Great Power, But Great Responsibility for Public Safety A Perspective on Past Nuclear Plant Incidents As the effects of climate change become increasingly apparent, nuclear power is getting more attention as a viable clean energy source. Nuclear reactors produce no GHG emissions. Nuclear power plants provide steady, predictable power that can be complementary to intermittent […]
Author: David Pickut
Economics of Green Investments – Part 2
Economics of Financing a Project A Rooftop Solar Project Financed Using a Loan Part 1 of this series looked at cash flow and return on investment for purchase of an example solar photovoltaic (PV) system. This article looks at the economics of financing a similar system. The information on financing a PV system via a loan […]
Economics of Green Investments — Part 1
Cash Flow and Return on Investment Purchase of a Rooftop Solar PV System This article examines the economic aspects of investing in green projects such as installing solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on your home or installing more energy-efficient air conditioning equipment. A framework is provided to look at such investments from a cash flow perspective […]
Staying Cool In a Hotter World
Higher Temperatures Are a Serious Health Risk More Energy Efficient Cooling Technologies are Needed As climate change causes hotter temperatures, more and more people want to live in air conditioned spaces. A hotter world is a serious threat to the health of millions of people. Today it is estimated that more than 350,000 people die […]
Renewables and The Electric Grid
The Old Grid is Slowly Learning New Tricks An Overview of the Challenges of Integrating Intermittent Renewable Sources with the Power Grid In the last decade or so, engineers who design and operate electrical grids have gone from thinking grids were limited to a maximum of 10 to 20% renewable power to “how can we […]
Will Natural Gas Help Save the Planet?
Is it Really “Clean and Green”? Overview of Industry Initiatives and Natural Gas Use and Production Emissions The natural gas industry is currently spending lots of money to promote natural gas as a “green” fuel. In Ohio, for example, a congressional representative and an industry group have recently been promoting natural gas as clean and […]
What Can We Do? A Perspective on Climate Change
We’re Not Powerless, But Understanding This Complex Topic is Challenging An Overview of Key Issues, Terminology, Current Status and Trends NOTE: This article was originally posted on Medium, June 28, 2022 Climate experts from around the world agree that climate change is real and it is an existential threat to you and your family. If […]