Wave technology. My friend is making heaps backing it at the moment.

Only 20% max. of a modern, Western economy's power can realistically come from renewables - wind, wave, solar, geothermal etc. Wind turbines need to be backed up by diesel generators and are not than efficient. Big base loads can only be provided by nuclear, coal or hydro power plants. Clean coal has a future - especially in a country like Australia that has lots of it. Ditto for gas. Nuclear is the way to go for Australia We have loads of space, coastline, uranium and we can afford it. 6 big nukes should do it - 2 in Qld and one each in NSW, Vic, SA and WA. That, and some coal, gas and hydro and 10-20% from renewables and Australia is set.

Maybe import all the refuge from naples, burn it in a furnace to power a big turbine. Im sure they would probably just give it away, so fuel for free should be a great bonus

You're making these numbers up!

The Portuguese government is aiming for 100% renewable energy. I think they wouldn't be trying if the max they could achieve is 20%.

Just because wind turbines (not my preferred option) have a problem providing baseload does not mean that baseload cannot be provided through renewable energy. Some of the generating capacity could be used to create hydrogen which could be used to generate the baseload (similar to LPG). Again it is not beyond the wit of man to come up with solutions. All it needs is people who can think outside the box.

The nuke solution is wrong for so many reasons: firstly because it is highly polluting, secondly because it is economically unsound and thirdly because it is inherently dangerous.

People may say that the spent fuel of the UK nuke industry only occupies a few football fields but they ignore the regular emissions into the atmosphere and the sea. The Irish sea is now the most radioactive sea in the world. Also what about all the irradiated pipework and plant. That's already filled more than a few football fields.

The promised of cheap energy never materialised. This was just a marketing trick when the first nukes were built in the UK and did not take into account the cost of maintenance, reprocessing and decommissioning. 30 years of power and 100s (if not 1000s) of years of decommissioning. If you believe nuclear energy is cheap then you've been spruiked. The only way a government can get private enterprise to build a nuke is by offering free barrow loads of taxpayers' money.

Chernobyl shows what happens when it all goes wrong. Oh but that was the USSR! 3 mile island shows what happens when it all goes wrong. And there but for the grace of god goes the UK.

Nukes are not cheap, they're not quick, they're not environmentally friendly and they're not simple. It's just a big business solution (i.e. only good for big business) funded with taxpayers' money.

But it seems OK to export and ship the ingredients for nuclear power all over the world to let others build nuclear plants. Afterall when a nuclear powerstation blows up it doesn't spread it's nuclear cloud around the world does it.

If Australia really was anti nuclear power it should stop exporting the stuff that makes your skin fall off and your hair fall out.

And what does the UK export now days?

People emigrating to Australia for one.

I agree.


Or were you talking about Ti-Tree (Tea Tree) Oil

Australia has large proven mineral reserves, I doubt we'll see them exhausted even in our grandchildrens lifetimes. As the mining boom continues, so the expertise in extraction grows. This expertise becomes a viable export to other countries starting to exploit their mineral wealth. The type of work changes from being industrial based to service based.

Of course, this makes the assumption there is still an external market, be it China, India or wherever.

With regards nuclear power and comments on it being inherently dangerous: Modern station designs run with a negative temperature coefficient and a negative void coefficient which means that as a core heats up it becomes harder and harder to sustain a reaction, thus when left alone, the core tends towards a cool shut down.

I saw a brief mention of Solar earlier. There have been significant developments in solar panels in the last 2 years, Nanosolar I think it was managed to develop thin-film, pliable photovoltaic cells.

So, as long as there's a global market with no downturn I can't see Australia's economy suffering. My (rather large) 2c

None of my figures are made up - they come from an IEE (of which I am a member) paper that I read.

Good luck to the Portuguese in their push for 100%........

Notice I never replied to that answer, Spoken too much like someone that hasn't actually lived here in paradise yet.

I too before coming here would and could easily have written a post like that one, very easy to slag off the UK when everyone brainwashes each other into the falacy that the UK is crap and getting worse. It's only after you have experienced something else that you truely come to appreciate just what was good about home.

I for one will never slag off any aspect of the UK again, and that includes the welsh or the close proximity to France.

Why on earth would you slag off the superior welsh, its the rest of the country that is shite.

Life is so good in blighty yet you cant be arsed to move back, is this your story that you are sticking to, or is it the record you play thats sticking ?

Totally agree.

You moving back to Wales then?