Watch: Why Coal and Nuclear (Baseload) Are Not Compatible with a Renewable Future

Date: 16 Oct 2013 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 2 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A terrific video explains why utility investments in “baseload” coal and nuclear power plants are acting against increasing renewable energy.  Credit to EnergyShouldBe, a website created by one of the technical analysts helping Boulder, CO, pursue a more local, renewable energy system.

My one caveat is that flexibility of a utility system varies by utility.  Some utilities already have a lot of flexible natural gas generation and don’t need more to accommodate renewable energy.  Others will need to replace baseload power plants with more flexible ones.

Delve deeper at EnergyShouldBe.org, read more about Boulder’s fight for a clean energy future, or read more about how the Germans (with over 20% renewable energy) are facing down the conflict between baseload and renewables.

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John Farrell

John Farrell directs the Energy Democracy initiative at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and he develops tools that allow communities to take charge of their energy future, and pursue the maximum economic benefits of the transition to 100% renewable power.