Monday, December 28, 2015

CELEBRATING NEW YEAR'S DAY

New Year's Day, January 1, is the strangest holiday. It is a holiday because our calendars say it is; and because most employees have this day off from work, except for employees of stores that remain open so that all employees who have the day off can have something to do.

New Year's Day also is strange because it is not a holiday that recognizes a religious, historic or patriotic event. But the strangest aspect of New Year's Day is that, unlike all other holidays, no one celebrates New Year's Day. Except for the Rose parade, some football games and reruns of the Twilight Zone, no one does anything on New Year's Day except eat too much.

The only celebrating that is going on is on New Year's Eve, the day before the holiday, and New Year's Eve is NOT a holiday.

So, why is New Year's Day a holiday, and why do people celebrate the day before, which is not a holiday. The truth is no one knows why we do this, except that humankind has always done it.

Of course, New Year's Day was not always January 1. In ancient times, the beginning of a year was determined by such events as the spring or autumn equinox or winter solstice. So, for example, in Egypt, about 2800 BC, the year started with the helical rising of Sirius, which coincided with the beginning of the Nile flooding.

New Year's was a time for some cultures to perform rituals to do away with the past and purify themselves for the coming year. Some extinguished fires they were using and started new ones. Celts were said to have built bonfires to send away evil spirits and to honor their sun god. In earlier times, Romans gave each other New Year's gifts of sacred tree branches. In later times, they gave gold covered nuts and coins depicting Janus, their god of gates, doors and beginnings. It must have been exciting to have received a gold nut.

So, it appears that the New Year's Day holiday and the New Year's Eve non-holiday are rooted in long standing pagan tradition. Since January was named after the Roman god Janus, who had two faces--one looking backward and one looking forward--perhaps there is some logic to the New Year's holiday: a time for looking backward and forward.

Along that line, it may be a time for reflecting on something every one experiences--aging. Scientists are zeroing in on "molecular mayhem" within cells of the brain for clues to the mysteries of growing old.* For example, breakdowns of proteins in the brain may be a significant cause of aging. Another factor may be the disorganization of DNA bundles. In the brain, stem cells have walls to keep out cellular junk. When these walls weaken, the junk can enter to hinder stem cell production. Another protective brain wall is the blood-brain barrier which protects the brain from toxins in the blood. If that wall weakens, brain cell can break down.

Of course, if one were to dwell on the aging process on New Year's Day, the holiday could be disquieting. Maybe that is why people today celebrate New Year's Eve--a day to party as if youth is eternal; and why New Year's Day is a holiday--a quiet day to recover aching bones and scrambled minds from all that celebrating. Yes, perhaps we all are like Janus at New Year's time--a bit two faced.

___________________________________________

* Rosen, "All Bodies Don't Act Their Age",
Science News, December 26, 2015, p. 20

Monday, December 21, 2015

GONE! WHAT HAPPENED TO SANTA CLAUS?

BREAKING NEWS.....Dateline December 25, 2050

Officials announced today the climate change agreement of all nations to ban Santa Claus from the Earth.

Under the agreement, authorities also have closed down Santa's workshop, seized his sleigh, and deported his reindeer from the North Pole to Finland.

Reached for comment, Santa declined comment on advice of his attorney. Mrs. Claus was quoted as exclaiming "What am I going to do? That old man now is going to be hanging around the house all day." One of Santa's elves, an officer of the Elves Union (EU) who asked not to be identified, said "We elves are now are unemployed and are in shock. We are short but have a long history. We will review our options."

Prior to 2015 and Climate Change Agreement I, carbon was pervasive. When Santa Claus made his rounds of houses, he came down the chimney with clothes all tarnished in ashes and soot. After the 2015 agreement, which banned carbon, Santa was able to come down chimneys free of pollutants.

Now, 35 years later, international governmental leaders have adopted Climate Change Agreement II to resolve additional issues with Santa Claus. Scientists have determined that, as Santa travels around the world, his reindeer produce excessive methane from belching and pooping, resulting in increases global warming. It is estimated that by the year 2100, the reindeer will have caused an increase in earth temperature of 0.01 degrees, unless remedial action is taken.

Even more serious, officials state, is that Santa's reindeer are leaving their chips and pies (poop) on top of mandatory rooftop solar panels of homes he visits. These deposits then block the production of electricity for the homes. Since there no longer is an electric grid or natural gas service, the result is that homes are without electricity for heating, cooking and lighting.

Therefore, government leaders concluded, it was necessary to ban Santa Claus in order to save the Earth.

For those who embrace the tradition of Christmas gift giving, governments are providing alternatives to Santa Claus. In the United States, the Affordable Gift Act was enacted, which provides for regional gift centers operated by government agency staff. Children will be able to select gifts from the centers, The centers will be funded by cash donations from adults, who then will receive tax credits as their gifts. Adults who decline to fund gift centers will pay an income tax penalty surcharge.

Authorities commented that under the terms of the Affordable Gift Act, the public will not miss Santa Claus at all, and the environment will be saved. "Those who once believed in Santa Claus can now happily believe only in government," one said.

One official was heard to say to an inquisitive little girl, "Yes, Virginia, there is no Santa Claus."

Sunday, December 13, 2015

FIXING RATES TO RECOVER FIXED COSTS WHEN WATER USAGE IS DECLINING

Historically, public utilities--particularly water utilities--have designed rates to recover most, if not all, their costs of service through volumetric usage charges. Under such a rate structure, for example, customers pay a rate per 1,000 gallons, or per 100 cubic feet, of water delivered. Some water utilities also impose a fixed flat rate called a customer charge, designed to recover meter reading and billing costs. Except for the customer charge, which typically is quite small, all costs of service are sought to be recovered under rates which vary with usage.

This historical rate design can be problematic today. First, it assumes that almost all of the costs of water service are variable costs and that fixed costs are minor. In a water utility rate case before a state regulatory commission, the president of the company testified that 90% of the utility's costs actually were fixed costs, not variable costs. He said that variable costs were only such items as power, chemicals and possibly some labor and maintenance. Therefore, he argued for a larger customer charge to recover fixed costs. Regulatory staff in the room laughed and opposed any increase in the fixed rate. Was he correct? Are not depreciation, debt service, return on rate base and some labor and maintenance incurred regardless of the volume of water delivered?

A second issue with the historical rate design is declining revenue due to conservation,more efficient water appliances and usage restrictions. If most of the costs of water service are designed to be recovered from usage charges, and usage has declined, then revenue necessary to recover costs of service has declined as well.

Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported that electric utilities across the country are experiencing these issues and are seeking to resolve them by substantially increasing their fixed customer charges.* Regarding customer charges, "the utilities argue that the fees should cover a bigger proportion of the fixed costs of the electric grid, including maintenance and repairs." One utility official is quoted as saying "Since our cost to provide service is mostly fixed, we think our rate design ought to reflect that more accurately"

The Journal article stated "The problem for utilities is that many consumers are using less power these days, in large part because appliances and equipment are getting more energy efficient....The rise of rooftop solar power in some parts of the country also is chipping away at power sales."

The article cites an opposing view that a higher customer charge to recover fixed costs would be a disincentive to customers embracing rooftop solar power or cutting down on their usage of electricity. This assertion, however, would seem to beg the question as to the adequate recovery of fixed costs of service in view of declining revenue. Water rates, as well as electric rates, should be designed to enable recovery of all costs of service, not to satisfy social or political agendas. Substantial fixed costs are incurred by water utilities to enable them to provide water service to customers on demand.
Fair rate design should reflect that reality and obligation.

_________________________________________

*Rebecca Smith,"Electric Utilities Seek
To Raise Fees As Usage Declines", Wall
Street Journal, October 20,2015,p.B5

Sunday, November 22, 2015

A SOLUTION FOR CLIMATE CHANGE

Some political leaders and scientists have asserted that climate change is the most critical issue facing the world today. Assuming this admonition to be true, perhaps the solution is at our feet.

This photo shows a fresh, dried cow chip, in situ. It is sometimes also called a cow pie or meadow muffin. Cow chips, simply stated, are the waste products of bovine digestive processes, or dung, if you will. They may contain undigested plant matter residue. The pictured chip, which I barely avoided stepping on, is about 10 inches in diameter and 2 inches high. Sort of gray-tan in color, the chip has the consistency of cooked oatmeal left on a plate to harden. (This why I have corn flakes for breakfast).

Cow chips are the successor to buffalo chips, which became obsolete when buffalo all but were exterminated by hunters. Buffalo chips, and cow chips when cows arrived, facilitated the settlement of the American Great Plains and the migration of settlers to the West Coast. Travelers through the prairies seeking the Oregon Trail and other trails through the Rocky Mountains soon discovered that there were no trees on the Plains. Homesteaders staying on the prairies had the same discovery.

Because wood and coal were not available for heating and cooking fires, buffalo chips became the fuel of choice. If a settler or traveler was accompanied by a cow, cow chips also were used-- unless the cow was used for food when game was sparse. "As a fuel, cow and buffalo chips offered the advantage of not throwing sparks into bedding or clothing, which was especially important in military tents and tipis. One early settler reported, 'Don't feel sorry for us cooking with cow chips. They had their advantages--didn't need to use pepper."*

Plains Indians also used buffalo chips for heating and cooking fires. In addition chips sometimes were used on the prairies as a building material, as a cure for various medical issues, as landmarks when piled high, and more recently for recreational cow chip throwing.

Since cow chips have a proven and important history as a fuel for heating and cooking, perhaps they can offer a solution in modern times for mitigation of concerns over perceived climate change. For example, under appropriate legislation such as the Affordable Cow Chip Act ("ACCA"), the government would provide each homeowner with one cow per member in the household. Thus, a house with two people and a two car garage would become a house with a two cow garage. Each home owner would be required to disconnect from the electric grid and from natural gas service. Instead, the home owner would be required to harvest his/her cows' chips and burn them in cook stoves, furnaces and fireplaces as the fuel for cooking and heating. Waste heat and gases would be recycled to in home generators to produce electricity. In the case of apartment buildings, where keeping of cows could be impractical, landlords or their tenants would be required to purchase chips from government operated exchanges. Commercial and Industrial facilities also would disconnect from the grid, and use cow chip independent generation, solar or wind power for energy needs.

Homeowners unable to afford maintenance of their cows would receive subsidies from the government for feed. Parties failing to participate fully in the ACCA program would be assessed a substantial monetary penalty, which would be called a tax.

Under the ACCA, therefore, all carbon related fuels would be eliminated from use as energy sources, thereby eliminating carbon emissions and stopping climate change. In addition, another benefit of the ACCA is that milk would be a byproduct of chip production from all those cows. Homeowners could sell surplus milk to the government for incorporation into the government milk grid.

Clearly, when the chips are down, governmental regulation will solve all our problems, including climate change.

________________________________________

*"Buffalo Chips", Encyclopedia of the
Great Plains

Friday, November 13, 2015

THE FOURTH MAN


The Mount Rushmore National Monument often is referred to as the "Shrine of Democracy." Four historic faces are carved by Gutzon Borglum in a granite Black Hills mountain.
Three of the "heads" were obvious choices, as they represent defining moments--game changers, if you will--in the history of the United States. Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence; George Washington and the Revolutionary War; and Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War to save the Union.

For the fourth man, Borglum selected Theodore Roosevelt, a not so obvious choice it would appear. Although Roosevelt had been a president, and even had a stuffed toy bear named after him, it did not seem that he represented a defining moment in history or even a game changer. Yes, he was a naturalist, a Rough Rider, and a rancher in the North Dakota badlands. In 1901, he became vice president under president McKinley. When Mckinley was assinated later that year, Roosevelt became president and was elected for another term in 1904. As president, he became known as a conservationist, setting aside some 280 million acres for national parks, monuments and forests, and as a "trust buster" for aggressive enforcement of antitrust laws.

However, Borglum may have picked Roosevelt for Mount Rushmore for a less visible but more important reason. Roosevelt was the first "modern" president, the first to exercise his executive powers to impose broad regulatory authority. In other words, his defining moment was his expansion of presidential power, particularly in relation to Congress.

For example, he wrote to historian George Trevelyan "I have a definite philosophy about the presidency. I think it should be a very powerful office, and I think the President should be a very strong man who uses without hesitation every power that the position yields."

In his autobiography, Roosevelt wrote: "The most important factor in getting the right spirit in my administration...was my insistence upon the theory that the executive power was limited only by specific restrictions and prohibitions appearing in the Constitution or imposed by Congress under its constitutional powers...Under this interpretation of executive power I did and caused to be done many things not previously done by the President and the heads of the departments. I did not usurp power but I did greatly broaden the use of executive power."

So, Roosevelt may have become the inspiration and model for the future aggressive broadening of executive power of the president, particularly through the use of administrative agencies, beginning with relative F.D.Roosevelt and continuing to this day. Indeed, regulatory agencies controlled by the executive are limited only when courts find that they have exceeded their statuary authority or have acted unreasonably.

Therefore, the fourth man on Mount Rushmore may have influenced and changed the United States as much as the other three men, but in more subtle ways.

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

DEJA VU


"Memory is like riding a trail at night with a lighted torch.
The torch casts its light only so far, and beyond that is darkness."

----------- Old Lakota Sioux Saying

Earlier this year, I discussed a published report that scientists have asserted the Earth's water was delivered to it by ice-infused asteroids and/or meteorites.* This conclusion was based upon comparisons of the Deuterium-Hydrogen (D/H) ratios of Earth water with water found in rocks from outer space.

Now, a new published report suggests that this water origin conclusion may not be correct, and that no one yet knows how water got here.** According to this report, there are problems with the prior D/H ratio analysis. Most of Earth's water is deep underground and has a different composition from ocean water. In particular, deep water has a different D/H ratio than the seawater ratio previously used to compare with asteroid and meteorite water.

Further, D/H ratios may not be reliable because Deuterium tends to become more prevalent at lower temperature, and computations are variable with distance from the sun making the ratios of questionable value in locating the origin of a water-bearing comet. Alternative ratios, such as nitrogen and oxygen isotopes have been suggested, but such measurements apparently require development of new instruments.

According to the report, no one knows how much water is inside the Earth. Estimates vary from 1.5 times to 11 times the amount of ocean water. Scientists are studying a series of underground lakes located hundreds of feet below Wind Cave National Park in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Wind Cave comprises at least 170 miles of honey-combed tunnels and is said to be the third largest cavern in the world. The lakes pop up in some of these tunnels and form the top of the Madison Aquifer, a valuable drinking water resource. The Lakota believed that their ancient gods delivered their ancestors from Wind Cave to the surface of the Black Hills.

As if figuring out where Earth water came from was not challenging, another report states that several moons of Jupiter and Saturn contain underground oceans of water, not to mention the possibilities on Mars.***

Is looking for a scientific explanation for the origin of water on Earth or anywhere else like looking for love in all the wrong places? To paraphrase the Lakota, "Looking for the origin of Earth's water is like riding a trail at night with a lighted torch. The torch casts its light only so far, and beyond that is darkness."

____________________________________________

* "Who Cares", May 27, 2015

** Crockett,"Struggle To Find Origin Of
Earth's Water",Science News,September 5,
2015, p.8

*** Crockett,"Ocean Envelopes All Of
Enceladus", Science News, October 17,
2015, p.8


Thursday, October 1, 2015

THE AUDACITY OF ASSUMPTIONS

Last month, the EPA announced its new regulation requiring a 32% reduction from 2005 levels in emissions of carbon dioxide from power plants. According to media reports, U.S. power plants produce 5% of global carbon emissions, but the current Administration assumes other countries will follow and that the U.S. reduction will counteract assumed climate change. However, media have quoted the Senate majority leader as saying that the regulation would not meaningfully affect global climate, and several states have initiated litigation challenging the regulation.

One problem with regulations can be that they may be predicated upon assumptions of fact rather than evidence of actual fact. Proposed climate change regulations may be no exception, as they appear to be based upon the following assumptions:

Assumption No.1: Global Climate Is Changing

If an assumption is repeated enough times in media or by politicians, it can take on the color of fact. Assertions that global climate is changing appear to be based upon selective temperature readings and computer modeling. While some scientists have suggested that Earth is experiencing global warming, others have pointed out that global temperatures have not changed in several years. In turn, some have proposed that somehow warmth has been sucked into the bottom of oceans, so that surface temperatures have not changed. And, so the debate goes on. But regulatory climate change proposals appear to be based upon the assumption that global climate change is fact.

Assumption No. 2: Assumed Climate Change Is Caused By Humans

Climate change is a natural and repetitive process of Earth. Climate has changed countless times and can be expected to continue to do so. History evidences such ongoing change, as continents have shifted, lush lands have become deserts, and glaciers have frozen and thawed. For example, according to a recent report, 252 million years ago, climate change caused by volcanic eruptions caused extinctions of 90% of marine species and 75% of land species. "Volcanic gases prompted environmental changes that made the planet uninhabitable for most life".*

Another report explained that during the Ice Age abrupt climate changes caused mass extinction of large native animals such as the wooly mammoths."** Even the 18th Century Christian leader Jonathan Edwards believed that the Earth experiences "continuous creation." That is, the Earth was created. has changed over the years, and is constantly changing. "Tis certain with me that the world exists anew every moment," he said.***

Nevertheless, the assumption is being made by those proposing so-called climate change regulations that climate is changing due to human activity such as emissions from power plants and other sources.

Assumption No. 3: Government Has Power To Regulate Climate Change

Regulatory proposals to control hunan activities assumed to cause climate change also assume that government has legal authority to adopt and enforce such regulations. Because such regulations can have restrictive effects on activities, this assumption can have serious adverse impacts on business and jobs. Thus, in the case of the U.S., the focus can be expected to be on Constitutional issues, relations with the states, and statutory authority of administrative agencies proposing regulations.

Assumption No. 4: Benefits of Climate Regulation Exceed Costs

A finding, and weighing, of the costs and benefits of any regulation is essential. This should be particularly applicable to regulations adopted to control such activities as air emissions when a substantial negative impact could result from such action. It apparently is assumed that U.S. carbon emission limits will cause a significant reduction in global climate change. Will that assumption become fact if other countries do not enforce similar rules? Will it be fact even if they do?

On the other hand, significant costs can result from such regulations. such as the write-off of abandoned existing infrastructure, reduction in service reliability, loss of jobs and increased costs to consumers.

Assumption No. 5: Government Can Control Climate

Perhaps the most audacious and speculative assumption is that humans, through their government, can change climate change by reversing or reducing the change. If all the emissions from all the sources ceased, and humans returned to living in caves without fire, would the climate change assumed to be now occurring cease?

It may be that too much of modern secular culture is based upon assumptions, and too little on Truth.
___________________________________________

*"Volcanism Convicted In Permian Die-off",
Science News, September 19, 2015, p.10

**"Climate Change Drove Ice Age Die-offs",
Science News, August 22, 2015, p.9

***Moody, The God-Centered Life (2007),
pp. 98-99



Friday, September 18, 2015

MOUNT FUNGUSMORE--SHRINE OF DEGUSTATION?


Everyone knows that, after a good rain, mushrooms tend to pop up in yards. Thus, it should have been no surprise to me that today I stumbled upon the mountain of fungus pictured above.

At first, I thought it may be an alien being from outer space. Then, more realistically, I speculated that it was the heave of an owl that over-ate some squirrels. Close inspection, however, disclosed that it was a colony of fungus some two feet wide and a foot tall.

Being of Czech descent, mushrooms course through my blood. Called "houby", they are the fruit of the gods. The problem, however, is which gods, as some mushrooms can be quite deadly.

Unfortunately, all mushrooms look alike to me, so I buy them in a grocery store. However, my late aunt was a classic mushroom hunter/gatherer, with acute fungus radar. She had secret woodland hunting grounds and frequently was chased away by agitated farmers or their bulls. Her son did not fall from the toadstool, as he was in the same mold. His mushroom hunting, however, was in the lawns of unsuspecting homeowners.

I do not know whether my Mount Fungusmore is edible or not, but I have considered trying to save it for a parade float at the next annual Houby Festival held in a local town. Surely, it will be a high point.

One problem, however, is that mushrooms do not seem to have a long shelf life. In a 1946 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals, the United States sued three 25 bags and two boxes of dried mushrooms, alleging that they were adulterated.* While the fungus could not speak for themselves, a claimant did and disputed that the mushrooms were adulterated. After a trial, the District Court ruled that the mushrooms were adulterated within the meaning of the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and that the mushrooms "be condemned, forfeited, and destroyed."

The claimant appealed. But wait, "in the meantime, no stay of the court's order or decree having been entered, the Marshall destroyed the mushrooms." How they were destroyed was not mentioned.

The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal. "The continued existence of the mushrooms is essential to our right to proceed against the things themselves....The decree of the District Court goes against the mushrooms. The decree having been entered and executed, the proceeding is functus officio."

If one picks some mushrooms in the wild, and becomes ill from eating them, the only potential defendant likely is oneself. So, I have no intention to even touch Mount Fungusmore. I have decided to let nature take its course to condemn, forfeit and destroy: fungus functus officio.
_________________________________________

*United States v. 3 Unlabeled 25-pound bags
Dried Mushrooms,157 F.2d 722 (7th Cir.1946)

Thursday, September 3, 2015

FREE FOR THE TAKING


Shortly before the U.S. Supreme Court set aside EPA's mercury emission rules, the Court also set aside the federal government's raison crop regulatory program.*
Under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, the government established the Raison Administrative Committee. Each year, the Committee required raison producers to give to the government, free of charge, a percentage of their crop. According to the Court's opinion, in 2002-2003, for example, the percentage of free taking was 47%. If a producer refused to give the government its raison, the producer would be fined the fair market value of the raisons, plus civil penalties.

In the case before the Court, certain raison producers fined by the government for refusal to give raison away sued, asserting that the requirement to give raisons to the government was an unconstitutional taking of their property contrary to the Fifth Amendment requirement of payment of just compensation for any taking.

The Supreme Court held that the government cannot take raisons without paying just compensation, measured as the market value of the raisons taken. The Court also said that there is no distinction between a taking of personal property and a taking of real property. A physical taking of either is a per se action that requires payment of just compensation.

The Court did make a distinction between a per se physical taking of property and a so-called regulatory taking, such as a use restriction on property. An example of a use restriction could be imposition of a condition on issuance of a land use permit. In the case of a regulatory taking, the Court said, just compensation was required only if the regulation went "too far." Going "too far" would require an ad hoc factual inquiry , according to the Court, "considering factors such as the economic impact of the regulation, its interference with reasonable investment backed expectations, and the character of the government action."

What may be evolving now could be judicial restraints on administrative agency regulatory actions perceived to cross the line into unfairness. In the case of the mercury emission rules, discussed in my prior posting, the Court stated that EPA rulemaking required consideration of costs and benefits. In the raison decision, the Court stated that regulation may require just compensation if is a physical taking or a regulatory taking that goes "too far."

These Court decisions may provide precedent beyond certain air emission rules or raisons. For example, they may be relevant to regulation of water and wastewater utility services and to regulations on the use of water resources.
________________________________________________________

*Horne v. Department of Agriculture, 576 U.S.___(2015)

Sunday, August 23, 2015

REGULATION FLEES ON WINGS OF MERCURY


Often, important court decisions escape serious media attention. One such example may be the recent U.S. Supreme Court opinion concluding that U.S. EPA's regulation requiring power plants to reduce mercury emissions was improperly adopted.*
The federal Clean Air Act states that EPA can regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants from power plants only if such regulation is "appropriate and necessary". In its rulemaking for mercury from power plants, EPA refused to consider the costs of compliance that would be imposed on the plants, finding that costs were irrelevant to "appropriateness" of such regulation.

The Supreme Court disagreed with EPA's interpretation the law. Accordingly, in this situation, proper regulation depends upon a comparison of the economic cost of compliance with the health or economic benefits. As Justice Scalia wrote for the majority: "The Agency must consider cost--including, most importantly, cost of compliance--before deciding whether regulation is appropriate and necessary."

The Supreme Court remanded the case to the lower court for further proceedings, thus imposing on EPA the obligation of reviewing and revising its regulation after consideration of a cost/benefit analysis that will meet the Supreme Court's requirement.

Mandating that administrative agencies consider costs and benefits in deciding whether and how to impose regulations would seem to be both rational and obvious. Perhaps the importance of the Supreme Court's decision may be that not only are compliance costs relevant but also potentially controlling as to the propriety of regulation. In that sense, cost/benefit analyst can be viewed as a means to mitigate possible agency over-reach and unreasonableness.

What could be interesting is whether the Court's ruling will have impact beyond mercury for all of EPA's efforts to dictate so-called climate change rules, particularly those related to carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants.

Moreover, beyond air pollution, cost/benefit analysis logically should be relevant to all EPA rulemaking affecting water and wastewater utilities, it would seem.

__________________________________________________

*Michigan v. EPA, 576 US __ (2015),June 29,2015

Sunday, August 16, 2015

SWEET DREAMS

"You never oughta drink water when it ain't runnin'."

-----John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men


Whenever, we feel sluggish or drowsy, sometimes we reach for candy or other sweet for a sugar high and anticipated boost in alertness. However, according to a recent published report, our anticipation may be misplaced. It seems that a boost in sugar intake may actually put us into sleepiness.*

It is well established that a large meal, such as at Thanksgiving, can cause overeaters to fall asleep even over the blare of boring televised football games and clacking relatives. But, maybe we should not blame the turkey hormones for our drowsiness.

A new study in London shows that sugar promotes sleep instead of alertness. In the study, glucose was injected into the brains of mice. Certain nerve cells in mouse brains are sleep inducers. (I wonder if other cells are cheese graving producers). At any rate, the study shows that the glucose stimulated the sleep causing cells, and the mice promptly nodded off for a deep sleep. Indeed, the more the neurons detected sweetness, the stronger the resulting sleep.

According to the report, human sleep causing neurons appear to be similar to those of mice. One wonders, then, what to make of the quote from Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men": "Trouble with mice is you always kill 'em." If the cells of mice and men are similar, then a similar reaction to sugar may be expected appears to be the conclusion.

So, perhaps Mary Poppins was correct when she asserted that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. In this case, a spoonful of sugar also helps the eyelids go down. Pardon me, while a reach for a piece of candyyyyyy......ZZZZZZZZZ.

_____________________________________________________
* Sanders, "Sugar May Put You to Sleep, Science News,
August 8, 2015, p. 15

Saturday, August 1, 2015

PLUTONIC RELATIONS

Planet or dwarf planet, or round blob of ice, or whatever--Pluto attracted a great deal of attention this summer when photos of it and its moon captured by NASA's space probe hit the media. They briefly replaced reruns of old sitcoms.

The pictures are said to reveal mountains of frozen water. Some have speculated that water is gushing below the mountains. Indeed, one project leader was quoted as saying that water exists in great abundance.

A question comes to mind: how did all that water arrive on Pluto? Recently, published reports have stated that the Earth's water came from bombardments of asteroids. However, photos of Pluto and its moon Charon appear to suggest crusts free of impact craters.

Will water on Pluto be harvested for the benefit of earthlings? Will large space tankers haul ice and water back to Earth? I suppose this is unlikely, if it takes 9 years over 3 million miles to go one way. On the other hand, harvested ice certainly will arrive melted after such travel.

But wait...there already is Pluto Water on Earth. "Pluto Water" was bottled spring water from French Lick, Indiana. It was available and sold from the early 20th Century until 1971 when its lithium content caused it to be labeled as a controlled substance. Pluto Water was famous for being a strong laxative due to its mineral salts. Claims were made that it was "effective" from a half hour to two hours after ingestion. Accordingly, one supposes that it quenched several needs.

Pluto was the Roman god of the underworld. Pluto also was a dog--the pet dog of Mickey Mouse. Both Pluto, the alleged planet, and Pluto, the alleged canine, were discovered in 1930. The assumption is that the alleged planet came first. Pluto, the dog, who is naked, of course should not be confused with Goofy, the dog, who tends to be clothed and also associated with Mickey Mouse and friends. Pluto is not Goofy.

Pluto, the round ball in outer space, is an unlikely destination for weddings or retirees in the near future. However, in addition to its water sources, it does offer the attractive benefit that global warming is not likely there. This should please scientists who may consider going there. It also is unlikely that any of us will drink Pluto Water anytime soon. So, while photos of Pluto's ice mountains were interesting, the only Pluto likely to cross our paths is Pluto, the dog. Beam me up, Pluto!

Monday, July 20, 2015

FLY WITH US, SAID THE BEE

A recent news telecast reported that the U.S. Air Force is funding research on how bees and other insects fly.* The project, said to cost $9 million is being conducted at the University of Washington. The research seeks to learn the flying secrets of such critters to enable development of more sophisticated and efficient aircraft.

In the telecast, the reporter stated: "when you watch in slow motion with the help of a high-speed camera, you get a whole new perspective on the mysterious and incredibly complex world, of insect flight. So how does a bee with such a giant body and such tiny wings actually fly?", he asked a researcher. Came the reply, "It beats its wings really fast, and you can't even see that."

The project is known as the Center for Excellence on Nature-Inspired Flight Technologies and Ideas. The emphasis appears to be on "Nature". As the researcher stated, "We look to nature. Are there ideas and principles that nature is using to solve hard flight control problems? Can we use those ideas to inspire new technologies, and can we use technology to deepen our understanding of how nature solves its problems?" To borrow and reverse a phrase from a well-known boxer, is the idea "to sting like a butterfly and float like a bee?"

It is interesting to see a situation where science is relying upon "Nature" to enhance human flight technology. Accordingly,"Nature" necessarily must have intelligent design which enables successful insect flight and which, in turn, is deemed instructive to human design.

On hot summer days, it is common to see honey bees drinking water at the edges of bird baths, puddles and ponds. Bees need water during the honey flows in order to process honey. Perhaps water researchers should examine how bees efficiently ingest water from such sources, transport it to their hives and purify it for incorporation in the honey production. Maybe Nature's design has another lesson for us.

_____________________________________________

*PBS Newshour, July 17, 2015

Saturday, July 11, 2015

DROUGHT: CAN GOVERNMENTS LEGISLATE CLIMATE CHANGE?

At an early age, school children probably learn that the age of a tree can be determined by counting rings in a cross section of its trunk. These rings reveal more than just age, however. By their width, they also reveal good years when rainfall enabled expanded growth, and bad years when conditions were less favorable.

Researchers have examined tree rings in Mongolia to study changes in climate as revealed by the rings.* As of the late 12th Century, Mongolia had been experiencing extensive drought. However, in the early 13th Century, the legendary Genghis Khan marched across Asia to establish his huge empire. Analysis of tree rings appears to show that Genghis benefitted a dramatic climate change that facilitated his rapid conquests. The climate change yielded a wet period that produced hearty grasslands for horses and livestock. "Wetter, milder conditions than the previous decades of drought would have given Genghis and his army significant advantages, including a constant supply of horses, increased agricultural production and other resources needed to support a centralized government and large military."**

Interestingly, after many years of favorable climate conditions, beginning in the 1990s, drought has returned to Mongolia. This climate change, in turn, has produced large livestock losses, soil degradation and migration from the countryside to cities.

The climate changes in Mongolia are just one example of the many documented climate changes in the Earth's history. In effect, they appear to be a natural attribute of the Earth, caused without any human activity connection. Whether climate changes are occurring today continues to be debated. If in fact climate changes are occurring, whether they are caused by human activity continues to be debated.

It seems that those who perceive that human activity is causing climate changes propose to change climate by legislation and regulation. Genghis Khan did not change climate to produce conditions favorable to his plans. He benefitted from a climate change that occurred naturally. If historically climate change is a natural phenomenon of Earth. can governments legislate climate change? If they could, that indeed would be climate change caused by human activity.

_______________________________________________

*Juskalian,"Climate and the Khan",Discover,
July/August 2015, p.31

**Id.at p.34-35

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

DROUGHT: ROUNDING UP THE UNUSUAL SUSPECTS


"But I don't want to go among mad people", Alice remarked.
"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."
"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."

----Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

In the 1930s, the center of the United States became the "Dust Bowl" due to prolonged and pervasive drought. The dust was farmland topsoil wind eroded and blown away in dust storms, along with hopes and livelihoods of farm families. As memorialized in John Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath", migrant workers and farmers displaced by years of Dust Bowl misery relocated to perceived better times in California.

Now, portions of California and several other western states are experiencing prolonged and pervasive drought which is stressing and displacing lifestyles and livelihoods of residents. Moreover, much of California is naturally dry, and is dependent upon external water sources to sustain population centers and irrigation agriculture. So, the choice now is becoming one of serious reduction in water use or migrating elsewhere, perhaps even back to the center of the country.

The usual approaches to reducing water use have been well publicized, such as
* recycling wastewater
* prohibiting yard watering
* mandating utilities to reduce water deliveries
* mandating reductions in farm irrigation
* requiring installation of low flow water appliances
* adopting inverse rate blocks that rise with volume

These "usual" approaches may produce some success, but perhaps some more "unusual" approaches could also help.

For example, on June 24, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a partnership that would invest millions of dollars to restore the Sierra-Cascade California Headwaters, which is the water source for agriculture and some 25 million residents.

One of the most dramatic periods of conservation in the Unites states was during World War II, when many materials and foods were needed for the war effort, forcing citizens to conserve. Two aspects come to mind: (1) citizens were well educated as to the need to conserve resources; and (2) many items were rationed, a form of mandatory conservation. Could these two aspects be applied to help reduce water demand in drought environments? For example, could a per capital standard of average daily water use be established for households, with high volumetric rates applied to excess monthly use?

Agriculture can pose a more difficult issue. There is a significant difference, obviously, between land that produces annual crops such as corn and land that is used for orchards of fruit and nut trees that take years to mature. Perhaps some land can be taken out of temporary production, with governmental financial assistance. Or, irrigation rights temporarily waived or reduced. However, some farms may have contractual water rights which would likely require mutual consent for reductions.

One unique source of additional water could be human sweat. A Swedish engineer created a device to harvest sweat from clothing and to purify it to drinking water. A sweaty T-shirt is said to have produced two teaspoons of clean water. However, sweaty socks may be more productive. A pair of human feet is said to yield a half-pint of sweat every day. If true, sixteen pairs of socks could yield one gallon a day. Perhaps, here is an opportunity for another government program to establish a sock exchange where people would bring in dripping socks and pick up dry ones.*

Two other solutions may be available. If people in California do not like the drought and water use limitations, they might consider moving to the Midwest, where there has been so much record-breaking rain this year that it is a "Flood Bowl."

Or, if people want to stay in California and want more rain, why not just ask God?

______________________________________________________

* Festa, "Sweat", Discover, July/August,2015, p.98

Sunday, June 14, 2015

DROUGHT: WATER UTILITIES CONFRONT CONFLICTING POLICIES


"If you don't know where you are going any road can take you there."

---- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland


The photo depicts the arid wonderland of the South Dakota Badlands. They are a drought stricken moonscape that stands in dramatic contrast to the verdant Black Hills 50 miles to the west.

The Badlands once were full of rich vegetation and animal life also. Fossils evidence now extinct critters such as sabre tooth tigers, sheep-like oredonts, rhinos and miniature horse. At another time, the landscape was under water.

Some have asserted that parts of California naturally are arid and subject to drought--where farming must depend upon irrigation and cities on water sources located elsewhere. Whether current drought conditions in California and other states may be due to climate changes or temporary weather conditions, water utilities must deal with drought in some rational manner. Unfortunately, they can confront conflicting policies that make rational solutions difficult. Some of these policy conflicts include the following:

* Legal Duty To Serve vs. Service Restrictions. Generally, water utilities have a monopoly in their given service areas. This is because of the costly infrastructure required to provide water service; rarely are there competing water utilities within the same service are. For their monopoly status, water utilities incur certain obligations: whether by statute or by court decision, water utilities generally are required to satisfy the water demands of customers within their service areas. This obligation likely can be expected to apply to both investor-owned utilities and to municipal-owned utilities.

However, there can be a conflicting policy when, for example, state or local governments seek to impose restrictions on the amount of water utilities may deliver to their customers. The restrictive regulation limiting water delivery can clash with the legal obligation to serve customer water requirements.

* Higher Rates To Force Conservation vs. Cost Of Service Ratemaking. Some have urged dramatic increases in rates, such as inclining rate blocks as volume of water delivered increases, as a way of forcing reductions in water usage. However, while such measures may appear to have merit from the standpoint of objective, they can clash with applicable legal requirements that to be reasonable, rates must be based upon costs of service.

* Higher Rates To Force Conservation vs. Affordability. Some have argued that higher rates will enable "market forces" to naturally enable the desired reductions in water usage, and thus conservation. However, such a policy may well conflict with the notion of affordability of water. While "affordability" is not a precise concept, one can assume that higher water rates will take a larger chunk out of low income earner budgets. Moreover, affluent customers may feel no pain from higher rates and continue to use their typical amounts of water, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the conservation effort.

* Higher Rates To Force Conservation vs. Reductions In Revenue. Assuming that increased rates are successful in creating reductions in usage, the end result of conservation may also be a reduction of needed revenue to the utility as eell as excess treatment and delivery capacity that still must be funded--pushing rates still higher or forcing excess capacity to be abandoned as no longer used and us full.

* Contracts vs. Abrogation Of Contracts. A water utility serves customers pursuant to contract, which includes the tariffs of a regulated utility and ordinances of a municipal utility. However, if a governmental authority imposes service restrictions, does such an action also abrogate the contracts between utility and its customers?

For water utilities in limited source water environments, determining the best road to travel can be perplexing and full of potholes of policy conflicts. Indeed, the best destination may not be clear. It may seem that the only road available could be a circle.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

WHO CARES?

"Blow, blow, thou winter wind. Thou art not so unkind as man's ingratitude."

Shakespeare's King Lear


More than 70% of the Earth's surface is covered with water. How did all this water get here?

According to a recently published report, scientists assert that all this water was delivered to Earth from rocks arriving from outer space--ice-infused asteroids and/or meteorites from an asteroid called Vesta.* ""This bombardment of asteroids a few million years after the start of the solar system could have easily delivered enough ice--locked inside the rocks, safe from the sun's heat--to account for the Earth's oceans, computer simulations indicate."** These conclusions are based upon comparisons of the Deuterium/Hydrogen ratios of the Earth water with water found in the space rocks.

It is not clear how the asteroids that hit the earth or Vesta got their water in the first place. So perhaps the issue of original water source is pushed back to an earlier time period and more computer simulations.

Of course, there can be another explanation for water on Earth: God or so-called "intelligent design". Under the "Anthropic Principle", the Earth as well as the entire universe evidence having been designed for the purpose of sustaining life, including human life. Physicist Arno Penzias is quoted as having said "Astronomy leads us to a unique event, a universe which was created out of nothing, one with the very delicate balance needed to provide exactly the right conditions required to permit life, and one which has an underlying, one might say 'supernatural', plan"*** Water, then, could be viewed as an ingredient placed on Earth for the specific purpose of enabling and sustaining life.

However, perhaps the more important question is not where water came from but where is water going. Earth's water controls climate and weather, molds the land, and enables life. In particular, clean water is essential for human life. How humanity respects water really has become the issue for now and the future.

Waste of water resources has the potential to upend the "delicate balance" Penzias referenced. Waste can take many forms, such as excessive usage, diversion to lesser or non-essential uses, overpopulation or over irrigation of areas with limited local water sources, and pollution of surface and ground water.

Perhaps it is best that we express our gratitude for water, regardless how it got here; because without it, we never would be here.
__________________________________________
*Crockett."Water, Water Everywhere",
Science News, May 16,2015, p.18

**Id. at p. 20

***Paper,"God and Science", Dr.Josh Moody

Monday, May 18, 2015

WILL THE RIVERS CLAP THEIR HANDS?

Rivers are a primary source of supply for many water utility systems. Such utilities are responsible to treat river water in compliance with applicable safe drinking water regulations. As rivers and their tributaries meander through agricultural land, they are susceptible to farm field soil erosion and fertilizer runoff. Perhaps the most troublesome constituents of such runoff are the nitrates. In the United States, there are strict limits on the permitted levels of nitrates in drinking water, which impose in many cases costly treatment protocols.

For example, in its 2014 annual report, the Minnesota Department of Health indicates that agricultural related nitrate pollution is a growing threat to the state's drinking water from all sources. The report states: "Roughly half of Minnesota's land is in agricultural production, primarily in the southern and western parts of the state. Up to 20 million acres of Minnesota is in row crop production annually. Row crops, which include corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and potatoes, are a major contributor to Minnesota's economy. However, since soils in row-crop production can lose nitrate during the non-growing season, these lands are the biggest influence on Minnesota's ground and surface water nitrate levels." (p.7)

Farm soil erosion is another issue for rivers. According to a published report, to mitigate erosion, farmers are switching to no till farming, a practice of planting crops without tillage of the soil. Stubble from prior crops is left on the ground. The new crop is planted by drilling seed into the soil without disturbing the ground by tilling. Accordingly, this practice tends to hold soil in place.*

So, could no till farming be the answer for both erosion and runoff control? Maybe not, according to another published report. It states that researchers have found that fields managed by conventional and turbo-tillage practices can produce lower concentrations of pollutants in runoff than those managed by no till practices.**

Maybe further research will conclude that both new seed and fertilizer could be drilled into the soil, leaving the surface otherwise undisturbed. This approach, of course, could cause increased costs for agricultural interests. But it also could assign costs to the cost causers and reduce treatment costs for utilities and their customers. Perhaps, an alternative approach could be no till practices for erosion control and more modest and efficient application of fertilizers. Whatever, with further research, maybe some day rivers will have less concern over erosion and runoff, and will clap their hands.

______________________________________________

*Lutey, Billings Gazette, republished in
Rapid City Journal, April 27,2015,p.A8

**Environmental Science & Technology,
November 20, 2012

Monday, May 4, 2015

YIKES! BLOB ATTACKS LONDON SEWERS!

One of my favorite science fiction films is the 1958 movie called The Blob, starring Steve McQueen. An amorphous jelly-like ball of material invades Earth from outer space and grows huge by eating and dissolving people into its mass. Perhaps the most dramatic scene is when patrons run out of a movie theater as the Blob digests its victims.

Well, it appears that the Blob may have attacked again. In late April of this year, the Guardian reported that a 10 ton blob of fat was removed from a sewer in the Chelsea area of London. Called a "fatberg", the blob was said to be 40 meters long and was so huge and heavy that it broke the sewer, necessitating costly repairs.

This was not the first time that a fatberg was encountered in London sewers. In 2013, a 15 ton fat blob was removed from a sewer in the Kingston area of London after residents complained that toilets would not flush. Again, damage to the sewer had to be repaired. Interestingly, after the blob was removed, it was dewatered and the remaining fats and oils were recycled into soap and fuel. Perhaps the soap later wound up back in the same sewer.

One wonders from where does the fat come that feeds a sewer blob. One source could be the kinds of fatty foods that Brits may have been eating. Putting aside such items as bacon rolls, one example may be the so-called full English breakfast, a quintessential "fry-up." Consider the ingredients, all of which are fried: pork sausage, bacon, beans, tomato, bread, mushrooms,eggs, black pudding and maybe kidneys, kippers and potatoes.

It is no surprise that media report Brits are getting fatter. Maybe it all began with Britain's first obese man, Daniel Lambert. At around 1800, he probably qualified as a blob, as he weighed 53 stone or about 740 pounds. He charged people a shilling to come and see him, and he is said to have made a fortune. Unfortunately, he died young.

According to published reports, Brits on average weigh 3 stones (42 pounds) more than they did in the 1960s. However, they still have a way to go to match the average American adult as the heaviest in the world. British adults are said to weigh 30 pounds more than the average globally, whereas Americana adults are 40 pounds more than the global average. Last year, the Telegraph reported that British women are the fattest in Europe, and pointed out that some believe that being fat can be a positive thing. On the other hand, as people become fatter, they also eat more, which can place more stress on world food production and related resources such as energy and water.

Is there any defense to the fat blob attacks against sewer systems? Perhaps an action plan to auger well could include:

1. Eating less
2. Eating healthier
3. Refraining from pouring cooking oils, fatty food debris and other nasties into drains
4. Frequent inspection and maintenance of sewers by the local utility

In the movie, the Blob eventually was captured and removed to polar isolation. But lingering doubts left an opening for a sequel or remake. Beware of a possible Return of the Fatberg Blob.

Saturday, April 25, 2015

"MY KINGDOM FOR A HEARSE"...KING RICHARD III RIDES AGAIN


England's King Richard III, or at least his bones, has received royal treatment at last. You may recall that his bones allegedly were unearthed from underneath a parking lot ("car park") in 2012. How Richard, who died in battle in 1485 in Bosworth. traveled to a municipal parking lot in Leicester is probably as improbable as his journey 530 years later from the car park to Leicester's cathedral.

It is said that the bones most assuredly are bone-fide those of Richard, based on carbon dating and DNA analysis of a remote great nephew. However, despite all the pomp and circumstance of the re-interrment, one author argues that the evidence in inconclusive. To enable carbon dating results of the bones to include 1485, the findings had to be adjusted for a so-called fish factor--Richard ate a lot of fish, which must have increased the scale. DNA findings also were challenged. "So, as we prepare for a week of royal spectacle, the sort England always does stirringly well, it is worth pausing during the pageantry to wonder if it is indeed King Richard III being given such a glittering reburial, or whether his cold, battle-scarred Plantagenet bones still lie out there, undiscovered and unrecognized."*

Regardless, the bones traveled in a cortege to Leicester's cathedral, to lie in state and to be re-interred with much ceremony on March 26. It was reported that one pub served a Plantagenet dinner of pottage and mead while another offered King Richard ales served by wenches. A gift shop near the cathedral was selling Plantagenet refrigerator magnets.** As one author summarized it, "To judge by the brouhaha, the re-interrment of Richard is the most exciting thing to have happened in Leicester since the king's death at the nearby Battle of Bosworth over 500 years ago." *** On the other hand, a retired vicar put it this way: "It's all faintly idolatrous, as if monarch bone worship had come into fashion."**

Despite all the pomp, there apparently remains much controversy over whether Richard was a good guy. One author believes he was much maligned by Shakespeare's play. The author states that Richard was an innovative king who instituted legal reforms and "had a genuine commitment to fair play in the judicial system, his actions and proclamations stressing that his laws were to be administered impartially without delay or favour."****

On the other hand, another author has stated that Richard "was, in modern terms, a psychopathic serial killer who eliminated his imagined enemies: friend and foe, adult and child." "Next week we may be burying a King in Leicester, but we are also interring a common criminal."*****

Whatever, Richard will be celebrated in a new musical expected to open in October in London. It is called "RichardRocks." According to its website (rechardrocks.com), the show is "a rock opera based on Shakespeare's most infamous villain." Therefore, if you missed the funeral, you can still catch the music.

So, Richard III may be buried again away from your eyes, but he still can be music for your ears.

___________________________________________________

* Selwood, Daily Telegraph, March 21,2015,p.25

** Mills, Sunday Times, March 22,2015,p.17

*** Symons, Daily Telegraph, March 21,2015,p.T16

**** Stone, Daily Telegraph, March 21,2015,p.25

***** Jones, Daily Telegraph, March 21,2015,p.25


Sunday, April 19, 2015

BATHROOM PUZZLEMENTS


"If a chap can't compose an epic poem while he's weaving a tapestry, he had better shut up; he'll never do any good at all." William Morris

In recent travels in Europe, I again encountered bathroom operation issues. For example, the above photo illustrates shower controls found in a bathroom in England. The panel of valves reminded me of an engine room in a submarine, with a captain barking "down scope." As seems common, no instructions were provided as to how the controls are to be used. One must learn from a freeze/scald, flood/drought experience.

Also as common, the so-called shower was part of a bathtub with walls about three feet high requiring a leap in and out of the tub with youthful dexterity not found in advancing age and/or skin scraping and chin bruising. The tub was enclosed by two glass panels, one of which moved inward only to let the bather seek cleanliness. Unfortunately, the moving panel extended so far along the tub that a bather had to climb the back wall of the tub to enable the panel to open and close. Otherwise the bather would remain a permanent captive of the bathtub until a maid came by to clean. And, of course, there never seem to be any bars within the tub area to grasp as one falls.

The moving shower heads also should be mentioned, as they tend to have lives of their own. Raise the device, and it immediately falls to provide ample spray on one's navel and parts below. Or, it moves from side to side, overshooting the glass panels to flood the room.

In Italy, two unique examples arose. In one hotel, a "proper" free standing glass enclosed shower stall was in the bathroom. However, there was no shelf or soap dish in the shower stall to hold soap, shampoo and whatever else one takes into a shower. In order to lather, one has to open the shower door, reach for soap or shampoo on a nearby counter, reenter the stall, apply the soap or shampoo, reopen the door, put back the item, reenter the stall, rinse and repeat as necessary. By the end of it all, the bathroom floor is a river. Moreover, since the towels hang from a bar on the far wall, one must wade through the floor river to get a towel, by the time of which one has dried naturally by the gush of air from the ventilation which smells of the kitchen.

Perhaps the most aggravating bathroom issue was the hotel room that did not have a toilet paper roll holder. It was necessary to locate a loose toilet roll on a nearby bidet, providing some use for the appliance which some people thought was for washing one's hair.

When traveling,I am not concerned about writing a poem and weaving at the same time. I just want to use a bathroom easily and safely. No wonder there are those who sometimes yearn for an old fashioned water hand pump and an outhouse.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH THE SUPREME COURT


Not all decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court make headlines in newspapers or excite panels of talking heads on television or in social media. However, this does not mean that such decisions have no importance.

One such "quiet" ruling was issued by the Court in February.* It involves the Republican River Compact, a contract between the states of Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado to allocate the "virgin water" originating in the Republican River basin Congress approved the Compact in 1943.

However, as can be the case with any contract, disputes arose. In 1998, Kansas sued in the Supreme Court ** asserting that Nebraska's increased groundwater pumping was regulated under the Compact to the extent that the pumping reduced stream flow in the basin. The Supreme Court agreed with Kansas, resulting in a settlement producing certain accounting protocols.

In 2007, Kansas sued again, alleging that Nebraska had exceeded its allowed allocation of water. In turn, Nebraska alleged that the accounting protocols under the Compact improperly charged it for using imported seater. The Supreme Court appointed a special master to hear the matter. The master's report concluded that Nebraska knowingly failed to comply with the Compact and recommended that Nebraska disgorge part of its gains and pay damages to Kansas. The Supreme Court agreed with these recommendations. It found that Nebraska knowingly exposed Kansas to a risk of receiving less water than its entitlement.

Interestingly, the Court stated that an award of damages in a case involving compact rights may be an inadequate remedy to deter an offending state from disregarding its obligations when it is advantageous to do so. Therefore, it stated, the additional remedy of disgorgement is appropriate to stabilize the Compact and to deter future breaches.

Water is a valuable resource and, when it runs though several jurisdictions, it must be shared in some structured manner. When states enter into contracts with each other, they, as is the case of contracts between people, must comply with their obligations or consequences follow. In this case, the consequences flowed through the Supreme Court.

___________________________________________

*Kansas v. Nebraska,574 U.S.__(2015)

**The Supreme Court has original
jurisdiction in controversies
between states

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

THE WATER DRINKERS



The benefits of drinking adequate amounts of water daily is well established. Indeed, even this blog has discussed this subject in prior postings.

Generally, water drinking is a matter of individual personal choice. However, from time to time, it also has become a matter of group action. For example, in the 19th century, French novelist and poet Henri Murger was a member of a club called "The Water Drinkers." He and his friends were too poor to buy and drink wine, so they became water drinkers. Apparently, all that water was beneficial for Murger. He wrote Scenes de la Vie de Boheme, which became the basis for Puccini's opera La Boheme and other musical works. Murger once exclaimed "No music, no noise, no Bohemia". Perhaps he could have added water to that list.

Another group of water drinkers are those who sip the medicinal spring water at Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad)in the Czech Republic. A graphic report of these water drinkers was written by a New York Times correspondent in 1860, "Bohemia; Gossip From Carlsbad--the Water Drinkers..." The article states, in part:

"It is 5 o'clock A.M., (be kind enough to imagine the thing, if possible,) and, as I open my window and look up into the dull gray eve of the sky, and read the rainy destiny of the day there, streams of people, of both sexes and of all ages glide silently through the streets, giving each other morning salutations in a dismal sort of way, and looking,in spite of polite disguises, terribly out of sorts at having hurried out so early. So steady is the concourse that the town already assumes an inconveniently crowded appearance, and one begins to wonder where all the people will fine accommodations. Expect [sic.] that the promenaders are considerably cleaner than any pilgrims it has ever been my good fortune to meet with, they might readily be mistaken for religious devotes piously wending their way to some favored shrine. They are only water drinkers--the early topers of this place, who have to drink eight or ten goblets before breakfast, and therefore commence with the first daylight. Each one, you will perceive, bears a cup of porcelain or glass--here called Bechers, and warranted to hold six ounces--as a talisman herewith to exercise the demons of disease, and cast them out."

The water is sourced from several springs of different temperature and chemical composition, and therefore, for specific maladies of the particular drinker. The article describes one spring as follows: "The hottest spring has a temperature of 160, and is generally recommended to individuals of a phlegmatic temperament and of a torpid or inert nature. It is called the Sprudel, and is generally regarded as most powerful, exciting and penetrating in its nature, and for those reasons recommended to patients affected with gout, urinary concretions, or with chronic diarrhea, arising from atony and relation of the bowels, and to females suffering from spasmodic affections."

The spa is still very much in operation, as I can attest, having sampled one cup of the least offensive water with a grimace. One point not mentioned in the article is the necessity for nearby WC facilities for use as the waters are absorbed.

While the benefits of drinking only water for health , or to save money, or to cure ailments, or to stimulate creativity are apparent, there may be some evidence to the contrary.

Over 2,000 years ago, the Roman poet Horace is said to have uttered "No poems can please for long or live that are written by water drinkers."

And, Paul told Timothy "Stop drinking only water and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses." (1 TIMOTHY 5:23)

So, perhaps a healthy balance between water drinking and wine drinking may make sense.
`

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

SHOULD WATER UTILITIES PROVIDE FOR A WORKING CAPITAL REQUIREMENT?



Like many situations in life, success can be a matter of timing. In normal operations, water utilities can experience a significant timing issue. In any billing period, receipt of operating revenues lags operating expenses incurred to provide the service being billed, as water utilities usually do not bill in advance of service. In the case of monthly billing, the lag in receipt of revenue, or the lead in operating expenses, roughly reflects a the 30 days of the billing period plus a portion of the time for payment of the billings.

Regulated water utilities can request a cash working capital allowance as part of a proposed rate increase. Regulatory commissions have approved such an allowance computed using a simple formula method such as one-eighth of test year annual operating expense. In the alternative, large utilities may be required to perform a formal lead/lag study taking in account each line item of expense.

The working capital allowance is included as a component of rate base in recognition that investors are funding working capital for the revenue lag period. Regulators that have approved the formula method often state that it provides a reasonable estimate of working capital requirements without the time and expense of performing a formal lead/lag study.

Unregulated municipal-owned water utilities that use the "utility method" to calculate costs of service and rates may consider including a working capital allowance in rate base. An alternative for some municipal-owned utilities may be to establish an operations and maintenance expense reserve funded from revenues. Such a reserve may offer benefits particularly when revenues seriously lag higher operating expenses such as during high demand summer months.

Monday, February 16, 2015

CLIMATE CHANGE: HOW DOES THE WIND BLOW?



Midwestern states in the United States again are under attack from the Arctic Vortex beast. As was the case in 2014, bitter cold this month has plunged temperatures below zero degrees Fahrenheit, with howling wind chills of 20 to 40 degrees below zero. Again, it is the wind that is cold's messenger.

It came as no surprise, therefore, to read a report that, since the late 1990s, global warming has not increased.* Apparently, the forecasted rise in global surface temperatures has not occurred for some 15 years.

Now, scientists have come up with their explanation why forecasts of warming have not come true. According to the report, they assert that unusually strong winds over the Pacific ocean have pushed surface water of the ocean to the west, causing cold water from the depths to rise to the surface. In turn, the newly cold surface water pulls heat from the atmosphere, thereby changing global atmospheric conditions.

However, this wind process accounts for only about one-half of the stall in global warming, according to the report. The cause of the other half was not suggested.

The cause of these strong winds apparently is not known, but may have some connection to the so-called El Nino and La Nina effects. The report states that the winds are expected to reduce as the earth warms. However, according to the wind argument, the earth has not warmed because of the winds.

As the cold north wind numbs much of the country, one wonders how much the global warming assertion is written on the wind.

____________________________________________

* Sumner,"Drought Linked to Warming Pause",
Science Newa, February 7, 2015, p.15

Sunday, February 8, 2015

INTENTIONS OF LETTERS OF INTENT


Water utilities, and business entities in general, often sign letters of intent or memoranda of understanding as part of a contract negotiation process. Typically, parties may have had discussions resulting in agreement as to some terms of a proposed contract but need more time to resolve remaining issues and terms. To memorialize the understanding so far, they may enter into a letter of intent.

Depending how a letter of intent is drafted, it may have become or may not have become an enforceable contract. A letter of intent generally per se is not a contract. Enforceability of such a document depends on whether a court can find an intention to be bound by its terms and that those intentions and the stated terms are sufficiently definite and specific.

The most common method employed to assure that a letter of intent does not become a contract is to insert a provision to the effect that it is not a contract and there is no contract until and unless a written definitive agreement is developed and mutually signed by the parties in the future.

Even with such a provision, however, a non-contract can become an enforceable contract as to certain terms within the letter of intent. For example, it may include an agreement for a deadline in negotiations or preparation of a definitive agreement; or it may provide for confidentiality as to the negotiations or information exchanged between the parties; or it may include a prohibition against negotiating with other possible parties. These sub-agreements within a letter of intent may become enforceable by themselves, even if the letter of intent has not become enforceable as to the substance of the proposed underlying transaction.

As is true for all contracts generally, parties to a letter of intent must draft their document to clearly evidence their intent-- so clearly that a court can interpret the language as the parties truly intended and not order a result that no party ever intended. The road to court often is paved with the best of intentions until a pothole of un-clarity is encountered.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

HOW HIGH IS THE OCEAN?


A well known Irving Berlin song asks "How Deep Is The Ocean?" However, more recently, scientists have been singing a different tune: "How High Is The Ocean?"

A recent report states that computations of global sea-level increases in the period 1900 to 1990 have been over-estimated by as much as 30%.* That could be good news. However, since 1990, according to the report, it is estimated that sea levels significantly have accelerated, creating fresh concerns. That is not so good news.

According to the report, there may be several possible causes for the recent sea level increases, including global warming, changes in patterns of ocean currents, and melting of ice sheets in Greenland, the Arctic and Antarctica.

Part of the challenge in attempting to more accurately measure global sea level changes is selection of measurement models and methodology. One cannot sail the oceans with a mammoth yardstick. Generally, it seems that reliance has been placed on records from regional ocean tide gauges, which then are averaged. However, the report asserts, such simple averages are not accurate. Therefore, new estimates have been developed using modeling of the physics behind sea level "finger prints", using simulation and statistical methods.

Perhaps another cause of ocean level increases has been overlooked: all the trash that is polluting the seas. According to another report, it is estimated that there are 5.25 trillion pieces of waste plastic floating on the oceans, weighing 270,000 metric tons.** The smallest pieces of plastic are said to sink or become eaten by fish and other sea creatures.

Maybe it is time for a new ballad: "How Trashed Is The Ocean?"

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* Reuell, "Sea Level Correction", Harvard Gazette,
January 20, 2015

** "The Trash Man", Science News,January 24,2015,p.4

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

TENSION


News media tend to report frequent instances of tension in the world--whether tension between countries or political groups or in businesses, schools or even families. Such tension is not necessarily beneficial or good.

There is tension in water, too--a physical phenomenon called "surface tension." Because water molecules are more attractive to each other than to other molecules. water molecules are forced inward so as to contract water surfaces.

Surface tension enables me to carry my morning full cup of coffee from the kitchen to another room without disaster to flooring and furniture and causing serious spousal tension. Other examples of surface tension include beading of rain drops on leaves, slow drops of water from a leaky faucet that should have been repaired long ago, and the ability of insects literally to walk on a pond surface util grabbed by a frog or a fish.

Now, Yale engineers have discovered that surface tension of a liquid can strengthen a solid.* Ordinarily, substituting some liquid particles for particles of a solid can be expected to weaken the solid. However, researchers have discovered that, if the embedded liquid drops are sufficiently small, their surface tension creates a stiffness in the liquid that makes the solid more strong. Using silicone as a solid, the embedded liquid made it up to 30% stronger, it was reported.

Apparently, size does matter in the case of surface tension--the smaller the better.

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*McCray, "Engineers Use Liquid Drops To
Make Solids Stiffer", Yale News,
December 15, 2014.

Saturday, January 10, 2015

CHOCOLATE AND WATER


Who can resist chocolate, particularly when it may be beneficial for health! For example, according to one website, "There have been many studies linking cocoa and dark chocolate with health benefits. Cocoa and chocolate contain a large amount of antioxidants (flavonoids). Cocoa and dark chocolate may keep high blood pressure down and reduce the blood's ability to clot, thus the risk of stroke and heart attacks may be reduced."*

Now, a recently reported study of adults ages 50-69 suggests that high doses of cocoa flavanols (antioxidants) increased blood flow to the portion of the brain (hippocampus) associated with learning and memory. Enhancement of cognition by munching chocolates may be helpful to aging baby boomers. At the very least, perhaps chocolate can teach old dogs new tricks.

As discussed in several prior postings, it is well established that drinking adequate amounts of water has substantial health benefits. So, sweetening the palate with some chocolate brain food, followed by a cool glass of water, and both your body and your mind may thank you--along with those pesky taste buds.

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*www.cacaoweb.net
**"Cocoa Antioxidant Sweetens Cognition in
Elderly",Science News, December 27,2014,p.5