Environmental News

i would argue that lack of faa oversight is the major issue here. allowing boeing to make safety decisions based on cost is the crux of the problem.

advocates from the pilots union and passenger safety need to be involved. but to have to have this discussion in 2019 ultimately means that nothing will change. the attitude that air disasters are rare is what perpetuates the ingrained system.

imagine no air disasters, but at what cost and how to compete globally under different regulations?

 

I won't claim any professional credential on that topic. Just a bit of actual stick-and-rudder time strictly off book, never took a class or got a rating. Considered aviation as a career path, was advised to stay out if I wanted to feed a family/enjoy life. Now I fly a lot for business and it gives me lots of time to think about aviation in general, from seat 35K. Well that and I enjoy racing 250-gram drones on calm days.

Hmmm.... that's only planned to be about 3500lbs heavier (MTOW) than the -9... I wonder if they could do a lower density seat layout to equalize? An airline using Boeing's money to provide a little extra elbow room would compete very well against another using the A321neo... would make a heck of an apology to the airline and the flying public. The -9 @ MTOW needs an 8500' takeoff run, wonder how different it would be for a lightened -10 and if that would exclude it from any of the airports they were hoping to service.

I've already established that I'm a complete outsider with no professional connection, so this should be taken strictly as unqualified opinion... but I have a strong sense that Boeing has spent the last 20 years trying to convert themselves into a virtual airplane manufacturer. They seem to be working very hard to eliminate their home-grown corps of engineering and a lot of their own manufacturing in favor of contractors and subsidiaries. And the glue they use to bind it all together is software and management.

Obviously they still have an enormous investment in assembly facilities, they aren't out of the build process. But It seems very different from not that long ago. I think they siphoned the confidence out of my tank to fill theirs.

 

Monarch butterflies are one of Earth’s most iconic and beloved creatures.​

But in recent years, dramatic loss of their milkweed habitat—driven by human development and climate change—threatens to drive the monarch butterfly to extinction. Because most of the land along the monarch’s migration route is privately owned, forging partnerships with the farmers and ranchers in America’s heartland is critical to ensuring a future for monarch butterflies.

 

love the monarch, but am more concerned with the future of bees

 

The futures of bees are fine. Human are more concerned with the future of food crops pollinated by bees (and maybe commercial honey production).

 

For discussion-

Resurgence of milk delivery in London - Milk in returnable bottles delivered by electric floats

I would love to bring back beverages packed in returnable bottles. We don't use a lot of milk in the McCoalrolling home, but they used to do this for beer and other beverages too.

Even better if they get delivered in an EV!

 

what's the energy use difference between recycling glass and washing/sterilizing?

i bought farm fresh milk in london in 1972, that was an experience

 

Bottles for recycling are thinner, and thus cost less to transport. But c'mon.... heating the glass up to 2000°F to get it to flow, vs. blasting it with 250°F steam?

The toughest part about returnables was always in getting people to actually return them. Disposables were always about convenience fueling greater sales.

It's on my mind due to a local phenomena where our town has completely changed the way things are recycled, and I'm now motivated to avoid recycling as much as possible.

 

i'm on board.
when i was a kid, we used to walk the beach every night and collect bottles. we'd turn them in for the deposit which was 2 cents and a big number for a ten year old, then splurge on candy, etc.
and, we kept the beach clean

 

i'm hearing that recycling isn't working with china off board, could be a win for both countries

 

sampras?

 

hawaii wants to ban plastics

 

we buy iced greens in a plastic container, it's convenient, but depressing

 

So far the best compromise I've found is to wet my whistle with beer bought from bars, carried home in my own growler jugs. The practice has been enjoying some fad status lately, but it is hampered locally by really clueless bartenders who just can't do the fills in a reasonable amount of time. I still buy it in cans, and of course there are juices and seltzers and other bevs that I just can't get in anything other than disposable/recyclable containers.

 

i prefer my beer on tap, wine in a box and the only other thing i drink is water, which can be problematic