Group Says Sun Could Power State
Posted on: Friday, 9 May 2008, 09:00 CDT
By Scott Streater, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas
May 9--Harnessing the sun's power has been a dream of man for millenniums.
But a study released Thursday by Environment America argues that it's not just a dream. The group says the technology exists to use solar energy to power Texas completely in the next 25 years.
The idea proposed in the study is challenging. The most notable of the many hurdles is the billions of dollars needed to build transmission lines from the solar panels in desolate West Texas to metropolitan areas such as Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston.
But the group says such a move could transform a state long hammered for being one of the country's biggest polluters into an environmental leader while creating tens of thousands of so-called green-collar jobs.
"Solar thermal power is ready for prime time," said Luke Metzger, director of Environment Texas, the group's state chapter. "If we are going to get serious about fighting global warming and addressing our nation's energy woes, solar energy must be part of the solution."
SOLAR POWER
The idea
Environment America, a national advocacy group, says an array of solar panels scattered over many square miles in West Texas could power the entire state. And because solar energy storage allows electricity generation even when the sun is not shining, the group says solar energy can replace energy from dirtier traditional sources such as coal.
Saving energy in Texas
The state's energy leaders have said for years that the state needs to build more power plants. Several much-protested coal-fired and natural gas power plants are in the planning stages. But solar energy may provide an alternative. "Texas' combination of land, wind and solar resources positions Texas to profit from a fleet of solar thermal power plants up and running within the next five years," said John O'Donnell, vice president of Ausra Inc., a global company that develops utility-scale solar power technology.
Saving energy nationwide
The U.S. has the ability to put 80 gigawatts of concentrated solar power in place by 2030. That's enough to power 25 million homes. And the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has identified the potential in the coming decades for more than 7,000 gigawatts of solar power generation in the Southwestern U.S. alone -- more than six times current U.S. electricity consumption.
Good for the environment
Most of the state's energy comes from coal-fired power plants, which emit pollutants that contribute to ground-level ozone, as well as toxic materials such as mercury. But a growing concern is emissions of greenhouse gases linked to global warming. Texas leads the nation, by far, in carbon dioxide emissions, and power plants are the leading source. Solar panels create no pollution.
The challenges
As is the case with wind energy, the main obstacle is building transmission lines to bring solar-generated power to population centers. The lines are "the key to unlocking the door to vast wind and solar energy use in Texas," said Mike Sloan, president of Virtus Energy. Also, it takes a lot of land to generate that energy. Current estimates suggest it would take 10,000 square miles of open space to power the entire U.S. -- an area about one-third the size of the Panhandle.
What's next?
The group recommends creating a $3 billion annual fund for research, development and deployment of renewable energy technology.
Online
A copy of the report is available at www.environmentamerica.org.
Sources: Environment America, Environmental Protection Agency, Energy Information Administration
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Source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas)
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