Is this the start of Net Zero realism?

[klondike]

Rishi's Dash for Gas is His Canute Moment

Rishi Sunak's recent announcement of new gas power generators to ensure reliable energy supply on the path to Net Zero is his King Canute moment.

The story of King Canute and the tide used to be much more often mentioned than it is nowadays. The earliest account of the event comes from Henry of Huntingdon writing in the 12th century, a hundred years after Canute (Cnut if one prefers). In Huntingdon's account, Canute was deliberately demonstrating to his fawning courtiers the difference between two different types of law: laws of the land and natural laws – what today would be called scientific laws. It's a distinction that's still important.

Politicians are fond of laws, at least when they pass them, though one senses that a Conservative Government might, in retrospect, prefer not to have been stuck with the Equality Act and the Climate Change Act, both of which its MPs voted for.

So why is Rishi's recent announcement of new gas power generators a Canute moment?

The "legally binding target" of the 2008 Climate Act, modified by the 2019 Order, commands that: "It is the duty of the Secretary of State to ensure that the net U.K. carbon account for the year 2050 is at least 100% lower than the 1990 baseline."

As is gradually becoming apparent, Net Zero is physically impossible to achieve. However much governments legislate, achieving Net Zero is as likely as the tide obeying a king's command not to advance.

The scientific reasons for the impossibility of Net Zero are multifactorial. They start off with our need for energy. At 50th out of 200 countries, the U.K. is already very energy efficient, particularly considering how far north we are and how cold. We contain 70 million warm-blooded humans (23% more than in 1997) who need heated houses and food to be grown, imported, processed and distributed. We need places to work and transport to and from the workplace. We need manufactured goods, many of which are essential – houses, boilers (or heat pumps), lorries, buses and so on. Even if there was political support for energy austerity and we prohibited recreational transport, meat consumption and the keeping of pets, insulated every building and banned all consumer goods (from children's toys to golf clubs), we would be unlikely to see a reduction in energy consumption by as much as a quarter.

As for our production of energy, for all the hype about renewables and all the obvious wind turbines and solar panels we see around us, renewables are actually still just hype. Of the 2,000 billion units of energy we consume each year, renewables provide only 100 billion units, a mere 5% of the total (4% wind, 0.6% solar and 0.4% hydroelectric). Forget the figures about renewables providing half our energy. That's only the electricity from the grid, which is one seventh (14%) of our energy use. Nuclear power, along with renewables, provides 5% of our total energy used but the stark fact is that 90% of the U.K.'s energy comes from burning things – fossil fuels for the most part but also, shockingly, forests we are currently paying to have chopped down in the U.S. and Canada.

Full story : https://dailysceptic.org/2024/03/14/rishis-dash-for-gas-is-his-canute-moment/

[Ashy]

We live in hopes. However we shouldn't have to, governments are supposed to represent our interests, not make life itself impossible.

[Michael Rolls]

net zero is total and utter rubbish - only politicians are daft enough to believe in it

[JBR]

net zero is total and utter rubbish - only politicians are daft enough to believe in it

Nett zero can never happen.
Even if we went back to the Stone Age, we'd still be burning wood and sending smoke up into the atmosphere.

Pure political nonsense.

Coal will run out; oil will run out; gas will run out; even wood will eventually run out, though at least it can re-grow itself.

Wind will still blow, though only when it feels like it.  The sun will still shine, but only in daytime and if there aren't many thick clouds.

My ongoing opinion is that nuclear fission is the only thing to aim for, for now.
The ultimate goal is the possibility of nuclear fusion - the holy grail of power.

[klondike]

The ultimate goal is the possibility of nuclear fusion - the holy grail of power.

We already have that. Trouble is only in daytime when it isn't cloudy 

At least they are consistent with their forecasting of when we will have fusion reactors. Whenever asked it is always 20 years away and has been for at least the last 40 years.

[JBR]

We already have that. Trouble is only in daytime when it isn't cloudy 

At least they are consistent with their forecasting of when we will have fusion reactors. Whenever asked it is always 20 years away and has been for at least the last 40 years.

Solar panels are not quite in the same league as fusion reactors!

[Diasi]

Has anyone else spotted what's probably the most important sentence in the article?

We contain 70 million warm-blooded humans (23% more than in 1997)

The start of which coincides with the election of New Labour's & it's 'open the floodgates' policies.

[klondike]

A policy which the Tories have made no attempt whatsoever to change. 

[Diasi]

A policy which the Tories have made no attempt whatsoever to change. 

My view is it's far harder to stop something that's already been steaming along for 13 years.

[Cassandra]

Yes bit like stalling a crap - which of course the Tory Party has matamorphised into ...

[JBR]

Yes bit like stalling a crap - which of course the Tory Party has matamorphised into ...

Ooooh, the language here these days!  😮😮😮

[klondike]

Well I suppose I can't really accuse the Tories of doing nothing about it for the last 14 years. They did promise to reduce it to the tens of thousands in every election manifesto after all. They missed by a wide margin though...

[dextrous63]

While waiting to be processed (and hopefully the majority deported when their applications fail), can't we use asylum seekers/immigrants to turn trundle wheels connected to generators and thus generate electricity?  Apart from the actual energy produced, one would hope that the deterrent effect would reduce immigration which would probably have a greater benefit since they wouldn't need fuel to survive in these shores.

[JBR]

While waiting to be processed (and hopefully the majority deported when their applications fail), can't we use asylum seekers/immigrants to turn trundle wheels connected to generators and thus generate electricity?  Apart from the actual energy produced, one would hope that the deterrent effect would reduce immigration which would probably have a greater benefit since they wouldn't need fuel to survive in these shores.

I agree, but I'm afraid the trundle wheels would have to be set up in four-star hotels.

[dextrous63]

I agree, but I'm afraid the trundle wheels would have to be set up in four-star hotels.

No problems.  Presumably they have cellars or storage places out of sight and mind from the proper bona fide residents who have a right to be there.  

The machines can be set up in there, with a few blow up mattresses or bales of straw for them to bed down on.  Heck, the inflatable dinghies they came on could be used as mattresses.