Bailing Out Wind

IBD Editorials ^ | December 16, 2008

[Kaslin]

Energy Policy: Obama announces his energy team without mentioning a green source of renewable energy that could create jobs, reduce carbon emissions and reinvigorate a vital manufacturing sector — nuclear power.

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The domestic auto industry isn't the only uncompetitive industry that seems to require life-sustaining transfusions of government cash to stay in business. Alternative energy sources have relied on such subsidies, called "investments," for years.

Yet in President-elect Obama's announcement of his energy team, we were told "the foundations of our energy independence" lie in "the power of wind and solar." Except that for these alternative sources there's been a severe power shortage.

After decades of tax credits and subsidies, wind provides only about 1% of our electricity. By comparison, coal provides 49%, natural gas 22%, nuclear power 19% and hydroelectric 7%.

Wind power is currently uncompetitive. As the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported recently: "In 1999, 2001 and 2003, when Congress temporarily killed the credits, the number of new turbines dropped dramatically." These subsidies will be renewed in the new administration, but to "invest" in wind and solar to replace fossil fuels will be expensive.

[RC2]

I know this sounds like a Democrat.....but I refuse to use the terminology “President-Elect”. He is not my President, he is an illegal immigrant.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Wing generated power needs 85 percent backup from fossil fuels to work in most of the US. In Texas, this is > 90 percent back up.

[ChetNavVet]

I think that if there were truly a workable solution to the energy crisis, The last person(s) to find it would be the “office Of The Pesident Elect” (Props to Mark L for his making the mockery that it is, of the term)

We have it (the rescources & the tech) here, we can do this, on our own. We just have to school the envirowhackos. I try in my own small way, but I have a small voice, I ain’t a big shot so...

Every time a Libtard Environut speaks, logical folk should do thier duty - and inform them that, by speaking, it releases more CO2 in the air than simply being a silent usefull idiot.
And if they foam, please post a pic.

[Balding_Eagle]

without mentioning a green source of renewable energy that could create jobs, reduce carbon emissions and reinvigorate a vital manufacturing sector — nuclear power

That's good news, nuclear would be destroyed by a 'helping hand' of Big Government.

[BobL]

The problem with nuclear energy is that it allows the economy to grow...

...something that cannot be tolerated by this bunch coming into Washington.

[Disambiguator]

Bailing Out Wind

I thought this article was going to be about methane taxes on livestock. Silly me.

[seastay]

We have plants to use as an analogy of how solar works: There needs to be a whole forest of leaves to collect the sunlight, and a whole network of branches to connect the energy.

How is it, that solar or wind collectors, with their forest network of concrete, and rare metals like copper are going to be environmental friendly? just image trials and roads cut through forests parks and wetlands to hook up these eye sores! The level of hypocrisy coming from liberal Democrats is beyond idiocy, idiocy that the public is buying their stubbornness to give in to a good idea, which is “greener” than strip mining copper and rock quarrying tons of cement to erect low yield energy solar and wind collectors when we can go Nuclear !

The hypocrisy is blatant, here we are inferior because we are not like the rest of the world when it comes to policies, yet the one good policly the rest of the world holds, Nuclear Power, Obamamites put their head in the sand...

[VOA]

bump

[steelyourfaith]

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[thackney]

wind provides only about 1% of our electricity

Wind doesn't reach this amount. It is only 0.4%

Wind power in the US generates about 17 billion kilowatt-hours annually. We generate over 4 trillion killowatt-hours.

Source: WIND INDUSTRY STATISTICS
http://www.awea.org/faq/wwt_statistics.html

U.S. Electric Power Industry Net Generation
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/figes1.html

[Smokin' Joe]

I just can’t wait until we can all sit around the wellhead and cuss ‘Big Wind’.

[upcountryhorseman]

It tells you something when an industry can’t make it
without subsidies: Both wind and solar are not as efficient
as petroleum and never will be. I have been involved with
solar for years: the prices for solar panels and equipment
have actually gone up in the 20 years I have been involved.