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Tag Archives: renewable energy
Negative energy return of solar PV in Northern Europe
Negative energy return of solar PV in Northern Europe Preface. I once yanked this paper after huge blow back, but in the past few years, I have no reason to doubt Ferroni and Hopkirks methods, boundaries, or conclusions, so I’m putting this post back. An ERoEI of less than 1 means there is a net […]
The jump to pumps: how Finland found an answer to heating homes
The jump to pumps: how Finland found an answer to heating homes How to heat homes and workplaces without relying on fossil fuels is one of the more difficult challenges for moving rapidly to zero carbon economies. Within the European Union (EU), the heating sector is the most energy and carbon-intensive, accounting for nearly 50% […]
Vancouver Council Pushed to Weaken Climate Emergency Plan
Vancouver Council Pushed to Weaken Climate Emergency Plan An industry group wants the city to delay a deadline for shifting from natural gas in new homes. At least one councillor says no. Photo by Mark Bonica, Creative Commons license CC BY 2.0. A natural gas lobby group could delay action on a pillar of the City of […]
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh XVII
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh XVII Teotihuacan, Mexico (1986) Photo by author ‘Renewables’. They will save us! This is one of the most common beliefs being bandied about by the ruling class and especially those that stand to profit from a shift to them in an attempt to power our complex society. I would argue, however, […]
Earth and Humanity: Myth and Reality
Earth and Humanity: Myth and Reality
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh XV
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh XV Rome, Italy (1984) Photo by author Energy. It’s at the core of everything we do. Everything. Yet we take it for granted and rarely think about it and what the finiteness of our various energy sources means for us. As Gail Tverberg of Our Finite World concludes in a recent thought-provoking article that should […]
Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths: the Post-Petroleum Resource Race
Lithium, Cobalt, and Rare Earths: the Post-Petroleum Resource Race Thanks to its very name — renewable energy — we can picture a time in the not-too-distant future when our need for non-renewable fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. Indeed, the Biden administration has announced a breakthrough target of 2035 for fully eliminating U.S. reliance […]
The Most Colossal Planning Failure in Human History
The Most Colossal Planning Failure in Human History A couple of days ago I happened to pick up an old book gathering dust on one of my office shelves—Palmer Putnam’s Energy in the Future, published in 1953. Here was a time capsule of energy concerns from nearly a lifetime ago—and it got me to thinking along the […]
Extending The European Green Deal Into Eurasia
Extending The European Green Deal Into Eurasia The European Green Deal should be extended to include the Eurasian Economic Union. In June, the European Commission will present a package of bills detailing the European Green Deal, a strategy that aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 55% to 1990 levels by 2030, improve energy efficiency by 32.5%, and […]
The Ugly Truth About Renewable Power
The Ugly Truth About Renewable Power When Texas literally froze this February, some blamed the blackouts that left millions of Texans in the dark on the wind turbines. Others blamed them on the gas-fired power plants. The truth isn’t so politically simple. In truth, both wind turbines and gas plants froze because of the abnormal weather. And […]
Book review of “Bright Green Lies”
Book review of “Bright Green Lies” This is a book review of “Bright Green Lies. How the Environmental Movement Lost its Way and What We can Do About It” by Derrick Jensen, Lierre Keith, and Max Wilbert. This is a timely book. The Biden administration is alarmed by how China controls up to 90% of […]
Between the Devil and the Green New Deal
BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE GREEN NEW DEAL We cannot legislate and spend our way out of catastrophic global warming. From space, the Bayan Obo mine in China, where 70 percent of the world’s rare earth minerals are extracted and refined, almost looks like a painting. The paisleys of the radioactive tailings ponds, miles long, […]
How Will We Pay for the Energy Transition?
How Will We Pay for the Energy Transition? Earlier this month, the International Renewable Energy Agency said the world needed to invest $131 trillion by 2050 in order to limit the estimated global rise in average temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius. That’s 30 percent more than what is currently planned. It’s also equal to investments of $4.4 […]
Why every state is vulnerable to a Texas-style power crisis
Why every state is vulnerable to a Texas-style power crisis “The infrastructure we have built right now really isn’t ready.” Power outages in Texas after Winter Storm Uri left millions in the dark. Such outages are a growing threat throughout the country. Thomas Ryan Allison/Bloomberg via Getty Images The blackouts that gripped parts of Texas for days as […]
Science : No single or combination of alternative energy resources can replace fossil fuels
Science : No single or combination of alternative energy resources can replace fossil fuels Preface. Even though this research was from 2002, it is still true today. There simply are no replacements for the fossil fuels that power our civilization. If only scientists could violate the laws of thermodynamics and physics. Even if there were […]
