The dirty green line
With a boost of billions in the economic stimulus plan, the White House plans to double the nation's supply of renewable energy in the next three years. There's big talk in Congress of creating a national renewable-energy standard, which would mandate that utilities get a chunk of their power from green sources like solar, wind and geothermal. So long dirty energy, hello green future. Full Story »
Posted by Derek Hawkins
We have ample evidence from blackouts and brownouts in the last 10 years of the need to strengthen and modernize our grid but virtually no one wants a power line in their back yard. Distributed generation can be attractive but can have drawbacks such as reliability, visual blight and cost. The same applies to truly "green" power sources. There are always tradeoffs to be considered. What is needed is a debate in which all the facts and concerns are put forth and discussed honestly. However, since we don't do that with any other subject, it is unlikely that we'll do it with energy.