John Howard has just banned traditional lightbulbs - which I think is an excellent idea. What gets on my nerves is when you drive around any town or city in the UK in the evening and you see these massive office buildings lit up light Christmas trees. Surely the government should ask the relevant building managers to switch of all their lights in the evening, this would help save money and wastage. Also, when you see massive warehouse all over the country, would'nt it be a good idea for them to have solar panels on the roof, this would make them alot more efficent and also take some pressure of the national grid, or i am misunderstanding something?
2007-02-20 04:09:04 · 9 answers · asked by Nelson 2 in Environment
I used to work in a call centre and we had a similar problem. Every evening when we closed the amount of pc monitors left on was amazing.
The cost to the company and the environment must have been massive.
2007-02-20 04:13:34 · answer #1 · answered by richard_beckham2001 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No your not misunderstanding, all governments departments have a budget and if the money is not spent in that department then the funds get moved elsewhere, so all the different departments make sure that all is spent plus extra. Laws are enacted that require a certain amount of lighting be on in big building and warehouses this is to help with security. I wish they would consider solar or wind generators on roofs too but they look at it as, "well that cost money too"...
2007-02-20 12:21:07 · answer #2 · answered by Johnny 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Energy efficient bulbs are great - they're cheap (ish) and we can all buy them and benefit. Solar panels are rather expensive and probably not cost effective on small scales like houses and warehouses.
The cost of going greener with wind and solar is still boarderline sensible for the average citizen and SME but give it few years and falling costs and they'll make much better sense. Also, just around the corner is the prospect of mircogeneration (fuel cell technology) at home and at work - this looks very promising too - it might be worth waiting on this technology coming on stream before making an investment in infrastructure to cut costs and go green.
2007-02-21 07:28:48 · answer #3 · answered by Moebious 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with turning off the lights of large buildings at night - and light up monuments and things. I suppose it's OK up to about 9 or 10 at night, but then turn them off.
Solar panels are a bit of a false economy. They aren't very efficient at converting energy, and every calorie of the Sun's energy they consume is less energy heating the building that they cover. This means the building will be colder at night, which in turn means using more energy to compensate.
2007-02-20 12:17:51 · answer #4 · answered by mark 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, you are on the right track. Electricity saved is more than electricity generated (because of transmission losses) and electricity not generated through conventional fossil fuels is that less pollution. Your idea of warehouse roofs being lined with solar panels is also good and that electricity can be used for illumination of the court yard in night.
2007-02-20 12:15:12 · answer #5 · answered by Swamy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I use energy efficient bulbs where possible. Only two areas where I can't.
1) I need 12 watt bulbs for night lights, for the kids. Can't get a low enough energy saving bulb.
2) Got two lamp shades that require shorter energy saving bulbs but they're too long, where as a standard bulb fits.
Step in the right direction but I hope their price comes down.
2007-02-20 18:01:07 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only reason I don't like using electricity is because it costs me to much money. And if you ask me this country needs warming up a bit any way, I was not born to save the world I have no interest in what is happening to the world, I have got loads of electrical appliances and most are on or on standby, someone is making alot of money out of this nonsense or trying to improve their standing like John Howard.Hail to more nuclear power stations bollocks to greenpeace, we need more electric not more excuses to put the price up.
2007-02-20 12:28:19 · answer #7 · answered by SAR13 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Energy saving light bulbs are not suitable for closets and broom cupboards where they are flicked on for seconds.....
If the government is serious about saving electricity it should ban shops from leaving their doors open with the heating on - as well as doing as you suggest.
Also. buildings such as schools and colleges need more sophisticated thermostats. How often are rooms very over -heated because somebody has not adjusted for weather variations.
Also flats where heating is put on according to date/season - not temperature/weather requirement. Those responsible have to be persuaded to think about this!
2007-02-22 16:58:53 · answer #8 · answered by Herbloke 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No your right, offices should shut down lights when everybody leaves. we do. Solar panels would be very expensive for factories to install, unless they had a little help from the government. I think thats a good idea
2007-02-20 12:14:03 · answer #9 · answered by chrisbowe82 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋