Green Energy
During this period of lock down I have watched more U-Tube stuff than actual TV. Some of the people I follow are Cruising the Cut and Sailing Yacht Florence.
Whilst browsing U-Tube however, I came across some pretty serious thought provoking stuff as well. One such is Michael Moores Planet of the Humans. This is another view of renewable energy. It's a long film so bear with it if you can. If your not familiar with Michael Moore just google him and see his credentials before watching the film.
I thought I brought my house solar panels for green reasons but if i'm honest it was for profit
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Exactly!
Too many people caught up in the green religion, rather than looking at the green science!
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Oneputt
Could you paraphrase a bit without the need to watch the film?
David
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I have just "endured?" most of the film ,and it basically comes to the conclusion as some are already aware ,that for the planet to go "green" as those it seems with a vested interest want,
It will be far more damaging to the planet ,with what resources are needed for all the green? ideas and the manufacture of them,
And fossil fuels will still be needed
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I've short cut it by looking at the reviews. Here's one from Sky >LINK< doesn't look as though the critic or scientists have been impressed.
I expect your solar panels have achieved both profit and energy saving Oneputt, so that's not a problem if you've had them long enough to cover the outlay and they are still efficient.
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Thanks Brue
I suppose however we produce the energy we need there will be an initial cost in terms of emissions from the manufacture of the wind turbines/solar panels. However unlike burning fossil fuels which continue to produce emissions the greener energy option will continue to produce clean energy for years into the future. I think I may have said this before but rather than pay people to produce their own energy from say solar panels I would prefer the Government to make a one off contribution to funding their installation in the first place. From that point those that take that funding will not only reduce their personal electricity charges but could be paid for any excess going to the Grid but only be paid the going rate which would be much lower than some feedback tariffs.
David
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I think the shocking part for me is the amount of energy spent getting the various materials together, (raping the planet) then the manufacturing and finally the decommissioning and destruction of the generator is taking vast amounts of energy for little gain. I think one of the shocks for me that all the companies purporting to be 100% renewable are in fact telling porkies. Of course some people are getting mega rich out of this.
Up in North Norfolk there are tens of thousands of acres of good food production land being used to provide fuel (usually maize) for biomass. The biomass industry tells us that only 1.6% of agricultural land is used. I am sceptical because of the subsidies. Apparent;y In 2016, energy companies received around £891 million in UK subsidies for generating electricity from bio-energy and the vast majority of that came from burning wood. A lot of the wood is transported from abroad. These bio plants kick out substantial greenhouse gases but still it counts toward our renewable energy targets,
My only real experience of green energy is my own solar panels. If it hadn't been for the subsidies I wouldn't have brought them. As it is. its been a really good investment. The panels are returning about 18%/year tax free until about 2034. Even if I have to replace panels over the coming years I will still be making a great return.
Until we find a way to store the energy from renewable's I think we are wasting earths precious resources and wasting a lot of the power produced
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I pointed out that the cost of going ‘green’ was not very green at all due to most of the ‘greening’ work was in China. I remember being a lone voice back then. It was Merve’s thread. I was not popular at all. As I said at the time-I was dealing in facts not attacks🤷🏻♂️. The main problem is all the rare earth minerals that are needed for the greening, they being finite resources☹️
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What we all need to realise is that we live on a finite planet. Whether we use oil, solar or wind, we should tread softly.
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So the ones who are in bed with the billionaires making billions from pseudo-green technologies, don't like a film exposing their nefarious activities.
...Not sure why that would be?
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I looked up the reviews just out of interest as I won't be looking at the youtube film. I'm a bit sceptical of a film maker doing this when we know fossils fuels will run out. There are a lot of projects out there to find renewables in the best sense of the word. If he wants to offer his views that's ok by me. As long as it doesn't set us back on the long road to improving our energy systems for future generations. We've had the benefits of fossil fuels but they won't.
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I think that was the whole point though - going green is not about less pollution, its about making billionaires richer and actually results in accelerating pollution and the destruction of limited resources and ecosystems.
I'll be honest, I thought it was going to be a BS film, and whilst I remain sceptical about some aspects, the opening up of the money and power trails is a real eye opener.
It is dry and the presenter to monotone, but definitely worth a proper watch all the way through!
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What is "renewables, in the best sense of the word" Brue?
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Sustainable energy, I'm sure you know what that means, the opposite of finite resources.
I think you could argue till the proverbial "cows come home" but we are running out of time to sort this one. Yes, it costs money so people want a return on their investments in this tough old world. maybe we'll do it for free in the future? That would be good.
I'll leave it at that.
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Will watch at some point OP. We are sticking to one hour of TV per day, usually as we eat a meal. We found lots of Simon Reeves’ travel documentaries on BBC Iplayer. Looks at places from an entirely different point of view. We enjoy the sugar coated versions such as Tony Robinson’s current series, but these are total eye openers. You can only gasp in horror at what is happening in certain countries in terms of environmental damage and the impact it is having on local communities as well as the World generally. Planet Earth doesn’t have a prayer quite frankly if all we do is ponder on tinkering with trivial.
brue, the difference in air quality is amazing. You can smell the flowers now. 👍
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‘Sustainable energy’ is the perfect way to describe what is needed with maybe the word ‘clean’ in the mix👍🏻
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"Sustainable energy, I'm sure you know what that means, the opposite of finite resources. wink"
I do, but do you?
That is my point and the point of the film exactly, the majority of the "sustainable" sources (biomass, solar, wind) are nothing like sustainable, they use more energy to create and sustain them, including infrastructure, as a whole life cycle (some as short as 15-20 years life span), that the off-set they provide is negative - i.e. Over the whole life cycle we are just making it worse from a true environmental perspective....other than the money being generated!
Unless you have actually watched the film it's fairly pointless debating it as you need understand the information presented, rather than what you currently think about the subject. You cannot form an opinion on the content of a comprehensive 1 hour 30 minute film, from a paragraph review based on what people potentially being exposed by the film say.
We need to save the planet, I want green solutions, but when did politicians start being driven by science rather than big business.
Green tech is the new oil rush, there is so much money up for grabs, whether it is actually green or not in the long term is inconsequential.
80% of "sustainable" energy is Biomass - it is chopped down all over the world, destroying habitats and shipped across the world in oil burning ships. To generate 1 year of energy for the US, it would take all the trees in the US...then what? - It simply is NOT sustainable.
I would implore you to watch the film and then come back and tell me I'm wrong!
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Sustainable energy, and green energy are the same thing
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Politicians are currently always saying that they are following scientific advice re the virus. That's because nobody really had a clue regarding what was going to happen, so they took advice thereby covering their own b******es. After all, they are politicians
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CJ, you've been vociferous in the past about the oil industry, implying that you've been involved with it, so perhaps you have a vested interest but as you well know fossil fuels are not renewable. That's my last word on the matter and that is the whole point in the search for sustainable energy, finding renewables and finding the least polluting ones, not for us but for future generations who won't have access to oil and gas, it will all be gone.
I can form an opinion from a review but it wasn't the review that has given me my own thoughts on the matter, they've been there a long time. The main thought is "what are we going to do when fossil fuels run out?"
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If we keep on using oil as we have done (and more) then as it diminishes there will be even more interference, strife and chaos (though war and conflict) in those areas where it is extracted that humankind might make itself extinct thus saving whatever is left living on Earth - if there is anything!
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