Category Archives: Experts

experts in energy, ecology, collapse, carrying capacity, biophysical and neoclassical economics, etc.

David L. Greene, ORNL: Raise cafe standards and gas tax

Excerpt from: U.S. House. February 9, 2005. Improving the nation’s energy security: can cars and trucks be made more fuel efficient? Committee on science, House of Representatives, Serial No. 109-3. 140 pages. DAVID L. GREENE, OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY, CENTER … Continue reading

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Tilting at Windmills, Spain’s disastrous attempt to replace fossil fuels with Solar PV, Part 1

Book review by Alice Friedemann at energyskeptic of “Spain’s Photovoltaic Revolution. The Energy Return on Investment”, by Pedro Prieto and Charles A.S. Hall. 2013. Springer. Conclusion: the EROI of solar photovoltaic is only 2.45, very low despite Spain’s ideal sunny … Continue reading

Posted in Alternative Energy, Charles A. S. Hall, Debt, Electric Grid, Energy Books, EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested, Pedro Prieto, Photovoltaic Solar, Solar, Solar EROI | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Pedro Prieto – what life used to be like decades ago in small Spanish villages

 [I’m reading James Howard Kunstler’s excellent trilogy “A World Made By Hand” now to get an idea of what life might be like post-peak when the worst of the crisis is over. Prieto’s vivid descriptions are wonderful, I wish he’d … Continue reading

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Robert McNally on energy at U.S. Congressional Hearings

[I think it is interesting to know what Congress hears about energy from experts, and what the official U.S. energy policies are.  It is frustrating that Energy Return on Invested (EROI) is never discussed, even by intelligent analysts like McNally.  … Continue reading

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Kunstler: Potemkin Party

James Howard Kunstler. July 27, 2015. Potemkin Party. www.kunstler.com How many of you brooding on the dreadful prospect of Hillary have chanced to survey what remains of Democratic Party (cough cough) leadership in the background of Her Royal Inevitableness? Nothing … Continue reading

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The crude oil export ban: Helpful or hurtful 2015 House hearing

House 114-22. April 14, 2015. The Crude oil export ban: Helpful or hurtful? House of Representatives. [ Excerpts from the 73-page transcript of the hearing follow ] Ted Poe, Texas. The United States is now the largest crude oil producer … Continue reading

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Rising oil prices and dependence on hostile regimes — the urgent case for Canadian oil

[Sullivan has an interesting overview of the instability in the Middle East, which could lead to an oil shock quickly along with the economic and sky-high prices that entails. He also mentions “peak oil” and its implications, a term rarely … Continue reading

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Former President Carter on U.S. energy security & policy now and in the past

                    [Former President Carter and General Wald both say the American public need to be better informed about the energy crisis to motivate them to stop buying gas-guzzling vehicles, since that’s … Continue reading

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Energy & Agriculture, Senate hearing July 20, 2000

Senate 106-930. July 20, 2000. Energy and agriculture. U.S. Senate hearing. Excerpts from this 162 page document follow: RICHARD G. LUGAR, INDIANA I begin the hearing by raising what I believe is a very important question: Are Americans prepared for … Continue reading

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Congressional hearings on Rail

June 10, 2008. S. HRG. 110–1165 Keeping America Moving: A review of national strategies for efficient freight movement. 74 pages. Hearing before the subcommittee on SURFACE TRANSPORTATION & MERCHANT MARINE INFRASTRUCTURE, SAFETY, & SECURITY of the committee on COMMERCE, SCIENCE, … Continue reading

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