Energy Policy and Wonk Fun

Dave Roberts at Vox pointed me to this fun tool https://www.energypolicy.solutions/scenarios/home.
The tool allows one to consider the results of various and combined policy and goals for CO2 reduction. My first attempt is above, but I could spend more time digging into the details. For my effort, I got rid of all subsidies to all energy sources. Big dips were achieved by getting rid of coal as an electric source and heavy investment and planning for public transportation. A full carbon tax also brought about a dip of some size. Forest and agriculture changes brought about more change than I expected and a few changes hardly move the graph. Anyway a good learning tool and a great way to spend time while doing other stuff.  

Fetch

I am giving a talk on landslides, slope stability and policy implications. One of the factors on slope stability is fetch. May not really apply to the particular talk I am planning, but then a again maybe I can fit in somehow. For shoreline sites with long fetch (distance over open water) means big waves and more rapid erosion and thus more frequent landslides.

 

 

The image is from a site off of the northwest coast of France. The lighthouse was and is an engineering marvel. In considering shoreline erosion and processes, the extreme events should be considered. Gentle waves may be the norm, but look out for fetch and consider the possibilities.

Between Grain Silos on Highway 172

The approach towards the grain silos while driving south on Highway 172 suggests that the highway will pass right between the two silos. 

The perception is maintained and enhanced by the rise in the road that obscures the presence of Highway 2.

Highway 172 comes to an end at the intersection with Highway 2 so blasting at 60 mph between the silos does not happen.

I do wonder if the silos were laid out as they were by accident or by design to provide an illusion for those approaching from the north. It is one of several features of Highway 172 that I enjoy. The other features are crossing the former edge of the Okanogan ice lobe Withrow moraine. 

Apple Season, Migrant Workers and Wenatchee Wlamart

I had a rendezvous in Wenatchee and came up with the idea of meeting at the Walmart parking lot as it is easy to find and on the edge of town. I got there a bit early and observed that several buses were bringing workers in for shopping. Its a busy time in Apple Country.   

Purse Seiners in Hood Canal

Field ventures the past few days. While crossing the Hood Canal Bridge I got a glimpse of the fishing industry at work. Fairly sure these purse seine boats are catching chum salmon. Hood Canal rivers still have large chum runs in the fall.   

Van Zandt Landslide Introduction

A large landslide involving bedrock of the Chuckanut Formation has left a disconcerting set of deposits on the Nooksack River Valley floor near the confluence of the South Fork Nooksack and the main stem of the river.  

 

DEM of the Van Zandt Slide

Geoffrey Malick led me and a few other helpers to the top of the slide area as he is doing some much needed research and investigation of the landslide. There have been reports of some slide movement or noises coming coming from the mountainside. Indeed it appears that there is some recent movement. 

The smooth moss slope with recently fallen trees is a dip slope within the Chuckanut Formation. The jumbled pile of rock and trees in the first image was lateral from and below this slope. A close look at the slope found striations on the smooth rock face indicating slip direction.

Striations parallel to Brunton tip on carbonaceous shale

The striations were prevalent all across the rock face  

The striations shown above are at an angle to the slope (dip) of the formation. This is a big multi section landslide complex and I only spent a short time at the site. It is slide that needs to be much better understood. As I do dabble in the policy realm, this slide and how to think about it from a policy perspective presents an interesting problem. My thinking on this issue is evolving and revisits to this landslide will be in order.  

The Slow Change Regarding Geologic Risk in Washington State

I was not part of the summit discussed in this article:
seattletimes.com/interior-secretary-scientists-discuss-disaster-risks-in-a-changing-world
However, I was quoted on a recent example on landslide risk and state timber sale. The context of the landslide I was asked about is shown below.

LiDAR image of North Zender timber sale

The slide is a deep bedrock failure. The DNR report did not discuss the mechanics of the slide and the type of rock involved. The proposed timber sales do not cover the whole slide area, but significant portions of the landslide area on the north landslide have been recently clear cut.