{"id":1986630,"date":"2023-07-31T09:56:02","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T13:56:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/op-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams\/"},"modified":"2023-07-31T10:01:41","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T14:01:41","slug":"op-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/op-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-Ed: A Single Energy Query Crushes &#8216;Net-Zero&#8217; Pipe Dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fop-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1986630&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Which is more environmentally friendly \u2014 an energy source that \u2063uses\u200b one unit of land to produce \u2062one unit of electricity, or a source that uses 100\u2063 units of \u2064land to\u200c produce one unit of electricity?<\/h2>\n<p>The answer should be obvious.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, \u201cgreen\u201d energy advocates call \u200dfor a huge expansion \u200bof wind,\u2063 solar and other renewables that use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/larry-johnson-the-cia-has-become-the-kgb\/\" title=\"Larry Johnson: The CIA Has Become the KGB\">vast amounts<\/a> of land to replace traditional power plants that use comparatively small amounts\u200d of land.<\/p>\n<p>Vaclav Smil, professor emeritus at the University of Manitoba in Canada, extensively \u200b <a href=\"https:\/\/www.masterresource.org\/smil-vaclav\/smil-density-comparisons-v\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">analyzed<\/a> the power density of\u2064 alternative \u2064sources \u2063used to generate electricity.\u200c He defined power density as \u2062the \u200baverage flow\u2063 of electricity generated per\u2062 square meter of horizontal \u200dsurface (land\u2064 or sea area).<\/p>\n<p>Estimating power \u200bdensity is complex. \u2064Smil included plant area, storage yards, mining sites, agricultural fields,\u200b pipelines and transportation, and other associated land \u2063and sea areas in \u200chis analysis.<\/p>\n<p>Smil\u2019s work \u200callows us to compare the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nickel-price-surge-threatens-automakers-electric-vehicle-plans\/\" title=\"Nickel Price Surge Threatens Automakers\u2019 Electric Vehicle Plans\">energy density<\/a>\u200b of electricity sources. If we set a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/prageru-why-are-utilities-so-expensive\/\" title=\"PragerU: Why Are Utilities So Expensive?\">nuclear plant<\/a> to one\u200c unit \u2063of\u200c land required for\u200c one unit of electricity output, then a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/op-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams\/\" title=\"Op-Ed: A Single Energy Query Crushes 'Net-Zero' Pipe Dreams\">natural gas-powered plant\u2063 requires<\/a> about 0.8 units of \u2062land to\u200d produce one unit of output. A\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-rep-westerman-dem-policies-mean-more-manufacturing-powered-by-chinas-coal-plants\/\" title=\"GOP Rep. Westerman: Dem Policies Mean More Manufacturing Powered by China's Coal Plants\">coal-fired plant<\/a> uses about 1.4 units of land to deliver \u2063one unit of power.<\/p>\n<p>But renewable\u200d sources require\u200d vastly more \u2064land. A standalone solar facility requires\u200c about 100 units\u2064 of land to deliver the same average electricity output\u200d as \u2063a nuclear plant that \u2063uses one unit of \u200cland.<\/p>\n<p>A wind facility uses about 35 units of land\u200c if only \u200dthe concrete wind tower pads and service roads are counted, \u2063but over \u2063800 units of \u2062land for the entire area spanned by a \u2063typical \u2064wind installation.<\/p>\n<p>Production of electricity from biomass has the poorest energy \u2064density, requiring over\u2063 1,500 units \u200cof\u200d land to \u200coutput one unit of electricity.<\/p>\n<p>As a \u200cpractical example, compare\u2063 the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System in the eastern\u200d California desert to the\u2063 Diablo \u2062Canyon Nuclear \u200cPlant\u2064 near Avila Beach, California.<\/p>\n<p>The Ivanpah facility produces about <a href=\"https:\/\/solarpaces.nrel.gov\/project\/ivanpah-solar-electric-generating-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">793<\/a> gigawatt hours per\u2063 year and \u2063covers \u2062an area of 3,500 acres. The Diablo Canyon facility generates about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/electricity\/data\/browser\/#\/plant\/6099?freq=A&#038;start=2015&#038;end=2019&#038;ctype=linechart&#038;ltype=pin&#038;columnchart=ELEC.PLANT.GEN.6099-ALL-ALL.A&#038;linechart=ELEC.PLANT.GEN.6099-ALL-ALL.A&#038;maptype=0&#038;pin=\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">16,165<\/a> gigawatt hours \u200cper year on a surface area of 750 acres. The nuclear plant \u2062delivers more\u200c than 20 times the average \u200coutput on\u2064 about one-fifth of the land, or\u2062 100 times the power density\u200c of the solar \u2063facility.<\/p>\n<p>To approach \u200beven 50 percent\u200d renewable electricity \u200cusing \u200cprimarily wind and solar systems, the land requirements are\u2062 gigantic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/netzeroamerica.princeton.edu\/the-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Net-Zero\u200b America<\/a>,\u201d a \u200b2020 study published\u200c by Princeton University, \u2062calls for wind and solar to supply\u2063 half of U.S. \u200celectricity by 2050,\u2062 up \u200cfrom about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/electricity\/monthly\/archive\/february2023.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">14 percent<\/a> \u200d today. The\u2062 study estimated that this expansion\u200d would require \u200dabout 228,000 \u2063square miles of new \u200cland, not including the additional area needed for transmission lines.<\/p>\n<p>That is larger than the\u200d combined area\u2064 of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, \u200dWest Virginia\u2062 and Wisconsin.\u200c This area \u2064would be more than 100 times as large as the physical footprint of the coal and natural gas power systems \u2064that would be replaced.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Taking land for wind \u200cand solar \u200bcan\u200d seriously\u200b impact\u2063 the\u2063 environment.<\/p>\n<p>Standalone solar systems blanket fields and deserts, blocking sunlight and driving\u200b out\u200d plants and animals. Since 2000, almost 16 million trees have been <a href=\"https:\/\/tvpworld.com\/71419271\/scotland-chops-down-almost-16-million-trees-to-make-way-for-wind-turbines#:~:text=An%20estimated%20total%20of%2015.7,(SNP)%20minister%20has%20revealed.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cut \u2064down<\/a> in Scotland to make way for\u200b wind turbines, a total of more\u2063 than 1,700 trees felled per day. This environmental devastation will increase the longer net-zero goals are pursued.<\/p>\n<p>Wind \u200dand solar require vast amounts\u200c of land to generate the electricity \u2064required\u200c by \u2064modern\u200b society. Without fears about human-caused climate\u200d change, these systems would be considered\u2062 environmentally \u200bdamaging.<\/p>\n<p>Net-zero plans \u200cfor \u20632050, powered by wind and solar, will encounter \u2064obstacles with transmission, zoning, \u200blocal opposition and \u200djust plain space\u200d that are probably \u200cimpossible to overcome.<\/p>\n<p>The post \u2064 <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/op-ed-one-simple-energy-question-devastates-net-zero-pipe-dreams\/\">Op-Ed: One Simple \u2064Energy Question Devastates &#8216;Net-Zero&#8217; Pipe Dreams<\/a> appeared \u200cfirst on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\">The Western Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Which is greener: an energy source using 1 unit of land for 1 unit of electricity or 100 units of land for 1 unit of electricity? The answer is clear. However, advocates for &#8220;green&#8221; energy push for a significant wind, solar, and other expansions, despite the environmental impact of using excessive land for minimal electricity production.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2240,"featured_media":1986631,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[548],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1986630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conservative-news-daily"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1986630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2240"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1986630"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1986630\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1986631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1986630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1986630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1986630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}