West Sussex Virtual Power Plant

Fascinating to see this VPP coming to fruition after years of discussion about how such a system might be constructed and then operate. There should be little problem in providing the new infrastructure elements of the scheme - the proof of the proverbial pudding will be in how well retro-fitting and incorporation of existing hardware is managed.

Philip Hammond joins finance coalition to spur climate action

This is a bit rich given that the UK is behind it its progress towards its Paris Convention pledges and is set to miss its next 2 carbon budgets. I am fed up with hot air from ineffectual politicians.

Diageo To Remove More Plastic

As reported by Edie here, Diageo is set to remove all plastic from its multipacks. Provided that its customers recycle the replacement cardboard that's good news. The only downside is that the old joke about the US army assessment of a poor recruit may become defunct: "This  man has the full six-pack but he's lacking the little plastic thingy that holds it all together".

Economic Benefits of Electric Vehicles

This is a repost of a piece by Gail Broadbent and Graciela Metternicht from the University of New South Wales. It is slanted towards Australian conditions but the general conclusions are much more widely applicable .

Don’t trust the environmental hype about electric vehicles? The economic benefits might convince you

With electric cars back in the headlines, it’s time to remember why we should bother making the transition away from oil.

In our recent research looking at attitudes towards electric vehicle uptake, we pointed to some of the factors making the case for change. We need to remind ourselves that burning oil, a finite resource, to energise motor vehicles will not only cost the environment, but also the economy.

A critical factor is carbon emissions. The transport sector is the fastest growing contributor of greenhouse gases.

The transport sector contributes some 18% of Australia’s total greenhouse gas pollution and Australia is ranked second worst in an international scorecard for transport energy efficiency.

But even if you don’t believe this is an urgent issue, there are plenty of economic reasons to change our gas-guzzling habits.

A matter of money

In just one year (2017-18), Australia’s imports of refined petroleum cost A$21.7 billion.

Crude petroleum cost us a further A$11.7 billion – that’s more than A$33 billion going to overseas companies who may pay limited tax to Australia.

The argument that electric vehicle motorists, who do pay GST on their electricity, may not pay any fuel tax is really a distraction asking taxpayers to look somewhere else instead of the big companies.

What’s more, the A$18 billion fuel tax goes to general revenue and isn’t pledged to road building.

Unsteady fuel reserves

Policies minimising Australia’s reliance on oil imports could bring significant benefits to businesses and families, and even to public sector agencies with fleet operations.

Around 90% of the oil Australia consumes is imported and road transport is almost entirely dependent on it. The bulk of our automotive gasoline comes from Singapore and South Korea, and in the event of geopolitical imbalance, the supply of our fuel could potentially be jeopardised.

And our fuel stockpiles are very low. Australia has only about 21 days’ supply in stock, rather than the recommended 90 days.

Health risks

Potential geopolitical imbalances affecting the national supply are important, but the health costs associated with fossil fuels are in the scale of billions of dollars in Australia.

This includes premature death, hospital and medical costs, and loss of productivity that arise from toxic air pollution from internal combustion engine vehicles.

It has also been found pollution from burning fossil fuels can cause respiratory illnesses like asthma and neurodevelopmental disorders in children It’s a high price to pay to continue burning fossil fuels.

And noise pollution from traffic can cause health problems, for instance, by elevating blood pressure, or creating cognitive development problems for children, who have noise-related sleep disturbance.

Conventional cars are inefficient

Electric vehicles convert about 60% of their energy to propulsion. Conventional cars, on the other hand, are very inefficient.

For every litre of fuel burned, only about 17 to 21% of the energy is converted to forward motion, the rest is lost as heat and noise. The waste heat collectively warms up urban areas, causing more use of air conditioning in buildings in summer.

And buildings located near heavily trafficked roads may be exposed to high air and noise pollution, so windows may not generally be used for ventilation. This also places demand on air conditioning and electricity.

Renewable energy is cheaper and faster

An important point in the ongoing debate about electric vehicles is that they’re only as clean as the electricity they use. A widespread adoption of electric vehicles means the electricity supply will need to be increased.

And Australia’s current energy supply is notoriously one of the dirtiest in the world.

But the demand for new electricity to supply future electric vehicle uptake will be met by installing renewables because they’re cheaper and faster than installing new coal fired power stations.

The bottom line on this ongoing debate is really about changing our mindset about transport – let’s not get stuck in the past, let’s join the modern world and charge ahead.

Guildford Residents Killing Their Theatre

Last night I attended Out of Joint's production of The Remains of the Day at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford. A Guardian review of the show is available here. I pretty much agree with everything it says - including the 4-star rating. In other words, it is a show well worth anybody's ticket money. Why then, was the theatre only about half full on a Friday night?

This is a sad state of affairs when a town the size of Guildford cannot fill a relatively small theatre for and really good production of a thought-provoking play. Come on Guildford citizens - time to buck up your ideas, open your minds and support your local arts - including the theatre. If they are not used they will disappear to the detriment of cultural life for all.

And while I'm about it here's a shout for Guildford Shakespeare Company's up-coming Will's Birthday Bash.

Electric Milk Float

Remember the dear old electric milk float? Years ago our deliveries were made by a Wales and Edwards vehicle much like the Unigate liveried one at this link. Now Milk and More (who I find a bit of a pain to deal with - but that's another story) are investing in more electric delivery vehicles. What goes around...…...

London ULEZ - Useful Summary

Edie has produced a useful summary on London's recently imposed ULEZ. There's nothing that the informed reader will find new but it's helpful to have all this information in one place.

Brexit - Fallout on DEFRA

This post from Edie makes interesting reading. No comment from me - just make your own mind up!

Morphy Richards and Resource Efficiency - Not

We've been happy possessors of a Morphy-Richards vacuum cleaner for some years now. Up until Wednesday it has functioned very well but then the hose split. Trivial, you might think, just purchase a new hose. Well, that's what I tried to do but would you believe that M-R no longer supply such items? (Due to the construction we need one with the appropriate attachments at each end, otherwise we could have purchased a generic hose and been happy bunnies).

The MD of M-R didn't seem particularly impressed with my suggestion that junking a working vacuum for want of a hose could hardly be described as resource efficient. I've bodged a repair for the moment but, sadly, I foresee a new vacuum cleaner purchase looming on the horizon. It won't be from Morphy-Richards!

Shameful State of UK Biodiversity Targets

The Joint Nature Conservation Committee has recently reported that the UK is likely to miss 14 of its 19 targets set in 2010 by the Convention on Biological Diversity. This is woeful state of affairs and is yet another demonstration of our government being all mouth and no trousers. Edie has the details here.

Brexit and my MP - Part 50

Oh dear! We're back to form. I don't understand her logic. If the idea was to see what MPs would contemplate and she does not wish to dismiss some options (in other words she is willing to contemplate them) why did she not signal that position by voting for them?

Dear Richard

Anne has asked me to send you the text below following yesterday's events in the House of Commons.

Thank you again for contacting Anne about Brexit, she will update you again soon.

Very best wishes,
Joe


I want to update you on the situation in Parliament.

Many of you will be aware, although the Government had said it would allow indicative votes, yesterday’s business was run by backbench MPs. There was never any expectation that a majority would be found for any one option at this stage. Although 16 options were tabled in total, the Speaker selected 8 for votes.

I and other Ministers and colleagues had pressed the Prime Minister on Tuesday to make sure that these were ‘free votes’, which means that MPs are not told which options to support by their party Whips. The Cabinet did not participate in the votes. The results were as follows:

• Amendment B - No Deal [Ayes: 160 Noes: 400]
• Amendment D - Common market 2.0 [Ayes:188 Noes: 283]
• Amendment H - EFTA and EEA [Ayes: 65 Noes: 377]
• Amendment J - Customs union [Ayes: 264 Noes: 272]
• Amendment K – Labour’s Alternative Arrangements [Ayes: 237 Noes: 307]
• Amendment L – Revocation of Article 50 Revocation [Ayes: 184 Noes: 293]
• Amendment M – Confirmatory public vote on deal [Ayes: 268 Noes: 295]
• Amendment O – Contingent preferential arrangements [Ayes: 139 Noes: 422]

The aim of this first day of indicative votes was to find where a consensus might lie. This was the first step in this process which will continue on Monday. I continue to believe that the Withdrawal Agreement, a consequence of 2 years of difficult negotiations and compromise, is the best way forward to minimise disruption as we leave the EU. However, last night showed alternative support from MPs for both a customs union arrangement (J), put forward by the Rt Hon Ken Clarke MP, and for a confirmatory vote on an agreed deal (M), put forward by Dame Margaret Beckett MP. I voted against Amendment K (Labour’s arrangements), Amendment B (No Deal) and Amendment O (a so-called ‘hard Brexit’), as I do not believe that any of these options are the best way forward. The aim was not necessarily to find what MPs favoured, but what they would contemplate, even if it was not their preferred option, in order to find a consensus to resolve the situation. I abstained on some options as I did not want to dismiss them at this stage.

These are unprecedented times in Parliament and I know from reading through the thousands of emails and other pieces of correspondence that I have received that there is a large amount of frustration in Guildford and across the country. Many people have contacted me about their support for a second referendum. However my reservations persist; a second referendum might be the only option if the House does not find a consensus to move forward, because it has been made clear on several occasions that leaving the EU without a deal is not acceptable to the majority of MPs

It is difficult to predict what might happen in the coming days. In my nearly 14 years as MP for Guildford I have never known a period of time like this. The emails I receive contain strongly worded views, and occasionally these are in terms that are personal and offensive. Although it is disappointing, I understand the strength of feeling on Brexit. I take note of everyone’s views and comments and my job is to absorb it all and try to find a solution which will attempt to satisfy the majority, and the needs of my constituency.

My best wishes,
Anne.

 

 

Joseph Howe

Office of The Rt Hon Anne Milton MP

Member of Parliament for Guildford

Minister of State for Apprenticeships and Skills

Brexit and my MP - Part 49

Ye gods! Wonders will never cease. This is almost a sensible response.