Buying or building...

[Hamish]

Why would anyone want to stop development of hydro power? I would much rather have a dam with a nice loch to go fishing in and a clean source of power than live next to a nuclear power station.

I would laugh and laugh if Hamish's cheap plot turned out to be underwater in a couple of years time! try claiming your VAT back then :001:

Hydro-power destroys river systems which are the arteries of the environment. They stop natural physical processes from operating (the transport of water and sediment downstream) which significantly impacts on the habitats of all species that live in rivers. The management of river systems for hydropower and water-supply is one of the main reasons why salmon are nearing extinction around the world. I could develop this into a full-blown rant but I'm going to stop here. Suffice to say that ALL sources of power supply have associated negative impacts to the environment. There's not such a thing as a 'clean energy source'.

[Alex MacLeod]

Sorry Hamish, I have to disagree on one point. Salmon decline is not to do with Hydro power or dams or whatever. Salmon decline is to do with the fact that commercial fishermen have, over the last fifty or so years, discovered the migratory habits of that fish and have exploited that knowledge. Check out the commercial fishings of the coast of Iceland and the Northumbrian drift netters, who know the fish runs and use small guage monofil nets that are two to three miles long, then come back and make your statement. Modern Hydro schemes take account of, and make provision for, fish movements. This is one subject that I am very passionate about.

[Mee]

Feck knows what you're saying Hamish, I've still got you on ignore. I imagine some cr@p about how hydro power sites "spoil" the nice countryside, well Loch Ness side is chock full of the evidence of hydro power, huge pipes, dams, power stations, shafts and tunnels through hills, pumping stations, you can't get away from it. Loads of wind farms springing up too. You could probably get somewhere near Thurso quite cheap though  :015:

[Johnboy]

Hamish : There are salmon farms all round the coast of Scotland.... It has never been so cheap or so plentiful.....

[Hamish]

Sorry Hamish, I have to disagree on one point. Salmon decline is not to do with Hydro power or dams or whatever. Salmon decline is to do with the fact that commercial fishermen have, over the last fifty or so years, discovered the migratory habits of that fish and have exploited that knowledge. Check out the commercial fishings of the coast of Iceland and the Northumbrian drift netters, who know the fish runs and use small guage monofil nets that are two to three miles long, then come back and make your statement. Modern Hydro schemes take account of, and make provision for, fish movements. This is one subject that I am very passionate about.

Salmon decline is due to a number of factors, commercial fishing and the loss of habitat both being very important. As are diseases and genetic contamination relating to hatcheries and, especially fish farming. Although dams try and incorporate fish ladders etc, a lot of research has shown that fish don't use nearly in the same numbers as would pass if the dam wasn't there. But more importantly, dams disrupt the natural processes of rivers that create and maintain instream habitats (not just for salmon but for all species). Read the book 'King Of Fish' by David Montgomery, it is a very good read and very informative. I can speak with a modicum of authority on the matter as this is what I did my PhD in and what all my subsequent research has been about. I hope Mee doesn't consider this as me being arrogant  :001: