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http://thesolutionsproject.org...

And faster. http://thesolutionsproject.org... Better, cheaper, faster. Pick all three.

A paper published last year demonstrates you are mistaken in this. In fact, it recently won an award from PNAS, the top US science journal. http://thesolutionsproject.org...

The math recently won an award from PNAS. http://thesolutionsproject.org...

Since all fuels except biofuels and deuterium run out, and deuterium tech is still undeployed, the green solutions are the only practical plans out there. http://thesolutionsproject.org...

If you live very far north, solar probably isn't the best choice there. Other types of renewable energy like wind, hydro, geothermal, etc. will be better. Renewable energy isn't one size fits all. For example, take a look at http://thesolutionsproject.org.... They've worked out plans for every state in the US to convert to 100% renewable energy, but the mix is different for each one. Alaska (even further north than you) would get only 6% from solar while Florida would get almost 70%.

My comment about solar panels on a house was just an illustration. I didn't mean every house should be independent and self supporting, complete with its own batteries. Also remember that energy production doesn't have to be local. It's nice if it is, because that cuts the transmission losses, but we routinely transmit electricity over long distances. Maybe yours will come from a solar plant that's 1000 km further south.

Turns out you are mistaken. http://thesolutionsproject.org...

Yes. Many times. And my search results always show plenty of different ways that 100% renewable is possible, today (by today I mean existing technology, not the time to implement obviously).

Okay, I think I see where the issue is. While slashdot has it's own idiots, I think that it would be a relatively rare slashdotter that would disagree that we have the technology such that we could provide effectively 100% of our electricity needs via renewable sources.

I certainly think it's technically possible. But once you take a step back and look at the resources it would take to do so, the cost is the disallowing factor. Thus why I was careful to put 'economically' in my post, and I'll admit that I don't always remember it.

Back when it would have cost $120k to replace $1200 worth of electricity a year, it was technically possible, but economical suicide, to go with PV panels for electricity. Back then batteries cost so much, and degraded so quickly, that the wear on the batteries exceeded the cost of the electricity to fill them. As a result, they were very much special purpose devices used in remote areas.

But with the cost of that solar array having dropped to under $20k, with LiIon dropping drastically in price even as their lifespan increased(at least in large battery packs with charge management systems that treat them 'properly'), as I mentioned, the economics are changing.

Here is even a group that worked with scientists, engineers, etc.. to come up with 50 customized plans for 100% renewable energy for all 50 states. http://thesolutionsproject.org...

Noticeably lacking: cost estimates for the infrastructure - found it in their 'more information', but it's buried in a spreadsheet.
For example - they propose putting PV on 54% of residental rooftops up here in Alaska(Table 4), but only anticipate it providing 0.2% of our power needs. Table 6 shows that it'd cost $1k per person per year in climate-change 'benefits'. It'd cost the state over $1B(table 8).

Expanded cost results by state - $119B to change over, for the state of Alaska. That's 'only' $161k per person.

Funny: They show replacing a fuel burning truck with a 2 seat EV. I'm a single guy in Alaska. I wouldn't last a week in that thing in the winter. Though I do want to see a EV/Strong hybrid truck.

They also somehow figure we'd use 40% less energy by switching to electricity everywhere. Doing that would essentially require rebuilding 90% of our homes. I mean, I want a dome-home, but I can't afford to build one right now.

Finally, I'll toss your 'claiming it' back at you. Just change #4 to 'paid shills of renewable energy'. I support more renewable energy, but don't think we can afford to reach 100% anytime soon without major developments in the technology.

Heh - mythbusters, car on cliff tipped over by birds myth. We're at the point they've tossed a dozen chickens onto it. There's another dozen or so to go before the renewable energy truly tips over the cliff, but the mythbusters are getting impatient for their crash...