Cape Wind

Cape Wind just got approval from federal regulators, as it is a pet project of the democrats and a leading contender for shoving green energy up America's ass.

Cape Wind has been fought over for the last 9 years, and this is not just conservatives vs eco-hippies. In this case, there are environmental groups on both sides, because Cape Wind will provide clean energy - but it will also provide a deathtrap for local bird populations as well has have a pretty significant impact on the local ecology.

And this is where Cape Wind starts to get stupid. It is a land grant giveaway in order to produce enough energy to power 75% of the needs of... Nantucket, Cape Cod, and Martha's Vineyard. In other words, almost nothing. But it is projected to cost $1 billion dollars (for a controversial first-of-kind clean build. In Massachusetts.Which means it will cost $2-5 billion or so.)

One of my main points on this blog is that most people think too small. This is a perfect example. It is a matter of resources and potential. Nantucket sound is used by a lot people for boating recreation, etc. Not to mention used by a lot of birds for flying, and not getting chopped in half. And yet, what does this country have a lot of? Energy. Specifically, nuclear and coal.

Lets start with nuclear. It is the only clean energy available today which can actually power all of America. Easily. Wind and solar at this point are a joke. 75% of a peninsula and two small islands? What is that, like powering a block of NYC? Instead, at much lower cost, you could build a modern, safe, nuclear reactor which powers half of New England with energy costing 1/4 as much (not to mention baseline power). Oh yeah, and the only waste product would be limited nuclear waste - which there are options for dealing with, and regardless has become a much bigger issue than it should be, and steam. Damn, that steam can really hurt the environment.

Then lets talk about coal. Right now, it ain't clean. But in 10 years, we should have full effective CCS (carbon capture and storage). Then the question becomes - what the hell to do with all that carbon. Well - remember your high school bio classes? - CO2 is actually what plants, and algae, live on. They like it, a lot. To them, oxygen is a waste gas (its why we live so well together). So you take the CO2, feed it to special algae, and voila, you have biodiesel. So what is now a downside to coal becomes, in 20-30years, a viable commodity feedstock to create renewable fuel. Isn't science wonderful.

What isn't wonderful is when the public and politicians get hold of the wrong end of the stick, and hammer an idiotic plan through that does very little, costs a lot, and acts mostly to "green" up an already over-budget and idiotically mismanaged state. This is the state equivalent of buying a Prius.

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