QUICK NEWS, March 16: THE REAL COSTS OF OLD AND NEW ENERGY; CHINA WIND BEATS U.S. NUCLEAR; SOLAR VS. HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATIONS
THE REAL COSTS OF OLD AND NEW ENERGY New models yield clearer picture of emissions' true costs
March 4, 2015 (PhysOrg)
“When its environmental and human health toll is factored in, a gallon of gasoline costs us about $3.80 more than the pump price, a new Duke University study finds…The social cost of a gallon of diesel is about $4.80 more than the pump price; the price of natural gas more than doubles; and coal-fired electricity more than quadruples. Solar and wind power, on the other hand, become cheaper than they initially seem…[The social cost of atmospheric release ] provides policymakers with a more accurate framework for estimating the costs of a broad range of health, climate and environmental damages linked to emissions from fossil fuels, industry, biomass burning and agriculture…Current markets don't place a price on most atmospheric emissions, so polluters typically pay none of these costs…Instead, society picks up the tab through increased risks of premature death or illness caused by air pollution, higher healthcare costs, lower crop yields, missed work and school days, increased insurance damages from floods and other extreme weather events linked to climate change, and other social costs…” click here for more
CHINA WIND BEATS U.S. NUCLEAR Wind Energy Dwarfs Nuclear: Wind Farms In China Have An Exponentially Higher Energy Output Than America’s Nuclear Power Plants
March 15, 2015 (Inquistr)
“…While China is currently building more nuclear reactors…it is dedicated at exploring the potential of wind power to its fullest and expanding its capacity to harvest it at an even speedier rate than nuclear…[Last year,] the total amount of energy harvested from China’s wind farms went up an impressive 16 percent…Compared directly to China’s own nuclear power output, the 115 gigawatts of wind power produced by China in 2014 vastly outweighs the 20,000 megawatts [from its nuclear sector and]wind power generation is far more than the total output of power from all of the nuclear plants in the U.S…China is currently struggling to produce enough water for its nuclear plants. Moreover, after the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan, China’s not putting any of these potential disasters, on earthquake-prone land…[It plans to] have enough wind-power machines to produce 200 gigawatts that would be fed directly to the national grid within the next five years…[and] is building the world’s largest ultra-high-voltage transmission system, which is connecting remote, wind-rich northern and western provinces to the more populous central and eastern ones…[T]he earth has enough wind to meet the entire world’s energy needs seven times over if harvested correctly…” click here for more
SOLAR VS. HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATIONS Solar panels spur fights between homeowners, property associations
Jacob Barker, March 15, 2015 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
“…[At least 12 homeowners association disputes playing out in regional court cases] pitting homeowners against their property associations, exposing nasty rifts among neighbors over a technology expected to become more common…In Missouri, bills have been filed for the last several years to give homeowners the right to install solar panels. Several states have already enacted similar laws. In Illinois, state law has required homeowners associations to approve solar panel installations since 2011…[The legal question is whether solar as a property right] trumps property covenants that require architectural review but don’t specifically have provisions regarding solar installations…” click here for more
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