AQUATER PAPER NO 10-WORKING TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY

The Problem

The population of earth has reached the point where some ecological zones are being damaged by the shear burden of the population it must support. Efforts to establish a sustainable work and living environment are being stymied by the need to support the existing population in the current living space. A tentative plan to obtain near-term sustainability has been proposed (see ap9 CORNERED BUT NOT CAPTURED-this site-April), but even if it succeeds, the transition procedure to a new sustainable state is not clear. Also, if the proposed industry and living space are not completely successful, a new longer-term solution (see ap6 THE FINAL SOLUTION TO MAN’S POPULATION PROBLEM-this site-May) must be added on, and this makes the transition even more complicated. Finally, mankind’s need to grow and expand may require a new and “Final” frontier (see ap8 THE FINAL FRONTIER FOR MANKIND-this site-May). The problem is, given our crowded conditions and lack of jobs, how do we make the transition to a sustainable work and living space that uses these proposed solutions. Specifically, the dense population built up in certain areas during past good times destroys the sustainability built up by nature over the millennia, so how do we thin these populations out to a sustainable level. For example,

  • Farming and ranching by rainforest clearing.                                                Cutting the rainforest allows many people to live in the cleared area, but it destroys the equilibrium built up between the different components of the forest, that recycles nutrients, and allows the forest to maintain itself. Thus the cleared area degrades, and the inhabitants must eventually move on. This process gradually degrades the rainforest as a whole and decreases the number of people it can support.
  • Farming in fertile river valleys.                                                                   Plowing and planting over decades provides large crop yields that supports a large population, but it tends to destroy the humus and the root systems in the soil that holds the land together and thus allows the soil and it’s nutrients to escape down the river. This process gradually degrades the land and decreases the number of people it can support.
  • Fishing from coastal villages.                                                                                 Large-scale modern fishing techniques are efficient means of obtaining a large catch to support a large population, but it depletes the basic breeding population, upsets the balance of species and eventually reduces the catch. This process gradually degrades the fishing grounds and decreases the number of people they can support.
  • Urbanization.                                                                                                  Industrialization causes people to gather together in large urban centers that can support many jobs and a large population. However automation has reduced the number of jobs available, so many urban centers can no longer support their population. This process then reduces the population urban centers can support.

In each of these situations the desirable jobs are reduced in number gradually by automation and environmental degradation, and people move to less desirable jobs, and then to part-time work, and finally to a new area where work may be more available. In all of these situations, however, we note that people go to the place where work is available. So to solve our problem, we must set up set up situations where jobs are available in a new, ecologically unburdened area. Then the people in the crowded areas will move to these new unburdened areas and allow the old burdened areas to be relieved so the earth can become uniformly sustainable.

The Solution

Existing imbalances that destroy sustainability are difficult to correct unless a way can be worked out to remove the people from the area under stress and then revamp this stressed area into a state of sustainability. The most promising solutions, the SEMAN (Seagoing Energy Module with Automatic Navigation-stabilization) and the HSM (Harbor Support Module), that allow a family to provide its own water, food, shelter, energy and an income without burdening the land, would require a large change in lifestyle. Most people resist such changes unless there is an inducement or there is no choice. In this case, the inducement is provided by the gradual reduction in desirable jobs in urban centers caused by automation using computers and robots (see ap3, 3A and 3B-this site-March), and a gradual increase in desirable jobs on the oceans and seacoasts caused by the advent of SEMAN and HSMs. Remember, people tend to go where the jobs are. Then, if the oceans don’t provide enough jobs, satellites available for colonization will provide a new outlet (see ap6). Since the boosters for these satellites will be next to SEMAN pods, the new jobs are readily available. Finally, if some of the people feel the need to expand mankind’s frontiers, boosters for starships (ap8) will be next to SEMAN pods as well. Expansion space for mankind’s excess population will then be automatic and natural.

Let us consider the following development sequence, and track the automatic inducement.

  1. Build and launch the prototype SEMAN, and then sell trips, dinners and  explanatory lectures during a world cruise.                                                                                  Few will believe that the SEMAN can provide the necessities of life plus a profit (see ap9) unless a prototype is built and tested that demonstrates this ability. The SEMAN can be built and operated using simple technology that can be mastered by people with carpenter and electrician level skills, so it is well suited for emigrants. An Internet site that describes these capabilities doesn’t generate much interest until the prototype is operating, however. During a world cruise, the message of SEMAN capabilities can be demonstrated and advertised to the world. The SEMAN cannot reach its full potential of providing jobs, relieving crowding, providing green energy and reducing global warming unless there are many in use. The reduction in desirable jobs due to computers and robots will produce the need for a new way to make a living, and so provide an incentive to change lifestyles.
  2. Sell SEMAN to the rich and also start and use the Aquater Fund.                                                                 An important problem in getting the movement to the sea started is the necessity to provide financing for SEMAN construction. The rich can afford to build it, but the poor must use the Aquater Fund (see Financing a New Civilization-this site-March). This is the second step in getting a significant number of SEMAN into use..                                                                 
  3. Construct a set of Harbor Support Modules (HSM’s).                                         The HSM’s are intended to provide a convenient and readily available market for the energy and energy intensive products produced on the SEMAN. Once a significant number of SEMAN are operating, it is profitable to develop HSM’s in each of the nations that have access to the world’s oceans. Once the HSM’s are constructed, the growth of the SEMAN fleet is assured because the access to market is assured. This supplies roughly 200 million SEMAN jobs, and 150 million HSM jobs maximum. The high-energy (wind speed >15KN) areas of the oceans limit the number of SEMAN that can operate to 200 million. The number of SEMAN limits the number HSMs to 150 million. Note that SEMAN can be built and repaired on SEMAN and HSMs
  4. Construct a satellite booster facility prototype and test it with a small satellite.            It may be that there is a need for a place for further expansion of habitat for humanity, and the obvious solution is colonizing the orbits around earth and the sun (see ap6 THE FINAL SOLUTION TO MAN’S POPULATION PROBLEM-this site-May). This earth satellite uses an inexpensive momentum exchange system to get satellites on orbit. It can be launched from the ocean, preferably from the equatorial zone. The technology required is simple; the most advanced part of the system being the electromagnetic (EM) drive that powers the beam of momentum exchange pellets that carries a satellite into orbit. This EM drive can be purchased and used as a unit, so the skills required are reduced. The skill level required to build and operate the booster and satellite systems is that of a carpenter and an electrician except for the EM drive, and both systems can be built on a SEMAN. The SEMAN would already be operating on the ocean and so can provide the launch platform as well as the energy needed to boost the satellite into orbit. Thus the satellite orbital colonies are a natural extension of the SEMAN ocean colonies.
  5. Construct live-in satellites and put them on orbit.                                              Here again, the Aquater Fund can be used to finance the satellites. Payments on the mortgage are obtained by transferring energy to earth using the satellites either from the sun or from SEMAN bouncing energy off the satellites and then back to earth. Satellites can also be used to mine asteroids and manufacture materials that require zero gravity. The water and food needed on orbit will be supplied by recycling wastes. Losses and transport of mined and manufactured goods to ground will be accomplished by loading the momentum exchange pellets of the momentum beam with these materials.
  6. Construct a stellar drive prototype and test with a small starship.                  It may be that mankind has a need to explore and colonize other stellar systems (see ap8). Again, a momentum beam can be used to provide an inexpensive stellar drive, but here, the momentum exchange pellets must travel faster than an electromagnetic drive can achieve, so a small ion drive powered by a small fission reactor must be used in each pellet to provide the necessary velocity in the momentum beam. The skill level necessary to build and operate this stellar drive is quite high because of the ion drive, but the SEMAN is still the proper launch platform. 
  7. Construct live-in starship and send it on a trip.                                                   Here again, the Aquater Fund can be used to finance the starship. Payments on the starship are not possible. The water and food needed on the trip will be supplied by recycling wastes. Energy on the satellite will come from an onboard reactor and the momentum beam. Losses and transport of supplies to the starship will be accomplished by loading these products on the momentum exchange pellets of the momentum beam

With these systems in place, Earth has a complete means to relieve population pressure automatically; first to the sea and then to orbiting satellites and then to the stars.

Conclusions

Efforts to establish a sustainable work and living environments on earth are being stymied by the need to support the existing population in the current living space. A tentative plan to obtain near-term sustainability has been proposed, but even if it succeeds, the transition procedure to a new sustainable state is not clear. Also, if the proposed industry and living space are not completely successful, a new, longer-term solution must be added on, and this makes the transition even more complicated. Finally, mankind’s need to grow and expand may require a new and “Final” frontier. The problem is, given our crowded conditions and lack of jobs, how do we make the transition to a sustainable work and living space that uses these proposed solutions.

 In order to implement sustainable solutions to existing imbalances in our overburdened environments, we must remove the people from the area under stress and then revamp this stressed area into a state of sustainability. The most promising solutions, the SEMAN (Seagoing Energy Module with Automatic Navigation-stabilization) (this site-Jan) and the HSM (Harbor Support Module), that allow a family to provide its own water, food, shelter, energy and an income in a new area that does not burden the land, would require a large change in lifestyle. Most people resist such changes unless there is an inducement or there is no choice. In this case, the inducement is provided by the gradual reduction in desirable jobs in urban centers caused by automation using computers and robots (see ap3, 3A and 3B-this site-Jan, Feb), and a gradual increase in desirable jobs on the oceans and seacoasts caused by the advent of SEMAN and HSMs. Remember, people tend to go where the jobs are. Then, if the oceans don’t provide enough jobs, satellites available for colonization will provide a new outlet (see ap6-this site-May). Since the boosters for these satellites will be next to SEMAN pods, the new jobs are readily available. Finally, if some of the people feel the need to expand mankind’s frontiers, boosters for starships (ap8-this site-May) will be next to SEMAN pods as well. Expansion space for mankind’s excess population will then be automatic and natural.

Notes

  1. The preliminary design work is done. The physical prototype for the SEMAN is nearly complete, but the prototypes for the satellite and the starship have not yet been started.
  2. To donate to help complete this prototype, click “Add To Cart” on the home page.