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The basic flaw in “Green Energy”: Power down is the only sustainable option

By Karl North | July 10, 2010

There is a basic flaw in the idea that a massive transition to alternative fuels is a sustainable solution: Any significant replacement of fossil fuel with renewable energy will continue to eat up the other key materials that are critical to the survival of industrial societies. Without these finite resources, the present production of “stuff” that maintains our material standard of living will collapse. Worse, the production of stuff at anything like the present rate, using any energy source, will continue many of the increasingly obvious negative ripple effects of all sorts, of which global climate change is just one.

This tragic truth will be the hardest to get through the blanket of denial that unfortunately covers much of the ‘green’ movement. Its current focus on climate change and its “solution – a transition from “dirty fuels” to “clean replacements” – is a delusion to avoid the root problem.

We need to punch past the current single issue focus on climate change, and keep pointing out all the other undesired effects of the modern rate of production, some of which were satirized in The Story of Stuff: the damage to the natural resource base (some of it permanent), the plunder of the resources of the ‘client states’ of the industrial empires, the damage to quality of life wherever people are conditioned to value stuff more than anything else, and the theft from our children and future generations.

Eventually resort to nuclear power and other such “solutions” will be cut short by the general economic collapse driven by the depletion of oil. But major investments in nuclear power and renewables will chew up a lot of precious resources in the effort before they grind to a halt. That would be a further tragedy. Instead, we should aim for modest, local energy alternatives and persuade people of the rewards to be gained from just powering down.

Topics: Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

One Response to “The basic flaw in “Green Energy”: Power down is the only sustainable option”

  1. Karl K Says:
    July 17th, 2010 at 7:50 pm

    Yes, this is what absolutely no one wants to hear.

    It’s what makes me a doomer.

    If one more person tells me, “Don’t worry, they’ll think of something!” – I am very likely to run away screaming….

    KK

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