Renewables

There is a great misnomer coined by the oil industry, and which has existed for several decades. It is the term "oil production", which suggests that oil is an endless resource since it can be "produced". Of course that is far from reality. Oil cannot be produced. Oil can only be extracted. So the correct term that better represents reality is "oil extraction".

Oil extraction is what oil companies do. They locate the oil underground, then extract it and sell it for a profit. I'm not making judgments on this process. But it is extraction, and not production. All the improvements in technology for oil extraction have led to oil being extracted faster - it has not significantly made more oil available (although more efficient methods have made more oil and gas available, that oil and gas was always there in the first place and are not something we can actually produce).

So we have been at the effect of the term "oil production" for at least several decades, which suggests that oil is endless and thus it makes sense to build a society that is completely dependent on oil. Maybe we've done things differently if we had used the term oil extraction instead. Who would consciously choose to make petroleum an element that is necessary for their own survival when they know it's something that will eventually run out?

I'm afraid there's another misnomer being coined these days, and one which could have a detrimental effect on our society for decades to come. I am referring to the renewable energy industry, that is, the industry that has been building solar panels and wind turbines. Are these really renewable?

When I think of renewable, I think of a tree. A tree that grows from a seed that fell on the ground. The seed germinates and the tree grows upwards and downwards, with the roots getting longer and deeper in the soil, thus collecting and driving the nutrients that will grow the trunk of the tree and produce the leaves and fruits. Then a seed or fruit (with seeds in it) will eventually drop from one of the branches when the tree is fully grown, and reach the soil right around where the tree started. The seed will then go on to germinate and follow the same process until it becomes a tree again and it can produce seeds; some of which will become trees, and so on and so forth. This process is renewable until someone decides to remove the tree because the area will be paved for building a parking lot. But that's another story. The point I'm trying to make here, is that that is what I understand to be a renewable process. We humans work the same way: we grow to be adults, then mate and have babies, which then grow to be adults and do the same. So by the same logic, humans are renewable. We could live forever should our conditions remain the same (which we know not to be the case).

But when it comes to "renewable energy", as referring to solar panels and wind turbines, I'm not sure they are renewable. Wind turbines do not produce wind turbines. Solar panels do not produce more solar panels. As a matter of fact, solar panels do not even produce solar energy. Solar panels barely capture the amount of solar energy that radiates onto them (about 1% of the total energy).

I'm not trying to make an argument against solar panels or wind turbines. I'm simply suggesting that they are not renewable. And I'm afraid that we will suffer greatly if we continue to refer to them as renewable, which will subliminally lead us to believe that we can forever produce them.

- Ricardo Parker

Where our "alternative energy" technology is today.

Check out this video and see where our alternative technology is today, at least off the shelf technology. It's pretty high-tech stuff.

Notice that all the energy produced by the solar panels and wind turbine are not enough to power the truck and camper! As a matter of fact, the energy produced is not even enough to power just the truck.

Now, of course this is likely a diesel truck (or maybe gasoline), and so the truck cannot be moved by electricity because it's not an electric truck. But rest assured that the electricity being produced by that RV is not enough energy to move the truck by any significant distance. Not to mention that if you were to make it an electric truck with today's technology you'd be adding a lot of very heavy (and expensive) batteries that would add to the total weight; thus requiring even more energy to move the truck than it currently requires.

Lastly, I'd like to mention that all this high-tech equipment (solar panels and wind turbines) can only be manufactured right now through the burning of fossil fuels. I.e., his equipment might provide enough energy for his needs (but not enought to move the truck) and in an era of say, oil scarcity, this might be a great thing. However, eventually his "alternative fuel" equipment will have to be replaced (due to wear or damage), and if that happens in an age where oil is scarce... he might not be able to replace it.

I hope this illustrates where our technology is today and the incredible energy density of liquid fuels. Of course there's hope... we are still trying to develop technology that will "produce" energy that is not dependent on fossil fuels.

So far, however, all this technology that people are hoping will solve the energy crunch that we're facing is all built on fossil fuels. In other words, no oil means not enough energy and not enough materials to build all this equipment!