According to
a report filed by the United States Department of Energy (DOE), the country’s
energy infrastructure may not be able to sustain future superstorms like Hurricanes
Katrina and Sandy.
As infrastructures get older, they grow susceptible to power
outages, which can cost the taxpayers anywhere between $20 and $50 billion
annually. And “the damages are going to get worse…” warns Jonathan Pershing Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Energy at the DOE.
By 2030, approximately
$1 trillion in energy assets in the Gulf Coast will be at risk of rising sea
levels and increased hurricane activity. Last year was the 2nd most
expensive year on record for weather related disasters, with $115 billion in
damages caused Sandy and extended droughts (Katrina was even more costly!).
“Increasing
temperatures, decreasing water availability, more intense storm events, and sea
level rise will each independently, and in some cases in combination, affect
the ability of the United States to produce and transmit electricity from
fossil, nuclear, and existing and emerging renewable energy sources,” the DOE
report claims.
New research
performed by Kerry Emanuel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology reveals
that greenhouse gas emissions may contribute to a 40% spike in the rate of tropical
cyclones by 2100. Emanuel predicts that “these storms will generate stronger
winds, rain and storm surges around the world. This extreme storm activity will
likely be felt most acutely in the North Pacific, the North Atlantic and the
southern Indian Ocean.”
Superstorms have
already ravaged energy infrastructures across the U.S. Sandy caused fuel
shortages throughout New Jersey and New York. Hot summer months forced power
plants in New England and Illinois to shut down. Droughts and a lack of access
to water resulted in fracking restrictions in Texas, North Dakota, and
Pennsylvania.
The DOE report
cites that these phenomenon “may become more frequent and intense in the future
decades.” 2012 was the hottest year since the U.S. began recording temperatures
back in 1895. These temperatures were followed by historic droughts, which
reduced water available for generating hydroelectric power, cooling coal
burning power plants, and supplying fracking operations.
“We don’t have a robust energy system, and the
costs of dealing with adverse environmental conditions are significant,” says
Pershing. “The cost today is measured in the billions. Over the coming decades,
it will be in the trillions. You can’t just put your head in the sand anymore.”
In the
future, will you be able to rely on your regular utility company to provide for
you? Or, when supply struggles to meet demand, will you be treated like an
animal and left to forage for energy? Hopefully when that day comes you’ll have
invested in the SH-Box by NRGLab, a renewable generator that’s portable, long-lasting,
and completely carbon-free! That’s right - you could cut ties with public utilities
and save money doing it! The SH-Box produces electricity for as little as $.03
per kWh. That’s less than a third of what you’re probably paying now…
Become
energy independent. Be prepared for the future. Visit nrglab.asia for updates
on the revolutionary SH-Box.
No comments:
Post a Comment