Energy rationing.

BIL used to work for the alternative engergy section at Harwell. From
what he said it wasn't taken very seriously.

He worked on wind farms (his PhD was in windflow over turbine blades so
hence his move into power generation). No bugger wanted them. He
looked at barrage systems, dunno what happened but these didn't get
built.

He had enough of getting nowhere and went into 'private' industry where
they were trying to setup businesses persuading farmers to grow biomass
and then setup power stations that generated electricity and sold it to
the national grid. They couldn't get planning permission anywhere due
to nimby issues for the sites.

He's still consulting into the 'alternative' energy field but isn't very
positive about the prospects. Still after the last 15 - 20 years I'm
not really that surprised.

Well, quite but how willing are people to change? I try to use bikes in
preference to cars but don't think that's enough.

 

wrote

It kills seagulls as well.


The very same R4 channel[1] that you was listening to the other day also
said that birds are fucking stupid and just fly into the blades of
windmills cos they can't see them and that we shouldn't have them
because it breaks birds.


[1] It might not have been, it could easily have been on the telebox on
Channel 4 or Discovery but I believe it absolutely anyway cos it was in
The Media.

 

It just gets better and better.

Well, I've not seen piles of dead birds in Denmark or Arizona (there are
some fucking *massive* windfarms in Arizona- 100 or so seperate turbines
quite close together.

 

We have a giant windfarm here too. The operators have had to shut it
down certain times of the year for the migratory birds.

http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=10401

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/dispatch/story/0,,1501953,00.html

 

They could do what the model glider pilots do when they want to fly at
night and be seen. Light the blades up with electro luminescent strips
and leds.[1]

[1]Ok, I'm mostly joking.

 

There are better hot water tanks too, so you can make a solar water
heater work better for you. It's with everything though isn't it. If a
penny per unit can be saved, it will be saved.

 

The few bob it adds to the capital costs is few bob taken from the
profits.

 

I'm just saying... that it'll need a lot of resources, and energy to
manufacturer them, rather than looking into the financial aspects.

So long as in the longer term they repay that investment of the Earth
resources many fold, then it's all good.

Sure I read somewhere in the past that catalytic converters are actually
very inefficient and costly in terms of resources and the energy used in
their manufacturer, by comparison to the benefits that they return, and
wondered if maybe these would prove to be the same.

In money, maybe... what about in terms of actual depleting resources?

"Needs must"... if people want to continue to enjoy the on tap energy they
currently enjoy.

Any idea how they compare in terms of resource cost, with something along
the lines of solar panels, in terms of meeting the energy needs of the
nation, if say those were adopted instead as the main future source of
power?

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/england/kent/3241526.stm

That'll be why there's a quite sizeable wind farm taking shape off the coast
of Kent as we speak, will it?

I'm over that way quite a bit of late, and it all appears to be taking shape
quite nicely.

 

And I don't understand why all new homes being built now don't also
have one of the new mini, silent, wind turbines on their roofs - puts
energy into the grid when there's some over as well as providing most
of the power one house needs. If we ever do the self build thing,
we'll do all this and have no need of power supply and, if we have a
water source, no water and sewage either (compost toilets anyone?).
That would be really great.


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"You're a national treasure" - porl, 18.1.03

 

JackH emerged from their own little world to say

You seem to have the same SKoGA as BGN. My post specifically related to
Wales. You snipped that bit though.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4674207.stm indicates that whilst the
Welsh Assembly Govt. is all for the idea of wind generated power there is
significant resistance from a number of sources.

Whilst all the politics are resolved companies involved in the production
of the wind turbines are struggling
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_west/4138006.stm

 

Afraid that's not how it read, if you'd care to look back - maybe if you'd
specified 'Welsh NIMBYs', rather than referring to 'NIMBYs', and then citing
one example that happens to be in Wales, you may have a point.

 

marina wrote:
snip

URL or details on that please, I'm interested.

 

Personally I'd love one, or two.
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#An Engineer told me before he died...

 

platypus wrote

So the guardian has it that they don't hurt birds? Who are you going to
believe, some pre menstrual tree hugging fucking hippy with no brains
and even less of a clue who says it does or the fearless truth hunting
reporters from the Guardian who says it don't.


Hard one.

 

Wrong.

It must be nice to be ignorant..

Look up things like Gulf Stream switch off, polar ice cap melting. Both
of which would have *huge* impact on us - and both of which could
happen very quickly.

Phil

 

2 phrases:

Safety
Nuclear waste

Now I happen to be a fan of nuclear energy too - but it's by no means
as simple a solution as you might imagine.

Phil

 

In the sea - it would get corroded and leak. Not good.

Buried underground - ever heard of earthquakes? Ground water leakage?

Several thousand tonnes.

Phil