this post was submitted on 26 Apr 2024
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There aren't enough rare earth minerals on the earth to create the necessary equipment for solar, wind, etc to meet our current energy needs. The answer isn't just green energy, we need to actively contract the size of the economy and make less shit that we then throw away.
Do you have a source on that?
Source: His ass.
That's my hunch but let's see if OP replies.
I will say that of any topic, renewable energy has by far the most straight up bullshit thrown around.
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/06/carmakers-switch-to-electric-vehicles-strain-supply-of-battery-minerals/
https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions/mineral-requirements-for-clean-energy-transitions
https://thebulletin.org/2024/04/one-problem-for-renewables-not-enough-rare-earths-one-solution-recycling-but-theres-a-hitch/
We aren't doing the recycling necessary to reclaim used materials from ewaste that is needed. While we may "have enough" materials to build enough renewable energy to meet our current needs initially, those materials will eventually need to be replaced, and unless we degrowth the energy output we currently need to be met will only grow. Those materials are only going to get harder and harder to extract, requiring higher and higher fuel consumption as those minerals aren't located in urban centers with easy access to the electrical grid, they will require higher and higher fuel consumption for ICEs, internal combustion engines.
This also isn't considering the continued growth in consumer electronics and the integration of electronics in public and private infrastructure that use those same minerals taking those minerals away from the use in renewables. Then there is the damage to the environment and people that mining those minerals requires, nor the damage that recycling ewaste does to the environment and people.
Without a socialist revolution in the core capitalist countries (global north), the continued growth is going to mean that they will consume the majority of rare earth minerals for both products and renewables, while pushing the impacts on environment and people onto global south countries, until they either refuse to do the damage to themselves or collapse under the strain of climate change, or both. In turn, that will mean a global shift to fascism as capital seeks to protect itself at all cost. Which then will lead to climate wars, over resources, and denying those to people outside the global north.
Renewables are part of the solution, but without socialism and degrowth to consumption levels of that of Cuba, the focus of renewables as the only solution is a pipe dream.
Read How To Blow Up A Pipeline, or Socialist States and the Environment.
"Sodium ion devices do not need critical materials, relying on abundant sodium instead of lithium, and no cobalt or nickel. As lithium ion prices rose in 2022, amid predictions of material shortages, sodium ion was tipped as a rival and interest remains strong, even as lithium ion prices have started to fall again."
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/03/22/sodium-ion-batteries-a-viable-alternative-to-lithium/
Buy used. Compost organics. Upgrade when and only when needed.
Yeah, and stop having sex and listening to rock and role.
That's a solution that just isn't going to work. We as a society need to plan for using more and more energy. Therefore, we need to create cleaner and cleaner ways to generate that energy. If solar can be implemented until we scale up fission, that's great. We can then rely on fission for a few hundred years until we get to fusion.
People will complain about the dangers of fission only while they ignore the dangers of fossil fuels and aren't required to use them. As soon as fossil fuels start running out, then fission isn't going to sound so bad. Frankly, it shouldn't sound bad now.
Frankly, fission never should've sounded too bad.
We do need to cut down on overproduction, but nuclear energy is the real solution. We need to be building a bunch of state of the ark nuclear fission plants. They are super safe now, and barely put off waste anymore. They just take so long to build and are so expensive. Plus because of miss information hard to find a place people will let you build one.
Exactly. So why advocate for them when renewables + storage are so much quicker and cheaper to build. You're not making sense.
Well if you read the comment I was replying too.
Even if he is wrong. Mining so many is very harmful. Much better off building nuclear plants. Along with some solar/wind/hydro of course.
The problem with taking long to build and expensive is easily solve if the governments build them. Currently in the US it doesn't happen cause it's left to private companies, and they take a long time to become profitable.
Where do you think uranium comes from?
I don't know for sure, but I bet it takes a lot more mining to make enough solar panels + battery's than powering enough fission plants. Plus solar panels wear out and have to be redone every 20-30 years from what I understand. Not counting maintenance and ones that get broke from natural disasters.
As I said though. I want both. solar/wind/etc definitely have a place. Just don't think its good enough. Maybe if we have a massive break through on battery tech they will be.
Intermittent power sources could be good enough if people were willing to accept intermittency i.e. get used to not having air conditioning at night, get used to only cooking when the Sun is up, get used to nightshifts no longer being possible, etc. It's not fun, but it's doable.
It needs to be this exactly. We need degrowth.
I'm sorry, not to be too much of a dick but you're just typing out your opinions without bothering to check if they have any basis in reality. I'm not going to spend my time tracking down sources if you're not.