The long and expensive search for clean energy miracles need not delay action today
My Clean Break column today takes a look at some recent comments made by Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates, who has become quite fascinated in the energy scene these past few years. Gates makes the point that those investing in clean energy must be patient, because it takes many years — usually several decades — for a new technology to take hold when it’s up against an existing energy infrastructure and technologies that are slow to change or make room for alternatives. He said investors who made it big during the IT boom were spoiled and are now learning that energy investments are an entirely different beast and don’t obey Moore’s law. I agree, with the caveat that we don’t need to wait for energy miracles to have a dramatic impact. There are many technologies and policy options today that can get us on our way, and while I think we’d all love to see a silver bullet solution emerge, it’s foolish to expect it — and just as foolish to believe it will be a single bullet. We’ve got technologies today that work, and we have to realize that it will take the embrace of all of them to make the impacts we desire.
I’ve heard Gates discuss this issue several times, but there seems to be an inconsistency in his reasoning and messaging. On the one hand, he urges government to dramatically increase its R&D funding for clean energy. On the other hand, he laments the slow uptake of clean energy technologies because of the slowness of existing infrastructure to change and the perceived risks of changing. If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be better to focus on government support for deployment of the technologies we have today, rather than increased R&D funding for new breakthroughs that would still face the same implementation barriers?
Anyway — food for thought. I’m off to Halifax now to visit a wind farm, a tidal facility and a coal plant.
Tags: Bill Gates, Moore's law
Tyler Hamilton is editor-in-chief of Corporate Knights magazine and a business columnist for the Toronto Star, Canada's largest daily newspaper. In addition to this Clean Break blog, Tyler writes a weekly column of the same name that discusses trends, happenings and innovators in the clean technology and green energy market. This blog is a personal project started in April 2005. It is not an official blog of the newspaper.
August 16th, 2010 at 6:40 pm
“…I’m off to Halifax now to visit a wind farm, a tidal facility and a coal plant…”
Oh, you just have all the fun! Good article on Bill Gates. Yes, his comments over the last year or two on clean tech have seemed to be hit and miss- but his stature is enough that it in itself may bring others to the investment table.
I agree with you- I do not think (well, hope;-) that it will take decades- lack of energy resources, increasing population, worse effects from polution and climage change- will force a change in infrastructure- but I hope we choose to go that route before we are forced to- when you are force to do something, it is usually because a dire circumstance or catastrophe has occurred- would rather not go that route. But then- I do believe in miracles;-)
August 16th, 2010 at 11:18 pm
As someone who talks to homeowners about solar, I agree that the perfect always off on the horizon is definitely the enemy of the good in renewable energy.
It is ridiculous to tell someone that they could get solar power for less than they pay their utility – but they just won’t do it – because they’ve heard that some breakthrough is going to happen and we’ll all solar-power our houses off our fingernails or something in the future, they read it on the internet: so they’ll wait for the future.
The ridiculous expectations aroused have a delaying effect every bit as powerful as deliberate fossil-fueled deniers and delayers do.
August 20th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
Very well put, Susan- reminds me of when computers started to hit the mainstream. There were a lot of people who put off buying their first PC because cost kept coming down, PC capabilities kept going up- but at least those changes were happening very quickly. Buyers (and investors for that matter) were spoiled by such quick changes in the PC industry- they expect the same for other industries, including solar.
And, unfortunately, you also have the inertia of the building industry that is reluctant to change- if they would offer solar on new homes, the cost, spread over a 30-year loan along with the rest of the home, would be a lot more palatable for buyers, especially if the higher mortgage payment could be shown to be offset by lower utility payments. And if they could integrate solar into building materials (okay, now builders are really covering their eyes and ears), the additional mortgate payment would be negligable.