Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
The fall 2004 issue of YES! magazine is devoted to Peak Oil. About a dozen articles are available online. Subjects include biodiesel, hydrogen, transportation and conservation. Authors include Hunter Lovins, James Lovelock and David Orr.
An ancient Hindu myth held that the world rides on the back of an elephant. The Iroquois believed it was a turtle. In the age of science, we know different: It’s a dinosaur.
Scientists in Australia say they have have made a breakthrough in the efficiency of using sunlight to generate hydrogen from water. It may be a step toward an affordable source of clean energy.
Despite recent crude runup, fuel from plants still 50% pricier; more incentives needed.
While world supply of conventional oil looks set to peak, hydrogen has long been proposed as a solution. But in spite of billions of dollars now being spent on research, no one has yet found a simple, safe and cheap way to produce it.
Wall Street continues to ignore alternative energy sources which typically require huge infrastructure investment.
FARMERS in Pembrokeshire have launched a co-operative to produce, market and supply biofuels.
“…if you want to grow energy crops, look for the one that has the highest yield per hectare and therefore the highest amount of ethanol produced for the land you are setting aside for biofuel production.”
The cost and availability of oil will be impacted by “peaking”; natural gas supply will fail to meet production and supply demands; nuclear offsets aren’t being addressed and the failure of transmission lines to be replaced or upgraded are all rapidly coming together in a short period of time and will cause rocketing prices and supply disruption.
A new centre to harness Scotland’s wave and tidal energy has been officially opened in Orkney by the Deputy First Minister Jim Wallace.
Mark Braly reports from the German Government’s Renewables 2004 conference in Bonn, that “something else, not new but more urgently felt, was in the air at the conference. The expert consensus now holds that the peak of world oil production is near – if it has not already happened.”
The RES thermal depolymerization plant was shut down production after complaints about the smell were raised. They later resumed production, then shut the plant down again after the smell resurfaced.
