Part I
The Basic Facts of Energy Life
In this part . . .
Alternative energy is defined differently by different people. Obviously, the definition you get depends on the context and who is doing the defining. In this book, I define alternative energy as any energy source that is an alternative to the fossil fuels that rule the world today. In Chapter 1, I describe how fossil fuels have evolved to the point where they are the overwhelmingly dominant energy source. In Chapter 2, I explain what the term “energy” actually means — info you need to know to understand how the different alternatives compare to the current system that relies on fossil fuels. In Chapter 3, I get into some hard facts of energy consumption, important background information for understanding how energy moves through a system and what happens to energy once it’s “used.”
Chapter 1
What a Mess!
In This Chapter
Understanding the current energy situation
Identifying problems in the current system
Looking at alternatives
For the most part, producing energy and consuming energy is a very dirty business. Although you all may have a sense of this, the extent of the problem seems to be a political question open to debate. What should be done about energy consumption? Use less? Use different resources? How can new energy sources be best invested in? And perhaps of most importance, what types of new energy sources should be invested in? And what about global warming? Can anything really be done about it? What will new energy sources and the combating of global warming cost both the society as well as individuals?
A lot of solutions are being tossed around, but it’s nearly impossible to separate the wheat from the chaff. And to make matters worse, political fringes screech from the sidelines in preachy tones that tend to turn people off to the point where they just plain don’t want to listen any more. This is a system guaranteed to create gridlock and partisanship, and that’s been the norm for so long that everyone is just plain used to it.
Leaving the important questions up to the politicians hasn’t worked too well, and so it’s incumbent on everybody to understand the issues so that informed decisions can be made when voting for candidates with varying views concerning both the problem and the solutions. Informed decisions also help you to decide, on a micro basis, what’s best for your homes and your families. This chapter gives an overview of energy use — as well as the system’s problems — from the past and present as well as what can be done in the future.
Understanding Where Society Is and How It Got Here
The fact is, energy is a critical component of your lives and your economy as a whole. You use energy in virtually every endeavor you engage in, whether you’re aware of it or not. Life expectancy in the U.S. has increased 66 percent over the last century (from 47 years in 1900 to 78 years today). Americans are living longer, healthier lives, and for the most part Americans are more secure and knowledgeable about their world. Life is just plain better than it used to be, and this has been made possible by advances in medicine and technology — advances that all took a great deal of energy.
To make any kind of claim that energy consumption has been anything but advantageous to humanity completely misses the point. The problem is not with energy, it’s with the way energy is used and which types are used.
It’s only becoming evident now that energy use is a zero-sum game: You pay every bit as much as you gain, but the terms under which you pay are still not clear. Of course, you pay for each gallon of gas you use, but we’re also learning that we are paying in environmental costs and health costs. The most fundamental concept that this book can teach is this: The U.S. (and by extension, the world) does not have an energy crisis. Rather, it has an environmental energy policy crisis. The U.S. has as much energy as it wants to use. The question is how to use it and what kinds of limitations should be set in terms of how the environment is affected through that energy use. To answer that question, you need to get a handle on energy use in the past, present, and future.
Historical trends of energy use
Humans have evolved in step with the sophistication of their energy consumption. Human populations, quality of life, and life expectancy have increased as energy sources have become more sophisticated.
Think about it: Early man couldn’t even light a fire. Many froze in the winter, with only wooly mammoth skins to keep them warm, and the quality of life was not much different than that of animals. Once fire was discovered and humans were able to create flames at will, humanity began a gradual but consistent climb from savagery to what it is today. Upon the advent of fire, humans could warm themselves and cook their food. This began the consistent push toward bigger and better cultural and material gains, and it lead to healthier, happier lives.
Throughout time, the human population remained steady for the first 1,500 years and then began a steep, consistent climb. The increase is due largely to the availability of versatile, convenient energy. As controlled, or useable, energy became more prevalent, the population expansion accelerated.
Table 1-1 shows how population and energy consumption per capita have increased through the ages. Continue this trend out a hundred years, and it suggests that the only thing humans will be doing a century from now is consuming energy, 24/7. Regardless whether you’re willing to take that leap intellectually, the fact is, humans use more and more energy every year. This growth can’t be supported, unless society comes up with alternative sources and consumption habits; otherwise, fossil fuel reserves will be depleted by the year 2050.
| Table 1-1 Population and Energy Consumption over Time |
| Date | Population (in billions) | Consumption in kWh/day |
| 5,000 bc | 0.1 | 9.4 |
| 0 ad | 0.3 | 10.1 |
| 1850 | 1.3 | 12.0 |
| 1980 | 4.4 | 51.0 |
| 2000 | 6.0 | 230 |
| 2050 | 9 | 1,000? |
You can see how greater populations results in higher energy consumption. You can also get a feel for how daunting and necessary it is to find a workable solution for energy consumption.
Energy use today
Today, Americans consume around 100 Quads (quadrillion Btus, or British thermal units; head to Chapter 3 for information about energy measurements) of energy per year. (This number includes only sources of thermal energy, such as gasoline, natural gas, coal, and so on, and not the vast carbohydrate network that supplies our food chain.) So is that a lot? Here’s 100 Quads worth of energy in units that resonate: Fifteen large horses labor, day and night, 24/7, for each U.S. citizen.
The breakdown of U.S. energy consumption is roughly 40 percent electric, 30 percent transport, and 30 percent for heating. While we burn most of this energy, only about 30 percent goes to direct heating. The rest is used to turn shafts to make electricity, and to turn shafts to move our cars. Eventually, all of this energy makes it back into t...
