Lost in Transmission: Energy

In light of agriculture and urbanization, the need for infrastructure to transport and transmit water, electricity, natural gas, oil, etc. is incessant.

President Obama recently knocked down a proposal to create an oil pipeline that shortcuts already existing lines and injects more fossil fuel into a country that seems to desire being stuck in a rut, even if that rut terminates at a cliff.  Chances are the proposal will be resubmitted, the environmental impact statement finalized and likely downplayed, and construction eventually granted.  That would bring about 830,000 barrels of oil into the United States daily.  That would bring more fuel into the United States so that SUVs can sit and idle in the shopping center parking lot at 0 MPG.

Oil spills have been on the rise over the past decade.  There is 2.5 million miles of infrastructure to gather, transmit, and distribute oil and natural gas.  According to a 2001 study of oil spills, pipelines are the source of more spills than barges and tankers combined.  While the rate of spillage has reduced, spills in the future are likely due to aging infrastructure.  When the paper was written, 46% of the pipeline infrastructure was already three decades old, and 16% have been in place for half a century.  (Keep in mind this study is over a decade old.)  Do we build new pipelines while precariously ignoring old infrastructure?  Spills throughout the oil industry in the US are ubiquitous.  See a Current Spill Map.

Electricity.  We really like our electricity.  We really like being able to keep the television on while we vacuum the carpet.  Meanwhile, the microwave is cooking food in the kitchen while the monstrous fridge works to offset the heat of the stove positioned right next to it.  The sunray-blocking drapes are closed and the lights are on.  Is anybody home??  While we could all learn a lesson on energy conservation in the United States, transmitting electricity is also not particularly efficient.  Electricity is usually generated miles away from its market, although cannot be easily stored.  And with expansive grids, transmission losses are often estimated to be between 5-7%.  Generating electricity on a large-scale, far from customers is rather inefficient, even for  solar power.  However, solar power is an alternative that can be produced on home and commercial roofs, on terraces, on cars, on pavement, in windows, etc.  Despite many common reservations and misconceptions, photovoltaic technology is amazing and quickly evolving.   A home or institution tied to a grid that allows net-metering can resell excess generated energy or take in grid energy when home-power isn’t enough.

Instead of looking ahead to building more pipelines, more infrastructure, more coal power plants, more oil rigs, why don’t we seriously revisit our existing infrastructure?  Surely replacing and improving existing oil and natural gas pipelines will create jobs while appealing to those with environmental concerns.  A steady transition from central, transmission-intensive electricity generation to micro-generation on-site is also important.  Local resources could be used, including wind, solar, and geothermal, in concert with contemporary electricity generation over a smart grid with net-metering.

An underlying theme in all this is energy responsibility.  At this age, we’re aware of our inefficiencies, and we’re aware that in the United States we consume A LOT of energy on a lot of things.  There are so many things we can do in an effort to conserve energy and our resources.  However, that’s for another day on the soap box.