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I think alternative energies are fine for those that wish to pay the exorbitant costs thereof.
There are no “exorbitant costs.” They’re actually cheaper than fossil fuels. If it weren’t for capitalism’s stranglehold on the world, and Big Oil’s stranglehold on the energy sector, individual citizens could actually have net minuses for their home energy costs, and our cars and all modes of transportation could run for free.
Uruguay makes dramatic shift to nearly 95% electricity from clean energy
As the world gathers in Paris for the daunting task of switching from fossil fuels to renewable energy, one small country on the other side of the Atlantic is making that transition look childishly simple and affordable.
In less than 10 years, Uruguay has slashed its carbon footprint without government subsidies or higher consumer costs, according to the country’s head of climate change policy, Ramón Méndez.
In fact, he says that now that renewables provide 94.5% of the country’s electricity, prices are lower than in the past relative to inflation. There are also fewer power cuts because a diverse energy mix means greater resilience to droughts.
It was a very different story just 15 years ago. Back at the turn of the century oil accounted for 27% of Uruguay’s imports and a new pipeline was just about to begin supplying gas from Argentina.
Which countries are doing the most to stop dangerous global warming?
Read moreNow the biggest item on import balance sheet is wind turbines, which fill the country’s ports on their way to installation.
Biomass and solar power have also been ramped up. Adding to existing hydropower, this means that renewables now account for 55% of the country’s overall energy mix (including transport fuel) compared with a global average share of 12%.
Despite its relatively small population of just 3.4 million, Uruguay has earned a remarkable amount of global kudos in recent years. It enacted groundbreaking marijuana legalisation, pioneered stringent tobacco control, and introduced some of the most liberal policies in Latin America on abortion and same-sex marriage.
Now, it is being recognised for progress on decarbonising its economy. It has been praised by the World Bank and the Economic commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, and the WWF last year named Uruguay among its “Green Energy Leaders”, proclaiming: “The country is defining global trends in renewable energy investment.”
Germany has made huge strides, too:
Germany Just Got Almost All of Its Power From Renewable Energy
Clean power supplied almost all of Germany’s power demand for the first time on Sunday, marking a milestone for Chancellor Angela Merkel’s “Energiewende” policy to boost renewables while phasing out nuclear and fossil fuels.
Solar and wind power peaked at 2 p.m. local time on Sunday, allowing renewables to supply 45.5 gigawatts as demand was 45.8 gigawatts, according to provisional data by Agora Energiewende, a research institute in Berlin. Power prices turned negative during several 15-minute periods yesterday, dropping as low as minus 50 euros ($57) a megawatt-hour, according to data from Epex Spot.
More proof of the economic benefits of wind power, from the Guardian:
Companies want to reduce their emissions and they want access to reliable, inexpensive power. Companies want to know how to achieve these two goals in a way that is quick and efficient. For many of them, wind is the answer. It’s inexpensive and emissions-free (aside from initial manufacturing and installation and service) and it gives the companies control over their energy supply.
Globally, the average cost of wind is $83 per megawatt-hour. This is the levelized cost of electrical delivery. How does it compare to other energy sources? Well the averages for coal and gas are $84 and $98, respectively. In the USA, gas is slightly cheaper than wind but this is the only large economy where that is the case. As a comparison, solar photovoltaic energy averages $122 globally for each MW-hour.
The above, in its comparisons, does not take into account the massive add-on costs for fossil fuels, via their pollution and waste. Those costs are externalized and paid by taxpayers and nature — paid for not just in money, but in planet destruction, sickness, death and species extinctions.
Why burn coal? It is carbon already locked up, and lots of nasty chemicals are released when it is burned.
One alternative that isn’t discussed much is charcoal. Basically, biomass that takes in CO2 while it grows, releases it when burned, and reabsorbed by the next generation.
Best choice for the biomass crop? Hemp. Hemp can produce 10 tons of biomass in about 4 months. It is a woody plant containing 77% cellulose. Wood is 60% cellulose. Hemp is drought resistant, which is important given what’s going on out west.
I’d even take it a step further and bioengineer hemp to make even more cellulose and grow faster.
Why? Because we can.
1 lb coal contains 12,500 BTUs. 1 lb of hemp contains almost 8000 BTUs. The hemp would have to be processed into pellets which would require additional energy as well as 50% more volume.
Switchgrass is being evaluated as biomass since it doesn’t require planting each year and grows on otherwise marginal land. 1 lb of switchgrass contains 7500 BTUs.
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