Must address needs

I have to respectfully disagree with your editorial on Friday. We cannot wait for fossil fuels to run out before we start addressing the problems that such depletion will cause. With the current strides made thus far in renewable energy and the ongoing research being performed in this field, it is quite possible to convert a vast majority of our energy away from fossil fuels and over to renewable energy sources by 2045 (Note: I did not say 100 percent, but we could get close to that.) That gives us 27 years (not overnight) to figure it out and rework our power grid.

It will take a concerted effort by the research community, power grid providers, computer scientists, renewable energy providers and, yes, probably a billionaire or two. It will also take a coordinated effort by our own federal and state governments to provide research dollars toward renewable energy resources. We will also need to heed what scientists and research community members discover while ensuring that the business community and power companies work collaboratively with them to make requisite changes. We will have to rethink the power grid operation and its configuration in order to combine the various forms of renewable and fossil fuels energy sources into one fluid operation.

We will not get there unless we do set some goals and develop a plan— one informed by research-based results and real-world experiences, not from short-term thinking and status quo protectionism. We also need to designate funding (yes, I realize it will take a lot of money). Converting to renewable energy sources needs to be a national challenge because it impacts all of us. If this country can place a man on the moon in 10 years using slide rules, it can most certainly address the issue of a sustainable energy grid that fluidly integrates various renewable energy sources with our current fossil fuel usage that will meet the ongoing and future energy needs responsibly. SUSANNE C. ASHBY

Cabot