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Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
Duhh, I don' git it. Some kinda inside joke or is my irony detector on the Frietz?— August 1, 2015 10:40 p.m.
Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
Yes, Dan, I do appreciate that information. I did my consulting work in 1965, if I recall correctly.— August 1, 2015 10:29 p.m.
Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
Some may still come from wells, which might not be on meters. The whole desert area has been sucking out geologic water deposits for about a century--at an ever-increasing rate over time. When I was there in the late fifties, I did some consulting for Harold Hicks, who owned the water company. He was rich as Croesus. But probably not as rich as Annenberg. He was one of the few who had desert for landscaping. A very Zen kinda guy.— August 1, 2015 10:27 p.m.
Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
I just saw a flight of pigs fly over! Certainly--such managers are pure as the driven snow, and they don't even leave any tracks . . .— August 1, 2015 10:20 p.m.
Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
Dear Dan: There were no links in those days; I had to get it from the library. It might as well have been in Alexandria. But if I happen to find any comparable research via the Internet, I'll try to remember to post it. They found that the virus particles and bacteria hitched a ride on the ultra-giant aerosols produced by trickling filters and sprinklers and rode the wind for some pretty significant distances, but I don't remember how far. I certainly hope the "reclaimed" water you and your family have been exposed to did not contain anything harmful. And I hope that there is never a breakdown in the treatment process in the future at any time or that some damned fool doesn't press the wrong button or go to sleep at his console. I would be inconsolate, especially if I was drinking the stuff.— August 1, 2015 10:13 p.m.
Papa Doug buys Rhode Island estate
Dear Dan: This is getting kinda convoluted, but to recap: The annual evapotranspiration (ETo) rate for the desert is around 6 feet, or 6 acre-feet (see http://www.cimis.water.ca.gov/App_Themes/images/e… ). That's the minimum required to keep grass green there in an average year. For ever acre (43,560 square feet) that's 6 x 43,560 = 261,360 cubic feet per acre x 7.48 gallons per cubic foot = 1,954,973 (pretty close to two million) gallons per acre per year. Multiply that times the number of acres of grass and you will get the MINIMUM required to keep the grass green. Pick any multiplier you want to account for the waste/over-irrigation factor. I have used 2.5 which I recall from studies I read over 40 years ago, so there's no link that I know of, but I'm willing to stand corrected regarding the waste factor on the basis of any new scientific data or actual measurements. However, any claim of significantly less than a couple of million gallons per acre per year would be suspect, as those figures are right out of the CIMIS website and the relationship of the volumes that are standard measures. If, for example, an "average" golf course was, say 200 acres, the annual MINIMUM (with a zero waste or over-irrigation factor) would be around 390,994,560 gallons per 200 acres per year. With a waste or over-irrigation factor of 2.5, that 200 acres would require 977,486,400 (pretty close to a billion) gallons per year. I use this example, because you haven't said how big or small the golf course you cite is. The 16 includes the error or over-irrigation factor of 2.5. Actually 2.5 x 6 = 15, so I stand corrected. I had once read that 16 feet was a common rate of application for typical landscaping of the day (1960's or '70's) and I used 2.5 to be conservative. Please refute any of the above and correct me with a clear comparison of the bad figures and the good figures. I think the annual basis is more fair than the daily basis, and is more standard practice, because there is some variation in ETo from day to day, season to season. Unless the maintenance people never change their irrigation controllers (which happens a lot). Again, the devil is in the details, but these are the basics with which any analysis must start.— August 1, 2015 10:02 p.m.
Animal rights activists arrested for terrorizing fur farms
Re: Ty Savoy's post: Interesting data. And links. Savoy is to be congratulated for his scholarly approach to this issue. If I understood him correctly, the diseases he mentions are made worse by the existence of mink farms, and that simply releasing them would spread those diseases more widely. It's not clear to me if he believes that mink farming should continue or just what alternatives he suggests. Bacteria and viruses always will be with us, but is concentrating the hosts a good or a bad idea. I presume the latter, and if true, could be an alternative and more reasoned approach to eliminating them. I would like to hear more comment from Savoy.— August 1, 2015 5:06 p.m.
Animal rights activists arrested for terrorizing fur farms
Re: "Gary Hjelm · San Diego State University Hopefully, they are not part of PETA, but they operate in the same fashion as PETA, when they supported terrorism by skimming membership funds. In any respect, it is my hope that these terrorists are put in prison for twenty years. Eco-terrorism is a bad move by any animals rights organization, because it ruins any chance by responsible organizations to change the laws. The clandestine destruction of property and animals have only set back the efforts of other people who act responsibly. It is a wonder that some angry mink rancher didn't put a bullet into them." Let's not let Hjelm's point slide by unnoticed. But it's self-righteousness that is at the root of ALL terrorism; that fundamental leads to fundamentalism as a replacement for reason. It's not that "we" applaud the specific act(s) it's that we UNDERSTAND why they feel that way, not that we agree with their exact methods. However, it is true that such civil disobedience is sometimes required to get our attention, to get us off our safe butts and provide an ALTERNATIVE.— August 1, 2015 4:41 p.m.
Animal rights activists arrested for terrorizing fur farms
"'Tis friction's brisk, rough rub that provides the vital spark!" --A. R. Martin (No relation to the minks in question.)— August 1, 2015 4:33 p.m.
Animal rights activists arrested for terrorizing fur farms
If the glove fits . . . I think I have a pair too--and leather belts, but not pelts from jailed animals. I reckon we're all horrid or have done something in our past that was, but the point is, do we want to learn anything or just defend our errors?— August 1, 2015 4:29 p.m.