Ed Dowding

Tag: energy

Reasons to be cheerful: Peak Phosphorous

Graphs like this make me very happy because they hint that thing might all work out OK. via Peak Phosphorus: the sequel to Peak Oil. I’m sure you know that phosphorous is one of the critical components to the most abundantly used fertilisers. I’m sure you’ll also know that it’s what causing algal blooms, feeding ...

Neo-Classical elements: Time, money, energy, politics

The world used to be (perceived to be) made up of four elements: Earth, air, fire, and water. A few years back Ollie and I figured all the problems in the world would go away if only we could sort out the energy thing. Not least because if we really nailed it we could just ...

Vision 2050. From here to there.

Zoom.it – Image foTF.

What is ZCB30?

Turn over a New Leaf

Invest in green energy

Key facts: 1) You’re doing something brilliant, 2) It’s 7.5% return, 3) You’re locked in for 4 years. EcoBonds from Ecotricity.

World greenhouse gas emissions

Please note that deforestation accounts for TWICE AS MUCH greenhouse gas as all road transport. I think 10:10 would approve of getting people who like hunting, flying them to areas where illegal logging is taking place, and declaring fair game on all illegal loggers. I’d suspect that a few weeks in Indonesia or Brazil for ...

9 things I'd do if I were in government right now

Remember that reducing use is easier and more effective than increasing supply to meet ‘demand’. Invest in research (especially algae and solar). Invest in infrastructure, especially electricity grid, rail, and electric car stations. Do not build more roads. We have plenty, and cars are getting smaller anyway. Remove VAT from renovation works. Add VAT to ...

EDF – Environmentally Destructive Fuckers

EDF is not green, it’s not British.  And it spends £20m on marketing Green Britain day which is more than its annual spend on investing in new green energy (source). It operates 8 nuclear power stations in the UK It is the world’s largest corporate producer of toxic nuclear waste behind the US and Canada ...

It's not BP's fault, it's yours

I’d like to take a moment to remind everyone (especially in the USA) that it is our sociopathic craving for oil which is driving this, and scape-goating BP merely displaces the responsibility from those who demand the lowest cost oil (at all costs), and the governments who allow it. BP were just unlucky to be ...

Fact about bottle water

Via Webecoist

Turn an old plastic bottle into a 50W lightbulb

Fill a plastic bottle with water, add a small amount of bleach to keep it clean, stick a film canister over the cap to stop it corroding in the UV, stick it in your roof, and hey presto an everlasting prismatic 50W lightbulb! httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zMAWztZ6TI via http://www.inhabitat.com/2010/04/02/sundolier-robot-pumps-sunlight-indoors-for-powerful-daylighting/ and Slashdot

The UK's renewable energy is a national shame

Here’s some figures for renewable power generation in 2006: 62.9% – Austria 48.7% – Sweden 29.9% – Portugal 17.1% – Slovak Republic 19.2% – Romania 17% – Denmark 12.4% – France 4.6% – UK In November 2009, Spain generated 53% of its demand from wind alone last week (it was a bit windy). So if ...

A farm for the future

I finally got around to watching A Farm for the Future (available on Google Video) a few nights ago, and found it to be a great introduction to the concepts of permaculture. Key things to realise (some not from the programme): Current methods of farming will not continue to feed you during your lifetime. We ...

Good.is' most popular infographics of 2009

http://www.good.is/post/transparency-good-s-most-popular-infographics-of-2009/

Middle class virtue

I love this graph. WOT = Well Off, Thoughtful LIL = Low Income Lifestyle Basically it says “Yes, you may recycle and think you’re green and lovely and one of the people who should survive The Great Reckoning, but actually you’re about 3 times more environmentally impactful than that fat TV watching pikey you feel ...

Repurposing bikes

We recycle used bicycles to build pedal-powered machines, bicimáquinas, which support and help facilitate the work of small-scale, self-sustainable projects. Through this work we hope to contribute to the conservation of the environment, the health or the Guatemalan people, and the productivity of the local economy. MAYAPEDAL. Via @Al_Humphreys

In Transition

Wind powered car

The founder of Ecotricity is building a wind powered (well, electricity powered) car. Read about it as his blog, Zerocarbonista.

We are six years away from an energy crisis

The good news for Britain’s energy supply is that the sheer scale of the recession has cut our electricity demand and carbon emissions. An impending energy security crunch has been postponed.The bad news is that the recession will almost certainly delay investment in Britain’s energy infrastructure and encourage complacency. […] For the past two decades ...