What "green" technology isn't being used that should be?
Discussion
Setting aside the whole CO2/climate change issue for a thread, what technologies are out there, that would reduce our impact on the environment (from diesel particulates to landfill and everything in between)? I don't subscribe to the whole CO2 bandwagon, but I'm keen to reduce my electricity bill so I can spend the money on pornart instead.
What about this microgeneration lark? What about solar panels? What about <insert clever but unheard-of technology here>?
I have a particular bee in my bonnet about packaging - to wit, the sheer amount of the bloody stuff that's foisted upon us at a time when we have sixteen bins and monthly rubbish collections. Why, for example, do sausages come in a sealed package and a cardboard sleeve? Why not just print the stuff on the sleeve directly onto the plastic packaging?
What about this microgeneration lark? What about solar panels? What about <insert clever but unheard-of technology here>?
I have a particular bee in my bonnet about packaging - to wit, the sheer amount of the bloody stuff that's foisted upon us at a time when we have sixteen bins and monthly rubbish collections. Why, for example, do sausages come in a sealed package and a cardboard sleeve? Why not just print the stuff on the sleeve directly onto the plastic packaging?
Rainwater harvesting - for bog flushing, garden watering and washing machine rinse cycles etc. It's not like we don't have enough of the stuff in the UK 
.
In Oz it is viewed as an essential commodity and all new builds have rainwater collection tanks as part of the new build regs. We are environmentally very slow to catch on in the UK...
.In Oz it is viewed as an essential commodity and all new builds have rainwater collection tanks as part of the new build regs. We are environmentally very slow to catch on in the UK...
Edited by FWDRacer on Thursday 16th July 08:08
Get ir dof diesel cars- that'll reduce the problem of soot (and the problem of all the diesel cars broken down at the side of the road with blocked particulate filters).
Ged rid of catalytic converters on petrol cars- they increase the CO2 output, after all.
Ground pump heating. It's in use, but as a minority.
Tidal power. Waves are subject to weather conditions- tides are guaranteed. We get 30' tides up here- making a generator to make the most of that shouldn't be difficult.
Ged rid of catalytic converters on petrol cars- they increase the CO2 output, after all.
Ground pump heating. It's in use, but as a minority.
Tidal power. Waves are subject to weather conditions- tides are guaranteed. We get 30' tides up here- making a generator to make the most of that shouldn't be difficult.
The whole packaging thing is annoying and I'm sure that using more glass bottles rather than plastic and less packaging will make a big difference to the environment.
I also think that junk mail should be made illegal as the amount I get through the letterbox that goes straight into the recycle bin is amazing.
I also think that junk mail should be made illegal as the amount I get through the letterbox that goes straight into the recycle bin is amazing.
I for one would like to know the so-called "green" break-even point of these eye-sore windmills that are spreading around our countryside. That includes:
- the manufacturing process & ship-to-site process
- the concrete foundations to mount them
- the infrastructure of roadways to remote areas to install & maintain them
- decomissioning
So there should be "green" technology in there somewhere, but I don't believe there is.
I recently spoke about this to a "green" brother in-law, and his view is that he ignores the list above, and just focuses on the in-operation "goodness" it provided.
- the manufacturing process & ship-to-site process
- the concrete foundations to mount them
- the infrastructure of roadways to remote areas to install & maintain them
- decomissioning
So there should be "green" technology in there somewhere, but I don't believe there is.
I recently spoke about this to a "green" brother in-law, and his view is that he ignores the list above, and just focuses on the in-operation "goodness" it provided.
Edited by fatboy b on Thursday 16th July 08:25
More waste to energy plants at a local authority level.
More ground source heat pumps at a residential/commercial level.
Begin overhauling and modernising the grid so that a good proportion of the energy produced by renewable technologies, isn't lost at source.
ETA: oh, and anti-matter
More ground source heat pumps at a residential/commercial level.
Begin overhauling and modernising the grid so that a good proportion of the energy produced by renewable technologies, isn't lost at source.
ETA: oh, and anti-matter
Edited by escargot on Thursday 16th July 14:34
CommanderJameson said:
I have a particular bee in my bonnet about packaging - to wit, the sheer amount of the bloody stuff that's foisted upon us at a time when we have sixteen bins and monthly rubbish collections. Why, for example, do sausages come in a sealed package and a cardboard sleeve? Why not just print the stuff on the sleeve directly onto the plastic packaging?
This is biggest issue I have. Whether you agree with the CO2 thing or not, what is very real is that we live on a planet of finite resource. "Resource Footprint" makes more sense to me than "Carbon Footprint". Tackle the former and you automatically tackle the latter. But there's money to be made in the former isn't there?I love the fact that the consumer will be getting charged for their waste (RFID bins etc) and yet the govt does nothing to stop the producers creating the waste in the first place.
Someone should do the numbercrunching on replacing plastic bags with brown paper etc etc.
FWDRacer said:
Rainwater harvesting - for bog flushing, garden watering and washing machine rinse cycles etc. It's not like we don't have enough of the stuff in the UK .
In Oz it is viewed as an essential commodity and all new builds have rainwater collection tanks as part of the new build regs. We are environmentally very slow to catch on in the UK...
When i used to work at Rio Tinto in Paddington, their new office had this in place for the toilet water. It was the first that i had seen it over here. .In Oz it is viewed as an essential commodity and all new builds have rainwater collection tanks as part of the new build regs. We are environmentally very slow to catch on in the UK...
Edited by FWDRacer on Thursday 16th July 08:08
escargot said:
More waste to energy plants at a local authority level.
These are just the ticket. The problem is that no one wants to live within 25 miles of one because they assume they are horrific eyesores that stink and belch out noxious gasses that will surely wilt their geraniums and murder their children in their sleep. Oh, and reduce the value of their house.We should be building these right now.
http://www.sita.co.uk/local-authorities/integrated...
Packaging - definitely.
Rain water usage - again very under-used but IIRC the water companies get in a strop if you collect and use significant amounts of it as they see it as "their" resource. Twunts.
Electric public transport vehicles - why aren't all new buses electric? Yes, the generation of the electricity means it isn't very green overall, but it would reduce the particulates in our towns and cities significantly. No more sitting behind the black-fume-belching bus in the morning.
If the government (national and local) actually believed in environmentalism (not the pinko-green political monster but true environmentalism) there are lots of things they could do. Unfortunately they'd need to spend money to do it and "investment" is a bad word in the UK; "taxation" is much preferred.
Rain water usage - again very under-used but IIRC the water companies get in a strop if you collect and use significant amounts of it as they see it as "their" resource. Twunts.
Electric public transport vehicles - why aren't all new buses electric? Yes, the generation of the electricity means it isn't very green overall, but it would reduce the particulates in our towns and cities significantly. No more sitting behind the black-fume-belching bus in the morning.
If the government (national and local) actually believed in environmentalism (not the pinko-green political monster but true environmentalism) there are lots of things they could do. Unfortunately they'd need to spend money to do it and "investment" is a bad word in the UK; "taxation" is much preferred.
Rivers.
there are thousands of flowing rivers with no waterwheels in them at all, all capable of generating a decent contribution to the electricity needs of the area they are in.
If i owned a house next to a river i would do my best to get a wheel in it and convert the waters energy into something I cold use.
there are thousands of flowing rivers with no waterwheels in them at all, all capable of generating a decent contribution to the electricity needs of the area they are in.
If i owned a house next to a river i would do my best to get a wheel in it and convert the waters energy into something I cold use.
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