solarray

From void into vision, from vision to mind, from mind into speech, from speech to the tribe, from the tribe into din.

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Old Solar: Jimmy Carter's 1979 Green Deal

Jimmy Carter’s energy plan called for "20% of our energy coming from solar power by the year 2000" in 1979. Renewables, wind, solar and hydro, are at just about that level now, 20 years behind his schedule.


Carter also wanted to insulate 90% of American homes and all new buildings and use solar energy in more than 2.5 million homes by 1985. There were 1.3 million solar installations in the USA in 2017 by one count and may be 1.9 million now by another and all low-rise residential buildings in CA will be built to net zero energy standards starting in 2020.


Carter was thinking in terms of his next four years in office. Extinction Rebellion is demanding that “Government must act now to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025.” The Green New Deal has a 10 year timeframe.


The argument can be made that Jimmy Carter in his cardigan sweater spouting “mush from the wimp” is more radical about energy than almost anyone in the public eye today.


PS: Reagan won the 1980 election and shut down the building solar wave with extreme prejudice. Reagan killed us. Carter’s energy plan would have saved us (as long as the terrible shale oil component was shelved).


Old Solar: 1881
https://solarray.blogspot.com/2010/02/old-solar-1881.html
Old Solar: 1980 Barnraised Solar Air Heater
https://solarray.blogspot.com/2008/09/old-solar-1980-barnraised-solar-air.html

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Zero Net Energy - July 18. 2019

Zero-energy demonstration project in Beijing made from pre-fab timber components
https://www.archdaily.com/907507/xuhui-demonstrative-project-sup-atelier
https://inhabitat.com/prefab-timber-complex-shows-off-net-zero-energy-technologies-in-beijing/

Energy blockchain for 55,000 rooftops in Japan planned, 100 rooftops now
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/01/22/blockchain-goes-big-55000-rooftops-eyeballed-for-peer-to-peer-solar-trading/
Power Ledger - Australian company behind the project
https://www.powerledger.io

Singapore’s first net zero energy building - 6 story building at the National University of Singapore School of Design and Environment
https://www.arch.nus.edu.sg/about/facilities/net-zero-energy-building-sde-4
https://inhabitat.com/singapores-new-build-first-net-zero-energy-building-opens-its-doors/

"S2A Modular in Southern California is building a factory to manufacture modular net-zero-energy private homes, condominiums, apartment complexes, and commercial buildings."
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/03/19/s2a-modular-offers-affordable-net-zero-homes-with-tesla-renewable-energy-components/
https://www.s2amodular.com

Renovated office building in Amsterdam is net positive energy with BREEAM outstanding rating 
https://inhabitat.com/an-old-office-is-transformed-into-the-netherlands-most-sustainable-renovated-building/
https://www.archdaily.com/911575/goede-doelen-loterijen-and-dutch-charity-lotteries-head-offices-benthem-crouwel-architects

Net zero energy church in Iowa
http://neumannmonson.com/uu/
https://inhabitat.com/inspiring-zero-energy-church-in-iowa-embraces-nature-in-more-ways-than-one/

In the EU all new buildings will be nearly zero-energy by the end of 2020 and all new public buildings have been nearly zero-energy since 2018.
https://ec.europa.eu/energy/en/topics/energy-efficiency/energy-performance-of-buildings/nearly-zero-energy-buildings

Eco-Capsule - self-sustainable micro-home
https://www.ecocapsule.sk
in Times Square NYC
https://www.facebook.com/events/999791243558680/

Net positive house in Lincoln, MA produces 67% more energy than it consumes with  -6.3kBtu/sf/yr
https://zeroenergy.com/lincoln-farmhouse
http://thoughtforms-corp.com/portfolio/better-than-net-zero
https://inhabitat.com/sublime-net-positive-energy-farmhouse-pays-homage-to-the-local-vernacular/

Carbon Drawdown Now:  Turning Buildings into Carbon Sinks
https://newframeworks.com/blog/2019/3/22/nesea-2019-carbon-drawdown-now-turning-buildings-into-carbon-sinks

Zero carbon retrofit for Paris 2024 Olympics
http://www.jakobmacfarlane.com/en/project/c40odysseepleyel/
https://inhabitat.com/industrial-building-is-reimagined-as-a-zero-carbon-paragon-for-paris-2024-olympics/

Norwich, UK’s 100 unit Passivhaus council house development
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/jul/16/norwich-goldsmith-street-social-housing-green-design

Tuesday, July 02, 2019

How Do You Pay for the Green New Deal: Cost of Fuel

I did some back of the envelope estimates of the cost of the fossil fuels we use in a year.  
The source of these figures is the USA DOE Energy Information Agency https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php

But any mistakes in arithmetic are my own.

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7.5 billion barrels of petroleum products consumed in USA in 2018
average price $69.78 per barrel
Cost of petroleum products:  $523,350,000,000

In 2017, the United States consumed about 27.11 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas
average of $4.08 per thousand cubic feet
Cost of natural gas:  $110,608,800,000

EIA expects total U.S. coal consumption in 2018 to fall to 691 million short tons (MMst)
$39.09 per short ton (2017 price) 
Cost of coal:  $27,011,190,000

Total:  $660,969,990,000

We spend nearly $661 billion per year or something like that on fuel alone every year.
And these are only ballpark numbers, probably on the low side.

With the 2018 USA GDP at $20.50 trillion, the cost of fuel is approximately 3.22% of annual GDP

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Another "cost" of fuel is covered in the International Monetary Fund's recent report on fossil fuel subsidies, covering 191 countries:

They look at the difference between the market price and "how much consumers would pay if prices fully reflected supply costs plus the taxes needed to reflect environmental costs and revenue requirements."

Global fuel subsidies were $4.7 trillion (6.3% of global GDP) in 2015 and were projected to be $5.2 trillion (6.5% of GDP) in 2017
China subsidizes the most with $1.4 trillion per year
$649 billion in 2015 for the USA, 3.6% of GDP
Russia at $551 billion
EU at $289 billion
India at $209 billion

"Efficient fossil fuel pricing in 2015 would have lowered global carbon emissions by 28% and fossil fuel air pollution deaths by 46%, and increased government revenue by 3.8 % of GDP."

Subsidies consist of underpricing for local air pollution, the largest source (48% in 2015), 
global warming at 24% 
broader environmental costs of road fuels at 15% 
undercharging for general consumption taxes 7% 
supply costs 7%

Coal and petroleum get 85% of the global subsidies monies. 
Coal receives 44% of subsidy monies
petroleum 41%
natural gas 10%
electricity 4%

"If fuel prices had been set at fully efficient levels in 2015, estimated global CO2 emissions would have been 28% lower, fossil fuel air pollution deaths 46% lower, tax revenues higher by 3.8% of global GDP, and net economic benefits (environmental benefits less economic costs) would have amounted to 1.7% of global GDP."

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The USA spends about $661 billion per year on the cost of fuel
and another $649 billion on subsidies for that fuel
That's about $1.2 trillion per year for the full cost accounting of fossil fuels and such fossil foolishness.
That's about 7% of USA GDP

The energy transition, Energiewende, of Germany is estimated to cost 0.5 - 1.2% of GDP per year

How do you pay for the Green New Deal?  You do away with the cost of fuel (and all the subsidies that go along with it).