Funding for Energy Alternatives

#2
#2
Good. Let the market come up with energy solutions. Stop wasting my money. If there's a feasible solution the market will come up with it.
 
#6
#6
nbakerld said:
If there's a feasible solution the market will come up with it.
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Not buying it. If "the market" had its druthers we'd be drilling in Alaska as a stop-gap... Which would be fine, but we need some sort of tangible impetus to drastically reduce need for oil as an energy resource.
 
#8
#8
milohimself said:
Not buying it. If "the market" had its druthers we'd be drilling in Alaska as a stop-gap... Which would be fine, but we need some sort of tangible impetus to drastically reduce need for oil as an energy resource.
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not true. If there was a viable alternative for the same price or cheaper then people would go for it. Develop a Mr Fusion to run a car and you wouldn't have to work much longer
 
#9
#9
Corn ethanol isn't a good alternative. Cost tons of money to produce, not to mention all the water it takes to produce. They need to find something else, not to mention this stuff tears up motors. The car dealers are probably leading the charge here, cars not lasting as long means more money in their pockets. E15 is on the way or already here. They won't stop until motors last two years putting this garbage in our tanks.
 
#12
#12
might work. Many houses already have NG so why not just come up with a way to refill at home? The main complaint I've always heard is the lack of filling stations so this would solve it. But I'm sure there's a reason it hasn't been done yet
 
#13
#13
It's starting to catch on slowly. I know in my county they are about to build a natural gas fill in station. The equivalent of one gallon of petro would cost 1.50 for natural gas.
 
#14
#14
I know they tried it in Phoenix a few years ago and they put the stations way out where they weren't really useful. Just saying that if I could fill up at home and pay one bill that would make me happier. Might be worth a little extra cost
 
#15
#15
We all know corn ethanol was a lobbyist-driven manuever, and actually is no alternative at all.
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#16
#16
I may be the person most opposed to gov't interference in the economy of anyone here. However energy is a strategic resource.

IMO, we should engage in a "wartime mobilization" to build 30-50 modern nuclear plants in the shortest time frame possible. The funding could either be state level with streamlining at the Fed level for permits or funded at the Federal level then turned over to the states or else sold to private companies. If kept by the gov't, power should be sold to distributors at cost plus a small levee to finance other infrastructure.

That other infrastructure should include use of tides to produce electricity, electric rail for high speed transport of people and freight, fossil fuel exploration, advanced solar and retro-fitting of solar supplements to gov't buildings, etc.

Electric rail would be expensive to start but is the most immediate and direct way to significantly reduce US dependence on fossil fuels. It should be started by paralleling the Interstate system in order of use. A New Yorker should be able to drive his car onto a railcar and travel to Florida cheaper than driving it and in less time.

Even diesel rail is around 25% of truck freight. The problem is usually time.
 
#19
#19
tigervol9802 said:
What are people's thoughts on switchgrass?
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Seems better than corn, but you'd still be using what would be agricultural space for energy purposes. Could be an issue. Also, the energy returns vs the costs of land degradation from harvesting, transportation of the crop and processing, and then distribution of the fuel makes it less efficient than fossil fuels, even if less polluting from a carbon point of view.



People keep mentioning the tidal generators. Have they even successfully done that anywhere yet?
 
#21
#21
IPorange said:
Seems better than corn, but you'd still be using what would be agricultural space for energy purposes. Could be an issue. Also, the energy returns vs the costs of land degradation from harvesting, transportation of the crop and processing, and then distribution of the fuel makes it less efficient than fossil fuels, even if less polluting from a carbon point of view.



People keep mentioning the tidal generators. Have they even successfully done that anywhere yet?
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with soaring food prices it's absurd to be growing corn for other purposes.
 
#22
#22
droski said:
with soaring food prices it's absurd to be growing corn for other purposes.
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Growing food for fuel is stupid, no matter what. Even in Brazil, they're basically pumping rain forest into their gas tanks. Not a sustainable plan.
 
#23
#23
milohimself said:
Not buying it. If "the market" had its druthers we'd be drilling in Alaska as a stop-gap... Which would be fine, but we need some sort of tangible impetus to drastically reduce need for oil as an energy resource.
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The free market did come up with the Bloombox or whatever it is called...
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#25
#25
utvolpj said:
not true. If there was a viable alternative for the same price or cheaper then people would go for it. Develop a Mr Fusion to run a car and you wouldn't have to work much longer
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Like everybody would just switch over to something else? We're on course to ride that crude oil pony all the way into the sunset.

utvolpj said:
might work. Many houses already have NG so why not just come up with a way to refill at home? The main complaint I've always heard is the lack of filling stations so this would solve it. But I'm sure there's a reason it hasn't been done yet
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With the Honda FCX (hydrogen fuel car that I've been pimping hard) Honda has been working on a NG water heater that will double as a hydrogen pump.
 
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