UK facing black-outs?
The BBC seems to think so. We'd tend to agree given the schizophrenic planning system in this country.
Keeping the lights on
OFGEM report today that UK electricity generation capacity will drop by 10%..
Not this year... but by this April
This is despite several ageing nuclear power stations continuing to run well past their intended life span. George Osbourne's new dash-for-gas it likely to represent only a short term fix as wholesale prices for imported gas continue to rise. In the meantime even some Tories has described the current policy as "short sighted and costly".
As we have long argued, the UK needs to rapidly install as much renewable capacity as it possibly can - and quickly. While no one technology holds the answer the simple truth is that we need a lot more of everything - wind, solar, hydro, tidal, biomass just to keep the lights on, let alone to meet our future electricity needs.
UPDPATE (24/02/2013)
The Sunday Express today reports that nearly 1 million homes faced power cuts in January as National Grid scrambled to find enough electricity during the cold weather. The article claims that old power stations (currently due for imminent closure) were bought back on line to make up the shortfall. If the same happens again next year some parts of the UK could face black outs.
Happy Gigawatt Day
Some time last week while no-one was watching and without any fanfare, we generated our 1,000,000'th kilowatt-hour of clean, green electricity.. so to put this right we would like to wish everyone a very....
Is UK nuclear dead?
UPDATE (08/02/2013) - Caroline Lucas, writing in the Guardian makes the case for the UK not needing nuclear to meet reduced CO2 emissions and keep the lights on.
George Monbiot seems to think it is. In his latest article he points to:
- Cumbria rejecting plans to create a nuclear dump site to hold radioactive waste
- Centrica announcing it does not intend to bid for new nuclear plant contracts
He then points to Germany and Japan where the scrapping of existing and new plant is expected to result in many millions of tonnes of additional greenhouse gases being released new coal and gas power stations.
In the UK the second dash-for-gas seems to be well under way, although where all this gas will come from is anyone's guess - fracking certainly isn't the answer. Rewnewables of all types are now subject to slashed incentives, vague planning policy and NIMBY backbenchers.
So will we see a return to dirty coal fired electricity generation here in the UK as well?
The Planners
BBC documentary The Planners shed a fascinating light on the planning process and in particular how much power is held by conservation professionals. For example the Chester couple wishing to install solar panels on their roof who were recommended for refusal despite the very large and shiny glass office block next door!
Thankfully in this case the council members chose to overrule the recommendation for refusal and allow the solar panels to go ahead. A win for common sense but highlights the very subjective nature of assessing the impacts of planning applications and in particular when not taking into account other nearby development. In this case it appeared personal objection to the solar panels resulted in ignoring the office block immediately adjacent. In other words a reduction in the sensitivity to change caused by other development was not adequately assessed.
In our own experience this is not altogether uncommon; we have been refused permission on the basis of impacts to a nearby hill fort that has a road running quite literally through the middle of it, a line of buzzing pylons and roaring traffic noise from a nearby motorway!
Protecting our heritage is important. But from what? Much of the existing policy was intended to prevent actual physical harm to historic sites and buildings and yet all too often the more subjective topic of impacts upon the setting are awarded too much weight, particularly then the historic asset is many kilometres from the development or the officer uses a "if its visible.. its unacceptable" yard-stick.
2012 report card
After a very busy year in which our first two turbines were commissioned, December turned out to be a stellar month with windspeeds well above average over much of the holiday period.
DG001 - Commissioned January 2012
Now running smoothly after some initial teething troubles with local grid instability resulting in frequent shutdowns. A faulty anemometer was replaced in the summer during the scheduled service and more recently some electronic upgrades have been made to the controller. We are now nearing the end of the first full 12 months of production with high expectations for the next year!
DG002 - Commissioned November 2012
Summer 2012 wet weather made construction and installation a nightmare with on-site conditions resembling a swamp at times. As a result the build took much longer than predicted with final commissioning delayed until the Autumn. Our luck did not improve when the failure of a nearby substation caused a power surge which damaged some components in the turbine controller. These were replaced and extra fuse protection has now been installed (also at DG001) to prevent any re-occurrence. Service technicians recently undertook the 500hr "shakedown" and pronounced a clean bill of health.
Some minor damage to the turbine door lock was discovered and a CCTV system has now been installed as a precaution.
DG003/DG004 - Scheduled for installation Summer-Autumn 2013
Pre-installation project development continues with connection and power purchase agreements at both sites.
Planning
Planning appeals at both Apex and Talbot Farm are now well under way with final submissions having been made to the Planning Inspectorate. A further appeal at Brayton Park (for a modification to an existing permission) will be submitted very shortly with every expectation that it will be allowed as per the original appeal.
Media bullsh**t on green energy deal
The Telegraph today boldly proclaims:
"WIND FARMS TO INCREASE ENERGY BILLS BY £178 A YEAR"
Err, hang on a minute....
The Government has agreed to invest £7.6 billion pounds a year towards meeting our 2020 targets.. by investing in new nuclear, renewables and carbon capture and storage. The Telegraph article goes on to say:
"Bills will go up over the next two decades by an estimated £178 a year under all the Government’s green and fuel poverty policies, with the contribution to nuclear and renewables making up £95 by 2020."
So of the £178 headline figure claimed to be solely because of wind farms...actually only £95 is from renewables at all - and even that figure includes expensive new nuclear power stations.
Many followers of the nuclear debate will already know that much of the UK's ageing nuclear infrastructure is at or beyond its life expectancy and companies such as EDF have been asking for huge subsidies to roll out new stations.
In fact DECC (the Department of Energy & Climate Change) say that 20% of the UKs entire current generation capacity of 82 gigawatts requires replacement this decade. DECC also point out that 250,000 new jobs will be created and that an over-dependence on gas would lead to higher annual energy bills - perhaps as much as £250.
So really, just how much of the £95 figure will go to nuclear verses all other forms of renewables, of which wind is just a single component? In September the Telegraph reported that new nuclear would add £70 to annual energy bills.
Even a dumbed-down 16 year old with GCSE maths can calculate that 95 - 70 = 25.
So the likely increase in annual bills (by 2020) resulting from all forms of non-nuclear renewable energy is £25.
Greenpeace attack "Toxic Tories"
Greenpeace yesterday revealed undercover investigations and interviews with Conservative ministers who are actively planning to water down the legally binding Climate Change Act and undermine energy secretary Ed Davey. In a scandal labelled as "energygate" Greenpeace claims:
Our investigation shows how leading Tories have launched an attack on the Climate Change Act, saying they have the blessing of George Osborne. We also reveal that David Cameron’s campaign manager for the Corby by-election was secretly behind the campaign of a rival candidate who ran against the Conservatives on an anti-clean energy platform.
John Sauven, Greenpeace executive director, claimed that their investigation revealed how..
Britain's energy future is at risk of being hijacked by a militant faction of climate-sceptic and anti-wind MPs on the radical right of the parliamentary Conservative party.
Shadow Energy and Climate Change Minister Caroline Flint condemned Tory energy minister John Hayes for undermining energy investor confidence for the second time in a month:
Onshore wind power is the cheapest and most developed form of clean energy, with the potential to create thousands of badly-needed new jobs in Britain
But government splits are undermining this key growth industry and putting Britain's energy security at risk.
David Cameron promised to lead the 'greenest government ever' but his failure to control his own ministers and MPs is scaring away investors and job-creators in the clean energy industry.
Visit the Greenpeace site and watch their video here.
Wind Turbine Syndrome - all in the mind?
A recent study by the University of Nottingham (reported in the Telegraph) found that the likelihood of suffering so-called "wind turbine syndrome" appears to be more to do with personality traits rather than anything else.
The study found while complaints were often genuinely made, there was actually no link between the amount of measured noise and levels of perceived nuisance or dis-comfort.
Dr Clare Lawrence who headed the study concluded:
This seems to agree with our experience that most people who fear turbine noise will affect them badly are generally predisposed against wind power. The power of the mind being as it is... if you decide something is going to be bad - it probably will be.