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The problem is we need to listen to people who understand how to make things actually happen. Politicians push electric cars without understanding the strain t

The problem is we need to listen to people who understand how to make things actually happen. Politicians push electric cars without understanding the strain that will put on the grid as it currently sits. They push banning coal and NG power plans without making sure there are alternatives available (just wind and/or solar is not sufficient by themselves). All we hear is "we need electric cars to avoid climate change"...without addressing the huge amounts of other changes that are needed.

ncmncm 4y ago
Increased demand for power to charge cars will drive demand for build-out of clean generating capacity. Decreased use of petrol-powered cars makes voters less sensitive to gas prices, thus desperately needed carbon taxes, and more interested in cheaper, thus renewable, electrical generation. The current US president is lately hustling eliminating tax on gasoline, instead, in an almost certainly doomed bid to fend off loss of majority in the upcoming congressional election. A big gas tax with monthly cash payouts to people with average and below incomes (i.e. most voters) would go over better.
- j_walter 4y ago
  >Increased demand for power to charge cars will drive demand for build-out of clean generating capacity This doesn't happen overnight and we already can forecast the need. Power generation projects (transmission on top of generation) has to be planned for many years in advance.
  - ncmncm 4y ago
    The best time for that was years ago. The second best is right now.
swatcoder 4y ago
> All we hear is "we need electric cars to avoid climate change"...without addressing the huge amounts of other changes that are needed. That’s not something I’ve experienced. It might be a sign that you’re not looking at the same sources of information as the rest of us.
- j_walter 4y ago
  https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-greenhouse-gases/ZEV https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-g... https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-greenhouse-gases/Investing-in-cleaner-transportation/Grant-funded-projects https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-g... None of the "Climate change" acts on the WA government website address where the electricity will be coming from for all of the zero emissions cars. In fact the only item I can find where they talk about sustainable energy...the goals were for 2020. https://results.wa.gov/measuring-progress/archived-outcome-measures/goal-3-sustainable-energy-clean-environment-goal-map https://results.wa.gov/measuring-progress/archived-outcome-m...
  - ncmncm 4y ago
    Washington, particularly, is less affected by increasing electricity demand than most places. Their power has always come from hydro.
    - j_walter 4y ago
      You can't just ramp up hydro though...and sure it's 75% hydro right now, but if you are adding another 20% to the grid to deal with electric car charging where is that coming from? Across the US there has been no hydro or nuclear investment for the past 30 years...wind and solar aren't currently being added quick enough to deal with the increased need (not to mention the push for converting all NG appliances and heating to electric).
      - ncmncm 4y ago
        There is a lot WA can do to ramp down other uses, particularly crypto mining. Hopefully those will fall off as crypto values collapse.

ncmncm 4y ago

Increased demand for power to charge cars will drive demand for build-out of clean generating capacity. Decreased use of petrol-powered cars makes voters less sensitive to gas prices, thus desperately needed carbon taxes, and more interested in cheaper, thus renewable, electrical generation. The current US president is lately hustling eliminating tax on gasoline, instead, in an almost certainly doomed bid to fend off loss of majority in the upcoming congressional election. A big gas tax with monthly cash payouts to people with average and below incomes (i.e. most voters) would go over better.

j_walter 4y ago
>Increased demand for power to charge cars will drive demand for build-out of clean generating capacity This doesn't happen overnight and we already can forecast the need. Power generation projects (transmission on top of generation) has to be planned for many years in advance.
- ncmncm 4y ago
  The best time for that was years ago. The second best is right now.

swatcoder 4y ago

> All we hear is "we need electric cars to avoid climate change"...without addressing the huge amounts of other changes that are needed. That’s not something I’ve experienced. It might be a sign that you’re not looking at the same sources of information as the rest of us.

j_walter 4y ago
https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-greenhouse-gases/ZEV https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-g... https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-greenhouse-gases/Investing-in-cleaner-transportation/Grant-funded-projects https://ecology.wa.gov/Air-Climate/Climate-change/Reducing-g... None of the "Climate change" acts on the WA government website address where the electricity will be coming from for all of the zero emissions cars. In fact the only item I can find where they talk about sustainable energy...the goals were for 2020. https://results.wa.gov/measuring-progress/archived-outcome-measures/goal-3-sustainable-energy-clean-environment-goal-map https://results.wa.gov/measuring-progress/archived-outcome-m...
- ncmncm 4y ago
  Washington, particularly, is less affected by increasing electricity demand than most places. Their power has always come from hydro.
  - j_walter 4y ago
    You can't just ramp up hydro though...and sure it's 75% hydro right now, but if you are adding another 20% to the grid to deal with electric car charging where is that coming from? Across the US there has been no hydro or nuclear investment for the past 30 years...wind and solar aren't currently being added quick enough to deal with the increased need (not to mention the push for converting all NG appliances and heating to electric).
    - ncmncm 4y ago
      There is a lot WA can do to ramp down other uses, particularly crypto mining. Hopefully those will fall off as crypto values collapse.