Bill Gates Not Sold on Energy Efficiency

Bill Gates, the 2nd richest person in the world, announced that energy efficiency was a "cute" attempt at solving climate change but not a viable answer at the most recent Wired conference held in New York. The Microsoft mega mind is convinced that nuclear power is the way to go when choosing an energy source that will effectively deal with climate control. Gates has invested heavily in nuclear R&D companies and is noted for his support of nuclear initiatives. He argues that energy efficiency technologies will never get us to the 90% reduction in carbon emissions that the nation is aiming for. Even if that were true, a staunch supporter of nuclear power would have to admit (if they were truthful) that energy efficiency is the game changer that has opened up innovative and conscientious thought concerning how we power our country. The advent of the CFL has spurned both rich and poor on a massive scale to give thought to changing the way we produce and utilize energy. If anything, we should seek to find ways to utilize clean energy. Nuclear power has the potential to put us in the same position as coal has. It is the author's biased (won't lie about that) opinion that Nuclear power is a quick fix method that has a high potential to backfire whereas energy efficiency and conservation will require more time, energy, and creativity but will yield more effective results that will last longer. This is about future generations too. But then again, I'm no billionaire. What do you think? Does Nuclear energy trump energy efficiency?

American Nuclear Energy Plans: In the Wake of Japan's Devastating Earthquake

By now, the world is well aware of the devastating earthquake that struck Japan a little less than two weeks ago. The shaking not only affected the the physical ground, but the business and political grounds tied to the energy sector as well. President Obama still plans to invest approximately $36 billion toward his Nuclear power plant initiative in addition to the $18.5 billion already earmarked by the federal government. There are currently 104 Nuclear reactors in the US that provide 20% of the country's electricity. Mr. Obama's investment would add another 4-7 nuclear reactors to the US energy chessboard. Even with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear powerplant crisis still unfolding, some Capitol Hill insiders consider it highly unlikely that government officials will walk away from the planned US nuclear reactor investments.Pro-nuclear lobbyists have tremendous political leverage in Washington and their cooperation is deemed necessary for future energy initiatives to take place.

The PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric) owned nuclear power plant in Diablo Canyon may have to re-evaluate their nuclear licensing procedures due to Japan's Earthquake. Furthermore, a January PG&E report disclosed that there was a previously undiscovered volcanic fault line located 1km off shore of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, according to Renewable Energy World.Japan's powerful tremor has many states and countries rethinking their energy positions.Though Japan was the country that experienced the earthquake, the rest of the world has still been massively impacted in one way or another as well.