29 July 2008

On Power Stations

| johnboy
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I’ve walked in a little late to the great power station imbroglio. But I believe I have a solution to the problem.

We should build the gas fired power station on Ainslie’s Keith Tournier oval.

No wait, bear with me here.

First on the subject of dirty power…

The more vocal critics are opposing building a power station on the grounds that it is “Dirty Power”.

Dirty as opposed to their theoretical moonbeam power generator, which runs on pixie dust and warm happy feelings, sure.

But dirtier than power from a brown coal station in the LaTrobe valley which then suffers huge transmission losses on the wire to us?

Or from a hydro plant? Which valley full of fluffy animals would you like to flood to get more of that?

You already have to option to buy green power credits for hypothetical renewable energy 24/7.

But for the rest of the population a local gas-fired power station positively glows green compared to a rational assessment of the alternatives.

“Oh but the pollutants” they twitter, while expecting that a transport system driven by tens of thousands of small inefficient petrol and diesel engines be rolled to their doorstops.

There are health standards, they can be adhered to.

Selling the turd

Now a sneaky Government would have backed us into this. Starting with some reports warning of dire consequences unless we sorted out some power generation. Follow it up by sending Gavin down in the truck to turn off the lights in selected suburbs every few nights.

They’d have kept it going until the frightened burghers were positively begging for power stations.

Instead they just announced they were doing it and told the relevant bed-wetters to stuff it. Which might have worked if they hadn’t already taken this approach on so very many issues that pretty much everyone in Canberra is still smarting from the last dose they personally received.

So now it’s a problem.

The solution

Given that real environmentalists would support a local gas-fired power station we now need to find a location that can man up and take one for the team.

Where better than Ainslie?

The marvelous Goodwin aged care facility is nearing completion (without, as it happens, irrevocable damage to the social and environmental fabric of Canberra’s most precious suburb).

Right across the road we have the Keith Tournier oval.

Normally Ainslie-ites would be threatening to chain themselves to the hallowed turf in protest. (Note: not actually doing it)

But recently the oval has been converted to the use of Rugby League.

Power station? Or Rugby League players?

And with the site pretty much surrounded by an age care facility no concerns about long term health impacts.

You know it makes sense.

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BTW, NEMMCO records transmission and distribution losses and they are typical 5-8%.

…or you could get serious about at-source demand reduction in business, govt and households; change the pricing structure of the electricity market to encourage customers to consume less; invest heavily in wind turbines (aren’t the ridgelines of the Brindabella’s perfect for wind?), geothermal power in the Hunter and Cooper Basin, solar thermal adjuncts to existing goal and gas-fired powerplants and increase the uptake of solar PV (especially with the new, cheaper “printed” solar panels soon to be on the market) ; tighten building regulations and planning laws to force developers to plan their suburbs and houses with energy consumption over the life of the home in mind; etc.

Building a gas-fired pp in Ainslie is hardly a long-term solution to a the root cause of the problem, which is overconsumption.

Oh, and I get the joke.

Gold star for that one WM-C.

Woody Mann-Caruso3:22 pm 29 Jul 08

power station imbroglio

Wasn’t she in Neighbours?

Don’t build it at Ainslie, build it at Spring Range. As long as it doesn’t create flutter, make whirring noises and scare the sheep the SRLG should be happy to accommodate it.

Growling Ferret said :

Not KT oval. He was a legend

You can make it the KT/Johnboy power station, much cooler than an oval even if he does have to share with me now.

what exactly were you trying to acheive with this post?

Growling Ferret11:59 am 29 Jul 08

Not KT oval. He was a legend.

Put it on Reid Oval which nobody would miss! The gentle warmth emitted from the powerstation would then have a secondary purpose of keeping everyone warm at the Dawn Service.

You know it makes sense.

captainwhorebags11:43 am 29 Jul 08

caf: i’d prefer that to “bare with me here”

Sounds good – and I both live in Ainslie and, during a few years of youthful indiscretion, have committed Rugby League.

“No wait, bear with me here.” is becoming your catchphrase.

Or from a hydro plant? Which valley full of fluffy animals would you like to flood to get more of that?

ooh, let’s flood belconnen, you know its right people. great big dam, hydro generator, no gininderra falls, all good.

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