It does not seem so damaging to me. It uses plenty of acres for the relative power output, but not damaging.
Posted on 12/05/2012 12:52:22 PM PST by jazusamo
In a major blow to the taxpayer-funded green energy movement, a government audit reveals that a California plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using more “renewable” sources will damage the environment and increase electric bills.
This clearly defeats the intended goal of saving mother earth from the evils of man-made pollutants that are contributing to the global warming crisis. The story involves California’s massive transformation in the way electricity is produced and distributed. By 2020 the Golden State plans to be a green zone with a clean-energy economy that drastically slashes greenhouse gas emissions to reduce the impact of climate change.
This is supposed to happen via a “renewable portfolio standard,” which will require utility companies to get a third of their electricity from renewable sources like solar and wind. But this overhaul comes with a hefty price—to the environment and the wallet—and a lengthy report released this week by a nonpartisan state oversight agency seems to indicate that perhaps it’s just a pipe dream.
California is trying to implement too many renewable energy policy initiatives at the same time without a full accounting of the consequences, according to the audit. This includes a groundbreaking cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support for rapid expansion of rooftop solar systems and promotion of large, utility-scale solar thermal power plants in the desert.
“The state has not produced a comprehensive assessment of the total cost of implementing this group of policies, inhibiting consumers and businesses in their ability to plan for this new future,” the report says. “This sets the stage for a potential ratepayer revolt that could dampen support for environmental stewardship policies.”
In a statement announcing the report, the chairman of the state watchdog that conducted the probe, warned: “Without more careful calibration of these policies, Californians may wind up paying more than necessary for electricity and the state may unnecessarily degrade pristine habitat in its rush to implement its renewable energy goals.”
On a wider scale, this delivers a substantial blow to the Obama Administration’s green energy crusade, which has already cost American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars for failed experiments. Remember the Solyndra boondoggle? The fly by night solar panel firm got $535 million from the government to promote green energy but instead folded, laying off more than 1,000 workers and stiffing U.S. taxpayers. President Obama had touted Solyndra as a prominent example of clean energy, saying during a visit to its northern California headquarters that “companies like Solyndra are leading the way toward a brighter and more prosperous future.”
The administration has also poured tens of millions of dollars into other ill-fated renewable energy projects that continue receiving big chunks of cash from the government. Last fall an investigative news report revealed that many of the nation’s so-called “green energy plants” actually infest the air with a “toxic brew of pollutants” while the administration promotes them as environmentally friendly generators of electricity and showers them with hundreds of millions of dollars.
Additionally, the administration has funded programs like a $30 million initiative to train the next generation of energy efficiency experts at dozens of universities around the country and $5 million to join an Arab-based organization dedicated to promoting renewable energy worldwide. The U.S. already gives similar international “renewable energy” initiatives, operated by the famously corrupt United Nations, billions of dollars.
Uncle Sam even doled out $9.9 million for the “green makeover” of a public housing facility in Washington State. President Obama justifies the expenditures by claiming that the green initiatives, not only help the environment, they create jobs. However, a scathing congressional report has revealed that the failed projects have instead eliminated jobs and the process of distributing funds is rife with undue political influence.
I have personally never seen anything more damaging to the environment than a large solar aray. Not a single living thing for miles.
Those are dumb even in California with somewhat predictable sunshine. There is no reason to put a solar power station on people's roofs and even less reason to pay them retail for that power (which is non-peak). It's not like these people are installing a self-sufficient reliable source like solar with large battery storage. It's the opposite of that.
But we need our green wind-powered bird shredders. They also work on bats.
True, but at least that is an (expensive) industrial power source. Having solar on people's roofs makes even less sense.
“Green energy” is being promoted
BECAUSE
it’s not viable and drives up energy costs.
Don’t forget the spinning (hot) backup power plants for when the wind dies.
The left NEVER thinks things through.
They are on the one hand protesting the destruction of our forests... while simultaniously encouraging the destruction of them and all other plant material and animal life when they push the creation of these large solar farms.
I’ve seen open pit mines that look more healthy for the environment than a large solar farm.
These people are nuts.
This was, as they say, “unexpected” but so inevitable. Nothing the Green Movement touches works as advertised.
It does not seem so damaging to me. It uses plenty of acres for the relative power output, but not damaging.
“The left NEVER thinks things through.”
If you’re talking about the sheeperal left, yes, you’re right, they don’t think things _through_. They stop thinking about an issue precisely at the point where they feel good about themselves for supporting it.
I call this “advocacy based righteousness”. It’s even lazier than “works based righteousness”.
Now the elitist left, they have a different agenda. They don’t care so much about feeling good about themselves as they do about achieving and increasing their power and control. Making energy too expensive to use and at the same time getting the sheeperals’ support plays right into this.
[I have personally never seen anything more damaging to the environment than a large solar array. Not a single living thing for miles.]
I toured Solar One at Barstow. Giant bug and bird zapper. Nothing but parched dirt below.
I did some work across the street from that at a natural gas compressor station, old route 66 Very little grows in that area to begin with.
During construction they got a quarter inch of rain one afternoon. The locals were so excited about the downpour, they spent 20 minutes talking about it on the local news.
Barstow isn’t exactly a garden of Eden for growing things.
now that’s a pretty good idea. All the ones I have seen looked like they nuked all the area under it.
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