There was an irony that at the exact time both the last UK coal fired power station and the Port Talbot steelworks closed, the timing aligned exactly with the completion of my twelve months of temperature readings which I have been taking daily.
After experiencing a pretty cold and miserable summer when most of August 2023 hardly got over 60f, I was amazed to hear the BBC and other global warmist fanatics making the claim we had experienced the hottest summer - ever, including here in the UK. Somehow I must have missed it when sitting shivering at home.
I have instinctively known for quite sometime that all talk of global warming is based on misinformation and extremely dodgy computer models, but to hear that one of the coldest summers I had experienced, which was misleadingly claimed to be the hottest, gave me the incentive to start taking my own daily temperature readings. I purchased a fairly cheap thermometer from a garden centre and, so as not to take ground temperature readings or to have it in whatever little sunshine of our alleged roasting summers, I placed it 70" up on the north facing side of my garden shed well away from the warmth of the house. From then on, religiously three times a day, I took readings, one before nine am, one just after midday and one just after five pm. These were then entered on my own spread sheet which gave a daily, weekly and monthly average. I then set up another spread sheet which recorded the average for each month over the year, as you can see. September 30th was the culmination of one year of readings and from now on I can begin to compare the current and previous years monthly averages.
As my experiment is far from scientific due to using a basic thermometer, I know the accuracy of my temperature readings can be challenged, however, I have also realised over the past year my readings probably have a warm bias due to not taking night time readings when temperatures are cooler. Despite this I am still getting lower temperature readings than those put out via official channels.
Why governments are peddling the inaccuracy about the world heating up and doing things, such as closing down power stations and steelworks, trying (and failing) to force people to drive impractical and problematic electric vehicles and peddling net zero is a puzzle? Those who are caught up with conspiracy theories have all sort of sinister theories, I am bewildered as to why any elected government would want to make themselves so unpopular with all the insane schemes they have introduced in the search for the impossible of net zero. Maybe it is the fact they, like the mad mayor of the great metropolis enjoy the power they have over peoples lives and the misery which can be created by charging people to drive perfectly good older cars in pointless ULEZ areas. Or, is there a more sinister global conspiracy, who knows?
However, what I do know, after far too many years on this planet and after experiencing many summers, winters, and other seasons, the climate in my part of the world in not changing. The air now is cleaner than in my youth and teens thanks to the introduction of the Clean Air Act and catalytic converters which are now fitted on the great majority of vehicles. We are all living in the cleanest times ever in a country that produces about 1%, if that, of global pollution, so why do we need to be victimised by our elected representatives who no longer represent us by pretending to be environmentally friendly?
Sadly, challenging this net zero insanity is not allowed, the media mostly avoid it and some, such as the BBC, peddle the dubious findings of the warmist zealots religiously and debate is banned. It is time this topic was debated and challenged, it is time for others around the whole of the UK to start to take their own daily temperature readings too. If all these readings could be collated we would then have some method of challenging net zero and the madness of banning the use of coal, oil and gas and the replacement of practicable petrol and diesel vehicles for impracticable and fire risk electric cars.
I have had my year of the shed taking daily thermometer readings and will continue with this task for as long as possible, it would be good others can do the same too.