On Wednesday 01 September 2021, the Club held its first Face-to-Face meeting for very nearly 18 months! It was also the Club’s first hybrid meeting with some members attending on-line rather than in person. Our speaker on the evening was a mechanical engineer, Tim Sale, who spoke on the topic of achieving carbon neutrality in the UK by 2050.
The meeting was not without some technical challenges, especially when using the Beefeater’s Wi-Fi to host a Zoom meeting, but to some extent the challenges were overcome for part of the evening.
Tim’s talk was fascinating, dealing with carbon based fuels, the gasses created during combustion and how energy sources have varied over time – including the demise of coal in the UK at least – and the breakdown of energy usage across industry, domestic requirements, transport and services. Hydrogen and bio-fuels were also analysed in detail, as were the requirements for agriculture.
Many of us see the electric cars now moving around our communities, and whilst a car powered by electricity seems like a good idea, converting all transportation to electricity may end up creating as many problems as it solves.
The challenge is enormous, but it is not a challenge for just one country – it will affect all of the people and animals on the planet. Can any government get elected by promising the necessary changes with their associated hardships?
This was a truly fascinating talk delivered by an expert in the field.
