On 27/03/2016 07:12, Col wrote:
On 26/03/2016 23:18, jbm wrote:
On 26/03/2016 08:00, Alastair wrote:
The Scot, James Watt, got us all burning fossil fuels. Will his
descendants lead us all into kicking the habit?
http://grist.org/news/scotland-close...d-power-plant/



I spent over six months at the Dora Opencast coal pit in Cowdenbeath in
1975, on the production surveys and restoration commitment calculations.
Though only a rumour, it was said that the whole production of that pit
went to Longannet Power Station solely to generate the electricity that
powered the three massive drag lines we had on site to remove the
overburden (soil above the coal)!!!

Dirty stuff, coal. And Scotland will probably better off without it.

That's nothing.
You know all those wind turbines, well they don't generate electricity
at all but are in fact powered by the National Grid. They are
effectively huge fans producing more wind.


I recall Longannet Power Station featuring in Geography lectures in the
late 1960's (along with Linwood-home of the Hillman Imp). The highly
productive Longannet Mine Complex was developed around the power station
in order to produce the coal. Coal was transported by underground
conveyer belt but underground flooding of the workings ultimately proved
too much of a problem. As Jim says the coal was also supplied from the
large open cast mines. A very polluting power station according to SEPA.
I can see the Longannet chimney (600' and 21 miles to NW) from the top
of our road-for the time being.

Cowdenbeath aka 'The Blue Brazil' - a ground on my list to visit.

Wind turbines, plenty of them seen from here. Started counting one
clear day, got to 80 and rather lost interest. They've certainly had a
windy couple of years. The question is what is their working life?

--
George in Swanston, Edinburgh, 580'asl
www.swanstonweather.co.uk
www.eppingweather.co.uk
www.winter1947.co.uk