renewable energy

[Herb]

Right on top of the Face Plant that the ABC News Performed with their disgraceful .."Fact Check"...about renewables in the reporting that Dick Smith had done.......There's this about the long-term durability of solar panels in The Real World,.... and the Toxic Pollution that these sucking things poison our environment with,.... that the enviro-moonies fail to see that they have been suckered into a rabbit-hole of dumbass gullibility,........as they normally do;

Texas Hail Storm Destroys Thousands of Acres of Solar Farms
By Margaret Flavin Mar. 26, 2024

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/0 ... lar-farms/

During a hail storm last week, several solar farms in the Needville, Texas were destroyed in an area spanning more than 10,000 acres.
Nearby residents have expressed concerns about the environmental impact of the solar farms. Fox 26 Houston spoke with local resident Nick Kaminski after the damage:
Nick showed us emails he sent to Fort Bend County Commissioners, the Fort Bend Economic Development Council, and the owners of Fighting J’s Solar Farm asking for the environmental impact report.

“We’ve asked for the same studies, and we’ve been treated the same way,” said Mikes Fugua who also lives near the solar farms. “We got nothing out of them.”

Yeah, they are testing the wells right now, what about years down the road?

Here in Northern Nevada there were a lot of gold and silver mines and they used many chemicals, with no restrictions on how they used them, it was the 1800's after all.

Now the chemicals are leaching into the streams and rivers to the point that we are being warned about eating the fish because of the Mercury contamination.

Remember the Love Canal debacle???

[Designer]

Knowing what you mention about ground contamination lasting for Many Years,....I will repost a wizened comment from my previous Article about the solar panels in Texas;

Bradley Tindall
@bradley_tindall The cadmium, lead and polyvinyl fluoride leaching from those dead solar panels will make the land unsuitable for anything for 100 years. Clean energy my ass.
10:57 PM · Mar 25, 2024


As the government keeps Crapping On The Chessboard that is Our Planet, claiming this .."renewable energy"... is Sofa King....."clean".

[hillsy v2]

I think you'll find they are silicon based panels that contain negligible amounts of cadmium.

You need to do better research Springy.

Or maybe not - just keep posting garbage - it suits you

[Designer]

Since the Damaged Solar Panels are Said to be silicon-based ones......the pollution-concerns the residents are now focused on these hazardous chemicals leaching out;

The following are some panels that do or may contain toxic material.
• CDTe solar panels may be a hazardous due to cadmium.
• Gallium arsenide (GaAs) panels may be hazardous due to arsenic.
• Some older silicon solar panels may be hazardous waste for hexavalent chromium coatings.
• Newer, thin-film solar panels contain CIS/CIGS and may be hazardous due to copper and/or
selenium.

[Herb]

The concerns about the hazardous waste from damaged or worn out solar panels is a major concern and need to be addressed.

[hillsy v2]

Solar panels are quite valuable for recycling. Just Google it and you'll find many companies that recycle them.

Again, you guys need to look into stuff more before posting bullshit.

[Tbeck]

Everything we use comes with an environmental price tag. It's amazing how much we pick and choose to get concerned about.

For the record, I only posted in this thread because I can't believe it's still going.

[Designer]

The concerns about the hazardous waste from damaged or worn out solar panels is a major concern and need to be addressed.

Quite so, Herb.

Add to that is the energy needed and used to recycle/dispose of them.

Dismantling/Transportation/Grinding,Processing Cleansing, etc..... then transportation of whatever might be recycled to the Plant that will reuse it all MUST be figured into the so-called..."energy savings"... that we hear touted promoting this as a "clean energy" source that is better than the long-standing sources.

[hillsy v2]

Again with this insipid "factoring in" recycling costs for old solar panels? Most panels are guaranteed to last for 25 years now. In that time they pay for themselves in energy production many times. Your point is moot.

And Google solar panel recycling. It's a growing profitable industry.

[Designer]

As anyone who has read the fuller scope of the Energy/Environmental Lifetime Cost/Benefit Calculations of Renewables knows, the Sum includes ALL aspects of the methodology to see if it lives up to what is touted.


“We need to plan and choose panels considering not just the electricity production but the full lifecycle.”

— Annick Anctil, Michigan State University

[hillsy v2]

Find me a solar panel that doesn't pay for itself hundreds of times over after 25 years.

[Designer]

As we see The Wizened have the more Broader View Beyond the Narrow of mere financial cost/benefit of solar panels above. And they are inclusive of the Environmental Aspects. Remembering that is what these things are supposed to help preserve.

And this Article rises above the narrowed POV and takes more of The Facts into consideration

What Are the Negative Environmental Effects of Solar Energy?
By Cristina MaciasJuly 1, 2022

Solar energyis the fastest-growing renewable energy source, accounting for more than 3% of the U.S. electricity supply.

Humans are hoping to create a brighter and greener future. And, understandably, we all want to focus on the many solar energy benefits. Yet, the limitations are rarely discussed.

So what are the negative environmental effects of solar energy? Continue reading to find out.

Energy and Water Demand
Figures show that coal emits 25 times more carbon dioxide than solar energy. Despite that, it’s important to recognize that clean energy such as solar is not perfect. Solar panels require lots of energy up-front. Mining, manufacturing, and transporting materials are critical steps along the way.

The manufacturing process is relatively energy-intensive. Silicon solar cells are produced from quartz sand in a furnace at high temperatures.
The manufacturing process is water-intensive too. Although, advancements in technology have reduced their use of water. And once installed, the panels need no water to generate electricity. Homeowners don’t need much water to maintain their panels, but should wash them to improve their efficiency.

Habitat Loss
Another drawback of solar energy is the land lost to larger, utility-scale solar plants. Here, there is lots of potential for environmental degradation.

Solar farms can impact the local fauna and flora, vegetation growth, and damage agriculture. Wind energy can share the land it occupies to generate electricity, but solar cannot. Creating a large-scale solar farm requires clearing vast amounts of land. This process can cause compression of soil or excessive soil erosion. Drainage channels may also be affected.
It can increase the risk of land, water, and air pollution if health and safety guidelines are not followed.
A few panels on the roof of a house will cause minimal problems. But a huge solar farm can cause various issues to the local environment.


Toxic Chemicals
Many hazardous materials are used during the manufacturing process. Hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, nitric acid, hydrogen fluoride, and 1,1,1-trichloroethane all pose a risk to workers. Failure to dispose of them properly can be detrimental to all types of living creatures and the local environment.
There are US laws that prevent the dumping of toxic substances. Unfortunately, global manufacturers may not have such strict requirements.
Solar panels don’t produce any emissions through their production of electricity. Yet, carbon dioxide is certainly released, albeit not in large amounts, in the manufacturing, transportation, installation, maintenance, and dismantlement stages.

Looking at the big picture, we must ask ourselves, ‘will solar energy guide us to a better or worse future’?

Now You Know What Are (some of) the Negative Environmental Effects of Solar Energy

[Herb]

Thousands of acres of farm land have been turned into solar farms. Where I come from in Oregon there is a 100 acre field that was a pear orchard for over 100 years, now it is a solar farm. It may not be makeing CO2 but the pear orchard was taking huge amounts of CO2 OUT of the air. Which is better???

[Designer]

Oh yes Herb! You bring up something oft ignored! solar panels are TOTALLY environmentally safe!

They don't harm ANYTHING in nature! EVER!

[hillsy v2]

Just doesn't stop.

[Tbeck]

MAYBE we should all just stop eating?
After all if the argument is that solar panels negatively impact the ground they cover, create runoffs and drainage problems then we should definitely stop farming. Not only does it do the aforementioned but add in the pollution and toxic run off that filter's into our water supply.
Oh wait, we better stop all transportation as well. Not only the toxic chemicals like oils, gasoline and antifreeze that goes into the roadways and then washes into our land, rivers, lakes etc... and don't forget all the toxins that scrub off the tire's .

Are we going to stop doing either of the aforementioned? Hell no so "chicken pecking" in order to make an argument against solar is hypocritical.

So with that being the FACTS of the matter, wouldn't it just be more honest to just say you don't like the idea of solar energy and the government pushing it? It's EASY, I know because I have opposed the use of nuclear energy for the past 50 years. It works but in my opinion the potential and realized costs are too high.
The best part is I don't have to to attempt to make an argument against it's use. Could I? Absolutely but I would find just as many folks arguing in favor. But I am not making straw arguments or chicken pecking.
So just say it, you are against so called clean energy because you think they aren't a good idea, period! End of discussion. That was easy and didn't take up 20+ pages.

[Herb]

Here in NV the eco nuts throw a fit if we ride a dirt bike across a section of desert that isn't specifically designated for riding HOWEVER there are thousands of acres covered with solar panels. They mostly hide them in folds of hills where they can't be easily seen by the public because it would show the eco nuts up for the crazy hypicritical nuts they are.

[navigator]

MAYBE we should all just stop eating?

Bill Gates already suggested that.

[Herb]

MAYBE we should all just stop eating?

Bill Gates already suggested that.

And is doing his best to keep food from being produced.

[hillsy v2]

MAYBE we should all just stop eating?

Bill Gates already suggested that.

And is doing his best to keep food from being produced.

Is he setting fire to all the chicken farms?