Like if we designate 10,000 square miles and pack it with Wind Turbines and/or Solar Panels or even if we place them in pockets all through-out American wouldn't that solve our Energy crisis? We already use the technology so why not just do it on a MASS SCALE. We have the technology, land and man power.
Amy
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Having centralized power generation can cause problems with power storage and distribution. A different method would be a distributed generation, have buildings that are a good site for a certain renewable technology deploy that technology on a small scale. If you are in a sunny location with space available, install a grid tied solar system. If you are in a windy location, install a wind turbine. If more people started installing small scale systems, they would become more the norm and stop the "they look ugly" complaints. Personally, I think the power lines running everywhere look ugly, but you don't hear people saying they should all be removed. It's the norm and expected. In many countries, every sunny roof has solar water heating on it, it's not only the norm, it's the law. They use less electricity heating their water, the sun does most of the work, and therefore their energy consumption is less. People don't think twice about it, it's their water heater. How often do you think about your water heater? You should start thinking about it, it uses up to 30% of the energy in your house.
Renewable energy technologies are more expensive than polluting technologies to generate, but then look at the overall costs of those technologies, including the medical expenses to deal with all of the respiratory problems caused by the pollution. And how many billions are being spent to clean up the Gulf right now from the oil spill? That could have bought a heck of a lot of solar panels, and created thousands of installation jobs.
Oil and coal are subsidized by the government now, redirecting that money from the already rich oil companies to help jump start a renewable energy industry has a lot of benefits.
Also investing in energy conservation has an enormous effect. Improving insulation and weatherizing buildings have an amazing payback in energy savings. I spent $200 in material to seal up some cracks, and I'll save $200 a year in energy. Immediate payback! Building new buildings to a stricter building code would save a staggering amount of wasted energy.
Robert David M
Doesn't quite work that way. Five reasons.
1. Wind turbines won't work everywhere.
2. The dense pack wouldn't permit transmission of power.
3. Solar technology is just on the brink of having collectors being able to be printed onto panels.
4. The Establishment's statists are still opposing it, using, lies, fake science, right-wing media freaks and Republican neocon votes in Congress.
5. Deregulation prevents liberals--"those concerned with the rights and freedoms if individuals, not dictator corporations"--from claiming their rights and taxing those polluting the nation.
Thanks for asking.
electricpole
"Like", Even with government subsidies, at present, the payback on these items can be beyond the lifespan of the equipment. We are not there yet.
Have you done the research and the math? Have you calculated the power available for 10,000 sq-miles of solar panels at any given latitude? How many "Full Sun Hours" (that's 1000 Watts / sq-M) does this area have annually / and how is that distributed seasonally? Are they all in the same place? What effect will "wheeling " it to the market have on the capacity of the existing transmission grid? What will the line loss be from the panels to the population areas? How do you compensate for the inverse relationship between panel temperature and yield? What do you do for reserve when it's night AND there is no wind? How will you get around the lawsuits and injunctions from the Environmentalists who think that wind turbines kill birds on a genocidal scale? Would you be OK looking at 50 or so 310 ft tall turbines in your front yard?
I guess I'm wrong, it IS simple as you make it sound...............................
TIMOTHY
To unreliable Turbines only work when their is enough wind, solar only on sunny days no clouds and do not work at night i pass thru the wind farms near palm springs all the time 90% of the time not even working. Their is no practical way to store the energy for night use. Best way to use solar now is to cover your entire roof with panels and use a grid inter tie system so the power your panels generate goes into the system for everyone and you get paid for it unless your using a lot everyone in effect would be their own power plant. But a lot of people find the panels not ascetically pleasing. I have a friend in Oregon bought a house their that had a real nice solar system installed he did not like the way it looked on his roof so he trashed the whole system. Go figure
Anonymous
There is an abundance of free energy available on this planet. Wave, wind, solar, (underground), and many many others that I can't remember right now. If some of the multi-trillions currently being spent being spent by the US government on defence (and the rest of the planet defending ourselves FROM the US) were re-directed towards exploiting sustainable, long-term energy supplies, then much work would be generated and the cost of energy would drop significantly - in the long run. So, why are we not utilizing these sources of energy? Unbelievably short-sighted right-wing political ideology, that's why! One thing almost never reported about nuclear power, is that there isn't much nuclear power fuel available on this planet. I think I can quite honestly state that when the time comes when we are forced to move from non-renewable to renewable energy production, it will probably be far too late with far too much damage done and the environment will collapse and become incapable of supporting oxygen breathing life-forms. I concluded many years ago that capitalism will probably end all life on this planet one day. Capitalism IS right-wing politics! Do you now see where the problem is coming from?