The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: SallyintNorth on September 20, 2011, 09:40:55 pm
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So, a friend and a friend of his have had this exchange on Facebook:
She: Great Moral Dilemmas: I want wind farms in the countryside (among other places) because they work better there than in cities...
He: It's you city dwellers who use most of the power ;-)
She: Survey after survey has shown country folk use more energy. They live in big olde houses miles from anywhere, well you get the idea...
Comments?
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Well, the townies want wind farms in the country because NIMBY I suspect.
Country mice use more energy in some ways - driving about, maybe heating though we tend to don woolly pullies sooner than the town mice. We don't however have street lights, all night anythings, recycling collections, water treatment plants, air miles for as much imported food......anyone else?
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I think we are more aware of energy usage in the country, (we are anyway), no road lights, so maybe we notice more when lights are left on, we have mainly low energy bulbs,don't have the heating running too early, (central heating (wood fired) not started for the winter yet), or too early in the day, too busy to feel cold, use wood for fires (rayburn-cooks meal, heats water + warms kitchen + bedroom above), still shocked at recent electric bill tho, don't know how we use so much, £140! however, no oil or gas bills.
we are looking at having a wind turbine, thought about water power but you can only use a percentage of the flow, so we don't have enough, OH won't have solar power.
Or are we just tight with our money (after all, we are yorkshire born + bred ;D)
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Well, there are rather more people living in towns than in the countryside, so towns are bound to use more energy. It would be great to fill Hyde Park, Hampstead Heath etc with turbines but it won't happen. Those blades which have been flying off recently would do more damage in town.
On an individual level - everyone's different. There are some big, draughty old houses in both towns and country and also some eco houses and well insulated ordinary homes. Some people waste electricity in both town and country, but huge office blocks with the lights left on all night and air conditioning running are only usually found in town.
I wonder if there are stats for per capita energy use in the city compared with the country - almost certainly someone will have done a survey somewhere.
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There used to be an office block near Willenhall ( west midds) lit only by strip lights and designed without any light switches as it was cheaper to leave them on rather than turn e'm off and restart them all.
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Petrol for sure we use more for getting about. But I am always shocked how overheated city mices' houses are - we are hardier and have lower heating bills despite our house being an old drafty heap of stone! And we can put pv on our roof ;D
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We have a friend who complains bitterly about his heating bills but all year round lolls about his house in t-shirts & shorts even in winter ::) so his heating is on constant but he won't change!
We're same as penninehillybilly, no heating on yet, light the fire if its a bit chilly or put on a thicker cardi, no gas we're oil fired (fill up once a year so tend to wait for it to come down in price at the beginning of summer and then fill up) Our electirc bill hits the £150 mark a quarter in winter (drops to about £90 in summer) for only two of us but i put that mainly down to the fact we have three freezers running permanently, various alarms & security systems ticking away and in winter i use my tumble dryer quite a bit as well as heat lamps for piglets!
Townie relatives have no idea about energy conservation, you go and the heating is on flat out and all the windows are all open!, theres a telly or computer on in every room, and lights are on all over the house even during the day and then they complain their electric bill is over £300 a quarter!! ::) Give me strength!!
Mandy :pig:
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People in rural areas use more road fuel for sure but then we pay more bloody tax as a result. Does it occur to joe public that if it wasn't for the countryside he would have nothing to eat?
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I dont care where you live - but if your having to use any electric device to heat your home - your in a world of pain.
Their is no question that energy production has to be localised to stop wastage.
The feed in tarif scheme I fear was a little bit early and not social enough (its funds used and abused and soon to be tightened - I fear tightened until its not viable by the private user) - the government should have used the FIT as an opportunity to have a new socialised power company owner by the people.
I love the look of wind turbines - but I also like the look of the motorway when I put my camera on timelapse - I would not want either within my sight.
Baz
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Does it occur to joe public that if it wasn't for the countryside he would have nothing to eat?
probably not - we could always import it >:(
watched a tv programme some time ago where they said something like 'at one time they were going to get rid of farmers and just import everything'.
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watched a tv programme some time ago where they said something like 'at one time they were going to get rid of farmers and just import everything'.
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I believe they're still trying >:( :(
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watched a tv programme some time ago where they said something like 'at one time they were going to get rid of farmers and just import everything'.
I believe they're still trying >:( :(
I thought it was EU policy. France - lamb; Holland - pork / bacon; UK - financial services, insurance ::)
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It's true, and scary. Hardly anyone knows or cares where their food comes from, or how tough it can be producing it. We're doing presentations for little ones in schools, trying to get the message across. So far it's all good, but will they retain it or be seduced by the material world. We can only do our best, and only time will tell.
And yes, I do live in the country, and I hope I never have to move into even a village, never mind a town!
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The nurse at my doctors the other day was horrified when i told her i ate lamb from my sheep, did she think i kept 200 about for the shear hell of it. For goodness sake this was a responsable adult in a responable job where does she think her food comes from? the moon!
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from a packet... ::)
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In the question of townies vs country mice; around here most of the rural properties seem to be owned by wealthy types who (can afford to) buy smallholdings in the country, but who work in town (including some who drive to Norwich then take the train to london).
They definitely don't want windmills near them, and their sprawling homes have flatscreen tv's in every room, no energy saving lamps and minimal insulation (energy's still cheap by their standards).
Despite their location I count them as Townies - and NIMBYs - they seem to be of the opinion that countryside is there for scenic purposes.
County mice are a minority group around here. ::)
mab