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Eco-logue is published bimonthly by the Rochester Regional Group of the Sierra Club * Join the Rochester Group by Printing out our Brochure & sending it to us.
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Energy Notes: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly by Robert Siegel The Good New York City has unveiled a new program that will convert waste gas into electricity at eight of the city’s sewage treatment plants, reducing smelly fumes and saving up to 3,000 barrels of fuel oil a year. In Spain, Bay of Biscay, the first wave power generating station is being set up to produce 1.25 megawatts. The turbines will operate under all but the heaviest and calmest conditions. They are expecting to have 80-90% availability as compared to 30-45% for wind and 20-30% for solar. The Bad The Italy Town Board will vote in mid-March on a six-month moratorium on wind farms. This could dramatically affect wind development in neighboring Prattsburgh. Wind farms have been a divisive issue in the town. There is a surprising amount of opposition to wind energy in our area. A South Bristol wind farm proposal was recently defeated by vigorous local opposition. Wind is not a perfect solution, although it is clean and it does not contribute to global warming. There are issues associated with it such as bird kills, noise, safety concerns such as thrown blades or ice and of course aesthetic concerns. The fact that they are heavily subsidized at this point raises questions about their economics. The Sierra Club policy on Wind Energy says it is an important alternative to fossil fuel-based power generating systems though great care must be taken in the selection of sites. Lord Peter Levene, chair of Lloyd’s of London, says that terrorism is not the insurance industry’s biggest worry, despite the fact that his company was the largest single insurer of the World Trade Center. Lloyd’s is bracing for an increase in weather disasters related to global warming. The Ugly The Bush Administration appears to be using a deliberate strategy of encouraging the public to believe that there is no scientific consensus on the dangers of global warming. A confidential memo prepared for Republican leaders by consultant Frank Luntz, and obtained by the Environmental Working Group, contains these quotes: “The scientific debate is closing [against us] but not yet closed. There is still a window of opportunity to challenge the science.” .... “Voters believe that there is no consensus about global warming within the scientific community. Should the public come to believe that the scientific issues are settled, their views about global warming will change accordingly. Therefore, you need to continue to make the lack of scientific certainty a primary issue in the debate.”
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