Letters to the Editor
View(s):Sri Lankans are once again being bamboozled
Sri Lankans are being led down another rabbit hole of power generation – and this time it is a costly dead end. The result will be more wasted time and money. But now, in the face of a growing serious climate situation, time is running out.
It is worth spelling out the truth in the hope that someone will take a grip on this hot potato of power generation.
The Russians are offering assistance to Sri Lanka on the matter of reliable, low cost power generation, to be used in addition to renewables such as wind and solar power. No-one mentions that these sources of renewable energy are in the hands of big business. They generate publicity in their own favour – which praises renewables but never mentions the fatal flaws of intermittent power – see Michael Moore’s film which exposes this total fraud. In writing this, I, myself, hereby attempt to counter this multi-million dollar self-publicity machine.
Of course, these opportunists for a fast business profit do not give publicity to reliable energy from Uranium or Thorium – but, to their credit, the Russians do. Everyone knows that there are serious drawbacks to using Uranium, despite it now being a well tried and tested source of reliable power. On the other hand, publicity for the use of Thorium is scarce and one could say even suppressed by the competing energy lobbies. But that suppression of information on this reliable source of power is certainly not in the best interests of the Sri Lankan general public.
It should be pointed out that Russia, China and India, as well as Holland and other small European countries are all working to develop Thorium power generating machines. They believe in it and are investing in it. In future, because of their good safety features, machines producing power from Thorium can be small – the size of a house – and located near where energy is needed on the outskirts of towns and cities. This does away with the need for long transmission cables – which can lose up to 20% of the power generated just in transmission. Also, by having many small machines, this will provide interesting work for many science graduates.
China is planning to produce these machines on assembly lines, thus reducing the cost and enabling other countries to purchase these. They can see it is important. In 2018 this writer suggested such a manufacturing plant in Sri Lanka, as it could provide many interesting production and assembly jobs for graduates.
Our universities need to teach the chemistry involved with energy from Thorium. Thorium reactors have useful by-products which are in demand such as hydrogen, helium and bismuth. We need to design courses on this Thorium-generation topic, now.
Time is against us. We have only the next few years. We need to act fast for perhaps, our very survival. The Sri Lankan public should be told of the coming climate crisis and the need for a reliable source of power generation. They must insist that our leaders move in the right direction for the benefit, and even the survival of the Sri Lanka people.
P.H. Hantana
Bloemendhal Flats: Where children and elderly fear to tread
Bloemendhal Flats, Kotahena has gone to the dogs as aptly referred to in the Sunday Times as ‘Balumendhal Flats’. I regret to say that this issue has so far not evoked any action by the authorities concerned or the Mayor of Colombo even though several appeals were made.
Meanwhile parents are reluctant to send their kids to school for fear of being attacked by rabid dogs who are on the prowl in the morning in this complex.
Even though it is a punishable offence to rear domestic animals in the households some of the occupants of these flats have one or two pets in their homes.
Even the elderly are afraid to venture out because of this threat.
We are therefore making a fervent appeal to the Mayor to look into this problem immediately and grant us a lasting solution.
Residents of Bloemendhal Flats Kotahena
Inconvenience to motorists on Albert Place, Dehiwela
I wish to draw attention towards Albert Place, Dehiwela. A depression in the middle of the road that appeared about six or seven months ago, because of, I presume, a defective drainage, is now a large pit dug by the National Water Supply and Drainage Board that needs to be filled and tarred.
Daily, over a hundred motorists use this road to access Marine Drive from Galle Road and they find it impassable and turn back. To reverse is also difficult due to lack of space. Imagine the amount of fuel wasted. The NWSDB, no doubt a government entity, existing on and also wasting public funds is not bothered to erect a signboard or a notice at the top of the road to avert this inconvenience to the motorists.
We hope some attention will be paid to this issue.
S.S. Rajah Dehiwala
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