‘Current events in the middle east provide a melancholy reminder of the inconveniences and dangers to which the UK is exposed as a result of depending strongly on conventional fuels.’
Wise words indeed, but if the phraseology sounds a little old-fashioned, that is because the above was the opening paragraph of a leading article in The Engineer of 21 December 1956.
The ‘event’ referred to was the Suez Crisis and the article goes on to explore the potential of the exciting new technology of nuclear power generation to free us entirely from dependency on oil and gas.
Fifty years later you could substitute Iraq for Suez, throw in the added imperative of climate change and conclude that we haven’t moved that far at all. Hopefully, you will forgive us this last trip down memory lane in the final weeks of The Engineer‘s 150th anniversary year but we would argue that this snippet from our archive tells us something important.
In the half century since those words were written, engineering and technology has made advances that our distinguished predecessor could never have imagined. The moon landing, supersonic flight, the personal computer and the internet — the list is endless.
Yet the essence of the dilemma explored by The Engineer in 1956 is the same as the one facing us today and can be summed up in one word — energy. How do we generate the energy to power our economy and society? How do we use it to best effect? To what extent should we rely on other parts of the world to provide it? How much will it cost us and can we afford it?
Now we face the question our friend from 1956 did not have to confront: are we destroying the planet in our pursuit of energy?
Engineering and technology is at the heart of the energy debate, which is why 2007 will be The Engineer‘s Year of Energy. During the year we will look at the technological, economic and policy issues surrounding energy production, transmission and generation. From nuclear to domestic renewables, we hope to shed light on the options for the UK and the course we should take.
That’s for next year. In the meantime, to round off our anniversary — and after 12 months of celebrating the achievements of previous generations of engineers — we thought it would be fitting to explore the legacy that our era will leave for our descendants 50, 100 and 150 years hence.
We may not be venerated as we venerate the Victorians (perhaps they will know us as the second Elizabethans) but, like every generation, we will leave our mark.
Andrew Lee, editor
PS: The next issue of The Engineer will be published on 15 January 2007. Season’s greetings and a happy and prosperous new year to all our readers.
The issue of energy generation seems to be relentlessly rearing its head with the regularity of a starving cobra. Given that The Engineer is focussing on energy in 2007, I will add my opinions to the debate. A recent white paper from the government has indicated that the UK will belatedly invest in nuclear to meet the demands of next generations. Whilst I can understand the reasoning for this, lest it not be forgotten that whatever the predicted requirements are, you can almost guarantee that they will be underestimated. What we need is to empower, or dare I say encourage, people to start generating their own power. I know that we cannot self-generate sufficient power for our personal needs, but as the advert says, ‘every little helps’. There used to be incentives from the government for the purchasing of solar panels which have now been withdrawn. Given the large number of extensions and new build developments at the moment, by adding some solar panels, a small wind turbine and a domestic CHP unit, the drain on the National Grid would be reduced and therefore we would need less new power stations. Come on, let’s save the planet and go green!