by P. Driessen, Aug 18,2026 in WUWT
Daily news feeds present applause lines, and numerous movies include framing shots with wind turbines – blatantly or subtly promoting the “inevitable transition” from “dirty” fossil fuels to “low-cost, clean, green, renewable, sustainable” wind and solar power.
Net Zero Green New Deal proponents need to start pondering some immutable realities.
Yes, even modern coal plants emit pollutants, along with plant-fertilizing carbon dioxide and other “greenhouse gases.” Gas plants emit CO2 and water vapor.
And yes, wind turbines, solar panels, and vehicle and grid backup batteries have no such emissions – at their point of operation. But they generate massive pollutants in their manufacturing and other stages.
Modern coal, gas, nuclear and hydroelectric power plants operate for 50 years or more. They generate 24/7 and don’t need backup power. A few can electrify entire cities. They’re built mostly from concrete, steel, aluminum and copper, with a few exotic metals and minerals imported from adversarial nations.
They don’t have to be replaced every 20-30 years, as wind and solar generators do. A few thousand suffice. They can be built near urban and industrial centers, instead of hundreds of miles away, connected by long transmission lines.
The more we require that cars, cooking, hot water and home heating systems run on electricity, instead of gasoline or natural gas – and that the electricity come from “renewable” sources – the more wind turbines, solar panels, and backup coal, gas or battery power we need for windless, sunless hours, days and weeks.
The more turbines and panels we install, the more we must put them in increasingly poorer quality areas, the worse they then perform, the less electricity they generate, and the more we need.
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