My Gosh, it's C-o-o-o-ld out there!!!

3 degrees Fahrenheit this morning

... and the wind is blowing hard. At least 15-20 mph average, I'd guess.

And I continue to obsess upon the impact of behemoth industrial wind turbines destroying massive amounts of our most visible and beautiful natural environment, while pondering the warmth that could be generated from the turbulence outside.

Here is a simple proposal from a 1500 person community on a plateau 2000 ft above a beautiful valley with a metro area of over 200,000. We propose that the amount of political energy, federal subsidies, and consumer price support in the interest of industrial scale wind turbine development, be redirected to support a massive implementation of the PACE program (Property Assessed Clean Energy).
Such an effort toward targeting energy generation closer to the point of use would have a far greater impact for dollar spent than any collective scheme that continues to distribute energy over a "physical" distribution grid. If a renewable electricity generation unit became an integral part of every building, we would gain 6 - 20% more efficient and cleaner use of all energy so generated. That is the same percentage of electricity energy we lose thru transmission and distribution over the “GRID” according to the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

With increased investment in research and development into energy storage technology; coupled with a redirection of the power companies to a local maintenance industry role, we can redirect the responsibility of conservation directly back to the consumer, at a dramatically lower cost.

Green and clean? Of course, but don’t get me started.

Disclaimer this proposal has not been formally adopted by the Bent Mountain community.

How long will it be before we see that we must be responsible for Ourselves?

Until that happens, I for one believe, I can help my family, friends and neighbors understand that.
Indeed, we can experience the greatest joy when we each realize the power we have.

With the same public investment of capital we are currently making in industrial scale, grid dependent, wind turbine installations, we can realize five times the exaggerated benefits claimed by the current wind industry developers. its well-paid lobbyists, and co-opted environmental organizations. Not only that, we can repay the bill ourselves with financial savings, rather than passing on the cost to our kids.

It will require a dramatic shift in our current economic structure. Instead of our natural resources continuing to be burdened with the costs of distribution, refinement and re-distribution; we have the opportunity to take upon ourselves the production of our own energy consumed, be it electrical, bio-fuel, fossil fuel, or by absorbtion. The rejection of convenience is the cost we must be willing to pay to achieve our dreams.

HOW?

Use all federal subsidies, including tax incentives used to attract profit-seekers into the "renewable energy industry", to capitalize PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) programs for all institutional/government, commercial and residential Properties.

Extended Benefits

Through the PACE program, which has been endorsed by the Commonwealth of Virginia for adoption by Virginia localities, publically-financed energy conservation and clean energy improvements for all properties will be repaid as a direct property-based improvement in the short term and as an inherent property value in the long term.

The continuance of  energy rate hikes that are an ingrained part of our system would be reduce dramatically as well.

We must, as a community, investigate and mathematically investigate these claims and commit ourselves to the implemetaion required.