Posted on 01/18/2009 10:17:32 AM PST by Sammy67
You think solar electrical generation is going to save you or the Planet? Think again.
While it is true that photovoltaic solar panels do not pollute while they are producing electricity -- what about the manufacturing process? What happens when these panels reach the end of their projected lifecycle in twenty-five years? (This is, by the way, an optimistic view of their useful life.)
Those questions are addressed in a study by the watchdog group Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition.
"Green Power" is being hyped as the "Safe Solution." It is anything but safe -- when all factors are considered.
Here is a partial list (eight of fifty) of chemicals associated with solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing and disposal:
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Duh!! The panels come from heaven or somewhere like that,,, and they get recycled later into like,,,coffee tables or something!
PS,,, ever notice you also never hear about the importance of frequently cleaning the glass? Yellowed plasic covers or dirty glass covers result in a big drop in efficiency.
That said,, i love how the environmentalists eat their young. They look at everything thru their religion, even their things meant to save the earth,, even the email discussing it or the google search. It must make them so angry to never be able to stop breathing.
Those massive windmills that clutter the landscape of the Midwest undoubtedly chop up birds probably including some on the endangered list. There are some studies that indicate the very low frequency sounds generated by the massive blades have negative health effects for those who live around them.
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What's happening is that what environmentalists are actually in favor of is no human use of energy at all. When they suggest a solution like solar cells, it's only so they can shoot it down as soon as anyone actually tries to implement it.
When they talk about the W/square foot available for solar energy, they leave out the need for access to clean and maintain the panels.
This effectively reduces the power available in a given area. If you have 1 acre available, you can't use all of it for panels. You need to be able to get into the panel area to clean. This means aisles for humans.
Combine this with the low efficiency and it is very expensive per kwh.
I'm not anti-solar, or wind. I am for what makes sense. We can't rely on PV solar to the extent they say we can.
Don’t forget the drop in efficieny as a result of the buildup of bug guts on the blades.
Big Solar Lied, People Died! /sarc
Solar thermal is an alternative to PV. Some greens are touting the advantages of solar thermal especially energy storage. I am not sure if solar thermal can scale as its advocates insist. Solar thermal technologies have been around for a long time but the technology is receiving renewed investor interest in the last few years. Perhaps someone with more expertise can comment on the economic viability of solar thermal as compared to PV for power generation.
We need to develop a way to turn liberals into energy. The byproducts may be just as nasty, but their abundant availability makes for cheap fuel.
The issues raised in this article have some merit but it is worth noting that the referenced organization (SVTC) and its founder Ted Smith have been objecting to anything and everything for well over twenty years. Smith is a hard-core leftie nutcase. "Protest" comes as naturally to these types as crying does to a baby. "I want! I want! Gimme, gimme, gimme!"
Yep. And that’s not even factoring in the battery issues. A smallish diesel or natural gas generator with all the bells and whistles beats those silly windmills anyday.
Actually, solar is effective, but not without considering increasing efficency in other areas of the home. I am designing off the grid small homes, not for the sake of being green, but for self sufficiency.
A combination of wind and solar on a properly designed home will free you from the bonds of utilities.
Some sacrifices are made but the payback is worth it.
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producing ethonol (at least from corn) is also more polluting, biofuels probably too.
And come Tuesday at noon, they'll start being delivered on the backs of unicorns. :=)
A couple cord of wood and a rare generator fire up and all is well.
Its got a great deal to do with the design and construction of the house. The number of days needed to heat or cool are greatly reduced. Power for lights and appliances is pretty easy.
Keep you posted.
Someting that I have always wondered about solar panel arrays- they are just as land intensive as say, a strip mine. Land covered by panels is not going to grow anything, and no wildlife is going to be using it, and there's going to be big infrastructure aspects too, plus local temperature changes. I read somewhere that it would take 100 acres of solar panels to produce the same energy output as one natural gas well footprint at 1 acre.
Yet solar is supposed to be minimal impact ?
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