Day: June 27, 2022

New report must ‘change the conversation’ on controversial Hydrogen technology

Environmental campaigners are demanding that the Scottish Government rethink their commitment to hydrogen technologies after a new report exposed their inefficiencies, soaring costs and the threat posed to renewable energy supplies.

The report, ‘Hydrogen’s role in Scotland’s climate journey’, commissioned by Friends of the Earth Scotland found that 98% of global hydrogen production is from fossil fuels.

Fossil fuel-derived ‘blue’ hydrogen is made using carbon capture and storage (CCS) but this technology was revealed to only be 60% effective, meaning huge amounts of climate changing pollution is released, critically undermining the key argument made by its proponents. Blue hydrogen is dependent on CCS technology that is in its infancy in Europe and has repeatedly failed to get off the ground in the UK.

The research showed that ‘green’ hydrogen, whilst lower carbon than fossil fuel derived hydrogen, has serious drawbacks such as the enormous levels of renewable energy required to produce it. If Scotland’s 2030 target was to be met by green hydrogen, it would require 80% of the country’s entire renewable energy supply – enough electricity for over 6 million homes.

Using hydrogen for heating our homes was found to be more expensive and less efficient than direct electrification through technologies like heat pumps. Similarly, powering transport with renewable energy directly is already much more efficient, cheaper, and more advanced commercially than deploying hydrogen in transport.

The campaigners are now calling on the Scottish Government to end any further public funding to hydrogen produced from fossil fuels, and to prioritise electrification over hydrogen in crucial areas such as heating and transport.

The report as Scottish Government officials admitted that so called ‘negative emissions technology’ like CCS and hydrogen would not deliver this decade, leaving a huge gap in its plans to cut climate emissions.

Friends of the Earth Scotland’s Climate Campaigner Alex Lee said: “This research must change the conversation around the role of hydrogen in Scotland’s climate efforts. The evidence clearly shows that hydrogen is either made from climate-wrecking fossil fuels or it becomes a huge drain on renewable energy supplies.

“The Scottish Government must end their support for the development of hydrogen from fossil fuels, which will only produce yet more climate pollution and give fossil fuel companies a chance to greenwash their image whilst they keep drilling new fields in the North Sea.

“Hydrogen from renewables is a high cost, low efficiency solution to our energy needs and the Scottish Government must urgently rethink their plans for its expansion.  Whether it is in heating or transport, support for hydrogen looks like a losing bet when compared to direct electrification through technology like heat pumps and electric buses.

“By prioritising electrification over green hydrogen, the Scottish Government can better protect households from high costs and ensure renewables can clean up our energy system.”

Key findings from the report:

– 98% of the global hydrogen production is from fossil fuels

– Using green hydrogen to meet Scotland’s heating demand would require 180% more renewable energy than Scotland produces currently

– 80% of current renewable energy supplies would be needed to create just 5GW of green hydrogen

– Electric heat pumps may be 168-342% more efficient than hydrogen boilers

– Hydrogen boilers may be 53-68% more expensive than electric heat pumps

– Electric vehicles are more than twice as energy efficient than hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

– Adopting green hydrogen in industry would require nearly twice as much new renewable energy capacity compared to electrification technologies.

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NHS Lothian hospitals under rising pressure as Covid cases surge again

NHS Lothian has warned that increasing cases of COVID-19 are placing mounting pressure on hospital and community services. Health chiefs said community prevalence of the virus is causing serious capacity issues across the whole system.

An estimated one in 20 people currently have the virus in Scotland with two thirds of the cases identified in the 20-59 age group. This is having an impact on workforce, with one fifth of nursing staff not at work as a result of COVID-19 absence.

Dona Milne, Director of Public Health, NHS Lothian urged people not to forget all that has been learned about keeping the virus under control.

She said: “COVID-19 has not gone away and cases are continuing to rise across Lothian. Our hospital system is under extreme pressure and we need people across Lothian to do their bit to prevent the system becoming overwhelmed.

“We would urge people to take sensible precautions when they are indoors or in crowded spaces and remind them that regular hand hygiene is vital and face coverings should be considered, especially in crowded places.”

Tracey Gillies, Medical Director of NHS Lothian said: “The number of hospital inpatients who have tested positive has increased by 50% since a week ago. This presents many logistical issues as they need to be cared for within COVID-19 specific areas.

“On top of that, and in line with community transmission levels, there are increased numbers of staff testing positive with COVID-19, who must then self-isolate to protect patients.

“All of this means services are stretched right across the system, including community and social care services, resulting in high numbers of patients who are medically fit to leave hospital but who cannot be discharged because they need care in place to support them at home.”

Relatives of patients are also being urged to help where they can by providing transport home for patients who are medically fit to be discharged, rather than have their relative wait for hospital transport.

This speeds up the discharge process and in turn frees up more hospital beds sooner, allowing faster admission for patients from our Emergency Departments where admission queues can form when the hospitals are full.

Relatives are also being asked if they can consider offering support to their loved ones who have been clinically assessed as “medically fit for discharge” but might still need extra help around their home.

Dr Gillies added: “We know that it is better for people to be looked after in a homely setting once they are medically fit to leave hospital. Unfortunately, the pressure on community and social care services means many patients are waiting too long for social care support and as a result spending longer in hospital than they need to.

“When appropriate, we therefore ask families to consider if they can step in and help support their loved one once they are fit for discharge. Again, this helps with the flow of patients through our hospitals and ensures that beds are available for the most urgent of cases.”

Dr Gillies reminded people in Lothian to make sure they get the “Right Care in the Right Place” by considering going to their local pharmacy or GP or by calling 111 to get an appointment with an expert in the Minor Injuries Unit (MIU), rather than automatically going to the Emergency Department.

She said: “If you think you need to visit A&E, but it’s not life threatening, call NHS 24 on 111 first, day or night.

“NHS 24 will direct you to the right care in the right place. They will direct you to an expert in our Minor Injuries Unit, GP or pharmacy and help reduce the length of time spent waiting in busy hospital departments.

“It is important too to remember that there is self-care information on NHS Inform.

“If it is an emergency always call 999 or go to your local A&E.”