La lune et le logo (I failed French by the way).

It was a full moon last night. With Beltane / May Day just around the corner and following a positive blog comment about the GWI logo, I thought I would share with you the logo as perhaps never seen before. This happened by chance on the computer. One click this image, click again normal image. I do not pretend to understand what happened, but I do quite like the image and the way the usual logo morphs into this one.

A Hookeroon? By Jove Sir, I think I will.

There is a very substantial amount of timber lying on the forest floor within a few miles of Bridge of Balgie, Glenlyon. This timber was "felled to waste" or "felled to recycle" in Commissionese from about 1995 to 2005, as part of a special management grant to (amongst other things) improve the woodlands. There not being a lot of local interest in it as a firewood and it not being all that easy to extract, most of it is still lying there. I have carried out some moisture content (MC) measurements and at mostly between 30 to 40 % MC its well on its way to being dry enough for burning.

 This timber could perhaps provide enough fuelwood for the first years needs if people in the glen were to begin converting to wood-fuelled boilers. This could be a major advantage in getting the scheme off the ground, certainly in comparison to saying to potential woodfuel users " Ok you'll need 10 tons of chips for your boiler this year", we'll go and fell (or ringbark) the trees and get them drying, should have something for you this time next year".
To be able to use this timber, I need to work out the best way to extract it. I also need to work out approximately how much timber there is. One way to extract it is by using a forwarder, however a forwarders grab can only reach so far into the woods and as various forest sages have observed to me, the way the woods have been thinned does not lend itself to forwarder extraction.

                              A forwarder in action

Forwarders are expensive to hire and I do not want to waste time and money while the operator grubs about for logs. If however I could move the logs to within reach of the grab, we could probably extract them to the roadside pretty efficiently. The thing is moving logs by hand is not a good thing to do, its' slow, it can be dangerous and it hurts your back. I was discussing the matter with Bernd and he mentioned that in the Alps people, fairly effortlessly drag big logs about the place using a purpose made tool.

Intrigued I did some research and can now present to you - The Hookeroon.

This is a light hookeroon in the Tyrolean style and has an incredibly sharp point on it. You swing the point into the log you want to move and just start walking with it. I have been very surprised at how effective it is during my limited trials of it.

 In this picture it is being used by my helper Iain Visiblemann.

At Forestry School we were taught to move timber with Log Tongs and Pulphooks. The hookeroon leaves them standing, although to be fair they do have slightly different uses, being as much for lifting as for dragging

     The newest looking log tongs I have ever seen.
I will be looking for someone to assist me in carrying out some trials with the Hookeroon and tongs if anyone is interested (payment will be provided). 
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RHI and a stable energy supply

Doing the heat surveys was a great way to meet people and hear their thoughts on a range of subjects. When these thoughts turned to woodfuel heating systems, it was interesting to note a recurrence of various themes around the topic. One such theme for example was the local provision of basic hardwood firewood and that  people would like to buy it from GWI.
Another was the proposed Renewable Heat Incentive or RHI.  This acronym dominated conversations being, as it is, concerned with a government proposition that seems to offer real benefits to people, and that will genuinely support a real renewable technology in peoples homes. Speaking for myself such green and beneficial proposals from the Government are about as common as the dog digging up a diamond and it was understandable if some residents were hearing me describe such a thing as "Money for burning wood" and smiling politely, while thinking to themselves " He's quite big for someone born yesterday".  I am still a bit sceptical myself , it just seems too good........ and after all, what kind of a fool believes the government or politicians.
So I thought I would dedicate today's blog to the RHI,  some notes from the meeting I attended on the subject in Perth the other day and having a secure energy supply.

 How the meeting may have looked in Victorian times.

The meeting began with an explanation of the rationale behind the RHI which basically revolves around emission reduction targets  and increased use of renewable's between now and 2020. Scotland's 2020 target for renewables use is that 50% of electricity, 11% of heat (currently 1.4%) and 10 % of transportation needs be met from renewables. 24% of all energy currently used is in home heating (UK) rising to 50% in Scotland (don't quote that by the way, my notes are confusing, but I think this is what I meant).
Another very worthwhile, perhaps very ambitious, aim of the Scottish Govt is that no one in Scotland be living in fuel poverty by 2016.

The RHI is the first scheme like this in the world and will be funded by a direct levy on fossil fuels.It really does appear to be a good thing and its hard to see how it can fail to encourage increased use of woodfuel, not only in domestic, but business markets as well. Imagine for example; a hospital's fuel needs. Heating all that water must use a lot of fuel and be pretty expensive. Changing to a woodfired system would heat the same water and work the same way. Under RHI it would pay for itself and then probably produce an income stream. Fuel costs would be relatively stable, being unreliant on a global supply chain compared to oil.  

            How the meeting may have looked in Roman times
There are numerous benefits to the UK from a wider use of our biomass resources and less reliance on imported fuels. As one speaker put it "We need a much wider mix of fuels in the UK to avoid fluctuations in markets". With the price of oil about to rise steeply again due to various factors (mostly related to profiteering  politics and greed) I could not agree more.
Before the election became news, we were whizzing battleships to the Falklands to defend a potential oil supply there.  Following some potential "Argy Bargy" (sorry) and the expense of drilling and extracting what oil might be there, we would then ship it an incredible 7000 miles (11265 km), so that some of it could then burn inefficiently to heat our homes.

It must be an intellectually challenging job advising the Govt on future energy strategy " Yes Minister we will go almost halfway around the world to get this oil and bring it back, 14,000 mile round trip minister? Very good for the shipping industry minister".

H

    How the meeting may have looked in Neolithic times   (I'm on the left of the picture)
The underlying note to this ridiculous idea is that a future supply of oil and gas supplies is increasingly difficult to guarantee and finance, and having ones own source (whatever the environmental cost), makes one immune to this Using  local wood to heat homes in Glenlyon would involve a maximum mileage for the wood of 10 miles. Using  wood to heat hospitals and businesses would hardly clock up the miles either.
Result - decreased need for oil for heating and import/ transport. A sustainable, renewable fuel being used, more tree planting to maintain supply, thriving forest industry etc.
   
Incidentally, on a history repeating itself note, a few hundred years ago whalers from the UK did regularly make that journey. They did so in search of the whale oil that lubricated and lit industry. They would often be away for years and would drop the distilled oil off around the Falklands for dispatch to the UK. They travelled with what we now call wind power. Working on these boats was a very good way to have a very bad time.. 

The excitement of a home heating assessment.

There's a little fresh snow on the hills this morning, but the hot weather I described in the last blog continued for pretty much all of last week. The heat from the sun only added to the excitement of Phase One of the Home Heating Assessment Surveys we were carrying out.
For 3 days a biomass heating systems expert was in the glen and the tension was almost palpable as glen residents gathered past fuel bills and awaited the knock at the door. A knock that could change their life for the better (especially over the winter months).
I accompanied Mr Heat, generally known as Bernd Pinamonti during the majority of the surveys, and for me it has been a very interesting experience on a variety of fronts. The intention of the survey was to gather baseline data concerning housing and heating demographics in the glen. There are various noticeable types, sizes and clusters of housing in the glen and part of my hope with this survey  was to be able, through Bernd to build up an overall picture of what might be involved  in both heating these houses individually and also as possible components of a small district heating system.
GWI have been distributing our own heating survey form (and getting a great response in terms of completed forms - thanks everyone) but following some horror stories about data protection and minefields, Bernd produced his own more heat specific form. The questions concerned things like current insulation levels, fuel types used, consumption and cost of (pretty much everyone knew straight-away) and size of house in metres (one couple knew). We also discussed peoples aspirations for heating their homes. Bernd and I would then measure the house and record some layout details.

Surveyees look at their fuel bills with dismay.
 As a result of these surveys Bernd will be able to calculate the thermal needs of each house alongside their potential for using woodfuel.
A report will then be produced for each property  or property type in areas of identical housing (like Pubil). Boiler options (chips or logs) size and and fuel consumption will be detailed as will a basic cost estimate and payback time and possible future payments under RHI.
Most of the households we surveyed appeared, on the face of it,  very likely to see positive economic benefits from a woodfuel conversion.

Faces brighten as woodfuel conversion is discussed.

Back in the real world after Mega City One

This time of year in Glenlyon is just fantastic. The days become so much longer and is is often the case in March and April, we are having real sunshine- T shirt weather. I have grown vegetables in the glen for quite a while now and it really keeps you in tune with the seasons. The growing season is very short here and an early start is essential. Luckily we seem increasingly to get our summer weather in this early spring period, long days full of sunshine. Hot enough to frazzle your tomato seedlings (to a crisp), but unfortunately still with a frost on a night. The proverbial summer months here, by contrast often feature sticky humid weather with little direct sunshine to ripen veg.
That's not to say we haven't had any rain. On Monday and Tuesday it bucketed down- proper professional rain, not only going about its work, but doing a double shift as well.. I was in Perth on Tuesday at a Forestry Commission sponsored meeting concerning woodfuel and The Renewable Heat Incentive. On Monday however I went to look at some woodland. On the way I saw some Squirrels, Ma, Pa and at least one nipper.

They were having a lovely time of it in the old beech. The reds are so nimble and in control of their habitat, they cross from tree to tree effortlessly.

Happy to have seen the squirrels, I walked on. About ten minutes later I crossed a deer-fence and heard a toad croaking. Just ahead in what ecologist call an "Incidental Pool" and most folk call a bit of a puddle was a toad laying her spawn. Toads are not Charismatic Megafauna like red squirrels and do not come up well on wet muddy day photos. However here is a pic of the Narnia like world I entered a few minutes later.

An almost pure birch wood, even aged and probably not that old. In fact you could even hazard a guess that this wood started around the early to mid 70's.

Like so much in the glen, this is only a few uphill minutes from a road.

Next blog: Perhaps more of this walk, perhaps the meetings I have been having all week or perhaps something else altogether. It has been a very interesting week.

Some viewers may find the following image disturbing.

This photo depicts the merging of Hong Kong and the Shenzhen-Guangzhou area of China to become the worlds first Mega City - Home to an incredible 120 million people, an absolutely staggering number. This photo came to me as a clipping from The Guardian (23/03/10). Ever since I have been haunted by it.
Scotland's population is currently just over 5 million with the UK as a whole at around 60m. In 1801 the population of the UK was 8.3m in 1901 following the effects of the industrial revolution it had risen to 31.5m.
I still find it quite incredible that the infrastructure exists to reliably service both the needs and the greeds of the UK. I also find it quite worrying that in the event of a collapse in the supply chain like, for example a lorry drivers protest over fuel prices, that we are apparently 7 days from starvation (local resilience is obviously the key here)

Considering the needs of a city of 120 million people is properly mindboggling. The flow of services, food and water must be staggering- just imagine providing 240 million shoes for a starter! The energy demands of air conditioners,cars, heating systems and all those myriad other things must be just phenomenal.

This picture also bothers me because I grew up reading the comic 2000AD one of whose most famous characters was Judge Dredd. He brought a "tough love" form of justice to a futuristic city where everyone lived in tower-blocks. It was called Mega City One and it looked just like the place in the photo really. I have often enjoyed good Sci- Fi Films as well, kinda suspecting that in the future humans will live in a "Bladerunner" type world. The all encompassing diversely populated, sleazy, dirty city where it always rains and everyone talks pidgin dialects dominates the film and appears to be what the future has become, the last few minutes show countryside as the city is left behind (my apologies for spoiling the ending for anyone who hasn't seen it by the way).

I believe that humans have always lived in times of change. Talking about the latest development, be it the wheel, metal, windows, money, coffee, travel etc has probably been as constant a topic as the weather. I kind of suspect however that the age of change we are living through now is moving not just at a pace that is unparalleled, but is whirling in so many directions. 200 years ago it was (arguably) really just Europe that was developing, now everywhere something seems to be going on or wrong depending on your perspective.
Its always a bit weird to find the fantastic futuristic visions of the future appearing in your time.

Incidentally - I have noticed that the pics on the blog sometimes get chopped or squashed by the formatting. If you put your mouse over the pic and right click, choosing view image you will see the pics in full.

Birdfeeding, what a nice and easy way to do your bit for wildlife.

I had been planning to write more about modern wood burners today, but with the sun's rays bouncing off the snow outside, it seems an inappropriate subject. Besides for now, the passive solar heating streaming through the south facing windows is providing all the heat we need.

As a constituted community group GWI has stated Aims and Objects, these are, 
Aims:
 To reduce reliance on heating oil in Glenlyon by replacing it with a more sustainable fuel sourced entirely from within the Glen.
 To extend and maintain the biodiverse habitats of plant, animal and human communities currently present within the glen.
 To have carbon reduction and environmental sustainability at the forefront of all decision making.

Objects:
• To utilise the wide ranging skills and expertise of the Glenlyon population within a community group capable of realising the full potential and spirit of this project.
• To provide a sustainable source of fuelwood in Glenlyon.
• To provide employment and to strengthen links within the wider glen population in the process.
• To investigate and develop secondary markets related to wood use.

Today I would like to talk about one small aspect of the second aim. In particular a contribution to maintaining biodiversity that we all, glen dweller, townie or other can make pretty easily. Furthermore it is something that will (ornithophobiac's excepted) probably bring you a lot of pleasure. I am talking about feeding the birds and especially about feeding the birds on a regular basis, because that is when it gets really good for you and really, really good for them, indeed it can be positively lifesaving at times.

I took this picture yesterday, I could have taken hundreds more and could do so most days. The variety, behaviour and general soap opera that is the "birdscene" in our garden can be both  fascinating and mesmerising  in equal proportion. It is also an excellent ways of observing wildlife. As you can see from the picture we have a Woodpecker and about 20 Chaffinches. Later that day my favourite family group turned up, the Yellowhammers. We also have other regular visitors like Blackbirds, Thrushes, Robins, Siskins and various Finches. I have no doubt that the more consistently we feed the birds, the more visual and diverse the return to both us and the wider environment is. The Yellowhammers have five young with them, a pleasing sight and perhaps one that,had they not had feed available we would not be seeing.
We also get a Red Squirrel on a fairly regular basis- He or possibly She eats all the peanuts and darts off again,  I like seeing the squirrel, the birds are less keen, particularly the more peanut addicted ones.

Anyway- everyone can feed the birds and create their own oasis of wildlife in their garden. As you can probably tell it brings me great pleasure and reward to help these amazing little avians get through life, perhaps it would for you too. Just one feeder, filled as regularly as practicable - go on- try it.