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Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

theguardian.com

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Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#91

Post by carlosjobim »

tadfisher wrote: post #67
carlosjobim wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Yes, it's really dumbfounding that the free-market solution wasn't adopted. It is just common sense: you do nothing and let the birds die. Spending £35 when constructing a £300,000 house just doesn't pass financial muster.

Neither the government nor any free market should be involved in this. Wildlife care is something that people should and will do on their own volition. When bureaucrats and market forces get involved is when things turn to shit.

But let's just tack on another regulation for the serfs to obey. They are machines and they enjoy not being able to live their lives without being in violation of thousands of rules that even the lawmakers have forgotten about.

Rules, rules, and more rules. That's a recipe for success and thriving people if I have ever seen one.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#92

Post by pavel_lishin »

Leonard_of_Q wrote: post #89
pavel_lishin wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Her photo on the linked article definitely makes her seem quite determined to get this done. "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window."

> "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window." While I'm fine with adding nesting opportunities for birds to newly built houses I'm quite done with the die Partei hat immer recht attitude of these do-gooders. The attitude of 'I know better and anyone who refuses my wisdom is a cave troll who can expect a brick chucked through th…

It sounds like she has: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo...

I think you're probably paying too much attention to my characterization, and not to the actual facts of the matter.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#94

Post by IshKebab »

Markoff wrote: post #12
davisoneee wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The bricks extend into the cavity region behind the brickwork. Here, pretty much all homes have a gap between the brickwork and the structure to prevent moisture transfer (although in recent-ish history firms have done cavity insulation, which often has negative consequences as done poorly can result in quite extensive damp and mold).

I would think the cavity will be filled with insulation and if you remove it and install there this empty brick you will be leaking heat through this place which will be significantly coolder/noisier.

Potentially but in the photo it is installed in a gable which aren't usually insulated.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#95

Post by tdb7893 »

isleyaardvark wrote: post #83
tdb7893 wrote: post #24

In the US bird populations are down 30% since the 70s (with many species seeing much more significant declines) and you see similar trends in many other countries. You'll probably see a lot more of these sorts of conservation efforts as people start to realize how dire things are ecologically. Source for decline number: https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.aaw1313 I also know the numbers are similarly dir…

Even during the 70s there were already conservation efforts. The Eastern bluebird almost went extinct in the 70s but a bunch of Americans built birdhouses for them.

Yeah, in some way losing 3 billion birds in the US is painting a rosy picture. Raptors are one of the groups that has had an overall increase but that's partially because DDT was only banned in 1972. Passenger pigeons were also possibly the most numerous bird in the world (with population estimates around 4 billion) and were long extinct by 1970.

It sounds very doom and gloom but I should say that there's also tons and tons of people working very hard to make things better (like the woman in this article). I've met a lot of people working very hard at conservation, generally for little personal benefit since the pay is abysmal, and it's always very heartening.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#96

Post by pixl97 »

nephihaha wrote: post #73
GaryBluto wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> us meat viruses I wonder what brings about this sort of reverse-chauvinist viewpoint? Humans are "nature" too, and we have just as much of a right to planet we live on. > The fact is you can't leave 'existing' alone, there is none. What does this even mean?

It's a form of self-loathing, often among middle class people. It is possible to be pro-nature and pro-humans. But there is a misanthropic element in some of these types.

Yea, no. "hur de dur, you have to hate yourself and all other humans if you even attempt to recognize the absolute destruction we are causing around us"

>t is possible to be pro-nature and pro-humans.

No, really it's too late for that in most senses. We the humans fucked up and the vast majority of species are suffering because of it. Now, we the human species are really starting to get our comeuppance from climate change. With the average American around me saying "roll more coal" there is no nice happy ending here where we don't wipe out 99.5% of the species in the next 100 years.

Hey, a few billion years ago anerobic oxygen producing bacteria poisoned the planet, almost extincting themselves, yet they opened a new path for other multicellular animals to take over the planet.

Maybe after we kill ourselves off because we're too dumb not to suffocate ourselves some nice slime moulds will take over.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#97

Post by detourdog »

js2 wrote: post #77
detourdog wrote: post #66

I have an old 80 foot chimney from a coal furnace. I maintain it simple for the annual chimney swifts. They come in mid April and leave in August. Apparently only 2 raise a family in it but it ends up with 100s at its peak occupancy. It’s getting re-pointed this year and I will have 2 hi-def cameras installed at the top to capture the activity. Might end up being my first AI project.

Chimney swift vs common swift. The two species adapted to habitat loss and urbanization differently.

Another big difference appears to be they live in different parts of the world. Chimney Swifts migrate between North and South America and the common Swift migrates between Europe/Asia and Africa.

https://www.earthofbirds.com/common-swift-vs-chimney-swift/

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#98

Post by Nifty3929 »

arjie wrote: post #86
Nifty3929 wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It will if it's a required 35lb item, which is not readily available from multiple sources.

35 quid, not 35 lbs.

Yes, that's what I meant, but I'm an idiot and just used the word that came to mind: GBP symbol -> "pound" -> "lb". And I don't have a quid (GBP) button on my keyboard.

Thanks for the correction.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#99

Post by js2 »

Leonard_of_Q wrote: post #88
pdpi wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The photo is somewhat NSFW (lots of exposed skin, no “naughty bits”), but it’s well worth looking at in some detail. It’s an amazing photo!

There's nothing NSFW about that photo, she's wearing some shirt-thing which happens to be light-coloured.

She's definitely not wearing a shirt (the birds appear to be glued on felt patches) and she described it as walking naked:

https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/870fe1a74661591c34ea4a6f61ce1...

from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo...

Some people would find it NSFW. I erred on the side of caution.

Re: Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland

#100

Post by nephihaha »

pixl97 wrote: post #96
nephihaha wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a form of self-loathing, often among middle class people. It is possible to be pro-nature and pro-humans. But there is a misanthropic element in some of these types.

Yea, no. "hur de dur, you have to hate yourself and all other humans if you even attempt to recognize the absolute destruction we are causing around us" >t is possible to be pro-nature and pro-humans. No, really it's too late for that in most senses. We the humans fucked up and the vast majority of species are suffering because of it. Now, we the human species are really starting to get our comeuppance from climate c…

When I read phrases like "meat viruses" (see above) then I see self-loathing, because these people are referring to themselves, not just other people. Many people go through a phase of this in their teens, when they are trying to become individuals, but later mature to other viewpoints. There are some extreme environmentalists who advocate for human extinction to save nature. Maybe at some point in the future, there will be a plan to maintain off-Earth colonies while letting the world "rest". (An idea already explored in the spoof documentary "Alternative 3".)

By the way, humans are a product of the world's ecosystem, therefore it is in their own interest to strike a balance.

Of course, the elephant in the room is that the ruling class are small in number, and any moves to decrease the numbers of the rest of the human race benefits them in terms of ratios. Especially after automation when most of us are surplus to their requirements. They can easily dress this up as an environmental concern, just as today there are non-progressive taxes on the poor for fuel or food, which are greenwashed.

p.s. "Dumb" is ableist language.

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