A short pop quiz.
Which of the following energy sources are green?
1. Windmills
2. Oil
3. Solar Panels
4. Nuclear power
Answer key is below.
Answer Key:
1. not green
2. green
3. not green
4. green
“But wait teacher you made a mistake. I got all of my answers wrong and I know I have the correct answers.”
“No, I am sorry you are quite wrong. Let me explain.”
Wind and Solar energy are very diffuse sources of energy. So to collect sufficient amounts of energy we would have to use millions of acres of land on windmills and solar panels. Using up land for these purposes is wasteful and NOT green. Let me give you an example. To power New York City we would have to put solar panels over the entire states of Kansas and Nebraska. On the other hand, oil and atomic energy are very dense energy sources and found in places we don’t find life. We can dig deep in the ground where there is virtually no life and use a relatively small amount of land for nuclear reactors to power New York City. Oil is less green than Atomic energy but still more green than the others (Oil is less green than atomic energy because it is a less dense source of energy) . Once again we dig deep in the ground and use a relatively small amount of land on pipelines and refineries to extract the energy we need. Land is conserved and that IS green.
“Aha I’ve got you now. The refineries release so much carbon and polution in the air and that can’t be green!” you reply.
“I am sorry you don’t understand. Let me continue.”
You see we are in the process of reforesting the United States. Thanks to pesticides and fertilizers (once again VERY green) we get greater and greater crop yields from less and less land. We also use a lot less land feeding horses which used to be our main source of transportation. All of that land is returning to its natural state and consuming more and more carbon dioxide from the air. More than we even produce. You see wilderness is the key. That is why airplanes are more green than trains. Doubt it as you may it is true.
