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Sequestering carbon by land restoration and reforestation in Iceland
- Thread starter KarenRei
- Start date
Don TLR
Active Member
You know it seems every picture you've shared from here looks the same, are the hay rolls just for the Tourists, they never seems to move
As always I love seeing the daily workings and photos..
Hay rolls? I thought they were tractor eggs.You know it seems every picture you've shared from here looks the same, are the hay rolls just for the Tourists, they never seems to move
As always I love seeing the daily workings and photos..
No, they're sheep pods. Invasion of the Body Snatchers II.
Last day before the storms.
I pass one more uprooted tree which I missed the other day on the way down into the canyon. Replant!
Back to the grindstone. Er, post pounder.
Getting quite far from the waterfall where I started.
Working my way through the swampy slope at risk of slipping. Never fun to walk through a swamp. I'm doing a higher density, as planned.
Some of the posts were unlucky when tossed down and ended up in muck.
As I finally start getting near the far (east / inland) end of the marsh, the posts start encountering large rocks underneath the soil, pushing them to odd angles.
Almost past!
The rock problem keeps getting worse. This second-to-last post is on its third attempt to drive it in.
I eventually give up and move it significantly out of its planned alignment. Even there it doesn't go in great... but enough.
Out of posts. This next area (approaching the landslide scar) is really rocky. Looks like I'll probably need to bring down my steel stakes (although I should try to use the wooden ones wherever they'll go in; the steel ones are much ore expensive and I only have ten of them)
I pass one more uprooted tree which I missed the other day on the way down into the canyon. Replant!
Back to the grindstone. Er, post pounder.
Getting quite far from the waterfall where I started.
Working my way through the swampy slope at risk of slipping. Never fun to walk through a swamp. I'm doing a higher density, as planned.
Some of the posts were unlucky when tossed down and ended up in muck.
As I finally start getting near the far (east / inland) end of the marsh, the posts start encountering large rocks underneath the soil, pushing them to odd angles.
Almost past!
The rock problem keeps getting worse. This second-to-last post is on its third attempt to drive it in.
I eventually give up and move it significantly out of its planned alignment. Even there it doesn't go in great... but enough.
Out of posts. This next area (approaching the landslide scar) is really rocky. Looks like I'll probably need to bring down my steel stakes (although I should try to use the wooden ones wherever they'll go in; the steel ones are much ore expensive and I only have ten of them)
I finish checking out the landslide scar. A meaningful rivulent is flowing down it from the swamp, after the recent rains. During the spring melt it turns into a sizeable cascade.
Done scouting the next day's work and with the sun setting, I head back. As I near Reykjavík, the sun's glow fades behind Snæfell (Snow Mountain) in the distance (3 1/2 hours drive away)
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So... now it's going to be a waiting game, hoping for gaps in the weather at some point...
Done scouting the next day's work and with the sun setting, I head back. As I near Reykjavík, the sun's glow fades behind Snæfell (Snow Mountain) in the distance (3 1/2 hours drive away)
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So... now it's going to be a waiting game, hoping for gaps in the weather at some point...
Brando
Active Member
side note: thought you might enjoy quick story about another tree planter in upper state New York, USA. nut trees
electric bikes. Non-heated green house for year round food. Of course in Iceland you'd need artificial sunlight for the darker times.
My Dirty Cheap eUTV : One Year On A Sur-Ron Light Bee Electric Motocross Bike
electric bikes. Non-heated green house for year round food. Of course in Iceland you'd need artificial sunlight for the darker times.
My Dirty Cheap eUTV : One Year On A Sur-Ron Light Bee Electric Motocross Bike
Lucky_Man
Member
Are slingshots and paintballs available? A no-harm-done option. Hmmm. If you get accurate enough, maybe the sheep could sport rainbow colors in case Pence returns ;^)I'd thought about throwing rocks at them, but I can't throw far enough to make a difference. The prospect of a sling hadn't occurred to me.
(The prospect of a BB gun did
Could also be "Wool pre-dyed, select your colour".
I tried building a "large greenhouse on a budget" at one point - the idea was to put a roof and two walls over a section of that ravine. I had been told by the county office that greenhouses didn't need a permit. So I did a ton of work on the project. I later talked to the county again, and mentioned the size of the greenhouse, and was told that because of that, they're going to need to see some architectural diagrams - they don't need to be done by an architect, just to give them info about the building. So I finished up all of the prep work - literally doing FEM simulations (with an engineer volunteered his time to assist me) to make sure it'd be structurally sound, tracking down suppliers for the panels, etc etc... tons of work. And then I took them to the county... and was told, "No, that's large enough that you're going to have to go through a formal architectural and engineering process" (which costs tens of thousands of dollars). Even though I'd already given him exact dimensions before. Sigh...
Maybe some day. For now, it's outdoor trees only on the land
So, it's been nonstop rain here. That said, I did make it out for the climate protest today (I got there late, as I was at work). I made a sign:
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ELECTRIFY TRANSPORTATION
* A ban on gas and diesel vehicles after 2025, not 2030!
* Extend and improve the VAT exclusion on electric cars - the "2020" and "10k cars" limits do not suffice.
* "A right to charge" for renters
* No more parking lots without charging spaces!
It's unacceptable that there would be places in Reykjavík where there are no or too few charging spaces. Drive, park, charge - everyone should be able to do it, everywhere, and without difficulty.
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That said... since students were the focus of the protests, and we were just there to support them, I stayed around the periphery; I wanted them front and centre.
The drizzle made the crowd smaller than I would liked to have seen, but the organizers seemed happy with it.
There was both music and speeches... some by adults, some by children.
I had mixed feelings about the whole thing. On one hand, it was awesome that people were there in front of parliament, speaking out. The kids were really passionate - one was even crying as she gave her speech, making it really powerful. On the other hand... almost nobody even mentioned energy and transportation. Which is mind-boggling for a climate protest. Lots of talk about plastic grocery bags, which a tiny portion of the total trash picture and an almost meaningless relevance to the climate. Lots of talk about going vegetarian or vegan, which is to its credit a very meaningful climate impact... but giving up meat is something that many people would never do, and if you over push on it, they'll just dismiss you as a crazy hippie.. And much of our food's emissions all come back to transportation and energy anyway.
While some kids were awesome - one pair of kids for example went into a lot of nuance on climate issues that adults usually skim over in a black-or-white fashion - they never should have let this kid (however cute) on the stage:
He rambled on (mostly about plastic) for a ridiculously long time, with a lot of statements that were questionable at best... but what can you do except just sort of nod along with everyone else? He got everyone so bored that by the time he was ushered off the stage, half the crowd started drifting off during the next speaker (who I felt bad for
).By the time of the last musician, most people were gone. But the small crowd that remained still kept their spirits up.
A variety of signs were left in front of parliament.
Above, front and centre: "Everything is dying".
Below: "I'm sure that the dinosaurs thought that they had time, too."
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The weather forecast is looking up for a window tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
*** "Almost nobody" mentioned transportation. We're not that far from the domestic airport, and at one point, a passenger airplane flew low over us, coming in for a landing. Bad timing, of course, as everyone there was well aware of the high CO2 footprint of air travel. The crowd booed at the plane. The speaker, to his credit, said, "Okay, now... people do need to be able to get from place to place." But a minute later during his speech, a private jet roared by, and he stopped his speech and said, "Okay, by all means, boo that one."
Bet TSLA
Active Member
I marched in San Jose, CA. The leaders led the crowd in various chants, one being "Hey hey ho ho, fossil fuels have got to go." Okay. But no reaction at all to planes taking off from SJC nearby and passing loudly overhead. And passing cars and trucks honking in support got cheers from the crowd, though every single one I saw was an ICE. Crowds are not generally known for their rationality, which is one reason I hate being part of them.*** "Almost nobody" mentioned transportation. We're not that far from the domestic airport, and at one point, a passenger airplane flew low over us, coming in for a landing. Bad timing, of course, as everyone there was well aware of the high CO2 footprint of air travel. The crowd booed at the plane. The speaker, to his credit, said, "Okay, now... people do need to be able to get from place to place." But a minute later during his speech, a private jet roared by, and he stopped his speech and said, "Okay, by all means, boo that one."
But I think we all have to be part of the climate action crowds at this point. Even after fossil fuels are economically non-viable (now or soon depending on the use), political pressure will keep up their use unless strongly opposed.
Bet TSLA
Active Member
While the idealist in me did take part in mild forms of protesting/ street demonstrations during my younger years, the realist in me tells everyone is time/energy constraint in life and doing something (or not doing something) can be more effective then raising a voice. It's one of the reasons i love this thread.
Some of the youngsters protesting in my country think it terrible what we do with this planet. And afterwards find a huge big mac for the afterparty. In my humble opinion that's at best classified as a mixed signal to society.
Recognizing we are all part of the problem and can all be part of the solution sounds great; for all to take part in climate action crowds doesn't sound effective to me.
Haha, that's such a cockatoo solution
Looking at the weather outside... it's dismal looking, but not raining anymore, and the wind's been dying down. I'm keeping track of the progress of how the ground is drying out, and I may go for it if it looks like it's dried enough that I'm not going to get soaked or covered in mud. Doesn't help that I'm going to be getting increasingly close to the landslide zone...
Love the success with the new post ramming tool. And the photos and stories of climate protests.
Make sure to leave enough time before winter weather to string some wire between the posts you have already secured. Will there be also time in the spring when the weather is good enough but the sheep have not yet returned?
Make sure to leave enough time before winter weather to string some wire between the posts you have already secured. Will there be also time in the spring when the weather is good enough but the sheep have not yet returned?
Yeah, there will be time in the spring too
Getting the posts in will let me continue to work after the ground freezes and before it thaws - that's why I'm prioritizing it 
I used a similar version of that tool on my farm for a few weeks. Beware you will build large chest, shoulder and arm muscles very quickly.I'll have a good bit of pondering time, as I've settled on trying to drive all of the verticals first, then seeing how many (if any) I have left over for diagonals to decide what to put where
So.... a miracle - I got an open weather window! It was quite windy during the day (despite lovely clear skies), and tomorrow's storm moves in a couple hours from now, but we got a (somewhat) calm before the storm - so I took it!
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There's no snow on Esja, but on the mountains across the fjörd, there's a light dusting near the summits.
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I first check for interlopers. None on my land, but a couple tiny dots are on the opposite slope of the river. :Þ In theory they should all be disappearing this weekend, but it's possible that the storm will delay the roundup some.
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I drop off the gate posts at scattered places along the road, the I take out the post pounder. Man this thing is big.
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I carry it down into the canyon and, after setting up some posts, I place it over the top.
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I start lifting it up and dropping / pushing it back down. It's just BANG! BANG! BANG! It's actually hurting my ears; I'll try to remember to bring earplugs next time. Soon the post is all the way down.
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My thoughts? Apart from the noise, I love this thing!!! No, it doesn't reduce the amount of work per blow vs. the sledgehammer. But the posts go in faster, with fewer complications, no blistering on my hands or accidentally risking smashing fingers, and it leave the tops of the posts looking pristine. And the more posts I do, the better I get with it. A couple early posts end up kind of slanted (downside to the tool: you can't really see the angle of the post well), but I learn that I can get the posts in faster and straighter by making quick, short blows with the tool until the posts are most of the way down, and then switching to big, full-force blows or the rest.
I position this post so it doubles as a windbreak for this previously planted mountain pine
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I run out of posts:
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I head back up to get some from the second stack. The sun makes it clear that I'm not going to have too much time left.
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Down into the canyon with three posts, back up. Down with three posts, back up. Down with three posts, back up.
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