Kevin Myers on wind power in todays Sindo 31-08-2010

[SirCharles]

It's over Charlie Boy just like your Global Warming madness. You comrades back home might have to hold on for a while as the have more face to lose than anyone.

Spain Suspends Subsidies for New Renewable Energy Power Plants - Bloomberg

Is that how you want to disprove humanmade global warming (AGW)?

You are posting an article which tells us that, in Spain, bailing out the banks has become more important than proper investments into a future energy concept which makes people independent from depleting fossil fuel reserves. Ugly enough. But governments are also reducing investments because renewable energy has become more affordable. Germany is slowly phasing out subsidies for solar technology because it has become cheap over the last years, faster than expected and cheaper than expected only few years ago. Germany is accelerating investments into wind energy therefore.

Well, rash. For you "It's over". But we know that your imagination is very different to reality.

About the debt wind mills and solar have caused in Europe. see



Spain Suspends Subsidies for New Renewable Energy Power Plants - Bloomberg

Can someone tell me when Val is getting anything right? One time at least. Please!

[Pat Gill]

Ireland along with Russia, refuses to tratify the Aarhus convention on proposed projects affecting the enviornment. This is a legally binding agreement through the EU. The Irish Government chooses to adapt an A LA Carte approach. A compliance case is now being processed against the EU for failing enforce the conventon in regard to Ireland.

Val,

I wonder where you formed the impression that the Aarhus Convention was designed to put the brakes on the wind industry.

Annex I
LIST OF ACTIVITIES REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 6,
PARAGRAPH 1 (a)
1. Energy sector:
• Mineral oil and gas refineries;
• Installations for gasification and liquefaction;
• Thermal power stations and other combustion installations with a heat input of
50 megawatts (MW) or more;
• Coke ovens;
• Nuclear power stations and other nuclear reactors including the dismantling or
decommissioning of such power stations or reactors1 (except research installations
for the production and conversion of fissionable and fertile materials
whose maximum power does not exceed 1 kW continuous thermal load);
• Installations for the reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel;
• Installations designed:
• For the production or enrichment of nuclear fuel;
• For the processing of irradiated nuclear fuel or high-level radioactive waste;
• For the final disposal of irradiated nuclear fuel;
• Solely for the final disposal of radioactive waste;
• Solely for the storage (planned for more than 10 years) of irradiated nuclear
fuels or radioactive waste ina different site than the production site.
2. Production and processing of metals:
• Metal ore (including sulphide ore) roasting or sintering installations;
• Installations for the production of pig-iron or steel (primary or secondary
fusion) including continuous casting, with a capacity exceeding 2.5 tons per
hour;
• Installations for the processing of ferrous metals:
ii(i) Hot-rolling mills with a capacity exceeding 20 tons of crude steel per
hour;
i(ii) Smitheries with hammers the energy of which exceeds 50 kilojoules per
hammer, where the calorific power used exceeds 20 MW;
(iii) Application of protective fused metal coats with an input exceeding 2
tons of crude steel per hour;
• Ferrous metal foundries with a production capacity exceeding 20 tons per day;
• Installations:
ii(i) For the production of non-ferrous crude metals from ore, concentrates or
secondary raw materials by metallurgical, chemical or electrolytic processes;
160 An Implementation Guide
i(ii) For the smelting, including the alloying, of non-ferrous metals, including
recovered products (refining, foundry casting, etc.), with a melting
capacity exceeding 4 tons per day for lead and cadmium or 20 tons per
day for all other metals;
• Installations for surface treatment of metals and plastic materials using an electrolytic
or chemical process where the volume of the treatment vats exceeds
30 m3.
3. Mineral industry:
• Installations for the production of cement clinker in rotary kilns with a productionca
pacity exceeding 500 tons per day or lime inrot ary kilns with a production
capacity exceeding 50 tons per day or in other furnaces with a production
capacity exceeding 50 tons per day;
• Installations for the production of asbestos and the manufacture of asbestosbased
products;
• Installations for the manufacture of glass including glass fibre with a melting
capacity exceeding 20 tons per day;
• Installations for melting mineral substances including the production of mineral
fibres with a melting capacity exceeding 20 tons per day;
• Installations for the manufacture of ceramic products by firing, in particular
roofing tiles, bricks, refractory bricks, tiles, stoneware or porcelain, with a production
capacity exceeding 75 tons per day, and/or with a kiln capacity exceeding 4 m3 and with a setting density per kiln exceeding 300 kg/m3.
4. Chemical industry: Production within the meaning of the categories of activities
contained int his paragraph means the production on an industrial scale by
chemical processing of substances or groups of substances listed in subparagraphs
(a) to (g):
4. (a) Chemical installations for the production of basic organic chemicals, such as:
vii(i) Simple hydrocarbons (linear or cyclic, saturated or unsaturated, aliphatic
or aromatic);
vi(ii) Oxygen-containing hydrocarbons such as alcohols, aldehydes, ketones,
carboxylic acids, esters, acetates, ethers, peroxides, epoxy resins;
v(iii) Sulphurous hydrocarbons;
ii(iv) Nitrogenous hydrocarbons such as amines, amides, nitrous compounds,
nitro compounds or nitrate compounds, nitriles, cyanates,
isocyanates;
iii(v) Phosphorus-containing hydrocarbons;
ii(vi) Halogenic hydrocarbons;
i(vii) Organometallic compounds;
(viii) Basic plastic materials (polymers, synthetic fibres and cellulose-based
fibres);
i(ix) Synthetic rubbers;
ii(x) Dyes and pigments;
i(xi) Surface-active agents and surfactants;
4. (b) Chemical installations for the production of basic inorganic chemicals,
such as:
vii(i) Gases, such as ammonia, chlorine or hydrogen chloride, fluorine or hydrogenfluo
ride, carbono xides, sulphur compounds, nitrogeno xides,
hydrogen, sulphur dioxide, carbonyl chloride;
vi(ii) Acids, such as chromic acid, hydrofluoric acid, phosphoric acid, nitric
acid, hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid, oleum, sulphurous acids;
v(iii) Bases, such as ammonium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sodium
hydroxide;
The Aarhus Convention 161
ii(iv) Salts, such as ammonium chloride, potassium chlorate, potassium
carbonate, sodium carbonate, perborate, silver nitrate;
iii(v) Non-metals, metal oxides or other inorganic compounds such as calcium
carbide, silicon, silicon carbide;
15. (c) Chemical installations for the production of phosphorous-, nitrogen- or
potassium-based fertilizers (simple or compound fertilizers);
15. (d) Chemical installations for the production of basic plant health products and
of biocides;
15. (e) Installations using a chemical or biological process for the production of basic
pharmaceutical products;
15. (f) Chemical installations for the production of explosives;
15. (g) Chemical installations in which chemical or biological processing is used for
the productionof proteinfeed additives, ferments and other proteinsubstan ces.
15. Waste management:
• Installations for the incineration, recovery, chemical treatment or landfill of
hazardous waste;
• Installations for the incineration of municipal waste with a capacity exceeding
3 tons per hour;
• Installations for the disposal of non-hazardous waste with a capacity exceeding
50 tons per day;
• Landfills receiving more than 10 tons per day or with a total capacity exceeding
25,000 tons, excluding landfills of inert waste.
16. Waste-water treatment plants with a capacity exceeding 150,000 population
equivalent.
17. Industrial plants for the:
15. (a) Productionof pulp from timber or similar fibrous materials;
15. (b) Production of paper and board with a production capacity exceeding 20 tons
per day.
18. (a) Construction of lines for long-distance railway traffic and of airports2 with a
basic runway length of 2,100 m or more;
15. (b) Construction of motorways and express roads;3
15. (c) Construction of a new road of four or more lanes, or realignment and/or widening
of an existing road of two lanes or less so as to provide four or more lanes,
where such new road, or realigned and/or widened section of road, would be
10 km or more in a continuous length.
19. (a) Inland waterways and ports for inland-waterway traffic which permit the
passage of vessels of over 1,350 tons;
15. (b) Trading ports, piers for loading and unloading connected to land and outside
ports (excluding ferry piers) which can take vessels of over 1,350 tons.
10. Groundwater abstraction or artificial groundwater recharge schemes where the
annual volume of water abstracted or recharged is equivalent to or exceeds 10
millioncu bic metres.
11. (a) Works for the transfer of water resources between river basins where this
transfer aims at preventing possible shortages of water and where the amount of
water transferred exceeds 100 million cubic metres/year;
15. (b) Inal l other cases, works for the transfer of water resources betweenri ver basins
where themultiannual average flow of the basin of abstraction exceeds 2,000
million cubic metres/year and where the amount of water transferred exceeds
5 per cent of this flow.
162 An Implementation Guide
15. In both cases transfers of piped drinking water are excluded.
12. Extractionof petroleum and natural gas for commercial purposes where the
amount extracted exceeds 500 tons/day in the case of petroleum and 500,000
cubic metres/day int he case of gas.
13. Dams and other installations designed for the holding back or permanent storage
of water, where a new or additional amount of water held back or stored exceeds
10 millionc ubic metres.
14. Pipelines for the transport of gas, oil or chemicals with a diameter of more than
800 mm and a length of more than 40 km.
15. Installations for the intensive rearing of poultry or pigs with more than:
15. (a) 40,000 places for poultry;
15. (b) 2,000 places for productionpigs (over 30 kg); or
15. (c) 750 places for sows.
16. Quarries and opencast mining where the surface of the site exceeds 25 hectares,
or peat extraction, where the surface of the site exceeds 150 hectares.
17. Construction of overhead electrical power lines with a voltage of 220 kV or more
and a length of more than 15 km.
18. Installations for the storage of petroleum, petrochemical, or chemical products
with a capacity of 200,000 tons or more.
19. Other activities:
• Plants for the pretreatment (operations such as washing, bleaching, mercerization)
or dyeing of fibres or textiles where the treatment capacity exceeds 10
tons per day;
• Plants for the tanning of hides and skins where the treatment capacity exceeds
12 tons of finished products per day;
• (a) Slaughterhouses with a carcass productionca pacity greater than5 0 tons
(a) per day;
(b) Treatment and processing intended for the production of food products
from:
i(i) Animal raw materials (other than milk) with a finished product productionca
pacity greater than75 tons per day;
(ii) Vegetable raw materials with a finished product production capacity
greater than300 tons per day (average value on a quarterly basis);
(c) Treatment and processing of milk, the quantity of milk received being
greater than 200 tons per day (average value ona na nnual basis);
• Installations for the disposal or recycling of animal carcasses and animal
waste with a treatment capacity exceeding 10 tons per day;
• Installations for the surface treatment of substances, objects or products using
organic solvents, in particular for dressing, printing, coating, degreasing,
waterproofing, sizing, painting, cleaning or impregnating, with a consumption
capacity of more than15 0 kg per hour or more than 200 tons per year;
• Installations for the production of carbon (hard-burnt coal) or electrographite
by means of incineration or graphitization.
20. Any activity not covered by paragraphs 1-19 above where public participation is
provided for under an environmental impact assessment procedure in accordance
with national legislation.
21. The provisionof article 6, paragraph 1 (a) of this Convention, does not apply to
any of the above projects undertaken exclusively or mainly for research, development
and testing of new methods or products for less than two years unless
The Aarhus Convention 163
they would be likely to cause a significant adverse effect on environment or
health.
22. Any change to or extension of activities, where such a change or extension in itself
meets the criteria/thresholds set out inthis annex, shall be subject to article 6,
paragraph 1 (a) of this Convention. Any other change or extension of activities
shall be subject to article 6, paragraph 1 (b) of this Convention.

http://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/e...lish/part3.pdf

[valamhic]

Val,

I wonder where you formed the impression that the Aarhus Convention was designed to put the brakes on the wind industry.

The Aarhus convention is a united nations set of rules (UNECE) ratified by The EU. Not ratified by Ireland and Russia alone in Europe. It is being complied with in relation to many major projects with impact on the environment in parts of Europe. It has a number of provisions. 1) The proportionallity of the project must be balanced VIA its benefit to the community against impact on the environment. 2) Consideration of alternatives, 3) Proper assesment of all the impact on the environment, Recourse to cheap access to the courts for people with issues in relation to planing permission and a number of other provisions. You can view it on line. In simple terms, the convention rules are designed to protect the people living in the area being affected by a project.

Ireland treats each wind farm as an individual case. The fact is that Ireland has a set of plans among which is to instal a further 4.,5 mw of wind and enough cabling (pylons) to stretch from Malin Head (North) to Mizzen head (South) 15 times. This is a major project which will impact of the environment and people are legally entitled to have the planning or these projects examined under the convention.

When the convention comes in to force, I will demand those who say wind farms work to step up and provide proof. I will be able to have the impact on tourism and wildlife and on employment. Of course I will draw on the experience in countries that already have a large amount of installed wind power. The wind industry and the government that bows to them cannot prove that, and therefore wind farms will not get planning permmission. The existing wind farms are illegal, because they dont comply witht he convention. Ireland is resisting but the EU are pobliged to take Ireland to task.

[valamhic]

Val,

I wonder where you formed the impression that the Aarhus Convention was designed to put the brakes on the wind industry.

SEE THE CONVENTION:

Definitions: The section on ecological justice and the rights of all persons .

Bio Diversity.

The right to information, pubic consultations etc. Its all there on line, the items you quote are part of the scheduled activities, but it not confined to them. The compliance case it slow, step by step.
Our government is quick enough to force us to comply with their idea of environmental protection but refuse to provide us with our rights under the convention to protect the rights that we consider important. The right to enjoy a turbine free environment, the right to have wild bird habitat protected and preserved, the right to be allow sleep in out beds at night with windows open in the summer. And importantly the right to own property and sell or exchange at the market price. Dwelling in wind farm areas cannot are very hard to sell.

Then there is th esolial injustice of poor people being forced to pay hugely expensive power charges to subsidize wiht farm owners.

[valamhic]

investments into a future energy concept which makes people independent from depleting fossil fuel reserves. Ugly enough. But governments are also reducing investments because renewable energy has become more affordable (quote)

First. With coal fired plant, wind penetration results in more coal being burned to generate the same amount of eneltricity (Bentek Report)

Second: If wind power is now so cheap that it does not require subsidies, why not cut the subsidies now? Let wind owners market their product in the market place. Abolish priority dispatch for wind, payments fior curtailed wind electricity which ACCORDING TO THE Telegraph amounted to 10 Billion sterling last year.

If wind farms can operate without any protection or subsidies and the planning is fair , I have no problem Wind is now about 1,500 mw and at night in summer demand is about 2,000 mw so if it only takes 500 in fossil fuel we should be seeing a cut in fuel charges and cuts in outr bills. Where are the cuts.

[Raketemensch]

The right to information, pubic consultations etc.

Lullz Sorry

[valamhic]

Lullz Sorry

Thats a very good point, I woudl nevert have thought of it. LOl.


If you have not done so. Google Spanish energy Minister cuts subsidies to solar and wind . Ther ear a number iof articles there ., Most declare it is a disaster for the renewables industry. Other s say it is a great opertunity for the industry. So whether or not< Lets cut subsidies to wind farms and let them fly on their own wings,

[valamhic]

See Gill above onn Aarhus.


If you look at the Annex of projects in the Aarhus Convention, which he posted, you will see paragraph 20, which refers to those that have been adopted by National Legislation. Remember that in the mid-nineties when the Convention was adopted there were essentially no wind farms (people weren't that stupid then). So paragraph 20 was put in to cater for national characteristics and future occurrences. When the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive (85/337/EC) was updated, wind farms got added in to Annex II of the Directive. Therefore in the EU and other states which have similar EIA legislation, the Convention now directly covers all issues to do with the planning approval of wind farms (Article 6 of the Directive). As energy plans, programmes, policies connected to wind energy are related to the the environment, they are directly covered by Article 7 of the Convention. As regards environmental information, the Convention is very broad on this and includes energy, administrative measures, cost benefit and other economic analysis, etc. In other words everything which would be connected with the implementation of wind energy.

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Did you all fill in the puplic consultation for the EU commission on renewable energy. ? What did you all think of the questions.? I thought they did not deal enough with envirornmenal issues, but at least they allowed a good long answer.
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[SirCharles]

Well, Val. Maybe you should include that in your video lecture:



Scary, isn't it. You should warn your locals. A secret tip: Put a mirror of that video on YouTube (on your channel)

[Pat Gill]

See Gill above onn Aarhus.


If you look at the Annex of projects in the Aarhus Convention, which he posted, you will see paragraph 20, which refers to those that have been adopted by National Legislation. Remember that in the mid-nineties when the Convention was adopted there were essentially no wind farms (people weren't that stupid then). So paragraph 20 was put in to cater for national characteristics and future occurrences. When the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive (85/337/EC) was updated, wind farms got added in to Annex II of the Directive. Therefore in the EU and other states which have similar EIA legislation, the Convention now directly covers all issues to do with the planning approval of wind farms (Article 6 of the Directive). As energy plans, programmes, policies connected to wind energy are related to the the environment, they are directly covered by Article 7 of the Convention. As regards environmental information, the Convention is very broad on this and includes energy, administrative measures, cost benefit and other economic analysis, etc. In other words everything which would be connected with the implementation of wind energy.

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Did you all fill in the puplic consultation for the EU commission on renewable energy. ? What did you all think of the questions.? I thought they did not deal enough with envirornmenal issues, but at least they allowed a good long answer.
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Val,

My name is Pat and I have decided to give the good people of P.ie a few days rest from wind energy.

I might start a thread on how the Aarhus convention might affect the farming and industrial sectors.