Global warming concerns helped persuade the state Public Service Commission on Tuesday to reject a plan by Florida’s largest utility to build a $5.7-billion coal-fired power plant near Everglades National Park.
The denial marks the first time global warming has ever played a role in a PSC decision, and the first time in 15 years the state regulatory agency that oversees utilities has rejected a new power plant.
Gov. Charlie Crist had questioned the plant’s location, the National Park Service had raised concerns about air pollution and environmental groups had argued it would increase greenhouse gases at a time when the nation is trying to combat global warming.
| Considering that the sun shines most every day in Florida they should be working to utilize solar energy. At least they’re starting to pay attention to global warming. |
#19, GlobalWarmer, you’re right in that the Shuttle couldn’t do it without a monster load of engineering / extra booster tech. The sats must go into geosynchronous orbit, so why not use the tried and true Delta launch vehicle? The technology is available and proven right now, I’m wondering whether it’s the govt. supporting oil or the nature freaks that don’t want a solar farm in their back yard that are hindering the progress. So we’ve got to build transmission lines from Death Valley to civilization. Didn’t we build a transcontinental railroad once?
Pmitchell, I asked if you worked at a coal power plant before. You stated you “called on the largest coal fired plant in Texas…” What does that mean, exactly?
You can cry bullshit all you want, sir, but in reality, I worked in the public power industry in Nebraska for a couple of years, including working at Gerald Gentleman Station, a 1,365 megawatt coal burning facility. So I have a good idea how clean coal isn’t and studies have likewise shown how clean coal isn’t. In fact, working on the inside, I know another dirty little secret. If you work at a coal plant for a while, you pick up so much radiation that you exceed the maximum allowable levels for a person that would work at a nuclear power station. (Yes, Nebraska has nuclear power plants, two of them to be exact. I’m also sure the idea of public power makes your blood boil, as well, especially considering private companies have no chance at doing the job as effectively as public power does.)
I would highly recommend digging yourself out of your own bullshit pile before accusing anyone but yourself as being a hack, sir.
I remember visiting my grandmother in Palm Beach…. I swear she had the aircon turned down to 60′ I froze my *** off! I wonder if they could ‘turn it up to 78′ and not have to build the thing ..
#22, natefrog, don’t coal plants emit about 3x the radiation per unit power than nuclear plants? Did you have to wear a dosimeter?
That about sums up the global warming debate. Pay higher energy bills now or have energy rationing in exchange for maybe some lowering of temperatures in the future.
This was two 980-megawatt plants. Did anyone wonder on many square miles of solar panel would be needed to produce 980 MW of power, at what cost. On top of all that, you don’t have solar energy during nights and less in cloudy days. There is a huge difference between base load power and other type of “green” energy.
Please the proponents of solar, give me the REAL numbers on what it would take to produce 2x 980megawatt of constant base load power 24 hours a day.
Maybe nuclear is a cleaner intelligent solution.
#20 – Peer reviewed scientific data supports:
* Warming in the first half of the 20th century that had NO human contribution
* Warming in the 2nd half of the 20th century that had some human contribution.
Peer reviewed data does NOT support the Algore catastrophe that requires us to all sacrifice and suffer.
That’s a paraphrase of the chief climatologist at MIT and is the reason an increasing number of respected scientists are jumping off the bandwagon claiming there’s too much hype and not enough science going on. The media can’t be trusted because they cherry pick the worst sounding bites out of the IPCC reports.
Yes, there is a certain amount of warming happening, but in the world of real science there is even debate as to whether or not it’s even a bad thing.
If Florida doesn’t want to build a coal plant, fine – as long as they build something. I would like to see 500 or so new power plants built in this country. We have the technology to generate so much power that it can essentially be given away.
What about wave power energy for a base-load? http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=11489
40% solar cell efficiency is here now! This is the greatest breakthrough in solar tech to date, topping the goal of 22%. Get some monster Li-ion battery tech and a solar farm with 40% efficiency (that’s 1 sol per panel, not concentrated), and we’re in business.
Concentrated sols on 40% panels would be extremely efficient. Tthere are new techs that use cheap reflective mylar film mounted on discarded 55 gal. drums under vacuum to create inexpensive spherical / parabolic mirrors for concentration to increase efficiency even further.
“Attaining a 40 percent efficient concentrating solar cell means having another technology pathway for producing cost-effective solar electricity. However, by using an optical concentrator, sunlight intensity can be increased, squeezing more electricity out of a single solar cell.”
From the US DOE:
http://www.energy.gov/news/4503.htm
Hello inexpensive power for the southwest and midwest US.
I officially apologize for italicizing the entire end of my last post. Can’t type a closing tag without more coffee in my I guess.
I wonder if power companies thought about using natural energy sources to offset high fuel cost. For example, a power company in Florida could use solar power to provide some electricity which would reduce the amount of coal, oil or natural gas purchased that gets used to provide most of the electricity. Of course, this does not mean electric bills would go down.
#24: No, we weren’t required to wear any protective clothing or dosimeters since coal isn’t under the jurisdiction of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. If persons were working frequently with coal, they probably would wear masks, but that’s about it.
Wow Global….
everything boils down to “as long as we don’t suffer…”
I’ll never understand, honestly, what the fuck you are talking about or where you went to school that they taught the most hyperbolic definition of suffer.
This is what is hurting our culture and our nation… Conspicuous, unchecked consumption. A culture of reckless excess is tearing us down. I little moderation in energy policy would be at least one thing to help address that problem.
#33 TheGlobalWarmer is the archetypal conservative — he expressly refuses to lift a finger to help the environment (“so long as i don’t have to sacrifice“)
don’t waste time debating with him, he will only support policy that makes his life easier
# 33-34 You guys get it.
I’m a “progressive” as in progressing to bigger, better, more…. If you want me and other progressives to use less energy, find us a more efficient way to do what we do at no added cost and we’ll jump on it. Do not ask us to do less as it’s not necessary. Mother Earth is going to be just fine.
I’m sure the power companies have thought about lowering their costs, and are acting that way right now. I also think the competing power companies are ecstatic over the nonapproval of this plant.
#35 – Only an idiot thinks Mother Earth needs protection. We can’t hurt the planet. It’s too big and it has a self correcting ecosystem.
It’s humans that are in danger. We are literally dying now from the effects of being gluttonous over-consumers in the name of personal gratification and vanity.
Tallwookie said, “hhopper, the only problem I see with using solar panels in florida is the hurricanes…”
So what? If a hurricane hits, everything gets destroyed. That’s not a good reason not to have green power.
TheGlobalWarmer said, “…Algore catastrophe…”
Didn’t you mean Al-Gore-rythm??
If a hurricane hits a coal plant, it results in cleanup but the plant can quickly become operational again. If a hurricane hits a solar panel farm, it wipes out said farm and requires replacement. I would suspect the later is far more expensive.