Our net zero lesson of the day is from the U.K. but it applies universally. It’s increasingly difficult for Biden and the EU to hide the true costs of net zero mandates.
Britain Boiler Tax Scandal
In the latest green fiasco, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak created a quota system that would require manufacturers to sell more heat pumps to households.
Instead of meekly complying with the regulation as happens with Biden administration EPA announcements, manufacturers let consumers know they would have to pay up whether they installed the heat pumps or not.
Manufacturers correctly dubbed the scheme a “boiler tax” and consumer outrage killed the regulation.
Britain Dumps Another Net-Zero Gimmick
The Wall Street Journal reports Britain Dumps Another Net-Zero Gimmick
Most English households use natural gas to fuel the cabinet-sized boilers that provide central heating and hot water, and forcing them to adopt electric heat pumps (ultimately powered by renewable energy) is part of the government’s net-zero agenda.
An earlier proposal to ban gas-boiler sales after 2035 proved politically toxic as households balked at the cost of replacing their reliable natural-gas boilers with more expensive, untested heat pumps. So politicians resorted to subterfuge, imposing a sales quota on manufacturers. Starting in April, heat pumps would have to replace 4% of annual boiler sales or companies would pay a £3,000 fine for each “excess” natural-gas boiler they sold.
Worcester Bosch, Britain’s leading manufacturer, warned last year that the proposed quota would add up to £300 ($376) to the cost of natural-gas boilers, which retail for £1,000 and up.
A novelty is that industry fought back against the mandate. Manufacturers were transparent about passing the cost of the heat-pump fines to consumers, calling it a “boiler tax.” Mr. Sunak’s government tried to blame the companies for anticompetitive behavior. But when voters realized they’d be stuck paying for heat pumps even if they didn’t buy them, it was game over for the rule.
Biden’s Wind Tax
In the US, manufacturers have yet to stand up to idiotic Biden regulations, mostly because they have received tax incentives that hide the true costs.
But the actual costs are difficult to hide now that subsidies won’t hide the true cost. So Biden’s schemes are unraveling.
Bloomberg reports a 48% Surge in Costs Wrecks Biden’s Much-Lauded Wind-Power Plans
When President Joe Biden in 2021 laid out a target of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity during the next nine years, the plan was deemed bold and ambitious. Best of all, many saw it as within reach.
Two years later, the industry has another word for it: impossible.
After a cascading series of setbacks, from sobering cost revisions to billions in possible impairment charges, the US offshore wind industry’s 2030 generation goal now looks further away than ever.
Cancelled in New Jersey
Offshore wind is stumbling over costs. EnergyWire asks Can Biden Save the Industry?
The Biden administration is facing increasing pressure to take action to bolster the offshore wind industry after a major project was canceled in New Jersey on Tuesday, although options appear limited to ease financial hurdles facing developers.
Developers are taking billion-dollar losses due to the industry’s exploding costs and the dropping value of assets. Two companies in Massachusetts walked away from deals that they said did not cover costs. New York regulators rebuffed attempts to renegotiate contracts with wind companies for higher prices, casting uncertainty over the future of several wind farms off the state’s coast. Meanwhile, the supply chain of businesses to support offshore wind construction has expanded too slowly to meet the needs of proposals.
But the starkest sign of a troubled sector came Tuesday, when Ørsted, the largest offshore wind developer in the U.S. market, said it will abandon its Ocean Wind project. The two-phased wind array off the Jersey coast was one of just five major offshore wind projects approved in the U.S. — all by the Biden administration. Along with creating more uncertainty for the industry, the cancellation is raising speculation over whether other projects will follow.
Defending the administration’s record, White House spokesperson Michael Kikukawa said Biden has “used every available tool to advance the growing American offshore wind industry.”
Outright Lies Are Biden’s Biggest Tool
Without a doubt, Biden has “used every available tool to advance the growing American offshore wind industry.”
His biggest tool is a pack of lies starting with a claim that these projects are cheaper and will pay for themselves.
Downgrades and Write Offs
- Fitch Ratings downgraded Eversource Energy and its NSTAR Electric utility subsidiary from stable to negative, partly on the grounds that the company may struggle to unload three offshore wind projects it had wanted to sell.
- Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, BP’s head of gas and low-carbon energy, told attendees at a London conference that the U.S. offshore wind sector was “fundamentally broken” and in need of a reset.
- BP has taken a pretax impairment charge — a devaluing of an asset — of $540 million due to its New York offshore wind projects.
- Norwegian oil and gas giant Equinor said last month it was taking a $300 million impairment in its U.S. offshore wind portfolio. Ørsted could take a $5 billion hit.
Even with massive subsidies, these projects are not economical. All they do is replace one form of energy with another at increasing costs that must be born by someone.
Let’s accurately label this fiasco for what it really is: A mandate to use wind, then a wind tax to support it.
Biden Backs Off Gas Stove Crackdown
Fox News reports Biden Backs Off Gas Stove Crackdown After Widespread Pushback
On Feb. 1, 2023, the DOE issued its original proposal which was set to take effect in 2027 and impact a staggering 50% of current gas stove models. The DOE argued it is required to put forth such regulations under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act which mandates energy efficiency rules while not harming consumer choice.
In response, Republicans and consumer advocacy organizations blasted the Biden administration for curbing consumer choice and pushing a regulatory regime that would lead to higher prices. They also criticized the DOE for attempting to force Americans to electrify their homes in an effort to reduce emissions and fight global warming.
“President Biden is committed to using all the tools at the Administration’s disposal to lower costs for American families and deliver healthier communities — including energy efficiency measures like the one announced today,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement [after the administration backed off the proposal].
Gas Stove Tax
Let’s label the Biden administration proposal for what it really is, a tax on gas stoves.
Biden then had the audacity to brag about lowering costs when he backed off the proposal.
Tax This, Tax That, Tax Everything
Up and down the line, we need to label the green regulations and mandates from this administration for what they really are: Across the board tax hikes.
And since these these taxes apply to everyone, not just the wealthy, they are very regressive in nature.
We have wind taxes, heat pump taxes, gasoline taxes, stove taxes, air conditioner taxes, internal combustion engine taxes, etc., all of which are mislabeled in ways to sound like they are positive things.
Cap-and-trade is nothing but a giant tax scheme in which manufacturers have to pass on the costs.
Industry is fighting back in the UK and farmers are fighting back in the EU. Republicans need to carry the regressive tax hike message into the upcoming US election.
Inflation Pressures Everywhere
Please note that all of these mandates purposely increase costs. They are all inflationary.
Nearly everything this administration does is inflationary. The same applies to every regulation in California.
Minimum Wage Hikes
On February 4, I noted Cost of Running a McDonalds Jumps $250,000 in CA Due to Minimum Wage Hikes
Impact on Joe’s Grill and Susie’s Diner
Don’t think for one second that these wage hike only hit wealthy franchise owners. For starters, many franchise owners are deep in debt to buy that franchise.
In addition, how are Joe and Susie going to get help at $16 when McDonalds is paying $20?
The answer is they won’t. Effectively, $20 is the new minimum wage in California, and not just restaurants.
Big Explosion of Government and Social Assistance Jobs
President Biden is bragging about job growth in 2023. But he doesn’t say where those jobs are.
On February 5, I noted a Big Explosion of Government and Social Assistance Jobs in 2023 to Help Migrants
A surge in immigration led to a surge in need for government and social assistance jobs at taxpayer expense. City and local governments are under financial strain.
Under Bidenomics policy, we have created hundreds of thousands of jobs that are of net negative benefit to US taxpayers. That’s what Biden is really bragging about.
Fed Chairman Tells 60 Minutes US Fiscal Path is Unsustainable
Fed Chair Jerome Powell tells 60 Minutes that it’s “urgent” the US address its “Unsustainable Fiscal Path”
Please consider Fed Chairman Tells 60 Minutes US Fiscal Path is Unsustainable
The Fed normally does not comment on fiscal policy, but Powell did. “Debt is growing faster than the economy. So, it is unsustainable. … You could say that it was urgent,” said Powell.
I list 15 key takeaways from the interview. Click on the above link for discussion.
It’s not just Democrats causing this problem. Republicans are in on the fiscal madness. For example, please see 169 Republicans Vote to Expand Welfare, Bill Heads to Senate
Inflationary Tariffs
Also consider Help for the Heartland? Trump Tariffs Failed the Mission
Since tariffs are a tax on consumers, Trump is proposing a huge tax hike. Biden is on fully on board.
China will retaliate and so will Europe. Costs will soar across the board. More inflation is on deck. Irony abounds. How can tariffs help both candidates?
Is Inflation Transitory?
Biden is bragging inflation is coming down. Economists have fully embraced the softest of softy landing. And Powell told 60 Minutes he thinks inflation is transitory.
I keep asking: Is inflation transitory or is this recent decline in the rate of inflation what’s transitory?
To help decide, please check out some of the links above.
Then factor in Biden’s regulations, the end of just in time manufacturing, a surge in immigration, and trade wars with China no matter who wins the election.
Here’s my concern: How Much Inflation Is Baked in the Cake?
Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods DID NOT increase prices in the USA.
China lowered the price to cover the tariff!
No, US manufacturers increase prices
Wind and solar are useless for grid scale power generation. (huge footprint with low power per square foot ration, unreliable, intermittent, temporary (life of equipment is anticipated at 20 years, but often falls far short of that), and massively expensive compared to traditional fuel generated power).
The only place they can reasonably be functional is on a homestead, farm, or business to provide that location with power – as long as (a) they are connected to the grid for when the intermittent and unreliable solar/wind does not provide adequate power or (b) they aren’t tied to the grid because they don’t care if they have periods where they have no power.
NOAA reports that Artic ice is the third highest in the last decade.
The wonders of a well designed global climate control system put in place by God to sustain life on the only planet in all of creation that was designed for and populated with life.
NOAA can only measure the area of the ice…Not the depth!
How can they get an accurate measurement without knowing the depth?
Inflation is baked in the cake, and the thick icing on top is the war with Russia, which will be formally ignited as early as May, if the UK and Poland have anything to do with it.
Don’t forget Taiwan.
“His biggest tool is a pack of lies starting with a claim that these projects are cheaper and will pay for themselves.”
But the interesting question is: why aren’t they cheaper? How many lies are being told about how the economy works that the markets are somehow failing to do what the markets were supposed to do? Weren’t markets supposed to be efficient? Weren’t markets supposed to respond to incentives?
Or put in other words: Doesn’t everybody eat? Why would people fail to do whatever is needed to ensure that crop yields don’t fall due to climate change? Doesn’t everybody use energy? Why would people fail to do whatever is needed to install renewable energy and conserve non-renewable energy, at the point in time when worldwide production of oil and gas, the two main sources of non-renewable energy, are peaking?
Oh, I think I know why. Because “democracy” is a system that ensures that unpleasant truths are unspeakable. So unspeakable that in the middle of a deadly pandemic, some politicians could not even admit the unpleasant truth that there was a deadly pandemic going on. If it’s that bad, then it’s hardly a surprise that the attitude is: let’s not talk about the abovementioned fact that oil and gas are peaking, and then the relevant market signals get muddled.
So yeah, the markets don’t want to buy heat pumps or wind for the simple reason that efficient markets assume that people know what’s going on. And they don’t.
Germany: Blomberg says, the costs of the energy transition are more the one trillion euros.
Econoimcs. Who is taking into account the economics of a climate predicted by the science some of the very strong damage coming our way. In the end it effects us all whether direct or indirect.
Column: Hate the storm? Then start getting serious about climate change
Hate the storm? Start getting serious about climate change (latimes.com)
You know how oil and gas pollution is supposed to bring not only hotter heat waves, drier droughts and bigger wildfires, but also more intense storms? Well, that’s what we’re experiencing in Los Angeles and across California this week, as an atmospheric river wallops the state with record rainfall, dangerous floods, major mudslides and power outages — with more to come.
Although it’s too soon to say exactly how much responsibility global warming bears for the storm — let’s hope scientists conduct an attribution study before too long — this is exactly the kind of thing climate researchers have long predicted.
Scientist’s studies depend on who they are being paid by, bribed by rather …..
Now every unpleasant weather event is allegedly caused by “climate change”. Whether it’s too hot or too cold, whether there’s a drought or floods.
Jeff , you are probably right about the ongoing climate change, whether anthropogenic or not, however, do you really think that the Sapiens Ape can effectively reverse this situation within the next hundred years by cuting CO2 emissions ? In the meantime it has been scientifically confirmed that the earth’s magnetic fields are weakening and unless the ‘new Nicola Tesla’ comes up with sumtin spectacular there ain t NOTHING to be done about it; climate will keep on changing , no matter what ….
Poles weaken and flip. But that has little to do with our current climate change.
And it is impossible to predict when the poles will flip again. It could be in 10,000 years or 10 million years.
link to climate.nasa.gov.
The earth is still in the warming phase from our pollution of co2 into the atmosphere. Next decade and next El Nino, it will be worse. There is huge economic damage from this storm. So much so, insurance companies may be forced to abandon most of the state if not all of it.
link to washingtonpost.com
Record California storm fueled by bomb cyclone, El Niño, climate changeThe storm directed an intense atmospheric river — or a moisture stream thousands of miles long — directly into Southern California
The powerful storm that walloped California over the past two days delivered record-breaking rains, feet of mountain snow and damaging winds.
Experts say the storm packed such a punch because of its structure and slow movement, with a moisture feed extending thousands of miles into the subtropics. And it was particularly intense because El Niño and a warming climate gave it a boost.
You take every damn storm and blame it on climate change as if we never had a storm before.
It’s absurd.
Social Security and Medicare are fifty trillion dollars underfunded over the next 75 years. These costs are now frontend loaded in the next twenty years because of those 50 million Baby Boomers who are now, or soon will be receiving benefits. Chances are 100% this will happen. I estimate there is only a 25% we won’t destroy ourselves financially trying to reach net-zero.
Let’s go with
the sure thing and stop gambling on a long-shot.
Conspiracy thinking fits you Mike.
Well, at least the reservoirs are full again.
People who pride themselves on economics should pay attention to this. Somehow, some of our learned conservative don’t like to look at some of the stark realities of climate change.
link to nytimes.com
Climate Change Could Cut World Economy by $23 Trillion in 2050, Insurance Giant Warns
Poor nations would be particularly hard hit, but few would escape, Swiss Re said. The findings could influence how the industry prices insurance and invests its mammoth portfolios.
WASHINGTON — Rising temperatures are likely to reduce global wealth significantly by 2050, as crop yields fall, disease spreads and rising seas consume coastal cities, a major insurance company warned Thursday, highlighting the consequences if the world fails to quickly slow the use of fossil fuels.
The effects of climate change can be expected to shave 11 percent to 14 percent off global economic output by 2050 compared with growth levels without climate change, according to a report from Swiss Re, one of the world’s largest providers of insurance to other insurance companies. That amounts to as much as $23 trillion in reduced annual global economic output worldwide as a result of climate change.
People who think they can think, actually can’t.
Jeff is one of them hop touts every economic climate fearmongering he gets his hands on
Come on Mike, really? If conservatism is refusing to accept the whole picture, there is a serious problem.
There is a serious problem Jeff. But we are not going to be able to do much about it. Reality sucks, doesn’t it?
Actually, Jeff is correct in much of what he says. Global warming will indeed cause a lot of economic loss. It’s just very difficult to predict how much. I suspect it will be much larger than most predict, including Jeff.
Where he gets things wrong is in thinking we will be able to do much about it. Our chances of solving this problem and avoiding these huge economic costs are slim to none.
Um, no.
Why? Because humans are really, really good at adapting. So I flatly disagree with your Malthusian, fear-based assertion that global warming will cause “huge economic costs”. Right now, the costs are self-inflicted in a misguided effort to solve a non-problem. Besides, the climate has been warming for a long time and will most likely continue to do so.
“ Besides, the climate has been warming for a long time and will most likely continue to do so.”
Lol! That’s priceless! Thanks.
True, the endless mantra, of government is; growth, growth, growth. That requires more energy.
Yep. No way around it. Growth requires more energy. And we all (or 99% of us) want growth. And higher standards of living. Population growth requires more energy use as well.
And over 80% of all energy still comes from fossil fuels.
Yes, we need renewables. But after 30 years and $5 trillion of investment, we still keep using more fossil fuels every year. Some people take comfort that all those renewables have reduced fossil fuels overall percentage from 82% to 81% of our overall energy use. But in absolute terms we are using 30% more fossil fuels than 30 years ago. Because we keep demanding more energy every year.
There acutally has been decoupling of energy vs growth. Comes with energy efficiency.
Jeff. What % of the atmosphere is CO2? 0.04% Its a trace gas. Trace means very very little, almost nothing. What happens when it gets to 0.02%? Plants start to DIE! What happens when plants die? EVERYTHING dies. Your beliefs could therefore be the biggest threat to humanity and all life on planet Earth.
Very simplistic Hank. Plants got through 180 ppm lows during the ice ages. Your argument just doesn’t hold water or ice.
CO2 is lockstep with earth’s average temperatures over the history of earth. We stay warm or cold depending on co2 and sun energy output balance.
The faster we go on getting rid of FFs as an energy source, the lower the catastropic costs of the future. We made this climate condition, we have to adapt to how co2 effects our climate. We don’t do that, the higher the price we pay in economics and human lives.
This article was first published in October 2023 and updated in November 2023.
The economic toll of extreme weather has grown substantially, according to a World Meteorological Organization report.
Extreme weather events and climate-related disasters have caused significant economic losses, reaching nearly $1.5 trillion in the decade to 2019.
The international system has struggled to make the required progress on climate change, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2023.
link to weforum.org
The World Economic Forum is bullshit
Do better than that.
The WEF is 99% bullshit.
Thanks for the opportunity to clarify.
The WEF is 99.9% made up of misogynistic psychopaths.
Actually, climate change is cyclical. Humans and fossil fuels have made some contributions, but we and fossil fuels are not the villains. Still, nuclear energy production is probably our best bet.
the last 150 years of warming are from human emissions. This is the science. It already exists in the world. This list of places will grow over time.
link to en.wikipedia.org
Jeff, What have you personally done to stop ‘Climate change/ global warming’?
Please list everything.
drive electric car, install heat pump on our cottage, install RE on my home, pay for RE through my utility bill, install LED lights in my home, install LED lights at my church, insulate our home when wife and I were first married. I’m sure I didn’t get everything.
Please go find a better source than the massively partisan Wikipedia global warming page for your info.
Here’s why the warmist are wrong: if we understood the science of global warming, and that it was actually happening, then your predictions would come true. I have never seen a single prediction from anybody on the global warming side that has ever come true. If you know of one, please post it.
You fit right into the blundering thinking of this site. It is beyond a shadow of a doubt that the earth is warming from human fossil fuel pollution. Otherwise it is pure foolhardy stubborn denial. CO2 as a minority gas balances out with the sun. Sun didn’t change in the last 150 years, the co2 in the atmosphere did.
I invite you to discredit any of the sources listed in wiki that aren’t 90 to 100% renewable energy. Otherwise it is just lazy denial non thinking habit of avoiding the truth.
The last 150 years isn’t a cycle.
“President Biden is committed to using all the tools at the Administration’s disposal to lower costs for American families…”
…WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY taxing the living crap out of everyone.
I have a small investment in Hazer Group Ltd. that makes hydrogen from natural gas while locking up the carbon in valuable graphite. Their target cost in the US is less than $1/kilo H2, ($2 Europe, $3 Asia) compared to $6/kg for “green” hydrogen. They’ve just started up their commercial demonstration plant in Western Australia….
link to app.sharelinktechnologies.com
Notice, their Target if $1/kilo. All these organizations make claims to get subsidies. But they all fail to hit their targets. Creating H2 takes some energy.
“The True Costs of Net Zero Are Becoming Impossible to Hide”
The EU farmers are certainly complaining.
Green and woke people must be banned fliying, buying gas stoves and ICE cars.
It’s my proposal to reduce emissions.
I saw this cartoon today on American Thinker. It was a sign hanging on a tractor of a farmer participating in a public protest in Germany. It read, “Without blood, one turns white, without air, one turns blue, without a brain, one turns green.”
It is the best plan. Beginning with the WEF crew who are pushing this shit on us.
The windmills they installed here don’t work, the French company who sold them quickly went out of business afterwards. They want to get rid of our gas stoves, to help us. I told one of our fearless leaders I live where it’s cold, the whole state is cold. If the power goes out in a blizzard will the electric stoves still work? I have used my stove to heat the house.
An interesting interview of Danielle DiMartino Booth by David Lin
link to youtube.com
Aggressive Layoffs Coming By March, Economy On Last Legs
“the bigger the govt, the smaller the citizen”
credit Mr Prager….
a succint remark.
Sad thing is: Heat pumps make massive sense in UK climate. If the UK was a free country, such that people competent enough to do so, could freely build housing and offices; heat pumps would quickly be everywhere. As the falling-down, far-too-cramped, moldy and unsanitary dumps people are stuck in over there, were knocked down and replaced by higher quality, larger newbuilds; those would very often be heated to a great extent by heat pumps; and even by even “greener” spillover heat from nearby process industry.
In a free market, precious few would want to be stuck with an expensive-to-run gas boiler, when a heat pump provides heat at 1/3rd he cost or better, now that gas prices are as volatile as they are. But: Since competent people are forbidden, by incompetent idiots who can not build nor do anything else productive, from knocking down and building better/bigger/taller/cheaper (which is what competent people do when not barred from doing so), it instead becomes a question of spending a fortune refitting a heat pump into the same old 1960s (the year the last competent englishman was free to do anything at all) mold shack. At which point it no longer makes any sense.
It’s the same story in America: Competent people could easily build housing at a much higher quality than current, along any metrics even “green” ones, and still profitably sell them at far below today’s prices. In the process lowering energy expenditures, improving peoples lives and the country’s housing stock immensely, massively reducing/almost eliminating homelessness and improving both immediate wealth and future competitiveness. That’s a fruit so low-hanging it’s covered by earth by now.
But that would require ending the massive subsidization of genuinely INCOMPETENT people who can not build competitively. But are instead dependent on just sitting there like chicklets being handed loot The Fed and junta steals from competents, by way of banning competents from competing, and then massively transferring wealth to the incompetents by way of debasement.
England is already the most densely populated country in Europe and being swamped by illegal immigrants along it’s southern border from it’s already overrun latin neighbour – sound familiar? That’s partly why houses are so small and pricey.
I live in Idaho, which is slightly larger than the island of Great Britain — England, Wales, and Scotland combined. Idaho has less than 2 million residents. The UK has over 62 million, most in England. Yeah, I’d say that they’re densely populated. How do you farm in that crowd?
Heat pumps don’t cost less to run. They use a third of the power in the form of electricity, but as electricity is about 3x as expensive as gas, cost of use is the same
Absent Russian gas, that’s no longer true in Europe, if it ever was.
The retarded, totalitarian morons running the Euro dumps may whore for short term votes by subsidizing gas for domestic use, making it appear less scarce. But gas-and-gas-only is much more critical for many important industrial processes, than for domestic heating. So all the idiots accomplish, is short term buying of a few dimbulbs’ votes. At the cost of wholesale shipping whatever little productive industry they have left, to Asia, Russia,The ME and the US.
My older brother is in the HVAC business. He is here and telling me to type this out for someone such as yourself who knows NOTHING of the technology of Heat Pumps: they are INEFFICIENT below 40 degrees F and as a result will run ENDLESSLY at temps below that threshold rendering them completely useless AND inefficient.
Can concur with this after recent storm in WA with snow and ice. The damn heat pump runs constantly just to try and maintain. My other house in Louisiana uses gas and when it gets below freezing at times, doesn’t run like this.
Far and away most of the UK, spends very little time at all below 40F. And seemingly no time at all above 55F. It’s dreary and miserable. Not truly cold.
In Siberia, or Northern Sweden, you need a propely sized geoloop to make heat pumps efficient. But not in the UK. The UK has pretty much textbook-perfect air-to-air pump conditions. But unfortunately; just like the rest of freefalling Western dystopias; also textbook totalitarian governance wrt housing (along with much/most/all else.)
The EU may bitch, but they got it done:
“Wind and solar now provide at least 12% of the world’s power…
and in some places, like the European Union, they provide more than fossil fuels.”
The US has “already lost the wind and solar energy race to China, which now provides most of the world’s solar panels and wind turbines.”
Selected quotes from “New-wave reactor technology could kick-start a nuclear renaissance — and the US is banking on it”
New-wave reactor technology could kick-start a nuclear renaissance — and the US is banking on it | CNN
Do nothing MAGA Republicans just bitch.
Let’s begin with having you search and identify and use ONE SINGLE BRAIN CELL. Let’s start there and come back in a year when you finally are dust after freezing to death in winters.
Last I checked the Democrats control the Presidency, Senate, and entire Federal Government. But sure, blame it on someone who is not even in office. Typical incompetent Democrat.
12% of the world’s power; meaning 12% of the world’s electricity.
And electricity supplies just 20%
Of the world’s energy.
So wind and solar provide only 2.4% of total world energy. Fossil fuels still provide over 80% of world energy.
Yes. And: Wind blows sometimes, the sun shines sometimes, but mostly not. With this energies we than have to stop heating and producing.
True. But no energy source is without problems. Pipelines can rupture. Oil and Natgas can stop flowing in very cold weather. Nuclear problems occur. There are plenty of fires at oil refineries and LNG facilities. Etc
Which is why we need ALL forms of energy. Relying on just one or two is risky.
Though I do advocate for replacing coal with natgas wherever possible.
Ok. But the steadyness of conventional energies (incl. nuclear) is at dimensions better than wind and sun. So you always have the whole capacity of the wind and sun-energy-resources a second time as a back up as conventional resources. Than you are safe enough for a modern industrial society. But that is expensive.
In Germany at some times there is more “green” electricity generated as needed. That is a big problem, because it is not possible to store this energy and it will destabilize the power network if it is`t used in the same second it is generated. So we have to give it to other countries and pay them for taking it. The cost are enormous. But the stability of the network is the main problem, because the output which is generated chances often in short times.
Yep. But storage of intermittent energy will become cheaper and better as time goes on. Which is important, because we are going to need all that wind and solar if we keep demanding more and more energy going forward. Our growing demand for more energy will not be met by fossil fuels alone.
We need all forms of energy in order keep growing the world economic pie.
EU is forcing energy intense businesses to relocate. Taxes, regulations, and expensive energy aren’t expensive enough for the communist tyrants in power.
Where is energy lower in cost? Middle East? Russia? China? I don’t know.
USA, Japan -and most other countries.
Hmmm…. ‘Nothing is what I want.’ hmmmm…. That’s very zen…..
“No joke.”
Folks, Manmade Global warming is Mathematically Impossible. They don’t teach kids what the real mathematical formula is…Other than false charts and graphs…
Really?
You should tell that to the 195 countries that signed those climate accords. They have been wasting their time for the last 30 years!
And the thousands of corporations who have policies relating to manmade global warming.
Not to mention all the insurance companies who are paying out claims.
And the tens of thousands of scientists who work in this field.
They will all be relieved that you set them straight.
Thank goodness you showed up.
By the way; what’s this formula of yours?
Really? What about all the countries that just signed up at COP28 to advance nuclear? have you seen the roster? Do you think any of them have any real clout, even collectively, to do anything about rejuvenating the industry? To quote the Admiral, these are proponents of “paper reactors” which are white papers (academia) that anyone can create and sell. Real people actually deliver and it was almost impossible for Rickover to do himself.
They will do no such thing, at no such pace, to solve anything and neither will these people pushing this green agenda. They will chase the taxpayer dollars and cash the checks and call it a life.
I think you should take note of what all of this posturing accomplishes by simply looking at the obvious alignment of the tribes:
Thousands of Corps + All Insurance Co.+ Tens of thousands of scientists = Money. There’s your formula.
195 countries over 30 years is nothing, in the scheme of time on this planet.
Took all of 5 minutes to distill this whole thing as nothing more than trying to reach a predetermined conclusion about what we think the planet is doing versus what we know these companies, Gubs and scientists are doing, which is nothing but money grabbing.
I’ve been in utilities and energy for a couple decades. The guesses by your groups are wrong every time. This green push is a façade. I don’t know one scientist in the utility industry and I’ve never seen one at any power plant, transmission yard, substation or turbine doing anything. I know real engineers and maintenance people who try and deliver electricity and other resources so we can live modern lives.
The best part is watching this straw hut fall down along with the credibility of these people who have never actually delivered a single megawatt to their community and have no idea what it takes to do so.
I don’t blame anyone for cashing in on these agendas and trends; you should do so and get a few crumbs if you can. But none of these people or companies you reference are even remotely serious about solving any real problems. There is no such thing as a free lunch and there is no solution to our problems, only trade-offs.
Sadly, when it comes to government subsidy grifters Elon is at the head of the line. .
You are confused. Or you lack the ability to understand what I am saying.
I pretty much agree with everything you said. It is what I have been saying here for years.
Global warming is a problem that we are going to do very little about.
My reply to Rex was because he believes that manmade global warming is a mathematical impossibility. Which is merely cult conspiracy garbage.
I don’t know why such outright falshoods are allowed here. It is not an “alternative point of view”, it is not “teach the controversy”, this kind of thing is just nonsense no different than saying aliens made the pyramids. If the person who supposedly edits comments allows this kind of chucklehead stuff to be on the site, well then I conclude the site is not a serious discussion of anything.
Hello Captain Crunch
I have better things to do than be a baby sitter. I let all kinds of viewpoints slide as long as they are not disruptive.
For starters I am not the arbiter of truth and no one else is either.
Reading the first two paragraphs of this blog post, I thought by analogy of Cuba and their American automobiles. That Cubans put a lot of effort into repairing and keeping them going, because replacements are unavailable. Imagine the same for (natural gas using) boilers.
(Of course, gas is also increasingly unavailable in Cuba, and you will see a number of horse-drawn buses down there. Perhaps the analog would be Franklin stoves fueled by thrown-away packaging. And increasing acceptance of cold water.)
I quibble at least two points of what Mish said.
First, that Team-Biden’s aim in these green policies is to tax, tax, tax. What I see is intention to compel reduction in use, reduction in use, reduction in use. End the use of fossil fuels. That is the end behind all those energy portfolio standards. And I note that the Greens and Environmentalists driving this think that if we choose to do without instead of paying more for electrical substitutes, that is GOOD!
Second, regarding the higher $20 minwage for California’ fast food workers, sure every retail clerk would rather earn that instead of the lower minwage they are paid, but there are only so many fast food jobs in California and we can expect the higher pay to reduce that number a bit. So the retail clerks are stuck where they are. Although certainly the SEIU will seek to organize them and also seek a higher minwage for those workers, too.
Back to the 1930s that Thomas Sowell describes, where wages were “good” but jobs were hard to find.
(Worth noting that there are situations where worker solidarity runs the other direction, and those workers value having a job over higher pay, you will see businesses operating “underground”, paying less than minwage. I clipped an article in 1993 about that topic, and c.2010 saw a newspaper article in Seattle about such a restaurant. Taking us to the economics of Latin America.)
Taxes are are a form of compulsion, so what’s your point?
They want net zero? Well that’s what they got. Printing and blowing trillions nets them and us ZERO.
Actually, we’ll be negative — below zero!
Carriers are basically a small town, about 5K people. Safe enough out on the high seas but not safe enough for US cities..meh. Nuclear is plenty safe. Unfortunately we can’t have things that make sense. We must have things that are wasteful like solar and wind farms and delivering junk mail 6 days a week that goes in a green bin to be picked to “recycle”.
“Carriers are basically a small town, about 5K people. Safe enough out on the high seas but not safe enough for US cities..meh. Nuclear is plenty safe. Unfortunately we can’t have things that make sense.”
Compared to the capital and operating costs of a carrier: Heat pumps; even geothermal ones; for 5000 people is hardly even roundoff. The reasons carriers are nuclear powered, have nothing to do with saving money.
Heat pumps suck. They are not as efficient as a gas furnace and they fail just like your AC unit because they are an AC unit.
“They are not as efficient as a gas furnace….”
Only in places where electric costs a fair lick, while gas is darned near free. That does apply in some locales in the US, due to “excess” gas from shale-oil production. Good, old Uncle Joe is trying to keep it that way, by banning LNG exports…
But virtually anywhere else, the savings from heat pumps are somewhere between great and immense.
Air quality, and interior “comfort” is also almost invariably higher: Heat pumps heat larger volumes of radiator water to meaningfully lower temp than what traditional boilers almost inevitably do. So more gentle heating, with less “burning” of dust etc. The fatter pipes and bigger radiating elements are part of the reason the cost of refitting in the older, falling down shacks that saps are dumb enough to believe passes for acceptable dwelling today.
Nothing wrong with boilers, or even simple gas furnaces or fireplaces for that matter. They’re about as proven as anything this side of a logstove. Compressors and pumps and valves and seals and radiators do add complexity and points of failure. Just as cars do, versus horse drawn carts. But it’s all very well understood technology by now. Just like cars. The overwhelming reason they break, is the grotesque incompetence pervasive among all decision makers in our financialized dumbage. Not some inherent shortcoming of the technology itself.
I get — and agree — that nobody should underestimate the cost of dealing with climate change. My question: What is your climate plan?
Pretty easy plan, whatever Biden suggests, go the other way.
Compare the cost of doling nothing vs the $100+ Trillion cost of doing what the climate fearmongers want.
Then step back, say this is nuts, and let the free market take care of it.
This is old but expresses the idea. The latest cost is up to something like $150 trillion
link to mishtalk.com
And China isn’t participating. So, even if it were true (which it isn’t), it’s ineffective unless everyone participates.
Say, how’d Sri Lanka do going green? Remember? 😉
That’s the trick isn’t it? What is the cost of doing nothing? Lots of estimates, but how accurate they are is unknown.
Swiss Re estimates the cost to be $24 trillion per year globally by 2050.
Deloitte says $178 trillion in the US alone over the next 50 years.
Most studies seem to indicate the cost of doing nothing will exceed the cost of doing something. But they are all just guesses.
I suspect that we will underestimate the cost of doing nothing. Based on the fact that most actual scientific predictions (not by politicians or activists) have underestimated the impacts of global warming so far.
Regardless of whether we do something or not, there will be countless Monday Morning Quarterbacking on this issue in 10, 20, 50 years etc.
No matter how it turns out, someone somewhere will claim it could have been better if only we did X back in 2023. The problem is we don’t know we need to do X right now until we see what happens and we could just as easily do Y which is wrong or more expensive.
Never in human history has man tried to spend today on where he expects things to be in 30-50 years time and if they did, they virtually never got it right.
Correct. Which is one of the reasons why nothing of significance will be done. Which is what I have been saying for many years now.
The problem is simply going to keep getting worse. And it will cost us a lot.
Of course, I also keep repeating: there is nothing I can personally do about this other than to take advantage of the opportunities it presents.
They might have underestimated global warming so far (assuming we’re measuring it accurately), but are they underestimating the effects of global warming?
There’s a lot of examples of predictions of effects that simply haven’t happened….
Of course. No one can predict the future with 100% accuracy. To expect 100% accuracy is foolish.
The reasonable thing to do is compare what was predicted with what has come to pass so far.
What predictions have been correct? Here’s a few.
CO2 levels (and other GHGs) keep increasing as expected.
Temperatures keep increasing as expected.
The polar regions are warming much faster than the rest of the globe, as expected.
An increase in the intensity of droughts, rainfall, floods and other extreme weather events as expected.
Ocean temperatures are increasing faster than expected.
Permafrost is thawing faster than expected.
Peatlands are drying out faster than have been expected.
Forest damage from insects and wildfires has increased faster than expected.
Most Glaciers are melting faster than expected.
Antarctic sea ice is decreasing faster than expected.
Not a comprehensive list. But a few examples.
Which scientific predictions have not happened yet? Care to share some of them?
To the extent that climate change causes problems we will be better off adapting than on attempting to prevent. And there are separate Peak Oil reasons to use less fossil fuel. Just that we don’t need to be in such a rush about it.
To save the planet, kill yourself, since you, the Human is the problem.
there you go smarty-pants
What is YOUR climate plan Alain Jehlen?
Do nothing is the only sane plan.
Doing nothing of significance is what WILL happen. But be careful what you wish for. It will likely cost us much more than we can possibly imagine.
As I frequently say; I cannot change what will happen. I can only prepare for it and take advantage wherever I can.
Sadly, nether Biden NOR his senior advisors have any CLUE about economics or business. They wouldn’t have a clue on how to assess the machinations that go on in the departments of the federal government.
“They wouldn’t have a clue on how to assess the machinations that go on in the departments of the federal government.”
Sure they do. That’s how they threw the last election. They learned from Hillary’s failure.