Texas #1 for Wind Energy

[umalak_]

The state expanded its wind-energy capacity by 57% in 2007, keeping it the nation's leader in wind-generated power, an industry group said. Capacity in Texas jumped to 4,356 megawatts at the end of 2007 from 2,768 megawatts a year earlier.

woot!

[reason]

thats cool

its easy for us since we have so much land to work with

this state really does allot for the environment

even though we have so many large cities... we still have the largest amount of land devoted to natural sanctuaries

[Damnsammit]

Texas is also #1 for carbon pollution! Yay!

Gotta have balance, right?

[reason]

Originally Posted by Damnsammit

Texas is also #1 for carbon pollution! Yay!

Gotta have balance, right?

hahahaha

killed that one didnt ya

[Dionysos]

Originally Posted by reason

thats cool

its easy for us since we have so much land to work with

Land doesn't mean shit if there isn't much wind. It's the large plains in West Texas that are the boon.


To put this production in perspective, Texas uses over 36 million megawatts a year. 1/4 of it is from coal, about 1/2 is from natural gas, and 1/10th is from nuclear. That means wind accounts for about 0.1% of total production. I'm glad Texas is pushing wind energy, but it's still a very small portion of the total supply.

http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state/state...les.cfm?sid=TX

[reason]

Originally Posted by Dionysos

Land doesn't mean shit if there isn't much wind. It's the large plains in West Texas that are the boon.

well damn..... please excuse my ignorance

Originally Posted by Dionysos

To put this production in perspective, Texas uses over 36 million megawatts a year. 1/4 of it is from coal, about 1/2 is from natural gas, and 1/10th is from nuclear. That means wind accounts for about 0.1% of total production. I'm glad Texas is pushing wind energy, but it's still a very small portion of the total supply.

http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state/state...les.cfm?sid=TX

i'm with you there

i think it is great that we are tha bomb when it comes to wind energy.. but couldn't we invest in a more productive venture?

[Dionysos]

Originally Posted by reason

i'm with you there

i think it is great that we are tha bomb when it comes to wind energy.. but couldn't we invest in a more productive venture?

It's plenty productive, it's easy to forget the scale we're talking about here. It takes a long time to put together a million megawatts of energy, regardless of form. There's a ton of money in this, you'd be amazed the deals Green Mountain is offering ranchers in West Texas. The limitation isn't the wind farms, it's the transmission lines. It costs half a million dollars every mile to construct the power lines necessary to get wind farm energy to the grid. Electrical companies are building these lines as fast as they can, but that's a ton of cash they're having to invest in infrastructure.

[reason]

so what is the net return on profit then?!?!

whats the point in continuing develpment in an energy source that barely make a difference...... except maybe as a back source in the case of an energy crisis

[Dionysos]

Because everybody's making money at it? That's not enough justification for you? Fuck, stop thinking in such near-term timelines. Changes in energy production takes decades, not years. Have a little patience, grasshopper.

And it isn't a silver bullet, but no alternative energy source will be a silver bullet. Moreover, we shouldn't want one source to replace oil. Diversification is the best path because we don't need to be beholden to any one source of energy. If there's one thing to be learned from the current energy issue, it's that being over a barrel(pun intended) to one supplier is idiotic if you can avoid it.

[reason]

Originally Posted by Dionysos

Because everybody's making money at it? That's not enough justification for you? Fuck, stop thinking in such near-term timelines. Changes in energy production takes decades, not years. Have a little patience, grasshopper.

making money storing energy? or turning profit on the process of its creation?

i really wonder what the net worth of the energy is after the payoffs

Originally Posted by Dionysos

And it isn't a silver bullet, but no alternative energy source will be a silver bullet. Moreover, we shouldn't want one source to replace oil. Diversification is the best path because we don't need to be beholden to any one source of energy. If there's one thing to be learned from the current energy issue, it's that being over a barrel(pun intended) to one supplier is idiotic if you can avoid it.

i'm with you there... any energy is good energy.... but are we wasting our time?

[umalak_]

Originally Posted by Dionysos

Because everybody's making money at it? That's not enough justification for you? Fuck, stop thinking in such near-term timelines. Changes in energy production takes decades, not years. Have a little patience, grasshopper.

agreed.

I read an essay awhile back about what it would take for us to become energy independent... basically off the oil dependence and the coal dependence... and it was pretty mind blowing as far as what we'd have to do to get to where we all know we need to be. it's gonna take a lot of time. hopefully it all works out in the end because it won't be in our lifetime.

[Dionysos]

Originally Posted by reason

making money storing energy? or turning profit on the process of its creation?

i really wonder what the net worth of the energy is after the payoffs

They make money SELLING energy. You know how capitalism works right? You have a product that someone wants, they give you money for it. That's what's happening here. Do I need to draw a chart?

Originally Posted by reason

i'm with you there... any energy is good energy.... but are we wasting our time?

NO. JESUS FUCK ARE YOU RETARDED?

[PETA]

Nuclear power is the way to go. The byproduct sucks but its compact and locally containable. Coal emissions are larger by orders of magnitude and dispersed into the atmosphere.

The biggest problem isn't the containment of waste... (no Godzillas in France yet afaik) its the collapse in the value of the kW hour to a negligible figure. Coal burning plants employ lots of people... so do coal mines.. and the people who haul coal... and who build coal hauling equipment... etc etc

[reason]

Originally Posted by Dionysos

They make money SELLING energy. You know how capitalism works right? You have a product that someone wants, they give you money for it. That's what's happening here. Do I need to draw a chart?

lmoa.... no, thank you D ... no chart shall be needed

again, you are missing my point

i dont care how much money your are making off the energy.... i want to know what the net worth of the enrgy itself is. is the amount of energy it produces worth the time and efforts it takes to produce it.... and more importantly... could we concentrate this effort on an energy source that creates more volume in stead of wasting it on something that does not produce results (if it is a waste)

Originally Posted by Dionysos

NO. JESUS FUCK ARE YOU RETARDED?

such obscene language from such a pristine girl! - /end Breakfast Club reference

Originally Posted by xian

Nuclear power is the way to go. The byproduct sucks but its compact and locally containable. Coal emissions are larger by orders of magnitude and dispersed into the atmosphere.

The biggest problem isn't the containment of waste... (no Godzillas in France yet afaik) its the collapse in the value of the kW hour to a negligible figure. Coal burning plants employ lots of people... so do coal mines.. and the people who haul coal... and who build coal hauling equipment... etc etc

see.... this is what i'm saying

if you had the chance, would you dig a ditch with a spoon or with a shovel? Is it time to take what we have from wind energy and cut our losses... or is it worth hanging onto in the case of an energy crisis?

[Dionysos]

Originally Posted by reason

lmoa.... no, thank you D ... no chart shall be needed

again, you are missing my point

i dont care how much money your are making off the energy.... i want to know what the net worth of the enrgy itself is. is the amount of energy it produces worth the time and efforts it takes to produce it.... and more importantly... could we concentrate this effort on an energy source that creates more volume in stead of wasting it on something that does not produce results (if it is a waste)

I get your point, I'm saying it's irrelevant. These are private companies building & maintaining the infrastructure for the wind energy, not the government. It's not "our" time, it's theirs. This isn't an investment in time & money by the government at all. The technology is proven, the demand is there, and the companies are making money. I don't see how it's not worth "our" time when "we" aren't spending any of "our" resources on it.

Originally Posted by reason

see.... this is what i'm saying

if you had the chance, would you dig a ditch with a spoon or with a shovel? Is it time to take what we have from wind energy and cut our losses... or is it worth hanging onto in the case of an energy crisis?

The only people asking this type of question are the ones who stand to lose money on it, i.e. the coal plants & natural gas plants. Everyone else is for using wind energy.

And if you'll refer back to my earlier posts, I mentioned 10% of Texas' energy comes from nuclear power. This isn't an either/or proposition, both forms of energy should be advanced.