Plastic Bag Charge: 5p Levy To Be Extended In England
The title of this post is the same as that on this article on the BBC.
It’s a good idea.
And while we’re about it, why not put a 5p levy on every takeaway meal, as most the the packaging seems to be dropped on the street!
What Is It With All These Fires?
Grenfell, California, Manchester, New York, Mumbai, Portugal in the Summer and now, Liverpool!
Luckily, last night’s fire didn’t see any sentient casualties!
It’s almost, as if we’re losing our fear of fire and precautions that previous generations took in the design of buildings, vehicles and life are being side-lined.
My Main Electricity Supply
This may be a strange thing to post, but the company installing my smart meter needs a serties of pictures, so this way they will be easily available.
The pictures are in top to bottomn down the wall.
Will Sir David Teach Trump A Lesson?
The Times has an article today, which is entitled Attenborough Brings About A Sea Change.
One statement stands out.
The political impact of Blue Planet II is undeniable..
The article also says.
- Dozens of MPs have signed a motion congratulating Sir David for highlighting the issue of plastic pollution in the oceans.
- Michael Gove says he is haunted by the footage and pledged action.
- The UN has announced plans for a task-force.
But surely, the most important thing the article says is that Blue Planet II will premiere in the US on January 10 on five networks.
Will Trump watch?
Probably not! It’s all fake news to him anyway!
But a large proportion of the around three hundred million , who live in the USA, will find it compulsive viewing!
Out of curiosity, I wondered if Sir David had any views on Donald Trump. Google found this article in The Independent, which is entitled Sir David Attenborough on Donald Trump: ‘We could shoot him. It’s not a bad idea’.
This is said.
Until now, Sir David Attenborough was one of the few individuals in the public eye not to have broached the ever-present, all-pervasive topic of Donald Trump. However, the naturalist and beloved broadcaster has now given his assessment of the situation and suggested a way to counter the Republican’s ascent to power which, believe it or not, involves a gun.
In an interview with the Radio Times, the nonagenarian was probed about how we solve a problem like Mr Trump and quipped: “We could shoot him”.
Obviously, he was only joking. But Trump does live in the Land of Guns!
A Visit To The London Mithraeum
These pictures show my visit to the London Mithraeum, which is hidden under the Bloomberg Building.
It is definitely worth a visit. And it’s free!
It gets a high rating on Trip Advisor.
Most people book, but I just turned up early on a Tuesday morning and walked right in!
I suspect that won’t be possible for long, as it will get busy!
Especially, when the new entrance to the Drain opens nearby in the New Year. Apparently, it’s rumoured to be running late on opening because of water leaks.
Ulster Says No!
Twas ever thus! This article on Wikipedia, is about the protests against the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement between Margaret Thatcher and Garret FitzGerald.
Let’s face it! Many of the views of the Democratic Unionist Party are very alien to this left-wing Tory voter.
For a start, I have known, three women in the UK, who might have decided to have an abortion for three different reasons. All of their reasons would have been illegal in Northern Ireland, but perfectly legal in the rest of the UK and most of Europe.
In this and several other areas, such as same-sex marriage, Northern Ireland must be brought in line with the rest of the UK.
This Is What I Call A MOAB
Jamestown is a small Australian town of a few over fourteen hundred souls, probably home to several million flies and some of the most venomous spiders and snakes known to man.
I have never visited the town, but I must have flown nearly over it, when I flew a Piper Arrow around Australia with C.
Just to the North of the town is the Hornsdale Wind Farm, which consists of 99 wind turbines with a generating capacity of 315 MW.
But this is not what brought the wind farm to my attention in an article in today’s Times under a headline of Biggest Ever Battery Plugs City’s Energy Gap.
This is said.
The battery array was built after a high-stakes bet by Elon Musk, 46, the US technology billionaire behind Tesla electric cars, that he could meet a 100-day building deadline or he would give the system away.
Wikipedia has a section on this battery.
This is said.
South Australia received 90 proposals and considered 5 projects. Tesla, Inc. is building the world’s most powerful lithium ion battery adjacent to the wind farm. It has two sections; a 70 MW running for 10 minutes, and a 30 MW with a 3 hour capacity. Samsung 21700-size cells are used.
It will be operated by Tesla and provide a total of 129 megawatt-hours (460 GJ) of storage capable of discharge at 100 megawatts (130,000 hp) into the power grid. This will help prevent load-shedding blackouts and provide stability to the grid (grid services) while other generators can be started in the event of sudden drops in wind or other network issues. It is intended to be built in 100 days counting from 29 September 2017, when a grid connection agreement was signed with Electranet, and some units were operational. The battery construction was completed and testing began on 25 November 2017. It is owned by Neoen and Tesla, with the government having the ability to call on the stored power under certain circumstances.
It certainly seems to be the Mother-Of-All-Batteries! Hence MOAB!
The Times is reporting that the battery system has cost £30 million.
This works out at about £233,000 to store each Megawatt-Hour stored.
When you consider that we have five offshore that are bigger than the Hornsdale Wind Farm, surely it is only a matter of time before we add a battery to one.
These MOABs are an intriguing concept!
Boosting The Cross-Border Economy
The title of this post, is the same as this article on the BBC. It starts like this.
If they wanted a name-check in the budget, then they got it.
But there was little more detail – for the time being at least – about the growth deal for the Borderlands.
The chancellor announced the UK government would “begin negotiations” on it and work with local partners and the Scottish government.
I feel very strongly, that boosting this Borderlands could be of real value to both countries and obviously this is behind the Government’s thinking.
The article attempts to answer the questions it poses and proposes various transport upgrades.
I would do the following to the railways.
- Complete the Borders Railway to Carlisle.
- Create a rail link from Carlisle to Belfast with a bridge between Stanraer and Larne.
- Improve the Carlisle to Newcastle rail line.
- Electrify the Glasgow to Carlisle rail line via Dumfries.
- Improve operating speeds on both the West and East Coast Main Lines.
The BBC also suggests some roads for improvement.
This is an area to watch.
A Pit Stop At Halifax
One of the objectives of my journey from Blackburn to Leeds was to visit the Piece Hall in Holifax.
Last year in A Trip To Halifax, I had a quick look and said this.
I had hoped to find something hot to drink. All I found was a very bad hot chocolate in the station.
Surely, something better could be done in the green space by the station.
These are pictures I took.
As you can see the Piece Hall is now restored and a magnificent space surrounded by craft shops, bars and restaurants.
I had an excellent breakfast in a bar and restaurant called Elder.
There would also appear to be a sensible hotel just outside the station on the short walking route to the Piece Hall. It is called the Imperial Crown Hotel and it could be a convenient place to stay on a visit to the area.
- It’s within a hundred metres of the station and the Piece Hall.Trains from the station.
- Trains are approximately every thirty minutes to Bradford, Hudderfield, Leeds and Manchester.
- Trains take around thirty minutes to Leeds.
Next time, that I go to Leeds or Bradford, I’ll give it a try.
Assange Isn’t A Dreamer He’s A Destroyer
The title of this post is the same as that of an article in yesterday’s Times, by David Aaronovitch.
It is subtitled.
Don”t be fooled by the Wikileaks e founder’s supposed idealism; he is in the same destructive club as Putin and Trump.
It is thoughtful and well worth a read.
The Anonymous Widower 