Comments on: Renewable Energy Cannot Sustain a Consumer Society

By: Susan Butler

Susan Butler — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 19:19:37 +0000

I've enjoyed the "Cadfael" series of mystery novels set in 12th century Shropshire. Those people led full, rich, eventful lives without fossil fuels. When I was a child in l950s Virginia, we had no air conditioning in our home. Cars and schools were not air conditioned, and we lived just fine. A dip in the local lake was most welcome on hot days, but the society was fully-functional. Office buildings had windows that opened. The fear of losing all our "stuff" reminds me of the reluctance I've sometimes (especially when living alone) felt to turn the TV off, even when tired of watching. Then being mildly surprised that I actually lived on after turning the thing off! In fact I experienced that 90% of the perceptions I was having remained after I turned the show off--I was alive not the TV.

By: Terje

Terje — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 13:49:50 +0000

Caradog- New Zealand (and the rest of us) is using oil because its cheap. When a barrel of oil costs $300 and beyond, maybe we will use renewables in a larger scale. But the big problem is transportation. It’s not easy to fill your car or a 18-wheeler with solar- or windenergy. So get ready for a bumpy ride down Hubberts curve.

By: Caradog

Caradog — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 15:43:08 +0000

A quick perusal through history doesn’t reveal too many societies reverting to old technologies unless they are forced to do so by political upheaval or disaster. However, the author has pointed out that we are using our 21st-century brains to try to keep what are essentially 19th-century technologies going. The internal-combustion engine, for example, is a thing of the past; it is time to let it go and move on. If we do, there’s no need for tar sands, etc. Our method of transmission is pretty creaky. No single clean renewable can meet the world’s energy needs, but a bunch of them together can, several times over. Why New Zealand, with its wind, wave, and geothermal energy in such abundance, uses a drop of oil is beyond me. Personally, I look forward to ramping up current and future clean renewables as quickly as possible.

By: Gerg

Gerg — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:57:50 +0000

So what do you do with those who violate your decreed energy budget? What exactly would the penalty for eating meat or reading after sunset be?

By: judyofthewoods

judyofthewoods — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 01:43:29 +0000

Frank Ng - unfortunately the technologies you mention are some of the worst polluter. See the report for the 9th of September on the ASPO website. When you get to it scroll down to item no. 13 (about 3/4 way down for the full report) for a description of tar sand extraction. Very sobering!

By: Frank Ng

Frank Ng — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 19:38:44 +0000

Truely informative …especially on the impossibility of renewable energy to support a growing economy as we know it. What about clean technologies that exploit non-tranditional energy source such as oil sand, tar sand and coal? Can’t technology help in bringing enough clean energy for human kind?