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Politics : Manmade Global Warming, A hoax? A Scam? or a Doomsday Cult? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (1510)	9/12/2010 12:55:46 PM
From: Eric	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4326

Hawk I'm not sure whether it's a maintenance issue, or whether there is insufficient demand or distribution capacity. Modern wind turbines are very, very reliable from a mechanical and electrical perspective. Even more reliable than nuke and coal plants. These rows of wind mills will be merrily spinning one day, but be standing still the next (even in good wind conditions). I was in Germany a few years ago and watched a field of about one hundred wind turbines with about fifteen of then deliberately stalled. The wind had been blowing for about ten days and Germany had so much power generated from them that the major transmission lines leading out of the country couldn't handle all of the power! It happens quite a bit in Germany, especially in the wintertime. If you look at the load dispatch rates in Texas they have the same problems. I'm looking forward to the completion of the new DC converter intertie in Northern Texas so that excess power can be sent North, West and East.

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (1510)	9/12/2010 3:30:08 PM
From: russet	3 Recommendations Respond to of 4326

Map at link shows what each state's energy generation mix is. Biggest renewable is always dammed rivers which has its own eco challenges. americaspower.org People holding up Germany as a big example of renewable energy are a bit touched. en.wikipedia.org Electricity The main source of electricity still remains coal.[3] The recent plan to build 26 new coal plants [4] is controversial in light of Germany's commitment to curbing emissions.[5] Lignite is extracted in the extreme western and eastern pars of the country, mainly in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Sachsen and Brandenburg. Considerable amounts are burned in coal plants near to the mining areas, to produce electricity. Transporting lignite over far distances is not economically feasible, therefore the plants are located practically next to the extraction sites. Bituminous coal is mined in Nordrhein-Westfalen and Saarland. Most power plants burning bituminous coal operate on imported material, therefore the plants are located not only near to the mining sites, but throughout the country.[6] Germany is the world’s largest operators of non-hydro renewables capacity in the world, including the world’s largest operator of wind generation. [edit] Consumption German Natural Gas Consumption Germany is one of the largest consumers of energy in the world. In 2009, it consumed energy from the following sources:[7] Oil 34.6% Bituminous coal 11.1% Lignite 11.4% Natural gas 21.7 Nuclear power 11.0% Hydro- and wind power 1.5% Others 9.0% Renewable energy is far more present in the domestically produced energy, since Germany imports about two thirds of its energy. Germany is the fifth largest consumer of oil in the world. Russia, Norway, and the United Kingdom are the largest exporters of oil to Germany, in that order.[8] Germany is the third largest consumer of natural gas in the world. Because of its location at the center of Europe, Germany is the fourth largest consumer of coal in the world. Germany has the largest market of electricity in Europe