JoNova
A science presenter, writer, speaker & former TV host; author of The Skeptic's Handbook (over 200,000 copies distributed & available in 15 languages).
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Statistics
Fundamental to the story of man made world ending CO2 is that burning very old leaves creates a special sort of CO2, only half of which accumulates in the air. Which is absurd.
The logical problem the pushers of this story have is that fossil fuel CO2 “Emissions” growing exponentially now reached 1.0% of atmospheric CO2. But the growth of CO2 is only 0.4% in a perfect staright line, oblivious of human activity or bushfires and the like.
You can see the simple arithmetic problem. ‘Emissions’ are twice the rate of the actual CO2 increase!
So a story has been constructed that half stays in the atmosphere (forever) because the oceans are ‘full’.
Except that does not make sense in the following year, when another half is again absorbed and half rejected. I have seen figures quoting a precise 53% absorbed.
It looks like the fossil fuel CO2 has an ocean immigration problem.
And this flies in the face of the widely accepted fact that all atmospheric CO2 exchanges with the oceans in as little as five years. So 98% of all highly soluble CO2 is in the ocean, along with 98% of all ’emissions’. Which absolutely destroys nett zero and the whole inconvenient truth that it’s made up nonsense and certainly non science.
Or you can believe that half the highly soluble fossil fuel CO2 is stopped at the sea surface by force or forces unknown.
But Australia as a Sovereign Country (for now) is determined to control it’s own climates, no matter what the expense, no matter how absurd the logic, even if it bankrupts the place.
And as we struggle to finish Snowy II for now over $20Billion, half the price of the Channel Tunnel and at now past the construction time(the chunnel took six years), we will be able to pump water uphill at enormous expense and will be saved. From what is unclear.
What then is the point of obtaining science degrees in Australia? We have endless laws, taxes and whole government departments enforcing science fantasy.
400
Thanks TdeF for restating this very important piece of science. The atmosphere which we live in is essentially a “well mixed” gas. Recordings of CO2 levels above growing crops over a full day shows that CO2 may vary from 400 ppm when the Sun’s shining up to 1250 ppm at night.
We humans inhale air with 400 ppm CO2 and exhale 40,000 ppm.
Eventually the atmosphere equilibrates and all gaseous components do their own thing.
Another major aspect of the global warming schema is the so called “special heating capacity” of the dreaded greenhouse gas CO2.
Many forces at work: Earth’s rotation, daily solar input, our blessed energy source, and last but not least, gravity to hold everything in place.
Maybe, some day, the truth will be set free: but for the moment we are shackled with this junk science and Sun Tsu’s followers must be laughing themselves silly Aas they count their rewards.
170
There is a 2010 YouTube video of an experiment by a 9-year old girl (Linda) who by simply comparing the temperatures within two clear plastic bags, one containing air, the other carbon dioxide. The 100% CO2 bag was warmer by 2°C.
Her crude experimental results are far more valuable than all the different answers from many models used by the IPCC which are screaming that levels of maybe 0·1% will lead to at least a 2°C rise. and that CO2 cannot achieve warming as even 100% CO2 produces only a 2°C rise!!
https://youtu.be/HdH_G1-5YSo
41
Nope – equally meaningless.
150
Cute, but.
Lots of unchecked factors .
She said that the CO2 was cold when the balloons were filled. Assuming that they were only filled to the same pressure as the local air that would mean that more CO2 was in that balloon so when it came up to being exposed to sunlight it would already have been given a good head start.
At the start CO2 already had a temperature lead of 0.4 degrees.
Not useful at all.
71
Not sure why the red down vote, but the whole thing is full of poor practise. The video shows that the balloons are most likely rigid plastic, not rubber: that’s good. Unfortunately it also seems to show on the table that the CO2 bag is in the shade and the air one is in sunlight before inflation. Hard to see for sure.
A good idea but not handled well.
10
And the Earth system is not a plastic bag.
[Thank you Thank you Thank you. Ditto from me. – Jo]
120
True, 😃 , but what you implying Gary.
11
Layers in the atmosphere vary a lot between night and day.. You’ve only to ride a horse or a motorbike to get enough data to keep your science. complicated.
So, e.g. for what distance above the “growing crop” does the CO2 content show this variation?
00
TdeF,
Please keep writing more articles like this.
Climate change is POOR SCIENCE, right from its beginnings when a tiny warming of our air, based on “adjusted” temperatures, was said to be caused by man-made CO2.
Climate change is still based on silly assumptions, often measured badly.
For example, how can a location or a process be given a label as a CO2 “sink” or “source”? We see NASA global maps of CO2 in the air as seen from satellites, we see some regions with slightly more CO2 in the air than others. Are they sources of CO2 from the surface to the air, pausing on their journey to be well mixed, or are they sinks, with CO2 queud up waiting its turn to be absorbed into sea or land?
We read of studies of CO2 in the air around fields of growing corn, how different times of day and night see locations changing from sink to source.
Huge oceans are said to have some locations as sources and others next door as sinks. Who really knows?
People have to be educated to avoid the curses of poor science pumped out by poor scientists with crazy ideas. Rely on measurements that can be repeated with the same results.
Above all, be relaxed in the face of stupid predictions of gloom and catastrophe. Mother Nature has been powerful and dominant long before puny people appeared, with false beliefs that they can control our climates. Geoff S
130
It is not a straight line.
28
It might be cyclic.
00
It’s not, but it iS regular.
The comparable line for temperature Is ragged and jagged.
That is ample proof that there is some factor far bigger than CO2 at play.
00
Just when you thought things could get no worse and no more racist and anti-democratic in Australia, Labor outdoes themselves.
Many people may not be aware of the new race-based Apartheid laws in Victoria which are about to be voted on and will pass as there is no effective opposition.
The new laws provide for a state within a state based on race only and new bodies set up under these laws will have real and with time, greatly expanding powers.
Only one percent of Victoriastanis belong to the race to be given these new powers but all people will be subject to decisions by these new bodies. Further, “truth telling” will decide the official version of history to be taught in schools. Also, all new legislation will be subject to scrutiny by this unelected body.
It’s all very racist, Apartheid, Orwellian and downright scary. No doubt other states will follow.
The new body will be called the Gellung Warl. It comprises three arms: the Gellung Warl, the truth-telling body Nyerna Yoorrook Telkuna, and the accountability body Nginma Ngainga Wara.
It is essentially a version of The Voice which Australians federally voted AGAINST but since Australia is now a One Party State (thanks incompetent Liberals and stupid Labor voters who only want “free stuff”) the Labor Government simply doesn’t care what the people want.
Andrew Bolt discusses in the following 6 min video: https://youtu.be/nUjg_cmGOPI Please watch.
Please understand this is a very serious matter and fundamentally changes the structure of Government in Victoria and it will no doubt spread to other states. Naturally the Lamestream Media neither understands or cares.
This is not something with imaginary powers but very real.
Vic. Government link: https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/news/society/victorian-treaty/
210
If you go to St Vincent;s hospital emergency and claim you are firstpeople, you will jump the queue.
140
As I’m sure all here realize, this current situation is the logical next progression of the left’s established political direction.
This agenda has been unfolding for decades. I specifically recall being surprised by new Victorian government legislation 25 or 30 years ago. The laws began moving away from broad, universal principles like, “one person should not infringe upon another’s rights,” to more specific, identity-focused language, such as, “a man should not do this to a woman.” This foundational shift was made without public outcry or significant notice, and they’ve continued to legislate along these lines ever since. Consequently, this momentum will be extremely difficult to reverse.
From now on the rest of us will just have to sit at the back of the waiting room. (Apologies Rosa).
51
I’ve been telling Aussie that since we came here early this century, Australia is 20years behind NZ in handing the country over to the Maoris. “Nah, it’ll never happen here, our Abos aren’t like the maoris…”
..and here we are.
Still, might be better than UK/Europe and handing it all over to the new immigrants! Canada will fall, but not America or Russia.
41
Keep your eye on Canada too
00
From J.B.Shurk at American Thinker:
160
From J.B.Shurk at American Thinker:
20
Stop the presses!
Bill Gates has renounced climate change!
I guess Windows 11 being forsaken is having some effect on the ole grifter!
80
My only question then is, what new scam has he found to support?
And I note he hasn’t issued an apology or paid reparations for the damage his previous support for the climate scam has caused.
Never forgive or trust a Leftist until they make actual reparations and effective actions to at least try to correct their prior sins. Words are not good enough.
180
He is supporting Nuclear energy as his “Operating system” is sending so much Data back to the mothership Data centers! The word on the street is Windows 11 is at last being recognised as the inscrutable spyware it is- ever more intrusive. Ditching windows 10 implies he thinks hundreds of millions of laptops and PCs should be junked because one chip is “out of date”. My simple solution is to take Windows machines OFFLINE. Linux at least is open source and is gives you back the “My Computer” experience rather than paying for “This PC”. I am sure I don’t use 90% of the “Functionality” of Windoze.
210
I absolutely hate Windows 11 but I had no choice when I bought my new laptop.
I have another Linux laptop I am learning on and will eventually make my main laptop a dual boot system or even ditch Windows 11 entirely.
I hate the endless AI prompts, suggestions and promotions. All I want to do is what I want to do without interruption.
Many people intend to stick with Win 10 even though its now obsolete or transition to Linux.
150
David,
I have turned off all AI and ALL prompts and suggestions from Win11. It can be done and is not that hard. Give it a go, it makes the computer usable.
The operating system should be invisible to the user. I think MS forgot that point.
140
I did go through that process a while ago Ian but the latest update undid most of it, plus I believe after the latest update, AI is impossible to completely turn off.
I will look into it again, however.
20
It’s not on my machine and I’m on the latest version according to windows update.
AI is a scourge and should be optional, if not, why not? I’m damned if I’ll buy a quality processor and have it lumbered with guessing what I might want to say on a Tuesday next week.
AI is the solution when you haven’t got, nor need a problem.
80
Yes, the bloat and fluff was very intrusive but now all disabled. Not hard, but time consuming to do and one does need to understand it all and be careful in what you stop/disable/uninstall.
The big problem with W11 is one of BSODs and crashes, FAR worse than W7, the best OS ever.
DM – join Elevenforum for advice if you haven’t already.
I post there under a different handle.😎
30
My situation as a musician is to load a program and expect it to run without glitches as windoze is obliged to phone home causing annoying glitches. There are hundreds of processes that can spring to life without out knowledge. A partial solution is to prune all the garbage out but it reappears in “updates”. So from now on, if I am on line Linux, and windoze off line. And forget cloud- storage has never been cheaper!
50
I am also taking hint, that modern synthesizers come with an embedded linux based operating system to allow the sound engines to run flawlessly, yet still allowing upgrades of functionality (and bug corrections) by firmware flashing that is done by the user. If it ain’t broke it does not need fixing !!!! My laptop is now 11 years old, and as it is not very powerful I can notice the random ramping up of fan noise as the CPU and GPU gets tested- notice though, as soon as you start the “Task Manager” the offending process drops the CPU load!!! This is sneaky virus behaviour, not a proper operating system which should be unnoticed.
20
I get that sneaky fan noise too, most often associated with a windows process doing an update.
How many times must a product be fixed before it is deemed a lemon and everyone gets their money back?
More bugs than a petri dish.
40
David Maddison,
Maybe a nitpick, but I think it’s important. Microsoft has ended support for Windows 10, but that doesn’t make it *obsolete*. The word “obsolete” means no longer in use.
It’s the users, not Microsoft, who’ll decide that.
90
Fair enough Robert. Point taken.
30
👍👍
Agreed. There are infinite examples of technology, equipment, systems, etc that have long been “unsupported” by the original suppliers or manufacturers, but have now become the focus of owner or user, enthusiast, groups with the skills and expertise to provide ongoing support and improvements ,even replicate complete replacements .
20
Confirmed in Breitbart.
It’s hard to do when you have written a book on Climate Alarmism.
I was taken by a compliment by a presumably fake Bill Gates (complete with photo) on Quora who wanted to know more about my simple demolition of man controlled CO2 and thus man made Global Warming. I responded but thought it was likely a scam, phishing. Now I am not so sure.
Now his view is that climate changes are real but normal and he is removing the stop climate change funding, also the important bit. That’s a lot of money out of the system.
The individual trillionaires like Gates and Soros have have a terrible effect. And the UN is useless and greedy and out of control, money hungry, more the problem than a solution to anything.
172
Sorry, fat finger, see green.
20
I regret to remind the readers that 60 years passed from first significant escape to the West (B.G.Bazhanov, 1928) to the USSR collapse.
Any truth, anything to know about communist words and real practices was laid in open for people able to read.
Social progress was thrown back a century, tens of millions (? ) have died but the idea still lives and to the populace delight, fresh green shoots appear from the rotten trunk…
60
The following is a very important video about a number of “gender” cases going on in Australia right now but most Australians are not aware of them because they are not being reported.
Thankfully Irene in the USA is voluntarily reporting for us and doing the job the Australian Lamestream Media can’t be bothered doing.
It is well worth watching.
The outcome of these cases will determine the future of gender identification in Australia including men playing in women’s sports and gender-based associations. The consequences are PROFOUND.
Just as the US under TRUMP now only recognises two biological genders no matter how a person “identifies” and similarly in the UK due to a UK Supreme Court decision finding the same thing, Australia is going in the opposite direction, defying biological reality. Even our $408,020 per year plus benefits Sex Discrimination Commissioner could not tell Senator Malcolm Roberts in Parliament what a woman was because “she is not a scientist” and she thinks “women” can have penises (clip is in video).
The whole country has gone insane, especially as there is no opposition political party with any power and Labor, led by the Communist Albanese is doing whatever they please.
https://youtu.be/r7U_VTs_D6M
120
Australia is doubling down on every looney left idea. Victoria is by far the worst. We will soon be run by a group of non democratically elected aborigines with infinite power at every level. At what point did the Labor party, the political creation of the workers of Australia, become a captive organization which ignores workers and shuts down workers jobs? Endless uncontrolled immigration and all the money seems to flow to China. Seems to be a pattern across the Christian world, from the US to Western Europe.
140
Discussion video from Climate Discussion Nexus.
The world itself just refuses to suffer from climate change, but we the people suffer very badly from the Left’s fake attempts to alter the climate.
60
Chrissie “Blackout” Bowen wrote on Farcebook:
He and Susssssssan Ley (“opposition” “leader”) are just as clueless as each other.
How can either of them get several decades down the track of the Climate Change Scam and not know the truth of it?
190
Why would they ever want to end the scam, their income depends on it. Truth be damned.
If they let the people live their lives without interference then they would be off the front page and would slowly sink, becoming invisible to the public. This leads to a bland election, all candidates being unknown when the time comes. By making a problem that they seem to be addressing/causing then they are in the media and they retain a media presence that they don’t have to pay for.
You might be surprised by how many people vote for someone, regardless of capability, just because they are familiar to them.
Remember Peter Garrett, Zoe Stegall and a host of others. In by fame not ability. If Pol Pot was on the ballot he’d likely win.
It’s sad that the public are too thick to understand. It’s all Goggle Box on top of Goggle Box, all the way down.
120
After all, politics is show business for the aesthetically challenged.
80
…and the intellectually challenged.
If you ever meet a politician from the major parties you’ll soon work out they aren’t too bright.
But they can smile for the camera.
70
Politics exists to keep the unemployable employed. A sheltered workshop for people no one wants.
21
“It’s sad that the public are too thick to understand. It’s all Goggle Box on top of Goggle Box, all the way down.”
but…but… people insist democracy is the best and greatest form of Govt, worth dying over!
“If you ever meet a politician from the major parties you’ll soon work out they aren’t too bright. ”
Their bosses don’t want intelligent, no-one wants a bright politician except the voters, and they don’t count.
20
The UK wind industry says the £1 billion budget in the upcoming AR7 CfD auction is far too low.
https://renews.biz/103871/renewableuk-calls-for-ar7-budget-rethink/
71
For the subsidy harvesters, no amount of tribute is ever enough.
Why don’t they try coal, gas or nuclear power which requires no subsidies?
Wind became obsolete as soon as Newcomen invented the first practical steam engine in 1712.
70
After bailing out steel in South Australia, copper in Queensland and aluminium in NSW, which foreign owned and non tax paying business will be next. I know, let’s protest about a few migrants instead
018
1) They only needed bailing out because industry of any kind is unsustainable with wind and solar energy (the only viable industry being subsidy harvesting).
2) Not a few migrants. An inappropriately large number, all future Labor voters, who are being imported at a far faster rate than housing and other infrastructure can be built to accommodate them. Further, their social values typically don’t align with traditional Western values leading to maltreatment of women, etc..
250
The good thing about AI is it’s much faster to answer Fitzroy without needing to waste time reading his links (and we know he doesn’t read them either). Get the job done, and get on with the day.
🧨 Why Whyalla Was Doomed
Cost Disadvantage: Whyalla’s steel was simply too expensive. Labor costs, energy prices, and environmental compliance made its products uncompetitive against Chinese imports.
Scale & Efficiency: China’s mega-plants benefit from economies of scale, automation, and vertical integration. Whyalla, by contrast, was a mid-sized facility with aging infrastructure.
Union Rigidity: Strong union presence in Whyalla meant inflexible work arrangements and slower adoption of cost-saving reforms.
Energy Burden: Australia’s shift to renewables raised grid costs, while China’s coal-heavy mix kept energy cheap for industry.
Environmental Pressures: Australia’s carbon pricing and emissions targets added financial strain, while China’s enforcement lagged behind its pledges.
Government Strategy: China’s steel industry is part of a national industrial strategy. Australia’s support for Whyalla was reactive and politically driven, not part of a coherent national plan.
Global Market Dynamics: Chinese steel oversupply depressed global prices, making it nearly impossible for high-cost producers like Whyalla to compete.
161
Well said Tel, that list encapsulates it all. In any country, the First World have grown through technical expertise until they no longer need to struggle, have moved their industry to cheap-labour 2nd-world countries and will never compete for mass production. Our future has to be in niche markets and services.
We were meant to be only working three days a week by 2000, automation was going to do the rest… No-one figured out what all the people who weren’t artists were going to do with their free time, and somehow we ended up with both parents working three jobs!
Govt should never be allowed to subsidise anything, it just costs the rest of us more and lowers our standard of living.
50
Would have been cheaper to give all Whyalla adults a quarter of a million dollars each to relocate, then close the plant down.
40
can you explain why Australia’s coal price is linked to the international price? I mean Australian coal, transported on Australian infrastructure, and burned in Australian Generators doubled in price in 2021 and has not become significantly cheaper since then.
and you complain about green energy subsidies, which are nowhere near the subsidies that our extractive industries get.
I know lets protest about a few migrants
09
Our coal price is linked because its written in the contract that these multinational companies can sell at market level. Its called the free enterprise model.
The price of coal is coming down, because of a glut on the world market, so we should expect a drop in our energy bills.
https://discoveryalert.com.au/news/coal-price-movements-2025-demand-supply-factors/
01
Good to see you stick to your rules
So what would you have done in the 60s and 70s to keep our productive industries viable and Australian owned Peter?
Remember Rule 10:
70
He hates central planning, except on issues where he agrees and then central planning is exactly what we need.
All of his comments are minimal research maximum hypocrisy, and a strong hint of snobbery … because he’s intellectual yaknow.
70
Between unions, energy prices and the tyranny of distance, it’s a wonder we have any industry.
80
I think most sheep and wheat (perhaps other grains as well) growers are not union members. And while those people do suffer from a tyranny of distance, one can remark that it is the distance from the state capital cities.
And industry? I am certain that the current governing bodies have experts willing to provide a more current definition of the item.
10
All good taxpayer money that could go into rooftop solar and batteries. Who needs these dilapidated old industries when it can all be made in China for half the price burning that filthy coal.
Down #14 I make exactly this point as well as musing over the lack of ambition in Federal Parliament. The clowns have grass on the roof rather than solar panels. Not one single panel in sight. Stop funding smelters and get with the transition to rooftop solar. Take the lead from SA:
https://explore.openelectricity.org.au/energy/sa1/?range=1d&interval=30m&view=discrete-time&group=Detailed
Only 10 years into rooftops and 35% of electricity from rooftops. They will be exporting rooftop solar to Victoria AND NSW by 2050 if the later don’t start getting rid of their remaining industry as well. Tomage should go next year. Portland is one outage away from closure. Then Victoria can throw more money at rooftops rather than the useless smelter. I might upgrade – I have roofspace and not exporting much since putting in the battery.
23
It’s difficult to think of anything any Australian Government does that’s correct.
Every action seems aimed at destroying the country, and doing it successfully.
110
And don’t forget, at election time we get the chance to vote the other incompetent lot into office.
Two sides of the same excrement.
There is not going to be a change until the politicians are held to account for their bad decisions/actions. Lies and deceit should not be rewarded by government perks for life.
How many people does Albo owe $275 to? Drain his super.
120
Australia had one of the most effective means of stopping boat people. Mediterranean countries have attempted to copy what Australia did.
60
“In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” – Ronald Reagan, 1981.
70
Yes David, Chrissy Bowen would only send the Scientist/Experts that his Government is listening to/paying. Whereas Sussssan should be listening to the likes of Ian Plimer and Peter Kidd (who lost his job for pointing out the false science being peddled by his employer James Cook Uni)
The Opposition needs to hear both sides, which they should have been doing for the past 30 years, and their minds would be made up if they had done their homework on this subject.
The Opposition is lazy and has not been paying attention except for a few Nationals, whereas the Liberal “moderates” are poll driven, but have not done their own polling. They are doomed if the moderates, of which Sussssan is one, hey their way.
100
Peter Ridd 🙂
31
Copied from Farcebook;
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David M:
Attenborough grew up in an academic environment when Malthusian ideas were in vogue (again) and has never thought about it. All his stuff is about humans destroying nature.
(strangely Malthusian ideas went out of vogue in Victorian times when faced with Liberal or Communist opposition (Marx and Engels) but was back when Socialist ideas were favoured in upper middle classes in 1920 etc.).
60
Big day for SA rooftops yesterday:
https://explore.openelectricity.org.au/energy/sa1/?range=1d&interval=30m&view=discrete-time&group=Detailed
Rooftops produced 35.4% of the State’s electricity in the past 24 hours to 6:30am and exported rooftop solar to Victoria from Noon to 3pm yesterday.
The other States are lagging with their transition to rooftops and de-industrialisation. The federal government is using tax payer funds to keep the heavy industry going. They need to stop wasting that money and put iit into rooftop solar and batteries.
Look at how stupid they are in Canberra. Parliament House roof covered with bloody grass rather than solar panels. Not one single panel on the main building or any of the out houses. What a disgrace. They expect Aldi and home owners to do all the heavy lifting.
42
IKEA is a fully woke company and they cover their rooftops with panels as well.
About 13 years ago I was involved in managing a taxpayer grant for a private school for energy efficiency, from the Gillard regime. One of the choices came down to energy efficient lighting, replacing class room fluorescent lights with LED ones or solar panels. I decided on the lighting because the school was paying an unbelievably low 2.9c per kWh for electricity through a joint contract with all other private schools in Victoriastan. It was basically wholesale price from the power station, I don’t know how they did it.. Solar panels didn’t make sense. Neither did upgraded lighting for that matter at those prices, but the money had to be spent on one or the other.
100
Yep – Ikea claims 100% “renewable” energy. The nearest store to me has roof adorned with solar panels. Ikea doing its best to collapse the grid – good job.
The sooner the grid collapses, the sooner it will be fixed.
30
Come on, there’s no need for p.v.’s on the roof of Parliament House as we all know the A.C.T. is already fully powered by replaceables. They tell us that constantly.
Plus, they may become a liability when the mob finally awakens and pelts the joint with stones.
10
Well in SA I have been getting lots of electricity stoppages recently. Nothing serious – a second or two – but I have to reset my stove clock so I know when one has occurred during the night as well.
80
Hang on a minute mate, you’re saying that all those leaves of that bloody grass are not solar panels, and self repairing and self-replacing to boot ?
80
Now that is a god point. I wonder what the do with the clippings? Maybe dry in sunlight and store for winter heating in the building.
Not only solar panels but battery as well. Aiun’t nature heat.
10
I’m confused,?…either i have missed the “sarc” ref, or you have been on the happy juice !
SA is not a good example for a national plan..an isolated 5% of the National grid.
The 35% solar referenced was a good day, …the day before it was nearer 10% !..
And as we all know that is all daytime power…what about the remaining 65-90% of supply ?
If , as you say, utility solar/wind is unviable, do we assume there are 3-5 times more private RTops with owners willing to invest in solar panels ?……but that wont help either on those cloudy winter days.
Batteries are never going to cut it either…even for SA let alone the bigger states.
At some stage reality will bite !
10
A lot of rooftop solar is being curtailed. Installing batteries will release that during the evening. And still heaps of spare roof space in SA.
The first week of October, I drew 6.7kWh total from the grid and exp[orted 14kWh. And I have relatively small systems by today’s average, which is 10kWh of solar and 14kWh of batteries.
Australia is rapidly moving toward rooftop sola/battery powered world and complete de-industrialisatiion. SA is leading the way but the rest are catching up fast. The various governments are supporting uneconomic business that cannot operate with the high grid costs. Those business will shut sooner than later.
Read this and come back to me with a logical response:
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/10/18/australias-energy-transition-de-industrialisation/
A lot of people think Australia has industry in its future – it doesn’t unless the grid gets back to sensible scheduling. All States are heading in the same direction as SA – rooftops, batteries and no viable industry.
30
Let’s fantasise for a moment and imagine Australia manages to elect a rational Government.
They will unwind the ruinables scam immediately so all wind, solar and battery plantations will instantly become useless, at least they will when power stations are built.
What are the financial implications in terms of inevitable demands for compensation from the wind, solar and Big Battery subsidy harvesters plus owners of domestic rooftop solar?
They will be all stranded assets.
30
Domestic roof top solar will not be a stranded asset, it has a customer. The stranded assets will be the ones who run solar factories. As Rick keeps pointing out, they are often curtailed because no one wants the power at the times that they generate. Even a big battery is not going to save them.
I wonder how long it will be before someone declares that household solar must switch off during the daylight hours to allow the solar factories to make money. Bowen must be eyeing off the paperwork as we speak.
100
In the admittedly unlikely event that electricity prices drop in Australia, the rooftop solar won’t pay back it’s purchase price … especially when you factor in higher interest rates on mortgages.
That’s the general idea of “stranded assets” although it doesn’t mean people will rip the cells back down again. There’s a sunk cost so might as well get what you can out of it.
50
Payback on rooftop solar/battery is now under 5 years. They are the only WDG that are not stranded assets because they own the market.
Every new rooftop solar/battery installation removes wholesale demand, which has declined since 2008. They only source of generation in Australia with rising demand is rooftops.
All the money that has already been spent and is being spent on grid support assets adds to the margin between wholesale price and retail price. Snowy 2, Energy Connect, synchronous condensers, distribution upgrades for distributed solar, batteries for stability services, AEMO market cost are all now locked in. So even if the wholesale price drops to the $40/MWh for coal fired going flat out, consumers will pay more than what rooftop prosumers pay.
Rooftop solar/battery costs will be long returned their investment before the grid gets back to anything like it was when it was an economic entity last century.
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In the unlikely event that Gov. steps away, leaves the market and ceases all installation subsidies, the long pay-back times will be unattractive to those with other demands on their budget. For old pharts with money in the bank earning bugga all interest ten years is an eternity.
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SA already has facility built into all new domestic inverters to enable remote shutdown of the panel output together with any feed from the battery .
Big Brother in action !
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Nope – they are already stranded assets now. All WDGs in Australia are already uneconomic. None of them will be replaced. The Chinese have been given guaranteed return on capital to build the solar/battery in South Australia. It will be used because it is taxpayer funded but it is not economic. No private company will touch grid generators without guaranteed return on investment.
Batteries are not generators. But existing grid batteries are economic assets for storing rooftop solar and coal generation through the day and discharging on evening peaks. It is lower cost than using gas plant for load topping – at least until the batteries age and lose capacity. Then the next battery will need to be assessed on how it stacks up with gas.
I doubt any of the offshore bird mincer projects will advance to construction.
Yesterday in SA rooftop solar produced 15.8GWh. Grid solar produced 1.8GWh and curtailed 3.6GWh. There is no way they can make money. Most of the time the grid solar was producing, the price was negative. I doubt grid solar in any state can cover costs now let alone give a return on capital.
I expect there will be many more of the public realise this before the next election. The RET ends in 2030 so that ends the consumer theft. The WDGs have had their day. The only ones that will survive are rooftops and the recently contracted schemes that have guaranteed returns. This all means the legal issues should be a non-event. Rooftops have a massive market advantage and always had to win in this game.
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Until the grid owners (state governments) prohibit rooftop export to support generators.
Then insurance companies hike fees for any house with a battery on safety grounds, along with local and state governments hiking rates to support greater fire fighting costs of housing with batteries.
BANG, there goes the rooftop ballgame.
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Ausnet and Ausgrid are private companies – not State owned.
Distributors have not cared much about where their electricity comes from. Even in the first AEMO systems review, they were supportive of getting rooftop solar into the system and have spent big to get distributed energy up the system.
The whole of South Australia will be running on rooftops by 11am today.
Australia has very effectively transitioned to rooftops and de-industrialised. No crappy heavy industry anymore or engineers. Just Youtube influencers
I make next to nothing now from export but I also do not buy much energy. It would not bother me to set the inverter not to export.
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State governments have the power to do pretty much anything that they want.
Private companies are not immune to the state LAWs – which are instigated by state governments.
ERGO – don’t count your chickens when dealing with state governments. They can change anything, anytime for any reason.
How’s your insurance fees and rates – just watch what happens over the next few years.
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State Governments ?
Anyone, questioning local councils rules needs urgent appointment with a head shrink.
Their motto is:
When new laws are not possible just quadruple for the old fines.
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All is OK unless they tax the Sun. And rooftop solar owners are a huge political force now so a group to appease.
Sunk costs in solar and battery so the next step is off the grid if the connection cost goes up. And it will not be just me. It will be a huge number of households. So not only loss of energy sales but also loss of connection fee.
The State governments are beginning too realise that the only hope of decarbonising in Australia is to use rooftops. The rest is all too hard now and are stranded assets in any case. Bird choppers are a crime against all life on earth. Solar panels occupying good farmland is a sorry waste of good land. At least rooftop solar make use of existing land.
The RET has now been going for 25 years. It is a long way back from the current mess. Even if all the incoming governments across Australia start doing sensible things, it will be a long time before the next coal fired power station comes on line. Even then, rooftops will still prevail because of all the money sunk into the grid.
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This assumes that state governments of all persuasions will adhere to the current fraud.
What happens when they wake up? Kill subsidies to solar and pull rooftop feed in. Tax rooftop for lost revenue from energy suppliers. Impose a dumping fee for rooftop solar removal. Impose an imputed revenue based on rooftop capacity to allow a tax on income derived from rooftop solar.
All designed to provide incentives to cheap grid energy.
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And pigs will fly.
You can dream on but there is next to no chance of Australia having sensible energy policy before all exiting rooftops and batteries have given a handsome return on their investment.
My initial rooftop solar earnt 8% over the first 14 years of the high FIT. Almost double what a TD will give. And it is still going strong; regularly hitting rated output this time of year.
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Pretty sure that’s not how it works.
They set your inverter to back off the output, and then eventually shut off completely. Your load shifts across to the grid during times of peak generation.
https://www.infiniteenergy.com.au/how-grid-voltage-affects-solar-production/
Yes that does mean that there will be times when you might be forced to buy the very electricity which you could easily have produced yourself.
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Grid defection … forcing households to electrify so they cannot escape.
https://reneweconomy.com.au/electrification-is-saving-the-grid-from-mass-defections/
Not even hiding it anymore.
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There is an elevated ring road in town where you see the roofs of a relatively new housing estate, all with big rooftop systems.
Making a few assumptions:
A large majority are under mortgage.
Most families paying off a large mortgage need two incomes.
Even if there is a family they will be at school, or somewhere.
Ergo most of their generation is exported @ 8c/kWh
There are another 1,000 homes wanting to export 5kW(?) at the same time.
How can this work? Of course the electricity retailer must be able to limit export. Without instillation subsidies you would never commit.
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The Chinese investors in the new solar/batery in SA will have guaranteed return on investment. So rooftops are not getting anything more than grid scale generators.
Many of the homes will have batteries so draw very little power from the grid at any time.
A neighbour has waited till now to get his system. He has gas still connected but does not use it much and plans to get rid of the connection. He has 10kW of panels all on 25 degree pitch facing north. And 27kWh battery. He outplayed $13k. The system installed cost was $21k. So various governments pickled up $8000.
His payback is under 5 years. That is assuming prices stay at present level – very doubtful given the history of electricity prices.
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You didn’t address the problem I raised.
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How can this work? Of course the electricity retailer must be able to limit export. Without instillation subsidies you would never commit.
I have mentioned in the past that the reason for solar panel installation on my residential roof (well the shed next to it) was never to make money from FITs. It was to avoid having to pay grid prices for most (almost all in summer) of my electrical power needs. And avoid the grid power price inflation.
Yesterday I indirectly asked about rooftop solar from the interest of a “prepper”. I will restate in that, as the above discussion seriously questions when the grid will cease to be financially viable. And perhaps available?
In the current inverter/rooftop panel/battery technology, what is required to be able to island your system. Implying either optionally or by necessity. Optionally might imply the grid company charging you for exported power.
I want enough power to run my fridge(s) and freezer (even if intermittently – one hour in 24 might do) to ensure proper food storage. And the ability to have lighting during periods of darkness (please no candles or wick lights).
The last technician who worked on my smart meter stated the installed technology will NOT enable the inverters to be turned off remotely. But I would need a power source to enable the hybrid inverters to utilize the panels as a larger supplier.
In simple terms, an (perhaps power limited) off grid system capable of maintaining a grid connection unless serious interruptions occur.
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I would like to think that my words below are original as I’ve not seen their gist elsewhere, so if you have a reference which supports, or refutes, the idea would you please let me have it.
It’s only recently that I discovered that vitamin C is a cofactor of vitamin D, so that each requires the other for itself to operate effectively, as I’ve mentioned previously when I’ve talked about vitamin D.
Most papers and articles I’ve read about the success, or lack thereof, of either omit any reference to the other. Hence many reports of relatively low success rates of high blood levels of vitamin D for example could be the result of low levels, or absence of available vitamin C. (Or of its other cofactors.)
But I concentrate on vitamin C in this context because of its short half life, measured in hours as opposed to that of vitamin D’s multiple days.
The other factor, obvious once heard, is that each is used up when the immune system is actually working.
Both these attributes need to be considered in planning for prevention or for cure by the immune system.
At this stage I must advise that I am not a doctor so cannot prescribe anything, but merely offer this as, hopefully, a useful observation.
I’ve considered just two situations: firstly my approach in using them as part of my regular preventative regime (unchanged since my last report), but repeating that I take 1000 mg of vitamin C three times each day, roughly morning, noon and night. My reasoning for that regime is that I’m unlikely to to be exposed to anything nasty as I sleep, but I need coverage during the day when I might be exposed, and that timing should give me some vitamin C available all day. I’d take some earlier and later if my day included, for example, travel to work on public transport.
Secondly, if some exposure has resulted in cold-like symptoms (and assuming my vitamin D levels, and its other cofactors, were adequate) I’d immediately take 1000 mg of C and the same every two hours until symptoms ceased.
As this is already long I’ve not included any links at all.
Cheers,
Dave B
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Recommendations along the lines that you have indicated were published for many maladies in “Heal Yourself” by Walter Last , from memory, about 50 years ago.
10
Thanks fb,
I’ll see if I can find that.
00
In a loose sense every vitamin is a kind of co-factor with every other vitamin.
High dose C is probably a good idea during times of stress or illness, but I cut back my regular C to around 500mg ish daily.
It is possible to overdo antioxidants. Taking them in high doses constantly can confuse the signalling processes that rely on oxidative damage. During exercise the oxidant stress is a signal to rebuild muscle better and bigger, and it may interfere with autophagy, which is the process of breaking up toxic waste and old proteins.
I’m just saying, you might want a gap or time off from daily antioxidants. People don’t get all the benefits of exercise if they have too many antioxidants. And faulty autophagy is now considered a possible major role in alzheimers. We need that rubbish collection and recycling program or the toxic waste builds up.
20
FWIW
“Musk’s Anti-Woke Grokipedia Has Landed – Hosts 900,000 Articles On Day 1”
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/musks-anti-woke-grokipedia-has-landed-hosts-900000-articles-day-1
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FWIW – the falling status of “Nature”!
“What Would We Do Without Peer Review?”
“Why I no longer engage with Nature publishing group
My response to a recent invitation to review a manuscript for Nature Communications”
https://hxstem.substack.com/p/why-i-no-longer-engage-with-nature
Via https://www.smalldeadanimals.com/2025/10/28/what-would-we-do-without-peer-review-25/
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Headline from Spectator Australia:
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Nooo..! We don’t want them driving out into the countryside looking for a good restaurant, Covid was bad enough with the townie invasion!
30
A surreptitious source of larger LPG bottles to be created in 1, 2…….
00
Prunella Scales dies age 93
Actor Prunella Scales, best known as acid-tongued Sybil Fawlty in the classic British sitcom Fawlty Towers, has died. She was 93 and had lived with dementia for many years.
Scales’ sons, Samuel and Joseph West, said she died “peacefully at home in London” on Monday.
https://www.smh.com.au/culture/tv-and-radio/prunella-scales-sybil-in-classic-british-sitcom-fawlty-towers-dies-aged-93-20251029-p5n62u.html
She’ll always be remembered.
Fawlty Towers is one series that never gets old.
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Albania’s first AI minister is pregnant with 83 digital babies
Albania just made history and not in a good way. Prime Minister Edi Rama announced that Delia, the world’s first AI government minister, is now “expecting” 83 digital children.
Each one will be assigned to lawmakers as a virtual aide, capable of scheduling meetings, recording debates, and even advising politicians in real time.
https://x.com/HustleBitch_/status/1983303471546630160
Will digital pollies lie, cheat, steal and generally eff everything up as well as their human predecessors?
Will they get paid ridiculous salaries and put their digital snouts in the gravy train?
Get it wrong and we can flip your switch to off.
Pity we cant do it legally with the biological ones.
10
Over a million people discuss suicide with ChatGPT every week – OpenAI
An estimated 0.15% of the chatbot’s 800 million weekly users show suicidal planning indicators, according to the company
OpenAI has announced a new safety update to its popular ChatGPT model after an internal analysis revealed over a million users admitted suicidal tendencies to the chatbot.
The changes are intended to improve the AI’s ability to recognize and properly respond to distress.
In a statement on Monday, the company revealed that an estimated 0.15% of weekly ChatGPT users have engaged in conversations that include “explicit indicators of potential suicidal planning or intent.” Another 0.05% of messages are also said to have contained “explicit or implicit indicators of suicidal ideation or intent.”
The company also claimed that around 0.07% (560,000) of its weekly users and 0.01% (80,000) of messages indicate “possible signs of mental health emergencies related to psychosis or mania.”
It further noted that a number of users have grown emotionally over reliant on ChatGPT, with about 0.15% (1.2 million) of active users exhibiting behavior that indicates “heightened levels” of emotional attachment to the chatbot.
OpenAI has announced that it has partnered with dozens of mental health experts from around the world to update the chatbot so it can more reliably recognize signs of mental distress, provide better responses, and guide users to real-world help.
In conversations relating to delusional beliefs, the company said it is teaching ChatGPT to respond “safely,” and “empathetically,” while avoiding affirming ungrounded beliefs.
The company’s announcement comes amid rising concerns over the increasing use of AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and the effect they have on people’s mental health.
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George Clooney’s next movie “In Love” is all about a man deciding on assisted dying when he gets an early onset Alzheimer’s diagnosis and, given your finding of the AI stat suggests there could be some foundation for the concerns already being raised on the potential effect of the movie.
10
Maybe its all Darwin at work… We will have an improved gene pool in the end, only those keen to live and enthusiastic to get on with life.
30
Very good story copied from Quora.
Not sure if true or a parable.
100
Ваши слова, да в Божьи уши, аминь!
20
Andrew Denton interview (4.09min).
10
Retro funny: Hoges in England – emigrating to Australia
https://youtu.be/p-7g5qbCPAM?si=acXwo3TzxuA0xWUN
Politically incorrect. Ah, the good old days.
30
FWIW
“Exorbitant Dairy Farm Debt: Why Canadians will always face high American tariffs”Ian Cumming, writing in the upcoming edition of Ontario Dairy Farmer magazine, describes in detail the insane debt levels of Canadian dairy farmers, ensuring that Canadian consumers will be on the getting screwed hook forever…and ensuring that Trump’s favourite sore spot – Canada’s protectionist dairy market – will remain in place for just as long.”
More at
”
https://www.smalldeadanimals.com/2025/10/28/exorbitant-dairy-farm-debt-why-canadians-will-always-face-high-american-tariffs/
20
Their protection arrangements on wine were interesting. Not sure if it was only one province, but you could only buy wine in govt-controlled outlets, and these outlets severely restricted the import of other country’s wines.
20
How far are we behind the UK? This 43 min documentary has just been release about zealous clamping down (imprisoning) on non-narrative social media criticizing the government or any of their policies.
Produced by Spiked: https://www.spiked-online.com/video/think-before-you-post-a-spiked-documentary/
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Didn’t watch the doco, had enough of parliament on the radio while driving, heard Fati Paymann going on and on about the “non believers” wrt global warming.
An appreciation of the main point of your post would lead to understand just how amazing Jo’s blog is.
Very brave.
30
” would lead to understand just how amazing Jo’s blog is.”
Do we have a plan B for when it just disappears one day? They will come after it soon enough..
30
This is important.
20
FWIW
“The radical left and Islam – a marriage heading for the rocks”
https://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/the-radical-left-and-islam-a-marriage-made-in-hell/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=2025-10-29&utm_campaign=TCW+Daily+Email
30
FWIW
“Don’t Believe Your Lying Eyes!”
“The wind industry must be getting really desperate now!”
More at
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/10/29/dont-believe-your-lying-eyes/
20
FWIW
“The Complete Equation”
“All is known about Pakistani rape gangs operating in Britain.
Over the last 25 years, inquiry after inquiry have revealed the same thing:
For the sake of “community cohesion”, our civil service and much of our media covered up the true scale of the horror, their role in it, and attacked all who sought justice, labelling them “Far Right”, as our Prime Minister shamelessly did earlier in the year.
Nothing, you see, can challenge the “diversity is our strength” mantra.
Our womenfolk have thus been sacrificed on the altar of multiculturalism.”
More at
https://countrysquire.co.uk/2025/10/27/all-is-known/
Via SDA
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