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  • From: John Schinnerer <john@eco-living.net>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] more re ethanol production
  • Date: Thu, 02 Feb 2006 20:04:18 -1000

Aloha,

I see a clear pattern in all of the institutional citations - newspaper articles, W's speech, Lester Brown, etc. - regarding biofuels/bioenergy.

The pattern is only asking the question "how and with what do we replace fossil fuel?" and the consistent avoidance of any possibility of actually having to get used to (or better yet designing for) declining energy usage.

Avoidance of even asking the most fundamental question:

Are we using more energy per unit of time than we are getting from the sun per unit of time?

If we are - then 'replacing' fossil fuels with biofuels and whatever else is just rearranging those 'ol deck chairs on that big big unsinkable ocean liner.

What is our (very localized) solar gain, and what portion of that could be harvested to support humans in the long term (which of course means allowing all the living systems we need to support us to have at least their necessary share).

Answering these questions - in macro and micro contexts - is the *beginning* of figuring out how much energy use by humans might theoretically be sustainable.

hi ho,
John S.

--

John Schinnerer - MA, Whole Systems Design
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- Eco-Living -
Whole Systems Design Services
People - Place - Learning - Integration
john@eco-living.net
http://eco-living.net




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