My thoughts of the World: IN THE HEAT OF THE SUMMER 2024

It’s been a while, and I just need to organize my thoughts as we face a most critical crossroad for the future of America and the world. It all boils down to Climate Change! We’ve been aware of it for quite some time, and as predicted, the changes and impacts are escalating at an exponential rate. Record heat, countless tornados, massive hurricanes, record flooding, enormous wildfires, even shark attacks…these are just a few of the manifestations of what is going with temperature changes in our atmosphere, our oceans, and our land. We focus on the U.S., but this is happening all over the globe. Our politicians, money powers, and other “leaders” still don’t get it, or are too ignorant to understand the huge impacts now coming to our economy, environment, infrastructures, and most important to all the people who will be directly affected. The progressives…politicians, environmental organizations, and everyone else who can… should be shouting it out, rather than continuing with fear that the opposition will attack them saying there is no proof, it’s all just a hoax. Tell it like it is, instead of naming it an existential threat, which most people don’t understand. Buy TV ads, hold press conferences, stage demonstrations...be a real thorn in the side of the powers that be so the issues cannot be avoided.

A most sobering fact is that regardless of what we decide to do right now will not lessen or correct the changes for many years to come. The time lag for solutions to begin to work gives us little hope for a return to normal. Society, with its ever-increasing population and affluence, will suffer from changes in food production, potable water scarcity, land degradation, and more importantly the social repercussions that will come from increased migration and immigration, homelessness, poor nutrition and disease, and ultimately social decay and war. Like the fall of the many empires throughout history, the fall of this capitalistic empire looms over the next few decades. It’s not the end of the world, but the end to the overconsuming and unsustainable lifestyle we have created. I have always been an optimist, and devoted my learning and teaching to make people think about all the things that impact them. I am now resigned to sit back, watch and ponder. The world will not end, but the uncountable impacts of climate change will alter the lives of every person and all living organisms.

Now, back to what has always been my main interest and passion...renewable energy vs nuclear power. I am gratified that I have been on the right side of history leading into the future, since renewable, mainly solar and wind, are making a huge surge in our energy mix. Despite the continued efforts by the energy powers (fossil fuel and nuclear industries) the growth in clean sustainable energy production surges ahead not only here, but worldwide. Just in the last few years, the world has become aware of Hydrogen, and its unlimited potential as an energy carrier and storage medium. A wide range of systems are being developed worldwide using renewables to split water and store that energy in Hydrogen. All this is in its infancy, but the technology is moving rapidly, as nations move to free themselves from the economic, political, and environmental addiction to fossil fuels. My dream is on its way to becoming a reality. I can’t really keep up with all the daily developments and technological advances, but the world and its forward thinkers see the economic as well as the carbon-free advantages of Hydrogen as the ultimate energy product eventually replacing coal, oil, and natural gas. A few recent tidbits of what’s going on are listed below...check them out...pretty exciting.

Of course, the other hoax (this one is real) is that nuclear power will be the major energy source of the future. The industry is spending millions and millions of dollars pushing its propaganda that the new generation of nuclear power plants will be cheaper, safer, and carbon-free. I guess we have to wait another 10 years to see if the first plant that is built will actually work! The nuclear industry will continue to suck our dollars as their product dies a slow economic death. Hydrogen will bury them, because it can be made anywhere from renewables and can be developed to scale for local needs, as well as be exported as an economic commodity like oil today to where ever the need is. The same holds true for another hoax... fusion power. Even when the fusion reaction is contained, building a very complex and expensive reactor to boil water will never compete with Hydrogen and renewables.

One last piece of this energy quandary is the infamous electricity grid. Our centralized system consisted of large power plants producing large amounts of electricity, and distributing it via a massive number of wires to consumers throughout the country. This allowed for ownership and control of our energy system by a handful of utilities and companies, regulated by a handful of government bodies. The original idea was to supply cheap and affordable electricity to everyone, regardless of where they lived. This worked pretty well until climate change, the availability of fuel, and the introduction of renewables started to upset the cart. The grid is old and requires billions of our dollars to be upgraded to meet current and increasing demands. The energy industry wants so keep its tight control over everything because of the enormous profits generated. It is threatened by the decentralized model proposed so many years ago…to generate power with whatever local resources are available, and minimize constructing huge power plants. Renewables and Hydrogen endanger the model. Examples include the Texas grid now being impacted by the changing climate forces of heat, ice, wind, and flooding. Here in California, fires are forcing the undergrounding of large transmission lines, and the record heat is currently requiring mandatory blackouts because the grid can’t deliver the necessary electricity. The system is stressed not because there is too little generation, but there is too much solar electricity available during the day. The nuclear units at Diablo Canyon cannot be ramped up or down as need be, but must run at full power. A lot of solar electricity is being wasted! The PUC has adopted radical new rules limiting how much new solar will be allowed, and who can produce it. The answer of course is Hydrogen. Use the excess solar electricity to produce Hydrogen which can be stored and used to produce electricity when needed. We need to encourage the installation of more solar not only in industrial fields, but on residences, commercial rooftops, and the vast potential lands and spaces in every community. Solar is not mutually exclusive, and can in many cases improve what goes on beneath them. California is looking at installing solar over the canals that carry water from the north to the thirsty south, reducing evaporation along the way.

The narrow thinking of the energy powers is again evident in the current planning for the large offshore windfarm proposed for Humboldt County. Rather than being innovative and forward thinking (as Humboldt County has usually been) the plan is to spend billions of dollars on a major grid upgrade to ship the electricity 300 miles south where it will then join the main California grid. What we should be doing is attracting companies to install production facilities for Hydrogen here, where it can be used locally (our power plant is gas fired!) and by the time the wind turbines are incrementally constructed, there will be a wide global demand for Hydrogen which can then be exported as a value-added cash commodity (like our timber products and other valuable resources.) It is a complex issue, but one needs to follow the politics and money to understand how and why decisions are made.

Enough! I could go on and on as to the “value” of renewables and Hydrogen, but I am now content to sit back , enjoy life, and watch the progress made both here and abroad. In our recent trip to Europe, I saw a Toyota Mirai taxicab…a nice looking ordinary car. It was a Hydrogen-fuel cell powered vehicle. Just one tiny use we’ll see in the future! Meanwhile, let the fusion-power of the sun continue to shine!

There is so much good news coming out daily on renewables, nuclear, and Hydrogen. Here is just a sample of a few recent ones.

Arizona, of all places. They do have a lot of sun, and access to all the solar being installed in Mexico.

https://www.nikolamotor.com/tre-fcev

https://getpocket.com/read/351p3Td5Aa3b6dF20gg0799bb0d6A4d15a7Od9L14aXT78i333044RtOq67OF666_76a9ac0147f4791aaa5529f241e0be16

https://getpocket.com/read/bd2d4p41T3fI8g400gAe877t78gGT38emYOo1fg2f4d8cUw439c90ia9z18TNH40_d58aca12457a7abf1041398af2aff3a9

Great stuff happening all over the world.

https://siriusjet.com/

Real impacts just beginning.

https://apnews.com/us-news/heat-waves-wildfires-general-news-bc550167983c375f06239d6605f8ac5e?user_email=b4e3751e96120e6736c651b71e71d5ef86f5d03748a1fc5990fe2ca6e1147b2b&utm_medium=Morning_Wire&utm_source=Sailthru_AP&utm_campaign=Morning%20Wire_10%20July_2024&utm_term=Morning%20Wire%20Subscribers

Don’t hold your breath.

https://getpocket.com/read/8a5pcT98A9e3ed9cqXgd410b99d1A5d56a9OOuv3cUZ432X058c4bfD7G84DR0g6_e73ed99af89ca6f9017a349f21ca8cc3

It’s the grid stupid!