Tag Archives: EROI

How United Nations scientists are preparing for the end of capitalism

Preface. The article below was written by Nafeez Ahmed, who wrote one of my favorite books  “Failing States, Collapsing Systems: BioPhysical Triggers of Political Violence“. Ahmed writes: “Most observers have no idea of the current biophysical realities – that the driving … Continue reading

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ITER fusion: How’s it coming along?

Preface. Fusion is the only possible energy resource that could replace fossil fuels according to Martin Hoffert, et al in the 2002 Advanced Technology Paths to Global Climate Stability: Energy for a Greenhouse Planet, Science. I’m not so sure fusion … Continue reading

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Crash alert: China’s resource crisis could be the trigger

Preface.  Way to go Nafeez Ahmed, your second home run of reality based reporting on the energy crisis this week.  There are countless economists within the mainstream media predicting an economic crisis worse than in 2008, but they totally ignore … Continue reading

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Why tar sands, a toxic ecosystem-destroying asphalt, can’t fill in for declining conventional oil

This is a book review of Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent by Andrew Nikiforuk. Many “energy experts” have said that a Manhattan tar sands project could prevent oil decline in the future.   But that’s not … Continue reading

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Peak Oil, Coal and Natural gas in China

Preface. Below are excerpts from 2 articles.  You may want to read Tverberg’s article here since I left out the charts and included just a few excerpts. Some key points: The world needs growing energy supply to support the world … Continue reading

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Renewable EROI must include storage, low capacity factor, wide boundaries

[ Trainer argues that when you consider how the capacity factor of wind and solar are to fossil plants, seasonality of wind and solar the number of facilities is quite large to deal with the intermittency problem.  Therefore the storage … Continue reading

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Richard Heinberg on why low oil prices do not mean there is plenty of oil, EROI, collapse

[ Yet another wise, thoughtful, and wide-ranging essay from my favorite writer of the many facets of a civilization about to decline as it is starved of the fossil fuels that feed it.  Although the topics are quite varied, Heinberg … Continue reading

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Peak soil: Industrial agriculture destroys ecosystems and civilizations: Biofuels make it worse

Preface. In 2018 I thought it was time to reorganize this post, as it grew more and more bloated and disorganized with new information. Eventually it turned into my 2021 book Life After Fossil Fuels: A Reality Check on Alternative … Continue reading

Posted in Alternative Energy, Biofuels, Biomass, Energy, Peak Biofuels, Peak Topsoil, Soil | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Minerals: Natural gas from Ugo Bardi’s “Extracted”

Preface. This is just a small sampling of what Bardi thinks might happen post fossil fuels, mostly shortened and reworded. Here are 7 other posts from this great book: Mining: Waste, Pollution, Destruction Ugo Bardi predictions of the future Minerals … Continue reading

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Why studies come up with different Energy Returned on Invest (EROI) results: can it be fixed?

[ There are many issues with biofuels beyond their trivial to negative energy return on investment (EROI). In Peak Soil I point out that current industrial farming techniques are destroying topsoil about 15 times faster than pre-fossil fuel economies — … Continue reading

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