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101 comments on ASPO-USA: Support for Global Energy Flow modelling and a Net Energy database

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Nate Hagens on November 1, 2006 - 1:10pm Permalink | Subthread | Comments top
And I applaud the folks that are trying to get net energy analysis back into the policy debates, as it was in the 1970s.  There are hundreds of millions of dollars chasing renewable and alternative energy technologies, but very little (if any) money looking at a global systems view of our energy balance sheet, and future assets and liabilities.

Of course, how does one make money doing that....?

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Euan Mearns on November 1, 2006 - 2:19pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Nate, as you know I'm pretty new to this - first introduction to the concept of ERoEI was about 6 months ago when I read Richard Heinberg's Party book. On reading that I saw immediately how important the concept was, and believe our future monetary systems will be linked to energy trading.

I do not believe that most of our politicians and decision makers have the ability to grasp that notion - that an energy production system may seem "profitable" in finance terms simply because it is subsidised by energy produced from a more efficient energy production system.

I also beleive that we need to give equal weight to efficient energy use - and there we need to have a clear understanding of what is efficient and what is not.  For example, it is easy to claculate that hanging clothes out side to dry is better than popping them into a tumble drier - or is it?  You need to have space available outside for a clothes rope - and what is the energy cost or providing that?

I believe that with the correct choice of energy production systems (that may vary from region to region) combined with efficient energy use - then we (Mankind) have nothing to worry about - there's no problem here that $10 billion won't solve....

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