Government predictions vs reality
When will the government catch up with the will of the people?
It is looking good for solar in the UK, despite reductions in subsidies and feed in tariffs.
Originally shared by Robert Llewellyn
Government Projections
A fascinating graph appeared at a recent ofgem (The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) presentation. These projections are specifically for the UK.
It shows the official government projections regarding the installation of solar PV, (the red line) and the actual installation, the green line.
Could it be, and this is a genuine question, that due to the intense lobbying from the fossil fuel industry, using arguments like ‘security of supply’ and ‘managed transition’ why the official projections were so hyper slow.
Anyone with first hand knowledge of the solar industry knows how installation of large scale solar plants is rapid, the panels are cheaper, the income from such a plant is regular and impressive, with or without subsidy.
Globally, increases in solar PV are astronomic, we’re still way behind, but when big fossil have the very sympathetic ear of your government, your projections can look a bit dopey.
We could be 100% powered by renewables, it’s not me saying this, it’s 1,000’s of energy specialists, engineers and grid managers.
If you listened to our current government you’d believe, as you are endlessly told, that we need to burn gas and nuclear fuels for at least the next 100 years.
We don’t.
Globally, CO2 emissions may be leveling off due to the improving ratio of renewable to fossil generation. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/16/surge-in-renewable-energy-stalls-world-greenhouse-gas-emissions
That’s good news Mac Baird. Still a long way to go though.
Stood next to solar field wow its so hot around them! Much higher levels of heat! What will this effect cause for warming?
Are you sure it was the solar panels making the heat Skip Meyer? By their very nature they are taking energy away from the environment.
Alan Stainer positive it was. Walk threw a grassy field and then walk threw a solar field and you know exactly what I felt! So my question is how much does it effect environment and heating of atmosphere?
What you are feeling is the reflected infrared radiation (IR), which is not the same as the photons reacting with the PV array to product an electric current. In that sense, the PV array is no different than a road or a rooftop or sand in the desert. You would find the temperature much lower behind the solar panel. Most IR that reaches the planet’s surface is temporarily absorbed by the planet, only to be released back into the atmosphere at night. A problem develops when the IR is trapped by the CO2, CH4, etc. in the atmosphere as it tries to leave the planet. As the level of “Greenhouse Gases” increase, more and more IR is retained.