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Re-Energizing America by Daniel Chiras
Length: 55 minutes "Learn about ways to alleviate America's addiction to oil and gas with renown author Daniel D. Chiras, PhD. America is running out of oil and natural gas, two fossil fuels that satisfy nearly two-thirds of our current energy demand. Will declining supplies and increasing demand result in our social and economic downfall?" -- 2006 Michigan Energy Fair Program Guide Chiras talks about our addiction to oil and resultant problems including global warming, rising fuel costs, global war and conflict. He talks about the un-viability of replacing oil with nuclear, and the minimum benefit of drilling in ANWR. He notes that we're running out of cheap oil, and that global oil extraction from the earth is peaking. He quotes Exxon-Mobil giving peak oil between 2005 and 2010. "Peak oil means the end of cheap oil...We are going to be looking at a tremendous crunch with supply and demand... Oil wells are running dry... We haven't made a major oil discovery since the late 1960s... We are pinning our hopes on a declining resource... Natural gas and oil are both on decline... We are not set up to import natural gas... Bottom line is that we've got to get serious about this energy thing real soon..." Chiras goes on to emphasis the importance of focusing on energy efficiency, conservation, solar, and wind. "Conservation should be thought of as a new source of energy." He focuses on efficiency in homes, business, and industry. He emphasizes that there is plenty of capacity for renewable energy in the USA. "Don't let anyone tell you its not possible." Chiras focuses on the various methods of greatly improving efficiency of homes using fixes and retrofits from the minor to the major. For home heating, he mentions passive solar retrofits, solar hot water, solar hot air, energy efficient wood stoves and ground source heat pumps. For home electricity, he mentions solar electric systems, wind energy systems, and micro-hydro systems. For transportation, Chiras focuses on improving efficiency by driving slower, keeping tires inflated, combining trips, using mass transit, buying more efficient vehicles including those utilizing hybrids, electric powered, bio-diesel, and ethanol from biomass including corn and switch grass. He points out that hydrogen is not a way to store energy. "We don't have supplies of hydrogen in the ground." He emphasizes that, at the moment, it's about three times more efficient to take electricity to run an electric car than taking the extra step of using the electricity to charge up hydrogen fuel cells to run cars. Finally, Chiras urges that movement towards sustainability and renewables must begin now, while we have the time and the energy to change. Available As: Google Video RealMedia Windows Media Free Heat for Life Length: 53 minutes "Learn how to tap into the sun's energy to heat your home, even in the colder regions of North America." -- 2006 Michigan Energy Fair Program Guide Available As: Google Video RealMedia Windows Media Books by Daniel Chiras
Dan Chiras is an author of dozens of books including renewable energy and green building. He is a passive solar design consultant and a teacher at Colorado college. He lectures all around the country, and has lived in a renewable energy home for 30 years.
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