Decision '09
Blog Index

_____________

Debate #3
Elusive Water Vapor:
High Altitude Hydrogen Jets, and the Delicate Stratosphere
12/31/09


_____________


Debate #2
Green Energy
in the American Southeast
05/14/09

Topics featured in this debate:

Offshore Wind

Concentrated Solar

Hydrogen from Solar Electrolysis


Expert Commentary:

Robert Leitner
South Carolina's Institute for Energy Studies

Nate Blair
National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Jeffrey Nelson Sandia National Laboratories

Fred Humes Education, Training and Research Center at ARC: Hydrogen

Todd Stone
3TIER, Global Renewable Energy Assessment and Forecasting

Erika Hartwig Myers
South Carolina Energy Office

Chris Daetwyler
SC Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance


_____________

Debate #1
Biomass from
Poplar Trees
03/13/09



_____________


Energy Links:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

National Renewable Energy Lab

Wind Logics

Garrad Hassan

Vestas

American Solar Energy Society

United States Council on Green Building (LEED)

National Association of Home Builders

Associated Builders and Contractors

Associated General Contractors

The California Institute of Earth
Art & Architecture

Green Building Funding Opportunities

DSIRE
Database of Incentives


Southern Alliance for Clean Energy

South Carolina Energy Office

SC Hydrogen

Nuclear Energy Institute

World Resources Institute

International Renewable Energy Alliance

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership

International Network for Sustainable Energy

World Council for Renewable Energy

International Renewable Energy Agency

Apollo Alliance

Rocky Mountain Institute

Sierra Club

National Association of Electrical Distributors

Edison Electric Institute

Electronic Industries Alliance

Int'l Council on Mining and Metals

Mineral Information Institute

American Institute of Architects

Pellet Fuels Institute

Link to
Government Sites:

White House

Supreme Court

State Dept.

WH Office on Management and Budget

WH Council of Economic Advisers

EPA

DOE

Dept. of Agriculture

USGS

DOD

National Solar Thermal Test Facility

Sandia National Laboratories

Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility

Darpa

NASA


Links to Science Organizations:

Union of Concerned Scientists

Federation of American Scientists

The Planetary Society

US Maritime Alliance

Standards Engineering Society

National Fisheries Institute

Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology

American Chemical Society

Chemical & Engineering News

International Congress of Radiology

American Society for Cell Biology

Institution of Engineering and Technology

Science Initiative Group

California Council on Science and Technology

American Polar Society

Links to Governmental and Business Groups:

World Planners Congress

Int'l Intellectual Property Alliance

US Chamber of Commerce

Environmental Working Group

Foreign Policy Group

Southern United States Trade Association

Washington Research Group (Guggenheim Partners)

Nat'l Conf.
of State Legislators

Nat'l Association of Government Contractors

Investment Company Institute

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority

American National Standards Institute

Urban Land Institute

Independent Business Alliance

American Independent Business Alliance


Link to Media Sites:

National Geographic

Mother Earth News

Solar Today Magazine

Farming Magazine

1 Sky

Charlie Rose

Nightly News with Brian Williams

Washington Post

Meet the Press

Jim Lehrer NewsHour

60 Minutes

BBC

_____________


Home


Contact


"The adoption of a holistic worldview globally may represent humanity's greatest chance for a promising future to be shared by all." yasha husain


Selected
Poetry

 

 

 

 

 


BLOG, The Science Debates

By Yasha Husain, posted May 14, 2009

Debate #2: Green Energy in the American Southeast



Hybrid Energy, Solar and Wind
Solar and wind installations side-by-side
Photo Courtesy of National Renewable Energy Laboratory


Moderator Question:


It's been said that in the southeastern portion of the United States there's not a lot of solar or wind resources.

But could the solar and wind potential there in fact be utilized to create hybrid energy systems reliant on a host of renewables including offshore wind, concentrated solar, and the energy carrier hydrogen, when it's produced from the sun or wind via electrolysis?

According to the latest science, what are some of the more promising green energy options for the American Southeast?


Expert Commentary:

Below are a number of expert voices that weighed in for this debate. While the views expressed are divergent they also contain overlapping ideas about the future of southeast energy.

Please choose from the list of names to read expert commentary. The three main topics in the debate, 'offshore wind,' 'concentrated solar power,' and 'hydrogen created from solar electrolysis,' are explored in terms of what is known and unknown about the science and in terms of the relevant policy concerns. Onshore wind and photovoltaics are discussed in some places too. Bioenergy is mentioned for its importance, but for the purposes of this debate about solar and wind energy, it is not elaborated on further.


Robert Leitner
, Director of South Carolina's Institute for Energy Studies at Clemson University

Nate Blair, Senior Analyst/Group Manager at National Renewable Energy Laboratory in
Colorado

Jeffrey Nelson, Manager, Concentrating Solar Power Systems, Sandia National Laboratories

Fred Humes, Director of the Education, Training and Research Center at ARC: Hydrogen in Aiken, South Carolina

Todd Stone, Director of Marketing, 3TIER, Global Renewable Energy Assessment and Forecasting

Erika Hartwig Myers, Renewable Energy Coordinator for the South Carolina Energy Office

Chris Daetwyler, Staff Specialist, SC Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance

__________________________________

Topics in the debate:

Offshore Wind

Concentrated Solar

Hydrogen from Solar Electrolysis


__________________________________

Debate #2: Comments

Received May 17, 2009 9:10 p.m.

James Hansen, "Hydrogen is not an energy source -- and not an effective energy carrier -- don't bet anything on it."

Hansen is Director: NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies

Hansen's comment was the first to be posted for Debate #2; to view more comments, please link to the page, Debate #2: Comments


______________________________________


Comments


If in response to Decision '09, The Science Debates you would like to have your comments posted, please submit them to yashahusain@gmail.com.