Your Questions About Green Living

Ruth asks…

What do Bush and the House Republicans have against Alternative Energy?

House shifts $16 billion toward renewable energy!
Republicans called it a “no-energy bill” because it lacks new drilling incentives, and they derided the new emphasis on renewables as “green pork.” The White House threatened to veto the bill on concerns that it could boost energy prices.

Didn’t Bush say that the USA is addicted to oil and needs to find alternate energy sources? Or was he just refering to ethanol?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070805/pl_nm/usa_energy_house_dc_3

The Expert answers:

Roughly three years ago in a televised State of the Union Address, Bush dropped a hint on what a portion of the Republican plan for alternative energy might be.

He mentioned pulling in the big oil companies to explore the development of hydrogen based fuels as a possible alternative to fossil fuels.

So, after the oil companies have spent decades with that giant money-sucking vacuum … Sucking the dollars out of the pockets of the American consumer, you might think the power and influence of big oil is now diminishing … Diminishing due to waning fossil fuels and the growing green movement.

What exactly is it that the Republicans love to say when justifying a rationale for supporting corporate interests while actively fighting American workers who are negatively impacted by those interests?

“Let the Free Market Decide”

In this scenario, the free market would have decided the days of big oil, had come and gone … The strangle hold of big oil on all of us had run it’s course and the corrupt, self-serving oil and gas industry was now dying.

But there’s the problem … The oil and gas industry is a prime Republican contributor. In addition, the ruling elite is heavily invested in oil and gas.

So … Enter the Republicans with their little energy plan, big oil is potentially crowned “Lords of the Hydrogen” … So they can rape us all over again.

.

Michael asks…

Have we missed an easy alternative energy source?

With the seemingly endless parade of celebrities both new and old roaming the news and airwaves today could there be a method of grinding them into some sort of burnable mass and producing electricity or gas from them?

The Expert answers:

Genius.

Sandra asks…

Is it legal to copy and paste material/content from a news site on personal website as long as I cite it?

I’m making a website about Alternative Energies and I need some news content to put on my website. Would I need to ask permission from news sites such as CNN to post their news on my web site or should I just site it providing a link that would route viewers to the original site on CNN.
Thank you very much for your time and help, I really appreciate it!

The Expert answers:

There are different rules. Often, one can cite up to 250 words with citation of the source and not run afoul of copyright regulations. But there are other news sites that specify that posting anything from their site on another site without written permission (or payment) is prohibited.

Perhaps an approach would be to summarize some of the information in the link, and provide the link so they can go to the source.

For instance: Scientists at such and such an institution showed that combining genetically engineered algae and sunlight was capable of making biodiesel. Then you cite the link which will give the person more details if they desire.

Thomas asks…

What do you think of the federal government overriding states authority concerning energy?

The following was taken from a news article:

“Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he will soon introduce legislation that gives federal regulators authority to override states on electric grid placement decisions as part of a package of energy proposals the Senate is expected to take up in the coming weeks.”

In other words basically telling the states instead of placing a necessary power grid, they need to use “alternative energy” instead. A lot of this alternative energy is underdeveloped and more costly.

The Expert answers:

U.S. Power Grids

It is important to note that there is no “national power grid” in the United States. In fact, the continental United States is divided into three main power grids:

The Eastern Interconnected System, or the Eastern Interconnect
The Western Interconnected System, or the Western Interconnect
The Texas Interconnected System, or the Texas Interconnect.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Distributed Energy Program was established in fiscal year 2001. The program develops a portfolio of advanced, on-site, small-scale, modular energy conversion and delivery systems for industrial, commercial, residential, and utility applications.

Program activities are organized under two main thrusts:

Distributed Generation Technology Development
This effort seeks to develop a portfolio of electricity generation and heat utilization technologies with a focus on efficiency, emissions, RAMD (reliability, availability, maintainability and durability) and meeting cost targets. By improving the efficiency of thermally activated systems and advancing the efficiency and emissions characteristics of these power generation technologies, the program provides the building blocks necessary to develop advanced, integrated systems.

Integrated Energy Systems
The focus of this effort is to develop highly efficient integrated energy systems that can be replicated across end-use sectors and that will help demonstrate an R&D objective or address a technical barrier.

Dept of Energy

By H. JOSEF HEBERT
Associated Press Writer
Published: February 23, 2009

4:28 p.m.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Democratic congressional leaders and the Obama administration indicated Monday that they will push for greater federal authority to locate electric transmission lines, saying the current power grid stands in the way of developing alternative energy sources.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he will soon introduce legislation that gives federal regulators authority to override states on electric grid placement decisions as part of a package of energy proposals the Senate is expected to take up in the coming weeks.
“We cannot let 231 state regulators hold up progress,“ Reid said, referring to the members of state public utility commissions that decide on transmission locations in the states. He said states should be given every opportunity to participate but that “there may come a time when the federal government will have to step in,“ including directing the taking of land for grid corridors.
A clean energy conference that included former Vice President Al Gore and former President Bill Clinton focused extensively on the need for a national “smart” grid to transport electricity, including an expansion of the system to bring wind and solar energy from remote locations to the nation’s cities”…

” Former New York Gov. George Pataki, one of the few Republicans at the conference, said the federal government must get more involved in establishing power transmission lines.
“If you try to run a wire through someone’s community, that becomes about as contentious as you get,“ said Pataki, and if that power is going through a state, he said, “you don’t have to take a poll – no one is going to be for it.“

They are state regulators! Over 200 of them

James asks…

The West has allowed the Arabs to hold us to ransom over oil. Now Brown gives them alternative energy as well

Having allowed the Arabs – OPEC – to hold the West to ransom over oil and gas prices. Brown sees the only sensible option is to allow them to invest in and therefore take some control, if not all control, of our alternative energy sources ie nuclear and renewable.

Why cant the UK invest our own money in securing our own energy supplies?

We have allowed foreign companies to take over our utility providers and charge us more than their own countries.

do you agree that the UK needs to become energy independant to secure our future?

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080622/tpl-uk-jeddah-oil-britain-02bfc7e.html

The Expert answers:

No one is forcing us to buy oil. No one is forcing us to burn it at a profligate rate which we are doing. We dug our own hole, now we have to lie in it. Why blame the sellers of oil for selling it at prices fixed in London and New York, etc. You might as well blame farmers and supermarkets for holding us ransom. I suppose you do.

The sight of Gordy going cap in hand to ask them to help us stop using so much oil is so ridiculous that even the Monty Python team would have been rolling on the floor with mirth. Like the drinks companies are going to invest in the Temperance movement!

You ask why foreign utility company charge us more than they charge in their home country. What do you think their govt and citizens would do if they charged their own people more than they charge their foreign customers? Say, if BG were to charge the Brits more than they were charging the French or Germans. Of course, they have to charge foreigners more.

And of course we should be energy/food/politically/industrially/culturally/etc., independent, but that’s all wishful thinking. Our leaders and our political system will not allow it. Our liberal democracy has led to weak government and indecisiveness. Shareholders do not give a toss for nationalistic causes. They are only interested in making more money. Let’s not blame the Arabs or Russians, or foreigners.

BTW, the reason why oil prices spike is that most of the oil futures are held by people with links to certain leaders. When the time comes for them to dispose of their contracts, a word in the ears of some people, and another hint to bomb Iran is dropped. Prices go up, and voila, more billions in the coffers. But try and get the evidence, and you are history.

Powered by Yahoo! Answers

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Translate »