was seen escaping from the building.  He was an Egyptian physician who joined his first jihadist cell as a teenager.  They assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.  Next in line is perhaps Saif al-Adel, but he is based in Iran, and has credibility problems.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres yesterday indicated: Humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation, away from nuclear annihilation.  Well, he had no inside information, as this statement came in reference to the pandemic-delayed conference to review the 50-year old Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.  Good luck getting Putin to participate.

The mid-term elections are less than 100 days away  (that image to the left was for two days ago).  The final rounds of primaries will occur during the next six weeks, with today being particularly busy.  The Trump effect will today dominate Republican results, especially in Arizona.   The more he succeeds, the more Democrats will prevail on November 8.  Abortion is also on the ballot for at least Kansas.

The nation next awaits Senator Kyrsten Sinema's decision on the Inflation Reduction Act.  Apparently, the expected meeting with Senator Joe Manchin was not yesterday, but today.  Perhaps she is waiting for the Arizona primaries to conclude.  There seems to be a curious lack of concern from the White House, so maybe something was worked out and she got what she wanted.

Yesterday 15 Craigside welcomed a new chef, Jordan Salvador.  He is probably the most important person in the building.  I will at the end of this posting show you who he is.

I thus decided to find a past blog that perhaps most influenced me to focus on food as one of my life passions.  While our dining room will never compete with the best food in the world, the beauty of life is that we need an appropriate balance.  After all, these gourmet palaces charge $400 and more these days just for a meal.  Our daily food charge here is less than 10% that, and, in fact, closer to 5%. 

Nostalgia day leads me to 23February2010 when I might have begun my quest to indulge in the fine cuisine of the world.  Please click on my posting of NOMA AND CHEF RENE.  If you didn't, here is the first paragraph:

Noma (contraction of NOrdisk and MAd, meaning food), at the age of six, is simply the third rated restaurant in the world (El Bulli in Barcelona and Fat Duck near London are #1 and #2) and Rene Redzepi was recently voted the best chef on the entire globe. Natural Nordic ingredients are used, almost all from Denmark. They even brew their own beer and wine. As such, no olive oil, no foie gras and not much salt, but a lot of vinegar. Note that the first really French restaurant on the top 50 list, Bras, came in at #7. Three of the best five are Spanish. That's Chef Rene to my left.

Just 10 days ago I wrote on the BEST WORLD RESTAURANTS.  One of my most memorable cuisine days occurred in Japan a decade ago.  I went to two Michelin-3 Star restaurants on the same day.  For lunch I got served by Jiro himself.  If you clicked on that, you would have noticed that the documentary about him earned 99/91 ratings from Rotten Tomatoes.  Then for dinner, I went to Japan's newest 3-Star, Nihonryori Ryu Gin.  Chef Seiji Yamamoto is now ranked in the Top 10 of the World's Best 100 Chefs.

So about 15 Craigside, here are a few photos welcoming Chef Jordan Salvador, who graduated from Farrington High School.

I close with Day 15 of my first Blood Lily bloom:

However, batch #2 is now in Day One:

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IS THIS THE FIRST REAL STEP THE USA TAKES TO COMBAT GLOBAL WARMING?

Nancy Pelosi and her entourage are today in Singapore.  Read her Singapore statement.  She met with Singapore President Halimah Yacob.

However, the Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong since 2004 has really been running the country, who also met Pelosi.   But will she visit Taiwan?  Apparently yes, but only as a one night stopover.  She will also stop by Malaysia, South Korea and Japan.  

Most of these countries rank near the top in new cases/million population.  While reportage on weekends are spotty, here is how they ranked of major countries in terms of new cases yesterday/million population:

• #1      Japan  1695
• #2      S. Korea  1433
• #3      Australia  1160
• #4      New Zealand  891
• #5      Taiwan  881
• #6      Singapore  859
• #8      Italy  625
• #12    France  481

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 negotiated by Senators Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer is a pale version of the bullish $3+ trillion original package, and $2+ trillion Democrat wish-list legislation, that nevertheless might well be the the first real step the USA takes to combat global climate warming.  The details:

    Total Revenue to be raised = $739 billion

• 5% Corporate Minimum Tax           $313 billion
• Prescription Drug Pricing Reform  $288 billion
• IRS Tax Enforcement                      $124 billion
• Carried Interest Loophole               $  14 billion

    Total investments = $433 billion

• Energy Security/Climate Change   $433 billion
• Affordable Care Extension             $  64 billion

    TOTAL DEFICIT REDUCTION = $300+ billion

Want to read the full legislation?  It is 725 pages long.  Supposedly Senator Kyrsten Sinema is carefully reading it.  That's what staff do.  Will she become the next Joe Manchin?

• For the first time in a long time Manchin will today meet with Sinema.

• 
  Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who has been in that position for a decade, will still need to rule if this bill can pass through reconciliation.  She could delete the legality of certain budget items.
• Note that she serves at the pleasure of Chuck Schumer.
• If Sinema agrees, then will Senator Dick Durbin be able to vote because of COVID?

• 
  Will House Democrat moderates bend enough.
• The current plan is to pass the senate by August 5, when it goes on recess.
• There is too much promise for this legislation to now be scuttled.

If all goes well, let's face it, a total of $433 billion is not quite the $50 trillion it will take to end global climate warming.  This Senate bill is worth less than 1% of what is needed.

According to Forbes, funds are needed for renewable energy ($14 trillion), electric vehicles ($11 trillion), biofuels ($27 trillion), hydrogen ($20 trillion) and carbon capture/storage ($2.5 trillion).  Note:  1 trillion dollars = 1000 billion dollars.

UK professor Bill McGuire published a new book, Hothouse Earth.  He says:  we’ve passed the point of no return and must now brace ourselves for climate breakdown.  If we act now it could be merely “grim.”

I actually met with him in his campus office when I was writing SIMPLE SOLUTIONS for Planet Earth.  He is a bit into hyperbole, as he was on mega tsunamis.

The usual sites are suffering this year, like Pacific Northwest, Europe and China.  Yes, China.  They are breaking records, something, for some reason, that escape media hype.  Shanghai hit 106F, the highest since 1873.  All-time highs:  Tunisia 131F, Iran 129F, Death Valley 134.

Finally the full blooming of my Blood Lily on Day 13:

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