Posted on 06/01/2021 8:43:02 AM PDT by karpov
A growing fight is unfolding across the U.S. as cities consider phasing out natural gas for home cooking and heating, citing concerns about climate change, and states push back against these bans.
Major cities including San Francisco, Seattle, Denver and New York have either enacted or proposed measures to ban or discourage the use of the fossil fuel in new homes and buildings, two years after Berkeley, Calif., passed the first such prohibition in the U.S. in 2019.
The bans in turn have led Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kansas and Louisiana to enact laws outlawing such municipal prohibitions in their states before they can spread, arguing that they are overly restrictive and costly. Ohio is considering a similar measure.
The outcome of the battle, largely among Democratic-led cities and Republican-run states, has the potential to reshape the future of the utility industry, and demand for natural gas, which the U.S. produces more of than any other country.
Proponents of phasing out natural gas say their aim is to reduce planet-warming emissions over time by fully electrifying new homes and buildings as wind and solar farms proliferate throughout the country, making the power grid cleaner.
Homes and businesses account for about 13% of the nation’s annual greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, mostly because natural gas is used in cooking, heating, and washers and dryers. Climate activists say reducing that percentage is critical for states with goals to slash carbon emissions in the coming decades.
Opponents in the gas industry counter by citing the higher costs of making many homes fully electric, and pointing to the added security of having a second home energy source to heat and cook with during extreme weather events.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
EVs do NOT perform well under stress and fail if you go wide-open-throttle anything more than very brief periods of time.
Would not even *think of taking an EV anywhere that puts serious demands on a vehicle - i.e. getting stuck. Never would take one off the grid either.
And therein lies the problem. The current administration does not see that as a problem, they see us as the problem and unless sanity suddenly springs up in D.C. we will be forced into non gasoline powered vehicles whether electric or pedal power it will come.
If they were serious about fixing the problem with alternative power they would be opening Nuclear Power stations at break neck speed, the fact they aren't shows you a lot about their real plan. Either they want mass poverty or de-population and they openly plan to displace our white European culture with a more pliant group of Hispanics that are used to poverty and corrupt government.
“Either they want mass poverty or de-population and they openly plan to displace our white European culture with a more pliant group of Hispanics that are used to poverty and corrupt government.”
Bingo.
Here are two on-line articles on the subject, both are old but informative.
https://www.finehomebuilding.com/forum/geothermal-from-an-existing-well
https://www.ecohome.net/guides/2349/geothermal-heating-and-cooling/
The second mentions that a system will set you back about $30K (in 2012 dollars)
The first mentions that most states require two wells for a ground water system. One for supply the other for return. Dumping the water on the ground being forbidden.
So, having to dig two wells is a big expense.
When I was considering this in 2004, the property I had bought already had two wells on he property and electricity was more expensive than today.
After I figured out that my well’s replenishment rate was two low (which is why the previous own had the second well drilled) I dropped the idea.
But, I think for most people the lower electricity prices today make the pay back period to long for the investment to make sense.
Mitsubishi has heat pumps that work down too minus 35 degrees and still has a COP above one at minus 30. My ground sourced heat pumps both heated my home to above 85 degrees during the Texas freeze using 100% solar energy from my roof panels during the days. The large thermal mass and insulation kept the whole structure above 70 over night.
https://www.enertrak.com/download/ZubaBrochure_EN_2020_07.pdf
Yes, that was what I concluded, also. The ROI was too long to make it worth the money.
Sometimes I wonder if these MFers are trying to kill us.
ugh.
In Michigan, we bought the rural land our house is located on BECAUSE it had natural gas access. Electric heat is too expensive and propane is just a pain to deal with.
Natural Gas is the most carbon efficient energy source we have right now. These people are loonies
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