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Clean energy is officially “unstoppable” now
Main Post: Clean energy is officially “unstoppable” now
Top Comment:
Do not underestimate the fossil industry's determination to head off any possible threat to their business model. We're already seeing world leaders threaten U-turns on progressive energy policies. At a time when it only makes sense to forge ahead with renewable energy. Wonder where that comes from?
World shift to clean energy is unstoppable, IEA report says
Main Post: World shift to clean energy is unstoppable, IEA report says
Top Comment:
Not fast enough FL falling off
The Clean Energy Future Is Arriving Faster Than You Think. A profound shift is taking place that is nearly invisible to most Americans. The nation that burned coal, oil and gas for more than a century is rapidly shifting away from fossil fuels. “We’re seeing the nonlinear change happen before us.”
Main Post: The Clean Energy Future Is Arriving Faster Than You Think. A profound shift is taking place that is nearly invisible to most Americans. The nation that burned coal, oil and gas for more than a century is rapidly shifting away from fossil fuels. “We’re seeing the nonlinear change happen before us.”
Top Comment: But the United States is catching up, and globally, change is happening at a pace that is surprising even the experts who track it closely. Wind and solar power are breaking records, and renewables are now expected to overtake coal by 2025 as the world’s largest source of electricity. Automakers have made electric vehicles central to their business strategies and are openly talking about an expiration date on the internal combustion engine. Heating, cooling, cooking and some manufacturing are going electric. This is music to the ears of clean energy advocates. We're finally seeing the long predicted technical disruption of the energy and transportation industries starting to take off at an astonishing speed.
ELI5, how do companies claim they run on 100% clean energy from several states away.
Main Post:
I highly doubt there is a specific electric line from like a solar/wind farm to that company but idk. Seems like it would get mixed with “unclean” energy.
Top Comment:
In short you are kind of correct, but it also doesn't matter.
Think of the electric grid as a giant bucket of water.
You tap into it by taking some water out of the bucket and you then pay someone to replace the water you used. If you use a cup of water, you pay them to put a cup of water back in. Use a gallon? pay them for a gallon, etc.
As you can probably imagine you don't actually get the exact water molecules from the company. But that really doesn't matter, as long as the water gets added it all evens out.
Now imagine we care where the company gets that water. Like maybe company A gets their water by making kids cry and then harvesting their tears. And company B gets their water by collecting it's when it rains. You probably want to pay company B.
If a company claims it runs on "100% clean energy" it means they are paying someone to produce as much energy as they use, but only by using clean methods. As opposed to paying someone to do that with unclean methods. In this case, assuming it's not a lie misleading in some other way, it's entirely appropriate to say they run on 100% clean energy.
What is going on with clean energy?
Main Post:
The whole world is talking about clean energy, sustainability, renewable energy. While oil companies seem to be quite stable, iShares Global Clean Energy has fallen ~40% YTD, and continues to drop. Why?
Top Comment:
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Renewable Energy is garbage.
Main Post:
The idea of solar and wind for large-scale production is not feasible. It's just something to distract people with. I work at a power company, we have soloar fields, and they produce at most 5% of the energy the city needs.
Out of the 150MW the fields are supposed to produce, they make 15% of that on a clear blue sky in August, with freshly washed panels. Aka, no pine pollen caked on.
The thought of people buying into the idea of wind and solar to achieve any climate goal is laughable. Nuclear power is the only clean, energy dense power source.
I will agree that solar panels or wind power source, on a residential home is a good idea. That would reduce the over all demand on the grid.
Top Comment: Technology doesn't improve, which is lucky because that means you are correct for forever and we all should just stop
Discussion - Is there any power source that is ACTUALLY sustainable and usable on a mass scale?
Main Post:
This is something I've been wondering about lately, and I'd like to hear your thoughts. Are any of the power sources that we currently use *actually* sustainable in the long run? It seems like they all have problems.
I am in no way an expert so I'm trying to understand renewable energy better. From what I understand, solar panels are made from nonrenewable minerals, and have a lifespan of only about 30 years. Wind turbines require a lot of steel and concrete, and the blades are usually made of plastic. They also only last about 30 years, and can harm wildlife. Hydro also uses huge amounts of concrete, and disrupt ecosystems. Nuclear energy of course produces radioactive waste.
The only truly sustainable options I can think of are traditional windmills and water wheels made of wood, because wood is renewable indefinitely. And of course human powered tools (hand cranked, for example). But obviously these traditional methods are not nearly efficient enough to be used on a mass scale. Should we go back to a low tech society so that we rely less on electricity? What are your thoughts on this?
Top Comment: Ways of recycling solar panels and wind turbines are being worked on. This will make then much more sustainable in the long run. Ways of using much more common and prevalent materials are also being researched. These technologies are not static and will continue to advance. Regressing technologically is an absurd option or notion. It will never happen and is also the wrong thing to do.