I'm curious how other people feel about Bush's recent mention of lifting bans on offshore drilling? McCain's goal of building 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030? (see links below)
With high fuel costs, the time seems right to talk about renewables. What will finally cause the political right to begin conversation about green energy?
I am excited at the prospect of finally opening new nuclear reactors. And the ban on offshore drilling was misguided from the start.
Written in June
That depends on what you consider to be the problem. I am focused on climate change and the long term impacts of oil dependency. For this concern, opening up new drilling locations does nothing but worsten the problem. If you are focused on high oil prices as your primary issue, then increasing drilling would be one way to buy some time and to appear to be taking action.
Written in June
If you are worried about carbon dioxide generation, there's no better solution than nuclear energy. And offshore drilling would mitigate our dependence on foreign oil.
Written in June
We don't have time to continue business usual solutions. Nuclear power can't come on board soon enough to offset a significant amount of Co2 in the time frame necessary. It also has a huge Co2 footprint in the mining, processing and transportation of fuel, uses huge quantities of water in an age of increasing water scarcity (1 mine uses 12million liters/day in drought stricken Australia), and leaves future generations with toxic waste as well as finite fuel source. Adding small amounts of oil to the mix is again a business as usual solution that causes more problems than it solves, it actually wouldn't solve any, just postpone the inevitable. Anything that contributes to global warming doesn't buy us time, it wastes time, of which we have little. Anything that further threatens the ability of the natural world to provide us with it's "free" services must be abandoned. Offshore oil drilling does just that. The problem is an economy built on cheap fossil fuels that are destroying the very foundations of our survival, the natural balance on which we depend.Until we address that at a fundamental level it's all window dressing and distraction.
Written in June
We need to utilize the many alternative sources of power now available and stop thinking the solution lies in doing more of what we used to do. What will it take for us to recognize that the costs of burning so much petroleum is too high?
Written in July
When there is no oil left?
Written in July
What is more damaging is the corporate sponsorship of University science/tech/engineering programs by NUCLEAR. The University of Maryland appears to be underwritten by Constellation Energy, the owners, operators and managers of Calvert Cliffs, one of the 104 Nuclear reactors in the U.S. Is it any wonder that there is NO effective, cohesive department at the University committing resources to Solar Nano technology? U of M produced the Leaf House at the 2008 Solar Decathalon, but that was produced by Architects and Ecology ... Green folks. The project used $100,000 in DONATED SOLAR PANELS to win 2nd place in the competition. It was a pretty building, but there's no engineering substance to back it up. Oh. Wait a minute. Yes there is. There was a product that dehumidies the air using celica gel as an absorbant. That product's inventor just won $5000 in a business plan competition. Now that's Green....
Written in July
Water is my thing. And nuclear plants use HUGE amounts of it. If we start cranking up solor power again we will exacerbate the growing water crisis.
Written in July
Bush isn't concerned with increasing off-shore drilling to reduce the current/future price of oil. He is using the current price of oil as an excuse to get his mates more rights to oil. Many of the permits that have already been issued for drilling, (some of them onshore!) are currently not being actioned.
Nuclear is not great, but until scarcity of yellowcake makes them more expensive than the alternative, then I say go for it. The market will sort them out when the time comes.
Written in July
Submit a crazy green idea to be turned into the next X PRIZE in Energy ...
Tricky one this. I'll be handing the leaflet out at a Green Bookfair in Ely ...
Dr Rajendra Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says that if ...
United Kingdom 
