this post was submitted on 28 Dec 2023
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This is probably the best use of Christmas trees (though it’s up for debate whether it’s a good idea to cut down spruce trees to begin with).

Side note: it was hard to find this story on a website that’s not exclusive access or enshitified. Even the company who built the turbine (#Modvion) has a tor-hostile website themselves.

According to the BBC Newsroom they use glue instead of bolts to hold it together.

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[–] BastingChemina@slrpnk.net 10 points 10 months ago (1 children)
[–] activistPnk@slrpnk.net 4 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Good find. I heard it first on BBC World Service but I guess their site has some navigation deficiencies.. the radio episode page does not link to the written article.

[–] Xtallll@lemmy.blahaj.zone 7 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Almost all trees that are cut down for Christmas were farmed specifically for that purpose. People have a gut reaction when they hear about cutting down trees, but trees are a renewable resource especially conifers that tend to be fast growing.

[–] activistPnk@slrpnk.net 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

It would be nice if we could improve on gut reactions and sort out how much (if any) CO₂ is accumulated by spruce trees at the various points of maturity. Ideally the trees would only be cleared at the point where their CO₂ absorption rate tanks (which may not necessarily be when the tree would look nice in a living room) -- assuming there is such a stage in its life.

[–] QuinceDaPence@kbin.social 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Unless you're turning it into charcoal and burying it deep under ground or allowing it to rot in a place that will be permanently banned from being tilled it's 6 vs 1/2 dozen

[–] Xtallll@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 10 months ago

Even when trees die they take years to decompose, and not all of the CO2 captured by a tree will be rereleased as CO2, as the tree is decomposing the organisms consumeing the trees will incorporate some of the carbon into themselves, approximately 4%of the tree's weight.

[–] KeenFlame@feddit.nu 1 points 10 months ago

Sounds so sustainable, and we can see it is also because everyone has homes food and nature is healing, and that the planet isn't rapidly transforming into a destructive hypercapitalistic hell prison which is great news for the future of mankind

[–] ZILtoid1991@kbin.social 3 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Are the windblades also made of wood? That would take away one another argument from big oil used against wind turbines, and only would leave them the "but it kills birds".

[–] activistPnk@slrpnk.net 5 points 10 months ago

I think they said the blades were wood when I heard it on BBC.

W.r.t killing birds, I thought that was solved a long time ago just by increasing the resistance so the blades turn slowly enough to be seen. If wood blades would have to move faster, then perhaps the birds would be threatened again.

[–] BolexForSoup@kbin.social 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Have they finally stopped spreading that misinformation claiming it’s killing large ocean life? Those Hannity segments in particular made my blood boil.

[–] BolexForSoup@kbin.social 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

There are actually special pick up days here in the US gulf south where they take our trees and add them to the levees protecting our coast. I know Barataria uses them for large fences to control the impact of waves which I always thought was kind of cool lol

[–] QuinceDaPence@kbin.social 2 points 10 months ago

Howdy neighbor.