Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Martyn1981

More research into electrical flight:

Rolls-Royce Electric Airplane Unveiled & Ready To Race

We have more news on the Rolls-Royce electric airplane (e-plane) ACCEL, as it was unveiled in front of an eager crowd at the Gloucestershire Airport this week, perfect for the holiday season.

Rolls-Royce wants to build the world’s fastest electric aircraft and has now begun integrating its electrical propulsion platform for this ultimate aim. The plan is for the e-plane to reach over 300 mph (480+ km/h, 417+ kt) by late spring 2020. As part of its initiative called ACCEL — “Accelerating the Electrification of Flight” — Rolls-Royce will race the e-plane in the upcoming Air Race E we wrote about previously following an interview with its CEO, Jeff Zaltman.

Martyn1981

Nothing special, but I just thought the pic was nice showing one of the massive 5.6MW nacelles for on-shore wind (remember that off-shore WT's are now heading into double figures now, blimey):

Vestas completes first EnVentus nacelle

gefnew

Giant solar farm built in North Yorkshire


Construction of a 198-acre solar farm in North Yorkshire, described by developers as "the UK’s most advanced solar farm", has been completed.

Gridserve
The farm, near Easingwold, is home to 90,000 solar panels capable of tracking the light from sunrise to sunset.
It is one of two being built in Yorkshire for Warrington Borough Council, with power generated at the Easingwold site due to be sold on the open market.
A second site near Bilton, in East Yorkshire, will supply all the council's electricity needs in a move it says will cut bills by up to £2m a year.
Toddington Harper, the chief executive of Gridserve, which built the farm, says it's a big step towards the UK's target of zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Mr Harper says: "The panels are called bi-facial which means they generate energy on both sides and so produce more energy.
"They are also on trackers, which means they follow the sun east to west and so generate a lot more energy throughout the day."

NigeWick

gefnew wrote: »

Giant solar farm built in North Yorkshire

Hopefully growing meat or mushrooms under the panels.

silverwhistle

NigeWick wrote: »

Hopefully growing meat or mushrooms under the panels.

Well, the local poachers might be setting a few snares for rabbits, and would the owners mind much?

EricMears

I'm still puzzled as to why Warrington Borough Council have an interest in solar farms in Yorkshire ! AFAIK, Hull is no sunnier than Warrington. You could perhaps understand them deciding to invest in (say) Cornwall but reason(s) for Yorkshire are not clear.

JKenH

EricMears wrote: »

I'm still puzzled as to why Warrington Borough Council have an interest in solar farms in Yorkshire ! AFAIK, Hull is no sunnier than Warrington. You could perhaps understand them deciding to invest in (say) Cornwall but reason(s) for Yorkshire are not clear.

I imagine land is a bit expensive in Warrington. Isn’t that Footballers Wives territory. NIMBYs perhaps.

ed110220

EricMears wrote: »

I'm still puzzled as to why Warrington Borough Council have an interest in solar farms in Yorkshire ! AFAIK, Hull is no sunnier than Warrington. You could perhaps understand them deciding to invest in (say) Cornwall but reason(s) for Yorkshire are not clear.

PVGIS suggests that the Yorkshire site is a little sunnier than Warrington (not a big surprise as broadly the west tends to be cloudier than the east). But people tend to fixate on and overestimate the importance of solar irradiation and underestimate the things like availability and cost of grid connections, planning constraints, where there is more demand for electricity etc. Perhaps understandable as they are less obvious.

EricMears

ed110220 wrote: »

PVGIS suggests that the Yorkshire site is a little sunnier than Warrington

Were I a Warrington ratepayer, I think I'd be asking why the council were creating jobs a hundred miles away rather than in their own area.

Martyn1981

More on the WWS study/report, this time looking at the 'cost' and, as many of us have been suggesting (arguing), it's not really a cost if the alternative is a much bigger bill.

100% Wind, Water, & Solar Energy Can & Should Be The Goal, Costs Less

Is it gonna be costly? Oh, yeah. The team figures about $73 trillion will be needed to get it done worldwide. But that’s hardly the end of the financial discussion. They say the world can get to 80% renewable energy by 2030 and complete the transition by 2050. And doing so will pay some pretty hefty dividends — money that can be used to offset the cost. Global energy needs would be reduced by 57%. That in turn would reduce the amount of money the world spends on energy each year from $17.7 trillion to $6.6 trillion, a savings of $12.1 trillion a year. But it’s the social cost savings that are truly staggering — you know, things like death and disease caused by pollution from burning fossil fuels. The team pegs those costs at $76 trillion a year now but claims they will be reduced to $6.8 trillion annually by transitioning to 100% clean energy.

Add those two together and you get $80 trillion a year in benefits. Multiply that by the 10 years between now and 2030 and the transition to clean energy could save the world $800 trillion in avoidable costs. And, of course, all the energy generated by renewables won’t be given away. It will be sold at market prices, bringing in trillions more dollars.

But let’s say you’re a skeptic. Okay, cut those estimates in half. You still wind up with more than $400 trillion in savings over a decade on an investment of $76 trillion — more than a 500% return on your investment. What person wouldn’t jump at that deal?

Oh, you can’t put an accurate price on social costs, you say? Fine, ask yourself this question: How much would you pay to give your children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren a sustainable world where they can live long and productive lives free of cognitive impairment, emphysema, cardiovascular disease, and pulmonary issues? If you said “nothing,” stop reading immediately and go order yourself a MAGA hat.*

[My bold. M.]

*Or perhaps post your denial response on the alternative thread, not this one.