August 2006

You are currently browsing the articles from Solar Wind - Micro Power Generation written in the month of August 2006.

Plight of a Leeds man demonstrates planning problems

A resident of Leeds how wants to install a wind turbine on his semi-detached home in Leeds is facing a long delay to get the required planning permission.  Mike Collins, 66, of Armley, had thought the council would be happy with his proposal and that he would get permission quickly,  however he has experienced two months of delays.

Apparently the council have raised concerns about the potential for noise issues with the wind turbine. Mr. Collins has even gone as far as submitted an engineer’s report which describes the device as “phenomenally quiet”, paid for a site visit to try to speed up a decision, and can’t now understand why  permission has not been granted.

The council states that because this is the first application of its kind they do have to make sure they get this right and that;

“We are pleased to receive, and would positively encourage, such sustainable energy initiatives and are confident that we will make a decision on this application in the very
near future.”

This is all well and good but haven’t council planning offices thought about the concept of best practice? Why is it that every council has to spend months evaluating all the issues surrounding applications like this when they receive their first application? The impact on appearance, surrounding residential amenities and likely noise levels etc. can surely be done at a national level and referred to by local offices.

More details on the Leedstoday site

Written by ashleys on August 24th, 2006 with no comments.
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£8 Million for renewable energy in NI

This is actually a little bit of old news but I thought I would just mention it anyway. Last month the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Peter Hain said Northern Ireland was leading the rest of the UK in support of green energy provision. About £8m worth of funding will be made available for homeowners who want to switch to green energy the government announced. Mr Hain said the programme would;

“stimulate renewable energy at household level and effectively initiate a programme of micro-generation development for the future”

About 4,000 grants will cover up to 50% of the cost of installing renewable energy systems, such as solar panels, small-scale wind turbines, biomass boilers and geothermal heat pumps. Also under proposed building regulation changes, the use of renewable energy in new builds will be mandatory from 2008.

Actually a nice combination of grants and ensuring renewable energy is at least thought about for new builds. It will be interesting to see what actually makes it into the building regulations.

Source green building press.

Written by ashleys on August 22nd, 2006 with no comments.
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Sneak preview of the house of the future

British Gas and The People.co.uk have posted an article on what technologies the energy efficient house of the future might have. By the future they actually appear to mean in about 3 years time, by which time it is hoped homes will used a combination of grid supplied energy, micro-generation from renewables and more effective boiler systems. I think that version of the future is going to a bit optimistic given the lack of any real support for energy efficiency and micro-generation in the UK government’s recent energy review.

Visit the article to see what they have included

Written by ashleys on August 21st, 2006 with no comments.
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Lets start talking renewables

Here is another link I am adding to the useful links page. This time it is the Start Talking: Alternative Energy site which is the web page assoiciated with the CNBC show of the same name. It is sponsored by BP, so there is a certain amount of BP content. However some useful shows on renewables even if not entirely geared towards micro-generation

Written by ashleys on August 21st, 2006 with no comments.
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New link added

I’ve added a new link to the Building for a future magazine on the Useful links page

Written by ashleys on August 20th, 2006 with no comments.
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A true Solar Wind approach!

Now here is a project that will truly get solar wind working. A new project has begun in the Australian outback to build a huge tower that will capture the sun’s energy in a far more efficient way than conventional solar cells or windmills.

Now we normally separate solar and wind energy into two different things, however the reality is that wind is a result, if only an end result, of the power of the sun.  This new project is trying to build a solar tower that will link the solar and wind energy directly. The tower is huge, funnel shaped and made of clear plastic. As the sun heats the air inside the tunnel causing it to rise, the funnel shape causing the air to move faster and faster the narrower the funnel gets. The electricity is then generated by wind turbines housed in the top of the funnel.

When constructed sometime after 2006, the 3,280 foot Solar Tower will generate 200 megawatts. At a typical home consumption of one kilowatt, this will power 200,000 homes and reduce the annual production of greenhouse gases by nearly a megaton.

Read more at the dailyreckoning.co.uk

Written by ashleys on August 20th, 2006 with no comments.
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