resources
DESCRIPTION
The world has sufficient resources to supply over 50 billion people with a lifestyle equivalent to the average US citizen in 1965 and do so sustainably. This analysis includes wood, food, fiber, raw materials and energy.TRANSCRIPT
WOOD
The Taiga or Boreal Forest covers 3.07 billion acres of land
and is capalbe of producing sustainably 33.81 trillion pounds
of wood products per year.
A typical 2000 square foot home contains 12,718.9 pounds
of wood products. This includes 10,104.6 pounds of framing
lumber and 2,614.3 pounds of paneling.
Efficiently managed the existing Taiga Forest would provide
enough lumber to build 2.66 billion homes in just one year.
In 1965 the average person in the USA consumed 2,268.1
pounds of wood products - as follows;
! Lumber! ! 1,177.8 lbs/year
! Plywood! 193.7 lbs/year
! Pulpwood! 624.3 lbs/year
! Fuel Wood! 176.8 lbs/year
! Other! ! 95.4 lbs/year
At this rate of consumption the Taiga Forest produces
enough wood to support 14.9 billion people sustainably.
Double the current population of the world.
According to James L Howard, Economist for the Forest
Products Laboratory in Madison Wisconsin, in Research
Paper FPL-RP-615 forests can produce a sustainable yield
of 11,000 pounds per acre per year, with harvests every 20 to
30 years.
Aircraft like the Lockheed P-791 neutral buoyancy aircraft
can operate above the forest without the need of
constructing any roads. The aircraft is large enough to carry
its own portable sawmill along with it.
Ideally the aircraft operates autonomously with hydrogen
which operates as a lifting gas and fuel. Hydrogen powers
fuel cells which drive propulsive fans of high efficiency.
Operated in this way the aircraft is capable of lifting up to
88,000 pounds and flying to any point on Earth in a matter of
days at 140 mph.
One aircraft supplies the wood needs of 7,085.7 people and
987,903 aircraft supply the wood needs of 7 billion people.
They also supply the wood needed to build 1.25 billion
homes per year using the FACIT D-Process within the
automated mobile mill on board.
FOOD
In 1965 the average US citizen consumed 1,738.2 pounds
of food per year. Using best available organic means of
food production circa 1965, 10,800 pounds of food per acre
per year may be produced on existing crop lands. Thus,
6.21 people may be supported per acre of crop lands
operated with best available practices. There are 12.06
billion acres of crop land available on Earth. Thus a total of
74.9 billion people may be supported using these
techniques.
The same methods of aerial transport may be adapted to
deliver food. Since the distances from crop to consumer
are shorter, 147,932.3 people may be served by a single
aerial transport - this time equipped with mobile food
processing capabilities. So, 47,319 aircraft support the
food needs of 7 billion people.
lbs/person
Total Meats
Red Meats
Beef
Pork
Veal/Lamb
Poultry
Chicken
Turkey
Fish/Shellfish
All diary
Cheese
Cottage Che
Frozen
Ice Cream
LF Ice Crea
Sherbert
Other
Dry Milk
Dry Whey
Evaporated
Cream
Yogurt
Beverage
Whole
Low Fat
Added Fat
Salad/Cook
Baking/Fry
Shortening
Lard/Beef
Table Spread
Butter
Margarine
Fruit & Vege
Fruit
Citrus
Noncitrus
Processed
Frozen
Dried fruit
Canned
Fruit Juice
Total Vege
Fresh Vege
Potatoes
Other
Processing
Canning
Tomatoes
Other
Frozen
Potatoes
Other
Dehyd/Chip
Pulses
Grain
Wheat
Corn
Rice
Sweetners
Cane/Beet
Corn
HF Corn
Glucose
Dextrose
Other
TOTAL
138.1
106.7
52.8
45.4
8.5
20.5
16.4
4.1
10.9
703
7.7
3.9
23
18.1
2.7
1.3
1
4.9
0.2
21.6
9.05
0.1
291.2
268
23.2
44.6
9.8
21.4
10.9
10.5
17
9
8
587.5
248.7
99.4
72.2
149.3
3.4
9.9
24.7
110.7
338.8
147.9
52.5
95.4
190.9
101.1
62.9
38.2
52.1
36.1
16.0
30.8
7.0
155.4
125.7
15.4
5.3
109.6
96.7
11.0
0
7.4
3.5
2.0
1738.2
RESOURCES
Sunlight focused on to a number of thin disk lasers can convert sunlight
to laser energy with an efficiency exceeding 80%. Laser energy
collected with high efficiency optical fibers can then be used to vaporize
rock. Rock and dirt vaporized in this way may then use a time of flight
mass spectrometry technique to separate the rock and dirt into its
component atoms. Those atoms may then be combined to form any
manner of useful materials.
Located in a region that receives 1400 hours of sunlight per year a solar
powered laser separator produces 1,496,880 pounds per acre per year.
Since the average American in 1965 consumed 16,222 pounds per
person per year this system may support 92.2 people per acre installed.
75.92 million acres, in arid and semi-arid regions supply resources
required by 7 billion people. An area equal to the collector area is drilled
into the ground 2.75 inches per year.
ENERGY
At their peak the average US citizen consumed energy at a rate of
12.83 kW. Provided in the form of hydrogen made from sunlight and
water, this requires 6,282.86 pounds of hydrogen per year. 50.4 people
are supported per acre of installed hydrogen producing panels. Thus,
138.9 million acres of collectors are needed to support 7 billion people.
RESOURCE lbs/person-yr
Bauxite 77
Cement 512
Clay 155
Coal 6439
Copper 12
Iron Ore 340
Lead 11
Manganese 6
Natural Gas 8037
Petroleum 6619
Phosphate 225
Potash 46
Salt 403
Sand Gravel St 13923
Soda Ash 37
Sulfur 82
Uranium 0.15
Zinc 7
Other Metal 25
Other NonMet 372
Total 37,328
Nonfuel 16,233
FUEL WATTS
Natural Gas 6,436.4
Petroleum 4,262.8
Coal 2,133.1
Total 12,832.4
EQUIVALENT lbs/person-yr
Hydrogen 6,282.86
ELEMENT ppm
Iron 319,000.00
Oxygen 297,000.00
Silicon 161,000.00
Magnesium 154,000.00
Nickel 18,220.00
Calcium 17,100.00
Aluminum 15,900.00
Sulfur 6,350.00
Chromium 4,700.00
Sodium 1,800.00
Manganese 1,700.00
Phosphorous 1,210.00
Cobalt 880.00
Titanium 810.00
Carbon 730.00
Potassium 160.00
COTTON WOOL NATURAL FIBERS
In 1965 the total consumption per person of fibers total
30.3 pounds per person per year. Productivity of cotton
plantations yield 1,200 pounds per acre per year. Thus a
total of 39.6 people"s needs are supported per acre of
production. 176.75 million acres of fiber crops and animals
are needed to support this level of consumption for 7 billion
people alive today.
An automated cotton mill was designed by Buckminster
Fuller in 1951, complete with octet truss floors. (shown
below). With advanced automation techniques, mobile
mills operating within free flying neutral buoyancy aircraft,
can harvest and process cotton, wool and associated fibers
and oils, into finished products all automatically on their
way to consumers.
A total of 1.89 million automated transport units collect,
process and deliver raw materials to consumers throughout
the world, providing all the consumer products needed to
sustain a high standard of living for everyone everywhere.
Hydrogen made from sunlight and water is liquified and
transported to where its needed by its own fleet of 616,280
automated flying transports. The hydrogen powers the
transport vehicles as well as providing buoyancy. Each
hydrogen filled vehicle carries 88,000 pounds of payload,
double the capacity of a helium filled counterpart powered
by polluting jet fuel.
TRANSPORT UNITS
TYPE lbs/per-yrtrips/yr people/unit units
Wood 2268.1 183 7,085.7 987,901
Food 1,738.2 2,922 147,932.3 47,319
Cotton 30.3 877 2,545,901.0 2,750
Nonfuel 16,233.0 4,383 23,760.5 238,526
TOTAL 1,276,496
Hydrogen 6282.9 1,461 20,463.3 616,280
1,892,776