power struggles

we had a substantial snowfall recently following a day of crazy winds and hail here in chilliwack. here is a shot from our hike by harrison on wednesday:

and here are some pics from our hike on thursday.




now to the reason for this post. there are more windmills popping up around pincher creek every time i drive by (about once a year). there are now at least 1000 windmills in over a dozen windfarms between pincher and fort macleod. although some locals complain about the change to their horizon (and it is a substantial change in places) seeing these generators in action helps me believe that we will one day be able to wean ourselves from fossil fuels and build a more sustainable society. these pictures were taken on the way back from xcountry skiing in the crowsnest pass.


another hopeful sign is the recent advances in solar panel technology. around a year ago solar panels made a huge leap in efficiency, doubling the amount of power that could be produced with a given surface area. this advance not only decreases the size of arrays and the materials needed to produce them, it also makes solar windows or solar roof panels a much more attractive investment for the average homeowner with an average sized roof.
this year a company called heliovolt developed a method of "printing" photovoltaic cells directly onto construction materials like glass, steel and plastic. this thin film voltaic should be widely available in 2008 and has the potential to revolutionize power production.

imagine if a city passed a law that any new office or industrial building had to cover a certain percentage of their southern frontage with photovoltaic cells? or even just issued tax credits for retrofitting existing buildings? the amount of renewable energy produced would quickly become a large fraction of our total energy usage.

unfortunately governments have a history of making decisions based on politics, lobby groups and lack of foresight, so i'm not holding my breath. however, as this technology becomes cheaper it will become more attainable and more attractive to the average consumer. i believe that the only way we can actually change our energy sources is by working as individuals rather than waiting on govt policy. with fuel prices rising and technology prices falling i am hoping for a convergence of mutual benefit for the entrepreneurs and consumers.

an early case in point here involves the ill fated electric car. kylie and i recently watched the entertaining documentary who killed the electric car? which makes a compelling case that GM deliberately sabotaged their own line of electric cars b/c they worked too well and threatened the viability of their other car lines. it even gets in a few jabs at the republicans who torpedo an initiative to provide tax credits to electric car buyers in favor of providing tax credits for hummers... thats right, hummers.

anyways, back to my point... if govt and the larger car manufacturers can't be trusted to act in our best interest then perhaps economics can point us in the right direction. aaron and i were discussing this after our drive back past the windmills. if a product or service is in demand but not being supplied this encourages the creation of small independant start ups to fill niche markets. enter tesla motors, an independant car company that recently unveiled its showpiece product, an electric sports car that does 0-60 mph in under 4 seconds, makes almost no noise and comes with all the standard amenities. with existing battery technology it already has a range of over 250 miles. add in more efficient batteries and a roof covered in photovoltaic cells and you have a dream vehicle from both the pleasure and environmental standpoint. at $100,000 US this particular model is a bit impractical for the average consumer (plus they're sold out) but the company has plans to expand their line once they have some capital flow. its a start anyways.
so i suppose my recent thoughts can be summed up by saying i have hope for the future but consumers will have to stop trusting in government and industry and start taking matters into their own hands. when citizens start producing their own power then govt will have to follow or lose theirs.