THE DAILY TELEGRAPHTHURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2009jobs.telegraph.co.ukJ 5The Daily TelegraphTHE BIG INTERVIEW CAREERS IN RENEWABLESGONE WITH THEWIND THEEDEN PROJECT HAS DROPPEDCONTROVERSIAL TURBINE PLANS, BUT ITS GREEN CREDENTIALS ARE AS STRONG AS EVER. ESME MCAVOY REPORTSTen years ago, the Eden Project was a barren, exhausted china clay pit in Cornwall: today the “global garden”, housed in a series of vast domes, is a huge tourist attraction. We catch up with its founder and CEO, Tim Smit, as Eden wrestles with greening its energy supply. YOUR RAINFOREST BIOME ALONE IS BIG ENOUGH TO HOUSE THE TOWER OF LONDON. IS THIS VAST SITE ENERGY HUNGRY? “The biomes are actually incredibly efficient and sustainably built: we only have to heat them for three months of the year. Watering all the plants is certainly a massive operation, but that all comes from collected, filtered rainwater. We fitted 17 miles of underground drainage pipes that collect the water into huge tanks to feed our plants and flush our loos so we barely use any from the mains.” LAST YEAR YOU SOUGHT PLANNING PERMISSION FOR A WIND TURBINE. IS IT GOING AHEAD? “We looked seriously at all the renewable options last year and we came up with a proposal to build a single, two megawatt turbine 417ft high. In January, however, after lengthy talks with local people, we decided to withdraw our planning application. Getting the green light for the turbine was on thePAUL ARMIGER, GETTYVisionary: above, Tim Smit; right, watering in one of the Eden Project domes cards but it would have been a hollow victory if our neighbours were against it.” DO YOU HAVE A PLAN B? “Withdrawing our plans for a wind turbine doesn’t mean we’re giving up on the idea of generating our own green energy supply. We have used the moment to explore what a community renewable energy project might look like.” WHAT DOES AN ENERGY STRATEGY LOOK LIKE? “It’s early days, but it will contain a mix of renewable energy projects that are considered appropriatefor each location. For us at Eden, wind will undoubtedly play a part, as will ground source heat pumps, solar and biomass boilers. “We may have to have some reliance on fossil fuels, but with the emerging technology coming out of the Wave Hub [Cornwall’s marine energy experiment] we hope to factor in elements of marine-based power, too. “By far the most exciting is the possibility of a return to ‘hot rocks’ geothermal energy. This is a technology pioneered in Cornwall at the Camborne School of Mines in the Eighties and Nineties. Cornwall sits on a backbone of granite, making it an ideal location for geothermal energy. Cold water is sent down through pipes more than a mile beneath the ground and returns to the surface heated by the earth’s core.” DO YOU HAVE A DATE SET FOR GETTING THE STRATEGY AGREED AND UNDER WAY? “No, we haven’t yet set targetsexcept that we want to see the feasibility study that’s currently under way completed within the next six months. “We are working with the Cornwall Sustainable Energy Partnership and are engaged with EDF Energy — our current external supplier which sponsored our solar panels at Eden.” WERE YOU SURPRISED BY THE STRENGTH OF LOCAL OPINION AGAINST THE WIND TURBINE? “It has been a real struggle. What can I say? I’m a Dutchman — I love windmills. To me, a turbine would be a symbol of everything Eden stands for and a symbol of the future. The Eden Project was built out of disused clay pits with hard work and vision. Why, after all that work, would we wish to taint it all by building something ugly? “Much of the anti-turbine sentiments were extremely local and, overall, people were largely in favour. That said, I do understandtheir fears: change is itself often a challenge and one can be persuaded to see dragons where none exist.” WHY DO YOU THINK WIND TURBINES ARE SO CONTROVERSIAL? “There’s this perception that turbines create a lot of noise that will blight the lives of local people but that’s just not true. “Research has shown that while a turbine will produce some sound, it will be well below background noise levels, even at night. “When you get down to it, the biggest worry is that property prices might be blighted. There is no evidence that house prices suffer in the long term but, as a house is the one asset many people have, it carries a lot of emotion.” HAVE YOU HEARD ANY DAFT REASONS AGAINST WIND TURBINES? “I certainly don’t like the codscience that’s peddled by some anti-wind protesters. “I can’t argue with someone’s honest opinion that they think turbines are ugly but I can’t stand people spreading misinformation. “You hear comments that wind turbines can somehow interfere with heart pacemakers — complete rubbish but it still gets peddled about. “People come out with this fantastic line that wind energy is ‘only’ 30 per cent efficient. “But, if harnessing 30 per cent of all the wind going through a turbine is enough to provide 100 per cent of your energy needs, isn’t that enough? “What does it matter if you didn’t capture the remaining 70 per cent? It’s only the wind! “A coal-fired power station might be 50 per cent efficient but that’s completely different: it means half of the coal burned with all the CO2 emissions that it produces goes to waste.”THE UK STILL HAS VERY LITTLE ENERGY FROM RENEWABLES. WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE? “If I were Prime Minister, I would use the current economic turmoil as a huge technological driver [and] harness that spirit of war to get communities building locally owned energy projects. If we get our strategy right, it could be the blueprint for communities throughout the country. “Almost all our current power stations [in the UK] are coming up for renewal. We should divert the funds allocated for building new power stations and plough it into renewables.” SO IS THE FUTURE ALL DOOM AND GLOOM? “Not at all! I’m riveted by what’s happening and hugely excited by the challenges ahead. Making the shift towards local, sustainable living and renewable energy could be fantastically healthy in building stronger communities.” www.edenproject.comELECTRICITY REGULATION ABU DHABI c £70k (negot) TAX FREE + BENEFITS The Regulation and Supervision Bureau regulates the electricity, water and wastewater sector which operates an RPI-X model of regulation based on best practice from the UK and elsewhere. (see www.rsb.gov.ae) The Bureau has a small number of vacancies for key, well qualified engineers with a degree in electrical/ power engineering or similar to work on a wide range of regulatory and technical matters relating to potential licence holder applications. The ideal candidate will have spent some time in an electrical utility environment, but experience of project management will also be an advantage. The Bureau offers an excellent tax free salary for the right candidates and benefits include family housing, schooling and car allowances, annual flights and health insurance. Please send your CV, in strict confidence, to John Steeds at:Anglo Arabian Recruitment Services 93-95 Gloucester Place, London W1U 6JQ Tel/Fax: 0118 983 1070 email: john.steeds@btinternet.
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THE DAILY TELEGRAPHTHURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2009jobs.telegraph.co.ukJ 5The Daily TelegraphTHE BIG INTERVIEW CAREERS IN RENEWABLESGONE WITH THEWIND THEEDEN PROJECT HAS DROPPEDCONTROVERSIAL TURBINE PLANS, BUT ITS GREEN CREDENTIALS ARE AS STRONG AS EVER. ESME MCAVOY REPORTSTen years ago, the Eden Project was
