The Liberal Patriot

Global Warming and Energy, It's Not the Means....

J.G. Schwam - July 4, 2005

The wingnuts like to turn to every position they disagree with into communist or anti-American, this strategy or debate cop out is at the root of their dissent squelching methodology. I hear it all the time in trying to talk some sense into the vast sea of the sadly uninformed.

On global warming however the reality is that nearly no population, not China's, not the USA's nor even Europe's is likely to vastly decrease fossil fuel usage in the near future. The effort to reduce green house gasses and slow their increase, if it as all possible to do so, global warming must come from the mitigation of increases in the amount of green house gasses emitted.

Large decreases can com from the re-introduction technologies resisted and legislated into anachrony by the current US administration. These include on a primary level effluent cooling technology for coal, oil and gas burning power plants. Early studies have shown cooled emission of such gases reduce their effect on the atmospheric mix of gasses.

Also a DOE stance you never hear of any more, discussed by the DOE under Clinton, that is the expansion an modernization exiting large scale hydro electric systems such as Fort Peck Dam, Hoover Dam, The Niagara River system and others as well as the numerous medium size hydro electric projects of the TVA. Assertions we made in DOE documents of the time prepared in conjunction with Bureau of Reclamation that increases in power generation by modernization and expansion with more efficient systems at 30 percent of the nations hydro electric projects could easily increase output by 1000 megawatts per day, about 18 percent of daily US demand.

More aggressive efforts could yield much greater gains in hydro electric output without investment of new projects. A serious effort to do so could stem natural gas, coal and oil use for power generation by 30 percent and possibly more.

These efforts would require a combination of large public and private expenditures. The current administration needless to say has shown a willingness to do the opposite. That is to neither compel nor encourage the power generation industry to engage in practices to clean up their act.

The nations of the G8 other than the USA are going in the direction of alternative means of power generation such as wind or tidal. If the USA is unwilling to encourage or make this investment, perhaps is time re-engage a policy to make greater more efficient use of existing hydro facilities, an option Europe does not have.

Auto emissions are an entirely different subject. Until congress is wiling to take a realistic look at CAFE standards the auto industry has little incentive to change the emissions or fuel efficiency of their products. US automakers have already shown their poorly defined marketing ability, exemplified by their steady loss of market share to makers of more fuel efficient vehicles such as Toyota, Nissan and Honda.

They seem bent on continuing to keep their heads firmly buried in the sand, while they loose, loose, loose. Historically US automakers seem to have changed their out-of-touch-with-the market strategies little without the intervention of government in compelling them to do so.

Once and seemingly always, the power and auto industries take their direction from federal policy. This is especially true of the power industry. With power demand escalating steadily for fifty years and rapid cost per kilowatt escalations in recent years, their built in profit structure offers no incentive to modernize. Especially at publicly administered hydro facilities that are basically cash cows for their bottom lines.

The auto industry in much of their product lines has a captive market. The truck divisions of GM and Ford have not improved fuel efficiency of the large and medium sized truck lines substantially in decades.

Change must come from a shift in policy. On the upside the G8 appears to be growing increasing weary with the USA's lack or foresight or willingness to engage in any modern debate on these issues.

The time has come to demand mitigation, mitigation of the practice of stalwart industries that put profit ahead of responsibility. Mitigation through policy and intervention is the only option.

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