Composter - fourth in our Eco-news Digest
This is the fourth in our weekly digest of news and views on all things climate and environmental action , researched and compiled by October Books Member, Liz Batten. We link the articles to books that you can read if you want to take a deeper dive into a particular topic. We hope you find it useful and do send us your news and views too.
Sunny news
I would dearly love to have solar panels and a battery. I’ve watched friends enjoying the benefits of this wonderful combination and love the idea of getting energy for free from the sun. Unfortunately for me, the roof on my property isn’t suitable for solar panels, but yours might be. And these days the cost of getting them is much more affordable and savings can be big: Solar panels: Are they worth it? – MoneySavingExpert
We found a book on how to install your own panels, Install your own Solar Panels by Joseph Burdick. No reviews on the the book so do let us know if you’ve read it
It’s looking like there will be a surge in rooftop solar panel installations locally if the new Government’s ambitions for urgent decarbonisation are followed through. The case for doing so was reported recently and over half the solar panels needed could be fitted to roofs and car parks: Rooftops can provide over half our solar energy targets, report shows - CPRE
We could benefit from a local co-operative like Brighton Energy Co-op being set up in Southampton which is a great way to keep investment and benefits local: Brighton Energy Coop - Community Energy in Brighton and Beyond! They’ve raised over £5m from community subscriptions and installed 126 large scale solar projects in the locality.
Up to now, it’s been quite difficult to set up such community-owned coops for energy generation but now it’s looking like they have a mandate from the Government (see page 16).
Southampton Sustainability Directory lists the local businesses, groups and individuals currently working on retrofitting residential premises in the area. If you know of more, please ask them to sign up via the Southampton Climate Action Network.
I guess a proliferation of solar panels could be regarded as “good” growth because of the net benefit to decarbonisation. There are many discussions going on about what growth is and isn’t, good or bad - with an increased focus at national level on economic growth as the way forward for the UK. It’s not sitting well with those who can see the direct link between capitalism and the climate and ecological crisis. It’s worth following the writers and thinkers who are trying to help us make sense of the mess we’re in. Here’s one recent paper:
And a book on the subject of “degrowth” and “thriving”:
Less is More: How Degrowth Will Save the World a book by Jason Hickel. (bookshop.org)
