The issues of climate change and the use of fossil fuels like coal and natural gas are as prevalent as the air we breathe. The straightforward answer is to use the sun’s power, according to a new book by Bill McKibben, the father of popular climate writing.
The concept of climate change was initially made public by McKibben in 1989 with his book End of Nature.When I was in my 20s in the 1980s, I penned the first book on what is now known as climate change, or the greenhouse effect. He said, “I have been following this story for as long as it has been a story.”
During that period, he established nonprofits350.organdThird Act and authored over a dozen books. Bringing elder generations into the fold of climate movement is the latter.
As you travel to demonstrations and other events, it turns out that your walker makes a great platform for hanging signs, he said.
He foresaw many of the environmental disasters that have since occurred as a result of global warming in the 1980s. A more optimistic view of Earth’s energy future and a potential remedy can be found in his most recent book, Here Comes the Sun.
In the early 2000s, McKibben installed pricey and somewhat inefficient solar panels on his Vermont home, making him an early adopter of solar electricity. But in twenty-five years, a lot has changed. In addition to increasing in efficiency, panels are becoming less expensive to construct. When these original panels eventually reach the end of their useful lives, which should be in the middle of the 1930s, he says, they will have enough material to make ten new panels.
It’s not just the price of solar that McKibben corrects. He also responds to inquiries concerning the productivity, safety, and dependability of the technology. Just under 6% of the sunlight that the first solar cells absorbed in 1954 was transformed into energy. Since then, a solar cell’s efficiency has increased fourfold, from 6% to roughly 25%, according to McKibben. The efficiency of certain experimental panels is getting close to 40%.
The efficiency of burning coal or oil is around 30%, but that’s where it peaks. In addition to the energy needed to extract and move natural gas, coal, or oil from a mine to a power plant.
He discussed his most recent book and the reasons for optimism in an interview with Zachary Turner of WFAE this week. This discussion has been condensed for clarity and brevity.
Bill McKibben: The Chinese were constructing three gigawatts of solar panels every day in May. The approximate size of a coal-fired power station is one gigawatt. They were installing enough solar panels every eight hours to operate a power plant.
Turner, Zachary:Dispelling myths and redefining renewable energy in a world where it is both more affordable and productive than it was in the past appeared to be two of the book’s main themes. Were there any prejudices or misunderstandings that you were unaware you were still harboring while conducting the study for this book?
McKibben: Writing about land usage was one of the things that most intrigued me. I’m living in the great outdoors. My universe is like that. It’s a shame that this requires land, I always thought. However, in some respects, that is perhaps one of its greatest advantages.
About half of the maize farmed in the Champlain Valley of Vermont, where I live, is planted only for ethanol. All we’re doing is producing gasoline, which is incredibly inefficient. An acre of corn yields enough ethanol to fuel a Ford F150 for roughly 25,000 miles. If you cover it with solar panels, the same acre can generate enough electricity to power the Ford F-150 for almost 700,000 kilometers.
TurnerThe good news, according to McKibben, is that we can still meet these goals with the solar, wind, and battery technologies we already produce. A portion of Here Comes the Sun’s profits will support an international day of activity, which McKibben calls Sun Day, to draw attention to the urgent need for a swift, clean energy transition.
Although there has been much discussion on the subject, North Carolina recently slashed its 2030 carbon emission reduction target, logically, in the sake of rate savings. Why is 2030 a significant goal in and of itself rather than merely a milestone we’re attempting to reach before 2050?
McKibben: Unfortunately, the climate crisis is already unfolding in real time, at an unprecedented rate, and it appears that we are nearing or have already passed irreversible tipping points. The fact that warm air carries more water than cold air isn’t the most alarming discovery of the past few years, in my opinion. The damage to very deep earth systems is now evident, and the jet stream, which functions due to the temperature differential between the poles and the equator, is now trapped in these odd, high amplitude patterns because that temperature differential is much smaller. We have long known that, so you know what’s happening with things like Helene is completely predictable. Depending on which side of the jet stream you are on, the Arctic is experiencing either drought or floods as a result of the massive amount of ice that we have melted.
A few years ago, the Paris Climate Accord’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stated that in order to have any chance of continuing on the course we established in Paris, we needed to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030. You cannot simply run the system as we have until 2049 and then cut it short if your goal is to reach zero by 2050. You simply must complete this task, even if you are aware that doing so will cause really significant changes.
TurnerDo you want people to know anything about your book that I didn’t ask you about?
McKibben: I took the book’s title from George Harrison and mentioned that it’s by far the most popular song by the Beatles. If you look at what people are streaming on Spotify, you’ll see that there are literally hundreds of amazing songs about the sun and spectacular artwork from the caves to Van Gogh. Furthermore, there aren’t many lovely odes to fracked gas when you stop to think about it.
Sept. 21 is Sun Day, a drama about Earth Day. On Tuesday, McKibben’s book, Here Comes the Sun, will be released.