The impact of green energy.

For the firsit twenty years of his retirement DH was involvedin the installation of offshore wind turbines.But he had no illusions about the contribution they could make to our energy needs

like solar they are dependent on sun and wind and these cannot be turned on and off like gas or biomass. When we need power most they are leasr available. Battery storage like nuclear fussion is always just over the horizon. Until then we need gas and much more nuclear energy.

David, that's really bringing it down to "What's in it for me?" level but I wish everyone had your attitude & didn't just see "climate change" & read "Woke" & start clutching at a load of climate-change denier myths as a knee-jerk reaction.

My son stores electricity generated by his solar panels in a battery

There's always someone with something negative to say. I'm sure a lot of the old turbine will be recycled., after all, we can recycled all sorts of things now.

BlueBelle
^ Just be glad he’s got a job^

I congratulated him enthusiastically!

valdavi

David, that's really bringing it down to "What's in it for me?" level but I wish everyone had your attitude & didn't just see "climate change" & read "Woke" & start clutching at a load of climate-change denier myths as a knee-jerk reaction.

Yep, I don’t mind being an eco warrior if the price is right only a fool “ Tilts at Windmills” pun intended.

Perhaps I am different I follow government policy, unlike many others who are determined to fight against it.

Whitewave Can your son store enough electricity in his battery tosupply a small town for threemonfhs? This is what will
Be required for wind or solar to be included in baseload. Thebigger the battery, the bigger the danger of explosion and the bigger the explosion.

Sarnia When one of my sons was in 6th year he produced a project on windpower. The school contacted us as they felt it was a very viable project for energy production. They wanted to submit the details for a patent but t didn't have funds and neither did we. That was 35 years ago. That son went to Uni for engineering. Wave power has been very slow to be developed.

M0nica

Whitewave Can your son store enough electricity in his battery tosupply a small town for threemonfhs? This is what will
Be required for wind or solar to be included in baseload. Thebigger the battery, the bigger the danger of explosion and the bigger the explosion.

No batteries are only going to spread the load extending the day not over a number of days, the base load needs to be supplied by nuclear, the French have been doing it for decades.

If we are ever going to have a green hydrogen fuel source electricity has got to be increased exponentially, that’s going to take a lot of commitment for a lot of years.

David49 I am in complete agreement . There was an error in the last line of my last post. For 'electricity' read 'nuclear'

M0nica

David49 I am in complete agreement . There was an error in the last line of my last post. For 'electricity' read 'nuclear'

They were discussing “Space Solar” beaming it back to earth on news today, apparently they have calculated that it only has half the carbon footprint of current solar.
Both Wind and Nuclear currently have half the carbon foot print so no advantage. Nuclear Fusion would be a big step forward but it seems as far off as ever despite many projects to make it work.

Nuclear is no answer to the pressing need for reduction in CO2 production. It’s too slow and too expensive. The UK claimed to be going to build 8 new nuclear stations in 2010. How are we doing? One was started in 2016 and will start delivering electricity some time in the 2030s. That’s it.

What bothers me is where the materials used to make these come from.

M0nica

Whitewave Can your son store enough electricity in his battery tosupply a small town for threemonfhs? This is what will
Be required for wind or solar to be included in baseload. Thebigger the battery, the bigger the danger of explosion and the bigger the explosion.

Never underestimate, technology. The ability to store electricity safely is not as far away as you appear to be implying.

grandMattie

What bothers me is where the materials used to make these come from.

Same place as we get materials for cars, washing machines etc etc, which take far far more if the earths resources!

Whitewavemark2

M0nica

Whitewave Can your son store enough electricity in his battery tosupply a small town for threemonfhs? This is what will
Be required for wind or solar to be included in baseload. Thebigger the battery, the bigger the danger of explosion and the bigger the explosion.

Never underestimate, technology. The ability to store electricity safely is not as far away as you appear to be implying.

Energy is much cheaper to store as a stable commodity, coal, gas or in the future hydrogen, energy density of any battery is pretty poor.
Since the advent of Lithium technology improvement has been very slow, a Tesla battery is just hundreds of torch batteries connected together, other technologies have not progressed - yet.

Good on your gt nephew!

I know plenty of people involved in renewable energy here in Scotland where our targets are being reached I believe.
Heriot Watt University is at the forefront of innovation if your DGC are looking for a place to study.

We used to subscribe to the Ecologist magazine but found it too depressing. Everything we do or use seems to be implicated in either damaging the environment or making weapons of war.

Grammaretto
*Everything we do or use seems to be implicated in either damaging the environment^
Sorry for the partial quote , but my 6 year olds argued that rinsing the plastic cartons was wasting water but not rinsing them they would be smelly and spread disease.

If it wasn't so serious it would be funny Mollygo.

One problem solved as another is created.
My philosophy is that every bit we can do helps but that we can't solve all the problems but if we can use less packaging, use less fuel etc etc we are at least moving in the right direction.

We have a friend who works for a gas turbine company, and apparently many wind turbine purchases are accompanied by a gas turbine purchase for when the wind doesn't blow or the turbine goes wrong.

Everyone still seems to ignore wave or tidal production of power which has been working successfully in France since the 1960's.

The Severn Estuary amongst others was considered but environmentalists put a stop to that.

That’s not the case David49. The main barrier to the development of the barrage was economic. However, it’s still under consideration, and an Independent Commission reported on the scheme in March of this year.
www.severncommission.co.uk/

About 96% of wind turbines ( not blades) are made from recycled steel/ copper etc.
The blades are being used in the production of cement. A horror product 😡

It’s cases like this that make the my blood boil.

www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/tory-donor-set-rake-millions-32108655