A more realistic view of wind and solar

Most Colorado political leaders, including those in Longmont, still appear determined to follow California and New York off the wind and solar cliff in search of a net zero nirvana. But there are some indications that such a catastrophe might be averted.

Energy authorities are finally admitting that a grid powered only by wind and solar isn’t an option. Xcel admitted it to the PUC in 2021 and more recently, the Jan. 1 Times-call carried a Bloomberg editorial citing expert opinion that net zero isn’t possible without nuclear power.

A Dec. 28 Wall Street Journal (WSJ) editorial reported that the Electric Power Research Institute, the research arm of the U.S. electric utility industry, and the North American Electric Reliability Corp, the entity charged by the federal government with keeping our grid strong, have both reached similar conclusions.

The WSJ editorial called for Congress to hold hearings on net zero and have witnesses from utilities, public-service commissions, grid operators, regulators and the ESG cartel explain under oath how they plan to accomplish this seemingly impossible task.

Another hopeful sign is a Jan. 22 WSJ article about the extreme slowing of the building of new wind and solar installations. There seem to be several contributing factors, but a significant one is the increasing unwillingness of communities to welcome wind and solar projects.

The rural areas where they’ve been putting these things seem to have had enough of the property devaluation and the lower quality of life they bring. Cities could step up. Longmont might put a 300-foot-tall wind turbine tower in place of that boutique hotel. But maybe not if they read a Jan. 23 Bloomberg article about the rash of recent wind turbine failures, including collapsing towers.

— Carl Brady, Frederick