Energy Choices

The economic challenges we are facing as we stagnate in a depressed economy in North America, Europe and around the world will not be solved until we face the reality of our energy choices.  We must reduce our dependence on carbon fuels to slow down climate change for the sake of our grandchildren.  A sustainable energy plan for the world is the key to a sustainable way of living on this planet. 

Last fall at this time CUSJ had a big discussion about nuclear energy and submitted a brief to the Darlington Commission opposing the building of new nuclear power plants.  It was a controversial decision because some people felt that ultimately it was less harmful than continuing to burn coal and the priority should be to close down coal-burning plants.  Of course we must convert from burning coal, but we decided in our brief that if the world goes to nuclear, the damage to the environment and the greenhouse gases needed to mine, and refine uranium were too serious to ignore.  In addition there is no acceptable solution for nuclear waste, nuclear is not as reliable or as cheap as promised, and the reactors produce plutonium which can then be used in nuclear weapons.

At the same time as we were doing this, Unitarians in Eastern Canada were actively opposing the process of fracking in order to produce natural gas.  Unitarians in Western Canada were actively opposing the efforts to build pipelines so that Tar Sands production could be vastly expanded.  We concluded that if we wanted to focus our energy on the positive we had to promote renewable energy whole-heartedly.

But even as we promote wind power, rural Ontario is fighting against it.  When we turn to waterpower we find that there have been many negative effects from huge hydro projects and there is much opposition to new mega-dams.  Solar power is still not as productive as we need.  Renewable energy requires some kind of storage system to be truly useful and most of the battery systems require very rare minerals that must be found and mined.

We all want to know that when we flick the light switch or plug in our computers the power will be there, and yet we are against every source of power that might deliver that security to us.  According to Jeff Rubin in “The End of Growth”, economic growth has been built on cheap oil.  With oil becoming more expensive, we can no longer expect to expand our economies using debt and amortize the debt through economic growth.  We are caught in an energy dilemma that will get worse as human populations expand.

My vision is as follows:

• ·         We have to end subsidies to big oil and implement a carbon tax.  Peter Victor (in Managing Without Growth) has demonstrated that cap and trade is not enough but a carbon tax will be effective in helping people reduce their oil and coal consumption.
•       Renewable energy has to be on an equal playing field or even be subsidized to promote innovation and renewable energy development.
•        Mega projects are out.  Sensitive local energy projects (such as Childhaven’s biogas systems that use human waste to produce gas for cooking) are in. We need an energy revolution similar to the revolution that occurred when we went from mainframe to desktop computers.  Every location will have a best-fit renewable energy approach suitable to its particular assets.  Windy places will have wind.  Sunny places will have sun.  Smaller hydro projects will respect the rivers and creeks that support them.  Some places are more suitable for geothermal or biogas.  All cities will make gas from human waste.
•       We all have to take a page from India and China.  Guaranteed supplies of power 24/7 will not be available.  Industry will have priority.  Base power supplies will be smaller.  We will have to share what is available.  The available power will be rotated among us.
•        The most effective way we have to postpone this future is to reduce our energy consumption.  All incentives for energy should be to promote innovation and personal discipline to use less energy. 

These things are not politically popular.  We need leaders who will face the realities and tell us the truth.  Rather than use all the oil and coal now, we can leave some in the ground.  We must enter the transition toward a new type of economy that is not based on growth.  We cannot make it through this major transition – which will be a societal change similar to the agricultural, industrial, and information revolutions – without real leadership and planning.  Leaders in all areas – federal, provincial and municipal government, industry, and the not-for profit sector must all contribute to the solutions.  Research shows that happiness does not come from more stuff and status.  It is time for us to move towards simpler, more equal lifestyles using much less energy.  We can do it.  All we need is the awareness, and the political will.  It is time that we stop indulging ourselves today and plan instead for the thriving of our children and our grandchildren.