Another great post from Jim. Whatever your views on environmental issues, remember that we cannot eat trees or solar panels. There has to be more balance.
It’s interesting that both Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have spoken out against covering farmland with solar panels. You do wonder if finally, people are beginning to wake up a little.
Personally I think that, whether he intended to or not, Putin has created a watershed in history, but not perhaps in the way he intended.
If we go back to the start of the century, Ed Miliband put the green levies on energy. But at the same time a lot of other things were put in place, all nicely set ten, twenty or even thirty years ahead. Politicians were kicking unexploded bombs into the long grass secure in the knowledge that by the time these things happened and the public started feeling the pain, they’d be long retired on a good pension and their successors could take the flak.
When they were announced, the ban on the installation of…
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beetleypete 
Jim is really amazing me, and i would wish he could do some politics for a whole country. Thanks for sharing this, Pete! xx Michael
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He talks a lot of sense, Michael.
Best wishes, Pete.
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That’s it, and you know what he talks about. Most of the agricultural experts never have seen or felt soil with their own eyes/ hands. xx Michael
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Put them on roofs! Warmest regards, Theo
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They do that, Theo, but also site thousands of them in fields and on open land. Farmers can often make more money from installing those or selling off farmland to be used for them, than from growing crops.
Best wishes, Pete.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aptera_(solar_electric_vehicle)
“Embedded solar cells will contribute up to 41 miles per day from sunlight under ideal conditions. Since most drivers drive less than 30 miles per day, this feature will allow such users to seldom, if ever, need to plug in to charge the batteries. Thus the Aptera is promoted as the world’s first “Never Charge” EV.”
Production is scheduled to begin late this year…
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Thanks for the link, David.
(Do we get enough sunshine in Beetley though? 🙂 )
Best wishes, Pete.
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There are fields of solar panels and lots of wind turbines in Cornwall, also lots of grazing animals too, but I imagine a lot of the land is unsuitable for crops. I have no idea what the answer is, though given we are an island with tides I’d like to think we could use wave technology to generate power, but the energy situation is frightening. Our standing charge doubled in April so even before we use any electricity we are paying £15 a month. As for heating oil… but nobody mentions that, we all use gas apparently. Cynical? Me?
Oh, and a good post. I enjoyed reading it and the comments.
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Thanks, Jude. Cornwall is not famous for arable farming I believe, but has a good amount of livestock. Our heating oil doubled in price the last time we bought it, at well over £500 for 500 litres. I am due to buy some more soon, and wary of asking the price. Apparently, Kerosene is one of the fuels we import excusively, so oil-heating users like us will also feel the difference in price continuing. The cost of car fuels has recently dropped by up to 13p a litre locally, and I am hoping that fall will continue.
Best wishes, Pete. x
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When I enquired I was informed that 10 weeks ago the price had risen to £1.35 a litre! Thankfully it has gone down to 89p which is still a third more than the last time I filled up.
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Good to know you were quoted 89p. I am in a syndicate, and they never quote a firm price in advance. They invoice you on delivery day for the price they pay that day, and give you 28 days to pay. It usually saves us some money as they obtain a group discount, but they will only give you a ‘rough idea’ when you ring them up to order.
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Crops can be grown under solar panels though.
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I obviously don’t know enough about farming, but it seems (from looking around here in Norfolk) that nobody is doing that on any sufficiently large scale.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Probably no incentive. Anyway it’s called agrivoltaics and seems to me a reasonable way to help combat both food and energy problems.
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Thanks for the info, FR. I did see a Look East (BBC local news) report about a farmer who keeps free range chickens between the solar panels on his farm. That was in Cambridgeshire, I think.
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Well we need to do something other than fossil fuels and imports, and people who don’t like the looks of solar panels in fields or wind farms need to get a grip. Sorry if that offends anyone but the worlds going tits up as things are.
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I am a big fan of using solar panels, and I find wind offshore farms impressive. Though sadly, the construction of a large wind turbine uses more energy than each one usually provides. But I think they need to find somewhere else to use solar panels other than buying up arable land we used to grow crops on. I can see the day when most food will have to be imported and will be too expensive for many people. Like I said, there has to be a better balance. (You didn’t offend me. 🙂 )
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Thanks Jim, this opened up ones blurry eyes. Truss will be dangerous & not just to the Scots. She has a place parked for her sharp stilettos for sure & I bet it aint in Beetley!
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Liz Truss is the MP for South Norfolk, so not that far away from Beetley, but not my MP. If she becomes the Prime Minister, I doubt she will be spending much time in her constituency, Gavin.
Cheers, Pete.
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