On
Owned Power
People
speak of ‘renewable energy’, but I think that both a misnomer and a
distraction. People don’t want energy, as such; what they want is a constant supply of energy; a continuous flow.
Energy is measured in ergs, or joules, or kilowatt-hours; energy flow measured
in ergs per second, or watts, or kilowatts.
Energy
per unit time is also known as power;
desired by all the world for all the usual reasons. What a solar panel, or a
windmill, or a geothermal tap provides is secure access to an energy flow; or
in other words, ownership of power.
Therefore
I give ‘renewable energy’ another name: owned
power. What is usually called non-renewable energy I call rented power. Any power system requiring
constant refueling is rented power.
The
economic distinctions between rented and owned power are obvious; and the
political consequences too.
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