Google Blows Away McDonnell’s Plans
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9 responses to “Google Blows Away McDonnell’s Plans”
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"Instead, attendees will get the usual Texas oilmen."
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The usual texas oilmen will be out of the offshore business. Only the largest companies will be able to pass the new requirements, and many of them are foreign.
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If Google is willing to put a big wad of its own money on the table to develop wind power, then I feel a lot more optimistic about the future of coastal wind power than I did before. That's the key… private sector money talks, bullshit walks.
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Offshore drilling is dumb, dumb, dumb. What kind of nutjob politician would ever allow offshore drilling?
What? The Obama Administration just lifted the offshore drilling ban? It wasn't McDonnell? It was Obama?
You guys and your anti-McDonnell rhetoric is funny. Are you equally angry with Obama for lifting the ban? Of course not. This has nothing to do with oil or the environment.
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so… every time you click on a GOGGLE AD – you're helping to fund this offshore wind grid?
I'm a big GOGGLE supporter and a believer that eventually wind and solar and perhaps tides/ocean currents are going to be important parts of our (currently DUMB) grid.
Our dumb grid is part of what is making wind/solar incompatible with our existing power sources because our coal and Nuke Plants cannot have their power increased or decreased in concept with other available (but transient) sources (like wind and solar).
The fact that GOGGLE has decided to not take this part of the future on – is probably a bad sign – that it's going to be a tough nut to fix.
If you think about it, let's say GOGGLE does a fabulous job on their offshore wind and they have a bunch of power to feed into the grid – but the grid can't handle it – because the base plants – coal and Nukes cannot be turned down quickly enough to let the wind take over some of the load – and because the wind and solar could go away in minutes – we could not afford to turn down the coal and nukes anyhow for fear of a brownout.
what a mess.
so even if we did have a smart grid that could dynamically balance the sources – the base load can't really vary anyhow.
That's going to lead to a major conundrum with wind and solar.
You're gonna have all these wind turbines turned off even when there is wind because the grid can't use their power and can't power-down coal/nuke to accept it.
This problem is bigger than GOGGLE.
I thought that Pickens was a natural gas guy.
Natural Gas generators .. CAN be powered down and up quickly and would ideally complement wind and solar.
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Bacon,
Anytime you say "Web technology" and "free market" you get all mushy inside.
Have you noticed?PG
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This problem is bigger than GOGGLE.
Absolutely. One of the problems is the duty of utilities to attempt to maximize the return to investors, within the scope of public utility law. Turning down a coal or gas or nuclear power plant because the wind is blowing in the sea might be harmful to the electric utility's shareowners.
Now they could be compensated for this by charging higher rates to customers that produce earnings sufficient to cover the increased risk of forced plant shutdowns and interrupted revenue streams. But is that fair to utility customers? It strikes me as one more time our government takes a crap all over ordinary citizens who are just trying to live their lives in peace and prosperity.
We need wind energy, but we need to figure out how it can work in the public interest too.
TMT
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Interesting that in the picture there appear to be three boats fishing near the base of thoe wind tubines.
I'll bet thosse things will make great fish reefs.
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Google makes so much money they are at almost no risk: if they make money fine, if they don't its a write off. What they don't write off the government was going to get anyway.
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I always wondered why turbines could not be mounted on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge since you already have the "backbone" and direct tie into the grid.
It would seem to be a win- win if a public-private venture could be created.
That approach would also be a win-win for McDonnell.
It would involve the state incentivizing wind power with real incentives and it may not cost that much and it would be a PR coup for McDonnell who would get instant street cred for govt efficiency, partnerships with private industry and clear support of green power.
Sometimes I think the Republicans are so locked into their dogmatic philosophies that they go out of their way to avoid doing something that makes perfect sense – because they would then be accused of engaging in "big" govt.
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The turbines weigh tons. the bridge was not designed for eithher the vertical or the horizontal load.
And just what we need is something else to distract the drivers.
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