CLIMATE CHANGE & TRUCKING

Ed Murdoch: Ed has held a commercial drivers license for 65 years and has spent the better part of 50 years on the road.
Posted By Ed Murdoch: Ed has held a commercial drivers license for 65 years and has spent the better part of 50 years on the road. On 2021-09-10 16:40:30

Is climate change/global warming
a hoax? The short answer: NO, it
is not! The United Nations recently
released its latest report on the topic
and issued a ground-breaking code-red
alarm for humanity. Address the issues
now or face extinction in one hundred
years. Don’t get me wrong; humanity
will “face” extinction in a century, not
be extinct in that short period of around
six generations. However, GHG
emissions coupled with diminishing
rain forest is putting humanity at a
level of risk never before experienced
in the history of the world.

Global warming has affected every
aspect of life on Earth, from shrinking
glaciers and disappearing arctic ice
to increased violent weather events,
life-threatening heat domes, increased
infrastructure stress and damage,
droughts in some regions, and floods
in others. You can add your own ideas,
which might include an increase in
tire wear on hot asphalt, more wear
and tear on overheated moving
automotive (truck) parts, increased
use of air-conditioning causing more
malfunctions and so
on. Many large cities
such as Vancouver
and Seattle that have
enjoyed moderate
summer ambient
temperatures now
require air-conditioning
where it was not needed
in the past. As a result, people are
suffering, especially the elderly and
those with compromised immune
systems.

Like it or not, the transportation
industry is one of the largest
contributors to climate change in North
America, with its petroleum gulping
behemoths increasing in numbers
as supply attempts to stay ahead of
demand. The future looks grim as
freight movements are expected to
double by mid-century. However,
new technologies and engineering in
manufacturing are slowly doing what
they can to overcome the problem.
Electronic vehicles are surging ahead
at almost breakneck speed. Large tire
manufacturers are discovering ways to
eliminate rolling
resistance and
produce more
heat-resistant
rubber. Parts
manufacturers
are doing
their part by
producing heat-resistant,
longer-lasting
components,
especially those
involved in
motion and the use of friction. Truck
manufacturers are already introducing
ways to keep cabin temperatures
at healthy, comfortable levels
without running the big engine and
compromising start-up capabilities.

Jurisdictions are doing what they
can to enact legislation limiting global
warming emissions. California has
introduced the Advanced Clean Truck
act … the ACT act if you like, lol
… which requires manufacturers to
produce some alternative to emission-producing vehicles by 2024, less than
three years from now. Other back-pedalling administrations will be
required to follow the leadership of the
once-proud Land of Milk and Honey,
now a whimpering shadow of itself
due to wildfires and drought caused by
global warming and climate change.
The United States Environmental
Protection Agency’s (EPA) Cleaner
Trucks initiative will save 530 million
barrels of oil per annum.

There are well over 200 bridges in
the US of A alone requiring overhauls,
many with reduced load and speed
limits and tarmacs deteriorating at
rapid velocity. Construction companies
are inventing new technologies to
increase endurance, such as a new
self-healing asphalt procedure - which I don’t know a lot about, but it’s in the
works.

Provincial and State Departments of
Transportation will have to rethink the
number of axles, pounds, and kilograms
on those axles to reduce the wear and
tear of their precious highway systems.
Super-single truck tires may become
more common as their load capacity,
heat resistance, endurance, and rolling
resistance improve even further.

Many changes are coming IF
the general public demands it, and
the politicians take heed and turn up
their hearing aids. The alarm bells are
ringing at well over 90 decibels, the
upper limits of acceptable noise assault.
It’s got to happen if humanity is going
to survive. The current federal election
is an irresponsibly planned event that
will cost taxpayers millions, which
could be better used to combat the
harm caused by big government and
big business. And while I’m seething,
the quadrillions the toy-boy billionaires
are spending on space travel, looking
for another earth-like planet to destroy
could also be better put toward making
this planet, our only home, more
consumer-friendly. Sheesh!

What can you and I do? I know
it hurts, but we can purchase fewer
consumer goods that contribute to the
problem. More efficient truck engines
would help a lot. First up the hill is
not a necessary requirement. We can
drive more economically and slower
in both our personal and commercial
conveyances. If one still operates a
manual transmission, learn how to
progressive shift … low RPMs in
lower gears. Better choices extrapolate
to less waste and reduced harmful
emissions. Purchase products that are
not forest/tree-based. There are many
building materials made from hemp.
As demand increases, accessibility will
also increase, and costs will decrease.
Think before acting. Is this something
that will add to or limit the problem?

That’s enough to digest on our plates
this month. Behave accordingly … get
vaxxed … be well and be safe.
The Birddawg said it … 10-4!


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Hole in One by Dave Madill

On The Wrong Road by John Maywood

Wildlife by Colin Black

On the Road Again by Myrna Chartrand...

Cooking Class by Scott Casey

Know Your Limits by Ed Murdoch...

2020 Vision by Greg Evasiuk...

Jokes

With 35 years of combined publishing experience, you will see this unique and much improved trucking magazine called Pro Trucker Driver's Choice Magazine

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The First Time

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An ill Wind

Loving the Road

Insecure Loads

Memories

All Things Shiny and New

B-Trains

The Good Ol’ Days

Cold Trip

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A Moment’s Distraction

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Blind Man's Buff

Editor's Note

The Flitting

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Big Rig Weekends

Love and Trucking

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Driving Through My Memories for January/February 2023

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Driver Retention Matters_ New Volvo VNL