I want to pass along kudos to the students from Tufts University and Boston Architectural College (Team Boston) who competed in the Solar Decathlon on the National Mall this month.
The Solar Decathlon, a competition sponsored by the Department of Energy, brought together twenty teams of students from around the world who designed, engineered and built solar-powered homes showcased in Washington, D.C.
To see these energy-saving homes, and to hear from the students themselves, please watch this video put together by my Select Committee:
Much like this competition, the United States is currently in a race with China, Spain and other nations for clean energy jobs and technology. In June, the House passed the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act which includes green building provisions along with renewable electricity and efficiency measures that would help move the ideas displayed on the Mall into neighborhoods across Massachusetts and the across the nation. Helping families save money on energy bills while putting more contractors, electricians, and builders to work is smart policy.
Discuss
5 Comments . Comments are closed.Greenpeace begs to differ
Is that "American Clean Energy and Security Act" the "Act Formerly Known as Cap and Trade?"
You do understand that as written Waxman-Markey currently supports and encourages the burning of coal? Apparently, climate change has morphed into "The Cause That Dare Not Speak Its Name." What an embarrassment. Imagine if they had called the 1965 Civil Rights Act the "Tax Reduction and Military Support Act." That's what you've got here. You've got politicians who show absolutely no courage of their convictions.
If you believe that CO2 output is "destroying the planet," then you need to start shutting down coal-fired power plants - right now. You also need to cut down gasoline use to at leastthe leval a $3-4/gal. tax hike would produce - and work up from there. The coal mines currently operating need to be phased out over the next few years - with the communities that rely one them effectively killed. The Waxman-Markey abomination will - at best - shuffle money around the economy inefficiently, and make the Wall Street sharks very, very rich. Please remember, Cap and Trade was at the heart of Enron's business model. With a cap and trade system, Enron is what you get. Cap and trade has been a total failure in Europe, with no cuts of CO2 output and massive fraud. There are so many loopholes in Waxman-Markey that it's hard to find any "stuff" left that's not hole.
And if you think I'm a kooky right-wing denier, please read what Greenpeace has to say on the matter.
http://rogerpielkejr.blogspot....
So a kooky right wing denier employs a kooky left wing group?
Really?
Nobody is arguing that Waxman-Markey is the final step in the journey. It's but one step.
B.T.W. Remember the ozone problem of the 80s and 90s -- the ozone hole? Remember how CFCs were the big problem. Know what we did? Cap and trade CFCs. Know what happened? The aggregate contribution to ozone depletion caused by gasses like CFCs has decreased.
Don't forget SO2
Costs:
SO2:
As a survivalist type off the grid experienced camper
solar may let you light up the camper with special energy efficient 12 volt flourescents and maybe a half hour of TV. Yes, five acre lots full of solar cells maybe but a completely powered by solar modern day up to code house, no way.
Best case frugal camping for three is four hours charge a day mostly because draining the batteries deeper requires longer charge times.
These large industries are in no way GOING TO ALLOW any departure from the conventional centralized power generation theme. As in consumer illusions of "feeding the grid". Nonsense.
No this is crash all trade with Bernie Madoff types in charge of the carbon footprint globalist cash cow.
Math
1 square meter (~11 ft2) of solar panels gets you about 120 kWh a year, here in sunny MA.
My house (4 BR, 6 people) uses about 8,000 kWh a year, a bit less than the 10k kWh (or 10 MWh) per year, median. We have lights, a TV, electric oven, a fridge, dishwasher, electric dryer, toaster, etc.
8,000 / 120 = 66.6 panels, or about 730 ft2.
Thats 0.017 acres. My lot is 1 acre. My roof is ~1500 ft2. You do the math.
It's not the physics, it's the economics. Which are getting there.
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