Oh the irony…
First, a flashback from June 18, 2010:
I was in Newcastle, NSW AU on Wednesday night to give another lecture as part of the Australian speaking tour I’m doing. I had the pleasure of following David Stockwell in a presentation, and David Archibald followed me.
We were a bit late getting there due to airplane scheduling snafus, and as we rushed from the airport at 6:15 pm we passed the coal loading terminal at Newcastle. There, as if there was some madcap attempt at sustainability, was one of those huge wind turbines like I’ve seen on the US plains. I attempted to get a photo, but my camera misfired with bad focus due to the car window, and I missed the shot.
The next morning, on the way to the airport again at 6AM, the windmill was still there, just like it was before. My driver (Anthony#2 of Team Anthony) gladly pulled over to allow me to get this shot as dawn crept in. I was incredulous that the shot hadn’t changed.
Ummm. I thought windmills were all about generating electricity, not using it. So why put torches on it that run all night? Want to bet the lighting power is coming from coal? While the turbine probably generates more power than it uses most nights, it sure seems odd.
Of course, maybe the people that run it really didn’t want a wind turbine in their coal town, and this torch lighting is their form of silent protest. Or, maybe they are proud of it and felt it needed to be illuminated all hours of the night. Maybe the lights are to warn off birds and small planes. Nobody seemed to know. Whatever the reason, I couldn’t help but be amused.
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Bruce from Newcastle writes in today to tell me:
Anthony – our lonely windmill which you liked so much when you visited (you know the one helpfully lit up at night) may be about to pay the ultimate price – to be reincarnated as a coal loader:
Ultimate in irony. Windmill makes ultimate sacrifice to ship coal from Newcastle to China…ah, just think of all the heads exploding in the EDF.
The Kooragang Island wind turbine has stood at the Newcastle Port Corporation since 1997. Anyone want to place bets on whether environmentalists will chain themselves to it like a tree about to be cut down?
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Where’s Josh?
Josh, see this:
@ur momisugly Schadow 3:43 pm
“Much better to have one chained environmentalist per blade. Of course, differing weights of environmentalists would call for calculations to be made to position them correctly along blades to ensure balance. Oh, never mind.”
Andy G says:
March 24, 2011 at 7:56 pm
Hi Andy,
The topic was about Wind Turbines actually.
But if you are so concerned about the damage caused by mining neodymium, you should extend your concern to those areas I noted. The damage caused by mining for iron ore gold and copper is far in excess of that caused by mining for neodymium.
You gotta get your priorities right to be effective.
As I said, you only mentioned the Wind Turbine industry because it suits your ideology. Your response only confirms that.
“The damage caused by mining for iron ore gold and copper is far in excess of that caused by mining for neodymium. ”
Now I know UR Kidding !!
And since you obviously think that it is OK !!!! for a GREEN technology to make such a MESS of the environment both in production and implementation, as well as being a money sink, one has to seriously question your ideology.
It obviously is NOT one of an environmentalist, so what is it ?????
Please enlighten us !!
Andy G says:
March 24, 2011 at 11:29 pm
And since you obviously think that it is OK !!!! for a GREEN technology to make such a MESS of the environment both in production and implementation, as well as being a money sink, one has to seriously question your ideology.
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Where did I say it is OK to mine Neodymium on the basis it is used in “Green” Technology. It would still be mined even if Wind Turbines did not exist, as it has many other applications.
You’re the one who claimed Neodymium mining was harming the environment and I agree. And if it comes down to money, clearly the mine owners don’t want to diminish their profit by spending some of that profit on cleaning up the mess they made.
I just gave you a few more examples of damage caused by mining for materials you and I use every day (and in Wind Turbines for that matter). Strangely enough you are so blinkered by your ideology you can’t even see that.
A 1997 wind turbine? I believe that qualifies it as ‘old growth.’ It must be saved.
Maybe they could relocate it to some DoubleGoodNewGreen National Park where the AGW gang can marvel at it, with a substantial team of researchers to monitor the effects of climate change on it. Could still be something for Big Green Inc. to milk out of it.
But replaced with a coal loader! That’s almost too much. Bound to effect this turbine’s self esteem.
You still don’t get it do you..
NO ONE is trying to pass of these other pollution incidents as being the poster child for “Green energy” !!
Even coal mines can be remediated, but that lake at Baotou is now totally destroyed.
It, and a huge area around, of what was use productive farm land can NEVER be remediated !!!