Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Renewables.

Whilst enjoying petrol V8 I do love to see well executed renewable projects. Watching youtoob and came across this article by the Electric Viking around Australia building a massive solar panel farm and it increasing the lives of sheep on the same land.



Also one on the UK Wind Power and North Sea. I learnt a lot today.

I'm not a naysayer but they built a big solar farm on fields just a few hundred yards down the road from me. It was farmland that had been producing food crops. The planning application stated that the farm would graze animals around the panels. When it was new the farmer said it would need a couple of years to recover before sheep could graze it. Four years later we asked again when would animals appear to be told by the solar company that the risks of having animals around high voltage was too great to contemplate!
So we've lost productive land and gained solar panels which do not actually produce the claimed power most of the year (although they must be doing well at the moment) and a bunch of diesel...yes diesel engines which kick in to produce electricity when the sun goes behind clouds.........
A fair difference between what was promised and what has actually happened.

A very good friend of mine used to be the sales director for Varta, he told me that more co2 was produced making the wind machines than the amount they saved.

And it exhausts through Milibrains arse.

Not even remotely accurate I'm afraid.

Throughout its entire life, from mining/extraction of materials, construction, transport, location, and generating life, a wind turbine is responsible for around 5 to 15g CO2 equivalent per kWh generated over its lifespan, making it pretty much the leader in clean energy and offsetting the carbon impact of its production in the first 6 months.

Over a typical 25 year lifespan it produces about 80 times more energy than that needed to build it, operate it, and scrap it at end of life.

There was a public meeting in our village hall to showcase a large solar factory on land between here and the next village. Part of the sales pitch was that the land would be cleared art the end of the planned life and fully restored. I asked if the funds to do all of this work were being lodged in an escrow account to ensure that it could be completed in 30 years time.

You can guess the answer to that question. I am unlikely to be here in 30 years time but I predict the operating company mysteriously going out of business in 29.5 years leaving the land owner with the problem.

If they last 25 years though. In the California hills and valleys which was postulated as the perfect place for them, they gave up trying to repair them many years ago. Too expensive so they've been left to rot.
Surely the assumptions made by the people making the money should be at least questioned?

Absolutely they should. They need to be subjected to rigorous analysis and testing.

As should the claims of the fossil fuel lobby who have been fighting against cheap renewables for decades now.

It's worth noting that the wind turbines put up in California during the 1980's wind rush were constructed to take advantage of tax breaks and subsidies, and were typically very small scale in the 60 to 100KWh range.

Whilst it's true that many were abandoned once the subsidies dried up, it's also true that they are being replaced with modern megawatt class turbines, where a single new turbine can replace 10 to 15 of the old ones - the Altamont Pass wind farm being an example. But at 576 MW it's hardly a big operation compared to the UK where for example Hornsea 2 off the Yorkshire coast is 1320MW and Hornsea 1 is 1200 MW

For the UK it still seems that tidal is the most reliable twice a day solution, but with astronomical lead in costs.They have talked about the Bristol Channel, but nobody has the money or inclination. Solar panels are so inefficient, even though research continues. Reducing demand is the other option and we are heading that way with costs to the consumer anyway, but with the impact on industry and jobs. Denby pottery close to where the family live has called it a day, because of spiralling costs.