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NATIONAL Grid Electricity System Operator has published the Triad data for the 2019/20 period and interestingly, all the triads fell before Christmas. The triads fell on: 18th November 2019 (settlement period 35) 2nd December 2019 (settlement period 35) 17th December 2019 (settlement period 34) Triads are the three half-hour settlement periods of highest net system demand on the GB electricity transmission...

A NEW charitable foundation funded by Cadent has committed £240,000 to help a network of food banks as they seek to support people affected by coronavirus. The fund’s advisory board agreed to fast-track a grant to the Trussell Trust, which supports more than 1,200 food bank centres. Julia Dwyer, Director, Cadent Foundation, commented: “Food banks are facing a huge challenge right...

WATER companies in England and Wales have stepped up efforts to help customers who have lost their jobs or had their incomes cut during the coronavirus crisis as MPs appeal to Boris Johnson to ensure nobody will have their water supply cut off. The companies are encouraging households suffering from immediate or short-term issues with paying their bills to get...

MCDONALD'S UK and Ireland will no longer include toys made from non-recycled or non-renewable forms of hard plastic in their Happy Meals. In 2021, the Happy Meal will only include soft toys, sustainable paper-based gifts or books as the company works to find sustainable alternatives to hard plastic. This represents the biggest reduction in plastic by McDonald’s UK and Ireland to...

EXPERTS have stressed an urgent need to find alternatives to wormers and anti-ectoparasitic products used widely on cattle, following the findings of a study just published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Researchers from the University of Sussex looked at a body of published evidence into the environmental impact of anthelmintics — products used as wormers and anti-parasitic agents and widely applied across the world. They found...

THE DEPARTMENT for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is aiming to have the long-awaited energy white paper out in spring. Speaking to Current± before the parliament's Easter break, a BEIS spokesperson said that this was still the plan despite the COVID-19 outbreak. However, as the crisis continues and resources are redirected, there is the possibility that anything unrelated to the...

THE CHIEF executives of 11 large corporations, including The Coca-Cola Company, Microsoft and Heineken, have partnered up to have a net-positive impact on water resources throughout their supply chains and operation. The CEO Water Mandate, aims to preserve the world’s freshwater resources through collective action in water-stressed basins and ambitious, quantifiable commitments. Lise Kingo, CEO and Executive Director of the United...

NORTHUMBRIAN Water is tackling the increasing number of sewers clogged up by flushed toilet roll alternatives as the coronavirus outbreak affects access to toilet paper. The North East water company understands anyone affected by the shortage of toilet paper on the shelves of shops is only improvising by using alternatives such as wipes, kitchen roll and newspapers but warns of...

STATISTICS released today by the Government show that renewables generated a record 36.9% of the UK’s electricity in 2019, more than half of which came from wind alone. The publications cover new data for the fourth quarter of 2019 (October to December) and thus provisional annual data for 2019. The annual figures, published in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial...

NEWCASTLE University is leading a national network of four centres to enable faster collaborative research and development of electric machines - including cars, planes and ships. The Driving the Electric Revolution Centres are backed by £30m Government funding and will provide open access facilities with state-of-the-art equipment, bringing together the UK’s technology and manufacturing expertise in electrification research and development. Professor...