What part of ...
.... " a non-renewable commodity that's killing our planet " do we not understand ??
Burning fossil fuel contributes to greenhouse gases that are causing climate change. I am not interested in any debate on that statement. Somehow we have to burn less fossil fuel. Stéphane Dion and the Liberals say a carbon tax is part of the answer. Okay, not the kind of policy that will win you votes, but it is doing something. My rudimentary understanding of it is a tax on all fuels ( except gasoline ) at the wholesale level. If a commodity costs more, people will use less. Many other blogs are addressing this issue and I not going to expound further on the carbon tax.
What is the alternative to burning fossil fuel ? We can't function as a 21st century world without doing the tasks we currently do with fossil fuels.
Electricity is the only feasible alternative. Certainly electricity is produced in large part by the burning of fossil fuel, but it is also produced by hydro-electric dams, wind, tides and solar panels. Hell, it can even be produced by the speed bumps at the parking mall.
The problem with electricity is that it can't be stored efficiently and cheaply. Battery technology is, sadly 18th century, or earlier ( Wiki ) technology. Really, I mean that. Current batteries all store electricity by using it to cause a chemical reaction. When the reaction is reversed electricity is then re-generated. Tweaking has been done in the modern age but the fundamentals are the same.
So, lets fund a little battery research. Not so fast there bucko ! ( Sorry for the National Post link )
Designing plug-in electric cars turns on developing powerful and reliable batteries that can last a decade.
[...]
Prospects for breakthroughs in battery power vary with U. S. manufacturers calling on the federal government to get behind large-scale efforts to fund research and development.
[...]
Millions of dollars for battery research are stuck in legislative limbo on Capitol Hill.
Electric cars are available ... to some. On a personal note I could deal with an electric car. I only have one vehicle now. As all things are, it's a compromise. There are times I could use a truck but not often enough to have a gas or diesel guzzling land yatch as my primary vehicle. If I could buy a electric town-only car then I could get a second vehicle, a truck, for the occasional out of town trips. Between the two I would use less fossil fuel overall. And the world would be a better place. Undoubtedly there are many others that could do the same thing.
So what is Harper and the Cons doing for me on this front ? Not funding battery research ( as far as I know ) and obstructing a Canadian electric car. The link is to a blog associated with the Green Party, that doesn't link to substantiate what it says ( tut tut ).
Website of the ZENN electric car ( graphic / video heavy ).
Now this is the ride I am interested in.
My point is we have to, have to, move away from fossil fuels. Sure it's going to hurt. In the pocketbook and life-style wise also. We can do it to help the planet but we will eventually be forced to change 'cause oil ain't forever.
- willy be frantic's blog
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Thinking outside the box
Good points Willy.
I just pick up information by osmosis from the Greenman...Errrr L'Hommevert. He reads environmental stuff to me, and I read political stuff to him in the evenings on our duel PC's. (mines bigger. Thhhhhpt). So romantic eh? Hehehe.
This looks really inneresting, solar storage, of sorts.
Geothermal. I think that will be huge. Then these storage ideas will be very important.
This one.....Could werk I guess.
At that point, you could plug your car in.
In the meanwhile, the Cons and the Libs keep playing footsie with BIG oil. Until we break free from those bloodsuckers, not much will change. That's what needs to be done.
If you believe you can tell me what to think, I believe I can tell you where to go......
Innovation and...
... " thinking outside the box " will yield some, maybe enough, results.
Those are interesting links, thanks. I will read through them.
I'll leave you with a quote from a Mr. Zimmerman - " A hard rain's gonna fall "
peaks and tipping points
are all the talk everywhere nowadays. It's been coming for a few decades though. People in the know have been raising the issue since the 60's. In recent years the "peak noise" has been getting louder and louder, which is a good thing I suppose.
My opinion? No matter what happens, we WILL use far less oil very soon whether by choice or otherwise. It is also my opinion that we will do absolutely nothing to try and avert the catastrophe that is heading towards us like a runaway train.
Why not? the reasons are plenty. Actually, any reason is good enough. People are afraid of change (fear of the unknown). And lets face it; everybody is all too willing to play along with the vested interests that brings along all the wealth and the luxurious lifestyles that we in the industrialized west enjoy.
The almighty $God$ will save us. Science will save us by discovering another amazing energy source, just in time so we can pat ourselves on the back about another evolutionary step well done.
Or better yet: GeoEngineering. (wiki)
Um.. like extracting VAST quantities of ancient stored solar energy in the form of oil and coal and what have you, and then, well, burn it? Is this not exactly what got us in today's mess?
The noise is getting louder though. This is all very nice and gives one the feeling that we are making headway, but in the end what does it solve?
As for the electric car;
And in the more recent past.. remember the EV1 and EV2 ?
I don't think we will see electric cars for sale anytime soon. Not unless it's home built.(which is becomming more and more affordable btw)
"In fact, we are the leading edge of a national and global supermajority
and it is appropriate for us to speak and act accordingly."-David Korten.
Good points & ..
... interesting links. Thanks.
The NASA scientist that proposes suing the oil companies has some logic in his argument. I wish him luck.
Two seemingly contradictory points but I think I know what you are saying. People will do nothing to burn less fossil fuel until they are forced to by high prices. And high enough prices are coming fast.
There are more than a few electric cars for sale throughout the world. They all share the common limitation of battery performance. The link to the do-it-yourself kit was very interesting.
I believe that the human race will burn all the fossil fuel, eventually. The thing that will stop them is the price and availability of fuel. If we could burn it over a longer period of time that would give the natural forces of the earth more of a chance to mitigate it's effects. I have heard it said that at some point oil will get too valuable as a chemical feedstock to allow it to be used as fuel. We'll see.
I agree totally that people will go on their merry way believing that science will solve the problem and discover that "amazing energy source". What I am thinking is that science already has discovered it. It's electricity and the development of a battery that is orders of magnitude better for energy density, reduced weight and speed of recharging would be the trick that makes electricity practical to replace the tasks that gas is used for now. I am not holding my breath for said battery.
I'm thinking that battery research should be promoted and funded. Hmmmm, maybe the oil companies would want to kick some of their record profits into that.... I'll not hold my breath for that either.
This is kinda what....
.... I'm talking about.
A new and different kind of battery (Wiki) that could turn the tables on oil.
And the 64 thousand dollar question is:
Is it for real or just hype ???
Lockheed-Martin and ZENN electric vehicles think it's real enough. The technology is different because it doesn't use the age-old chemical style process to store electricity.
From a January 2008 article in The Star.
From Edmonds.com
So, do we have a battery that will change the world - could be.