Selfsufficientish.com

Hi,
Anyone signed up for this green gas from Ecotricity? Seems a bit more expensive than what I'm paying at the moment but just wondered if any fellow ishers had taken the plunge and what they thought (or anyone else ). thanks

I haven't looked at this but at first hand guesswork, how can gas be green?

Sadly for me it's price comparison first and only consideration at the moment.

I was interested as I get my electricity from them, but signed up to British Gas for a period [dont recall how long !] so will wait and see how things shake out.

From the info on their web pages; gas is produced from anaerobic degradation of food waste, so I think it is more sustainable than conventional sources.
It wont be 100% green from day one but the money I pay will be invested in production of green gas plants and technologies...

kiery wrote:From the info on their web pages; gas is produced from anaerobic degradation of food waste, so I think it is more sustainable than conventional sources.
It wont be 100% green from day one but the money I pay will be invested in production of green gas plants and technologies...

What I say here isn't antagonistic or anything but from what I know and understand the idea of "green power" is a misnomer and one of the best greenwash ideas to go around.

If you flick on a light switch or turn on the gas oven etc the fuel for that light / heat comes out a collective source. In days of old that used to be oil, coal, nuke and gas etc. That could be termed black power. Then the companies hit upon the idea to include Green power from windmills, pv and hydro etc. So this became known as brown power which wasn't as bad as black power. Then companies decided that they would provide green tarrifs to help switch the balance from black to brown to green ( eventually) so hence forth we get Green power. The bottom line is that all of the various power sources go into the grid and get mixed up and comes out of the pipes / plugs as a consumable product. By paying more for a "green tarrif" doesn't make your consumption green, just less black than others. The only true green power is if you reduce your own consumption to a minimum and then buy into your own generation system.
Also nuke power could be the ultimate "green power" if this is decided by the amount of CO2 produced. [ I hasten to add I'm anti nukes]

As I say not antagonistic comments just a view from an industry insider who was conditioned to sell "green products" because they were dearer but better for the soul....... as one trainer espoused..
The simple answer is that

Hmmm I suppose I can justify spending work time hanging out on this forum if I answer a work related thread ;)

Al - you are of course correct - the greenest power is the power you never use.

However, let's say (for example) you find it hard to turn off the computer and refrain from sharing your views, opinion and wit on internet forums (as I do), despite the environmental benefits of not doing so... how can we make a difference?

The current situation with the homogeneous national grid(s) in the UK is that there are no *real* incentives for energy companies to change the way they generate electricity (or gas).

Of course they would rather use the cheapest means of generating, thereby creating the biggest margins, and therefore dividends for their shareholders (individuals or corporates like pension funds), that's business. The fact is that the environmental cost of this cheap energy production is hidden - or at least postponed till a later environmental disaster...

Paying more for green energy that doesn't actually help change the way the energy is produced *is* a waste of money.

Most 'green' tariffs are not about changing the way energy is made in the UK - they are, as you suspected, about getting people to pay more for something that already happens, with the lure of the warm fuzzies as reward. The legal requirements for renewables in the mix, the ROCs and all that stuff is what has us alongside Luxembourg and Malta in terms of our renewable energy capacity in the mix. We are miles behind.

That's why I believe in what Ecotricity are doing - it's a not-for-profit with a mission to change the way energy (not just leccy any more) is made in the UK.

End of shop talk... which brings me nicely up to hometime :D