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Was watching one of the news shows (can't remember which or who was doing the talking - could have been on the business news channels) and the guest (I believe it was some expert, not a politician) said that the largest piece of land for solar power would power 45,000 homes. Thinking that was a measley number for so much valuable land, today I tried to find that factoid:
Yes, it does. I think land is the most valuable thing we have. That's why I want to know comparatively speaking, how much land is needed for other forms of domestic energy compared to solar. You know, compare the bang for the buck. If I thought we could turn Venus into a solar farm, I'd be all for it.
Ostrich syndrome dictates that when we don't see an issue, we find comfort in it. When we see it, we hate it. Clearly, it is easy to fall for all the mess under the ground, and above it. Just not on it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by theunbrainwashed
Just look at it. 900 acres of land going to waste to power just 45,000 homes? This goes to show how unreliable "green" energy is. They really need to increase the efficiency of solar panels. If you can only power 45k homes on 1.4 square miles of land, then you have serious efficiency problems.
Unreliable? Tell that to Germany. And Japan. Or, may be, they're just smarter? Or, this... something America's self-branded "fiscal conservatives" will definitely have an issue with...
900 acres per 45,000 homes=.02 acres per home or ~800 sf
The Seattle metro area is ~3.4 million. At the same ratio, this would mean 68,000 acres of PV panels to power that area.
That equals 106 square miles or a square of about 10 miles per side. It's a big chunk of land...not sure how this compares to coal extraction. I imagine the greenies would be screaming bloody murder over a 10 x 10 mile open pit mine.
Now...what happens if those 3.4 million people want power once the sun goes down?
Location: planet octupulous is nearing earths atmosphere
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Toyman at Jewel Lake
900 acres per 45,000 homes=.02 acres per home or ~800 sf
The Seattle metro area is ~3.4 million. At the same ratio, this would mean 68,000 acres of PV panels to power that area.
That equals 106 square miles or a square of about 10 miles per side. It's a big chunk of land...not sure how this compares to coal extraction. I imagine the greenies would be screaming bloody murder over a 10 x 10 mile open pit mine.
Now...what happens if those 3.4 million people want power once the sun goes down?
thats^^^^ when they turn on the 1200 plus size mega wind tubines to take up the slack
and when there's no sun, no wind,, they will crank up the big diesel gen sets
Now...what happens if those 3.4 million people want power once the sun goes down?
That is when even energy from solar power is used by towns and homes and stadiums. However, smarter thinking also dictates storing energy acquired via solar power to be stored, and human ingenuity shows that side as well, which actually may be useful in the gloomy North West, just as it is in Norway. They have hydro electric dams serving as mega battery pack, and Germany has solar power.
Actually, I read it as 900 acres outside of the 45,000 homes. I'm guessing that the homes are normal average houses and the power produced nearby.
Why not build this solar energy farm where the sun shines the most?
AZ, NM, TX, NV? I understand how it works the panals charge batteries the DC current is converted to AC and put on the grid.
I am all for alernative energy.
Geo Thermal, Tidal generators have proven technology used by other countries. Solar Towers and more.
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