Texas Power Outage Danger Until June 18th. Texans told to conserve energy!

[Eric Gagen + 713]

17 minutes ago, Rob Plant said:

is it just me that cant see any grass for any animals to eat?

That's my point - in one case the climate is dry (although note there are plenty of fields off in the distance), but in both cases the solar panels are too closely spaced to make it a realistic concept.  

Edited July 2, 2021 by Eric Gagen

[-trance + 114]

Ginseng seems to like shade, is slow growing, and is profitable. 

I've seen large fields with installed shade coverings.  Those farmers are literately paying just for shade.

[turbguy + 1,544]

26 minutes ago, -trance said:

Ginseng seems to like shade, is slow growing, and is profitable. 

I've seen large fields with installed shade coverings.  Those farmers are literately paying just for shade.

Coffee (Finca La Unica) and tobacco (Connecticut shade) as well??

Edited July 2, 2021 by turbguy

[Eric Gagen + 713]

9 hours ago, NickW said:

They get sunlight in the early morning and late afternoon when the sun is lower in the sky. They also get a fair amount of light from reflection hence the reason it isn't pitch black underneath a solar panel that is mounted 1.5m off the ground. 

 

This I agree with - he was saying that light passes through the panels, which is something I have seen on a lab scale.  

[Eric Gagen + 713]

45 minutes ago, turbguy said:

Coffee (Finca La Unica) and tobacco (Connecticut shade) as well??

This would work - it has to be slow growing, and something valuable enough that you can make the project work when all the agricultural labor is done by hand - you aren't getting any 20 bottom ploughs, muiltirow seed drills, or 6 meter wide harvesters into a solar field.  

[Boat + 1,324]

On 6/15/2021 at 8:23 PM, ronwagn said:

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/06/texas-power-grid-operator-ercot-issues-conservation-alert-asks-texans-raise-thermostats-unplug-appliances-avoid-blackouts/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily

What is going on? Texans will be mad. 

Texas simply is not keeping up with population growth and all the demands that come with it. Republicans are more worried about how other states vote instead of minding the store. Abbot focuses on a trip with Trump to the border rather than running more transmission lines to West Texas for an unlimited supply of solar. Popularizing racism might excite the base but will do little to cool homes from increasing climate change effects.

[Boat + 1,324]

[Boat + 1,324]

https://solargrazing.org/what-is-solar-grazing/
 

It just takes a little imagination.

[Boat + 1,324]

[footeab@yahoo.com + 2,190]

2 hours ago, -trance said:

Ginseng seems to like shade, is slow growing, and is profitable. 

I've seen large fields with installed shade coverings.  Those farmers are literately paying just for shade.

Near Full Shade... for 2-->3 months/year for a rare crop.  The other growing period ~ Spring/Fall, requires NO shade. 

According to your idea of farming, nearly 100% of every acre of corn/soy/wheat/sunflower/etc farming wants "shade"... Yea, they want partial "shade" for about 1-->2 month out a year for about 2-->4 hours a day assuming no cloud cover during peak temperature which is peak sun.  Gain?  About 25%.crop yield.  

IF that pencils out in your world... Ok. 

[footeab@yahoo.com + 2,190]

15 minutes ago, Boat said:

Or, you can get same temperature drop and water conservation by simply planting cover crops and harvesting them along with interplanting say, tall Hemp/Corn which makes far more money as it saves your soil. 

Or you can do both.  Depends on region.  For instance Both the above is needed in subtropical areas or DRY areas such as near desert. 

[-trance + 114]

1 hour ago, footeab@yahoo.com said:

Near Full Shade... for 2-->3 months/year for a rare crop.  The other growing period ~ Spring/Fall, requires NO shade. 

According to your idea of farming, nearly 100% of every acre of corn/soy/wheat/sunflower/etc farming wants "shade"... Yea, they want partial "shade" for about 1-->2 month out a year for about 2-->4 hours a day assuming no cloud cover during peak temperature which is peak sun.  Gain?  About 25%.crop yield.  

IF that pencils out in your world... Ok. 

There are shade tolerate plants, they deal just fine with shade all year long. Near zero light? Do mushrooms.

Or add some panels to those centre pivot irrigation systems - they would reduce evaporation losses.

Be creative, not conservative.

Edited July 2, 2021 by -trance

[Jay McKinsey + 1,490]

14 hours ago, Rob Plant said:

If the waste is managed properly then it isnt an issue. This is stored in specialist flasks that can withstand a high speed rail crash.

As you say the land mass whether its sub surface or not is irrelevant.

If the UK can manage it then surely the USA has enough land mass and desolate areas to store in a facility??

https://www.niauk.org/industry-issues/waste-management/

What about the badlands of South Dakota?

Oh, so now you want to dump it on the Sioux. Did you see how they reacted with the pipeline?  

Proper management is irrelevant, because no one trusts the industry to do it properly and no one wants their state to be known as the nuclear dump site. Letting it sit in the cooling ponds looks to be working just fine. Every community that benefited from the nuclear power is now also burdened with the waste in the same proportion.

[Ecocharger + 1,474]

7 hours ago, Eric Gagen said:

This would work - it has to be slow growing, and something valuable enough that you can make the project work when all the agricultural labor is done by hand - you aren't getting any 20 bottom ploughs, muiltirow seed drills, or 6 meter wide harvesters into a solar field.  

By contrast, oil wells do not interfere with agricultural use, they are often surrounded by functioning wheat fields in the Dakotas.

[Ecocharger + 1,474]

7 hours ago, Boat said:

Texas simply is not keeping up with population growth and all the demands that come with it. Republicans are more worried about how other states vote instead of minding the store. Abbot focuses on a trip with Trump to the border rather than running more transmission lines to West Texas for an unlimited supply of solar. Popularizing racism might excite the base but will do little to cool homes from increasing climate change effects.

And creating public panic over a non-existent CO2 crisis might obscure the real science on the issue for a time, but will come to an end eventually.

[Ecocharger + 1,474]

6 hours ago, Boat said:

Off topic. Does not respond to the point.

Edited July 3, 2021 by Ecocharger

[turbguy + 1,544]

7 hours ago, Boat said:

Texas simply is not keeping up with population growth and all the demands that come with it. Republicans are more worried about how other states vote instead of minding the store. Abbot focuses on a trip with Trump to the border rather than running more transmission lines to West Texas for an unlimited supply of solar. Popularizing racism might excite the base but will do little to cool homes from increasing climate change effects.

I agree that increased population in a control area implies increased demand in that control area.  Part of that increase must be jumping the border.

Until Texas gets really serious about demand side management, ERCOT will continue to be challenged.

[Jay McKinsey + 1,490]

10 hours ago, Eric Gagen said:

This would work - it has to be slow growing, and something valuable enough that you can make the project work when all the agricultural labor is done by hand - you aren't getting any 20 bottom ploughs, muiltirow seed drills, or 6 meter wide harvesters into a solar field.  

This harvester looks to be 4 meters wide with a lot of room to spare.

 

Edited July 3, 2021 by Jay McKinsey

[footeab@yahoo.com + 2,190]

8 hours ago, -trance said:

There are shade tolerate plants, they deal just fine with shade all year long. Near zero light? Do mushrooms.

Or add some panels to those centre pivot irrigation systems - they would reduce evaporation losses.

Be creative, not conservative.

"shade tolerant" === they don't die, but they also do not create food either unless you are looking at VERY small amounts of salad greens.  There are rare exceptions such as Ginger, Coffee, Green Onions, Oregano... pretty much spices. 

There are a large number of crops which need the lower temperatures but also require full sun.  So, in areas outside of their natural growing zones that have more sunshine than they need, then solar panels over them helps as this cuts down temperatures and sun.   Any crop that is growing in or near its optimal climate zone, solar panels will not help, they will hinder. 

Solar panels over ditches could be a thing, but otherwise, we are looking at semi arid regions benefiting the most.  A good portion of the world is in semi arid regions during the growing season. 

[NickW + 2,714]

12 hours ago, Eric Gagen said:

This I agree with - he was saying that light passes through the panels, which is something I have seen on a lab scale.  

I believe transparent / partially transparent solar panels are in the pipeline. 

 

[NickW + 2,714]

19 hours ago, Rob Plant said:

is it just me that cant see any grass for any animals to eat?

Caked in weedkiller to kill any vegetation off. 

Alternative systems use organic lawn mowers (Sheep / goats) to clear that vegetation and turn it into high quality protein. 

[Eric Gagen + 713]

3 hours ago, NickW said:

I believe transparent / partially transparent solar panels are in the pipeline. 

 

They have been 'in the pipeline' for a long time on a lab/test scale, but for real world use they are far too expensive. 

[Boat + 1,324]

8 hours ago, Ecocharger said:

And creating public panic over a non-existent CO2 crisis might obscure the real science on the issue for a time, but will come to an end eventually.

For the sake of argument let’s drop climate change. Pollution alone and it’s affects on health and healthcare costs make FF long term investment in 40 year investment sketchy. People just are not woke to how much pollution destroys the quality of life in hundreds of millions. 

[Piotr Berman + 82]

I have seen a YouTube video about a project to build 200 MW wind power station on Yamal Peninsula.  The investor is Novatek, a company that buys NG from Gazprom and turns it to LNG, and exports it by ships, with the help from icebreakers in winter.

It seems that the location has the advantages of sea winds and location on solid ground (almost solid, swampy permafrost).  Importantly, since most of the electricity will be used to liquify NG, there is no problem if there is electricity shortage from time to time: NG can go to storage to be processed later, and the gas turbines will not be dismantled either.  Economics should be good with only a bit of subsidies (NG is taxed, wind is not, but Russia does not tax NG heavily).

In most places, the conditions are not as good.  Designating who decreases electricity consumption during occasional shortage is mostly improvised, and few industries are as tolerant as liquifying natural gas.  But the current shortage in Texas seems mild, "Yellow Alert, undress to underwear/beachwear at your homes", at least men of any age and young women should survive comfortably with thermostates at 80 or even higher.

 

 

[Piotr Berman + 82]

 

Alternative systems use organic lawn mowers (Sheep / goats) to clear that vegetation and turn it into high quality protein. <-- Eric Gagen

Seems that fully green and organic solutions require to have some non-vegans in the population.