Jul 23, 2018 at 7:07 PM | Mark Hodgson

Thank you for the correction and clarification! If there is no "effective ban" there is certainly no "ineffective ban" either, in Scotland.

The whole issue of fracking in the UK has been contaminated by the Green Blob. Further corrections and clarifications are required, to establish whether it is worth fussing about.

Jul 23, 2018 at 6:39 PM | Uibhist a Tuath

I was not born until the 1960s but I remember remote farms and cottages with WW2 surplus generators, engines etc. Some of it was British, some from Uncle Sam, and some of it was "liberated" with German writing.

The original Land Rovers had a rear PTO (Power Take Off) so that kit designed to be run by stationary engines could be run by a farmers car.

I have mentioned on this blog before that the cheapest diesel engines to buy will be in accident damaged Diesel engined cars, or MOT failures. Standard Alternators can be replaced with High Output versions as a straight swap (12 volt) if a 240 volt AC generator cannot be engineered to fit the output drive.

As a yottie out in the Mediterranean, many small fishing boats are powered by "marinised" car engines, the Ford Fiesta 1.6 Diesel, along with similar from Renault/Peugeot/Citroen are particular favourites.

If you buy a new yacht from a European manufacturer, the engine may be Green, with Volvo written on it. It may have 1 - 4 cylinders and produce 10 - 70+ hp, but it will be familiar to those with knowledge of 1970s London Taxis. If it is silver, it will have Yanmar written on it. Yanmar is part of Mitsubishi.

Those that have a yacht that needs a new diesel engine, are (correctly) tempted by Beta. They are red, but better known as Kubota, powering diggers and dumper trucks all over the world.

tomo, Supertroll, golf charlie re fracking exploration and planning permission.

I don't believe it's banned in Scotland, despite the SNP noises off:

"Judge says fracking not banned in Scotland"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-44532985

"Petrochemical firm Ineos has lost its legal challenge against the Scottish government's "effective ban" on fracking.

The firm claimed that ministers had acted illegally in announcing the block in October 2017.

But the government argued that there is no ban in place as the policymaking process is still ongoing.

Lord Pentland agreed that the challenge was "unfounded" because "there is no prohibition against fracking in force".

And he agreed with Scottish government lawyers that statements from ministers referring to an "effective ban" were "mistaken and did not accurately reflect the legal position".

Ineos, which owns the Grangemouth refinery, and fellow petrochemical firm Reach launched a legal challenge seeking a judicial review after Energy Minister Paul Wheelhouse announced what he described as an "effective ban" in October 2017."

The full judgment can be found here:

https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/docs/default-source/cos-general-docs/pdf-docs-for-opinions/2018csoh66.pdf?sfvrsn=0

As for the situation in England & Wales, I believe the situation is that no concession has been made yet, but that the Government has started consulting on the possibility:

"Open consultation

Permitted development for shale gas exploration
Published 19 July 2018"

"We are seeking views on the principle of granting planning permission for non-hydraulic shale gas exploration development through a permitted development right.

This consultation closes at
11:45pm on 25 October 2018"

"The purpose of this consultation is to seek views on the principle of whether non-hydraulic fracturing shale gas exploration development should be granted planning permission through a permitted development right, and in particular the circumstances in which it would be appropriate."

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/permitted-development-for-shale-gas-exploration

If it goes ahead at the end of the consultation process, then a number of options are available to the Government.

The full paper can be found here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/726916/Consultation_document_-_shale_gas_permitted_development.pdf

Tomo
In the 50s and 60s when I was nowt but a lad virtually every farm had an army surplus diesel generator, we were an exception, on a still winter's night the sound of single cylinder diesel engines chugging away carried for miles. Had her ladyship not decided to refurbish the lodge at the head of the Glen for 2 months deerstalking every autumn then those diesels would not have been redundant in the 60s and would either still be operating or be back up to wind solar and battery.