WHY MUST WE SWITCH OVER TO ALTERNATIVE RENEWABLE, SUSTAINABLE AND CLEAN ENERGY?

For the past 30 years I have concentrated on developing home energy systems that complement our highly energy efficient houses through building high thermal mass structures that reduce the energy consumption to heat and cool the home.  My aim has always been to install energy systems that are powered with energy sources that are as renewable and sustainable as possible for the latest generation of technology.  I have worked with many mechanical engineers over the years developing appropriate concept designs for the site our houses are built on and sized to our high thermal mass structures to minimize energy consumption.

I have found myself often exasperated with mechanical engineers for their resistance to plan and work outside the box by implementing systems that are not like all the other systems they do every day for standard wood stick framing houses.  They often calculate heating and cooling loads for R-13 walls and R-19 roofs when our homes were R-32 walls and roofs.

I have never understood why highly educated people who after getting their certification, fall into doing the same thing over and over throughout their career and show little interest in keeping up with the latest technology or even analyzing whether such technologies are of significant enough substance to merit changing from what they know.

Having been in both remedial and new construction for over 35 years and I have seen enough of building material products fail to live up to the manufacturer’s hype and promises, so I lean into being suspicious and skeptical of new products with high promises.  For me they must hold up to my assiduous scrutiny before I stake my reputation upon using them. So, I understand the reluctance of other professionals to use new products, but I am less empathic with those who refuse to utilize systems that are rooted in well-tried science such as natural convection air flow, solar thermal collectors for water source heating and for desiccant cooling or even to utilize high energy efficient heat pump water heaters.

When Jimmy Carter was president of the United States, we became aware of our energy crisis that was a threat to national security, due to our high dependence on foreign oil to supply our high consumption of energy highly dependent upon fossil fuels.  The worse part of this equation was our dependence upon oil from oil producing nations of the Middle East, most of which we had less than a stellar relationship.

As far as anyone can remember there has been conflict in the region.  Our western ways and lifestyle have been a source of resentment.  The formation of OPEC in 1960 became a way that the largest oil producing nations could leverage the control of this commodity in price and supply to nations addicted to this source of energy.

President Carter launched initiatives to research and develop new forms of renewable and sustainable energy with a twofold objective of reaching energy independence and reducing our deadly impact upon our environment by reducing emissions that destroy our ozone layer and other airborne pollution that increases greenhouse gas emissions.

There were at least three main initiatives that President Carter wanted to promote:

1. Major development of biofuel using our enormous surplus of grains that go to waste every year, to the point that we subsidize farmers not to grow crops or to grow other alternatives.

Out of this research and development arose two major products: Ethanol and bio diesel fuel.  Under the Carter administration there was a move to incentivize auto manufacturers to switch over to production of diesel-powered engines for automobiles.  Diesel cars put out much less caustic emissions than gasoline engines. Diesel emissions are mostly carbon which falls quickly to the ground whereas gasoline engines put out carbon monoxide which is a clear gas that destroys the earth’s outside layer of ozone and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, which we now know have contributed to global warming.  It was believed that diesel powered cars through advancing technology could become zero emission vehicles.

Regular diesel fuel is much easier to produce than gasoline and requires less energy to produce.  Transition over to diesel powered cars did not go so well in the United States, in a large part because of a flaw in judgment made by General Motors Corporation who tried to convert regular gasoline internal combustion engines into diesel engines.

Diesel works much differently than gas engines.  Diesel engine combustion is produced by high pressure to combust the fuel so therefore a diesel engine must have a block that can hold up to this pressure, which generally means the block and cylinders must have much heavier iron to hold up to this demand than gas powered cars. There were even attempts to use aluminum blocks and cylinders. This attempt to convert gas engines to diesel proved to be a disastrous choice since these engines failed.   This experience tainted Americans from switching over to diesel cars.  The Europeans successfully did switch over to diesel and now have achieved nearly zero emissions.

2. Another initiative was to convert internal combustion engines over to alternative fuels. The one route that took root and has continued is ethanol from our surplus grain.  It was first called Gasohol, and which contained a larger percentage of ethanol to gas than now.

The goal of this research was to transition from gasoline to alternative renewable sustainable fuels to be used in internal combustion engines.  The intent was to transition by measure in order that auto manufacturers and energy companies could gradually adjust in tooling and growing technology.  That transition was to move from gasoline to ethanol and from ethanol to liquid petroleum (propane) and finally over to being powered by natural gas, which we have in abundance. 

All of these measures towards energy independence are great, but they still would not fuel cars and trucks with zero environmental impact or total zero emissions.  Each of these measures still requires a great deal of energy to produce and to transport.

I must interject here that I have always felt our goal to energy independence, totally renewable, sustainable energy and low impact on the environment should be in the science of hydrogen production and implementation using hydrogen fuel cells, not only for fuel for automobiles, but our homes and businesses.

3. The third initiative was in research and development of solar energy from direct energy in solar thermal power in the production and implementation of solar thermal collectors.

The highest emphasis was to develop upon generation of electricity through Solar Photovoltaic panels.  Solar photovoltaic (SV) has taken the greatest portion of attention as a renewable source of electric energy, whereas direct energy from the sun through thermal collectors has taken a back seat to solar photovoltaic in research and development Consequently, public opinion has bought into the belief that this source of energy is the leading route toward energy independence and alternative renewable and sustainable energy.

I must confess that I have not been a big proponent toward moving this direction in home electricity especially as a solo approach.  The first reason is that the cost of powering a house solely with PV panels has a high initial cost to return in energy production, however public interest and demand has significantly had an impact on that high cost.

In 2010 the average cost of a solar photovoltaic installation for an average home was $30k.  The good news is that the price has declined significantly to $20k.

The second reason is that the required surface area for an all-PV system is very large and most lots are not amenable for this purpose, so often systems are installed on roof tops.  Roof top installation is not the ideal place for PV’s because the radiant heat off the roof reduces their ideal output and shortens the life expectancy of the equipment.

Photovoltaic panels perform better and last longer in open field installation where the panels have air flow around them.  Also given that most roofs in the United States are asphalt shingled with an average life expectancy of 12-17 year,s it becomes even more costly to install PV panels and then to remove them for a new roof and then to have to reinstall them or replace them in this interval of time.

My third reason for not promoting PV’s more is that for this system to work effectively 24 hours a day their energy must be stored in batteries which I do not consider to be renewable or sustainable. I will speak more about this later.

At the same time that Solar Voltaic energy has been researched and developed and increasingly installed, direct solar energy has not received the same attention.

Solar Thermal energy has grown in technology from the flat panel collectors that have been around longer than me to Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors.  Even though they have not grown in popularity as PV’s, they cost less than half that of PV’s and their energy efficiency per surface area compared to Solar Voltaic is more than 60% in output.

The development of Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors makes these units last at least 25 years and placing them on roofs makes them all the more effective, even though they do fine wherever you place them with good solar exposure.

Their high energy efficiency as compared to solar photovoltaics means that they can be a more compact component to your energy system.

So, what is an Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collector (ETSC)

The aim of solar thermal collectors is to absorb as much solar heat energy as possible and to retain that heat in a liquid medium. In other words, solar collectors convert solar radiation into thermal energy and reduce energy loss. ETSC’s improve this energy efficiency over flat plate absorption collectors by using glass or plastic cylindrical clear tubes that have within them copper tubes with a reflective backing that absorbs the radiant heat from the sun.

These absorption tubes maintain their radiant energy by being sealed inside a clear vacuumed tube. This acts as a diathermia wall. The internal absorber is a copper heat pipe that contains a vaporized fluid that makes it possible for the heat transferred fluid to reach temperatures that exceed 250 degrees (F).

This means that this heat has the possibility of running a steam turbine electric generator whose electricity could be used to power an electrolyzer for separating hydrogen and oxygen from water.  This gas is collected in pressurized canisters.

This pressurized hydrogen is used to run a internal combustion engine which turns an electric generator.  This hydrogen powered generator is very quiet and puts off zero emissions. More importantly this system provides electric energy 24 hours a day all year long without the need for batteries to store energy.

In moderate climates the most efficient use of this thermal heat is in direct heating water as the vaporized liquid. This provides direct heat for domestic hot water and for water source heating for the home either through radiators or in radiant coils inside the air handler.

In climates especially that have a high gradient temperature between day and night or climes which have many days without sun or temperatures below freezing, then a liquid like glycol is the absorbent liquid. The vaporized liquid rises to the condenser and the heat manifold and turns back to liquid and falls back to the solar exposed space. In such a system there is a built-in storage tank that maintains this cycle with natural thermal convection.

In most closed loop systems, the heated fluid circulates through a water heater and through a system of radiant tubes either in direct radiant heat or through coils in the air handler and returns to the ETSC using a circulating pump to supply domestic hot water and for water source heating for the home. We recommend a dedicated low wattage circulating pump supplied by a photo-voltaic generator.

Since the heat absorption tubes are protected within the evacuated tubes that prevent the loss of thermal energy and maintain the maximum heat absorption and because the evacuated clear tubes are cylindrical this system works effectively from sunrise to sunset and even on overcast days. Furthermore, the vacuum seal makes the system impervious to energy loss on cold days or the flow of air around the tubes.

This system using cylindrical tubes optimizes the total thermal surface area for collecting thermal energy. The vacuum seal also prevents corrosion from the effects of the environment or from collection of condensation. This translates into continuous production of thermal energy every day, every season for a lifetime.

This means this system saves you in energy costs consistently for many years directly using the free thermal energy of the sun. Now with solar thermal collectors surrounded by a clear cylindrical vacuum tube consistently provides heat for heating water for domestic hot water and for heating the home is a no brainer for this purpose, but it can also be utilized for a cooling system through desiccant cooling as well.

A desiccant cooling system uses a material that removes moisture from the air with resulting cooling of the space where the relative humidity is extracted. A common readily accessible and inexpensive desiccant could be silica gel. Here is how a desiccant cooling system would work in conjunction with Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors.

The ETSC provides consistent heat through the heated liquid medium which is produced by direct thermal energy of the sun. This heat is transferred to a desiccant wheel or rotor. The desiccant wheel rotates between the air flow and the heated fluid, which allows the desiccant material to absorb the moisture from the air.

As the desiccant absorbs the moisture from the air it releases latent heat, which cools the air passing over it. The cooled dehumidified air provides effective cooling for your living space. In all our eco-sustainable plans we integrate the use of Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors as an integrated part of our heating and cooling system because it captures the direct thermal energy of the sun as a highly consistent, energy efficient and inexpensive heating and cooling systems for a lifetime.

Furthermore, Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors are designed to last a lifetime because of their low maintenance.  If a tube gets broken or the thermal seal breaks it is just a matter of unscrewing the affected tube and screwing in a new one and you are back in business. Even though this system has not gained much public attention or been used as frequently as Solar Photovoltaic systems it requires less surface area than PV” s for the equivalent output and the cost of panels and installation are still less than half that of Solar Photovoltaic systems.

It has now been nearly 50 years since President Jimmy Carter was president of the United States and whose administration shown a light upon our looming energy crisis.  He pointed out that our demand for fossil fuels exceeds what we could produce in this country, and this created a crisis of dependency.  His administration mandated an initiative to produce clean, sustainable and renewable forms of energy to rid us of dependence on other nations to supply our energy and to lead the way away from energy produced by fossil fuels to alternatives clean energy which would reduce air pollution and to lead the world in green energy technology.

I ask you what grade would you give us on our progress toward energy independence and leading the world in green energy technology?

It is my humble opinion that we surely should have been shed of Fossil Fuel by now to meet our energy demands long before now.

We can point fingers and cast blame as much as we want, but it comes down to you and me shedding our ignorance about what fuel sources we should promote and applying public pressure upon our legislators to pass bills concerning green renewable energy technology.

In 2009 I was contacted through my company website by Dr. Andrew Searcy.  Dr. Searcy had a PhD in hydrogen science.  He worked for Conoco Philips for nearly 30 years.  He told me that he had developed a protype automobile powered by hydrogen in 1984 and that Conoco Philips had secured the patent for this automobile, and they sold the patent to General Motors Corporation.

So, I ask why have we not seen this automobile when we so much need zero emissions, totally renewable, sustainable and energy independent automobiles?

Dr. Searcy came to me with an urgent mission to see his life’s work in hydrogen fuel cells put into a practical application.  Andrew was at the time I met him in the final stages of esophagus cancer.

He wanted to create a multi-use community powered by fuel cells and to develop a curriculum for a local technology college in alternative renewable and sustainable energy and construction.  This program would provide students with hands-on training by working on the development of this community.

He approached me because my company specializes in designing and building houses that are highly energy efficient, low maintenance and to serve the needs for many generations using alternative renewable sustainable building materials and integrating into our design and construction highly energy efficient heating and cooling systems.

We specialized in designing and building with Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF) and Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC).  (Please see my blog posts on AAC and ICF.)

I must tell you I was more than enthusiastic about meeting and working with Dr. Searcy.  For more than 30 years I have watched the development of hydrogen technology, which I have believed is the best route toward totally renewable, sustainable energy.

When I saw his proposal to develop such a community powered independently with hydrogen fuel cells, I was totally on board with helping him to fulfill his dream and mine.

After much deliberations and planning we decided to look for land for our proposed community in a small North Georgia town which had been in decline for some time that most businesses and shops had closed.  We thought that building such a community would breathe new life into this town and put it back on the map.

We looked at two properties on the edge of town.  One was a beautiful property of 60 acres which had a large creek that runs through it, which thrilled Andrew.  So, we went to the drawing board to design such a mixed-use community that would be totally energy independent using hydrogen fuel cells to power it.

I went to work on first our concept for this small community and worked with surveyors to get a layout and topography for the property and its natural resources.  A very nice surprise we discovered in this process is there were two deep water wells that could supply the community’s needs.  The land was hilly but there were about 14 acres that could be graded level.  My intention was to use this property for a small grocery store, a pharmacy and maybe a café and/or other small businesses plus level lots for single store houses on slabs.

On the property was a hill which had a southwest face to it.  My plan was to terrace this hill and use it for placement of Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal collectors and solar photovoltaics panels as well as a community garden.

In the meantime, Dr. Searcy was working on a design for a power grid to be powered by hydrogen fuel cells.  He discussed with me about using three key sources to power his electrolyzers which would extract hydrogen gas from alkaline water and store this gas in pressurized tanks so that they could power one large electric generator fueled by hydrogen which would be able to power the community energy grid 24 hours a day and through days with out sunlight.  We had discussed whether we would need to use batteries for storing electricity, which we mutually agreed we did not want to go this route but concentrate on producing enough hydrogen to store power.

He proposed that he would design a sophisticated water mill that would generate electricity consistently 24 hours a day.

Secondly, he proposed designing a steam turbine generator powered by our Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal collectors.

Thirdly we would use Solar Voltaic Panels to supply power for energy to supply electricity for some of his electrolyzers to produce and store hydrogen.

His power plant would supply electricity for the whole community using completely clean, renewable and sustainable energy with no caustic byproducts.

Yes, Andrew’s power plant would be very expensive, but he did a projection of how this plant would be paid over a 10-year term by sale of the lots, and the residents would pay a flat fee each month for power and water.  His projection showed that the system could be paid for at an affordable rate to the residents and after the plant was paid for then a small fee would be charged for replacement parts and other maintenance of the system.

I cannot think of any project I have worked on planning and building throughout my career that I had more confidence, gratification and exuberance that I was genuinely fulfilling my dream of participating in designing and building a house or community that has a low impact on the environment, using alternative renewable sustainable technologies to build an energy independent community with zero emissions and no waste byproduct.

With a well laid out plan for this community development and a detailed comprehensive proposal for this project we went to the county development authority to present our plan.  They received our plan with much less than enthusiasm.  They saw no value in such a community.

After this rejection we both felt deflated, and I think Andrew’s condition declined more quickly.  He succumbed to cancer two months later.

What I learned from Dr. Searcy was that hydrogen power is possible and doable and is indeed the route we need to pursue for energy independence that is completely clean renewable and sustainable.  With public interest and pressuring our legislators to support bills that promote and fund companies working in research and development of hydrogen technology.

Hydrogen science is by no means new.  It was nearly 250 years ago that hydrogen in water was discovered.  In 1804 Francois Isaac de Rivaz a Swiss scientist obtained a patent for a hydrogen powered vehicle.  His prototype was a 4-wheel vehicle with an internal combustion engine.  The vehicle was powered with hydrogen and oxygen produced through the process of electrolysis where oxygen and hydrogen are extracted from water.  For his prototype he captured this gas mixture in a balloon.  The ignition was achieved through an electrical starter known as a volta.

By the end of the 19th century there grew a great interest and demand for hydrogen for filling zephyrs with hydrogen for air travel.

Ironically the same simple process of extracting hydrogen and oxygen from water through electrolysis is still the leading process of producing this gas.

Alkaline water electrolysis is a type of electrolyzer which uses a liquid alkaline solution, commonly using potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.  There are two electrodes that deliver electricity to this solution.  The two electrodes are separated by a diaphragm which separates the hydrogen and oxygen which transports the hydroxide ions from one electrode to the other where hydrogen and oxygen are extracted from the alkaline water solution.

I must say that I am becoming more alarmed that all the car manufacturers are all going to the production of electric automobiles.  I thoroughly believe we need emissions free cars and trucks and yesterday would not be too soon, but I do not see how this could be sustainable.  The other issue is electric filling stations to meet the demand for charging these vehicles is drawing off the present grid that is still largely produced with fossil fuels.

I am also concerned about so large a part of our moving to green energy is towards photovoltaic panels.

The issue that concerns me and should you is that electric vehicles and photovoltaic panels must store energy in Lithium Ion batteries.  EV batteries have a life expectancy of 5-7 years and PV batteries last 3-5 years.  Besides the fact that they are very expensive to replace and I have read they are recyclable but little attention has been given to this task.  The main thing I have read is they are very expensive to recycle and resources for this process are few.  So now depleted batteries must be stored as toxic waste because of the rare earth metals used in them.  Furthermore, we are becoming aware that Lithium batteries can overheat and combust.

If these issues are not enough to alarm you, then consider the issue that these rare earth metals are rare and there are few places on earth they can be mined, but my greatest concern is that we are trading our once dependence on fossil fuels to meet our energy demands from foreign countries to another energy dependency.

So, what are the rare earth metals that are used in Lithium- Ion batteries and where can they be found.

Lithium is mainly found and extracted from mainly salt flats and underground brine reservoirs.  Extracting lithium from salt flats and brine reservoirs is through evaporation and then by using large amounts of precious ground water to process it.  These areas where it is being mined are arid regions where water is already rare and in the process of extracting lithium a great deal of this ground water for drinking and farming is lost. On top of this issue is that the remaining liquid left over from extraction of this metal is highly toxic including radioactive elements, which make these once salt flats a permanent waste area for centuries. The largest producer of Lithium as well as the largest manufacturer of Lithium-Ion batteries is China.  The other major producers of lithium are Bolivia, Argentina and Chile.

Cobalt is another major rare earth metal for EV and PV batteries as well as all our favorite electronics like computers and cell phones. Cobalt is extracted as a byproduct of copper and nickel mining but can be mined directly from deposits close to copper and nickel.  Cobalt is probably the metal most used in batteries that has the highest environmental and social threat.  These mines produce toxic residues that leach into the ground water making it toxic and having a serious health impact to surrounding communities.  Smelting cobalt ore produces caustic fumes of high concentrations of sulfur oxide and other air pollutants.

Besides the environmental impact of mining cobalt, is the human working environment factor.  This mining is mostly done in poor communities and little thought is given to safety, or training and equipment to mitigate the conditions that are hazardous for these underpaid miners who often suffer injury or death.  The enormous environmental impact from mining and processing this metal, highly effects surrounding communities with health issues that causes the residents to suffer chronic disease and early death

This mining and processing of cobalt is mostly in The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Australia.

Another metal used in Lithium-Ion batteries is Manganese.  Manganese is the fifth most abundant metal on earth and often found alongside iron ore. This metal is mostly mined in open pits and use and affect large tracts of land having a large impact on the environment.  These pit mines are mainly in dry arid regions and consequently in the process of mining they produce lots of toxic dust that spreads into the local towns nearby. Besides the toxic air pollution, it affects surface and grown water. The biggest producers are: South Africa, Australia, China, India, Ukraine and Brazil.

These metals are mostly mined in impoverished regions with workers who receive low wages and lack the training and safety equipment they need leading to injury and death.  The pollutants have a big impact on the villages they live in which results in chronic illnesses and early death.

Besides our growing dependance on foreign sources for these rare earth metals for our EV, and PV batteries and all our other electronic devices we are complicit in social and environmental inequity.  The single largest producers of Lithium-Ion batteries is China in which our trade and political relationship is tenuous at best.

Furthermore, the mining and production of these batteries uses an enormous amount of energy that derives from fossil fuels.  I ask you is this really the way we want to go toward energy independence, and lowering our environmental impact?

I propose that our research and development and implementation of green, renewable and sustainable energy be the development and production of hydrogen fuel cells.  As I have mentioned above this technology is not new and we already lag behind in its production and use to countries like Germany, Japan and China who already have hydrogen systems that supply power to towns and manufacturing facilities and probably in automobiles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. 

The United States has clearly had 50 years to develop alternative, renewable and sustainable energy systems with an emphasis on clean renewable energy in hydrogen technology and lead the world in green energy production.

Instead, we have been content to rely upon our energy being sourced by fossil fuels and we have lost our opportunity to lead the world in green energy production as well as developing and training workers for new jobs in green energy technology.

I would like to point out some companies I have learned about that are involved in hydrogen fuel cell science and development.

Ballard Power Systems has been working in this technology since 1979 when geophysicist Geoffrey Ballard, Keith Prater and Paul Howard established Ballard Research Inc.

Their first initiative was research and development on high energy lithium batteries.  In 1989 they switched over to renewable hydrogen fuel cell energy systems with a focus on providing such knowledge to auto, truck, bus and train manufacturers. The first auto manufacturer to buy this technology is Daimler/Chrysler.

Kohler and Toyota of North America are collaborating in developing hydrogen fuel cells to power large scale electric generators.  They are presently working on hydrogen powered generators for Klickitat Valley Hospital in Goldendale, Washington, USA.  This project is projected to be complete by the end of 2024.

Caterpillar is working on hydrogen generation using chemical catalysis to produce hydrogen for fuel cells for large scale generators and fuel cells for heavy equipment.

Panasonic, Oska, Japan is also working on large scale generators for commercial and industrial application using hydrogen produced from chemical catalysis reaction.

General Motors Corporation is working on large mobile electric generators fueled by hydrogen fuel cells for commercial application.

I just recently learned of a new start up company whose interest align with my specific interest in designing and building with alternative building materials and construction technics that are genuinely renewable and sustainable and powered by alternative renewable sustainable and clean energy.  This company is Blue Water Resolute (BWR) and Oncore Energy.  Their focus in hydrogen fuel technology is in producing hydrogen generators for small scale energy plants for houses and small businesses as well as mobile electric power plants to supply hydrogen powered generators.

Their Microgrid uses a hybrid approach.  They use dedicated solar voltaic panels to supply the electricity to their electrolyzers which extracts hydrogen and oxygen from water through electrolysis and this hydrogen is stored in pressurized tanks which powers their internal combustion engines to turn electric generators which are very quiet with zero emissions.

Here is a diagram of their Microgrid:

 

I had the good pleasure to speak with the company’s president, Jean Vooress recently and she said that these Microgrids for a size to power an individual house is still not practical in costs as yet and their goal is to eliminate the need to store electricity in lithium batteries and instead relying on this storage in hydrogen tanks.  This would help reduce the cost.

As supply and demand has reduced the cost of solar voltaic panels for home energy use, so could it reduce the cost of their Microgrids.  For this to happen we need to support and promote companies like Oncore Energy.  Here is the link to their company:

Oncore Energy | Premium hydrogen fuel cell microgrid | Official Site

I personally refuse to specify and use products and techniques in building materials and energy systems for powering the home which though claim to be green, sustainable and renewable.  That is why I scrutinize in the light of day products that are not sustainable.  I am weary and disgusted with the hype and false promises of companies that promote their products as “green” which really are not.

 

 In my industry in construction LEEDS (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the organization that certifies and promotes building materials and building technics and energy systems as “green”. In my opinion much of what they promote when looked at in the light of day is anything but “green”.  This is why I am reluctant to even use the word “green” when I speak of sustainable and renewable materials, construction techniques and energy systems.  This is why I refuse to use or promote many of the products endorsed by LEED.

 

This is why my company still refers to its planning designs as “alternative” even though our methods and products we promote are rooted in long time science that has proved to be reliable for a long time like Autoclaved Aerated Concrete which has been used now 100 years or the use of solar thermal collectors which have been used in different forms for more than 200 years. I have watched for over 30 years for hydrogen energy to be put in use as a truly renewable, sustainable and clean energy which has been known about for 250 years.

 

As I have spoken of earlier, I am alarmed that all the auto manufacturers seem to be heading solely towards electric automobiles and why I believe this is not sustainable.  They have relied upon internal combustion engines now for over 130 years and have had multiple patents in hydrogen fueled engines for a very long time.  So, I ask you why they have not moved toward converting their gasoline internal combustion engines over to hydrogen which is proven to be totally renewable, sustainable and zero emission engines and frees us up from energy dependency.

 

I have briefly discussed where we have been and done about renewable, sustainable and clean energy since its mandate and funding for research and development 50 years ago.  Over this time, we have learned undoubtably that the use of fossil fuels has led to global warming.  Do you suppose we carry on our current path?

 

And if so, where will we be in the next 50 years?  Will the earth still be an inhabitable place for humans, other mammals and all other creatures?

 

I take seriously my role as a good steward of the earth by being aware of the difference between hype and substance when it comes to designing houses and integrating energy systems for the home. I practice resistance and refusal continuously by not practicing uninformed ignorance.

 

I encourage you to do the same in the places you live and work.  Together we can change the status quo by being informed and taking positive action toward change.