Biofuel flight 'a publicity stunt'[?]

dong20

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We haven't had a fight about global warming for a while.

Even if environmentally friendly biofuel wasn't enough of an oxymoron, a 5% biofuel flight is no more than a half baked publicity stunt. The use of a B747 to Amsterdam? Sure it took off with a few cups of coconut oil in one of the tanks, what are the odds any of it will see an injector nozzle?

But, being a typically Bransonesque maneuver, I expect it'll fool enough poor saps into flying good old Virgin, which (in the sure knowledge that it will have no positive environmental impact if not a negative one) is essentially the unspoken aim of the exercise.

Or maybe I'm just being too cynical, again?

Biofuel flight 'a publicity stunt' - Yahoo! News UK
 

Rugbypup

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If global warming even exists, this certainly isn't going to help.

UNDERSTAND THIS, global warming, CO2 build up, global climate runaway change IS A FACT!

It's been happening since the industrial revolution, it IS happening now and is going to end in climate cascade if global CO2 levels are not haulted in the next 10 years.

The Earth is a geo engine, all global systems are interlinked in one form or another, if we fuck up one of them, the whole world suffers.
 

Rugbypup

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The technology to reduce and hault our CO2 production EXISTS today, but it's a matter of ecconomics that is preventing it becoming common place.

Money, money, money...

It's gonna be to fucking late sooner than we think and then it's going to cost a shit load more.
 

SteveHd

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dongalong

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If you've ever seen the documentary "The Great Global Warming Swindle", they show data showing how our current global warming period is due to our planet's natural cooling and warming cycles which have existed for billions of years.
Some cunning politicians have used this to pass new laws and make money by alarming the population into thinking that this natural event is man made.
Clean energy production has existed for a long time but since governments are supported by oil lobbies they have no incentive to back such technologies since it will bring to an end the massive profits and taxes that oil companies make with their monopolies.

Luckily independant organisations such as AERO are willing to back such technologies to help provide a real alternative to our dependance on fossil fuels.
 

Rugbypup

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What a crock of shit, yes the planet has a warming cooling cycle and will always continue to warm up and cool down, just as the magnetic poles will flip over every 10,000 years or so.

Now show me when the Earths atmosphere, within the time span of man has had as high levels of CO2?
 

dong20

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ZOS23xy

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200 hundred years back it was possible in January to walk from Staten Island to Manhatten; the ice thickened up enough to allow such a journey. There were even fairs held on the Hudson River.

Ain't there no more, no how.

Yes, there are periods of warmth and cool, but it has been slowly warming. The mini ice age from the year 1200 is abating (back before when Greenland was capable of sustaining grapevines), and polar bears will soon live in someone's back yard.
 

dongalong

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What a crock of shit, yes the planet has a warming cooling cycle and will always continue to warm up and cool down, just as the magnetic poles will flip over every 10,000 years or so.

Now show me when the Earths atmosphere, within the time span of man has had as high levels of CO2?
Well if cave men had thought of sending up weather balloons with accurate instruments then it might be easier to show you.:rolleyes:
 

bimmli

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The use of bio-fuels is not the best approach to solving our emissions of CO2. What no one seems to be saying is that the agro-acres necessary to produce a real solution to the CO2 problem will increase food costs across the board. Think about it...all those acres of land used to produce food will be allocated to bio-fuels. In my opinion, keeping good quality food cheaper for the masses is more important that using bio-fuels especially when there are other alternatives to eco-friendly energy.

There is no ONE WAY to solve this problem. What we need to do is use a combination of technologies to attack the problem from multiple angles. We should be using solar, wind, tidal, thermal (Iceland) and yes, nuclear energy. 80% of Frances electrical energy comes from nuclear power. Isn't there something we can learn from them?
 

dong20

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The use of bio-fuels is not the best approach to solving our emissions of CO2. What no one seems to be saying is that the agro-acres necessary to produce a real solution to the CO2 problem will increase food costs across the board. Think about it...all those acres of land used to produce food will be allocated to bio-fuels. In my opinion, keeping good quality food cheaper for the masses is more important that using bio-fuels especially when there are other alternatives to eco-friendly energy.

That was the entire rationale behind the thread, perhaps I was to subtle.:biggrin1:
 

Rugbypup

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dong20

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How much energy could the combiened surface area of every roof in a nation produce?

Depends on latitude.

The south of the UK receives from about 200 W/m2 on an overcast day to 1.3 KW/m2 in full sun. A minimum worthwhile installation is about 10m2. A typical cell is 8-10% efficient although some new technologies have raised this to as high as 40%

As an approximation a typical panel on a south facing roof will generate 120Kwh per square metre per year. A household may use 3000-5000 Kwh per year so would need 25-40 m2 at least to be self sufficient.

Typical payback on an average installation cost of at least £10000 and a use of 4000 Kwh per annum is thus about 35 years - far longer than the lifespan of current systems and 5 times the typical period a home is owned. There's simply no incentive for most people at present. The payback time estimates have been hotly debated with some quoting periods of over 45 years, back in 2005.

As volumes increase, prices will fall but it's got some way to go before it's mainstream, even allowing for grants. But I think it will happen, eventually and especially when it's built into new houses as standard.
 

tripod

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The use of bio-fuels is not the best approach to solving our emissions of CO2. What no one seems to be saying is that the agro-acres necessary to produce a real solution to the CO2 problem will increase food costs across the board. Think about it...all those acres of land used to produce food will be allocated to bio-fuels. In my opinion, keeping good quality food cheaper for the masses is more important that using bio-fuels especially when there are other alternatives to eco-friendly energy.

Aren't we already doing that to the corn crop with the new Ethanol Bill that the conservatives rammed through the congress? Corn hasn't become scarce and the price hasn't risen that I know of...

Plus, the future of bio fuels is in the production of high yield algae, not from crops.
 

Hellboy0

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The use of bio-fuels is not the best approach to solving our emissions of CO2. What no one seems to be saying is that the agro-acres necessary to produce a real solution to the CO2 problem will increase food costs across the board. Think about it...all those acres of land used to produce food will be allocated to bio-fuels. In my opinion, keeping good quality food cheaper for the masses is more important that using bio-fuels especially when there are other alternatives to eco-friendly energy.

There is no ONE WAY to solve this problem. What we need to do is use a combination of technologies to attack the problem from multiple angles. We should be using solar, wind, tidal, thermal (Iceland) and yes, nuclear energy. 80% of Frances electrical energy comes from nuclear power. Isn't there something we can learn from them?

Biofuels suck, folks. Do the math: It take more energy and resources to produce than is created by the fuel AND it takes valuable food from the mouths of those who need it most. It's a fucking nightmare to think that feel-good biofuel is causing the price of things like corn to increase to the point that a poor person can't even afford to buy it as food.

We aren't feeding the people on this planet already and NOW we're taking it out of their mouths and sticking it into the fuel tank of self-righteous cunts who should be buying either some sort of electric car, riding a bike, or walking to their manicures and golf courses. GRRRRR... pisses me off.

Sorry. Sorry. Really sorry for the flaming but I so hate the gray science being promoted these days.