*~*All Organic - All The Time*~*

Monday, November 19, 2007

Renewable Energy Coming to Michigan!

I was so excited to read that there may be a mandate requiring 10% of Michigan's electric power to come from renewable energy by 2015, and 30% by 2030. Yay us! There are twenty-three other states who have already set renewable energy standards (yay them!)

Michael and I have talked about buying land and building a solar home, something off the grid. Ultimately, I believe we will, at some point. But it's always so frustrating to have the willingness, but not the means, to accomplish something that I know will be so beneficial for us, our children, and our children's children.

It's heartening to know our state is catching up and jumping on the green bandwagon. There's some opposition, I guess, about wind power. Windmills and turbines might "blight" the Michigan landscape. Feh!



I think they're rather beautiful. Certainly no worse than fences or telephone poles. And what they signify--renewable energy--is definitely worth whatever aesthetic minuses there might be!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw these majestic things in Canada this summer. I love what they stand for!

I've tagged you for Thanksgiving, hope you don't mind.

CountryDew said...

I think building a new "green" home may be easier than trying to fix an older home. I have looked into solar panels and a geothermal system for our house, which is several decades old, and found it cost prohibitative because of the extensive changes in the structure it would require. But if I were building today I would certainly incorporate such features. I hope you are able to do that. It's a commendable goal.

SmartlikeStreetcar said...

Dawn... thanks for leaving so many kind comments on my blog.

I've just read a book (Heat by George Monbiot) on the climate crisis which suggests we must to cut our greenhouse gases by 90 per cent by 2030. It sounds inconceivable, but Monbiot describes exactly how we can do it. So I was discouraged, and then uplifted by his words. We can start by cleaning up our power plants and embrace renewable energy, like Michigan.

I was amazed to recently learn that my itsy-bitsy Canadian province should be able to supply most of the Northeastern US with electricity by 2030, if we develop wave and wind farms.

So maybe you won't have to live off the grid.

And every piece of news like this is good. Go Michigan!

Anonymous said...

I think windmills are pretty too, what's wrong with people!