黑料社

The 黑料社 is playing its part in a new body on its doorstep that is seeking to hit ambitious climate targets in the Kirklees area.

, from the Department of Engineering and Technology, is representing the University on the newly-formed  (KCC). The KCC is supporting efforts to work towards net zero carbon emissions and greater climate resilience, while the University itself is beginning a number of initiatives that will align with the Commission鈥檚 objectives.

The KCC includes local business leaders, educators, councillors, creatives and legal practitioners, and it will also relate to the climate advisory body that is working around similar targets for the Yorkshire and Humber region.

鈥楶oacher turned gatekeeper鈥�

鈥淚 started off in the coal industry before moving into oil, gas and chemical processing. Then I spent 25 years in the automotive industry, so it鈥檚 a case of being poacher turned gamekeeper,鈥� reflects Professor Allport.

鈥淓ffectively, I spent years developing technologies that contributed to polluting the planet. But after we successively established  at the University, my focus turned to technologies to combat pollution. My group now  look at how can we avoid making the same mistakes with developing countries 鈥� can they work without a carbon economy?

鈥淲e are looking at solar powered water pumps in Africa, hydroelectric power in Nepal and using agricultural wastes for generating power in Uganda, as well as how these technologies could be applied in a local context. The KCC is a good fit with what we are doing at the University.鈥�

Professor Peter Roberts, Chair of the Kirklees Climate Commission, said: 鈥淚 am delighted that Professor John Allport is a member of the Kirklees Climate Commission and I am very grateful that the 黑料社 is providing support for our work.

鈥淭he Commission is tackling a wide range of problems which, when taken together, represent the greatest challenge facing contemporary society. Working together, and using John鈥檚 and other colleagues鈥� expertise to the full, offers the potential to identify a sustainable pathway to the future.鈥�

Local focus on net-zero

John鈥檚 involvement with the KCC will see it look at the implications of local projects on the transition to net-zero emissions, such as the proposed expansion of the busy A629 road from the town centre to the M62 motorway. The Commission will also look at housing, energy usage, land use and climate risks such as flooding.

Another related project under consideration by John鈥檚 group is to use existing weirs on rivers in the area to generate power in a way that will allow fish to swim up-river, altering structures that currently make a move to cleaner waters difficult due to their construction in the early industrial era.

鈥淥ne option would be to make bypasses for turbines with integrated fish ladders on the weirs using concrete, as has been done in some other places, but the embedded carbon in construction could offset all the carbon gains for 30 to 40 years. Can we do it less carbon intensively? One answer would be a retrofit system that generates power by taking water down the weir, but incorporating a series of basins as a 鈥榝ish ladder鈥� that allow them to jump 鈥榰p鈥� the weir.鈥�