Rain, and plenty of it

Iceland. A country that sits on one of the thinnest areas of the earth's crust. Just below the surface the heat from the Mantle causes water that has fallen beneath the cracks of the earth to rise back up again as steam. This forms so many of natures phenomenon we see there. Geysers. Hot pools, to name but a few. 

This, you could argue is one of the defining features of Iceland. Apart from the wildlife and rugged landscape. However to the residents of Iceland it isn't just a novelty feature; Used to bring in the tourists. They use the geothermal energy every day in interesting, diverse and above all Innovative ways. The whole of the country is powered by geothermal power or Hydro power. 26.2% and 74.4% respectively. 89% of the homes in Iceland are heated at no cost at all, and almost indefinitely by the power of the earth. That means there are no gas bills for heating. Can you imagine how good that would be?

But it doesn't just extend to energy use. They have developed strange but beautiful ways of harnessing the warmth of the earth. By channelling it under the roads they remain ice free all year round. By channelling the heat into a contraption similar to a BBQ they have a steam cooker. 

This, I'm sure you'll agree is an astounding amount of imagination and innovation. Iceland truly is well on its way to becoming one of the first ever countries to become completely fossil fuel free. 

This lead me to start wondering. What do we have in the UK? We certainly don't have anything like the capacity Iceland has to produce energy from geothermal sources in such abundance. There is a small geothermal plant in Southampton  But this would cater for such a small percentage of the UK's overall energy consumption as to be almost negligible.

We do however have lots of rain. Lots of coast and lots and lots of flowing water. Rain is almost a stereotypical feature of the UK. The French always comment on how much we complain of it. So what can we do with that??

Back in the past mills where used to grind flour. However that is a practice that has stopped almost completely. (Save for the odd living museum here and there.)

So lets open this out. How could we use the abundance of water in and around and above England to 

1) Improve our lives?

2) To make us a more self sufficient country. 

If anyone has any ideas. Please leave a comment and I will post them up. 

Japan PM Calls for nuclear-free future

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jul/13/japan-nuclear-power-fukushima

The Unpopular PM Naoto Kan has put forward the idea recently that Japan should move towards a Nuclear free future. There is still some debate as to what this means. But potentially could be a step in the right direction towards a cleaner future for one of the worlds most developed countries. 

The question is. Can the UK, currently locked into a Carbon dependent energy system make similar changes?

What would these changes mean for the UK?

Are they logistically possible?

The problem faced by the UK government at the moment is how to convince the major energy companies to invest almost £110 billion pounds into reforming our energy plans over the next decade. No small task I'm sure you'll agree. The reasons are twofold. Not only will it dramatically help to reduce the UK's carbon footprint. But it could also help keep energy prices at a reasonable enough level so as not to start a customer revolt. The privatisation dream of the 80's set up by Margaret Thatchers government worked for a while. The concept being that strong competition between companies would keep the prices down. However these companies have fallen to the slave driver that is un-sustainable resource. 

For the future of the UK's energy to be secure. Investment is needed in a myriad of energy solutions. The stereotypical ones include Wind, Solar, Tidal etc. And these solutions are quite easily implemented both inland and offshore for relatively little cost with maximum gain. However advanced the technology is though, it would not be enough to supply power to a present version of the UK as it stands now. Innovation and imagination is required in all sectors to not only create renewable cheap clean energy. But also to conserve and make the most of the energy available to us when it arrives. A 'Smart Grid' 

(More about smart grid thinking and technology can be found here.)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/smart-grid-energy-policy-us

At the end of the day however. No matter what the government does. It is up to us to make this happen. Every single person is responsible for the energy they use. And we all know of moments when we could have been more careful. But in a more positive light. It is up to us now to make the UK a leader in the technologies, services, designs and plans that will make the future a safe and rewarding place to be. Lets challenge ourselves to lead the way. Britain was once a cultural hub of innovation in science, art, music, and technology. We have all heard of the industrial revolution. Well we can be that again. Welcome one and all to the green revolution.