Denmark By Bus





Danish government's energy grid control center.

I returned from a study trip with my Sustainable Development class on Saturday evening. It was a busy trip, where we travelled onto the mainland of Denmark; Jutland. Starting early Thursday morning, we made our way to different places dealing with energy, renewable energy resources/research, eco-villages, and an art museum.  Our first stop was at Energinet.DK, Denmark's energy grid control headquarters, a government run sector.  Just the building alone was amazing, upon entrance you would first guess the place was some kind of design firm.  Very modern and sleek, open spaces and glass walls, everything was incredibly nice, yet simply designed.  We were given a presentation by one of the senior planners, and he described how the entire country is hooked up to one power grid.  The energy supplied is 20% wind turbine produced energy during best conditions.  Since this flucuates constantly, they have to have an extremely flexible grid that can monitor and then act on surplusses and shortages of energy, this way coal supplied electricity can be implemented to flucuate with wind energy shifts.  Wind energy cannot be stored and must be used immediately, so their systems are very responsive.  We also learned that Denmark serves as the middle man between central Europe and Scandinavia, and that all of these energy systems are linked so that surplesses can be freely wired across countries.  The agreements between these countries allow free borrowing and lending of energy from other grids whenever needed, this is optimal so that no energy ever goes wasted. We were taken to the control room, a scene strait out of the Matrix where computer screens the size of walls show the entire Danish energy grid and consumption rates.  Four main controllers are on duty at all times, and I counted one long desk to have 21 computer screens monitiored by one man (on a very agile wheeled chair).  We then had lunch at their lunch buffet, where all employees eat for free each day (happy employees? I think so). The buffet was great, consisting of so much fresh food. The Danish concept of food is so different, you would never find a buffet similar to this one in a work building in the states.

We also travelled to the Nordic Folkecenter for Renewable Energy, just along the northern coast, the center has worked on researching renewable energy systems since the 70s.  All of their power is wind supplied, and they have outfitted all their vehichles to run on bio-fuels.  The bio-fuel they use in particular was grape seed oil, they have a large press that produces this fuel as you dump in the seeds. There was also a Folkeschole there where students stay and learn about environmental studies.  The school is akin to the Hobbit's Shire, as it is built into the side of a hill right near the shore.  A beautiful and cozy building, suprisingly intricate for being built into a hill, with a large domed ceiling common room, bedrooms and classrooms.  In one small quiet room we were shown an old wooden couch called 'John's Couch', which was apparently John Lennon's favorite place to sit when he was a student at the Folkeschole.  How cool to think that a Beetle also spent time at a Folkeschole (I am staying at one in Helsingør).

Nordic Center for Renewable Energy, wind turbine on its side.

We spent the next day's afternoon in an Eco-Village in Thy.  A community of about 35 houses, they create and supply most of their own energy, grow a lot of their own foods, and manage their own waste.  A very modern looking place, despite the centuries old living techniques.  We were shown around, and then put into some good 'ol fashioned manual labor.  The community pipes all the grey water (washer, shower, sink water) to a drainage field that was dug out, covered in a clay membrane, then filled with gravel, sand, and then soil. On top they grow Willow trees that absorb lots of water, pulling it up and filtering it at the same time.  Each year they have to cut 1/3 of the willows back to ensure they are always growing and absorbing water. So we managed to arrive during this time, and were put to the task of clearing the cut shrubs.  This entailed hauling them across a mud field and stacking them to be dried and used for heat later. By the end of the afternoon I was thoroughly covered in the mud, tasting it everytime I opened my mouth. All were in good spirits however, as we were rewarded with a hearty Danish (organic) meal of rye breads, cheeses, herring, liver spread, jams, and coffee. The following bus ride back was oddly quiet, interrupted only by snores.



Typical house in the eco-village, every room position for maximum heating/cooling efficiency, solar panels, etc.



Solar energy FTW.