6 ms·

People really overestimate how resilient infrastructure is to natural disasters, and such disasters will become more common as the earth warms.

jacquesm 5y ago
Canada is a special case: small population, huge area to cover. The infrastructure budget in Canada per square kilometer is very low.
- earleybird 5y ago
  With BC there's a substantial geography component. When a highway washes out it's often 100s of km detour. In contrast, for substantial portions of Alberta, a highway washout often means just a jump over to the next township road . . . which are about every mile (cuz those were the units of measure at the time they were laid out).
  - jacquesm 5y ago
    Yes, there are quite a number of choke points that are unavoidable in BC. Alberta is pretty much flat with some mild elevation changes and lots of parallel roads. In BC it is the opposite, the z-axis dominates everything.
    - soperj 5y ago
      ... there is the Rockies in Alberta, plus the badlands.
      - jacquesm 5y ago
        Fair enough, I had the more populated parts of Alberta in mind but there is plenty of it that is elevated. Even so, it doesn't dominate the road network to the degree that it does in BC, where you are either in Vancouver or clinging to the side of a mountain (or a glacier).
Arrath 5y ago
Compounded by areas with sparse infrastructure, like B.C. I've done the drive from Washington to Alaska twice, and once the road was washed out somewhere not terribly far north of Vancouver, which necessitated a near 1,100 KM detour inland!
blondie9x 5y ago
Exactly. As people over consume and the planet's climate continues to become more erratic and destabilized infrastructure disasters will increase.
- actually_a_dog 5y ago
  It makes me sad to see the parent comment grey (10:16 AM PST). You're absolutely correct that overconsumption is the root of the problem.
  - Spivak 5y ago
    I think it's more nuanced than this. Like you're right that reducing consumption/commerce would help but it has trade-offs that lots of people don't jive with and isn't really the root of the problem which is waste. There is zero issue with goods made and distributed using renewables, or goods where non-renewables are reclaimed (i.e. metals, glass, certain plastics).
    - blondie9x 5y ago
      The problem is right now governments and enterprise is mostly focused on fixing supply side of the climate change and sustainability problem. Not enough is being done or discussed to reduce demand. Focusing on consumption changes is just as important as focusing on supply issue IMO.
    - yodsanklai 5y ago
      > There is zero issue with goods made and distributed using renewables But how much of the goods we consume fall in that category?
      - Spivak 5y ago
        Zero, but that's not really the point. It's when you're looking at policy changes you need to pick a direction and set goals. And I think "make consumption sustainable" is way more achievable then "reduce consumption." Because the only scalable way to reduce consumption is to make most people poorer. It's hard to herd billions of people to do something against their interest.
99_00 5y ago
I agree we need to deal with global warming. We also need to continue getting better at dealing with disasters. Thankfully, so far our ability to deal with natural disasters is outpacing the increased frequency. While Frequency Of Natural Disasters Is Increasing, Related Death Tolls Are Actually Decreasing https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimfoerster/2021/10/01/while-frequency-of-natural-disasters-increasing-related-death-tolls-are-actually-decreasing/?sh=650138f51b18 https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimfoerster/2021/10/01/while-fr...
015a 5y ago
More people need to think about their emergency preparedness. We're not talking about permanent societal collapse; just a week-long collapse of electricity, food supply, water, transportation, or other critical goods. If you live in a cold climate: go buy an indoor safe propane heater right now, with a supply of propane. Its not that expensive (maybe $100) for the value you will get out of it in the coming years. It can single-handedly be the difference between being able to hunker down in your home, and having to rely on external support that you'll pray is there for you when the time comes. A carbon monoxide detector is also good to pair with it, to be safe. Blankets as well. Water is easy, though pretty large volume. Food also isn't as hard as it used to be; having a weeks supply of emergency rations is fine, but consider: Soylent, Huel, etc. Their powder form has a published shelf life of a year, its volumetrically dense, nutritionally complete, only requires water to make, and tastes pretty good. CASH. Some way to start fire. Candles. A couple flashlights. Batteries (the huge ones made for camping are fantastic, though expensive). Two way radios with very long-range are also a fantastic investment; imagine its the winter, power & cell service is down, and a loved one has to try a local store for some supply you forgot.
- swader999 5y ago
  Ice storm in Quebec made me realize I need all this.

jacquesm 5y ago

Canada is a special case: small population, huge area to cover. The infrastructure budget in Canada per square kilometer is very low.

earleybird 5y ago
With BC there's a substantial geography component. When a highway washes out it's often 100s of km detour. In contrast, for substantial portions of Alberta, a highway washout often means just a jump over to the next township road . . . which are about every mile (cuz those were the units of measure at the time they were laid out).
- jacquesm 5y ago
  Yes, there are quite a number of choke points that are unavoidable in BC. Alberta is pretty much flat with some mild elevation changes and lots of parallel roads. In BC it is the opposite, the z-axis dominates everything.
  - soperj 5y ago
    ... there is the Rockies in Alberta, plus the badlands.
    - jacquesm 5y ago
      Fair enough, I had the more populated parts of Alberta in mind but there is plenty of it that is elevated. Even so, it doesn't dominate the road network to the degree that it does in BC, where you are either in Vancouver or clinging to the side of a mountain (or a glacier).

Arrath 5y ago

Compounded by areas with sparse infrastructure, like B.C. I've done the drive from Washington to Alaska twice, and once the road was washed out somewhere not terribly far north of Vancouver, which necessitated a near 1,100 KM detour inland!

blondie9x 5y ago

Exactly. As people over consume and the planet's climate continues to become more erratic and destabilized infrastructure disasters will increase.

actually_a_dog 5y ago
It makes me sad to see the parent comment grey (10:16 AM PST). You're absolutely correct that overconsumption is the root of the problem.
- Spivak 5y ago
  I think it's more nuanced than this. Like you're right that reducing consumption/commerce would help but it has trade-offs that lots of people don't jive with and isn't really the root of the problem which is waste. There is zero issue with goods made and distributed using renewables, or goods where non-renewables are reclaimed (i.e. metals, glass, certain plastics).
  - blondie9x 5y ago
    The problem is right now governments and enterprise is mostly focused on fixing supply side of the climate change and sustainability problem. Not enough is being done or discussed to reduce demand. Focusing on consumption changes is just as important as focusing on supply issue IMO.
  - yodsanklai 5y ago
    > There is zero issue with goods made and distributed using renewables But how much of the goods we consume fall in that category?
    - Spivak 5y ago
      Zero, but that's not really the point. It's when you're looking at policy changes you need to pick a direction and set goals. And I think "make consumption sustainable" is way more achievable then "reduce consumption." Because the only scalable way to reduce consumption is to make most people poorer. It's hard to herd billions of people to do something against their interest.

99_00 5y ago

I agree we need to deal with global warming. We also need to continue getting better at dealing with disasters. Thankfully, so far our ability to deal with natural disasters is outpacing the increased frequency. While Frequency Of Natural Disasters Is Increasing, Related Death Tolls Are Actually Decreasing https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimfoerster/2021/10/01/while-frequency-of-natural-disasters-increasing-related-death-tolls-are-actually-decreasing/?sh=650138f51b18 https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimfoerster/2021/10/01/while-fr...

015a 5y ago

More people need to think about their emergency preparedness. We're not talking about permanent societal collapse; just a week-long collapse of electricity, food supply, water, transportation, or other critical goods. If you live in a cold climate: go buy an indoor safe propane heater right now, with a supply of propane. Its not that expensive (maybe $100) for the value you will get out of it in the coming years. It can single-handedly be the difference between being able to hunker down in your home, and having to rely on external support that you'll pray is there for you when the time comes. A carbon monoxide detector is also good to pair with it, to be safe. Blankets as well. Water is easy, though pretty large volume. Food also isn't as hard as it used to be; having a weeks supply of emergency rations is fine, but consider: Soylent, Huel, etc. Their powder form has a published shelf life of a year, its volumetrically dense, nutritionally complete, only requires water to make, and tastes pretty good. CASH. Some way to start fire. Candles. A couple flashlights. Batteries (the huge ones made for camping are fantastic, though expensive). Two way radios with very long-range are also a fantastic investment; imagine its the winter, power & cell service is down, and a loved one has to try a local store for some supply you forgot.

swader999 5y ago
Ice storm in Quebec made me realize I need all this.