I don't know if I have drank (drunk?) the Amory Lovins kool-aid, but the information that comes out of his brain makes more and more sense to me. Perhaps what he is saying is just common sense after all, and I'm a bit slow on the uptake. Regardless, the man has been studying energy efficiency for decades and we should listen to him when he speaks on the subject. Plus, from what I understand he is a proponent of the free market and believes that government tends to muddy innovation up. So he's the best of both world's, a proponent of free market capitalism and a renewable energy / energy efficiency / sustainable junkie. He can capture the left and the right with his thought. A good place to be in my book.
Anyway, this article in Forbes delves into our atrocious national power grid, cobbled together with duct tape and chewing gum over the decades, and what it will take to make this grid "smart" and efficient. Good read.
Moving toward a more sustainable, renewable, and efficient world.
How do we get there?
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Wishful Thinking
*Before adding PV, wind, or solar thermal to your residential or commercial structure, the first step is to analyze this structure's energy consumption through a professional energy audit. I'd like to see some public education on the importance of an energy audit for any structure. Remember Smokey the Bear's forest fire shtick drilled into our heads over the last few decades? How about something like, "Henry the House" desperately wanting to know how much energy he consumes and wastes throughout the day?
*With over 300 sunny days a year on the Front Range is it too much to ask for solar PV and thermal modules on every residential and commercial unit (after an energy audit of course)?
*How about affordable plug-in electric cars that go more than 100 miles on a charge with PV and wind powered recharging stations?
*Dreaming of companies large and small adopting business sustainability practices to maximize profits, reduce their carbon footprint, and enhance the lives of their employees and the communities that surround them.
*With over 300 sunny days a year on the Front Range is it too much to ask for solar PV and thermal modules on every residential and commercial unit (after an energy audit of course)?
*How about affordable plug-in electric cars that go more than 100 miles on a charge with PV and wind powered recharging stations?
*Dreaming of companies large and small adopting business sustainability practices to maximize profits, reduce their carbon footprint, and enhance the lives of their employees and the communities that surround them.
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