Energy in 200 words

Digital-age politics encourages rage and passion. Passion is the enemy of analysis. Yearly, each of the 7.6 billion humans’ energy use is enough to bring a fair-sized swimming pool to boil (75,000,000 BTUs). Developed countries use four times this annually and have stemmed population growth.

An electric-car battery requires over a half million pounds of material processing. Constructing one wind turbine requires 45 tons of non-recyclable plastic/composite, 2,500 tons of concrete and 900 tons of steel. On an output basis, solar requires more steel and concrete and is primarily fabricated by Asia’s coal-dependent electricity. Old-panel disposal to meet the Paris Accords will result in over double the tonnage of all today’s plastic waste. A Netherlands study concludes “renewable energy production is not possible with present-day technologies and annual metal production.”

Nuclear power can be made safe, compact, transportable, exportable and reliable. Thorium reactors leave little waste. With Gates funding and Harvard science, a Canadian facility extracts atmospheric CO2 and yields basically a very clean gasoline.

Globally, the worst environmental degradation primarily occurs in poverty-stricken regions that lack reliable energy, infrastructure, and education. Let’s get going and lead.

Gerald E. Weitz

Viola, Idaho