Why can't we just switch over to solar, hydro and wind power completely?

Question

The technology exist, why aren't we using it? I'm not an eco freak, but I don't want my scions to grow up in a world where mother nature is on crack.

Answer 1

Perhaps "we" as a nation can't switch completely because the infrastructure does not yet exist to support our massive need. But you, and your family, certainly can.

Nearly every community in the US now has a choice in their energy supplier (you may not be able to choose who delivers your energy, but they still offer numerous suppliers). And many of those suppliers offer renewable energy programs. You can choose to purchase a portion of your energy from renewable sources, or all of it.

By choosing a new, environmentally friendly supplier you are not only telling the energy companies that people are interested in renewable energy, but you are using your dollars to help support and expand this infrastructure. The more people choose this option, the more widely available and economically feasible it will become. So tell your neighbors to do the same!

For information on green energy suppliers in your area, contact your energy company (but don't be surprised if they aren't helpful, and don't be discouraged if they tell you it's not available to you - it often really is).
An even better resource is www.green-e.org. They can tell you what green energy options are available in your area.

Answer 2

It's happening. The problem is that energy infrastructure is EXPENSIVE. While WE as a nation might not be able to switch right now, YOU as a family or individual can, if you live in certain areas. In Texas, the de-regulated energy market allows people to buy their electricity from whichever provider they want. You can sign up for your home to be 100% wind powered. Nothing really changes at your home, but the money you pay for your power goes to a wind provider. Because Texas uses natural gas (which is really expensive)to provide peak capacity, in hot summers people who use wind power actually SAVE money on their bills.

An even better question to ask is "Why aren't we using power more efficiently?" Ask an energy consultant which is cheaper, producing power or saving it? Negawatts are always better then megawatts. Potential efficiency gains in using the capacity we already have could cut our power usage in half and cost alot less then gigawatts of new generating capacity, all while providing the same level of service.

Answer 3

The biggest reason is cost. The cost for many energy-saving
or solar sources of energy is simply prohibitive,unless you
are a millionaire. I am still a big proponent of wind-power,
though. I think a lot of towns in rural america should be encouraged through state & federal grants to utilize the use
of wind turbines. Just one GE medium-size turbine can power
up to 500 household's entire energy needs! At a cost of roughly $1.3 million to erect and hook into the grid,I think it's
a no-brainer. Customers could get off the electric companies
grid altogether and save money too. An average homeowner/
subscriber to the wind-turbine usage would receive a monthly maintenance bill of only about $23, to cover maintenance &
repairs,as well as to fund the costs of transmitting this power.

Answer 4

Although the energy produced is free, the equipment needed is expensive and produces relatively small amounts of power in relation to the costs of construction.
Wind farms are "a blot on the landscape", hydro and tidal are only suitable in very few locations ans solar, while being great on a small scale (e.g. for a home) is not so great for mass producing energy.
Lets hope we can turn things around soon and make these solutions more ecconomically sound and efficient.

Answer 5

COst of installing Solar and wind power. Hydro has now been reclassified as polluting, because it kills fish in most cases. We are now destroying dams to help the fisheries. THere is also a limit on how many dams we could build. We pretty much used up most rivers in the US. There is a lot of resistent in putting up wind turbine. People are fighting it because they don't want to see a large number of metal towers placed next door to them. Thats why in Europe, giant wind turbine are built in the ocean. Frankly I think there is a secondary reason, since people don't seem to complain so much when they put up high tension towers, and oil wells. Also a lot od location where wind turbine is built are already developed. Wind turbine cost more to build for the electricity it produces than a coal fired generator for the electricity it generates, but it is with in reason. Solar power is many times more expensive to install compared to both. It also has a short life span. It currently is not considered practical, except for special applications. Currently research is being done, to cut labor on manufacturing solar panel, and improving its life span. Also wind and solar energy is not reliable compared to other energy source. The wind does not always blow, and the sun is not always out. The issue is storing the energy when these two system produces. Wind is more reliable than what you might see, because it uses wind from a higher elevation, which is more reliable. the otehr issue is to how to produce energy when solar or wind does not produce. Large generators can not gear up or down so easily. Los ANgeles DWP is resistant in using renewable energy source, because they see it as difficult to manage. Also Los ANgeles is resistant to using renewable energy source, because it's union do not want to learn a new job set. They are use to working on generators and there is a lot of fear of DWP employees when they have to learn how to manage and maintain wind turbine.

Answer 6

Constrains on size and cost lead to limited usage of solar. Hydro needs a special natural location, which is beyond the control of humanbeings. Wind power also has similar limitations. You need natural wind to use the wind mills. Again, cost of generation is too high except hydro, which needs high capital investment whereever it is feasible to install hydro generators.

Answer 7

Hydro and wind power have been used for centuries. Solar power has made great strides in the past few decades.
The main reason is people are afraid of new things AND they don't like the looks of wind chargers/solar panels on the roofs of houses/buildings/landscape.
Which is too bad; if every one made a concerted effort, we could stop importing oil at all.

Answer 8

They are not yet efficient enough to cover the energy needs for our country. You can do your part by finding more information on how to reduce your carbon footprints (usually I do a google or yahoo search).

There is also the other reason... Our country is VERY dependant on oil and non-renewable energy. Oil companies are very powerful and also don't want the switch to renewable energy to happen so quickly.... Otherwise, their quarterly profits will fall below the "billions" mark. Makes me angry that we're still paying over $3.00 a gallon when their profits (after they've paid their bills) are in the billions quarterly. (And they STILL say that THEIR costs are too high)

Answer 9

In the area where I live we get most of our power from a dam, and there are windmills going up all over the place, so we are on our way, we also have a power plant but they are working on cleaning up the waste from WWII but the plant is not yet producing power however nuclear power is also another better option than conventional coal fired plants.

Answer 10

To immediately cease the use of oil from our economic use and placing more eco friendly power on line will cause such an upward price spike on the products containing oil based chemicals, like plastics, celophane, nylon, fiberglass, etc...Of course we can go back to paper products but the trees...