https://environmentamericacenter.org/feature/amc/we-have-the-power
"America has the power to build an energy system in which our energy comes from
clean, renewable sources like the wind and sun. There are many potential paths
America can take to build on our abundant clean energy potential and help
America rapidly achieve a renewable energy system.
Policymakers at the local, state and federal level should make concrete
commitments to move toward 100 percent clean and renewable energy by 2050 at
the latest. By doing so, they will be building on the example set by seven
states and more than 170 cities around the United States that have committed to
clean electricity or clean energy.
Renewable energy has tremendous promise as a tool to fight climate change,
clean our air, and safeguard our environment.
Pollution from burning fossil fuels is estimated to be responsible for more
than 1 in 10 deaths in the United States each year — more than 350,000 total
deaths in 2018.
Oil, coal and gas are responsible for 80 percent of all U.S. greenhouse gas
emissions. Fossil fuels harm the climate when we burn them for energy and as a
result of methane leaks that occur during mining, distribution and other parts
of the fossil fuel life cycle.
Research shows that, even considering the life-cycle impacts of manufacturing
and installing solar panels and wind turbines, a rapid transition to
emission-free renewable energy would create a vastly cleaner, healthier and
more sustainable nation.
America has abundant renewable energy resources capable of powering the nation.
Data from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) shows that America
has access to enough sun and wind to power the nation many times over.
America’s solar energy resources — counting just utility-scale and rooftop PV —
have the technical potential to produce 284 million GWh of electricity each
year, equivalent to 78 times U.S. electricity use in 2020. And America’s wind
power resources, both onshore and offshore, have the technical potential to
produce 40 million GWh of electricity each year, equivalent to 11 times U.S.
electricity use in 2020.
Every single state has either the wind or solar technical potential to power
that state’s current electricity use at least once over. Eighteen states have
the solar resources to power current electricity needs 100 times over, and five
states have the wind resources to do so.
Every single state other than Connecticut has either enough wind or solar
technical potential to provide all of its electricity needs under a 2050
scenario in which transportation, buildings and other applications have largely
been made to run on electricity."
Via
libramoon@pluspora.org.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
