Wake up to the power of solar Ron Swenson, SolarQuest® United Nations Association Monterey, California April 21, 2007

The Elevator Speech Solar (renewable) energy is the only way to stop global warming ... and mitigate oil depletion. The Hydrogen Economy is a farce. The Biofuel movement (Biodiesel, Ethanol (including Brazil’s sugar cane and fantasmagorical Cellulosic), is a boondoggle that will utterly destroy our farmlands and forests. Only solar energy will do the job. Solar is sufficient for households, commerce, industry and transportation -- 100 percent!

Three Kinds of People Those who make it happen! Those who watch it happen. Those who wonder what happened? For starters, so you won’t have to wonder ….

My goal tonight is to help…. Dispel the myths Bountiful oil The hydrogen economy Oil substitutes (tar sands, shale, coal-to-liquids) The biofuel bonanza… Demonstrate the potential of solar energy… And challenge each of you to take action – to mitigate global warming and oil depletion. There are incredible advantages to being ahead of the game!

Wishful Thinking: Energy Futures Source: Bill Reinert, ASPO Boston, 2006 October Used with permission by Peter Wells Diversity of energy resources is increasing in line with growing energy demands

Luckily, folks around here know peak oil is coming… Source: Colin J. Campbell, www.oilcrisis.com/campbell

For example: Mexican oil is fading… Cantarell, one of the world’s Big 4 Fields, is dropping fast. Cantarell offshore facility

So what about Alberta’s Tar Sands?

Money talks … but Energy Return on Energy Invested is critical. Input Output Ethanol from corn ? Kerogen from marlstone; oil from tar sands ? Society runs on Net Energy—what’s left over after we extract or produce the energy—not on Gross Energy. The dark barrels equal the amount of produced energy (equivalent) that must be used to produce the next gross output of energy. We built the society to run on large-return energy sources: oil at 1 input, 30 output or more. Running the same society on 1 input, 1.3 output (ethanol from corn) is fundamentally impossible. U. S. oil industry today

Am I missing something?! So what about Hydrogen? Start with a perfectly good unit of energy… and then.. Am I missing something?! Energy Return on Energy Invested < ½

So what about Corn Cars & Bean Buses?

California Bioenergy Action Plan

Primary Energy Use and Production

High Heat Value*: Crops * High Heat Value: The best you can do

High Heat Value: Green Remainder

High Heat Value: Total Above Ground

Projected Impacts of Climate Change

More likely, the All-New DonCar! www.HubbertPeak.com/Transport

So what about Plug-In Hybrids??

US Gasoline Addiction: Undeniable

US Gasoline Addiction: Unsustainable

Vehicle Weight Determines MPG

Back to the subject of Peak Oil

“… solar power ... works, though not nearly as well as fossil fuel … The Long Emergency “… solar power ... works, though not nearly as well as fossil fuel … James Howard Kunstler www.HubbertPeak.com/apollo2

Oil Addiction: The World in Peril “But all of them combined -- sun, wind, and water -- could never produce enough energy to replace the astronomical amounts of fossil fuel the West is consuming...” Pierre Chomat www.hubbertPeak.com/debate/oilcalcs.htm

Global Solar Energy Balance Solar Energy Input (TeraWatts) 178,000 Reflected to Space Immediately 53,000 Absorbed and Then Reflected as Heat 82,000 Used to Evaporate Water (Weather) 40,000 Captured by Plant Photosynthesis 100 Total Energy Used by Human Society 13 Total Energy Used by US Society 2.5 Total Human Food Energy 0.6 99.99% of our energy is Solar and 0.01% is created by humanity. www.hubbertPeak.com/debate/oilcalcs.htm

120,000 TW of solar energy received by the Earth Source: Chu, Steve, Solutions to the energy problem, Asia Pacific Partnership Conference, Claremont Hotel, Berkeley, 20060419 www.ecotopia.com/Apollo2

Total Area Required for a PV Power Plant to Produce the Total US Electrical Demand Source: J. A. Turner, “A Realizable Renewable Energy Future”, Science, 285, p 5428 (1999). “We will first address the question ‘Can we really supply all our energy needs from renewable energy?’ The power of renewable energy can easily be shown using the United States as an example. The US is the world largest energy consumer, total US annual electrical demand for 1997 was about 3.2 x 1012 kWh (representing 25% of the World’s consumption). If we assume flat fixed-plate collectors covering only half of the available land area with a system efficiency of 10% (current commercial technology), a PV array 104 miles (166 km) on a side (~10,900 sq. miles, 27600 km2), placed in southwest Nevada, would over one year supply all this energy. This area represent less than 0.4% of the available land area of the United States. A system efficiency of 15%, which should be available in the next 3-5 years, would drop the area to 7200 sq. miles. If we add wind to the energy mix, this area for PV grows smaller, if we add geothermal, smaller still, if we add hydro smaller still, …the point is clear, we can gather more than enough renewable energy to power our society and yet have an abundance of renewable resources available for future growth. Also one should note that wind alone or solar thermal alone could also provide all our electrical energy needs. The area of the Nevada test site is approximately 5000 sq mi.” [J A Turner, Solar World Congress, Orlando, FL, 2005 August] www.ecotopia.com/Apollo2

The Biggest Stretch: Solar Transportation Shall we continue to defy nature, trying to transform solar energy into something you can put in a tank? Or shall we move on, and advance to the next generation of transportation?

Compare PV to Biofuels

Personal Rapid Transit (Podcars) www.SolarEvolution.com/PRT

Podcars can be powered 100% by solar

Eliminate Parasitic Mass

Under construction in Uppsala, Sweden

Similar Solar Systems Exist Source: A Hybrid Policy Model to Ensure Sustained PV Market Growth, Dan Shugar, President, Powerlight, Aug 9, 2005

Compare Solar to Gasoline at $2.50/gallon 25 mpg, average fleet mileage 27,000 passengers per day to match 2.0 people/vehicle 13,500 vehicles/day x $2.50 /gallon fuel price = $33,750 Cost to travel fleet mileage daily $ 12,318,750 Annual cost to travel fleet mileage $ 45,000,000 Cost of solar to cover fleet mileage = 3.7 years, Payback for solar system to offset gasoline www.SolarEvolution.com/PRT

One Plug for Plug-In Hybrids: V2G Buffers Renewables

So what about end use appliances?

Which is the MicroComputer? Combining solar with energy conservation is essential.

So what about buildings?

Typical Building Orientations Orientation to South creates light and warmth in winter with shade in summer. South-East and South-West elevations overheat in summer and produce inadequate heat in winter. South

Remedies for Harsher Façades Orient main axis East-West and minimize East / West elevations. Just say No! to South-East and South-West orientations. South

Unique Requirements for North Elevation reduced window size insulating hard-coat low-e glass lets in more north sky light South

Unique Requirements for East and West Elevations reduced window size insulating soft coat low-e glass exterior shades South

Unique Requirements for South Elevation overhang provides shade in summer insulating hard-coat low-e glass allows high heat gain in winter South

Remedies for SW & SE Elevations What if a South-East or South-West elevation cannot be avoided? South

In conclusion… In this new game, there are incredible advantages to being first!

Plantronics, Santa Cruz Real Estate Strategies & Solutions, Project Developer Barry Swenson Builder, General Contractor ElectroRoof, Project Integrator Owens Electric and Solar, System Installer Central Coating Company, Roofer Solar Technologies, Panel supplier

Non-Oil, Power Exporting … not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses.[B]oat builders would suffer and towline, whip, and harness makers would be left destitute. Martin van Buren, Governor of New York, April 1832... If canal boats are supplanted by railroads, serious unemployment will result … If canal boats are supplanted by railroads, serious unemployment will result … not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses.[B]oat builders would suffer and towline, whip, and harness makers would be left destitute. Martin van Buren, Governor of New York, April 1832... ...not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses. Van Buren 1832 8th President 1837-1841 ...not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses. Van Buren 1832 8th President 1837-1841 Non-Oil, Power Exporting … Countries…(Sweden, Iceland..) Cities… (Santa Cruz?) Colleges… (UCSC?) Companies… (ElectroRoof, 3 BOE/day) Citizens… (You and I?) To learn how, let’s go back to the future…

Thomas Edison “I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait 'til oil and coal run out before we tackle that.” (1847-1931) www.ThomasEdison.com

SolarQuest® www.SolarQuest.com