Quote:
Originally Posted by Boreas
While we're "giving it time" (green energy) the Europeans and the Chinese are forging ahead. We're forfeiting our opportunity to be anything other than the paying customers of foreign corporations.
John
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There's a considerable downside to 'green' energy, it depends on too many variables to be reliable. Looking at wind turbines, after taking into account building costs, material costs and increasing maintenance costs until they have to be replaced, how green are they? When the wind blows slow they don't work and in high wind, especially if it's gusty, they have to shut down.
Accepting that newspapers love bad news (scary headlines sell more papers) most say we're heading for a record hot summer. Already in Scotland a lot of reservoirs are low, and that reduces available hydro power. Our conventional power stations don't produce enough to cover the shortfall (this is why we're buying electricity from France) and the green lobby are doing their level best to stop planning permission being given for new nuclear power stations on safety grounds. Like them or not, they have a point. Until we discover a reliable and safe way to dispose of nuclear waste, how much sense does it make to produce more of it?