Hours after a massive earthquake rattled Japan, environmental advocates connected the natural disaster to global warming. The president of the European Economic and Social Committee, Staffan Nilsson, issued a statement calling for solidarity in tackling the global warming problem.
“Some islands affected by climate change have been hit,” said Nilsson. “Has not the time come to demonstrate on solidarity — not least solidarity in combating and adapting to climate change and global warming?”
“Mother Nature has again given us a sign that that is what we need to do,” he added.
Global warming enthusiasts have also taken to Twitter to raise awareness of the need to respond to the earthquake by finally acting on climate change. And the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Lee Doren compiled some of the best ones.
Some examples:
AliceTMBFan said “2 hours of geography earlier talking about Japan has left me thinking…maybe global warming is way more serious then we thought…”
Arbiterofwords tweeted “I’m worried that Japan earthquake, on top of other recent natural ‘disasters’, is a sign we’ve passed point of no return for climate change.”
MrVikas said “Events like the #Japan #earthquake and #tsunami MUST keep #climate change at forefront of policy thought:
Tayyclayy noted her frustration by tweeting “An earthquake with an 8.9 magnitude struck Japan.. And some say climate change isn’t real?!”
DanFranklin postulated “Never really believed all this global warming talk, but after the earthquake in NZ and today in Japan. Maybe we’ve ruined the world.”
And TeamIanHarding tweeted “While Japan witnessed an earthquake we were talking about the problems that global warming leads to in school. Think. Pray. And change.”
Do they have a point?
“Global warming alarmists will exploit any natural disaster to promote their anti-fossil fuel agenda,” Tom Borelli of the Free Enterprise Project told The Daily Caller, adding that the climate change reaction is a result of the “global warming spin machine.”
“First it’s global warming, then it’s climate change, now it’s probably tectonic instability — no doubt all caused by man,” he said.
When contacted by TheDC, Dan Weiss, Director of Climate Strategy at the Center for American Progress, also expressed skepticism at the link between global warming and the earthquake in Japan.
“I am not a scientist,” said Weiss, “but I have never heard of a link between global warming and earthquakes.”
full article
Saturday 12 March 2011
Sunday 13 February 2011
FIT for purpose?
This week, the UK’s Energy Secretary Chris Huhne announced a comprehensive review of the Feed in Tariffs (FITs) scheme “following growing evidence that large-scale solar farms could soak up money intended to help homes, communities and small businesses generate their own electricity.”
Feed-in-tariff system (inherited from the previous Labour government), is a curious affair, particularly if one considers that the primary goal of such instruments is arguably incentivising the installation of renewable technology that will produce the greatest amount of clean, low-carbon power at the lowest possible price. Under the current arrangements the greater the capacity installed for any one project, the lower the feed-in-tariff. Furthermore, photovoltaic systems get preferential subsidies to wind turbines, particularly at the higher end of the scale in terms of generating capacity. A 5MW solar farm would, in the first year of the scheme, receive 29.3p/kWh over a 25 year period, while a 5MW wind farm would be receiving just 4.5p/kWh over a 20 year period. The scheme has GBP360m allocated to it, making it something of a zero-sum game for the various technologies positioned to take advantage of it.
full article
Feed-in-tariff system (inherited from the previous Labour government), is a curious affair, particularly if one considers that the primary goal of such instruments is arguably incentivising the installation of renewable technology that will produce the greatest amount of clean, low-carbon power at the lowest possible price. Under the current arrangements the greater the capacity installed for any one project, the lower the feed-in-tariff. Furthermore, photovoltaic systems get preferential subsidies to wind turbines, particularly at the higher end of the scale in terms of generating capacity. A 5MW solar farm would, in the first year of the scheme, receive 29.3p/kWh over a 25 year period, while a 5MW wind farm would be receiving just 4.5p/kWh over a 20 year period. The scheme has GBP360m allocated to it, making it something of a zero-sum game for the various technologies positioned to take advantage of it.
full article
Is investing in on-farm solar power worthwhile?
Glastonbury festival’s Michael Eavis has become the UK’s first farmer to install a large solar array on the roof of a cow shed. Many others are queuing up to follow his lead, but how beneficial is this technology, and is the large capital outlay it requires really worthwhile?
With a £500,000 loan over 10 years from Triodos Bank, and £70,000 of his own capital, Mr Eavis visited a solar panel factory in Durham to learn about the technology and negotiate on price.
The 1,116 panels, weighing about 25 tonnes, were fitted to the roof of the 1,500sq.m barn, and are capable of producing 200kW per hour - enough to power 40 homes annually.
“We should be generating £50,000 of electricity a year - it will pay back within 10 or 12 years.”
About 40 per cent of the electricity would be used on the farm, with the remainder exported to the National Grid.
“There is a lot of form-filling to export to the grid - they treat it like a nuclear power station,” says Mr Eavis. He also had to upgrade the farm’s transformer to cope with the extra load, at a cost of £50,000.
Anyone considering installing solar PV should get an independent performance appraisal for the site to get an accurate forecast of productivity.
A grid survey by the electricity supplier, at a cost of about £1,000, would reveal whether upgrades to the network - costing £100,000s - may be required.
In-field solar arrays may also need extra security, and could change the land use away from agriculture, says Dan Davies from SolarCentury. Large installations up to 5mW would probably require backing from an investor. A variety of agreements are available.
Most small installations will not require planning permission, but in-field arrays may do.
Take advice from your local planning authority, and consult with neighbours and local stakeholders to ensure you have their support before you start.
Feed-in Tariff Income could be tax-free for individuals, but business rates are likely to be payable on any installation, while in-field arrays could reduce the Single Farm Payment and eligibility for agricultural tax reliefs.
full article
With a £500,000 loan over 10 years from Triodos Bank, and £70,000 of his own capital, Mr Eavis visited a solar panel factory in Durham to learn about the technology and negotiate on price.
The 1,116 panels, weighing about 25 tonnes, were fitted to the roof of the 1,500sq.m barn, and are capable of producing 200kW per hour - enough to power 40 homes annually.
“We should be generating £50,000 of electricity a year - it will pay back within 10 or 12 years.”
About 40 per cent of the electricity would be used on the farm, with the remainder exported to the National Grid.
“There is a lot of form-filling to export to the grid - they treat it like a nuclear power station,” says Mr Eavis. He also had to upgrade the farm’s transformer to cope with the extra load, at a cost of £50,000.
Anyone considering installing solar PV should get an independent performance appraisal for the site to get an accurate forecast of productivity.
A grid survey by the electricity supplier, at a cost of about £1,000, would reveal whether upgrades to the network - costing £100,000s - may be required.
In-field solar arrays may also need extra security, and could change the land use away from agriculture, says Dan Davies from SolarCentury. Large installations up to 5mW would probably require backing from an investor. A variety of agreements are available.
Most small installations will not require planning permission, but in-field arrays may do.
Take advice from your local planning authority, and consult with neighbours and local stakeholders to ensure you have their support before you start.
Feed-in Tariff Income could be tax-free for individuals, but business rates are likely to be payable on any installation, while in-field arrays could reduce the Single Farm Payment and eligibility for agricultural tax reliefs.
full article
Tuesday 8 February 2011
Huhne takes action on solar farm threat
Energy Secretary Chris Huhne has launched a review of the Feed in Tariffs (FITs) scheme following growing evidence that large scale solar farms could soak up money intended to help homes, communities and small businesses generate their own electricity.
More than 21,000 installations have been registered to date. The vast majority of these are domestic installations, including solar panels, wind turbines and microhydro plants.
“Large scale solar installations weren’t anticipated under the FITs scheme we inherited and I’m concerned this could mean that money meant for people who want to produce their own green electricity has the potential to be directed towards large scale commercial solar projects.”
full article
More than 21,000 installations have been registered to date. The vast majority of these are domestic installations, including solar panels, wind turbines and microhydro plants.
“Large scale solar installations weren’t anticipated under the FITs scheme we inherited and I’m concerned this could mean that money meant for people who want to produce their own green electricity has the potential to be directed towards large scale commercial solar projects.”
full article
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