Going Green Podcast, Video blog and Daily News

  Turning Seawater into Sustainability The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park Meets the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Desalination Complex If you’d told me a few years ago that one of the most water-stressed regions on Earth would start producing fresh drinking water using sunshine, I might have raised an eyebrow (and probably reached for a cup of tea). Yet here we are. Dubai’s Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Desalination Complex is quietly rewriting the rules of how we think about water, energy, and sustainability. ☀️ From Oil to Sunlight Traditionally, desalination has had a bit of a reputation problem. It’s energy-hungry, often powered by fossil fuels, and not exactly what you’d call “green”. But Dubai is flipping that narrative. By linking desalination to the vast Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park , the city is producing fresh water using renewable solar energy . Instead of burning gas to boil seawater, modern systems use reverse osmosis , pushing water through...

  Burning Wood for Power – Green Solution or Smoky Illusion? There was a time when burning wood for energy sounded reassuringly natural . After all, trees grow back… don’t they? Well, new research published in Nature Sustainability suggests the reality is far less comforting — and frankly, a bit inconvenient for current energy policy. The Big Claim (And Why It Matters) Governments, including the UK, have been backing bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) as a way to produce electricity while removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The idea goes like this: Grow trees 🌱 Burn them for energy 🔥 Capture the CO₂ 🏭 Store it underground 🪨 Grow more trees to absorb CO₂ again 🌳 On paper, it sounds like a carbon-neutral (even carbon-negative) loop. But the new findings suggest something rather awkward… 👉 Burning wood for power can be worse for the climate than burning gas. The 150-Year Problem Here’s the catch: time . Forests take decades — sometimes over a century —...

  Oysters to the Rescue – Nature’s Climate Engineers Are Back There are many high-tech ideas for tackling climate change—carbon capture machines, hydrogen fuel, and vast wind farms—but sometimes the best solutions are the ones nature perfected millions of years ago. Enter the humble oyster. A recent report highlights a major UK rewilding effort: 15 million oysters are set to be released into the North Sea as part of a large-scale habitat restoration project. Once abundant, native oyster reefs were effectively wiped out by overfishing, pollution, and disease. Now, they’re making a comeback—and not just for seafood lovers. 🌍 Why oysters matter (more than you think) The species at the heart of this project, Ostrea edulis , is a bit of an environmental superhero: Natural water filters – A single oyster can filter up to 200 litres of water per day, improving water clarity and quality Carbon storage – Oysters lock carbon into their shells, helping remove CO₂ from the atmosphere Biodi...

  🦋 More Than Half of Britain’s Butterflies Are in Decline – Should We Be Worried? There’s something wonderfully reassuring about spotting a butterfly in the garden. It’s one of those small moments that says: all is still well with the world . Unfortunately, the latest findings from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme suggest that reassurance may be misplaced. 📉 The Headline: A Quiet Collapse More than half of Britain’s butterfly species are now in decline . Not just rare, specialist species tucked away in remote habitats—but also some of the familiar garden visitors many of us grew up with. That’s a big deal. Butterflies are what scientists call indicator species . In simple terms: 👉 If butterflies are struggling, the wider environment probably is too. 🌿 Why Are Butterflies Declining? The causes are not mysterious—and that’s part of the frustration. 1. Habitat Loss Wildflower meadows, hedgerows, and rough grasslands have been disappearing for decades. These aren’t just “messy ...

  Is Summer Getting Longer – and What Does That Mean for Going Green? Every year now, someone says it by about the middle of April: “Blimey, it feels like summer already.” Then by late September someone else says, “This is ridiculous – it’s still summer.” At first this sounds like standard British weather grumbling. But there is a serious question underneath it: is summer actually getting longer? The answer is a bit awkwardly British: yes and no . Meteorological summer is still June, July and August. Nobody at the Met Office has quietly moved August into October. But the warm season – the period when temperatures, plants, pollen, pests and human habits all behave in a summery way – does appear to be stretching. Research published in 2026 found that summers in many cities are arriving earlier and lasting longer, with an average increase of about six days per decade across the cities studied. Meanwhile in the UK, the Met Office says the leaf-on season in 2024 was seven days longer...

  Solar Fence Panels – Power from Your Garden Fence Yesterday it was all about rainwater fences … today we take it one step further.  Why not turn your humble garden fence into a mini power station? The Idea: Vertical Solar on Your Fence Most of us think of solar panels living happily on rooftops. But fences? They sit there all day doing very little apart from keeping the dog in and the neighbours out. So why not make them earn their keep? By mounting solar panels vertically on south-facing (or even east/west) fences, you can generate a surprising amount of electricity—especially in spring and summer when the sun is higher. Does It Actually Work? Short answer: Yes… but with a twist. Vertical panels produce less peak power than roof panels BUT they can generate more evenly throughout the day And they can be excellent in winter when the sun is low In fact, in countries like Germany , balcony and fence-mounted solar systems (often called plug-in solar ) are becoming very p...

  Rainwater Fences – The Garden Trend You Didn’t Know You Needed You’ve heard of solar panels. You’ve probably heard of rainwater harvesting. But rainwater fences? Yes… they’re a thing. And like many good ideas, they sit somewhere between ingenious eco-solution and “why didn’t I think of that?” What is a Rainwater Fence? In simple terms, a rainwater fence is: A fence designed to capture, channel, and reuse rainwater. Instead of rainwater just soaking into the ground (or worse, disappearing into drains), the fence: Collects water (from rain or nearby surfaces) Channels it using gutters, chains, or containers Delivers it slowly to plants, soil, or storage Think of it as a fence that’s quietly watering your garden while you put the kettle on.  Why It Matters (Especially Now) With the UK seeing: More intense rainfall Longer dry spells Increasing pressure on water supplies Rainwater fences help: Reduce water waste Lower your reliance on mains water Improve soil moisture natural...

 Summer Feeding: Are We Helping or Harming Our Garden Birds? Just when you thought you were doing your bit for nature—out comes the bird feeder, topped up with seeds and peanuts—along comes the RSPB with a surprising twist: Ease off the feeders during summer. Yes, really. What’s the Issue? During spring and summer, garden birds aren’t struggling for food in the same way they do in winter. In fact, nature provides a rich buffet: Insects (essential for chicks) Caterpillars and larvae Natural seeds and berries But when we provide seed and nut feeders , birds tend to gather in large numbers in one place —a bit like a crowded pub on a Friday night. And that’s where the problem begins. The Hidden Danger: Disease Spread When birds cluster together at feeders: Droppings contaminate feeding areas Bacteria and parasites spread easily Diseases such as trichomonosis can take hold Species like greenfinches have already seen serious population declines linked to fee...

Paris ditched cars… and something remarkable happened From traffic jams to café culture A few years ago, parts of Paris looked much like any busy European capital: clogged roads, honking horns, and air you could almost chew. Today? Cyclists glide past, children walk to school safely, and cafés spill out onto streets that were once dominated by traffic. This transformation didn’t happen by accident. Under Mayor Anne Hidalgo , Paris has: Removed tens of thousands of car parking spaces Built hundreds of kilometres of protected cycle lanes Pedestrianised large areas of the city centre Restricted older, more polluting vehicles And perhaps most importantly… they stuck with it. What actually changed? 1. Cycling exploded Cycling in Paris didn’t just increase — it surged. Some routes now carry more bikes than cars at peak times. 2. Cleaner air Air pollution levels have dropped significantly. Fewer diesel cars = fewer particulates = healthier lungs. 3. Streets became plac...

  Sewage Discharge Data Looks Horrifying — And Sadly, It Is There are some sets of figures you wish you had never opened. This is one of them. When you hear politicians or water companies talking about “progress”, you might imagine a few unfortunate leaks, a couple of rogue pipes and the occasional apologetic press release. What the actual sewage discharge data shows is rather different. It shows a system that, in England alone, managed 450,398 monitored spill events in 2024  from  14,254 active storm overflows , totalling   3,614,428 hours . That is not a typo. That is not a misplaced decimal point. That is a national disgrace with a spreadsheet. To put that in plain English, 3.6 million hours is about 412 years . So if anyone tells you this is all a bit overblown, they are essentially asking you to believe that 412 years of sewage discharge somehow counts as “manageable”. It does not. It counts as horrifying. Now, defenders of the system will point out that th...