Burning issues

6 Oct 2009, 13:05 Add Comment

It's seemingly impossible to escape the energy debate in the Press lately. Perhaps it's the onset of autumn and the passing of national central heating switch on day that's got the Press going.

One startling statistic jumped out from the Times the other day - 50% of Britain's gas supply this winter will be imported - 50%! The finger is pointed squarely at the decline in yield from the North Sea gas fields.

Britain was a net gas exporter as recently as 2003, but that was a watershed year. It's been downhill since then, yet the energy generators' appetite for natural gas fired power stations seems unnaturally veracious. In our region Trafford Council has recently backed Carlton Power's proposals for a new station at Carrington on the site of the former coal fired station, and that will sit alongside another smaller new gas-fired plant which becomes operational in 2013. There are numerous other examples. Whilst gas is a much cleaner fuel than coal, it's still a polluter of finite quantity.

Britain needs a short-term fix for its ageing power generation plants and its seems that gas is the answer, even if that means shipping and piping vast quantities of liquid natural gas in everyday.

If I lean back on my office chair, with a bit of a twist, I can catch a glimpse of Scout Moor wind farm on the hills above Bury and Rossendale - still Britain's largest onshore installation I believe. Controversial, naturally, and several years in planning gestation - but absolutely essential to our sustainable energy generating future. The arrival of the Infrastructure Planning Commission brings with it the promise of faster planning permissions for major power generation schemes like Scout Moor - and then again the Commission might just get bogged down in the legal log-jam that's an almost inevitable side-show to the arrival of such a significant new decision making body. And then of course there's the Conservative Party's solemn promise to bin the IPC give half the chance.

All of this uncertainty about the future mix and pace of delivery for our domestic power supply was brought into gleaming sharp focus last night, when I had to sit in the excessively well lit waiting area of a brand new NHS primary health care centre, burning electricity like it was going out of fashion. No doubt an award winning, energy efficient building, fitted with all the latest kit and better insulated than a polar bear in ski wear, but there's nothing more efficient than turning a few lights off! Bit nippy in the office now - time to notch the heating up, or maybe just slip on another jumper until the burning issues are resolved.

Your Comments

0 Comments Add Comment

Close this window

Add your comment

>

Your Name

Your Comments

Enter verification code