pointing out the obvious

The concept, provided by Enwave, is to draw cool water from the bottom of lake Ontario, use it to provide ‘cooling power’ to their office tower cooling system, then push that water into our regular water supply (i.e. for drinking). Interesting idea, that reduces the use of air conditioner electricity in the summer, but what effect does taking the cold water (from a depth of 85m) have on the lake itself?

It would be interesting to know whether the pollution generated and electricity used by air conditioner is more problematic than the overall effect of drawing colder water - thus warming - lake ontario.

One of the interesting points is that this system effectively reuses the existing water we draw from lake ontario for our drinking water - it is just drawn from a different depth. So what effect does the change in depth have? The enwave site doesn’t seem to answer this, and it was the first question on my mind. I understand that it reduces air conditioner use and all the bad things about that, but how does this system effect the lake?

It’s akin to the fluorescent vs incandescent bulb discussion. Although fluorescent bulbs contain a small amount of mercury (bad), because it lasts longer and uses less energy, the overall reduction in mercury pollution generated by a powerplant is more significant. So, it’s a net win.. still bad, but better. If you are truely concerned, you can bring used CFLs (compact fluorescent lightbulbs) to a recycling plant where they harvest and reuse the mercury.

Good times.

For whatever reason, I’ve always cherished my childhood visits to the McLaughlin Planetarium, which closed down in 1995. This morning, I stumbled upon a group, GeoSpace, who are proposing a new planetarium be constructed on the Toronto waterfront. If this plan becomes a reality, I will be one of the first in line to see the show. I so miss it.

The planetarium is just one of those things that seem to open your mind to a whole different set of rules.  The darkness, the voice, the stars, the chairs, the projector, the whole experience of a planetarium is so different than a museum or movie.  For some reason, the McLaughlin Planetarium is burned into my head, though I have only ever been there a handful of times.  It is clearly an experience I never forgot.
I wish the people in Toronto at the GeoSpace Planetarium the best of luck with their proposal.  They’ve got my support.