Every where you look today, you find the promoters and detractors of developing, using, promoting or considering alternative energy. The “Smart Grid”, “distributed generation” , “grid parity”, carbon credits/offsets, energy portfolios and many more terms we see in our every day life have an impact on where we’re going. You see “upswings” and “downswings” in local and national government support. So what is the “overall” trend?
First off, we have to decide what “alternative energy” is. For years, coal was an “alternative energy” to whale blubber, oil an alternative to coal. Natural gas, nuclear energy, bio-fuels, solar, wind, geo-thermal, tidal, micro-hydro, hydro-power and many other methods of producing energy are considered “alternative”. For the purposes of this article, “renewable energy” or “non-fossil fuels” seems the more appropriate fit.
Idealistically looking at our situation, we want and unlimited supply of energy that has zero negative side effects. This may be an unrealistic, unachievable goal, remember, I said “idealistically”, but as the number of people on this planet grow, the demand and competition for our current resources keep increasing. As logic dictates, sooner or later, our demand will exceed our supply. We must find some answers.
Our many advances in the “renewable” energy arena have been in areas of policy, laws, regulations, scientific breakthroughs, innovative use of current equipment and materials, environmental awareness and a whole myriad of other advancements. Though they have all come a long way, we are no where near reaching that “idealistic” goal. We may never reach it but as long as we’re striving for the growth, we are at least moving in a forward direction. As the old saying goes, “Aim for the stars, you just might hit the moon”. In other words, “hitting the moon” may be a very worthwhile goal.
The overreaching statement that “alternative energy” is in a growth mode is at the heart of this debate. It seems to grow in “spurts”. Over the next few post, I will explore some of the government “advances” or “obstacles”, some of the scientific innovations, some results of each and think about where we might be going.
I have been fortunate to have read some books that have given me several areas to ponder and help grow my own opinions. Check out my “recommended books” page. Next week I hope to have more links to some of my favorite books, I’m in the process of getting the links. May God’s Blessing be upon you and yours.
Feel free to leave me a comment by clicking on the “comments” link immediately following this post.
Now this is good. I’m looking forward to seeing if you have some government boondoggles in next week.