What I don't like about like about climate change "acti

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This is probably the biggest stumbling block to renewable energy being acceptable as a 'right now' solution - green energy can be produced in a wide variety of ways. the problem is that none of it can be relied upon on demand. The power generated by solar and wind needs to be stored. There are no wide scale, massive capacity batteries to make these alternatives a wide scale possibility. I think the entire power grid could be transformed within 10 years - away from coal and nuclear - if we only had some method of storing all that power.

Power grid overhaul is essential. It definitely needs to be more efficient. Our power infrastructure is an aging dinosaur prone to multiple systems failure with sometimes the smallest upset. In some places, a single substation failure can blackout millions of people.

Until those two problems are solved, we will see little progress.

I'm waiting patiently for the photovoltaic film. They have one specifically for windows in production now. It is made with a photovoltaic ink. The potential for that is that everything on the exterior of a house - the windows, the siding, the roofing - can all be a power generation source. Think about that - every new home bulit only with self generating capacity. Existing homes given 100% tax breaks against cost of converting. Self power sufficiency.

How do you think Wall Street feels about that? How will the power brokers feel about losing their million - billion - dollar profits?

We aren't really fighting for clean power... we're fighting against greed. Pure and simple.

Well carbon nano tubes are already a working solution. the problem is solved in the technical sense but not in the practical sense because we need to get every nation on the planet to cooperate.

for solar and wind, you should take a read of that Greenpeace report 'Renewables 24/7'. A super grid based in Africa, Southern Europe and Asia with accurate solar forecasting could supply most of the demand without much trouble. Massive Tidal farms say like this one http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2 ... d-hebrides and Wind farms also have their place. For America, the super grid could connect from Russia. Solar arrays could also exist in sunny regions of North and South America. Australia would be ideal for solar arrays and could power New Zealand. Since we can have arrays connecting around the world we always have plenty of sun hitting somewhere.

It does not stop there though. We need use solar cells in all cities, homes etc.

Statistics show that for Europe, if we exclude the rest of the world, could meet their energy demands for almost 365 days a year, apart from only a half an hour period. this was based on 30 minute intervals of weather data over a few decades. It requires full exploitation but it is within our capability.

Large scale capacitors would also really really help. I'd like to see them developed more.



Wall Street would hate it.

This is what is holding back all the practical solutions that are ready to be implemented. The bankers would hate it, and all the rich corporate influences which to a large extent dictate politics and the media make it more difficult to show people that the solutions are in the technical sense, already possible.

Might as well. I have seen this video once and wont watch it again. I am so uncomfortable with me voice. I am now going to try and find the thread.

The Earth doesn't care what climate it has. It's people that are completely dependent on being able to adjust to climate alterations, no matter what the cause is.

I completely agree about the need for reforestation.

This is not being ignored by your fellow enviromentalists.

www.carbonfund.org/site/projects/reforestation

But for some reason emissions get more press than reforestation.

Most places you look whether it is activism circles or government policy the central focus is emissions. It drives me absolutely mental.

Seconded!

Reforestation is something I could agree to as long as someone finds a way to finance it. I'd agree to financing it if it would get politicians and lobbyists to lay off new regulations that cripple industry and job creation. The air and the waterways are way cleaner than they were 20 years ago, and the ozone hole is slowly closing, so we're good with what environmental laws we have. I'd be willing to pacify the environmental lobby with reforestation efforts as long as it allows our businesses and new employees to generate more taxes than the reforestation effort costs. And yes, I know, the tax laws are a whole other can of worms.

As for wind farms, those don't work well, there is a HUGE wind farm near me, and it's really ugly and tears up the environment to construct, yet it only produces 1/25th as much power as a nuclear reactor. Solar energy isn't practical to meet the world's need either. I know a guy with a PhD in physics and a guy that installs solar panels. The guy that installs solar panels says the technology is not ready to reliably power whole cities and the physicist says the potential of solar power is very limited because the sun's output is constant. I think geothermal power is really cool. Iceland has good luck with it is not practical in all parts of the world. I don't think it would be wise to invest all of our money into any one type of power as a safety precaution though.

There is a simple beauty and economy to reforestation. Get the cows off the land, stop cutting and let nature do its thing. Rainforests can repopulate themselves with frightening speed. Hell, look at your average suburban lawn. Try not cutting the grass for a single season - you have a partially restored prairie. The ten to twenty years it would take for growth to soar is nothing in the scheme of a forest. And, in the interim, swamp, fields, savannah are all created as intermediary steps. People just need to back off - nature will take care of itself.

Wind alone won't fuel the world, neither will solar - but wind, solar, tidalcapture, geothermal, biofuels all working together can. We are part of this envirnoment - not the lords and masters of it. We need to learn to work with it not subvert it to our will.

financing is an issue, How can you make your average person feel that it is important to them to do it? It is hard when most people are concerned only with their close circle and do not consider future impacts/

Windfarms could work in conjunction with other thngs but would not meet out needs on their own even if fully utilised.

I disagree about solar energy in a way. The super grid idea will work with a bit more development and cooperation. I love the idea of Sahara Solar Breeder Project.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdO6T1TIDzQ[/youtube]

We are aiming to increase by about 65% at the moment in terms of efficiency.
http://w3.tue.nl/en/news/news_article/?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=9746&cHash=18886c095a

Even if this wont reach out energy requirements straight away it is damn worth getting a head start in building the infrastructure we need of carbon nano tubes so that when a breakthrough happens, we can exploit the technology to it's maximum potential.

For our energy demands, what we really really need is more money to be put towards scientific research.

That, and we need an initiative for people to cooperate in replanting forests. It should not have to come down to finances. It should be a matter of the resources being available to carry out the task. A minority big enough to make an impact may eventually take up that initiative.

EDIT: In the video the Japanese Scientist says we will need nitrogen cooled super conductors for long distance transmission. Not the case if I am correct.
http://www.physorg.com/news177075782.html
There is better info out there but i cant find it at the moment.