Factorio Forums

Hi friends,

Would anyone else like a machine that cleans up pollution?

Something like this?
https://mods.factorio.com/mod/air-filtering-patched

No. Such a device is unrealistic and do not give interesting gaming mechanics. I would prefer for example ecological modules for advanced pollution control. They could reduce pollution at cost of speed, power consumption and maybe productivity. It would be more consistent to reduce pollution by adding devices on processing plants than filter it from air.

Hannu wrote: Tue Dec 10, 2019 8:31 am No. Such a device is unrealistic and do not give interesting gaming mechanics. I would prefer for example ecological modules for advanced pollution control. They could reduce pollution at cost of speed, power consumption and maybe productivity. It would be more consistent to reduce pollution by adding devices on processing plants than filter it from air.

Good idea, firstly because efficiency modules have such an niche application. Secondly beacons can only usefully be equipped with speed modules, a little more variety and atillery less Biter solutions would be nice.

Their application is only niche because, by the numbers, speed and productivity modules are more effective at producing goods.

Obviously, they are far more effective at producing pollution as well.

But, by reducing both pollution and energy usage, they also serve to do something that the pollution scrubbers cannot do : delay biter evolution. Biters evolve on the amount of pollution generated. It does not matter for evolution how much reaches their nests, it only matters that the pollution was created in the first place. Efficiency Modules reduce the pollution generated, scrubbers only remove already-generated pollution from the air, similar to trees.

astroshak wrote: Tue Dec 10, 2019 11:11 am Biters evolve on the amount of pollution generated. It does not matter for evolution how much reaches their nests, it only matters that the pollution was created in the first place.

We have mods for fixing it:
https://mods.factorio.com/mod/NextGenEvolution
https://mods.factorio.com/mod/Evo

Hannu wrote: Tue Dec 10, 2019 8:31 am No. Such a device is unrealistic and do not give interesting gaming mechanics. I would prefer for example ecological modules for advanced pollution control. They could reduce pollution at cost of speed, power consumption and maybe productivity. It would be more consistent to reduce pollution by adding devices on processing plants than filter it from air.

I have used Bio Industries (https://mods.factorio.com/mod/Bio_Industries) to create artificial forests that control pollution well. I was able to surround a large, fairly heavily polluting factory with enough of them to significantly reduce the need for defenses, such that I did more alien killing in order to expand than in defense. I don't know if it would be possible if you really cranked up all of the alien settings though, especially sensitivity to even the slightest amount of pollution.