Seattle producing electricity from garbage (article)

The article below vaguely mentions that "Seattle has begun getting electricity from its own garbage and will soon get more":

Garbage power: Seattle touts renewable energy source

Is it just me or does this article suggest that we can convert garbage into electricity as in "the more garbage we produce, the more energy we have?" or "let's produce more garbage so that we can increase the share of energy we get from renewable sources?" Something about the way this article was written just doesn't sit right with me.

Also not mentioned is what percentage of the garbage is converted to electricity. Is it 100% of the garbage or 20%? Inquiring minds want to know.

Also would be interesting to know the amount of energy spent to move the garbage to the landfill location and the energy spent to transfer the electricity back to Seattle. But I suppose that is technical information that would be too much to ask.

A little political ranting.

My blog is not about ranting or venting. It’s more about facts, real numbers and educated conclusions, than it is about opinions. Yet recently I’ve felt compelled to write something political. So here it goes.

Last month I went to the Sea-Tac airport and as I get to the top of the escalator inside the terminal I see this huge poster of a Toyota Tundra right in front of me, advertising nothing but the POWER that vehicle offers.

Why is it that in the age of Peak Oil and Global Warming we are still with the mentality of buying vehicles that have POWER? Why is it that auto manufactures (in this case Toyota) are still using POWER as the element to make their cars appeal to the American public?

Sometimes I think we in the US are such a backwards culture. We are so behind the times.

A few conclusions have been made, which are almost indisputable:

1. Oil (and all fossil fuels) are a finite resource. They will run out at some point. And we have the ability (maybe not the political will) to calculate how much time the remaining known oil reserves will last. After that, the people left on the planet will have to figure out how to carry on without relying on oil, and eventually all other fossil fuels.
2. The US has been the biggest consumer of oil, well ahead of any other country. Americans consume about ¼ of the world’s oil while Americans are about only 5% of the world population.

So how come we still allow corporations to continue to encourage people to be more wasteful with a finite resource that we know is dwindling? Well, clearly we lack leadership.

Speaking of leadership, I made another conclusion a while back. After speaking to many people, and most of my friends, I observed that the majority of the people around me have made, at one point or another, a statement to the effect of “well, things are this way but I’m not responsible – I did not vote for this president”.

My conclusion is that all American voters are responsible for the current state of affairs. Your not voting makes you an accomplice of all the crimes against humans and the environment that have been and continue to be committed.

And the same applies to the people who “did not vote for this president”. You are still an accomplice on this war for cheap oil if you are still wasting energy and consuming more oil than everyone else on the planet. Do you get it? You say you didn’t vote for the guy and yet you’re enjoying all the benefits that come from his actions. “I didn’t vote for him” is nothing but a cop-out so you can still live in your usual comfort and convenience that is not sustainable.

We are on a destructive path and no one is doing anything about it other than to get on the green bandwagon just to look good. All of the major auto manufacturers ought to be ashamed of themselves. In their insatiable desire for profit they continue bigger and inefficient cars to sell to the American public. No one wants to give up a little money in order to lead the way towards protecting our environment and creating an industry that is sustainable. Everyone is raping the planet until there’s no resource left for anyone, and then we’ll all sink together – be this in our lifetime or in future generations.

We know it’s time to give up wanting power for the sake of humanity. We know our wasteful consumption of energy means the next generation will have less time to find alternative solutions.

Major automakers have the power and capacity to produce a decent, safe and efficient EV in a year or two. The hydrogen prototypes are another scheme for companies to continue to control the supply of fuel so they can maximize their profits. Electricity is available in every home in America. Unplug your toaster and plug in your car. It’s that simple, and electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. But if you live off the grip and collect your energy from the sun or wind, you are giving no money to the oil companies because oil companies become useless in an new era of electric vehicles. Gas stations would disappear and something to be seen in a museum.

So it’s no wonder that there’s all this hype about vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells, even though hydrogen technology has some major issues that probably won’t be solved for decades to come. The oil companies are powerful and want to maintain their power. They have been making absurd profits.

We cannot expect oil companies to change the world for us. Solutions have to start with the consumer, that is, you and I. You ought to demand the product that companies will then build for you. Start slowly – drastic change doesn’t usually work, but walking in the right direction is crucial. Start demanding more fuel-efficient vehicles. Then switch to other fuel alternatives if you can: biodiesel or ethanol. Electric Vehicles are not yet an option, but I trust that they’ll come into the picture in time. Ride a bicycle and walk more. Exercising will prolong your life. Another way to look at it is “driving reduces your life”. Use mass transportation systems whenever you can. You bus and train fare supports these companies, and their service will improve if there’s more demand for mass transportation.

And last, but probably the biggest difference you can make: remember to vote, and vote wisely. Our leaders represent who we are as people, for we elect them.

Peace, and thanks for reading.

- Ricardo Parker

A little political ranting.

My blog is not about ranting or venting. It’s more about facts, real numbers and educated conclusions, than it is about opinions. Yet recently I’ve felt compelled to write something political. So here it goes.

Last month I went to the Sea-Tac airport and as I get to the top of the escalator inside the terminal I see this huge poster of a Toyota Tundra right in front of me, advertising nothing but the POWER that vehicle offers.

Why is it that in the age of Peak Oil and Global Warming we are still with the mentality of buying vehicles that have POWER? Why is it that auto manufactures (in this case Toyota) are still using POWER as the element to make their cars appeal to the American public?

Sometimes I think we in the US are such a backwards culture. We are so behind the times.

A few conclusions have been made, which are almost indisputable:

1. Oil (and all fossil fuels) are a finite resource. They will run out at some point. And we have the ability (maybe not the political will) to calculate how much time the remaining known oil reserves will last. After that, the people left on the planet will have to figure out how to carry on without relying on oil, and eventually all other fossil fuels.
2. The US has been the biggest consumer of oil, well ahead of any other country. Americans consume about ¼ of the world’s oil while Americans are about only 5% of the world population.

So how come we still allow corporations to continue to encourage people to be more wasteful with a finite resource that we know is dwindling? Well, clearly we lack leadership.

Speaking of leadership, I made another conclusion a while back. After speaking to many people, and most of my friends, I observed that the majority of the people around me have made, at one point or another, a statement to the effect of “well, things are this way but I’m not responsible – I did not vote for this president”.

My conclusion is that all American voters are responsible for the current state of affairs. Your not voting makes you an accomplice of all the crimes against humans and the environment that have been and continue to be committed.

And the same applies to the people who “did not vote for this president”. You are still an accomplice on this war for cheap oil if you are still wasting energy and consuming more oil than everyone else on the planet. Do you get it? You say you didn’t vote for the guy and yet you’re enjoying all the benefits that come from his actions. “I didn’t vote for him” is nothing but a cop-out so you can still live in your usual comfort and convenience that is not sustainable.

We are on a destructive path and no one is doing anything about it other than to get on the green bandwagon just to look good. All of the major auto manufacturers ought to be ashamed of themselves. In their insatiable desire for profit they continue bigger and inefficient cars to sell to the American public. No one wants to give up a little money in order to lead the way towards protecting our environment and creating an industry that is sustainable. Everyone is raping the planet until there’s no resource left for anyone, and then we’ll all sink together – be this in our lifetime or in future generations.

We know it’s time to give up wanting power for the sake of humanity. We know our wasteful consumption of energy means the next generation will have less time to find alternative solutions.

Major automakers have the power and capacity to produce a decent, safe and efficient EV in a year or two. The hydrogen prototypes are another scheme for companies to continue to control the supply of fuel so they can maximize their profits. Electricity is available in every home in America. Unplug your toaster and plug in your car. It’s that simple, and electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. But if you live off the grip and collect your energy from the sun or wind, you are giving no money to the oil companies because oil companies become useless in an new era of electric vehicles. Gas stations would disappear and something to be seen in a museum.

So it’s no wonder that there’s all this hype about vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells, even though hydrogen technology has some major issues that probably won’t be solved for decades to come. The oil companies are powerful and want to maintain their power. They have been making absurd profits.

We cannot expect oil companies to change the world for us. Solutions have to start with the consumer, that is, you and I. You ought to demand the product that companies will then build for you. Start slowly – drastic change doesn’t usually work, but walking in the right direction is crucial. Start demanding more fuel-efficient vehicles. Then switch to other fuel alternatives if you can: biodiesel or ethanol. Electric Vehicles are not yet an option, but I trust that they’ll come into the picture in time. Ride a bicycle and walk more. Exercising will prolong your life. Another way to look at it is “driving reduces your life”. Use mass transportation systems whenever you can. You bus and train fare supports these companies, and their service will improve if there’s more demand for mass transportation.

And last, but probably the biggest difference you can make: remember to vote, and vote wisely. Our leaders represent who we are as people, for we elect them.

Peace, and thanks for reading.

- Ricardo Parker