Over 16,534,674 people are on fubar.
What are you waiting for?
Solar Panels on our poles.
PSE&G is investing $515 million dollars as a result of a government mandate that says 23 % of their electricity must be generated from renewable sources by 2021. They are mounting 200,000 individual panels. One panel will provide enough energy in 1 year to light 4 – 60 watt bulbs 24/7 for 6 weeks. Fucking WOW. Really?
That’s $2575 each. That’s 0.0002 Kw/hours. Assuming a 10 year life span, that works out to a cost per Kw of $1073.
Who was the dim bulb that thought this was a good idea? And guess who is going to pay for it.
If the 200,000 solar panels were all in one place it would cover 170 acres and provide enough power for 6500 homes. Hmmmm so PSE&G is telling us that it take 1937674 square feet of solar cells to power 1 home. That’s 440 X 440 feet. So how will all these cells mounted on homes help you? Unless you have a big house it’s not going to. It might reduce your electric bill by a few percent.
Don’t get me wrong here. We should obtain power where ever we can but who is footing the bill for this renewable power initiative? WE ARE!!
The government mandates a 23 % renewable energy source but does not require that PSE$G do so without burdening its customers. PSE$G repeats mega profits and can more than afford to fund this requirement on their own.
The cost of all these “Green” initiatives ALWAYS falls on the backs of the consumer. We are at the bottom of the pyramid.
Solar power is free energy? Yeah OK. Not in this country. There has been talk in the government to put a tax on non-renewable energy in order to supplement development and implementation of renewable energy. HOW much is this free energy source going to cost me???
It amazes me that so many people embrace solar energy simply because it is a “Clean” source of electricity. They need to take a closer look at the manufacturing processes of solar panels before they conclude that it is as clean as they think. But that’s a subject for another blog.
The move is on to make America “Green”. Every company is jumping on the band wagon not because they all are concerned with the environment (some are for sure, Chevron has done an excellent job of it in some areas of the world.) but because it’s good PR. There are NO regulations, guidelines or truth in advertising to force any company to prove their “Green” claims. Simply putting recycling bins in the work place can be enough to make the claim of going “Green”.
The biggest motivation is green backs. OUR green backs.
If a company claims to be “Green” it is up to us consumers to verify that claim and call them on it.
Do your home work people!!
Clean Coal ?
The Obama administration has awarded more than $3 million for R&D in clean coal technologies supposedly dealing primarily with carbon capture and storage (CCS).
The awards break down as follows:……………………………………………………………………………………..
Southern Illinois University: $442212 for R&D on corrosion protection on (AUSC) boiler and turbine components.
Indiana University: $293,519 to develop computational models to study the coatings.
Brown University: $300,000 to study the feasibility of two-layer air plasma-spray
Texas Engineering Experiment Station (College Station, Texas): $300,000 for the development of high-temperature stainless steels.
Ohio State University: $299,934 The study will research new steels.
University of Tennessee: $300,000 fundamental studies on the aluminum-chromium-copper-iron-manganese-nickel high-entropy alloy.
Dartmouth College: $402,466 to research strengthened iron based steel alloyed with aluminum for improved oxidation resistance.
University of North Texas: $300,000 development of materials by design rather than by discovery.
University of Toledo: $470,674 for the development and evaluation of two new groups of oxygen carrier materials based on a crystal structure.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Very odd that NONE of the awards deal with carbon capture and storage.
Ok I know on a relative bases (Relative to how much our government normally wastes) it’s not a lot of money but the focus is NOT on clean coal.
Most people think of “clean energy” as energy that produces small amounts of pollution (i.e. soot or toxic chemicals). Proposed bills define “clean” based on how much carbon dioxide is released into the air. Carbon dioxide is not dirty. It is odorless, tasteless and colorless. It is not toxic up to many times the normal atmospheric concentrations.
The CES definition of ‘clean coal’ is a coal generating technology with Carbon Capture and Sequestration equipment that removes 90 percent or more of its carbon dioxide emissions.
According to a study by the Energy Information Administration no coal fire power plant with Carbon Capture and Sequestration equipment is expected to be built because it is not an economically viable technology until after 2035. Yet this administration still waves the flag and trots out the misdirecting slogans.
U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu “Advancing the development of clean coal technologies is an important part of President Obama’s strategy to develop every source of American energy and ensure the United States leads the world in the global clean energy race and continues to take advantage of domestic resources here at home. These university research projects will help build on extensive progressive made by this Administration to promote innovative technologies that help make coal-fired energy cleaner and more cost-competitive, while training the next generation of scientists and engineers in cutting-edge clean coal technologies.”
Clean Coal power plants will never exist. It simply can’t be done at a competitive cost. It is far better and cost effective to make it CLEAN (reduction of toxins) then it is to Reduce Carbon Dioxide capture.
Any reduction in U.S. carbon dioxide emissions will be dwarfed by the increase in emissions from developing countries in particular China. And our electricity prices will skyrocket.
It does us no good to reduce our carbon foot print when the earth as a whole is increasing it.
Yes…Clean up coal…stop the misdirection by telling us that Carbon dioxide is the problem.
President Obama’s “all-of-the-above” energy plan is misguided. He has listened to science advisors that have no business advising on these matters.
Yes we must protect our environment but the way we are going about it only protects big business and pulls the wool over the eyes of the general public.
