Madam, - In the use of the sun's energy, most of us in Ireland, including the Government, have our heads in the sand. Every hour, every day, the earth receives from the sun enough energy to meet the entire world's requirements for the best part of two years. Even in our relatively cloudy island this translates to at least 1,000 Kwh ("units") per square metre of south-facing slope per annum.
Domestic solar-heated water systems are perhaps the simplest way of tapping the sun's energy. In Spain since 2005, every new or renovated building has to be fitted with a solar panel, by law. In the same year Germany had a programme to convert 100,000 homes to solar power, Japan 70,000. Aesthetics? Solar panels on roofs are virtually indistinguishable from the ubiquitous roof window.
Pay-back time calculations are generally imbecilic. They ignore the fact that from day one installation of a system adds value to a property. They ignore the inexorable shrinking of the earth's finite store of fossil fuels with the resulting exponential rise in the cost of our consumer energy (many of us will see the day when power from fossil fuels will make sense only for transport). We will be forced to go solar (or nuclear, heaven forbid), so why wait?
The Government-sponsored organisation Sustainable Energy Ireland gives grants for installing of certain systems, including those for solar hot water. Praiseworthy, well worth taking advantage of - but far more needs to be done. There is not enough push, enough publicity - how many people even know of the existence of these grants?
The Government should also organise the availability of mortgage-like low-interest loans. If a solar installation reduces your fuel and electricity bills by more than the repayments (this is not in the least fanciful), who is going to refuse to go with it?
More progressive countries are increasingly promoting domestic production of electricity by PV panels (they look very similar to hot-water panels) and of course by wind. Many countries have provision for any surplus power to be fed into the national grid - running your meter backwards, in effect. But not in Ireland, of course.
What about helping the environment, reducing imports, reducing dependence on external sources, reducing exploitation, reducing even wars? May we hope for meaningful steps in the forthcoming Budget? - Yours, etc,
KENNETH JONES, Kilmacanogue, Bray, Co Wicklow.