Last August, Rep. Mark McConkey dropped prices at his Ossipee gas station for 90 minutes as a publicity stunt to blame the enormous gas prices on President Joe Biden.
California is approximately 101,676,000 acres in overall size. 20,698,000 acres are National Forest which cannot be used for anything other than forestry. This would theoretically leave 80,978,000 acres or 3,527,401,680,000 square feet for solar panel exposure.
There are 39.24 million people in California requiring approximately 5 solar panels or 32 square feet each per person. That comes to 1,255,680,000 square feet or almost 35% of the total land mass covered by solar panels. That is larger than the total landmass of all the farmland in California [1,102,068,000 square feet].
So, it will take more than all of the current farmland to make solar power feasible just to keep the lights on at home. This excludes the remainder of California’s total energy requirements for industrial, commercial, schools, transportation, or its single largest user of electricity the Central Valley Project pumping water to LA.
Maybe now you can begin to understand just how “not ready” we are for the panacea of sustainable renewable energy independence.
And these numbers are assuming those panels can perform at 100% efficiency, all the time, without degradation, or cloudy days.
This is also without factoring in the loss of trees, plants, habitat, and micro-biosystems that take in CO2 and release oxygen and sustain life once you clear this land for solar farms.
And while we are at it, let's not forget the eventually needed disposal of the innumerable old solar panels and batteries or their toxic chemicals when they wear out.
Would you like to discuss wind turbines' lifespan, and eventual maintenance issues (15-20 years) or disposal? And what’s up with whales crashing into the eastern shoreline?
Lastly, none of this accounts for future demands on the grid with greater reliance on EVs and mandated electrical appliances.
By the way, you should be open and honest about who you represent when writing these Op/Eds; Professor Emeritus & former Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Journalism.
"MEPD Ret" - You comment a LOT on letters here but you NEVER sign your comments with your real name and town. Since you criticize Leonard for not including his former job titles in his letter, the least you can do is sign your real name and town when you post a comment. Otherwise you are a hypocrite to demand more from others. Respectfully, Alex Moot, Chocorua.
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(3) comments
Leonard,
Here are some fun facts and figures to mull over:
California is approximately 101,676,000 acres in overall size. 20,698,000 acres are National Forest which cannot be used for anything other than forestry. This would theoretically leave 80,978,000 acres or 3,527,401,680,000 square feet for solar panel exposure.
There are 39.24 million people in California requiring approximately 5 solar panels or 32 square feet each per person. That comes to 1,255,680,000 square feet or almost 35% of the total land mass covered by solar panels. That is larger than the total landmass of all the farmland in California [1,102,068,000 square feet].
So, it will take more than all of the current farmland to make solar power feasible just to keep the lights on at home. This excludes the remainder of California’s total energy requirements for industrial, commercial, schools, transportation, or its single largest user of electricity the Central Valley Project pumping water to LA.
Maybe now you can begin to understand just how “not ready” we are for the panacea of sustainable renewable energy independence.
And these numbers are assuming those panels can perform at 100% efficiency, all the time, without degradation, or cloudy days.
This is also without factoring in the loss of trees, plants, habitat, and micro-biosystems that take in CO2 and release oxygen and sustain life once you clear this land for solar farms.
And while we are at it, let's not forget the eventually needed disposal of the innumerable old solar panels and batteries or their toxic chemicals when they wear out.
Would you like to discuss wind turbines' lifespan, and eventual maintenance issues (15-20 years) or disposal? And what’s up with whales crashing into the eastern shoreline?
Lastly, none of this accounts for future demands on the grid with greater reliance on EVs and mandated electrical appliances.
By the way, you should be open and honest about who you represent when writing these Op/Eds; Professor Emeritus & former Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Journalism.
"MEPD Ret" - You comment a LOT on letters here but you NEVER sign your comments with your real name and town. Since you criticize Leonard for not including his former job titles in his letter, the least you can do is sign your real name and town when you post a comment. Otherwise you are a hypocrite to demand more from others. Respectfully, Alex Moot, Chocorua.
So, that's your takeaway? How about criticizing my content instead, if you can?
I think my points are completely valid.
BTW, I have good reason to remain anonymous. Being less than Left-leaning I have gotten more than enough threats from idiots and morans in the past.
The CDS knows who I am. My opinions are my own and no one owns me. That's enough for me.
Besides, there are plenty of regular commenters who swing far Left that remain anonymous on this forum. I don't see you worried about them.
Welcome to the discussion.
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.