World Wide Power Off

[Stuart]

I love it: we had an email recently from the Union at the university encouraging people to get involved, and berating the university itself for not being more proactive about it (any stick to beat the mean university administration). They quoted a figure from last year's power out in Sydney, where apparently the hour of lights out, if continued for a year, would save something like the emissions from 48000 cars for a year.

Of course, if Sydney actually turned out their lights for an entire year, that might be worthwhile. On the other hand, if you take the greenhouse gas emissions saved in that hour, that equates to a whole 5 cars. (I can't remember the exact figures, but these are close)

Sorry, but I see it as a pretty fruitless gesture.

If all that lighting equates to such a few vehicles, perhaps they'd be better targeting something worthwhile (like vehicles). (Same thing applies to changing everyone's lightbulbs to the more expensive, less versatile power savers. I use them where appropriate, but they don't suit all my lighting requirements. Bureaucracy gone mad).

Don't get me started on plastic bags. How much worse the actual packaging of the items I carry home in those bags. And just ensure they are bio-degradable - I had one in my backyard, and it was breaking down very quickly, so where is the problem.

(And yes - it is BIO-degradable, not just degradable like so many people mistakenly call it - many many things are degradable, but we want the right mechanism (ie breaking down in the environment). I can degrade a plastic bag quite successfully with fire, and that means it is also degradable, but doesn't mean it will break down in the trash!)

I'm not against environmental initiatives, I've put a few into place myself at work, that have been picked up by the whole university, but put the effort into something that will actually achieve a decent outcome. I'm not intending to step on idealism, but the same effort more directed could have significantly more impact for no additional effort.

[Lignum]

WORLDWIDE BLACKOUT
on saturday 29th there will be a turn off power all over the world from 8 pm to 9pm only one hour
TURN OFF EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NO POWER, NO ELECTRICITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And miss St Kilda spank Carltank... Dont think so

[nev25]

If I can open up a can of worms

It has been suggested that this whole global warming thing is a farce
The earth has natural progressions
the ice age
the stone age
now this heating up of the earth
In a decade or so things will swing the other way

Not necessary my opinion but I thought I would mention it

[Wood Borer]

I'm sorry but I don't understand the messages about it won't save energy

When I studied Electronic/Electrical Engineering there were laws about the conservation of energy. Energy in = Energy out.

Apart from the inefficiencies of the power stations, where do you think the difference in energy goes - up the smoke stacks?

Numbers about firing up coal stations etc - are those opposing the action suggesting that the amount of coal burnt in a power station is identical when there is less load on the generators as when there is when there is a full load?

People who are soley committed to their share prices without any scientific background or concern about the future of our planet can hardly expect their personal greed and selfish ideas to be taken seriously in this argument. We want sound scientific arguments, not ignorant right wing political backslapping.

[Burnsy]

In a decade or so things will swing the other way

The global cycle is a little longer than a decade, 10,000 years might see a difference.

[Wongo]

If I can open up a can of worms

It has been suggested that this whole global warming thing is a farce
The earth has natural progressions
the ice age
the stone age
now this heating up of the earth
In a decade or so things will swing the other way

Not necessary my opinion but I thought I would mention it

Well you still should try to save energy regardless. Electricitys got to come from something else.

[Burnsy]

Well you still should try to save energy regardless. Electricitys got to come from something else.

[Waldo]

I wonder what energy has been spent with this thread running given we've had 24 replies and 10 members viewing it?

A bit of of a paradox isn't it?

Then there's the TVCs, p/ads to advertise it - the ink used to print the newspaper, the trees cut down to make the pulp... it's like a snowball racing down the mountain.

[ss_11000]

Try this

Have showers for no longer than 10 minutes
Turn the lights off when not needed
Turn the computer off at night
Turn the hifi off at night
Try not to use hair dryer
Use iPod less
Use mobile phone less
Etc

if i do all this: does that i mean i will save enough money off the power bill to buy a jet or two

seriously...i need to cut down on my electricity uses. like right now, i could turn off my light because i dont need to read the keys when i'm typing

[Burnsy]

I wonder what energy has been spent with this thread running given we've had 24 replies and 10 members viewing it?

A bit of of a paradox isn't it?

Not if it caused one person to think about the unrequired lights or TV's that were currently on in their home and they got up and turned them off. After all we were here on the forum already, we did not log on to look for this thread.

[Wongo]

if i do all this: does that i mean i will save enough money off the power bill to buy a jet or two

seriously...i need to cut down on my electricity uses. like right now, i could turn off my light because i dont need to read the keys when i'm typing

Son what am I trying to tell you here.

Don't use more than you need to

NOT

Don't use at all.

[astrid]

Sorry, but I see it as a pretty fruitless gesture.

If all that lighting equates to such a few vehicles, perhaps they'd be better targeting something worthwhile (like vehicles). (Same thing applies to changing everyone's lightbulbs to the more expensive, less versatile power savers. I use them where appropriate, but they don't suit all my lighting requirements. Bureaucracy gone mad).

I'm not intending to step on idealism, but the same effort more directed could have significantly more impact for no additional effort.

Refer to groggys post.

Astrid

[Waldo]

So, okay we're aware of it now.

Can I have my lights on now? Should go see the neighbour across the fence, he's out there right now working in the garden with all his flood lights on it in the whole yard, like he does every night all night (weird bloke that bloke, a bit and see if he's happy for me to run the thicknesser or 10HB on saturday night.

I'm quite harmless really.

[ss_11000]

Son what am I trying to tell you here.

Don't use more than you need to

NOT

Don't use at all.

of course.

[Wongo]

Thats my boy