Life is about choices. In order to tackle climate change we are faced with difficult choices. Cover the countryside with wind turbines and solar panels, some say as much as 50% of the UK would be required, or approve a small number of small sites for nuclear generation. I find the RSPB's attitude on this point rather baffling. Yes there will be a local impact at the Sizewell C site but surely this dwarfed by the impact of covering the land with photovoltaic panels? Add in that with renewables we are baking in the need for fossil fuels forever, primarily gas, this approach seems to be rather odd to say the least.
I agree that wind turbines can be produced more locally. Unfortunately, not a lot has been done to facilitate that over the last 20 years.....However, buying hardware to import is finite. Borrowing to pay overseas companies to build stuff will take how long and how much to finally pay off? Paying for the energy at inflated, guaranteed prices is over how long a period? People my age and over (no idea how old you are) find it easy to recommend hugely long term projects, but won't be the ones paying the bulk of the bill and ongoing costs..... Re pretending re hitting net zero, yes, I agree politicians are pretending. When one senior politician (party neutral quote!) states, "net zero strategy must be proportional and pragmatic", what on earth does that mean, and in addition, what evidence, if any is there of anything proportional and pragmatic being done to head anywhere towards net zero?
This is an article I. wrote for my local RSPB Group in August 2022 after my first visit to Minsmere in May 2022 for 49. Years. Compared no my first visit in 1973 to my second visit in 2023. Later on in 2022 I posted my article onto this forum as well
Regards,
Ian.