Energy in the Tides

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There is nothing really new about tidal energy. The idea has been around for over 80 years and it has been in use for about 40 years. Tidal Mills set a historical precedence and possibly the earliest example was in London in Roman times.

Recently the concept received something of a boost when Tidal Energy ’s project to install Wales’ first full-scale tidal stream generator has secured a £390,000 grant from the UK's Carbon Trust .

The investment from the Trust’s Entrepreneurs Fast Track Programme, which follows £6.4 million from the EU and £4.4 million from shareholder Eco2 as well as others, will cover environmental monitoring work at the installation site in Ramsey Sound off the Pembrokeshire coast.

The results of the environmental assessment of the site for Tidal Energy’s DeltaStream device will be made available to the wider marine energy industry.

The DeltaStream device sits on the seabed and generates electricity from three separate horizontally mounted turbines.

The 1.2 MW device will provide renewable electricity to the local community of St Davids during its 12-month trial.

“We believe our device can combine high efficiency and portability with the crucial advantage of being environmentally benign,” says Tidal Energy’s development director Chris Williams.

He adds that Wales could generate as much as 4 GW of clean energy by 2025 from its 1200 km coastline though similar tidal and wave developments.

“This represents a huge opportunity but in order to achieve this goal, we must understand more about how devices interact with the marine environment,” he says.

SOME QUESTIONS ARISING:

1. What could be achieved on the Tamar with Tidal Energy?
   
2. Is anyone in Tasmania seriously looking at this opportunity or are there too many detractors talking it down?
3. Might there be an application in Launceston's Gorge?
4. Might there be an application under or near the Batman Bridge?
5. Might there be an application at the Tamar's mouth?

JUST 5 QUESTIONS TO BE GOING ON WITH

Close the loop: rethink waste water

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WE REALLY DO NEED TO RETHINK THE WAY WE GO TO THE TOILET!

In this 18 min. 47 sec. TEDxTalk Anders Nyquist might just change your mind about the way we should go to the toilet in the 21st C. He a Swedish architect, designer, planner, contractor, teacher and school-master – and he ain't talking shit!

Instead, he talks about vortex toilets, sustainable architecture, how to close the loop for water and how to adopt a circular way of thinking instead of our linear way of thinking adopted in the industrial era. This talk is well worth the time!

CLICK HERE TO GO TO ANDERS NYQUIST'S TEDxTalk

LANDSHARE: A growing idea in Australia

Landshare Australia is a new kid on the sustainability block and it brings together people who have a passion for home-grown food, connecting those who have land to share with those who need land for cultivating food.

It is an idea that has its roots in the UK, launched through the River Cottage television program in 2009. The concept has since landed here in Australia. As yet there are less than a 1000 Aussies who have embraced the idea but it is early days. As they say, it began with the tiny seed of an idea – and it's growing and growing.

To quote the website "Landshare is for people who:
* Want to grow vegetables but don't have anywhere to do it
* Have a spare bit of land they're prepared to share
* Can help in some way – from sharing knowledge and lending tools to helping
out on the plot itself
* Support the idea of freeing up more land for growing
* Are already growing and want to join in the community"

In the end the concept has a lot to do with food security and reducing the food miles our food travels from where it is grown and onto our plate.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE LANDSHARE WEBSITE:

• The UK site
• The Australian site
  

CoHousing – A New AFFORDABLE Australian Dream?

Living Cooperatively: Affordable Housing – Sustainable Development - a Swedish model – has aroused quite a bit of interest, and there were similar ideas on display at Melbourne’s Sustainable Living Festival. What’s happening in your state or territory?

Sustainable Living In Intentional Communities (SLIC) is a group auspiced by the Sustainable Living Foundation (SLF) as it works towards a society that includes:

* Cohousing, where residents own their own home, but regularly share in community activities including common meals, centred around a community house. Cohousing communities are designed to address and encourage social interaction and ... click here to go to the full story

CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO 'Pigs Will Fly'

Food-sensitive planning and urban design

The Heart Foundation Victorian division has recently released Food-sensitive planning and urban design – a conceptual framework for achieving a sustainable and healthy food system.

Food-sensitive planning and urban design (FSPUD) recognises that access to healthy, sustainable and equitable food is an essential part of achieving liveable communities.

It is an approach to planning and urban design that addresses the critical intersect between public health, planning and urban design, and environmental sustainability. It presents the case for prioritising food in the planning and design of our cities.

FSPUD provides tools, suggestion and case studies to enable the practical reconciliation of food considerations with planning and urban design objectives. The document can be found here – These resources are for planners, architects, urban designers, engineers, policymakers, community members and elected representatives involved in urban land use and development. It provides tools, suggestions and case studies to help reconcile food considerations with planning and urban design objectives.

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