World’s Biggest Floating Solar Farm Powers up 

Outside London

On a large man-made lake on the outskirts of London, work is nearing completion on what will soon be Europe’s largest floating solar power farm – and will briefly be the world’s biggest.

But few are likely to see the 23,000 solar panels on the Queen Elizabeth II lake at Walton-on-Thames, which is invisible to all but Heathrow passengers and a few flats in neighbouring estates.

This will be the biggest floating solar farm in the world for a time - others are under construction.

Five years in planning and due to be finished in early March, the 6 million British pounds project will generate enough electricity to power the utility’s local water treatment plants for decades. The energy will help provide clean drinking water to a populace of close to 10 million people in greater London and the south-east of England, a huge and often unrecognised drain on electricity, rather than nearby homes.

Why put solar panels on water? The answer is that the water is there, and might as well be used for this purpose. Floating panels, covering only about 6% of the reservoir, will have no impact on the ecosystem, he says.

Though waterbirds live on the margins, and a thin layer of litter is visible at the shore, the reservoir is not intended as a home to wildlife, and any fish living here are accidental visitors. Eighteen metres deep, it provides water for Londoners. Although most of the population growth in London tends to be towards the east, most of the water still comes from reservoirs to the west of the city.

But future projects to make use of water companies’ reservoirs in order to provide solar power might be in doubt.

The current government has reduced subsidies for solar and wind power. Experts said that this would not affect this project, but might have an effect on whether follow-up projects could go ahead. “We have had to look very closely at the economics of this, at all stages,” they said. “It is not clear what the future economics would be for other potential projects.”

Culture Shock in China

The strong contrast in day-to-day life between Western countries and China is vastly greater than most foreigners can possibly imagine prior to actually living and working here. No matter how well-traveled Westerners might otherwise be, unless they have previously lived in mainland China for at least three months, they will experience varying degrees of culture shock that will require at least several months to acclimate to. This article will discuss the five most predominant adjustment issues faced by all foreigners during their initial stay in China with suggestions about how to either best mentally prepare for or safeguard against them.

Probably the greatest adjustment required of us all, as foreign teachers, is coping with the language barrier—and it is so formidable, pervasive, and ubiquitous, that it is almost unimaginable prior to arriving in China. Despite the push for all of its citizens to learn English, the truth is—especially outside the three major international cities—the English speaking abilities of the Chinese, in general, are abysmal to non-existent. The reality is, the vast majority of Chinese students acquire just enough language skills to pass their English language certification exams and to win a better job but, after graduating from college and securing that first job, they will seldom (if ever) use one word of spoken English again for the rest of their lives. A few will land positions that require the use of English on a regular or even daily basis, such as tour guides (in major cities), translators and Chinese English teachers, but probably 80 to 90 percent will never utter another word of spoken English again after graduating from college (although those who work for international companies will need to use their reading and, possibly, writing skills on occasion). Consequently—and this is particularly true in regions and cities where foreigners are scarce—virtually everyone you encounter will not be able to communicate with you in English.