No 2030 Carbon Target For UK

The UK government is about to publish it's long awaited Energy Bill. It's primary aim is to keep Britain's lights on when so many power plants are due to be retired whilst our energy requirements are growing.

However, it could also be a golden opportunity to move Britain towards a much lower carbon future. This would not only mean that we're 'doing our bit' to save the planet from climate change, but it would also stabilise our household fuel bills.

You see, at the moment, the UK, like most countries, gets the bulk of it's energy requirements from coal, gas, and oil. The cost of these are all subject to market forces, which explains why our annual energy bills are constantly changing, usually in an upwards direction.

With renewable energy though, whilst it may seem expensive to install, it's long-term costs are both low and stable. That's because the fuel (from wind, wave, and solar) comes free and the solar panels, turbines etc. that generate it, are low maintenance. Admittedly, the UK can't get all it's energy from renewables, but there's no reason why we can't get around 25% of our needs from them. Add in some new nuclear, energy saving measures, and a smart grid, and we've got ourselves a modern, clean, reliable, low cost, home grown energy system.

So, if we want cheaper, more predictable bills in the future, we go for renewables now.

Which brings me back to that Energy Bill.

If we are to encourage more renewables, then one of the best things the government can do is commit to a long-term carbon target. This would give private investors the confidence to commit their money to green energy. Which would give our economy a much needed boost and generate thousands of new jobs.

This was why many were calling on the government to set a target for 2030.

Unfortunately, the self-proclaimed 'greenest government ever' appears to be run by the chancellor, George Osborne, and he is more interested in a new dash-for-gas which would clearly screw any carbon target.

So, guess what? They decided not to set a target. Way to create uncertainty guys!

Solar Panel Problems Part 2

My original idea here was to show photos of hopeless solar panel set-ups. But, as is my style, I did a bit of research before I went for it.

One thing you always hear about solar is that your panels should always face south (or as close to as possible).

When you think about it, that makes sense: Panels facing south will see more of the sun than ones facing any other direction.

But how big a difference does, say, an east or west facing set-up actually make? Answer: Around a 20% reduction versus a similar system that faces south.

That's a bit less of hit than I would have imagined. After all, they'd only see the sun for about half the the day time. But, of course, they would see the sun at times a south facing array never would. So, I guess, most of the reduction comes from the sun not being at an ideal elevation some of the time.

Which brings me to the photo. This solar array has 20 panels and faces west. With that 20% reduction I mentioned above, that effectively means they'll only be getting as much electric as a 16 panel, south facing set-up. Put another way, the panels will take a fifth longer to pay back than if they looked south. That could mean 2 or 3 extra years.

Hopefully the solar panel salesperson made all this clear to the buyers and wasn't just thinking of their commission on this £12k to £15k system.

Part 1 here.

Are We Too Stupid To Survive?

We rather grandly call our species Homo sapiens: 'wise man'.

Wise man? What a joke. Certainly we're clever, imaginative, and inventive. But wise...?

The 21st century will be a make-or-break one for our species. Either we'll read the writing on the wall (Writ large by our finest minds) and have the wisdom to head off pending disaster, or continue staring stupidly into the on-coming headlights until it's too late.

Climate change, ocean acidification, nitrogen pollution, mass extinction, unsustainable economic growth, and environmental collapse. They're all bullets with our name on them. They've been clearly identified, we even have potential solutions laid out for us, but we refuse to change our ways. We fear change, especially those of us who have a vested interest in business-as-usual.

But if we carry on the way we are, there can be no more "business-as-usual".

Are we too stupid to survive?

Solar Panels Problems Part 1

I see a lot of solar panels in my corner of England.

Most of them look as though they will do their job properly and generate plenty of energy.

Occasionally I see ones that are clearly a waste of money.

Take a look at these photos of solar heating panels that came with these new build terrace houses.

The first thing you notice about it is there's a huge tree looming over them just a few metres away!

This breaks a basic rule for solar panels in a big way: Avoid having them in the shade, even partial shade. It dramatically cuts their output.

And it gets worse.

These panels face almost exactly West. Not South, as panels need to if you're going to get full use out of the sun.

In other words, these panels will only generate heat towards the end of the day, when the sun is at it's weakest.

What were the architects thinking?