Barry's our man!!

[dude1394]

Whenever anyone talks about replacing fossil feul they seldom comprehend the magnitude of the problem.


For some reason it is difficult to find the percentage of renwables. They are currently about 7% and growing to about 9-12% per this report.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/aeo/demand.html

The bottom line is that we use a WHOLE HELL of a lot of energy....This report doesn't show renwables (including biomass) getting about 13% even by 2030.

[dalmations202]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Whenever anyone talks about replacing fossil feul they seldom comprehend the magnitude of the problem.


For some reason it is difficult to find the percentage of renwables. They are currently about 7% and growing to about 9-12% per this report.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/aeo/demand.html

The bottom line is that we use a WHOLE HELL of a lot of energy....This report doesn't show renwables (including biomass) getting about 13% even by 2030.

That isn't the real problem though, and it has never been. It isn't like there is any lack of energy. The energy is here and is replenished by the sun daily.

The problem then and now is development cost, and how do I make my money.

Many people don't want to do it, if it doesn't make me money. Same with Cars right now. Why do cars cost more money to make in this country, than in any other country? -- because someone is willing to pay it, and mfgs want their cut.

Why would I develop a low cost reliable car that cost millions in development cost, thousands in production, and then only sell it for thousands? I mean, I should be rich in the end -- isn't that the American way?

Small diesel or hydrogen generators are fairly inexpensive. (could be less with mass produced)
Battery technology has come a long way. (could be less with mass production)
Motors on the wheels that use braking for recharge are not that expensive. (could be massively less with mass production)
Solar to help charge would come down greatly if mass produced.

Yet to put these together in a car -- outrageous prices.... because they need to recoup the development cost, and they would need to retool, and everyone still wants PAID.

How much cost of every vehicle produced today comes from paying for the labor, and not the product? I mean marketing, assembly, sales, all the C's want paid, and then you have the dealers, mechanics, and aftermarket people. It isn't that you don't need these people, the question is how much do they need to make.

Truly free market will always cause caste systems.

With that said, I don't want the government in charge of it either.

When it is decided that the environment is more important though than the $$$$ -- then I will believe. Right now, all I see is someone trying to play the shell game with the $$$$, and see if you can hide it somewhere else -- rather than with the ones that have had it and the power that goes with it.

[alexamenos]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Whenever anyone talks about replacing fossil feul they seldom comprehend the magnitude of the problem.

One very small example of the problems.....

there's been quite a push over the last decade to build wind farms in W. Texas -- take a drive through Scurry or Upton or Pecos or Sterling County and you'll see what I mean.

...wind generated electricity is great with one small problem --the wind is stubbornly insistent on blowing most when electricity demand is the smallest and hardly blowing at all when electricity demand is the highest. Wind blows much stronger in the late fall and the early spring than it does in the heat of summer. If folks could be pursuaded to run their AC's in the late fall and the early spring and then shut off their AC's in August then wind would be a much better resource.

[Mavdog]

Originally Posted by alexamenos

One very small example of the problems.....

there's been quite a push over the last decade to build wind farms in W. Texas -- take a drive through Scurry or Upton or Pecos or Sterling County and you'll see what I mean.

...wind generated electricity is great with one small problem --the wind is stubbornly insistent on blowing most when electricity demand is the smallest and hardly blowing at all when electricity demand is the highest. Wind blows much stronger in the late fall and the early spring than it does in the heat of summer. If folks could be pursuaded to run their AC's in the late fall and the early spring and then shut off their AC's in August then wind would be a much better resource.

well, there is always somewhere that the wind is blowing...

second, if you've lived out in the high plains you know the wind never stops blowing (or, as the natives say, it never stops sucking...)

here's the amarillo monthly avg wind speed:
12.8 13.8 15.2 15.2 14.5 14.2 12.7 12.0 12.8 12.8 13.0 12.7 13.5

here's lubbock:
12.0 13.2 14.6 14.7 14.2 13.6 11.4 10.1 10.5 11.2 11.7 11.8 12.4

plenty of wind to keep those turbines turning 12 months/yr.