Re: Digital Tools Help Users Save Energy, Study Finds

["Robert Green" <ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx>]

"Dave Houston" <nobody@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:478a9ac9.312662203@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> I saw that article. There was another a few weeks back (NYT, IIRC) about a
> company that manufactures equipment to generate electricity using waste
heat
> from smokestacks. The potential savings from both ideas is huge (4-5 times
> the savings from CFLs) but most utilities are guaranteed a rate of return
on
> investment so they have no interest in reducing their plant & equipment -
> the more they waste, the more they profit.
>
> The smokestack generators could even be combined with scrubbers to remove
> mercury and other pollutants.

Isn't it odd that instead of hearing "By 2009, we're going to make all power
plants install scrubbers" the refrain is "by 2009, we're going to force
CONSUMERS to change their way of life to compensate for what the power plant
owners AREN'T doing."

> But congress isn't likely to take on the electric power industry from
whence
> cometh campaign funds. Instead, they force CFLs on consumers. It's a
twofer
> as they can also collect campaign funds from Philips and Wallmart.

It really does smack of the "red herring" technique of debating where you
focus the attention away from the real problem.  The problem here is dirty
power plant exhausts and the refocusing is on a scheme that will probably
not have much effect on mitigating airborne mercury but will certainly
increase the amount going into the groundwater via landfills.

Until consumers can offer Congress bigger bribes than the power companies
can, I'm afraid we're going to see more of these sorts of "solutions."
We've already seen the carbon offset and energy spot markets "gamed" so that
consumers get screwed.  We need *direct* solutions and not offsets or
schemes like trading mercury-laced bulbs for environmentally benign bulbs to
"save" the environment.  That "control a pest with another pest" theory
didn't work so well in Australia when they tried eradicating the cane beetle
with the cane toad  . . .

--
Bobby G.

>
> "Robert Green" <ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> >http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/10/technology/10energy.html?ref=science
> >
> >"Giving people the means to closely monitor and adjust their electricity
use
> >lowers their monthly bills and could significantly reduce the need to
build
> >new power plants, according to a yearlong government study.
> >
> >The results of the research project by the Pacific Northwest National
> >Laboratory of the Energy Department, released Wednesday, suggest that if
> >households have digital tools to set temperature and price preferences,
the
> >peak loads on utility grids could be trimmed by up to 15 percent a year."
> >
> >(more at site - registration may be required - if so, just copy a
paragraph
> >into Google . . . )
>
>---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
> >---------------------------------------
> >
> >Sounds like a better way to do things than adding mercury to the
environment
> >in a commodity item sold by the millions (billions?) and trusting
*everyone*
> >to recycle religiously.  This study correctly points out that "peak
loads"
> >are what matter the most.  That's not likely the time that CFL bulbs are
on
> >line;  there's usually plenty of daylight available during peak load
hours
> >so the savings gains claimed by CFL use have to be taken with a grain of
> >salt (in a tincture of mercury).
> >
> >I still firmly believe that if the problem is coming OUT of power plant
> >smokestacks, that's where it should be controlled.  Schemes that add a
known
> >toxin to the environment in incredible numbers should be examined very
> >closely so that we don't create as big a problem as the one we are trying
to
> >solve.  Automakers knocked the pollutants coming out of cars down to
> >incredibly low levels compared to the 1960 levels once people and the
Feds
> >demanded it.  The power plant operators have to be brought to the same
level
> >of social responsibility even though they'll kick and scream every inch
of
> >the way.
>
>
> http://davehouston.net  http://davehouston.org
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