Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
That is not the solution if we continue to burn oil. For plastics production, OK, but if we burn oil thus produced, we still emit a lot of gases.
Actually oil from algae is a net positive on so called greenhouse gases.
the algae require CO2 from the atmosphere to grow and produce oil as a byproduct. the CO2 returned to the atmosphere from burning algae oil, is less than the CO2 used by the algae to grow. thus you have a net reduction in CO2 over all.
the by product (dead algae) contains a good amount of CO2 and that can be used as fertilizer which sequesters CO2 in the top soil.
it can also be used as a very good food source for farm animals, again, the net effect is sequestration of some amount of CO2 in the soil.
You can use waste water or salt water to grow the algae so you do not impact fresh water supplies.
You can use non-arable land so you do not impact food production the way other vegetation for Ethanol does (like corn that goes to produce gas instead of food). This also has a great impact on lowering food prices.
You do not add additional pollutants into the atmosphere as the algae are recycling.
You do not have to import the oil so you are not supporting violent terrorist supporting regimes
You do not have to make any changes to the existing infrastructure so there is no additional costs associated with build out of new delivery systems like you would have with electric or hydrogen cars etc.
The new "green economy" in Spain has been a total flop. Socialist leaders promised that implementing hardcore restrictions on carbon emissions and forcing the nation over to a "green economy" would result in a flood of "green jobs". But that simply did not happen. In fact, a leaked internal assessment produced by the government of Spain reveals that the "green economy" has been an absolute economic nightmare for that nation. Energy prices have skyrocketed in Spain and the new "green economy" in that nation has actually lost more than two jobs for every job that it has created. But Spain so far seems unwilling to undo all of the crazy regulations that they have implemented.
Skyrocketed? Not as far as the consumer is concerned. They could double the price per kWh and it would still be cheap by European standards.
The Spaniards may have made mistakes in the way green energy was promoted, but that doesn't mean their goal was wrong.
I have lived in Spain, there is a lot of potential for saving energy, which has so far not been tapped because of the low price of energy. I support high energy prices, the Spanish government should not hesitate to pass the cost on to the consumer.
Skyrocketed? Not as far as the consumer is concerned. They could double the price per kWh and it would still be cheap by European standards.
The Spaniards may have made mistakes in the way green energy was promoted, but that doesn't mean their goal was wrong.
I have lived in Spain, there is a lot of potential for saving energy, which has so far not been tapped because of the low price of energy. I support high energy prices, the Spanish government should not hesitate to pass the cost on to the consumer.
Neuling, you are in an interesting position here... you are now arguing against the information you provided.
and as you say "not as far as the consumer is concerned" and that is part of Spain’s problem. the government has subsidized the energy sector and that is why energy is cheap. It isn’t because they have really cool alternatives.
the alternatives have a stranglehold on the Spanish economy.
Actually oil from algae is a net positive on so called greenhouse gases.
the algae require CO2 from the atmosphere to grow and produce oil as a byproduct. the CO2 returned to the atmosphere from burning algae oil, is less than the CO2 used by the algae to grow. thus you have a net reduction in CO2 over all.
the by product (dead algae) contains a good amount of CO2 and that can be used as fertilizer which sequesters CO2 in the top soil.
it can also be used as a very good food source for farm animals, again, the net effect is sequestration of some amount of CO2 in the soil.
But where would you grow all that algae? To use it as a substitute for fossil oil, you would need huuuge quantities of it, probably grown in giant tanks and factories.
I see the problem that people would not change their behavior if they thought there was more or less endless energy.
Talking about Moore's Law as if it were a real law is misleading, ignorant, or both.
Moore's Law is nothing more than what some guy declared at the beginning of the CPU race. It is nothing more than a self-fulling prophecy.
Overall, the price of technologies do tend to drop over time as engineering techniques are refined, manufacturing is perfected, and new designs are adopted. This can be seen in virtually everything from televisions to cars to computers to cellphones.
You are missing the point. Moore's accuracy prediction is irrelevant. The fact remains that computer technology has evolved at a unique rate to which is not common in other fields. The fallacy of that posters argument was to suggest that all technology follows that same pace and the reasoning for such not occurring in the field of contention was due to his conspiracy theory. It was a severely stupid argument borne of political emotions, nothing more.
Other technologies do also progress, but most have not progressed at the pace of computer technology. As for your examples, seriously... where the heck do you think they got their technological breakthrough? Cell phones, televisions, cars... what common element do they share with relation to this topic? Computer technology and as I stated, it has a historic pace of progression not mirrored in most technologies.
Next time, before you try to correct someone, please make sure you know what the hell you are talking about.
Neuling, you are in an interesting position here... you are now arguing against the information you provided.
and as you say "not as far as the consumer is concerned" and that is part of Spain’s problem. the government has subsidized the energy sector and that is why energy is cheap. It isn’t because they have really cool alternatives.
the alternatives have a stranglehold on the Spanish economy.
Yes, it is just one of 9 or more problems as that links says. And it is not even the biggest of them.
But where would you grow all that algae? To use it as a substitute for fossil oil, you would need huuuge quantities of it, probably grown in giant tanks and factories.
yep. in non used waste land. and algae can produce as much as 10k gallons per acre per year. some say triple that amount. there is plenty of land availale that can be used that is not being used for growing trees or crops or animals.
yep. in non used waste land. and algae can produce as much as 10k gallons per acre per year. some say triple that amount. there is plenty of land availale that can be used that is not being used for growing trees or crops or animals.
Ideally. But I bet there will be other major drawbacks that we will only start to notice when we have become dependent on algae. Initially we did not know of the problems associated with fossil fuels, either.
Yes, it is just one of 9 or more problems as that links says. And it is not even the biggest of them.
Spin it however you like. Green energy is a weight that is adding to a really bad situation.
Had Spain been prudent from the beginning, they would be better positioned to deal with the other larger issues.
the green sector has been a boondoggle and it has caused the Spanish people to become accustomed to a false paradigm of cheap renewable energy.
Reality is quite a bit different from that.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
