Rolling Blackouts

[ChairmanJoeAintMyPresident]

Yeah, I heard part of the issue in Texas was that they had wind turbines freezing up.

Texas gets a larger share of their electricity from wind and solar than anyone could imagine.

If you don't look at it from a "green" perspective and look at it more from an "independence" perspective, it totally comports with the Texas ethos.

[Zedta]

Roughly 33% of the US power grid is still tied to fossil fuels. Natural Gas burns clean anyway and it blows me away that we are not utilizing this clean burning resource more. We have endless amounts and we have so much of it companies for the most part shy away from these types of projects due to the low prices (they still drill them but not to any sizeable scale compared to oil).

I'll never get it but then again I'm just a Geologist in energy so what do I know.

Recent developments in coal burning power plants, have made them almost as clean as the natural gas plants. We have two or three here in Florida, and other than a water vapor from the stack, with very little, if any, precipitate production. The ash they collect from the scrubbers on site is sold for other uses. Over at Crystal River, there is a 'being decommissioned' nuclear plant. They are building a coal-fired plant, or perhaps its natural gas, I don't recall, to replace it. But the facts are that this old nuclear one will take years to scrub up and make clean enough to fully dismantle. I think there is still some core material on site as well and that takes very special handling and storage later, due to thousands of years of deadly radiation that is still being emitted. For the amount of power produced by nuclear, the cost to build the facilities, maintain, and later dismantle with the cost of the fuel, its mining and refining...with all of that, nuclear is really not in the slightest way, cost-effective. It is hugely costly, even if there is not problems in any of the preceding processes.

[SeeTheLight]

Roughly 33% of the US power grid is still tied to fossil fuels. Natural Gas burns clean anyway and it blows me away that we are not utilizing this clean burning resource more. We have endless amounts and we have so much of it companies for the most part shy away from these types of projects due to the low prices (they still drill them but not to any sizeable scale compared to oil).

I'll never get it but then again I'm just a Geologist in energy so what do I know.

Recent developments in coal burning power plants, have made them almost as clean as the natural gas plants. We have two or three here in Florida, and other than a water vapor from the stack, with very little, if any, precipitate production. The ash they collect from the scrubbers on site is sold for other uses. Over at Crystal River, there is a 'being decommissioned' nuclear plant. They are building a coal-fired plant, or perhaps its natural gas, I don't recall, to replace it. But the facts are that this old nuclear one will take years to scrub up and make clean enough to fully dismantle. I think there is still some core material on site as well and that takes very special handling and storage later, due to thousands of years of deadly radiation that is still being emitted. For the amount of power produced by nuclear, the cost to build the facilities, maintain, and later dismantle with the cost of the fuel, its mining and refining...with all of that, nuclear is really not in the slightest way, cost-effective. It is hugely costly, even if there is not problems in any of the preceding processes.

That's great news regarding coal. I'm glad new technologies are coming in to play to make coal power generation better.Also the type of coal is very important from a geological perspective ranging from Anthracite to Lignite.

https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/what-are-types...e_products

Driving through parts of South Texas at night the sky can be as bright as driving through a major metro area with all of the gas that is being flared. We have plenty of it lets utilize it more.

I'm with you on nuclear, I'm not on board with it. I grew up in uranium country and have seen the devastating effects on the health of citizens not to mention the cleanup (I had my backyard dug up and replaced because it was hot growing up). I lost my grandpa to lung cancer from it (uranium miner).

[SeeTheLight]

Yeah, I heard part of the issue in Texas was that they had wind turbines freezing up.

Texas gets a larger share of their electricity from wind and solar than anyone could imagine.

If you don't look at it from a "green" perspective and look at it more from an "independence" perspective, it totally comports with the Texas ethos.

Makes sense but you would think a state that is chalked full of clean burning natural gas they wouldn't be worrying about energy independence.

Looks like they may have diverted a little to much electrical production to wind and solar.

[jovan66102]

Well, we seem to have escaped, at least so far. Unless there was a short one whilst both the DW and I were asleep (a small window from about 06.00 until 08.00) we didn't have one. I have no way of telling, since our microwave is not programmed with the time, a long story in itself, and all our other time pieces are either online, hence self correcting, or battery powered.

[Eric F]

Coping with Winter really isn't that hard. I once walked close to 2.5 miles to work in minus 25 to see what it was like. Piece of cake, I was dressed like the younger brother in A Christmas Story. I could have stayed out all day. If the heat at home went out in temps like that, you do the same thing. Lot's of sweats, sweaters, extra socks, do the trick. Down blankets are a God send, and always bring the cats and dogs into your bed.