How about a campaign to leave all oil in the ground as well? I don't know the exact figures, but we can assume that burning crude oil derivatives over the last century has made a substantial contribution to the mess we are in at the moment. Most of the pollution, by the way, has come from the northern hemisphere, and it is the southern hemisphere which is suffering the most from drought right now. I say, let's have a campaign to shut down the North Sea oil fields.

RESPONSE: Coal was chosen for the campaign because there is so much more of it relative to oil and gas and it has so much carbon per unit. There is some indication we could burn the world's remaining oil and gas in a transition to a sustainable renewable energy future and still have an operable atmosphere, but no way is this the case with coal.

MANDATORY RENEWABLE ENERGY – THE ENERGY EVOLUTION –R9

In order to insure energy and economic independence as well as better economic growth without being blackmailed by foreign countries, our country, the United States of America’s Utilization of Energy sources must change.
"Energy drives our entire economy." We must protect it. "Let's face it, without energy the whole economy and economic society we have set up would come to a halt. So you want to have control over such an important resource that you need for your society and your economy." The American way of life is not negotiable.
Our continued dependence on fossil fuels could and will lead to catastrophic consequences.

The federal, state and local government should implement a mandatory renewable energy installation program for residential and commercial property on new construction and remodeling projects with the use of energy efficient material, mechanical systems, appliances, lighting, etc. The source of energy must by renewable energy such as Solar-Photovoltaic, Geothermal, Wind, Biofuels, etc. including utilizing water from lakes, rivers and oceans to circulate in cooling towers to produce air conditioning and the utilization of proper landscaping to reduce energy consumption.

The implementation of mandatory renewable energy could be done on a gradual scale over the next 10 years. At the end of the 10 year period all construction and energy use in the structures throughout the United States must be 100% powered by renewable energy. (This can be done by amending building code)

In addition, the governments must impose laws, rules and regulations whereby the utility companies must comply with a fair “NET METERING” (the buying of excess generation from the consumer), including the promotion of research and production of “renewable energy technology” with various long term incentives and grants. The various foundations in existence should be used to contribute to this cause.

A mandatory time table should also be established for the automobile industry to gradually produce an automobile powered by renewable energy. The American automobile industry is surely capable of accomplishing this task.

This is a way to expedite our energy independence and economic growth. (This will also create a substantial amount of new jobs). It will take maximum effort and a relentless pursuit of the private, commercial and industrial government sectors commitment to renewable energy – energy generation (wind, solar, hydro, biofuels, geothermal, energy storage (fuel cells, advance batteries), energy infrastructure (management, transmission) and energy efficiency (lighting, sensors, automation, conservation) in order to achieve our energy independence.
"To succeed, you have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a reality."

Jay Draiman, Energy Consultant
Northridge, CA. 91325
1-16-2007

P.S. I have a very deep belief in America's capabilities. Within the next 10 years we can accomplish our energy independence, if we as a nation truly set our goals to accomplish this.
I happen to believe that we can do it. In another crisis--the one in 1942--President Franklin D. Roosevelt said this country would build 60,000 [50,000] military aircraft. By 1943, production in that program had reached 125,000 aircraft annually. They did it then. We can do it now.
The American people resilience and determination to retain the way of life is unconquerable and we as a nation will succeed in this endeavor of Energy Independence.

Solar energy is the source of all energy on the earth (excepting volcanic geothermal). Wind, wave and fossil fuels all get their energy from the sun. Fossil fuels are only a battery which will eventually run out. The sooner we can exploit all forms of Solar energy (cost effectively or not against dubiously cheap FFs) the better off we will all be. If the battery runs out first, the survivors will all be living like in the 18th century again.

Every new home built should come with a solar package. A 1.5 kW per bedroom is a good rule of thumb. The formula 1.5 X's 5 hrs per day X's 30 days will produce about 225 kWh per bedroom monthly. This peak production period will offset 17 to 24 cents per kWh with a potential of $160 per month or about $60,000 over the 30-year mortgage period for a three-bedroom home. It is economically feasible at the current energy price and the interest portion of the loan is deductible. Why not?

Title 24 has been mandated forcing developers to build energy efficient homes. Their bull-headedness put them in that position and now they see that Title 24 works with little added cost. Solar should also be mandated and if the developer designs a home that solar is impossible to do then they should pay an equivalent mitigation fee allowing others to put solar on in place of their negligence.

Installing renewable energy system on your home or business increases the value of the property and provides a marketing advantage.

Nations of the world should unite and join together in a cohesive effort to develop and implement MANDATORY RENEWABLE ENERGY for the sake of humankind and future generations.

Steel production needs huge amounts of coal, and the world will always need steel. It needs to be re-smelted every-time it is re-used. Glass, though, needs merely to be washed. When I was a child, there was a door-to-door delivery service for pop (soda), a mobile shop, and a Rag-n-Bone man, who collected anything and recycled everything (not sure if he got many bones in the 70s, but he still had a horse and cart) as well as the milk delivery. Modern development is when society loses it's soul. I'm quite looking forward to the post-Apocalyptic world, apart from mosquitoes, sea levels, cyno-bacteria, irreversible breakdown of law and order, etc. Please, no more plastic in the gyres!

http://ecocritic.blogspot.com/

Its good to see some protests emerging but the political climate in China is vastly different than our own. At the recent economic conference in Asia there was some discussion of reducing carbon emissions etc, but it seems they have an exceptionally long way to go before even considering such matters.

Energy independence should be something we put on our national agenda for the coming year.

Next week Bush is going to deliver his State of the Union address. We want him to get serious about energy independance this year.

We have heard his plan for Iraq. Let’s try to influence his plan on the environment by gathering 500,000 signatures stating that we want America to invest in renewable energy and address climate change – NOW.

Please sign the petition and send it to your friends.
http://action.sierraclub.org/get_serious

We have one week to be heard! Thanks!

Great site and articles.
I am renovating my farmhouse in Catalunya and I
plan to incorate solar, wind and waterpower.
You can pick up very good value windturbines on ebay of all places and the price can only drop further with more demand.

i totally agree with all of u and hope that poverty is no more

I think the public in general is too accepting of the "Clean Coal" myth. It sounds great, but it's total BS. I've written more, here: http://solarjohn.blogspot.com

John