News

Nothing good can come if we intervene again

Foreign secretary William Hague.

First published Thursday 29 August 2013 in News

ONCE again our Foreign Secretary is adopting a gung-ho approach by initiating an air strike in Syria. The previous attempt of regime change to rid Libya of Colonel Gaddafi has not been a resounding success by any means.
The situation in Libya is now very unstable and al Qaeda groups have taken the place of a pro-Western regime that had even donated funds to our country.
So William Hague has already made a huge strategic error in Libya. Furthermore, if we had played our cards right, our Government could have extracted a lot of money from Gaddafi who was desperate to have his life spared. We do after all need some funds in our coffers.
Once again, the Foreign Secretary is the ringleader in trying to launch a military strike this time in Syria.
Has no one any common sense any more?
Libya is in a dire mess because of Mr Hague, and recently their prime minister’s chief aide was kidnapped by rebels.
Nothing good can come of our intervention and there is the potential to ignite an even greater conflict.
SUSAN THOMAS
Magdalen Road
Oxford

Striking a note of caution about wood-burning’s green credentials

First published Friday 20 December 2013 in News

YOU report that Oxford City Council may install a wood-powered boiler for the Town Hall.
Burning wood is now rebranded as ‘biomass’ and is becoming increasingly popular.
A cautionary note needs to be sounded.
The idea that it is greener to burn wood is becoming a contentious one.
Firstly, burning wood releases huge amounts of airborne particulates and will not benefit respiratory health. Indeed, a study published by New Scientist showed that inhaling wood smoke for an hour is equal to smoking 100 cigarettes. It is vital that the wood to be burnt is carefully treated and dried – but this rarely happens.
Daily Echo:

City councillor John Tanner at the Town Hall’s boiler
Burning any old wood will not do and may release deadly dioxins, heavy metals and pesticides. Sadly many trees are now being destroyed for wood-burners and not being replanted.
The Oxford editor of the Ecologist magazine, Oliver Tickell, agrees with me. He feels that burning trees is not eco-friendly, as trees give out oxygen and take up carbon dioxide.
We have precious little woodland left in our country.
Shotover Country Park is owned by Oxford City Council. The park rangers have been felling scores of trees and turning them into woodchips for boilers. I believe the city council is slowly destroying this nature reserve.
The council is not replanting any of the mature trees it has felled for firewood – so the idea of wood being a carbon neutral fuel is, frankly, a joke.
SUSAN THOMAS
Magdalen Road
Oxford

Design is too boxy

First published in oxford times

Sir – Firstly I must say how pleased I am with Oxford City Council planning department for listening to my objections regarding neighbouring developments.
Thanks to their efficiency one proposal was amended.
The other other proposal to build on to an historic Coach House in Magdalen Road has been thrown out altogether.
I, therefore, hope that this efficient planning department will take another look at the Westgate proposal.
The drawings looks absolutely hideous and are too square, modern and boxy looking.
It is hardly an improvement on the attractive gabled facade we have at the moment. Gabled roofs are found in most beautiful historic towns of medieval origin.
Therefore the current gabled facade is more appropriate for historic medieval Oxford.
I did suggest to the architect that the ugly square lines line could be broken up with a crenellated battlement design that would be in keeping with the nearby Castle.
The square box design urgently needs to be improved as Oxford is a very special city.
Susan Thomas, Oxford

High cost of shale gas

First published Friday 20 June 2014 in OXFORD TIMES

Sir – A while ago I wrote that shale gas may be better than nuclear energy as it is low in carbon and nil in plutonium. Indeed all of the main parties and even UKIP now say that we should embrace low-carbon shale gas to avert climate change.

However, I have since been conducting a great deal of my own personal research into the mining of shale gas and I now feel that my letter was very wrong and regret sending it. The extraction of shale gas will use harmful chemicals that will irreparably pollute our water table.

This in turn will destroy all of our thriving brewery businesses which require a lot of clean fresh water to brew tasty real ales.

The costs of cleaning the water will be enormous and our fine breweries may go bust. This fact alone will not make shale worth our while.

We only have four years of shale gas reserves in the UK also. It is worth noting that Shell and BP do not wish to get involved with shale.

The reason is that these business giants are aware that the costs involved in cleaning up the water supply will outweigh the gas profits.

Shale mining uses benzene which is proven to cause leukaemia. Therefore I find myself backing the Green Party here as they are the only party opposing shale gas.
Susan Thomas, Oxford

Let’s get money from the EU Disaster Fund

It's time to tap the European Union Solidarity Fund

First published Wednesday 12 February 2014

POLITICIANS are constantly telling us how wonderful it is to be a member of the EU yet no one has suggested we apply to the EU Disaster Fund for help.
This is because they are selfishly focusing all their energies on trying to get themselves elected in this year`s MEP elections.
So may I suggest that we must now urgently apply to the European Union Solidarity Fund. This EUSF was set up to respond to major natural disasters within Europe. The Fund was created as a reaction to the severe floods in central Europe in the summer of 2002. Since then, it has been used for 56 disasters covering a range of different catastrophic events including floods, forest fires, earthquakes, storms and drought.
Please can any elected politician reading this now, act immediately. People need more sandbags and practical help.
We pay billions into the EU. Now is our turn to get something back.
And finally, the public should be allowed a debate on membership of Europe, as all these little-known perks would then come to light.
It was the height of arrogance for Labour peer, Lord Mandelson, to say that the electorate cannot be trusted with a referendum on EU status.
SUSAN THOMAS
Magdalen Road,
Oxford

Council needs to focus on harmful emissions

First published Thursday 17 April 2014

WHENEVER I visit another city I am struck by how much pollution the buses emit in comparison to our wonderful clean emission buses in Oxford. In the light of your excellent article on air pollution fatalities we are certainly blessed to have these zero particulate buses.
However, more needs to be done as our air quality is still unacceptable. A recent study found that vehicle PM2.5 particulates age the brain by three years. These ultra-fine particles dissolve into the bloodstream and inflame the arteries and lungs.
The city council urgently needs to incorporate licensed taxis and mini cabs into the low emission zone to comply with EU air quality directives.
Their diesel particulates are especially harmful and leave a very nasty choking smell in the clean air. Oxford lies in a basin that traps stagnant polluted air. Oxford councillors are doing a great job with lowering carbon emissions that are thought to affect the climate; they now need to focus on lowering vehicle particulate emissions that are medically proven to harm health.
SUSAN THOMAS Magdalen Road Oxford

We need to get wind farm technology right

Investment in wind turbines is needed

First published Wednesday 7 May 2014

OUR great country is known for producing talented inventors and engineers. Therefore it is high time that we took control of the wind farm industry which presently relies on an inferior Danish import.
The turbines that we import are not efficient enough, damage wildlife and rely on subsidies.
However, the principle of wind power is a good one if we get the technology right.
There are many new designs for turbines that are far more effective than the present windmill blade model.
For instance, there is a new tunnel design that produces 600 per cent more electricity.
The wind’s kinetic energy is amplified through a funnel design that is friendly towards wildlife as there are no dangerous blades.
Instead of snatching bits of energy from the wind as it passes through the blades of a rotor, wind is captured with a funnel that accelerates the flow. This design can be scaled down and is half the size of present turbines.
The funnel works on winds of 2mph.
Therefore we need to stop spending money on an inferior Danish import and start investing in superior engineered wind turbines that deliver good value for money.
The Government has recently stated it will build no more new onshore wind farms. This decision may be a blessing as it gives time for a caveat to explore far superior turbines.
Wind energy is potentially a godsend for clean, cheap energy if we adopt the new engineering ideas.
SUSAN THOMAS
Magdalen Road

Tuesday, 26 August 2014

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