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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #750 on: January 05, 2015, 12:09:01 AM »
Quote
Americans “overwhelmingly” prefer solar and wind energy to coal, oil, and nuclear energy, according to a Harvard political scientist who has conducted a comprehensive survey of attitudes toward energy and climate for the last 12 years.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2015/01/01/americans-want-america-to-run-on-solar-and-wind/
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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #751 on: January 05, 2015, 04:19:04 AM »
Quote
Americans “overwhelmingly” prefer solar and wind energy to coal, oil, and nuclear energy, according to a Harvard political scientist who has conducted a comprehensive survey of attitudes toward energy and climate for the last 12 years.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2015/01/01/americans-want-america-to-run-on-solar-and-wind/

it seems that the only thing that can reach into the collective American mind is a "no brainer"
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #752 on: January 05, 2015, 04:52:25 AM »
A good point.  The "reliable" bits of the grid can't stand the strain of our increasing extreme weather.  Renewables to the rescue?
http://ecowatch.com/2014/12/29/carl-pope-grid-reliability-myth/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #753 on: January 05, 2015, 07:52:09 PM »
For everyone who thinks wind turbines are ugly:  Here's one made to look like a tree! 
To be installed in Paris soon.
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #754 on: January 07, 2015, 08:38:30 PM »
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #755 on: January 07, 2015, 10:08:42 PM »
A surprisingly diverse group of Floridians (Republicans! Tea Party!) have quietly launched a petition for the 2016 ballot that would allow those who generate electricity from the sun to sell the power directly to other consumers.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/energy/republican-led-group-launches-ballot-petition-to-boost-solar-power-in/2212659
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #756 on: January 08, 2015, 07:37:13 PM »
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #757 on: January 10, 2015, 02:34:26 AM »
Global Clean Energy Investment Jumps 16%, Shaking Off Oil’s Drop
Quote
“Healthy investment in clean energy may surprise some commentators, who have been predicting trouble for renewables as a result of the oil price collapse..."
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-09/clean-energy-investment-jumps-16-on-china-s-support-for-solar.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #758 on: January 10, 2015, 07:34:52 PM »
Another "renewables will never account for much" comment lead me to throw together a quick list of recent accomplishments showing otherwise.  Thought I'd post it here, where it would more likely be appreciated.   ;)

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  ...[Denmark] has set a new world record for wind production by getting 39.1 percent of its overall electricity from wind in 2014. This puts the Northern European nation well on track to meet its 2020 goal of getting 50 percent of its power from renewables.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/01/07/3608898/denmark-sets-world-record-for-wind-power/


Quote
  Wind generated enough electricity to supply the needs of more than 6.7 million UK households last year; a 15% increase on the amount generated in 2013 (up from 24.5 terawatt hours to 28.1TWh in 2014) - just over 25% of all UK homes all year round.  - More at: http://www.renewableuk.com/en/news/press-releases.cfm/electricity-needs-of-more-than-a-quarter-of-uk-homes-powered-by-wind-in-2014


Quote
  Germany’s green energy transition project, Energiewende, is boasting significant progress compared to one year ago. For the first time, 2014 renewable energy sources were the most important source in the country’s power mix.

With a share of 27.3%, renewables took first place, replacing lignite for the largest share in energy consumption. ...

At the same time, the study found that energy consumption has decreased by 3.8% over the last year. This is a sign that investments in energy-saving devices and equipment are paying off, the analysis says. As a matter of fact, there was high comparative growth in the economy reaching about 1.4%.
http://www.euractiv.com/sections/energy/renewables-dominate-german-energy-mix-311101

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  Much of the [Germany's] renewable energy growth has occurred in the past decade and, as a point of comparison, Germany’s 27 percent is double the approximately 13 percent of U.S. electricity supply powered by renewables as of November 2013.
Observers say the records will keep coming as Germany continues its Energiewende, or energy transformation, which aims to power the country almost entirely on renewable sources by 2050.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/05/13/3436923/germany-energy-records/



Quote
  WWF Scotland published figures claiming that wind power generated enough power to supply the electrical needs of 98 per cent of the country’s households on average in 2014.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/energy/windpower/11322398/Figures-prove-Scotland-has-enough-wind-farms-already.html


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  JANUARY, 2015: Africa's largest wind farm is now fully operational and produces up to 300 megawatts of electricity.

Build in Tarfaya, in southwestern Morocco, it covers 10,000 hectares (24,700 acres) with its 131 turbines 80-metre (260 feet) high.

The wind farm is part of Morocco's plan to harvest 42% of its energy needs with renewable sources by 2020.
http://thecleanrevolution.org/quickfacts/300-mw-moroccan-wind-farm-africas-largest-starts-generating-power/


Renewables are already powering industry, schools, and entire communities:
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     Producing 737s at a record pace, Boeing in December announced that renewable energy sources are meeting 100 percent of electricity needs at its production facility in Renton, Wash....
    In addition to manufacturers, entire communities are choosing to meet their electricity needs via renewable as opposed to fossil fuel-fired resources. Ringing in 2015, residents and businesses in Greenfield, Mass., for instance, will be getting their electricity from a new utility provider. Replacing incumbent Western Massachusetts Electric Co., the Greenfield town board chose ConEdison Solutions as its electricity supplier....
      What makes this particularly notable is the fact that the electricity ConEdison Solutions distributes to Greenfield residents and businesses is sourced wholly from “green” renewable energy resources. Adding to the social and environmental benefits, Greenfield negotiated “an electricity price that is lower than WMECo’s at the time of program launch.
    The Solar Foundation recently released the first nationwide assessment of solar energy use across U.S. schools and communities. The study revealed that installed solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity at U.S. schools soared over the past decade, doubling every year for the past six years....
http://www.triplepundit.com/2015/01/renewable-energy-rising-across-spheres-u-s-society/


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  California Governor Jerry Brown:
“California, as it does in many areas, must show the way,” he said before introducing three specific goals: increase electricity derived from renewable sources from one-third to 50 percent, reduce vehicles’ petroleum use by up to 50 percent, and double the efficiency of existing buildings while making heating fuels cleaner.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/05/jerry-brown-inauguration_n_6418962.html


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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #759 on: January 10, 2015, 08:25:30 PM »
White paper issued by information and analytics provider IHS gives their Top 10 predictions for the 2015 global photovoltaic (PV) solar energy market.

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10. California in 2015 will become global leader in solar power penetration. IHS expects that by the end of 2015, California—the largest renewable power market in the United States—will attain worldwide leadership in market share of annual power generation received from solar PV. Following another year of strong utility-scale and DPV additions, solar power is expected to provide more than 10 percent of California’s annual power generation in 2015. This penetration level would push California above other leading global solar markets, such as Germany and Italy, in terms of the share of total power generation sourced from solar PV.
http://www.evwind.es/2015/01/08/top-10-predictions-for-the-2015-global-photovoltaic-pv-solar-energy-market/49823
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #760 on: January 10, 2015, 08:33:15 PM »
Interesting real-world installations of "grid batteries":  backing up solar in Hawaii, and reducing strain on the grid by storing some energy on site in heavy demand locations such as New York.

http://www.evwind.es/2015/01/08/grid-batteries-for-wind-energy-and-solar-power-find-first-customers/49819
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #761 on: January 10, 2015, 08:38:09 PM »
Wind energy set new records during recent U.S. cold snap.  During two days of extreme cold last winter, it saved $1 billion dollars.
Quote
Wind energy did this by protecting against spikes in the price of other fuels, and keeping power prices low during periods of high demand. While other power plants failed in last January’s extreme cold or faced skyrocketing prices for fuel, wind energy continued producing electricity as expected with zero fuel cost.
http://www.evwind.es/2015/01/08/wind-power-generation-sets-records-saves-consumers-money-as-extreme-cold-grips-nation/49817
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #762 on: January 11, 2015, 01:21:27 AM »
The Vatican is the the first ever “solar nation-state” after spending $660 million to install enough solar to power all 40,000 of its households.
https://joinmosaic.com/blog/5-world-famous-solar-sites/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #763 on: January 11, 2015, 04:42:00 PM »
The world's biggest coal company, Coal India, is investing $1.2 billion in -- of all things -- solar power plants!
http://cleantechnica.com/2014/09/24/worlds-largest-coal-miner-invest-1-2-billion-solar-power/
« Last Edit: January 11, 2015, 04:50:10 PM by Sigmetnow »
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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #764 on: January 12, 2015, 12:24:01 AM »
3 feet of sea level rise will destroy 9% of current food production in low-land rice cultivar regions found in tropical river deltas.

by the time we have 3 feet of sea level rise we will be past 2C of globally averaged warming that will produce cyclical heatwaves and droughts that will impact another 25% of global grain production.
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #765 on: January 12, 2015, 06:30:24 PM »
Deutsche Bank: Solar at grid parity in most of the world by 2017.
Quote
Investment bank Deutsche Bank is predicting that solar systems will be at grid parity in up to 80 per cent of the global market within 2 years, and says the collapse in the oil price will do little to slow down the solar juggernaut.

In his 2015 solar outlook, leading analyst Vishal Shah says solar will be at grid parity in most of the world by the end of 2017. That’s because grid-based electricity prices are rising across the world, and solar costs are still falling. Shah predicts solar module costs will fall another 40 per cent over the next four to five years.
...
Oil market slump will not have huge impact

Shah downplays the impact of the oil price slump, noting that oil account for just 5% of global electricity production – and barely registers in the most important solar markets such as US and China. In addition, even at prices of $US50/barrel, oil still cannot compete with solar.

“The cost of oil based electricity generation even at $50 oil prices is the 7-9c/kWh range and as shown in the note, the marginal cost is higher than solar in many regions worldwide,” Shah writes. “Bottom line is that oil prices do not have a material impact on solar demand.”
Quote
The key, then, will come around the framing of tariffs for solar energy. Shah neatly summarises some of  the arguments over solar and tariffs this way:

Some utilities argue that solar installations do not pay enough to support the grid, because transmission and distribution charges are generally based on metered electricity use. When a solar installation connects to the grid, it generates a portion of the owners electricity use and effectively acts as a reduction in grid demand. In most cases, this leads to a proportional decrease in the dollar charge for grid-sourced electricity (which includes a proportional charge for T&D cost recovery).

Solar companies, individual users, and freedom-of-choice advocates believe this representation does not accurately account for the positive external contributions that solar installations provide. Theoretically, large scale distributed generation adoption should lower peak electricity demand, reduce strain on the grid, provide emissions-free electricity with no fuel cost, and lower the amount of necessary future investment in the grid on all fronts. In a scenario where ‘smart grids’ allow distributed solar resources to be dispatched as requested by the grid operator, the benefits from DG installations should increase.

Long term, we believe the business models for solar and utility companies will necessarily shift as grid penetration rates increase (currently no more than 1- 2% in even the high penetration states). Grid access charges could increase, utilities may start to compete more directly with solar installers, and cost recovery mechanisms generally will go through a rigorous analysis in most major solar markets.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/2015/solar-grid-parity-world-2017

Solar capacity adds (as % of global capacity adds) are well into the double digits.
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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #766 on: January 12, 2015, 09:31:58 PM »
SunEdison to build 7.5 GW solar manufacturing facility in India

http://www.forbes.com/sites/uciliawang/2015/01/12/sunedison-plans-for-a-4b-mega-solar-factory-in-india/

Quote
The new factory, with an annual production capacity of 7.5 gigawatts, will make the key ingredients for solar panels, starting with polysilicon that will then be turned into ingots and cut into wafers. The wafers will be chemically processed to create solar cells, which will then be assembled into panels. Trina Solar, the largest solar panel maker in the world, reached about 3.8 gigawatts of annual production capacity by the end of 2014 while First Solar FSLR -3.66% totaled 2.4 gigawatts as of last September.
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JimD

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #767 on: January 13, 2015, 03:44:33 PM »
Some interesting reading on this subject by Euan Mearns.

Mearns is a PhD in Geology and a mostly retired professor.  He is an expert on analyzing the energy industry and a strong skeptic on many issues related to it (some have called him a closet denier - me being one at times).  I have had a number of direct interactions with him over the years and while I have not agreed with him a number of times he is very intelligent and argues from facts.  He often makes very good points about energy subjects.  His opinion is to be taken seriously even when one disagrees with him.

http://www.theautomaticearth.com/too-much-of-a-good-thing-scotland-gags-on-wind-power/

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Objections to wind power normally come from ......... My objections tend to be rooted more in the raison d’être for renewables (CO2 reduction), their cost, grid reliability and gross environmental impact. One issue I want to draw attention to is the vast electricity surplus that Scotland will produce on windy days in the years ahead. That surplus has to be paid for. Where will it go and how will it be used?

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..To this needs to be added approximately 16 TWh of nuclear and hydro giving us a total annual surplus of 22 TWh. How is this surplus going to be used?

Exports
Plans are progressing to increase the interconnector capacity to England to 6 GW which is an interesting number since this is the same as Scotland’s peak demand. Part of “The Plan” is evidently for Scotland to export its surpluses. The snag is that when the wind blows hard it is often blowing hard in England and Europe too. At those times spot power prices are rock bottom and there is high chance that neighbouring countries will be gagging on surplus wind power at the same time. When the wind blows hard Scotland may be producing a 10 GW surplus that has nowhere to go...........

Quote
Storage
The Scottish Government often talks fondly of the hydrogen economy where surplus renewable electricity may be used to make hydrogen, normally by the electrolysis of water. The trouble with this, which is conveniently ignored, is that in making the hydrogen about 30% of the renewable energy input is lost, with a further 30% lost on energy recovery when the hydrogen is combusted or used in a fuel cell (estimates vary according to whether or not waste heat is recovered and used). Very quickly, 50% of the expensive subsidised and paid for wind power is lost. This is a short cut to bankrupting the country..

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Pumped hydro storage is a more feasible and scalable option and the Coire Glas scheme that has been approved but awaiting a final investment decision presents an ideal case study...Coire Glas will have storage capacity of 30 GWh. How many times would it have to be filled and emptied to store the 22 TWh surplus that Scotland is shaping up to produce?

22 TWh annual surplus / 30 GWh storage capacity = 733 cycles

With 50 hours generating capacity it is going to take about 1 week at optimum conditions to fill and then empty this massive beast. And so we are talking roughly 14 of these beasts (733 cycles / 52 weeks = 14.1 Coire Glas schemes required) to cope with the annual Scottish electricity surplus. This may sound feasible, but Coire Glas alone creates hydrology problems on the Lochs on the Great Glen that will act as the lower pumping reservoir.....

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crandles

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #768 on: January 13, 2015, 05:17:38 PM »
http://www.zmescience.com/ecology/renewable-energy-ecology/solar-wind-energy-usa-24112014/
Quote
Just so you can get an idea, the cost of energy from natural gas is 6.1 cents a kilowatt-hour on the low end and coal comes at 6.6 cents. But even without subsidies, wind is really cheap. Without subsidies, solar comes in at 7.2 cents a kilowatt-hour at the low end, with wind at 3.7 cents – competitive to say the least.

So if you waste 39% of the wind energy getting nothing for it then the price of 3.7/(1-.39) gives a cost of 6.07 cents a kilowatt-hour which is still cheaper than the other prices quoted above.

With those sorts of numbers, wasting half the excess wind energy in electrolysis is not so much of a problem in order to store for times of little wind.

Bankrupting the country - well surely that rather depends on whether the subsidy is 3.07 p/KWh or 16p/KWh.  But the latest table I can find suggests prices down to 3.07p/KWh

Quote
Description Period in which Tariff Date falls
Tariff
(p/kWh)
Wind with total installed capacity of 1.5kW or
less_________________________________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 16.00
Wind with total installed capacity greater than
1.5kW but not exceeding 15kW ___________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 16.00
Wind with total installed capacity greater than
15kW but not exceeding 100kW___________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 16:00
Wind with total installed capacity greater than
100kW but not exceeding 500kW__________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 13.34
Wind with total installed capacity greater than
500kW but not exceeding 1.5MW__________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 7.24
Wind with total installed capacity greater than
1.5MW______________________________1 October 2014 to 31 March 2015 3.07

If most of the energy comes from large installations with a subsidy of just 3.07p/KWh even if over half is wasted, 6.15p/KWh is not a disaster let alone close to bankrupting the country.

Not discussing prices but claiming it will bankrupt the country seems a bit bizarre to me.

(Feel free to copy this to Euan Mearns' blog if you want to see his reaction)

Tor Bejnar

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #769 on: January 13, 2015, 06:30:13 PM »
I was thinking some of the same things, crandles.

There are interesting energy storage concepts based on the 'tow a railroad car up a hill' or 'weight up a mine shaft' idea with excess wind electricity and produce power when it goes down when needed.  These have few environmental issues, and some are readily scalable.  (Probably more expensive than pumping water into a high reservoir.)
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #770 on: January 14, 2015, 01:25:03 AM »
And if the surplus is not needed, wind turbines can easily be shut down....
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #771 on: January 14, 2015, 11:54:35 PM »
It is in these types of scenarios where things that might otherwise be too energy-intensive to be sensible, start to make sense.

For example, run desalination plants and pump the water high up in towers when the wind is blowing.  Use this water to drink or irrigate, in place of wells.

Or use electrolysis to generate hydrogen for energy storage.

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #772 on: January 15, 2015, 02:31:15 AM »
Best paper -award at the World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC-6):
"North-East Asian Super Grid: Renewable Energy Mix and Economics" by Breyer et al.
http://www.lut.fi/web/en/news/-/asset_publisher/lGh4SAywhcPu/content/best-paper-award-at-the-world-conference-on-photovoltaic-energy-conversion-wcpec-6-

Full paper at ResearchGate
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/268743535_North-East_Asian_Super_Grid_Renewable_Energy_Mix_and_Economics

Quote
Further development of the North-East Asian energy system is at a crossroads due to severe limitations of the current conventional energy based system. The high growth rates of new renewable energy technology capacities enable the transformation of the energy system. For North-East Asia it is proposed that the excellent solar resources of the Gobi desert could be utilized for load centers in China, Korea and Japan as a contribution to the energy transformation ahead. Based on that idea we have established a spatially and hourly resolved energy system model focused on 100% renewable energy supply for the electricity demand. The area is subdivided into 14 regions, which can be interconnected by a high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission grid. Three different scenarios have been defined for highly centralized and highly decentralized energy futures for financial and technical assumptions for the reference years 2020 and 2030. The results for total system levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), including generation, curtailment, storage and HVDC transmission grid, are 0.077 €/kWh for the highly centralized approach for 2020 assumptions and 0.064 €/kWh and 0.081 €/kWh for the centralized and decentralized approaches for 2030 assumptions.

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This research work clearly indicates that a 100% renewable resources-based energy system is THE real policy option.

wili

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #773 on: January 15, 2015, 05:05:59 PM »
Mexico investing $14B into 8 wind farms.

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With installed, under construction and the new planned capacity they are looking at something over 8,000MW (8GW) generating capacity.

http://www.bnamericas.com/news/electricpower/mexico-to-invest-us14bn-in-8-wind-farms

Mexico is also going in for desalination plants big time: http://www.bnamericas.com/news/waterandwaste/mexico-pours-millions-into-desalination-plants1

(Thanks to Andy at robertscribbler for these links.)
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #774 on: January 15, 2015, 05:35:10 PM »
to the general attention, about growing market penetration of renewables:

http://about.bnef.com/blog/liebreich-energy-system-2014-ice-really-crack/

Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #775 on: January 15, 2015, 10:08:17 PM »
Emissions from the EU power sector fell a "staggering" eight per cent in 2014, as a direct result of reduced energy demand and increased renewables output.
Quote
Sandbag's Dave Jones said the reduction in power consumption was part of a trend that had now seen total electricity use across the bloc fall five per cent since 2010. He added that the EU was on track to cut total power use by 10 per cent over the course of the decade, as savings from more efficient technologies more than offset increased use from electric heating and transport.
  Significantly, the data also revealed how coal use fell for the first time in three years, with coal accounting for 64 per cent of the overall reduction in fossil fuel generation. Sandbag said the drop in coal emissions was the result of renewables starting to eat into coal's market share in Germany and a combination of low gas prices and the government's carbon price floor encouraging coal to gas switching in the UK.
  Overall, there was 84TWh less power demand throughout the year and 30TWh more renewables generation, resulting in a 114TWh reduction in fossil generation
http://m.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2390266/report-eu-power-sector-emissions-drop-a-staggering-eight-per-cent
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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #776 on: January 16, 2015, 05:54:02 PM »
There are now 2X as many U.S. workers in solar as there are in the coal industry.

http://fortune.com/2015/01/16/solar-jobs-report-2014/?xid=yahoo_fortune
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #777 on: January 16, 2015, 08:24:16 PM »
Solar in the U.S. Is Adding Jobs 10 Times Faster Than the Overall Economy
Quote
What's behind that growth? Aside from the fact that the solar sector is growing rapidly, solar is an industry that simply requires a lot of boots on the ground. A 2012 University of Tennessee study found that solar employs more people per megawatt-hour of electricity than any other energy source. That's largely because of the labor needed to install new rooftop systems every day, SolarCity's Rive said. Installers make up more than half of the jobs counted in today's survey (other categories include sales and manufacturing).
http://m.motherjones.com/environment/2015/01/solar-jobs-economy
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #778 on: January 16, 2015, 09:11:44 PM »
Re the solar jobs article.

Here in AZ where it should and 'used' to be a big thing jobs in the solar industry fell 13% in 2013 and it is clear that it has been most likely declining since.  A significant percentage of the solar companies where I live are no longer in business.  I do not see roof top installations being done very often anymore.

There is serious political opposition here that is impacting the solar industry.  Given the much more conservative congress and state governments following the recent election I would expect a lot more political resistance going into the near future.  Especially with the oil business in serious decline as the call for government support for the oil industry will grow strongly.

http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/blog/energy-inc/2014/02/arizona-solar-jobs-down-in-2013-but.html?page=all

http://cleantechnica.com/2014/12/17/arizona-solar-much-potential-threat/

Quote
When utility regulators scheduled a meeting two days before the Christmas holiday and decided to discuss possibly repealing the state requirement for rooftop solar, it raised eyebrows in the industry.

Arizona requires utilities get increasing amounts of their power from renewable sources until 2025, when they are required to get 15 percent from those sources. Thirty percent of that renewable energy, or 4.5 percent of the total energy load, must come from distributed sources, rather than large, centralized power plants.

The distributed-generation requirement, or DG carve-out, has helped create a booming rooftop solar industry in the state since the rules passed in 2006.

When the meeting agenda showed the commissioners would discuss repealing the DG carve-out, many observers of the Arizona Corporation Commission had flashbacks to September 2013. During a normally routine staff meeting that month, after months of planning and with months more scheduled to discuss deregulating electric utilities, the commissioners voted to kill the effort.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/money/business/2014/12/27/rooftop-solar-rules-table/20933619/

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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #779 on: January 16, 2015, 11:23:32 PM »
The difference between Arizona and Germany are really the case studies of oligarchic control of the population and suppressing freedoms and the function of a true democracy that distributes resources and provides economic incentive for regional independence.

Imagine if Germany had the solar resources available to Arizona!

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #780 on: January 17, 2015, 04:35:58 PM »
Part of the irony of the situation is that about 99% of the people in Arizona would be outraged by the implication that they are not one of the bastions of freedom and would catagorically state that Germany is run by a bunch of Socialists (which to someone in the US is essentially being a 1st cousin to a communist).

America is not a real democracy and was never intended to be.  The business of America is business as they say.  He who has the most money and power makes the decisions here.  People do not choose much at all.

Interesting observations aside.  It is very difficult to see any likelyhood that there will not be increasing headwinds facing the continued roll out of alternative energy installations in the US.  There may be some places like Calif where those winds are less but overall the situation that exists and is likely to exist here for the next couple of years will not be conducive to rapid growth.  Subsidies and tax benefits are going to be under attack and the fossil industry is gearing up for combat.
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #781 on: January 17, 2015, 05:58:18 PM »
Washington state:   Grid batteries store unneeded off-peak power from renewables, then lower the cost of peak power demand.
http://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/huge-batteries-plug-clean-power-n288166
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #782 on: January 18, 2015, 12:52:40 AM »
This is interesting.

Quote
Huge US solar plant lags in early production

The largest solar power plant of its type in the world—once promoted as a turning point in green energy—isn't producing as much energy as planned.

Sprawling across roughly 5 square miles (13 sq. kilometers) of U.S.-government desert near the California-Nevada border, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System opened in February, with operators saying it would produce enough electricity to power a city of 140,000 homes.

So far, however, the plant is producing about half of its expected annual output for 2014, according to calculations by the California Energy Commission.



Ouch. 

http://phys.org/news/2014-11-huge-solar-lags-early-production.html
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #783 on: January 18, 2015, 07:01:54 AM »
This is interesting.

Quote
Huge US solar plant lags in early production

The largest solar power plant of its type in the world—once promoted as a turning point in green energy—isn't producing as much energy as planned.

Sprawling across roughly 5 square miles (13 sq. kilometers) of U.S.-government desert near the California-Nevada border, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System opened in February, with operators saying it would produce enough electricity to power a city of 140,000 homes.

So far, however, the plant is producing about half of its expected annual output for 2014, according to calculations by the California Energy Commission.



Ouch. 

http://phys.org/news/2014-11-huge-solar-lags-early-production.html

It makes me wonder if they didn't fully account for the amount of mid-and-high level cloudiness out there. It's not like the monsoon was a surprise event.

Out there, cloud bases tend to be high because of the lower water vapor content in the atmosphere. If an analysis of cloudiness was conducted using automated ASOS sensors, I wonder if they accounted for the fact that they do not detect clouds below 12,000 feet. They will report "CLR" if they can't detect anything. Only manned stations will report clouds above that level, of which there are relatively few. If a detailed satellite analysis was done, it would have caught that discrepancy, but it does make me wonder if they missed that altogether.

Even an active monsoon season wouldn't account for that kind of discrepancy in insolation in most cases.

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #784 on: January 19, 2015, 06:14:28 PM »
Re: Ivanpah
This article has maps showing the decreased irradiance in the southwest U.S. last year.
http://theenergycollective.com/stephenlacey/2169306/map-explains-why-ivanpah-solar-plant-performing-worse-expected
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #785 on: January 19, 2015, 06:19:40 PM »
Largest-ever study found that U.S. home buyers were willing to pay more for homes with solar PV systems.
http://reneweconomy.com.au/2015/largest-ever-study-shows-rooftop-solar-boosts-home-values-64722
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #786 on: January 19, 2015, 06:58:35 PM »
Created last fall, "RE100" wants 100 companies to pledge to 100% renewable energy by 2020.
Quote
RE100 was officially launched at Climate Week NYC 2014. Fifteen companies have now joined the campaign and made a public commitment to going 100% renewable. RE100 brings together BT Group, Commerzbank, Formula E, H&M, IKEA Group, KPN, Mars, Nestlé, Philips, Reed Elsevier Group, J. Safra Sarasin Bank, SAP, SGS, Swiss Re and YOOX Group. Find out more about the campaign at TheRE100.org.
More links and infographic here:
http://www.theclimategroup.org/what-we-do/programs/re100/
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #787 on: January 19, 2015, 07:19:33 PM »
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #788 on: January 20, 2015, 04:12:26 PM »
Hawaii’s Solar Push Strains the Grid

Quote
The prospect of cheaper, petroleum-free power has lured the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC) to quintuple utility-scale solar capacity over the past year, building two 12-megawatt photovoltaic arrays. These facilities are the biggest and a significant contributor to the island’s 78-megawatt peak power supply. When the second plant comes online this summer, peak solar output on Kauai will approach 80 percent of power generation on some days, according to Brad Rockwell, the utility’s power supply manager.

That puts Kauai on the leading edge of solar power penetration, and KIUC has bruises to show for it. Power fluctuations from a first large plant installed in 2012 have already largely burned out the big batteries installed to keep solar from destabilizing the island’s grid.

Quote
The intermittent nature of renewable energy sources like solar power presents a range of challenges to utilities, depending on their grid’s size and design. Kauai’s difficulty is most acute when clouds drift over a solar plant. That can slash a plant’s power output by 70 to 80 percent in less than a minute. If the plant is providing a substantial share of the grid’s power, that rapid power loss can cause the frequency of the grid’s alternating current to drop well below 60 hertz, damaging customer equipment or even causing a blackout.

Kauai’s first energy storage system, at the six-megawatt photovoltaic plant at Port Allen on Kauai’s west side, was designed to mitigate such “frequency droops” by releasing stored power when output crashed. But when the plant went live in December 2012, Rockwell and his engineers quickly discovered that, as Rockwell puts it, the battery is “just not what it was cracked up to be.”.

Frequency droops occurred more often than KIUC had expected, and on partly cloudy days the battery quickly ran out of energy.

Running down the charge day after day, meanwhile, degraded the batteries’ energy capacity. ......

As a result, KIUC has had to ask more of its diesel and gasoline-fired generators, improving their ability to ramp up during frequency droops. The heavy ramping puts wear on the machines, increases air pollution, and negates some of the petroleum savings promised by the solar plants. .......

Lithium-ion batteries, which KIUC is pinning hopes on now, endure cycling better than lead-acid batteries. John Cox, KIUC’s engineering manager, says SAFT’s lithium-ion batteries are rated for four to six times as many full charge-discharge cycles as Xtreme Power’s.

Patches of clouds drifted over Anahola earlier this month when I visited the site of KIUC’s next solar plant, where eight 22-foot-long shipping containers full of SAFT’s batteries were already in place beside the plant’s 57,000-plus photovoltaic panels...

Clearly some significant sustainability issues at play here.  The first battery banks last 2 years.  The replacements are expected to last 8 to 12.  $2 million for the first installation and $7 million for the second. If the panels last their stated lifespan (a big if) that means at least 1 more set of batteries after this second set. 

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work. 
We do not err because truth is difficult to see. It is visible at a glance. We err because this is more comfortable. Alexander Solzhenitsyn

How is it conceivable that all our technological progress - our very civilization - is like the axe in the hand of the pathological criminal? Albert Einstein

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #789 on: January 20, 2015, 04:34:00 PM »
Michigan's Governor Snyder eyes phasing out coal-fired power generation, unlike counterparts In U.S. midwest, coal-heavy states.
Quote
Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is setting his energy stall out early in the state's two-year legislative session, saying he wants to look into weaning the state off coal-fired generation.

Currently, Michigan sources about 50% of its power from coal-fired plants, but Snyder told the Michigan Conservative Energy Forum Thursday that "now is the time to look at a long-term transition away from coal."

In the long term, Snyder sees potential replacements for coal such as natural gas and wind "as viable options for Michigan, both of which have begun to build a presence in the state," Dave Murray, the governor's deputy press secretary, said Friday.

And the former business executive and venture capitalist's stance on potentially expanding the state's 10% by 2015 renewable portfolio standard during this year's session could hold influence in the Republican-dominated state Legislature -- which began its session on January 13.
...
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, renewables could supply 32.5% of Michigan's electricity needs by 2030 with virtually no effect on power costs and providing significant economic benefits.
http://www.platts.com/latest-news/electric-power/louisville-kentucky/michigans-governor-snyder-eyes-phasing-out-coal-21856881
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jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #790 on: January 20, 2015, 06:51:30 PM »
Hawaii’s Solar Push Strains the Grid

Clearly some significant sustainability issues at play here.  The first battery banks last 2 years.  The replacements are expected to last 8 to 12.  $2 million for the first installation and $7 million for the second. If the panels last their stated lifespan (a big if) that means at least 1 more set of batteries after this second set. 

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work.

I lived in Hawaii and have some information on this:

1.  The full cycle runs of Li-ion batteries are what cause deterioration, benchmark tests on Tesla batteries show that partial discharges increase the longevity of the batteries by over 300% over full cycle discharges.  Therefore, the batteries will likely last much longer than the 8 to 12 years.

2.  With regard to cost, Hawaii has electricity that is over 35 cents per kWh, gasoline is also usually 2X the u.s. national average.  Under these scenarios, the use of solar to charge electric vehicles and the use of distributed energy storage for home use becomes much more favorable.  In fact multiple studies have shown that, for residential application, the use of solar with battery storage is already cost effective, this without tariff that would pay the homeowner to lease 15% of battery capacity to the local utility for grid-tied frequency support.
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #791 on: January 20, 2015, 08:06:18 PM »
Quote
France has become the latest European country to celebrate a strong performance by its wind energy industry during 2014, as new figures revealed over 1GW of new capacity was added last year.

France's wind energy trade body, France Énergie Éolienne (FEE), announced late last week that 1,042 MW of wind energy came online in 2014, up from 630MW in 2013. The performance marked the highest annual level of installation since 2011, taking total installed wind energy capacity to over 9GW.
...
The French government has set a goal of deliver 40GW of onshore wind power and 15GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030, as part of efforts to source a fifth of its power from wind farms.
http://m.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2390914/france-celebrates-1gw-surge-in-wind-farm-capacity
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #792 on: January 21, 2015, 12:53:01 AM »
UK: Battery-powered train replaces diesel engine on short run that has no electric lines.
http://grist.org/list/these-battery-powered-trains-are-almost-as-magical-as-the-hogwarts-express/
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #793 on: January 21, 2015, 05:21:32 PM »
Hawaii’s Solar Push Strains the Grid

Clearly some significant sustainability issues at play here.  The first battery banks last 2 years.  The replacements are expected to last 8 to 12.  $2 million for the first installation and $7 million for the second. If the panels last their stated lifespan (a big if) that means at least 1 more set of batteries after this second set. 

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work.

I lived in Hawaii and have some information on this:

1.  The full cycle runs of Li-ion batteries are what cause deterioration, benchmark tests on Tesla batteries show that partial discharges increase the longevity of the batteries by over 300% over full cycle discharges.  Therefore, the batteries will likely last much longer than the 8 to 12 years.

2.  With regard to cost, Hawaii has electricity that is over 35 cents per kWh, gasoline is also usually 2X the u.s. national average.  Under these scenarios, the use of solar to charge electric vehicles and the use of distributed energy storage for home use becomes much more favorable.  In fact multiple studies have shown that, for residential application, the use of solar with battery storage is already cost effective, this without tariff that would pay the homeowner to lease 15% of battery capacity to the local utility for grid-tied frequency support.

I repeat.

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work.

This is the fundamental point and what needs to be focused on.

We do not err because truth is difficult to see. It is visible at a glance. We err because this is more comfortable. Alexander Solzhenitsyn

How is it conceivable that all our technological progress - our very civilization - is like the axe in the hand of the pathological criminal? Albert Einstein

jai mitchell

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #794 on: January 21, 2015, 06:24:05 PM »

I repeat.

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work.

This is the fundamental point and what needs to be focused on.

I assert.

The sooner that we convert all forms of industrial, residential and transportation energy use needs to clean, carbon free renewable resources, the better off we will be as a society, a species and a planet.  This is our only path forward.
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #795 on: January 21, 2015, 09:16:07 PM »
Here are 10 cities going completely, totally, 100% renewable energy.   Soon.  :)
Quote
...a new grassroots movement has launched petitions in hundreds of cities across the world calling for a transition to 100 percent renewable energy/zero emissions by 2050 at the latest. While this may have sounded like wishful thinking a few short years ago, these activists are actually building on a growing number of communities that have already taken such pledges — and some who appear to have achieved them.
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/energy/stories/10-cities-aiming-for-100-percent-clean-energy
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #796 on: January 21, 2015, 09:33:47 PM »
To quote Elon Musk:  "I don't care if people say we will fail.  We're still going to do it."
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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #797 on: January 22, 2015, 12:23:22 AM »
Dubai Triples Solar Energy Target by 2030 on Lower Costs
Quote
Dubai’s government-owned utility increased the amount of solar energy it plans to produce in 15 years to take advantage of lower building costs.

The goal is 15 percent of power capacity by 2030, Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, chief executive officer of Dubai Electricity & Water Authority, said in an interview in Abu Dhabi today. The previous target was 5 percent.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-21/dubai-triples-solar-energy-target-by-2030-on-lower-costs.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #798 on: January 22, 2015, 07:36:16 PM »
Yet another international report finds renewable energy systems are now cost-competitive with fossil fuels in many parts of the world.
Quote
IRENA’s report also finds that renewables are the best option for bringing power to the 1.3 billion people worldwide who are currently living without access to electricity, as well as isolated island populations that rely on diesel generators.

And the dramatic decline in oil prices – 60% since last summer – is unlikely to douse the success of renewables, with investments in the clean energy sector expected to continue, according to IRENA.

The report said:

Oil prices remain volatile, so for an investment with a lifetime of 25 years or more, today’s oil prices are not an accurate measure on which to base an investment decision in electricity generation.

http://tcktcktck.org/2015/01/renewable-energy-cost-competitive-fossil-fuels-shows-study/66085
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JimD

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Re: Renewable Energy
« Reply #799 on: January 22, 2015, 10:44:44 PM »

I repeat.

This type of technology is not sustainable, not cheap and cannot be grown to a global scale without worsening the problems of climate change.  BAU does not work.

This is the fundamental point and what needs to be focused on.

I assert.

The sooner that we convert all forms of industrial, residential and transportation energy use needs to clean, carbon free renewable resources, the better off we will be as a society, a species and a planet.  This is our only path forward.

I think this assertion of yours is dead wrong.  Your path is not the only path forward.  It does not lead to a solution so it is not a path at all.  We must pursue options which can produce results.

IF and only if, we were pursuing these technologies you favor so much by using the capacity being developed to replace one for one fossil fuel capabilities would you have a point.  But even then it would amount to trying to continue maintaining our current civilizational structure.  This is madness.  BAU does not and will not work.  It doesn't matter whether it is fossil BAU or Green BAU. 

There is simply no path forward that way.  It won't even make a significant difference in when collapse happens.

We must change and stop doing what we always do. 

Even if climate change did not exist we could not continue to run our civilization the way we are now.  We are way past the Earth's carrying capacity (by several times) and this alone would not allow us to continue to pursue our current BAU paths.  With climate change added on top of those problems BAU is out of the question.

We must stop avoiding dealing with this situation.  Everyone is ruled by fear for some reason.  What about taking care of the people we will give this world too?  Don't they count for anything?



We do not err because truth is difficult to see. It is visible at a glance. We err because this is more comfortable. Alexander Solzhenitsyn

How is it conceivable that all our technological progress - our very civilization - is like the axe in the hand of the pathological criminal? Albert Einstein