The ingenuity of mankind and the proliferation of our ideas are simply breathtaking but like anything- there are side effects to our innovation.

The Manhattan project brought with it the ability to end war and power the world while simultaneously creating the ability to destroy it. Acid rain- the result of the boom in industrial activity was addressed and dramatically reduced with the Clean Air Act of ‘90; the Montreal protocol of ‘87 addressed the use of CFCs in refrigeration when they were found to be depleting the ozone.

The oil embargo of ‘73- though perhaps less dramatic than the examples above- brought with it the realization of what energy dependence was: so much so that fuel efficiency standards, speed limits and the banning of oil for power generation were all introduced.

IF the US has hit peak oil- the insight of just how dependent we are may push us to a ‘73 like awareness that accelerates the transition of the grid. TX makes 15% of its electricity from wind but as detailed in ‘Superpower’, the transmission of it is more about jobs (votes) than climate.

But- never waste a good crisis and this may transition the discussion from ‘fossil fuels are bad’ to ‘all energy options are good’ because I for one need to charge my phone.  

#hottakeoftheday