Today, La Repubblica, one of Italy's largest newspapers, put out an amazing report on renewable energy. Italy's success can be imitated by any nation.
The headline reads:
“We are green and self-sufficient.”
"In Italy, one municipality in eight is electrically self-sufficient thanks to solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal sources. In Lecce, more energy is produced from solar than in Freiburg, the capital of German solar energy. Renewable energy is present in at least 94% of Italian municipalities. Accused of being too expensive, marginal, and complex, sources of green power have published “Communi Rinnovabili 2011” that shows how alternative energy in Italy has become commercially viable."
In its sixth edition, the report published today is “the best answer to those who maintain that contributions from green energy sources are marginal at best.” The report goes on to say that communities who answer to local demands for energy with renewable resources show that the objectives established by the European union are not only totally reachable, but have huge advantages for everyone.
“Thanks to renewable energy,” we read in the document, “we are creating jobs, renovating old neighborhoods, making enough energy so that we can sell the excess, improving the quality of life, not to mention the main result: much lower energy bills.”
The report goes on to say that today, 94% of municipalities have renewable energy as part of their energy plan. It's also significant that all the sources of renewable energy are growing in number; this includes photovoltaics, direct solar heating of water and air, hydroelectric, geothermal, biomass, biogas, and wind power, all integrated with home heating systems and modern high-efficiency heat pumps.
One example is the town of Brunico, with a population of 15,000; renewable energy sources furnish 100% of the energy needed for the whole town, and this in the north of Italy, where the climate gets below freezing in winter.
We should be easily able to do the same here in the United States. That we haven't yet is to our shame.
We seem to be able and willing to go to war and waste resources on conflict, to the tune of trillions; I look forward to the day when we can devote even 10% of the gross national product to renewable energy. This would remove the need for coal and nuclear generating plants, probably within a year or two.
The floor is yours.