Harnessing Nature's Power

Anyone who knows Utah knows the power of wind, water and sun. You can see that power in Utah's sculpted arches of stone, in our majestic mountains capped with snow, and in the cracked earth of our deserts.

Nature's power is so obvious that you have to wonder why we've mostly ignored it as a source of energy to run our homes and businesses, and to propel our cars and trucks.

After all, if we did a little more to harness that power, we could begin to solve some of our most pressing environmental and economic challenges. In fact, creating electricity from the energy nature gives us is critical if we're going to reduce global warming pollution, protect public health with clean air and water, create jobs in Utah and ultimately bring down energy prices.

We know that burning fossil fuels is destabilizing the atmosphere and acidifying the oceans. We know that our dependence on oil shackles us to dangerous foreign regimes and to the escalating prices they'll inevitably charge as demand outstrips supply. But we also know how to break our dependence and free ourselves from this destructive cycle.

Why keep buying foreign crude when we could be making energy right here in Utah from sunlight, wind and geothermal power? Why rip up more pristine wilderness to extract dirty fuels when we could generate clean power from the energy nature delivers to our doorstep?

Dollar for dollar, investing in clean energy creates more jobs than investing in traditional energy sources like oil and gas. That really matters, especially when you consider that more than 30,000 Utah workers lost their jobs last year.

We've got tens of thousands of windy acres here in Utah, sites for geothermal energy abound, and the southern part of the state has tremendous potential for solar power. We will have to carefully pick renewable energy sites that don't endanger critical habitat and wilderness quality land, but the opportunity is vast.

So how can we jump start a home-grown clean energy economy?

Right now Congress is working on a landmark clean energy jobs plan that would boost the amount of wind, solar and other clean energy our country produces. The American Clean Energy and Security Act will also make our vehicles, appliances and buildings more efficient, and update our antiquated electricity grid.

Our investments in clean energy and efficiency today will pay dividends for generations. They will create good, family-sustaining jobs that can't be shipped overseas, and they will lower energy prices in the long run. They will reduce energy dependence and global warming pollution, and make our economy more competitive.

It's true that the economic and environmental challenges we confront are serious. But Americans have never encountered a challenge of any kind that we couldn't overcome by working together and applying our ingenuity.

That is what we need to do right now. The only missing ingredient is a spirit of innovation, cooperation and resolve amongst our political leaders. From the copper-domed Capitol in Salt Lake, to the halls of power in Washington, our leaders need to reconsider their allegiance to the dirty fuels industry, stop their bickering, and act boldly to move America towards a new energy economy.

In the coming weeks, Representative Jim Matheson (D-Utah) can lead the way. As a key member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, he'll play a pivotal role before Memorial Day in determining whether Congress even gets to vote on the clean energy jobs bill. Now is the time to let Rep. Matheson and all of our leaders know that we expect them to do what's right for our people, our economy, our land and our future.

[This piece first ran in the Salt Lake Tribune.]

Comments

[Shanonovic]

Check out the work of Saul Griffith and his team of most amazing geniuses working on harnessing the power of the wind for energy using KITES: www.makanipower.com
From Business Week:
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/mar2009/id2009034_875256_page_2.htm

wind can play a much bigger role in the energy revolution if they can harness the more powerful winds 1,000 to 3,000 feet up, which contain more energy per square foot than any other renewable source. They are developing wing-shaped kites to do just that. "Conventional turbines only work up to 200 feet, but capturing a small fraction of the global wind energy at higher altitudes could be sufficient to supply the current energy needs of the globe," says Griffith.

Capturing energy from high-altitude wind is far from easy. The biggest challenge is efficiently transmitting that electricity back to Earth. But Griffith, who has raised $15 million from Google.org and others for the venture, is confident, both about Makani's ability to develop a cost-effective new wind power technology and about the broader potential for meeting the challenge of climate change.

[Terre49120]

Don't you just love Barry Commoner and his plan for energy efficiency and production for each bio-area?
Being from the Great Lakes I'm boning up on Victor Schaumburger's water energy releasing principles, while still learning the ins and outs of wind production Gov. Granholm is introducing to the center of the lakes. I feel that we're like toddlers taking first steps, but some day we will run and jump. Thanks for sharing the spotlight with these ideas.

[Guitarsandmore]

Renewable energy

1. Once Solar panels are installed they require no ongoing mining or drilling for resources.
2. You only have to truck a solar panel once to its destination (once every thirty years).

3. Sunlight and wind are delivered to your home everyday for free by mother nature. No ships and trucks are required to deliver the energy to your home.

4. Solar panels do not give off harmful disease causing pollutants or stinky smoke while in use. Nothing is burned.

5. Installed renewables help stabilize the economy by stabilizing the price of energy.

6. Renewable energy will help clean the air and help health care costs go down.

7. Using renewable energy will mean fewer coal miners will be killed or trapped.

8. Renewables owned and operated by Americans means foreign governments will not be able to hold us hostage to their oil.

9. Renewable energy products made in Western Countries will not be sending money to terrorists.

10. Renewable energy will help turn around global climate change if we act quickly.

[mioffe]

Dear Guitarsandmore, please ask yourself why in Hawaii, which closer to equator, in summer time we have temperature 70-80 F, while in Texas-90-110 F?
If you will answer on this question, you will never be for any source of energy-nuclear, coal, wind, solar cells, geothermal, natural gas, oil, etc, which produce energy without additional evaporation of water.
Property of water in reality is cooling the air. Trees are the best pumps in the world to evaporate water. They use sun energy and conserve that energy for hundred years.
If you agreed with Tim Flannery, The Weather Maker, 2006 that mature forest do not produce oxygen (oxygen producing by photosynthesis equal oxygen which will taken by old trees, when they are decayed), you will cut old trees and use them to produce electricity in small power plant. You will solve all GHG from that power plant and watering the same forest as the best nutrition sources together with ashes.
It will be the closest to customer and because of that the cheapest source of energy, which will really cool the atmosphere. Only in this case you can use any source of energy-nuclear, coal, wind, solar cells, geothermal, natural gas, oil, etc.
It will not only heat your butt, but also save the planet.

Please use your commom sence and basic Physics.

[research]

If you BioChar the wood, and bury the carbon, that will work.

[Guitarsandmore]

Burning Fossil Fuels:

1. Contributes to global climate change.
2. Causes health problems such as heart disease and lung disease
3. Increases health care costs for all of us.
4. Pollutes streams, destroys forests, destroys wildlife, removes mountains.
5. Leaves the USA dependent on the whims of foreign governments that hate us.
6. Sends money back to countries that finance international terrorism.
7. Causes huge destructive fluctuations in our economy when gas goes way up.
8. Requires dangerous mining and drilling resulting in frequent deaths.
9. Requires delivery via ships and trucks that pollute and use additional resources.
10. Subject to spills which are difficult, expensive, and often impossible to clean up.

[Mosby12]

Robert - stick to acting. Besides being a blight on the landscape- (just ask Senator Kennedy), bird killers,a maintenance nightmare and undependable , windmills are energy inefficient and must be placed too close to their users.

You and the rest of the environment worshipers should take your head out of the sand. Nuclear power is now SAFE, EFFECTIVE, CHEAP, AND ENVRIONMENTALLY FRIENDLY. How can the greatest nation in the world not do what France, Italy, Germany and others have successfully achieved.

WE CAN... WE JUST NEED SOME COMMON SENSE.

[research]

3 cent solar and waste biochar can provide the cheap energy we need forever

Without increasing the risk

Of global thermonuclear war

From proliferation: N Koreas, India, Pakistan etc...

My profile proves it.

[CherokeeGirl]

We haven't even begun to harness wind and solar and invent breakthrough technologies, and GENIUS Mosby12 declares wind power is unsafe AND insults my Robert unnecessarily.

He's just another Jane Fonda-hater, Bob. Pay no attention.

To be schilling for Nuclear power is so LAST CENTURY. It is clear we haven't been able to make it completely safe. If a Nuclear Power plant is to be built, I nominate Mosby's backyard for the project!

Keep on keeping on Bob, this generation of vipers won't be happy till they restore nuclear power and keep us hooked on oil. Luckily, there are only about 20% of them left!

[niko73]

Robert, while I agree with your piece, I have a question for you:

If you support wild and solar, would you put your money where your mouth is and support wind or solar development in areas outside national parks in Utah?

Thought not.

I understand and completely agree with the importance of transitioning to alternative energy technologies. However, conservation interests talk a mean game, but when it comes time to actually permit renewable projects, too many environmentalists obstruct. They say they love alternative energy, but when it's time to bring electrons from wind farms in Wyoming down to communities in Vegas and LA, environmentalists litigate the transmission line projects. They say they love solar, but when there's a proposal in the Mojave Desert, they raise hell.

I’m not saying that even renewable energy projects should be designed to impact the environment as little as possible and I’m not saying that some places shouldn’t have ANY development of any kind. However, NIMBYism and obstruction from "no development" environmentalists are crippling our ability to transition away from fossil fuels. When these projects are shot down, we just fall back on old oil and gas and coal resources. These folks should have NO seat at the table in a constructive debate about energy in America.

[niko73]

Oops, meant to say "I"m not saying that even enewable energy projects should NOT be designed to impact the environment as little as possible..." Environmental considerations should be addressed as much as is practical. But resisting projects all together is a different story.

[TxAggie]

Very well said and I am amazed that your comments made it past the moderator. I have had four very reasonable critical responses to the Sundance Kid that did make the cut.

[mioffe]

Wind and solar cells energy are very expensive and need batteries to store their energy in times, when we haven"t wind or sun. We always need greed connection which additionally will increase price for solar and wind energy.
Also we need to understand that every source of energy, wind, solar, geothermal, coal, natural gas, oil pollute not only greenhouse gases, but also and heat, which will additionally heat the air
I surprized that huffingtonpost every day published many articles from authors, which completely believed Al Gore, even do not trying to think little more, what they promote.

[Guitarsandmore]

The sun is there heating up the earth everyday whether you use it or not for electricity.

Of course electric heat will give off heat, which is what keeps your butt from freezing in the winter.

[mioffe]

Guitarsandmore: “The sun is there heating up the earth everyday whether you use it or not for electricity.
Of course electric heat will give off heat, which is what keeps your butt from freezing in the winter.”
Dear Guitarsandmore, please ask yourself why in Hawaii, which closer to equator, in summer time we have temperature 70-80 F, while in Texas-90-110 F?
If you will answer on this question, you will never be for any source of energy-nuclear, coal, wind, solar cells, geothermal, natural gas, oil, etc, which produce energy without additional evaporation of water.
Property of water in reality is cooling the air. Trees are the best pumps in the world to evaporate water. They use sun energy and conserve that energy for hundred years.
If you agreed with Tim Flannery, The weathermaker, 2006 that mature forest do not produce oxygen (oxygen producing by photosynthesis equal oxygen which will taken by old trees, when they are decayed), you will cut old trees and use them to produce electricity in small power plant. You will solve all GHG from that power plant and watering the same forest as the best nutrition sources together with ashes.
It will be the closest to customer and the cheapest source of energy, which will really cool the atmosphere. Only in this case you can use any source of energy-nuclear, coal, wind, solar cells, geothermal, natural gas, oil, etc.
It will heat your butt and save the planet.

[research]

rooftop solar is 3 cents per KWH, much cheaper than rates today.

You do NOT need batteries, you use the grid.

[coco mees]

Absolutely right. Nature provides about a trillion dollars worth of free cleanup services through its cycle. So why would companies pollute the earth and then pay for the cost of cleanup in the atmosphere and soil when nature already does that for free?

Without nature, there would be no economy. Why wipe out your supply?

[j-rich]

It amazes me how the Republicans preach on and on about our children's future but are determined to stop funding to combat climate change and funding for education.

[mahdeealoo]

Wonderful. I would like to see more than the large turbines installed to harvest the wind. Even in less abundant wind, as little as 5 mph, the double helix would be a magnificent and more efficient method to harvest wind.

[digital]

Thanks Robert for your attention and dedication to the issue of clean, renewable energy.

I am proud of you!

[JXJASON]

Shelia,

Thanks for your reply. Am I correct that if I use 3,000 KWH of electricity in 12 months then at $5.60/watt, installed, it would cost me ( $5.60 X 3,000KWH ) $16,800.00 for the PV installation?

I live in northeast PA. and I checked my electric bill. I used 3,071 KWH in 12 months and paid $.13511/KWH or $414.92 for the 12 months. I ( like another poster ) am retired and on SS. so I cannot take advantage of the Federal tax credit. $16,800.00 divided by $414.92 gives me a 40 year payback period.

If my numbers are correct, the PV installation is too expensive.

Has anyone else done this kind of cost/benefit analysis?

[liecatcher]

All true & logical, but the fascists controlling the world will never allow the U.S.

to achieve real energy independence.

And how is this for irony. I just again watched the ROBERT REDFORD movie "THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR", based on JAMES GRADY'S book "SIX DAYS OF THE CONDOR " which was published in 1975 and forecast the invasion of the middle east to get & control the oil.

[mioffe]

Water vapor as greenhouse gas has special property. Molecular weight of H2O=18, N2=28, O2=32, CO2=44. Water vapor as lighter than most gases in atmosphere going up to clouds level. It’s invisible gas. Clouds, fog is not waters vapor, but waters droplets.
To evaporate 1 kg of water we need 339 kcal. When 1 kg of water vapor condensed to water droplet of rain they release the same amount of energy-339 kcal, but it happens on cloud level, where latent heat of condensation going to space. Water vapor helps cool the air, despite its greenhouse gas.
Atmosphere has nitrogen, oxygen, greenhouse gases, including water vapor and DROPLET OF WATER. DROPLET OF WATER, ALSO PLAYS It’s ROLE IN COOLING the air. Infrared radiation absorbed by GHG help evaporate closest droplets of water. Water vapor cool airs and goes up.
Clouds reflect to 90% of direct sun radiation.
In Hawaii summer cooler, than in Texas, because in Hawaii more evaporation.
We have convection, reflection, evaporation, cloud formation and saving sun energy in vegetation.
Using all forces of Nature we could fight melting ice in Greenland, Alaska, North Canada, Europe, Russia and Antarctic during five years, be energy independent, 100% employment and make huge profit. We no need support of all nations in the world. Canada, USA and Mexico can do it!
Following Al Gore recommendation we will fail.

[JXJASON]

Mioffe,

I do not quite understand what you are saying. Are you saying that if we grow more plants and trees there will be more water vapor generated and therefore less global warming?

[mioffe]

JXJASON: "Mioffe, I do not quite understand what you are saying. Are you saying that if we grow more plants and trees there will be more water vapor generated and therefore less global warming?
Dear JXJASON, yes, it is correct. It also will provide us with cheapest, cleanest wood energy, which will be saved in trees during hundred years without any batteries and can be used in any time, when we need, together with all kind of fossil fuel.
Al Gore explains global warming by increasing amount of carbon dioxide, which trapped infrared radiation, and heat the air. This heat evaporated additional amount of water vapors which also greenhouse gas and trapped infrared radiation, which additionally heat the air.
He misunderstands role of water vapor and simplifies explanation of global warming by carbon dioxide.
It is not only carbon dioxide.
It is winds and their direction, which send hot air to cloud level.
It is reflection, which send short wave back to space.
It is huge convection forces.
It is cloud formation.
It oceans streams.
It is properties of water and ice.
It is water evaporation, which take a lot of energy on the ground level and send vapor as lighter gas to cloud level, where infrared radiation escapes to space. We need to use all natural properties to reduce effect of global warming. Reduction of carbon dioxide is also good but by others directions, than advice Al Gore.

[mioffe]

If carbon dioxide is main player in Nature we must follow Al Gore recommendation. “Save energy at home, choose energy efficient lighting, appliances when making new purchases, properly operate and maintain your appliances, heat and cool your house efficiently, insulate your house, conserve hot water, improve the efficiency of your home office, switch to green power’ telecommute from home, reduce air travel, consume less, buy things that last, recycle, don’t waste paper, bag your groceries and other purchases in reusable tote, compost, carry your own refillable bottle for water and other beverages, modify your diet to reduce less meat, buy local, purchase offset to neutralize your remaining emission.”
It is always good to save as much energy as we can, but only to make our life on the same level of comfort, which we have right now. Common sense of every person needs to command him travel expenses, use of paper or reusable tote, refillable bottle, his diet.
It is laughable to ask 6 billions people in the world to follow religious dogmas, which in reality can’t change something.

[mioffe]

As you can read in Tim Flannery book “The Weather Makers,” 2006:
1. “ Forests contain much more carbon than does grass, and they also absorb more sunlight (having different albedo) and produce more water vapor, which affects cloud formation”.
2. “Mature forests don’t take in much CO2 they are in balance, releasing CO2 as old vegetation rots, then absorbing it as new grows. For these reasons the world largest forests-the coniferous forests of Siberia and Canada, and the tropical rainforests are not good carbon sinks, but new vigorously forests are.”
Common sense is prompting that Tim Flannery is right and not only about trees but about all vegetation’s on the earth.
If we will follow Tim Flannery, we can say, that all one-year vegetation wills rots during one year. In nature they are rots slowly, providing during vegetation period nutrition for new growing plants. Together with others vegetation on the Earth they created balance during millions years, when in air we had 280 parts per million of carbon dioxide.
Growing population, industrial revolution changed this balance. It is inevitable: we harvest food from almost all land in every states and bring it to huge cities, where rots of waste haven’t enough plants to take back carbon dioxide.

[mioffe]

From Earth Science, Baron’s Educational Series, Inc, 2001
“Solar radiation reaches the upper atmosphere at a fairly constant rate of about 200
kilocalories per minute/square meter. About 1/3 of this radiation is reflected back into space mostly by clouds. Ozone, carbon dioxide, and water vapor in the atmosphere absorb or reflect most of Earth’s infrared radiation; the rest go through the atmosphere and out into space. Solar energy reflected back into space by thick clouds – 75-90%, thin clouds – 30-50%, water – 10%, grassy field - 10-30%, fresh snow – 75-95%, forest – 3-10%…

What are the most important lessons from these two books?

1. Clouds reflect huge parts of solar energy back to space.
2. Forests contain much more carbon than does grass and they also absorb more sunlight and produce more water vapor, which affect cloud formation.
3. Water vapor is one of the lightest gases and has tendency to go up to cloud level. Evaporation of water will cool air temperature. Despite that water vapor is greenhouse gas, it tendency to go up bring them on cloud level, where distances between molecules bigger and heat will go to space. No others greenhouse gases have these properties. Drop of rain when falling down partially evaporated and go back to cloud level, but more important they dissolve a lot of carbon dioxide and others “heavy” greenhouse gases from the air and soil and feed all plants on the Earth.

[JimRinX]

We should all force the Gov to tie Auto Bailout funds to demand that they switch over, as quickly as possible, to having nothing but either Clarity-li­ke/Hygroge­n Fuel Cell-based and/or older cars that have had their Internal Comustion Engines converted to running on Hydrogen.
We shoudl build these plants in the dessert to make Hydrogen from WATER - as well as selling every car/truck/RV with a roll up solar panel and a hydrolicizer cell, so that any body of water and the shinning sun equals, eventually, a full tank of Hydrogen; then set up a network of Cryogenic Hydrogen distribution hubs, storage facilities, pipelines, etc..; all of which will have to be 'synced' so that no one losses their old 'Gas' pump-jockey, refinery worker, etc. Job for the their new 'H2' Job.
We need to start mining the Moon for more Platinum and Rubidium - which are Fuel Cell Catalysts.
Some Regolithe is ground up (vaporized on impact) M-Type Asteroid; most M-Types contain every metal known - and thus, so should some of the Regolithe! There's Valuable Metal, in that thar Moon!

[research]

Hydrogen may make a good off peak electrically storage medium, if they can get the efficiency up and the cost down.

I staring to think BioOil Fuels from BioChar of everything grown after we are done with it, is more than enough. It's cheap, efficient and carbon negative.

[JXJASON]

Why don't we mine Mars instead?

[EinChicago]

"We should all force the Gov to tie Auto Bailout funds to demand that they switch over, as quickly as possible, to having nothing but either Clarity-li­ke/Hygroge­n Fuel Cell-based."

Sure. The Clarity only costs a million or so to build. You have a spare million lying around to purchase a new car?