Utilities can lower emissions and make money as well. According to Reuters:
U.S. utility Entergy Corp. on Wednesday said it made a new commitment to lower greenhouse gas emissions from its power plants.
The company said it plans to voluntarily cut emissions from its plants and stabilize them at a level 20 percent lower than in 2000 for the period of 2006 to 2010.
Entergy made its first plan to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in 2001 in partnership with U.S. green group Environmental Defense.
Under that plan, which covered the period of 2000 through 2005, Entergy said it cut its greenhouse gas levels by 23 percent.
Post from one of my abandoned blogs – North Farnham Freeholder – recovered from Internet Archive WayBackMachine; March 2011. Original date was May 10, 2006.
From The New York Times:
Lawsuits and complaints about turbine noise, vibrations and subsequent lost property value have cropped up in Illinois, Texas, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Massachusetts, among other states.
In one case in DeKalb County, Ill., at least 38 families have sued to have 100 turbines removed from a wind farm there. A judge rejected a motion to dismiss the case in June.
Read more in For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy by Tom Zeller, Jr., in The New York Times:
Have you ever stood next to a modern wind turbine when it’s generating power? It’s louder than you’d think. I wouldn’t want to have one of the big ones in my backyard – or neighborhood – let alone a bunch of them.
1940s artist concept drawing of what a new “windmill” in Vermont would look like in July 1941 issue of Popular Science – it actually looked very different (see below).
Of course modern wind turbines look much different than the 1.25 megawatt Grandpa’s Knob wind turbine that operated near Rutland, Vermont in 1941. In February, 1943, a main bearing failed and, due to the war, a replacement part took more than two years to manufacture and install. The wind turbine was restarted on March 3, 1945, but, later that month, a connector failure resulted in one of the 8 ton blades being tossed over 700 feet, where it landed on it’s tip. Tip replacement was not feasible because of the war effort. With the cost of coal generated electricity substantially the cost of electricity produced by the wind turbine, the project was dismantled.
The United States has added significant amounts of wind power generation in recent years, producing about 2.4% of the total electrical power generated. The phenomenal growth has been largely due to government subsidies and tax breaks, without which, I’ve read, continued growth cannot be sustained as various studies estimate new wind energy production is more expensive than other sources such as new nuclear, clean coal, and carbon capture and storage.
And, as I’ve already stated, not in my backyard or neighborhood – it’s not windy enough here to make it feasible.
Have you been near any of the large modern wind turbines?
According to a report on abc15.com, Arizona weighs privatization for state parks, operation of a couple of Arizona may be turned over to private operators
Arizona officials might turn over management of two small state parks to private operators so they can reopen the sites that were closed because of budget trouble.
The 28-park state system already uses concessionaires to provide some services but now may go further by turning to the private sector for the actual operation.
The parks system has requested proposals due Sept. 23 for operation of Oracle State Park in southeastern Pinal County and is considering whether to issue a request for proposal for Lyman Lake in southern Apache County.
See abc15.com, Arizona weighs privatization for state parks, for more.
When it comes to many projects, endeavors, and merchandise touted as “green” these days, I find myself becoming more and more skeptical.
“Green” – for whatever reason – has come to symbolize environmentalism, likely through the association of green color with nature, health, and growth, and “green” energy generally refers to renewable and alternative production and use of energy.
An recent article in the Washington Post looks at five myths about green energy:
Americans are being inundated with claims about renewable and alternative energy. Advocates for these technologies say that if we jettison fossil fuels, we’ll breathe easier, stop global warming and revolutionize our economy. Yes, “green” energy has great emotional and political appeal. But before we wrap all our hopes — and subsidies — in it, let’s take a hard look at some common misconceptions about what “green” means.
5 Myths:
- Solar and wind power are the greenest of them all.
- Going green will reduce our dependence on imports from unsavory regimes.
- A green American economy will create green American jobs.
- Electric cars will substantially reduce demand for oil.
- The United States lags behind other rich countries in going green.
Check out the full Washington Post article: Five myths about green energy.
There are 3 children missing and a television reporter was killed by a “blizzard of rocks and debris” in the current eruption of Guatemala’s Pacaya volcano near the capitol, Guatemala City. At least 65 people have been injured.
In Australia, climate change initiatives have been delayed until at least 2013. Despite that, the Federal Climate Change Department is not considering any cutbacks or layoffs.
TAXPAYERS will fork out $90 million a year to keep more than 400 public servants employed within the Federal Climate Change Department – despite most of them now having nothing to do until 2013.
More than 60 of them are classified as senior executive staff on salaries between $168,000 and $298,000 a year. Their salary bill alone will cost an estimated $12 million every year.
A further $8 million will also be paid in rent for plush offices at Canberra’s Constitution Place until 2012, where it is believed 500 new computers will be delivered this week.
It can be revealed that despite Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s decision on Tuesday to suspend the failed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme until at least 2013, the department has ruled out plans to cut back staff.
Read the full Herald Sun article – Kevin Rudd’s Department of Hot Air costing taxpayers $90m
Click for Exit78 Pinterest policy.
Wind energy
October 7, 2010
From The New York Times:
Read more in For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy by Tom Zeller, Jr., in The New York Times:
Have you ever stood next to a modern wind turbine when it’s generating power? It’s louder than you’d think. I wouldn’t want to have one of the big ones in my backyard – or neighborhood – let alone a bunch of them.
1940s artist concept drawing of what a new “windmill” in Vermont would look like in July 1941 issue of Popular Science – it actually looked very different (see below).
The United States has added significant amounts of wind power generation in recent years, producing about 2.4% of the total electrical power generated. The phenomenal growth has been largely due to government subsidies and tax breaks, without which, I’ve read, continued growth cannot be sustained as various studies estimate new wind energy production is more expensive than other sources such as new nuclear, clean coal, and carbon capture and storage.
And, as I’ve already stated, not in my backyard or neighborhood – it’s not windy enough here to make it feasible.
Have you been near any of the large modern wind turbines?
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