Things Sprawl Apart

Jonathan Hoekstra’s lecture on Wednesday was both highly informative and empowering. He presented quite a bit of data that proved energy sprawl to be a formidable challenge, accompanied by a number of reasonable actions that we can take right now to prevent it.

As stated in a previous post, I noticed a lack of individual accountability in the first two lectures of the series. Jeff Muhs and Fred Krupp described some great progress in the effort to reinvent energy, but they didn’t spend too much time on encouraging people to conserve energy in the first place. In contrast, Hoekstra stressed energy conservation as the main strategy in preventing energy sprawl and other issues. In what he dubbed the “one percent challenge,” Hoekstra discussed simple actions that we can take, such as thermostat adjustments, turning out lights, and walking instead of driving. Cutting energy consumption by just 1% could save 500,000 acres of land.

However, as much as I like to champion sustainable lifestyle changes, actions need to be taken on all levels, from personal behavior to federal legislation. Hoekstra spent a lot of time discussing the need for a coherent national energy policy. One issue with renewable energy systems, especially wind power, is that they are often established in places where demand is highest, and not necessarily the most efficient locations. This lack of central organization results in a “willy nilly” distribution of power sites, and contributes to energy sprawl.

The race to reinvent energy is an ongoing process with many hurdles along the way, but we are making progress. To go further, it's going to take effort on the part of everyone. When asked whether the public or private sector has more responsibility to fix our nation's energy problems, Hoekstra said that they have different roles to play. We need cohesive policies from the government, while local businesses and citizens seize the entrepreneurial opportunities provided by the need for change. For this local perspective on things, I am looking forward to the final event of the series, which will be a panel discussion of local energy leaders. I think they will provide insight into what we can do in our own city, and help bridge the gap between large-scale ideas and personal action.

Energy Sprawl Solutions

Few would argue that clean energy is the best tool we have to combat climate change (but if you do, speak up!). The first two speakers of The Nature of Things series have delivered messages of innovation and hope for its implementation. The remarkable research and efforts of people involved with fixing our energy problems and cleaning up the planet have proven alternative energy to be extremely beneficial. However, clean energy faces issues that go beyond the unfair market challenges outlined by Fred Krupp and the lack of transformational progress that Jeff Muhs discussed. In particular, land demands associated with energy infrastructure present another problem. Powering our nation with sustainably will require large expanses of land to devote to solar panel installation, wind turbines, biofuel crops, etc. Energy sprawl, discussed more at length in this article, presents a bit of a challenge, but is by no means insurmountable.

Jonathan Hoekstra, senior scientist at The Nature Conservancy, will discuss energy sprawl solutions at this week’s Nature of Things lecture. I’ll admit that this issue was news to me before getting involved with The Nature of Things, and I was rather dismayed that alternative energy isn’t entirely perfect (especially since I’ve been heralding its joys to the world for years). However, I appreciate the realistic approach that will be acknowledged in Wednesday’s lecture, and I look forward to the encouraging solutions that Hoekstra will surely present. Addressing these issues now will produce even better options to help the effort to reinvent energy.